Song Yunyi’s life had been marked by two major events.
At fifteen, she was exposed as a fake heiress, and her biological mother was suspected of having killed the real one.
At twenty, the true heiress Song Enxue was found and brought back, but the family’s capital chain snapped, and the conglomerate teetered on the brink of bankruptcy.
Rumors at the time claimed it was all her fault.
She was stabbed in the back, becoming a sinner reviled by thousands.
That night, the Song couple slapped her several times, calling her a jinx, while Song Enxue glared at her viciously: “You stole the life that belonged to me, and now that I’ve just come back, you’re trying to destroy everything I have. You really are trash!”
At the time, she was in a daze and couldn’t remember exactly what happened afterward. All she could recall was that in the end, Gu Lianhuai helped her.
He was like a piece of driftwood.
The only light for her, who was about to drown. From then on, she made him her entire world.
Gu Lianhuai had only made one request at the time—that she become his contractual girlfriend to provoke the person he loved and win her back, while he would handle the Song family on her behalf.
Three years passed in the blink of an eye.
The first love hadn’t looked back, and there was no telling when that contract would ever come to an end.
Song Yunyi rubbed her brow, about to head back to the private room, when someone behind her pressed a towel over her nose. The next second, her consciousness vanished.
When she woke again, she was already in a taxi.
Song Yunyi tried to sit up but found her body limp and utterly devoid of strength.
The driver glanced at the rearview mirror and sneered: “You’ve been drugged, so don’t bother struggling.”
“Do you know that what you’re doing carries a minimum sentence of three years in prison? I advise you not to do something irreversible. It’s not too late to turn back now!”
“Lawyer Song, quoting the law at me won’t work. Don’t worry, you won’t die just yet.”
He knew who she was?
This was a targeted kidnapping?
Her eyelids grew heavier and heavier. No, she couldn’t just sit and wait for death!
Just as Song Yunyi was about to fight with everything she had, the driver slammed on the brakes, and then violent sounds of a scuffle erupted from outside.
She struggled to pry her eyes open and, through a blurry haze, saw a tall, lean figure pinning the driver down and beating him mercilessly.
…
When she woke, the first thing that met her eyes was a stark white ceiling.
Song Yunyi struggled to get up, but a nurse rushed over and pressed her back down, her voice stern: “The sedative hasn’t fully metabolized yet. You can’t get up. Lie still!”
Song Yunyi glanced around the room: “Who brought me here?”
The nurse briefly checked her over before answering: “The police will explain everything to you in a bit. Just lie down and rest for now.”
So someone had called the police.
Before long, two young officers stood before her. After flashing their badges, the female officer gave a brief summary: “A citizen saw the fight and called it in. By the time we arrived, the suspect had already been beaten senseless.”
Then the male officer beside her held out a photo and asked, “Do you recognize this person?”
In the photo, a young man wore a simple black short-sleeved shirt, with a head of striking white hair that covered half of one eye. There were scrapes on his cheekbones—both fresh and old.
He was young, probably not even of age, with a strikingly handsome face and a sharp, straight nose. His thin lips were pressed tightly together as he looked at the camera, radiating a chilling coldness.
Song Yunyi shook her head.
“Officers, he’s the one who saved me, right?”
The female officer nodded: “Although what he did counts as a righteous act, the suspect still hasn’t regained consciousness. We need him to leave his information for follow-up procedures. However…”
“However what?”
“He’s refusing to cooperate.”
…
By the time Song Yunyi finished her IV drip and went to the police station to give her statement, it was already close to midnight by the time the case was filed. She sat down on a chair and pulled out her phone.
There were over a dozen missed calls, mostly from Gu Lianhuai, with a few from Cheng Ziyan and other friends in between.
Opening WeChat, there were dozens of unread messages at the top of her chat list.
Before Song Yunyi could reply, a female officer walked over.
Her expression was somewhat serious: “The situation is a bit tricky. He refuses to provide his household registration information, so his identity is still unknown.”
Song Yunyi frowned.
Refusing to give up his household registration information—there were only a few possible reasons. Either he was a fugitive on the run, or he was someone without legal registration.
For some reason, she very decisively ruled out the former. How could a good young man who performed a righteous act be connected to a fugitive?
“Officer, could I have a word with him?”
“I’ll put in a request.”
She waited a while longer before she finally got to see the young man.
Hearing the commotion, the boy lifted his eyes impatiently. The moment he saw Song Yunyi, his expression visibly paused for a beat before he lowered his head again.
That subtle reaction didn’t escape Song Yunyi’s notice.
She walked over and spoke in the gentlest tone she could muster: “Hello, my name is Song Yunyi. I’m very grateful that you saved me earlier. Don’t be afraid—as long as you cooperate with the statement, you can leave.”
The young man turned his face away, clearly not wanting to acknowledge her.
No matter what Song Yunyi said after that, he refused to utter a single word.
The door was pushed open at that moment, and the female officer gestured for her to step outside.
The surveillance footage was pulled up. Song Yunyi took one look and her eyes flew wide open, her face full of disbelief.
The law firm didn’t provide housing, and her funds had been tight since returning to the country, so she’d rented an apartment in an old neighborhood. The infrastructure there was shoddy, and several of the security cameras were already out of commission.
Last weekend, she’d been sleeping at home when she heard a knock at the door. When she opened it, she saw a red plastic bag on the doorstep.
Inside was three hundred thousand in cash.
She’d called the police immediately.
But whoever had delivered the money had clearly avoided the cameras, and the police couldn’t find any useful leads.
Now that something had happened to Song Yunyi again, the police pulled up the surveillance footage and went through it carefully once more. That’s when they spotted a figure in an inconspicuous corner that they’d overlooked before.
After comparison, the figure matched the young man’s build almost exactly. Following the footage forward, they reached the conclusion: it was him.
Song Yunyi could hardly believe it.
Her voice was tight. “This guy sent me money and saved me—there’s no way he’s a bad person. Please, just let me talk to him again!”
The police officer hesitated for a moment. “Ten more minutes.”
In the reception area.
Song Yunyi walked straight up to the young man and spread the frozen surveillance frame in front of him. “Explain yourself. Why did you send me money? Why did you save me?”
She refused to believe it was just a coincidence.
At her words, the young man lifted his gaze, his dark eyes tinged with mockery. “I didn’t realize saving someone was a crime now.”
“Then explain the three hundred thousand.” Song Yunyi wasn’t about to let him sidestep the question.
The young man remained stubborn. “I don’t know what nonsense you’re talking about. I don’t know anything about any three hundred thousand.”
His impenetrable attitude made Song Yunyi frown involuntarily.
She was about to leave when her gaze suddenly caught something around the young man’s neck.