Chapter Fourteen: The Devil Unleashed

His eyes gleamed with a dangerous, sinister light as he took a sharp drag of his cigarette. Coldly, he said, “Stop talking nonsense. If Xiang Yu is willing, I’ll chase after her again.”

Then he turned to a few delinquent classmates gathered nearby. “You all head back first. I’m going to teach Ye Nuanxin a lesson.

Whatever happened today stays between us—if it ruins my reputation, don’t blame me for turning hostile.”

Though suspicious, the others said nothing. They figured if Li Qiang wanted things his way, so be it; either way, it didn’t concern them.

Once their footsteps faded, Li Qiang suddenly crouched down and grabbed Ye Nuanxin’s chin. His voice was icy. “You’d better come up with a way to get Xiang Yu for me. And write me a letter of guarantee—if anything happens to me, you won’t be free of blame either.”

Fear flickered in Ye Nuanxin’s eyes. This time, she was truly scared.

Li Qiang had earned his reputation as the school bully, a thorny figure among the wild boys from miles around. His toughness was undeniable.

Though he usually acted loyal in front of the boys, now his true, despicable nature showed through.

Ye Nuanxin forced herself to stay calm and nodded.

Her hair tousled, she followed Li Qiang out from behind the wall and ran into Xiang Yu.

An uncontrollable wave of panic and guilt washed over her.

Li Qiang quickly regained his composure and wanted to step forward to explain to Xiang Yu—that he had only gone after Ye Nuanxin to vent his anger.

But Xiang Yu and Zhang Xiaoyan, the girl who had interrupted Xiang Yu from strangling Ye Nuanxin that night, walked away briskly without glancing back.

They gave him no chance to speak.

Li Qiang watched Xiang Yu’s slender, tall figure retreating, his gaze burning with a heat and desire previously unknown.

He clenched his fist involuntarily.

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Before, Xiang Yu had been timid and kept her distance from him; he had no strong desire to pursue her.

Back then, Xiang Yu was only beautiful but too honest and reserved to truly captivate him.

But yesterday, she had been composed and sharp, like a rose covered in thorns, like a painted beauty with a soul—and she truly enraptured him.

He was determined to have Xiang Yu, to make her his wife.

Pandora’s box had been cracked open by Ye Nuanxin.

The demon was growing impatient.

They walked far away before Zhang Xiaoyan couldn’t help but speak with disdain, “Her reputation’s already ruined—how dare she still hang out with Li Qiang?”

Xiang Yu said nothing, but her sensitive mind began to probe quickly for answers.

She and Zhang Xiaoyan had agreed to study an extra forty minutes after evening self-study—otherwise, she wouldn’t have witnessed this scene.

What exactly had Ye Nuanxin and Li Qiang done in those forty minutes?

Something improper?

She didn’t believe it. Li Qiang could never fancy Ye Nuanxin—just yesterday, he had angrily called her “an ugly troublemaker.” Clearly, he looked down on her appearance the most.

So it had to be settling scores.

The school bully, conned out of money by an ordinary pawn; he’d be furious, seeking revenge.

Yet their atmosphere suggested a truce had been reached.

But seeing Ye Nuanxin’s panicked, guilty look and Li Qiang trying to get close to Xiang Yu made everything feel strange.

Unable to figure it out, Xiang Yu stopped thinking about it. Regardless, she was determined to distance herself from Ye Nuanxin.

Zhang Xiaoyan had switched beds with her the previous night, so now Xiang Yu slept on the lower bunk, no longer face to face with Ye Nuanxin.

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Xiang Yu was truly grateful to Zhang Xiaoyan and planned to thank her properly when the chance arose.

Ye Nuanxin lay restless, her mind swirling with thoughts, unable to sleep.

Annoyed, Zhang Xiaoyan turned over and pointed her feet at her, while Ye Nuanxin endured it silently, remembering how just now Zhang Xiaoyan and Xiang Yu had caught her entering through the wall with Li Qiang.

But feeling resentful, she turned her feet toward Zhang Xiaoyan in return.

Now she was having second thoughts about helping Li Qiang.

Initially, she had planned to provoke Li Qiang to target Xiang Yu—if Xiang Yu gave in, she’d be married off at sixteen, her reputation ruined. If she resisted and reported Li Qiang, the scandal would also damage her reputation.

Either way, unlike her sister who had fetched a good price, she wouldn’t be able to profit. Her greedy parents would surely beat her.

But now Li Qiang was serious, forcing her to sign a pact that bound them together—if anything happened to him, she’d be finished too.

If he succeeded and protected her, she wouldn’t be able to touch Xiang Yu again—she could only betray her once.

She felt a bitter reluctance.

She couldn’t shake the feeling that things shouldn’t have come to this—that Xiang Yu shouldn’t be out of her control.

There was a restless frustration, like losing a precious possession.

Xiang Yu should listen to Ye Nuanxin forever, envy her as the cherished child of their parents, willing to serve her loyally for life.