Fang Chengzhi nodded. “The thug indeed admitted that Zhao Zhenhua instructed him to harass you, after which Zhao Zhenhua would step in to rescue you.”
Su Mulan breathed a sigh of relief.
She hadn’t expected it to be so easy to trap Zhao Zhenhua.
“What happens next? Can Zhao Zhenhua be arrested now? How many years could he be sentenced for this crime?”
Fang Chengzhi motioned for Su Mulan to calm down. “Our colleagues have already gone to summon Zhao Zhenhua. We still need his confession to convict him.”
As they spoke, two police officers escorted Zhao Zhenhua into the room.
Their eyes met, and Su Mulan caught a flash of malice in Zhao Zhenhua’s gaze, though he quickly suppressed it. “Mulan, I’m truly innocent. That thug was just making things up. We grew up together—how could I ever harm you?”
Su Mulan sneered. “You were the one who invited me to the cinema, and you were the one who stood me up. Then, on my way back, I was nearly assaulted, and the thug who harassed me said you were behind it. How could there be such a coincidence in the world?”
She had no intention of engaging with Zhao Zhenhua; her words were meant for Fang Chengzhi.
Unaware of her disgust, Zhao Zhenhua continued to plead his innocence. “It was all just a coincidence. I invited you to the movies last night because I wanted to confess my feelings to you. I didn’t go because I suddenly had a stomachache. Later, when I found out you hadn’t returned, I was worried something might have happened to you, so I immediately gathered people to search for you. Mulan, we grew up together—how could I ever harm you?”
“A dog bites without needing a reason.”
With that, Su Mulan ignored Zhao Zhenhua and turned to Fang Chengzhi. “Comrade, I beg you, please uncover the truth and give me justice.”
“Don’t worry, it’s our duty.”
If anyone else had said this, Su Mulan wouldn’t have believed them, but she trusted Fang Chengzhi completely.
Still, she felt uneasy. What if Zhao Zhenhua refused to confess? Things could still take a turn.
So, upon entering the residential compound, she deliberately raised her voice. “Mom, are you home? They found the person who tried to harm me last night!”
Recently, the garment factory had taken on two large orders, and to meet the deadlines, the factory had arranged three shifts around the clock. Many people were catching up on sleep during the day, so the compound was unusually quiet.
Su Mulan’s shout woke many from their slumber.
But no one scolded her. Instead, several people draped in coats stepped out onto the corridors and asked, “Mulan, what’s going on? Tell us quickly!”
Su Mulan crossed her arms, feigning disbelief, but her voice was strong and clear. “The police said Brother Zhenhua colluded with a thug to deliberately harm me. He wanted to ruin me!”
The moment these words were spoken, the crowd erupted.
“Zhenhua? Has he gone mad?”
“Mulan is such a good girl. She never did anything to provoke him. How could he do something so cruel?”
“Even if there were some conflict, he shouldn’t have done this! If Mulan hadn’t been lucky enough to borrow a stun baton yesterday, who knows what might have happened?”
The benefits of being well-liked were now on full display.
Su Mulan had always been bursting with a sense of justice and enthusiasm since childhood.
When children in the compound were bullied outside, she would stand up for them.
If someone’s child struggled academically, she would help tutor them.
During winter and summer vacations, she acted as the leader of the children, organizing games, study sessions, and outings. She had saved countless parents from worry.
In this residential compound, every household with children, without exception, adored Su Mulan.
That was why so many people had rushed to help last night when Zhao Zhenhua called out.
“I haven’t had any conflicts with Zhenhua lately, so why would he do this to me…”
Su Mulan half-covered her face, her voice thick with sobs, then suddenly stopped as if remembering something.
Auntie Yuan, who lived in the easternmost unit on the first floor, was the first to notice something was off. She stepped forward and grabbed Su Mulan’s arm. “Girl, how can we normal folks understand the thoughts of such wicked people? What might seem like a small issue to you could be a huge deal in their eyes. Think again—maybe it’s something as tiny as a sesame seed.”
“It’s just… it’s just…” Su Mulan looked anxiously at Auntie Yuan, hesitating for a moment before finally speaking up. “I didn’t get into university and have been wanting to retake the exams, but Zhenhua has been urging me not to and to find a job instead. Auntie, it couldn’t be because of this, could it?”
“Why not?” Auntie Yuan slapped her thigh excitedly. “I think he just doesn’t want you to go to university! As for the reason, it’s easy to guess. If you go to university, you’ll be completely out of his league, so he tried to use that dirty trick to keep you.”
Auntie Yuan’s speculation wasn’t unfounded. Zhao Zhenhua often visited the Su household and always praised Su Mulan in public, leading everyone to believe he had feelings for her.
In her previous life, Su Mulan had been fooled too, which was why she never doubted him when he stepped forward to help her during her darkest hour.
After being reborn, she carefully examined every detail and realized how foolish she had been.
Zhao Zhenhua did visit often, but whenever he came to chat with her, he never left out Su Huilan. The snacks and fruits he brought were either things both she and Su Huilan liked or things only Su Huilan enjoyed. Occasionally, he would give stationery or books, but they always ended up in Su Huilan’s hands for one reason or another.
She had never been favored—her specialness existed only in Zhao Zhenhua’s words.
But since Zhao Zhenhua had given everyone this illusion, she naturally had to make good use of it.
“Yesterday, Zhao Zhenhua invited me to watch a movie and said he had something important to tell me, something that would affect my future. That’s why I went.”
With these words, Su Mulan indirectly confirmed Auntie Yuan’s suspicions.
Many people were outraged and echoed Auntie Yuan’s words.
“Mulan, I think your Auntie Yuan is right! If you work at the factory, you and Zhao Zhenhua would be colleagues. With a little more effort from him, you two might actually end up together. But if you get into university, you’d be a golden phoenix flying out of our residential compound—how could you still look at him then?”
“That’s exactly it! That kid Zhenhua usually seems so honest—who would have thought he could be so cunning and vicious! He’s trying to ruin your future, Mulan!”
“Oh, now that you mention it, I remember something. A while back, I overheard Zhao Zhenhua’s mother whispering to him, saying something about Mulan being too ambitious and hard to control… I didn’t pay much attention at the time, but now that I think about it, he must have been plotting something!”
Everyone chimed in, piecing together Zhao Zhenhua’s motives.
Although it wasn’t entirely accurate, it was close enough to the truth.
Su Mulan looked horrified. “How could this be? How could Zhenhua be such a scheming, underhanded, and treacherous person?”
“He’s just wicked and shameless!”
Aunt Yuan was afraid Su Mulan would remain stubbornly deluded, wishing she could slap her twice to jolt her completely awake.
But before she could finish speaking, Su Mulan was pulled away by someone…