“Let’s go.”
A single word—uttered in a tone that brooked no argument. Almost instinctively, Bai Xiu allowed her to take his arm and support him as they walked out into the open.
The young woman before him didn’t even reach his shoulders, yet as her subtle, sweet scent wafted into his nose, Bai Xiu felt his heart race out of control, making the ache of his injuries feel almost distant.
However, when his eyes caught the dark, dirty water from his clothes dripping onto Su Mu’s crisp white shirt, his eyes darkened with shame.
“I’m sorry…” Bai Xiu pressed his lips tightly together, looking anxious.
Su Mu didn’t say a word. But as soon as she helped him out of the alley, Bai Xiu’s body suddenly stiffened.
“I… I just remembered I have something to do. I won’t go after all.”
Su Mu paused. Remembering how he had fought so desperately with those thugs over a mere two hundred yuan, she realized what was wrong. She led him straight into a nearby internet café instead and rented a private room.
Leaving him inside, Su Mu stepped outside to flag down a staff member.
“Buy me some disinfectant alcohol, gauze, and band-aids…”
She pulled out two crumpled hundred-yuan bills from her pocket and handed them over.
“Keep the change as a tip.”
Returning to the private room, she looked at the young man and simply said, “Stay here.”
She turned and left. Watching her retreating back, Bai Xiu froze. His hands instinctively clenched into tight fists as an empty sensation washed over his chest. Sitting alone in the private booth, he suddenly felt completely lost.
Bai Xiu had no idea how long he sat there in a daze, but when the door clicked open and he saw Su Mu return, his heart leaped violently into his throat.
“You…”
Bai Xiu wanted to ask something, but the words caught in his throat.
“I bought you a set of clothes. Change into them.”
Without further explanation, Su Mu handed over a bundle of clean garments, turned around, and shut the door behind her.
Staring at the softly closed door, a hot flush crept up Bai Xiu’s face. He hurriedly stripped off his filthy clothes and changed into the fresh set—a simple white button-down and a pair of loose-fitting jeans.
Knock, knock, knock…
The moment he finished buttoning up, a soft knock sounded at the door. Bai Xiu eagerly pulled it open to find the young woman standing at the threshold holding a plastic bag, her face still wearing a cool, expressionless mask.
Yet under the warm glow of the overhead light, her soft features looked breathtakingly gentle.
“Sit down.”
Given like a firm command, Bai Xiu instantly obeyed, sitting down meekly on the sofa.
Su Mu rummaged through the plastic bag, pulling out cotton swabs and rubbing alcohol before meticulously dabbing the solution onto the cuts across his face.
Watching her intense focus as she tended to his injuries, Bai Xiu found himself staring in a complete daze, his breath catching in his throat.
Her long, fluttery eyelashes blinked softly, her clear eyes glittering as if holding light within them. Her light breath brushed against his skin, making his heart hammer so hard it felt as if time had stopped entirely.
Whenever her fair, jade-like fingertips accidentally grazed his skin, Bai Xiu’s heart would leap violently. Yet he didn’t dare move a single muscle, terrified of startling the breathtaking beauty before him.
“Done. Apply the rest to the wounds on your body yourself.”
Tossing the used cotton swabs into the trash bin, Su Mu handed the medication over to Bai Xiu.
Bai Xiu merely stared at her in a daze, offering no reaction.
“Done,” Su Mu repeated.
Finally snapping back to reality, Bai Xiu’s face flushed a deep, burning red. He frantically scrambled to take the bag from her hands.
“Where’s your phone?”
At her words, Bai Xiu immediately retrieved his phone and passed it over.
Su Mu opened his chat app, only to find his contact list practically empty.
“Do you not usually use WeChat?”
“I do!” Bai Xiu nodded vigorously the second the words left her mouth.
After adding each other as contacts, Su Mu transferred two thousand yuan to him—taking care of the debt collection on his behalf.
Looking at the notification for the two-thousand-yuan transfer, Bai Xiu froze completely. He was just about to decline when Su Mu shoved the phone back into his hands.
“That’s compensation from those thugs. I used your two hundred yuan just now. I’m leaving.”
Su Mu didn’t give him a single chance to argue. She turned around to make her exit. Opening his mouth, Bai Xiu desperately called out after her:
“I… I still don’t know your name! My name is Bai Xiu, you…”
“I’m Su Mu.”
