Du Hao used all the cleverness he possessed in this lifetime at this very moment.
He immediately realized there was hope!
Thus, he became even more earnest. “Lin Ran, as long as we don’t take this to the authorities, I’ll listen to you from now on! Whatever you say, I’ll do!”
Lin Ran propped her chin on her hand and looked at him. “You say you’ll listen, so you’ll listen? Why should I believe you?”
Du Hao froze, then his mind began racing frantically.
“I’ll provide you with all the evidence of my transactions with the hacker. If I don’t obey you in the future, you can just send the evidence straight to the police station.”
“We’re from the same social circle. You should understand how important reputation is to people like us. With that evidence in your hands, I wouldn’t dare disobey you!”
“How about it, Lin Ran? If you let me off today, you’ll gain a useful ally in the future!”
“I am, after all, a member of the Du family. I can definitely be of some use to you! Spare me this once, I beg you!”
Du Hao spoke with genuine sincerity.
With his future held in Lin Ran’s hands, he had no choice but to lower his head.
After he finished speaking, Lin Ran did not respond.
The factory was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
Du Hao held his breath, feeling his heart pounding wildly in his chest. His eyes remained fixed on the person in the chair, waiting for her final judgment.
After about ten seconds, Lin Ran finally spoke.
“Du Hao, you’d better not disappoint me.”
“Untie him,” Lin Ran said to Chen Chao.
Huff…
Du Hao felt as if all his strength had been drained. His body went limp, collapsing to the ground as the suppressed pain in his shoulders surged forth intensely.
He hissed in pain, but his gaze remained fixed on Lin Ran.
Under the dim light, she looked as beautiful as an emotionless deity, radiating a bone-chilling coldness.
Just what kind of person… had he provoked?
After Du Hao left, Chen Chao took out a small recording pen from his pocket and handed it to Lin Ran. “Here, it’s all recorded.”
Lin Ran took it, twirling it in her hand.
“What’s this for?” Chen Chao asked, full of curiosity. “That kid Du Hao is already willing to provide a whole chain of evidence. This thing doesn’t have much value anymore.”
Lin Ran toyed with the recording pen, a cold glint flashing in her eyes.
“This is a gift prepared for another ‘little mouse.'”
Chen Chao suddenly understood and smiled. “Got it.”
＊
That night at ten o’clock, in the boys’ dormitory at Jing University.
Lu Feng emerged from the bathroom, his hair dripping wet.
He walked to his desk while drying his hair with a towel, his gaze unconsciously falling on his silent phone.
It had been two days since the rumor incident occurred.
Lin Ran had reported it to the police, the authorities had issued a statement, and she had posted online saying she would catch the culprit.
Throughout the entire process, she had not contacted him once.
In fact, she hadn’t sent him a single message since two days before the incident even happened.
Lu Feng sat down and picked up his phone.
He unlocked the screen. His chat window with Lin Ran was still stuck on last weekend’s message: 【Come downstairs】
He stared at the dialogue box, his fingers hovering over the keyboard.
He typed: 【Have you found out who spread the rumors?】
After typing it, he looked at the words, as if seeing the inappropriate, almost concerned inquiry buried deep within his heart.
As if scalded, he quickly deleted the sentence.
Why should he ask?
What did her affairs have to do with him?
He wished she would never bother him again.
Lu Feng tossed his phone aside and picked up the towel to vigorously dry his hair.
He felt inexplicably irritable.
His phone suddenly vibrated.
He paused, quickly picking up the phone.
On the screen was a message from Su Wanyu:
【Brother Lu Feng, are you asleep?】
【I want to talk to you about something】
Lu Feng fell silent for a few seconds before replying: 【Go ahead.】
Su Wanyu’s message came quickly.
【I’m a little scared… Lin Ran said she’s going to catch the person spreading rumors. Do you think she might suspect it was me?】
Lu Feng frowned slightly: 【Why would you think that?】
Su Wanyu sent a crying emoji.
【Brother Lu Feng, Lin Ran hates me so much. Would she really not use this incident to frame me?】
Su Wanyu was truly uneasy and could only try to prepare Lu Feng in advance.
Seeing these words, Lu Feng’s gaze darkened.
Would Lin Ran do that?
Given her straightforward personality, she would likely disdain such underhanded tactics.
He replied: 【Don’t worry, she won’t】
After sending the message, he turned off his phone directly.
Su Wanyu curled up under her blanket, staring at this sentence, feeling completely unassured.
＊
The next morning at ten o’clock, in the lecture hall of the College of Arts.
With more than ten minutes left before class, the hall was already mostly filled with students, buzzing with endless chatter.
The center of discussion was naturally the “Lin Ran incident” that had been causing an uproar over the past two days.
Su Wanyu sat near the front, flipping through a sketchbook with her head lowered, but she couldn’t focus on anything.
Her right eyelid had been twitching since she woke up, making her restless and irritable.
Du Hao’s phone had been unreachable all night, and he hadn’t replied to her messages either, filling her with an extremely ominous premonition.
Her roommate, Liu Qianqian, leaned over, excitedly discussing the dramatic reversal on the forum yesterday.
“Wanyu, do you think Lin Ran can find out who did it?”
“I don’t know,” Su Wanyu forced a smile. “Probably… not, right? Didn’t the police say the account was overseas?”
“True,” Liu Qianqian nodded.
Just then, the entrance to the lecture hall suddenly fell silent.
All eyes turned toward it.
Su Wanyu tightened her fingers, the edges of her sketchbook crumpling under her grip.
Lin Ran walked in alone.
She was dressed simply today—a white shirt, black pencil pants, her long hair loosely tied up with a few strands falling beside her neck.
There was a cold yet delicate allure in her eyes.
Her steps were neither hurried nor slow, the sound of her high heels clicking against the floor echoing clearly in the quiet hall.
Then, she stopped in front of Su Wanyu.
All eyes converged.
Su Wanyu’s heart skipped a beat. She looked up, forcing composure. “You—”
Smack!
A sharp, resounding slap landed hard on her face.
The force was so strong that Su Wanyu’s head snapped to the side, her ears ringing, her cheek burning with pain.
The lecture hall fell into dead silence.
Everyone stared in shock!
Su Wanyu covered her face, about to speak—
Lin Ran slapped her again with the back of her hand.
Smack!
Then came a third slap.
Smack!
Three slaps, swift and ruthless!
Su Wanyu’s face instantly reddened and swelled, a trickle of blood seeping from the corner of her mouth.
She covered her face, tears streaming down. “You… why did you hit me?!”
Her fragile, pitiful appearance immediately stirred sympathy among those around her.
Liu Qianqian was the first to stand up, angrily demanding, “Lin Ran! What gives you the right to hit someone? Even if you’re the Lin family’s young lady, you can’t just casually hit a classmate, can you?!”
“Exactly! This is too much!”
“Bullying others because of your family background?”
“What did Su Wanyu do wrong for you to hit her like this?”
“You have to give an explanation! Otherwise, we’ll report this to the advisor! To the school!”
The crowd grew agitated, accusations rising one after another.
Su Wanyu covered her face, tears streaming down as she sobbed pitifully.
“Lin Ran… how have I offended you? Why would you treat me like this…”
She wept with pear blossoms glistening like raindrops, pitiful and endearing, portraying the image of a victim to perfection.
Faced with the crowd’s accusations and questions, Lin Ran remained completely unruffled, not even a flicker of emotion in her eyes.
Once the clamor subsided, she leisurely took a voice recorder from her pocket and pressed play.