In the past, whenever Jiang Wenshu saw Lu Huan, she would avoid her without feeling much guilt. But now, avoiding Lu Huan filled her with constant remorse.
After An Ke’s arrest, Yu Lan and the other two sat in the lounge on the second floor of the Starlight Studio.
Lou Qing brought tea for both of them.
From the very beginning, Yu Lan’s expression had been off, but since she wasn’t saying anything, Lu Huan didn’t feel it was appropriate to press further. At that moment, she exchanged a glance with Lou Qing, who shook her head slightly at her.
“Have some tea,” Lou Qing said, placing a cup in front of her.
“Thank you,” Yu Lan snapped out of her thoughts, holding the cup with both hands and taking a slow sip.
However, she remained silent even after leaving.
Back home, Yu Lan’s mood didn’t lighten. She glanced at the notebook on the table, then finally got up, turned it on, and opened a video from a private folder.
It was a recorded video.
“An Ke, baby, look at the camera,” a woman’s voice said with a laugh, the camera shaking slightly.
The person in the video was none other than An Ke, the one who had been arrested by the police but this was An Ke from over a decade ago, with long hair, wearing a dress, looking very sweet and well-behaved.
The first time Yu Lan saw this video, she could hardly believe her eyes, thinking she must have been mistaken. But whether it was the name or the girl in the video who looked exactly like An Ke, everything told her that this was indeed An Ke.
She had found this video in a hidden folder. At the time, for reasons she couldn’t quite explain, she hadn’t handed it over to the police.
She didn’t know who the woman holding the camera was, but the harm she had inflicted on An Ke was even greater than what the other victimized girls had suffered and it had happened more than once. In the end, Yu Lan couldn’t bear to watch the video all the way through.
She turned off the computer and stared at the screen for a long time before finally getting up and delivering the video to the police.
A few days later, Lu Huan and the others learned the truth from the news.
Seeing An Ke’s fate, both the original victim and the other girls who had been harmed could finally escape their suffering. Especially the girls who had been threatened with the video they were truly free now.
In the dormitory.
Wei Jia looked at the news and said angrily, “Damn, this kind of scum should be locked up. And it happened at a bar not far from our school.”
Wu Xinyu turned to Lu Huan. “Huanhuan, wasn’t the girl who came to see you last time this person?”
“What?!” Before Lu Huan could respond, Wei Jia jumped up. “That girl with the buzz cut? Damn, Huanhuan, are you okay? She’s so dangerous, we should’ve stayed with you back then.” The more she thought about it, the more frightened she became.
“I’m fine,” Lu Huan said. “My friend helped me.”
“The friend you went to Huangshan with?” Wu Xinyu asked.
“Yeah,” Lu Huan nodded.
Dong Sisi, who had been lying on her bed all along, sat up at this point and looked down at Lu Huan. Suddenly, she spoke up, “Lu Huan, you were also drugged by An Ke and recorded in a video, weren’t you?”
Her words instantly silenced the room, and everyone’s eyes turned toward her.
Wei Jia was the first to speak. “Dong Sisi, did you get your brain squashed by a door and turn into an idiot?”
Wu Xinyu added, “You sound so sure does that mean you were involved too? Well, the police are investigating these people right now, so you won’t get away with it.” She then took out her phone, ready to call the police.
Dong Sisi hadn’t expected her to jump straight to calling the police and said urgently, “Jiang Wenshu told me.”
Faced with their skeptical expressions, Dong Sisi explained, “Jiang Wenshu told me herself, and the person who told her was Lu Huan.”
“Oh,” Lu Huan didn’t bother defending herself, expressionlessly continuing to read her book.
Seeing her reaction, Wei Jia and Wu Xinyu didn’t believe Dong Sisi either.
Wei Jia said, “Dong Sisi, are you just jealous of others or what? Didn’t you learn your lesson from last time? Here you are again.”
Dong Sisi rolled her eyes, “I’m just stating the facts.”
Wu Xinyu sneered, “Then you can say that to the police.” With that, she was about to call the police.
Lu Huan shook her head at her, “Don’t bother. Let her say whatever she wants.”
Dong Sisi, who had been anxious just moments before, now lifted her chin triumphantly.
Seeing her like this, Wei Jia felt disgusted, and Wu Xinyu didn’t even glance her way.
Lu Huan, however, acted as if nothing had happened and continued reading her book.
There was no evening self-study session that night, so Lou Qing called the girl out for dinner.
Dressed in a black down jacket, a matching baseball cap, and a face mask, she stood downstairs at the dormitory building. Passing girls couldn’t help but glance at her curiously.
They had never seen such a tall girl before. Her hands, holding the phone, had distinct knuckles, and when she lifted her gaze, her deep eyes held a certain charm.
One girl couldn’t resist approaching and asking, “Classmate, who are you looking for?”
“She’s on her way down,” Lou Qing replied.
The girl hadn’t expected the tall girl’s voice to be so magnetic.
