Outside Gu Ye’s usually quiet little courtyard, quite a few miners and their family members had gathered after hearing the commotion. The low buzz of discussion broke the usual dull silence.
Wang Manli stood in the center of the crowd, her face flushed red, yet she refused to show the slightest weakness. Pointing at her own face, she loudly argued to the people around her:
“Are you all blind? Didn’t you see that she was the one who hit me first?!”
“Oh right—Xiao Ling! Xiao Ling can testify!”
Xiao Ling had originally been hiding in the crowd, but being suddenly called out, she had no choice but to step forward and hurriedly nodded.
“Yes! I saw it with my own eyes! She was the one who hit Sister Manli first!”
“Xiao Ling is your person. How can her words be trusted?”
Wang Lei stood his ground stubbornly, refusing to move even a step as he blocked Lin Wan behind him. His eyes were red with anger.
“Besides, who here doesn’t know what kind of temper you, Wang Manli, have? You even came to someone’s house to cause trouble, and you still say you’re not bullying people?!”
The onlookers whispered among themselves.
Their gazes moved back and forth between the aggressive Wang Manli and Lin Wan, who stood behind Wang Lei with her head lowered, shoulders trembling slightly.
“Tsk tsk… coming straight to someone’s house to make a scene—this is really too much…”
“Look how scared Gu Ye’s little wife is. She just arrived at the mine and already ran into her. She looks like she’s about to cry but is still holding it in. Poor thing.”
There were also different voices muttering quietly:
“If we’re talking about conditions though, Wang Manli is actually better. After all, she has someone backing her…” The speaker pointed upward meaningfully. “If Gu Ye chose her, he wouldn’t have to stay a small miner…”
Before he could finish, someone beside him interrupted.
“Give me a break! Would you want to marry a tigress with that kind of temper? Isn’t that asking to suffer every day?”
Having a powerful backer didn’t mean you’d live long enough to enjoy it.
The man immediately shut his mouth awkwardly.
Listening to the murmurs around her, Wang Manli’s face shifted between pale and green.
Suddenly, she turned her spear toward the silent Lin Wan, her tone aggressive.
“Lin Wan! Say it yourself! Were you the one who hit first?! Do you dare admit it?!”
She was the one who got hit, yet these fools were acting like blind people—none of them believed her.
For a moment, everyone’s gaze focused on Lin Wan.
She slowly raised her head.
Her face was pale, her lashes still damp, yet she stubbornly refused to cry. Her clear eyes were full of fear and helplessness.
She timidly glanced at the furious Wang Manli, then quickly avoided her gaze as if frightened.
Then she gently tugged at Wang Lei’s sleeve. Her voice was soft and weak, pleading:
“Wang Lei… maybe… maybe we should just forget it… I’m really fine… please don’t cause trouble because of me…”
Her obedient, long-suffering appearance—clearly wronged yet still trying to smooth things over—instantly ignited the protective instincts of Wang Lei and most of the people around them.
Human psychology worked like this: when the truth wasn’t clear, people instinctively sided with the weaker party. The soft and fragile one must be the one being bullied.
“We can’t just forget it!”
Wang Lei’s chest rose and fell violently. Ever since Gu Ye had saved his life underground in the mine, he had sworn that his life belonged to Brother Ye. Of course he couldn’t let his sister-in-law be bullied for nothing.
Besides, Wang Manli should listen to the nonsense she was spouting—claiming she was the one who got hit?
His sister-in-law had been staying peacefully at home. Was Wang Manli saying she had come over specially to get beaten?
“Sister-in-law, don’t be afraid! I already sent someone to call Brother Ye! He’ll be back soon! Let’s see who still dares to bully you!”
The moment Wang Manli heard that Gu Ye was coming back, panic flashed through her eyes.
But even stronger was the burning mix of unwillingness and jealousy eroding her reason.
“Ahhh! I’m so angry! Lin Wan, you bitch!”
Just as the tension was about to explode, a sudden commotion erupted at the edge of the crowd.
Someone shouted:
“Gu Ye’s here!”
The tightly packed crowd parted like a tide, making way.
Gu Ye’s tall figure appeared at the road entrance.
He walked quickly, carrying the lingering chill from underground in the mine. His sharp gaze immediately locked onto the scene in the courtyard.
He didn’t even glance at the shouting Wang Manli.
His eyes fell directly on the figure standing behind Wang Lei—head lowered, alone, looking incredibly thin and fragile.
In a few long strides, he reached her. His brows were tightly furrowed, and his voice was slightly hoarse from urgency.
“Where are you hurt?”
Lin Wan had been holding herself together the whole time.
But the moment she heard his voice and felt his presence approaching, the tightly stretched string inside her suddenly snapped.
She lifted her head abruptly. Her lips trembled slightly.
The tears she had been holding back for so long fell like beads from a broken string—large drops rolling down without warning.
Like a child who had endured endless grievances and finally saw their parent return to seek justice, all her emotions suddenly found an outlet.
She didn’t say a single word to defend herself.
She simply looked at him with those tear-filled, reddened eyes.
Full of dependence and grievance, she softly called his name, her voice trembling with sobs:
“Gu Ye…”
That single call hooked into Gu Ye’s heart and clenched it tightly.
All the doubts, all the scrutiny, all the distance he had been trying to maintain—at that moment—were thrown far away.
Looking at the tear tracks on her pale face and her fragile appearance, as if she might shatter at the slightest touch, only one thought remained in his mind—
She had been bullied.
Bullied in the place he thought was safe.
Gu Ye almost instinctively reached out and gently pulled her into his arms.
His large hand awkwardly yet firmly patted her back. His voice softened without him even realizing it.
“Don’t be afraid. I’m back.”
Lin Wan buried her face in his broad chest, her shoulders trembling slightly as she felt even more aggrieved.
This open display of protection and intimacy pierced Wang Manli’s eyes like a knife.
Unable to endure it any longer, she shrieked and interrupted the scene:
“Gu Ye! Perfect timing! Look—look at my face!”
She pointed to the clear red handprint on her cheek. Her voice rose sharply with excitement, carrying both accusation and a trace of hidden thrill.
“She did this! Your precious ‘fiancée’ was the one who hit first! Take a good look! She’s completely two-faced!”
“Today you must give me an explanation and teach this shrew a harsh lesson!”
The more she spoke, the more excited she became. It was as if she had already seen Gu Ye discovering the “truth” and flying into a furious rage at Lin Wan.
The corners of her mouth even lifted uncontrollably into a twisted, satisfied smile.
However—
The anger she expected did not fall on the person she hoped it would.
Gu Ye slowly raised his head.
Those eyes that had held faint warmth while resting on Lin Wan’s hair moments ago now turned into icy blades, locking precisely onto Wang Manli’s face.
There was no confusion.
No scrutiny.
Only a deep, bone-chilling cold pressure—so intense it almost felt tangible—like he was looking at a lifeless object.
It was the savage killing intent carved into a soldier’s bones.
Wang Manli’s passionate voice seemed to be strangled by an invisible hand and abruptly stopped.
All the more vicious accusations she had prepared stuck in her throat.
The naked cruelty and coldness in his gaze froze her in place.
It wasn’t just anger.
It felt more like… a kind of indifference and killing aura that came from deep within his bones.
Her heart trembled for no reason.
A ridiculous yet terrifying thought flashed through her mind:
Gu Ye’s gaze…
Why did it look… as if he had really killed someone before?