Troublemaker

"You're really not going to do anything?" Wei Fang's shock had turned to disbelief.

"This is her own business," He Zhen replied.

He Zhen hadn't contacted Fu Xin since that day.

"I'm hungry. Let's go eat." Yao Tao hurried to give him another push.

[Quick!]

[Get my baby out of here before he catches on!]

[Before he loses his head again and jumps into the fray!]

[Boohoo, romantic showdowns are exciting, but I care about my baby!]

He Zhen wanted to reach up and ruffle Yao Tao's hair.

[Mommy loves you!]

[How could I bear to let you into that romantic battlefield!~ Is my love not enough!~]

She even started singing.

He Zhen instantly lowered his raised hand.

Yao Tao's love changed flavor at lightning speed.

He Zhen had let it go. Liang Zhizhi hadn't.

She shouted, "Qin Zhen, I was wrong about you! I never imagined your love life was such a mess. If I'd known, I would've told Xin Xin to accept He Zhen long ago!"

He Zhen: ???

Wei Fang: ???

[Oh, bestie, dear bestie, who needs your advice!!!]

[Leave my He Zhen out of this!!!]

"Let's go." Before Yao Tao could get those words out, a figure stumbled toward the exit.

She wiped her eyes with her small hands, her tears glittering in the light.

She bumped into countless people, yet not one could stop her!

Yao Tao didn't just think it to herself; she also narrated it to He Zhen in her head!

[She wiped her eyes with her small hands, her tears glittering in the light.]

[She bumped into countless people, yet not one could stop her!]

[That's right!]

[Watch closely. This woman is called Fu Xin, and right now...]

[She's charging straight toward the exit!]

[That's our direction!!!]

[I have a bad feeling about this!]

Yao Tao's sudden warning made He Zhen instinctively raise his guard.

Fu Xin was running straight toward He Zhen.

"Xin Xin!" Liang Zhizhi was still calling her name behind her.

"Fu Xin!" Qin Zhen called out too.

As she ran past He Zhen, Fu Xin glanced sideways and saw his face.

Her eyes widened in disbelief.

Then she pitched forward!

[Holy shit!]

[Seriously!]

[I mean, seriously!]

[Does this romantic showdown absolutely have to drag He Zhen into it? Is that how we're playing this!]

Perhaps out of years of instinct, He Zhen reached out.

[Hold it right there!-]

Yao Tao reacted quickly, reaching out to catch Fu Xin herself.

Seeing that she was about to hit the ground, Fu Xin reached out and grabbed-not He Zhen's hand, but Yao Tao's!

Yao Tao hadn't mentally prepared herself at all. She had simply acted without thinking in her panic, instinctively trying to keep He Zhen from coming into contact with Fu Xin.

Now that Fu Xin had yanked her down, her head filled with question marks and curses.

[Oh my god!]

[Help!-]

[Fuck!-]

Yao Tao toppled forward with Fu Xin.

There was a thud-.

The pain she had expected never came.

Yao Tao cautiously opened her eyes a crack.

A pair of strong hands settled firmly around Yao Tao's waist, pulling her into an embrace from behind.

"You're such an idiot." Holding Yao Tao, He Zhen took a step back.

A step away lay Fu Xin, who had landed headfirst.

"Xin Xin! Xin!"

Two frantic voices rang out.

The first belonged to Liang Zhizhi, the second to Qin Zhen.

Drops of blood stained the floor. Fu Xin had scraped her forehead open, and blood trickled from her nose.

She stubbornly raised her head to look at He Zhen. "Zhen?"

"Uh." Wei Fang had thought He Zhen would catch Fu Xin. He hadn't expected Yao Tao to reach out, much less Fu Xin to grab her.

Most unbelievable of all, He Zhen had caught Yao Tao and left Fu Xin alone!

"Fu Xin, are you okay?" With too many people crowding around for him to approach, Wei Fang could only stand outside the circle and watch.

"He Zhen, you've gone too far!" Liang Zhizhi was the first to lash out. "Why did you let Fu Xin fall? She's bleeding!"

Wei Fang: ...?

He couldn't shake the feeling that something was off.

"She almost pulled Yao Tao down," He Zhen answered calmly-so calmly that he sounded almost indifferent.

"So what?" Liang Zhizhi shouted angrily. "You just abandoned Fu Xin?! She's bleeding!"

"I'll carry you to the infirmary!" Qin Zhen tried to pick her up, but Fu Xin pushed him away.

"Zhen!" Tan Nianzhi, who had just rushed over, grew frantic. "You're not allowed to carry her!"

"Have you made enough of a scene yet?!" Qin Zhen roared.

Fu Xin staggered to her feet. She had probably scraped her knees too, judging by her awkward stance.

"Xin Xin!" Liang Zhizhi hurried over to support her.

"Let's go." Fu Xin's voice was hoarse.

[Holy shit!]

[Why am I secretly kind of happy?]

[Ah, Fu Xin looks a little pitiful.]

No sooner had Yao Tao thought that than a boy with his hands in his pockets walked toward Fu Xin and scooped her into his arms without a word.

Gasps rose all around them.

Qin Zhen stopped in his tracks.

Tan Nianzhi clapped her hands and cursed, "Did you see that, Zhen? This woman has no shame! Who knows how many other men she's stringing along!"

The tiny bit of sympathy Yao Tao had felt for the female lead vanished.

[My mistake. Fu Xin has no shortage of men.]

[Hello, Guan Xingchen. Goodbye, Guan Xingchen.]

[But Guan Xingchen is a total psycho!]

[A second of silence for Fu Xin.]

[Hypothetically, okay? Let me be honest here!]

[If Fu Xin stopped bouncing back and forth, maybe Guan Xingchen wouldn't turn into such a psycho.]

[I'll light a candle for you, mourn for you, and say a one-second prayer for you!]

He Zhen: ...

It wasn't the first time he had heard Guan Xingchen's name, but curiosity still made him glance over.

Unfortunately, all Guan Xingchen left him was the sight of his broad back.

Fu Xin never lacked company, and he wasn't special.

For the first time, He Zhen felt that with stark, unmistakable clarity.

Tan Nianzhi was still chattering away. When she was happy, she called him Zhen; when she was truly angry, she used his full name, Qin Zhen.

The way Ning He followed at her side looked just like the way He Zhen had once clung to Fu Xin.

[It's over. My baby's CPU has fried. He's gone stupid now.]

Yao Tao sighed inwardly.

[The way he's watching Guan Xingchen carry Fu Xin away with those mournful eyes, he looks like a statue waiting for his wife to return.]

[Just as I thought. A dog will always go back to eating shit.]

Yao Tao had barely finished her mournful commentary when she took a knock to the head.

He Zhen tapped the center of her forehead with a bent knuckle.

"What nonsense are you thinking? Let's eat."

The young man looked resigned, the corners of his mouth lifting. Backlit shadows fell across his face, but the darkness did nothing to lessen the impact his flawless looks had on Yao Tao.

[My baby is so handsome.]

[Boohoo, what do I do? I want to see this magnificent face every single day, aaaaah-]

[Waiting for answers online!]

[Urgent!]

He Zhen: ...Did his face account for ninety-nine percent of what Yao Tao liked about him?