A faint, subtle smile seemed to grace Su Mu’s eyes. Bai Xiu’s gaze went completely blank, his tongue tied for so long that he couldn’t squeeze out another word.
A sudden wave of intense regret washed over him. Why was he so useless at speaking? Why couldn’t he say something sweet or nice?
“Why… why are you being so good to me…?”
Bai Xiu clenched his fists tightly. She wasn’t the only person who had passed by that alley today, yet despite his cries for help, every single onlooker had fled in a hurry, far too terrified to meddle in someone else’s trouble.
“I have a soft spot for lovely things, which naturally includes attractive people. It would be a tragedy to let a face like yours get ruined.”
Su Mu raised a hand, gently stroking Bai Xiu’s newly blow-dried hair. The soft, chestnut-colored strands felt delightfully plush beneath her palm, reminiscent of a fluffy puppy.
“Alright, I’m off. Reach out if you need anything.”
Without lingering another second, Su Mu turned and walked away.
Staring intently at her retreating back until she vanished from sight, Bai Xiu raised a hand to touch his cheek. Slowly, a genuine smile curved at the corner of his lips.
Ring, ring, ring…
Her phone sang out. Su Mu raised her hand and swiped across the screen.
“Hello, Mumu? Your brother is coming back today! His flight lands at three this afternoon—make sure you go pick him up.”
“Dad, it’s not like he’s directionally challenged. Why do I need to go fetch him?”
“You silly girl! He’s your brother after all, and you haven’t seen each other in years. Isn’t it only right to welcome him home? Besides… there’s a little surprise waiting for you…” Su Father persuaded her in a gentle, coaxing tone.
Su Mu offered a half-hearted nod. “Fine, got it. I’ll pick him up later.”
Hanging up the call, Su Mu checked her class schedule. She had a completely free afternoon.
Since she was already a senior and the original host had chosen an obscure, low-demand major, she barely had a handful of classes spread across an entire week.
“Hey, Bai Xiu, look over there! That’s the goddess of the Foreign Languages Department! That figure, those features—a solid ten out of ten!”
A roommate nudged Bai Xiu’s arm enthusiastically.
“Mm.”
Bai Xiu offered a dismissive hum, his fingers obsessively refreshing his WeChat feed.
It had been three whole days, yet Su Mu hadn’t sent him a single message. She hadn’t even replied to the texts he sent her, leaving him completely in the dark about her whereabouts.
Her Moments feed was a complete blank. Bai Xiu ran a frustrated hand through his hair, a wave of restless anxiety settling over his chest.
“Ah, she’s walking over here!”
The roommate shook Bai Xiu’s arm in excitement. Bai Xiu’s brows knitted into a tight frown, but before he could react, a shadow fell over them. Looking up, he saw a young woman standing directly in front of him.
“Bai Xiu! It really is you!”
Surprise and delight sparkled in the woman’s eyes, causing Bai Xiu’s frown to deepen.
Who was this? She looked vaguely familiar.
“Hey, that’s the campus beauty of the Foreign Languages Department, Xiang Qing! Don’t tell me you don’t recognize her?” his roommate whispered a reminder under his breath.
Comprehension finally dawned on Bai Xiu. He seemed to recall… bumping into her a few times in the past and exchanging a few words, even feeling a mild, unexplainable favor toward her at the time.
Wait… why on earth had he ever felt any stupid goodwill toward someone he had barely met a few times?
Suppressing his gaze, Bai Xiu gave a cool, distant nod. “I have somewhere to be. Excuse me.”
With that, Bai Xiu turned to leave, but the very next second, his eyes locked onto a figure in the distance, instantly lighting up as if filled with a galaxy of bright stars.
“Su Mu!”
Without a second thought, Bai Xiu sprinted toward that direction.
Hearing the name Su Mu, Xiang Qing’s entire body froze instantly.
Turning around to stare at the figure Bai Xiu was rushing toward, a burst of bitter hatred flared violently in her eyes, twisting her delicate face into a mask of rage.
Why?!
Why did he treat her with utter coldness while practically groveling to flatter that other woman?! Was it simply because her family was filthy rich?!
It wasn’t even her own money—did having money mean she could just do whatever she wanted?!
Yeyi was clearly the one who truly loved her, yet now they were forced to separate for the time being! Wasn’t that woman relying entirely on her family’s wealth?!
Xiang Qing bit her lower lip softly as a suffocating wave of resentment welled up inside her, her feet moving forward against her will.