Volume One, Chapter 16: Domestic Violence

Faint voices of conversation drifted through the air.

Gu Nanxiao had no intention of prying into others’ privacy and wanted to quicken his pace to leave.

Just as he lifted his leg, he caught a familiar name and unbearable insults.

Seeing the situation heading toward an irreversible direction, Gu Nanxiao raised his foot and kicked the door.

She was a girl; Li Mengfei had asked him to take care of her. Gu Nanqing really liked this teacher. As for himself...

Regardless of the reason, Gu Nanxiao could not stand idly by.

He made a call, and Xie Yangfeng promptly arrived on the scene with his team.

At that moment, the man was still lying on the ground, utterly powerless and defenseless.

The instant Gu Nanxiao pinned him down, he effortlessly dislocated both of the man’s arms.

As the man was taken away, filthy curses still spilled from his mouth.

Gu Nanxiao’s expression grew colder by the second. Xie Yangfeng timely grabbed a nearby tissue to muffle the man’s mouth.

Silence settled over the world.

The door to the lounge closed.

Gu Nanxiao sat on the sofa, about three meters from Mu Yao.

He watched as the girl picked up the sheer fabric mysteriously tucked under the coffee table.

A fifty-thousand-yuan outer garment was tossed so freshly into the trash.

Gu Nanxiao turned his head, a barely perceptible smile curling the corner of his lips.

The summer evening breeze was quite pleasant. The two walked side by side along the path leaving the campus.

Dim streetlights cast shadows that, after subtle shaping, appeared unusually intimate on the ground.

Mu Yao wore Gu Nanxiao’s short-sleeved shirt.

The oversized men’s T-shirt enveloped the girl, revealing only the hem of her skirt.

For the first time, Mu Yao clearly realized that Gu Nanxiao’s physique was even larger than she had imagined.

The image-conscious little princess was probably stepping out in such a mismatched outfit for the very first time in her life.

The fresh scent of soap pods filled her nostrils, making her think... that in this moment, it wasn’t so bad.

Gu Nanxiao seemed to favor wearing a vest under his clothes.

A plain, old-fashioned undershirt somehow gave the athletic man a different aura.

Mu Yao admitted she had, for a brief few seconds, been captivated by him.

...

The next day.

Mu Yao knocked on the neighboring door, holding the freshly washed short-sleeved shirt.

At that moment, Gu Nanxiao was working overtime at the police station.

His phone beside him lit up briefly.

After reading the message, Gu Nanxiao immediately straightened up in his chair, his brow furrowing.

She was injured? When did this happen?

He replayed the events of the previous day in his mind but found no clarity.

He grabbed his phone and opened a food delivery app he barely used.

“Boss! Bad news!” Alongside the successful payment notification came the grim news delivered by Xie Yangfeng.

Gu Nanxiao dragged his weary body home.

Upon entering, he saw an excited little Nanqing holding a large bag of medicine.

Gu Nanxiao had ordered the delivery.

“Brother! Should I take these to Teacher Mu now?!”

Gu Nanxiao silently regarded him for a moment.

He crouched down, ruffled the boy’s hair, then stood and placed the medicine on the cabinet.

“This is for me, what does it have to do with Teacher Mu?”

“But...” Gu Nanqing pouted, dissatisfied, watching Gu Nanxiao disappear into the master bedroom.

...

The car stopped in the police station parking lot.

As Gu Nanxiao stepped out, a woman suddenly rushed toward him.

Her weathered face made it impossible to guess her age at a glance.

“Officer, you have to help me! My husband... he tried to kill me last night!”

Gu Nanxiao quickly caught her, preventing her from kneeling.

Once steady, the woman frantically tore at her collar.

Ignoring the strange looks around, she wanted to show Gu Nanxiao the bruises.

At the base of her neck was a clear red mark, resembling a rope’s imprint.

According to the woman, the injury had occurred the previous night.

More than twelve hours had passed, yet there were still visible bleeding points on the mark.

Gu Nanxiao frowned.

In this situation, all he could do was keep a safe distance and stabilize the woman’s emotions.

Xie Yangfeng arrived in a hurry with his team, making Gu Nanxiao breathe a sigh of relief.

Inside the police station reception room.

Gu Nanxiao handed the woman a cup of hot water, stretched his legs, and sat across from her at the table.

Time flowed quietly in the room.

Steam rose from the cup, a droplet falling.

The woman lifted her reddened eyes and recounted everything that had happened during this period.

Though her account was somewhat disorganized, Gu Nanxiao pieced together the essence.

Not only the woman’s painful ordeal but also the inaction of certain police officers.

Gu Nanxiao clenched his fist tighter on his lap.

When the woman finished, she gazed vacantly at Gu Nanxiao.

Waiting for the justice she deserved.

“All right, I’ve understood the situation on my end. The police station will take the necessary measures.”

The woman’s calm eyes finally showed a flicker of emotion.

Before Gu Nanxiao could speak again, the reception door was rudely pushed open.

“Gu Nanxiao, are you bored or what?! You’re meddling in this too? Taking measures? Let me hear what measures you plan to take!”

Sun Qi strode in boldly.

The woman shrank her neck the instant she saw him.

“Let me tell you, I won’t approve people for such trivial matters. If you have the guts, take Xie Yangfeng and handle it yourselves! I didn’t have time to say anything after the school incident last time, and now you’re stirring trouble again! Police officers are busy; we don’t have time to listen to women’s endless nagging!”

Sun Qi poured himself some tea and sat leisurely in a single armchair.

His words starkly contradicted his relaxed demeanor.

He took a sip, then spat the tea leaves onto the floor beside him.

“I’ve said it before—you women should look at your own faults instead of blaming men for everything. Why did he hit you? It’s definitely because you did something wrong. If you always pleased him, you wouldn’t get beaten!”

Gu Nanxiao suddenly stood up from the sofa, killing intent blazing in his eyes.

Sun Qi nervously glanced at the nearby monitor.

Seeing the glaring red dot, he sat back down with a false bravado.

“What are you doing? Gu Nanxiao, I’m your superior. I respected you and Xie Yangfeng because you both came from the military, but that’s no excuse for causing trouble!”

“Crack.” The sound of Gu Nanxiao’s knuckles echoed.

Sun Qi swallowed hard, eyes involuntarily flicking upward.

“What are you going to do? I’m telling you, assaulting a public official is a crime. You were discharged from the military for misconduct. If you hit me today, you’ll be out of the police force for good—maybe even jailed!”

Gu Nanxiao’s gaze was heavy with contempt and disdain.

As he stepped forward, the woman gently grabbed his trouser leg.

Gu Nanxiao turned in surprise.

She shook her head faintly.

“It’s my fault. I’ve wasted the police’s time.”

The lady reverted to her initial demeanor.

Her eyes were like a stagnant pool—devoid of any ripple.

That brief moment of vitality seemed only a mirage in Gu Nanxiao’s mind.