Chapter 32

I turned my head to look at her. The night wind blew her black hair, and I suddenly felt this was a good opportunity. I was going to confess to her, as some things couldn't be delayed any longer. Just as I was about to speak, my phone rang, sounding very jarring in the empty playground. I had no choice but to answer; it was Monkey.

"Where are you?" he asked bluntly, as if something urgent was happening.

"I'm at the playground, with Lin Ke'er."

"Move a bit further away, I have something to tell you."

"If it's about borrowing money, forget it." I joked, giving Lin Ke'er a nod and walking away until I was sure she couldn't hear me. "What's up?"

"What's going on with you and Wang Yao?"

My heart skipped a beat; I knew Monkey had figured it out. I could be tough in front of Zheng Wu, but not in front of Monkey. I had to say, "It's just as you saw."

"When did it start?"

"A long time ago."

"Does Lin Ke'er know?"

"Not yet."

Monkey paused for a long time before saying, "You're really something, dating the leader of the Thirteen Roses."

Over the phone, I couldn't tell if he was being sarcastic, so I said, "It's okay, I guess."

"Okay? You're in deep trouble, do you know how powerful Wang Yao's brother is?"

"I'm not afraid." In the darkness, my back straightened slightly; I've never been afraid of trouble.

"Alright, what are you going to do? Play both sides?"

"No way, I'm about to confess to Lin Ke'er."

"Does Wang Yao agree with that?"

I thought of Wang Yao's attitude tonight and said, "No, she hopes I can be with Lin Ke'er."

"I knew it, Wang Yao isn't the type to steal her sister's man. So you can't just confess."

"Whether Wang Yao agrees or not, I have to confess to Lin Ke'er."

"If it were just about Wang Yao, I wouldn't bother with your mess."

"What do you mean?"

Monkey didn't answer my question directly but said, "Remember what the most important prerequisite is for us to take on Ding Sheng?"

"Wang Yao's protection?"

"Right, with Wang Yao's protection, Ding Sheng won't dare to touch us. Once you confess to Lin Ke'er and expose your relationship with Wang Yao, it will only make Wang Yao feel ashamed and unable to face her sisters. Given Wang Yao's personality, she won't be with you and might even disappear in a fit of anger... Then we'll be at the mercy of Ding Sheng."

"So what are you saying?"

"Confessing now will only bring harm and no benefit. You won't get Wang Yao, and you might even ruin everything for us. So don't confess yet, at least not until we're well-prepared."

"I understand." Monkey is really smart; he can see so far ahead with just a small matter. I almost ruined our big plan because of my selfishness!

"Good, that's the first thing. There's a second thing."

"Okay, go on." I couldn't help but take it seriously.

"Can you lend me five bucks? My membership at the internet cafe is about to expire."

"Hello? Hello? Hello?" I slowly pulled the phone away, "The signal is bad, I can't hear you. I'll hang up."

I hung up and walked back to where Lin Ke'er was, based on my memory. The playground was pitch black, and I had walked quite far, so I couldn't find her for a moment. I called out her name as I walked, but there was no response, only the night wind blowing. I started to panic and ran around the playground, but I still couldn't find Lin Ke'er after running halfway across it.

"Help!—" a shrill scream echoed.

I stopped and listened carefully to the source of the sound.

"Zuo Fei!—" another voice called.

I quickly ran towards the northwest direction and soon saw two vague figures. The voices became clearer— "Let me go, Zuo Fei is nearby!" "Ha, you still mention him? He's almost beaten to death by Ding Sheng. Even if he had a hundred lives, he wouldn't dare to come and save you!"

It was Yi Zhen!

My anger flared up, and I ran even faster. In the vast playground, my footsteps were particularly loud. Yi Zhen finally noticed and let go of Lin Ke'er, pointing at me and saying, "Zuo Fei, you still dare to come..."

The word "come" had barely left his lips when I kicked him in the stomach.

Yi Zhen's body flew backward, and I charged at him like an angry lion, punching and kicking. Yi Zhen covered his head and rolled around, still cursing.

"You dare to hit me? Aren't you afraid of Ding Sheng and his gang?"

"I'll kill you before they can kill me!"

I put all my strength into each punch and kick, pummeling Yi Zhen's precious body. Soon, he couldn't even scream, but I didn't stop, driven by my anger. Lin Ke'er was so scared that she pulled me, saying, "Stop, stop." I finally let go, and Yi Zhen lay on the ground like a dog, dirty and motionless.

I squatted down and mimicked Monkey's tone, "Kid, if you can't handle it, don't pretend to be a gangster. Now you can cry and go home to your dad." This was a provocation; I was actually afraid he would call his dad.

