Chapter 146 Is It You?

Anyway, since there are no obvious flaws to be found, it's best to go find Chu Zhiqing first. As for whether Xue Can will cause more trouble, just like Sitou Jingyao said, time will tell. It's enough to stay on guard.

"Sorry to trouble you so early in the morning," Chu Yuxuan said, standing up. "I have some other matters to attend to, so I'll take my leave."

Sitou Jingyao also stood up, her expression slightly displeased. She sighed softly, "Leaving already? Ah, well... alright."

After a brief pause, she added, "Mr. Chu, let me remind you again: don't touch the Xue family, and it's best not to investigate them either. Your issue with Xue Can is already resolved, understand? There's no need to bring more trouble upon yourself."

Chu Yuxuan smiled, his mouth curling slightly. "Thanks for the advice. I won't go looking for trouble."

With that, he nodded, then turned and headed for the door.

Sitou Jingyao watched his back, a smile tugging at the corners of her lips. She gradually backed up to the balcony. Just as Chu Yuxuan reached the entrance to change his shoes, she paused, took a deep breath, and inexplicably said, "Hey, aren't you afraid I might jump off from here?"

Chu Yuxuan's body stiffened abruptly. His expression froze as he slowly turned his head to look at Sitou Jingyao, who was leaning against the railing. His eyes were filled with shock. After a long moment, in an incredulous tone, he asked, "Is it you? Zhang Yao!"

Sitou Jingyao tilted her head slightly, her face full of grievance, and gave a bitter smile. "I've been wondering when you'd finally recognize me… Yuxuan gege."

When she called him "Yuxuan gege," her flirtatious demeanor faded, and she looked pure and innocent.

In an instant, both of their thoughts were pulled back to the past.

Back then, a young boy who had been brought to live at his grandmother's house by his mother sat idly on the rooftop one evening. In front of him was a brand-new drawing board his grandmother had bought for him, and he was drawing absentmindedly.

He wasn't sketching the lively scene below, nor the fiery clouds in the sky, nor the distant silhouette of a lone sail on the sea. Instead, he drew bamboo leaves, rustling in the wind, which reminded him of the class beauty who often stirred his heart.

After a while, as the evening breeze blew, the once quiet and gentle boy, who hadn't yet become a reckless troublemaker, picked up half a watermelon with a spoon sticking out of it. He took a bite and stared at his masterpiece, a faint smile playing on his lips.

Just then, the rusty iron door of the rooftop suddenly creaked open, and a girl with a ponytail, her face bruised and swollen, stepped onto the rooftop. Her eyes were vacant and filled with despair, and her steps were heavy as she walked toward the edge.

Suddenly, she heard a soft crunching sound, as if someone was biting into a crisp watermelon. She turned to see a boy not far away, sitting with a spoon in one hand and a brush in the other, casually eating watermelon and watching her.

Her eyes reddened, and she sniffled. With a cold and bitter tone, she said, "What are you staring at?"

The boy blinked but didn't respond, continuing to eat his watermelon.

"Aren't you afraid I might jump off? Get lost, before you have nightmares!"

"What does it have to do with me?" the boy said indifferently, scooping another large piece of watermelon into his mouth, his gaze never leaving her.

At that time, the girl's name was still "Zhang Yao," not "Sitou Jingyao." She looked at the cold indifference in the boy's eyes and gave a desolate smile before turning back to the horizon. The clear sky, the gentle evening breeze, and the beautiful fiery clouds — all of it seemed dark as hell to her.

Chu Yuxuan had heard of the girl who lived in the same unit as him. Her name was Zhang Yao. Her mother, a prostitute, had died two years ago, and she lived with her stepfather. Her stepfather was a notorious drunkard and gambler, and because Zhang Yao's grades had always been poor, everyone in the neighborhood looked down on her.

But no one knew what the girl, who they saw as bad luck and garbage, had truly endured.

No one knew the horrors her beastly stepfather had inflicted upon her.

No one knew how he beat her mercilessly, forcing her to follow her mother's tragic path.

Gradually, she became numb. Yet, she still clung to a shred of hope in her heart, because she had a kind and gentle homeroom teacher who always took care of her, like a ray of light shining into the abyss. This teacher bought her clothes, brought her food, and often suggested that she come to his home for tutoring after school.

However, perhaps because she felt filthy, she always declined her teacher's kindness, though she kept it in her heart and vowed to repay him someday.

But just an hour before she stepped onto the rooftop, while she was mechanically earning money for her stepfather, she received a call from her so-called ray of light...

There is a saying about Keigo Higashino's Journey Under the Midnight Sun: "There are two things in the world that should never be looked at directly — the sun and the human heart." When Zhang Yao felt her teacher's fist land on her face, she still couldn't believe that the perverted devil before her was the very man she once saw as her beacon of light.

"I was nice to you so you'd be sensible! You think you can fool me?" he sneered.

"You little wh*r*! Don't act innocent with me, I know exactly what you are!"

"You sell yourself for money, so stop pretending to be virtuous!"

Each vile word was like a sword, stabbing her heart, hurting a hundred, a thousand, ten thousand times more than any punch or kick ever could.