Chapter 14: Only the Human Heart Cannot Be Guarded Against

Zhao Qingqing’s hands were pinned down with unyielding force as Li Kang straddled her, his filthy hands roaming over her body. Yan Yu could sense the storm of emotions raging within Zhao Qingqing at that moment. All her struggles were futile; unable to fight back, she began to loathe her own body.

Those ten minutes were a period of excruciating agony for Zhao Qingqing.

“Zhao Qingqing, you have to understand—women are like clothes. If they fit, what harm is there in wearing them again and again? It’s not as if I, Li Kang, can’t afford it. But you’ve turned me down time after time. So what if I force myself into this outfit? Now that the collar is torn and the sleeves are ripped, this piece of clothing is worthless. Ha ha ha!”

“Li Kang… you’ll regret this. I’ll tell everyone what you’ve done!”

Smack—

“If anyone’s going to regret this, it’s you. Go ahead and report me. Let’s see if people believe a penniless orphan or the son of a rich family. Tsk tsk, a poor orphan deliberately seduces a rich heir for money—don’t you think people would rather believe that story?”

Despair washed over Zhao Qingqing, as if her life were tumbling into a bottomless abyss.

There was no end in sight.

Li Kang and Xu Jin’s careless laughter echoed in her ears, their footsteps growing ever more distant.

At that moment, Yan Yu finally saw a new scene.

Under the desk in the equipment room, He Qing was hiding.

He had witnessed everything, yet hadn’t made a sound, nor had he lifted a finger to help Zhao Qingqing.

“Help me… help me…” Zhao Qingqing pleaded desperately, as if grasping for a lifeline.

But He Qing’s eyes, once filled with fear, shifted gradually to cold indifference. He crawled out from under the desk, lowered his head, and said, “I didn’t see anything. This has nothing to do with me.”

At that moment, Zhao Qingqing’s despair plunged to its nadir, her spirit shattering like a porcelain vase dashed to the ground.

…

“Beast, beast, beast!!”

Yan Yu opened his eyes, tears streaming from the corners, his fists clenched so tightly that his nails dug into his flesh.

He lay on the army-green mat, his gaze fixed on the office counter.

It took several deep breaths before Yan Yu could pull himself together, but his eyes remained wide, blazing with fury.

“So that’s… how it all happened…”

The temperature in the equipment room had returned to normal, a sign that Zhao Qingqing had already left.

“Li Kang set his sights on Zhao Qingqing, but she felt nothing for him. They agreed to meet in the equipment room, where she rejected him. Enraged, Li Kang, with Xu Jin’s help, violated her… And throughout it all, He Qing stood by, watching in silence, then left with cold indifference. Driven to despair, Zhao Qingqing decided to end her own life, yet even in death, Li Kang smeared her name!”

“To wear the skin of a human, yet act like a beast!”

Only now did Yan Yu truly understand the meaning of his grandmother’s oft-repeated words: “Heaven can be measured, the earth can be weighed, but the human heart is fathomless.”

Just then, a shout rang out from outside the equipment room door. “Boss! Boss! Are you still in there?!”

Yan Yu stood up, composed himself, wiped the willow leaf water from his eyelids, and pushed open the door.

Li Kang and Xu Jin were standing outside.

Hao Zhuang whispered, “Boss, Kang and Jin wanted to get into the equipment room. We barely managed to hold them off.”

“Out of the way!” Xu Jin shoved Hao Zhuang aside. Li Kang stepped forward, seized Yan Yu by the collar, and said coldly, “Yan Yu, I don’t care if you’re Zhou Xiaowan’s cousin, or why you’re here alone. I’m warning you: there are things you shouldn’t meddle in, and people you shouldn’t cross!”

Yan Yu stared at Li Kang, expressionless.

Li Kang’s anger flared—he hadn’t expected Yan Yu to defy him so openly.

Suddenly, Yan Yu grabbed Li Kang’s wrist and twisted it sharply. Li Kang cried out in pain, his hand instinctively letting go. At the same time, Yan Yu’s other fist crashed into Li Kang’s face!

The punch sent Li Kang stumbling back, his nose throbbing with pain as warm blood trickled down. His once-handsome face was now a mess.

“You… you dare hit me?!” Li Kang roared, livid.

Yan Yu lunged forward and kicked Li Kang square in the chest, sending him sprawling to the ground. Yan Yu straddled him, raining punch after punch onto his body.

“Beast, beast, beast!!”

Xu Jin was stupefied by Yan Yu’s ferocity. The heavy-set boy and Hao Zhuang exchanged a glance and hurried to intervene.

Yan Yu was as strong as an ox; it took both of them a great deal of effort to finally separate him from Li Kang. The heavy-set boy tried to soothe him. “Boss, we all know Li Kang’s a scumbag, but if you fight him like this, you’re going to pay a heavy price…”

“Pah.” Yan Yu spat on the ground in contempt.

At last, Xu Jin helped Li Kang to his feet. Disheveled and covered in bruises, a smear of dirt on his forehead, Li Kang looked utterly wretched.

Their scuffle had drawn the attention of several students on the field, but none dared report it to a teacher. On the one hand, they relished seeing Li Kang beaten; on the other, they feared his retaliation.

“Yan Yu, you dare hit me? I’m telling you, you’re dead. You’re finished!” Li Kang shouted furiously.

“I’ll be waiting,” Yan Yu said with a grin. “If you can’t kill me, I’ll kill you.”

Li Kang shot him a murderous glare, then pushed Xu Jin. “Let’s go!”

Watching the pair leave, the heavy-set boy sighed, “Boss, of all the people to provoke, why did you have to pick Li Kang?”

“What’s so special about him?” Yan Yu retorted.

“He’s the richest in our class—not that the rest of us are poor, but his family’s on another level… And more importantly, he knows a lot of people in the underworld. Last time one of our classmates had a run-in with him, he ended up with a broken arm outside the school gates the very next day…” the heavy-set boy explained.

Yan Yu snorted coldly. “Afraid? If you are, it’s not too late to walk away now.”

Hao Zhuang thought it over, then pounded his chest with loyalty. “All these muscles I built are for my brothers, Boss. Don’t worry, I won’t ever leave you!”

“Hey!” The heavy-set boy sighed. “If the big guy’s staying, how can I bail? But Boss, you better watch out—Li Kang is vindictive. He’ll definitely come after you!”