Yi Zhen slowly got up, still proud despite being beaten to a pulp: "You poor bastards only know how to use violence. We'll see who can outlast the other." Seeing this idiot, I wanted to hit him again, but Lin Ke'er held onto my arm tightly.

Only when Yi Zhen slowly walked away did Lin Ke'er collapse into my arms, clearly very scared. I patted her back and comforted her softly. She kept crying, her tears soaking my shoulder, making me feel heartbroken. When she finally calmed down, I asked her what had happened.

It turned out that not long after I left, Yi Zhen somehow came over and started hugging and touching Lin Ke'er. Lin Ke'er was terrified and kept saying Zuo Fei was nearby, but Yi Zhen didn't believe her and dragged her towards the northwest. During the struggle, Lin Ke'er kept screaming, and I ran over.

Hearing this, I felt something was off. How did Yi Zhen know Lin Ke'er was here? I told her to stay still and started searching her. Soon, I found a battery-like object on her sleeve.

Lin Ke'er exclaimed, "What's this?"

"A civilian tracking device." I said angrily, throwing it on the ground and stomping it to pieces. I had seen this thing online; the cheaper ones cost a few hundred yuan, and the more expensive ones cost a few thousand. Only a rich kid like Yi Zhen could afford it. This bastard, he even used a tracking device on Lin Ke'er, clearly with malicious intent!

It seemed he tracked Lin Ke'er to the playground and followed her. When I went to make a call, he thought she was alone and decided to do something. Luckily, I was nearby, or the consequences would have been unimaginable!

First, he harassed her, then used a tracking device. Lin Ke'er had never seen such a situation before and was terrified, her hands trembling and her face pale, like a frightened lamb. I tried to help her walk, but her legs were too weak to move. I had to carry her out of the playground, my heart burning with anger.

I carried her all the way to the girls' dormitory, but the dorm manager wouldn't let me in. I had to put Lin Ke'er down and call Wang Yao. She didn't answer after three tries, so I called Liu Yina. She came down quickly, and I explained the situation. Liu Yina was furious, saying Yi Zhen had the nerve to mess with one of the Thirteen Roses and that Wang Yao would have to deal with him harshly.

Finally, Liu Yina took Lin Ke'er back, and I returned to my dorm. Lying in bed, I still felt a bit scared thinking about what happened. Luckily, I was nearby, or Lin Ke'er would have been in real trouble. I also managed to remove the tracking device.

The next morning, during the early study session, Liu Yina mysteriously told me not to go to the morning exercises after the second class, saying there would be a show. I knew Wang Yao was going to deal with Yi Zhen, and I was quite excited. I immediately called Monkey and Huang Jie, telling them to come back to watch. They were still at the internet cafe, these two old hands at skipping classes, and the teachers had pretty much given up on them.

Besides telling Monkey and Huang Jie, I told everyone I could, including Zheng Wu, Yang Zecheng, Li Baiyu, and others, because I really wanted to see Yi Zhen humiliated. Oh, and I also told my girlfriend, Ma Jie, to watch with me after the second class. Ma Jie was very excited, probably because it was the first time I talked to him about such a matter.

Ma Jie asked me why Wang Yao was going to hit Yi Zhen, and I briefly explained what happened last night. Ma Jie said, "Oh, no wonder you were calling Lin Ke'er in your sleep last night." I exclaimed, "Really?"

"Really, you called her name about ten times."

I nodded, "Given what happened last night, it's normal to worry about Lin Ke'er."

"But you call her name all the time."

"..." I was a bit stunned. Did I really call Lin Ke'er's name in my sleep?

"By the way, you not only called Lin Ke'er but also Wang Yao, alternating between them." Ma Jie delivered another blow.

There were many other people in the class, and I quickly covered Ma Jie's mouth, saying fiercely, "You can eat anything, but you can't say anything randomly!" My heart was pounding, as if I had been publicly undressed.

I never thought this secret would be discovered by Ma Jie.

I said, "What the hell, why do you listen to me talking in your sleep?"

Ma Jie "mumbled," as if he had something to say. I said, "Speak softly!" and then let go of his mouth.

"I didn't listen on purpose, you were just calling out too loudly!"

I shivered, "Did others hear it too?"

"I don't know."

"Damn." I was speechless.

"Bro, what's wrong with you?"

"Nothing, just don't tell anyone." I felt really uncomfortable.

"Why?"

"Why do you think!" I put on a stern face and shook my fist to scare him.

"I really don't know." Ma Jie said with a sad face, "I don't think it's a big deal. Besides Lin Ke'er and Wang Yao, you also called other people's names."

"Who?" I was even more surprised. Please don't say I called Liu Yina or Zhang Xuan, or I'd go crazy!

"Monkey." Ma Jie said.

"..." I felt a thousand grass mud horses galloping in my heart.