“Also,” Lou Qing added, “I’m not a student at your school.”
“Sis,” Lu Huan called out as she approached, then looked confusedly at the girl in front of her and asked, “What’s going on?”
“Nothing,” Lou Qing said, her hand naturally resting on Lu Huan’s head, giving it a gentle rub. Her gaze was fixed on Lu Huan, and her voice unconsciously softened. “Shall we go?”
“Mm,” Lu Huan nodded. Since she didn’t know the other girl, she simply gave a silent nod of acknowledgment before leaving with Lou Qing.
The girl blinked and turned to her friend beside her, asking uncertainly, “Was that Lu Huan just now?”
“Yes,” her friend replied, her expression equally complicated. “I know the other person. I’ve been to her studio for a tattoo.”
“Now that you mention it, she does look familiar,” the girl said. “Do you remember that video?”
“Which one?”
“The one where Lu Huan confronted someone at Huangshan,” the girl said. “The woman standing next to Lu Huan in that video seemed to be her.”
“Now that you mention it, I remember too.”
But by then, Lu Huan and Lou Qing were already long gone.
“Shall we go for hot pot?” Lou Qing asked.
“Okay,” Lu Huan nodded.
The weather was gradually getting colder, and the sun set early. Before 7 p.m., the sky was already completely dark. A cold wind swept through, carrying fallen leaves and blowing into their necks. Lu Huan shivered.
Lou Qing moved to the other side, using her body to block the wind for her. “We’ll be there in a few minutes.”
“Mm,” Lu Huan pulled her collar up higher.
Lou Qing glanced at her and stopped in front of her. “Wait a moment.”
“Hmm?” Lu Huan looked at her, confused.
Lou Qing leaned down, pulled the collar of Lu Huan’s down jacket all the way up, and helped her put on her hood. Then, she covered Lu Huan’s ears with her hands and said, “This should be better.”
“Sis, your hands will get cold like this,” Lu Huan said, surprised that the woman was using her hands to secure her hood. As the wind blew, she indeed felt warmer, but the woman wasn’t wearing gloves and must be feeling cold now.
“It’s fine, I’m not afraid of the cold,” Lou Qing said, holding her hood in place as they walked.
Walking like this felt awkward, and the thought of the other person’s hands freezing in the cold wind made Lu Huan uncomfortable. She stopped in her tracks, pulled her hands out of her pockets, and grabbed the woman’s hands, saying, “If you won’t put yours away, then I won’t either.”
Lou Qing sighed helplessly, releasing her hands as she said, “Then let’s walk faster. It won’t be cold once we’re inside the shop.”
“Mm,” Lu Huan nodded obediently.
As they walked, Lou Qing spotted a store and pulled the girl inside.
“Sister?” Lu Huan was a bit confused as she was led into the shop. It wasn’t until the other took a pink scarf from the shelf and wrapped it around her neck that she snapped out of it. “Sister, I don’t need this.”
“Wear it,” Lou Qing said, glancing at the shelf before taking down a black scarf and wrapping it around her own neck. “I’ll buy one too. We’ll each have one.”
Lu Huan, who had been about to take the scarf off, froze at these words. Her eyes sparkled brightly as she looked at Lou Qing, and she finally nodded with a smile. “Okay.”
Seeing how her nose and cheeks were flushed red from the cold, yet unable to hide the girl’s bright, shining eyes, Lou Qing affectionately tapped the tip of her nose with a finger and took her soft hand, saying, “Let’s go.”
The hot pot restaurant wasn’t far, just across the street from Lou Qing’s studio. When they entered, the place was nearly full. As the warm air enveloped them, Lu Huan felt her whole body grow warm.
“How many guests?” a server approached.
“Two,” Lu Huan held up two fingers.
“This way, please,” the server led them to an empty table in the corner. “There’s a QR code on the table. You can scan it to order.”
“Okay, thank you,” Lu Huan nodded.
Lou Qing pulled out her phone from her pocket and scanned the QR code. The page redirected to the menu, and she tugged at the girl’s hand, saying, “Come here and help me order.”
“Mm,” Lu Huan sat down beside her.
The two sat close together, their heads nearly touching as they looked at the menu. At such a close distance, neither of them pulled away. Instead, they leaned lazily against each other, a sense of ease blooming in their hearts.
After they finished ordering, their eyes met almost simultaneously. Lou Qing was the first to look away, her ears beneath her hair now flushed bright red.
Lu Huan lowered her voice and asked, “Sister, do you have a girlfriend?”
This was the second time she had asked this question. On the surface, it seemed like she was inquiring about the other’s relationship status, but in reality, she was hinting that she wanted to be that girlfriend.
And Lou Qing understood. Compared to the first time, when she had been flustered and unsure, this time she was noticeably calmer. Even her previously evasive gaze now boldly met the girl’s eyes, deep and intense. “No.”
Lu Huan grew even bolder, asking directly, “Then do I have a chance?”