Chapter 49: On the streets late at night

It had been a long time since I last visited the Old Urban Area.

As the sun set, the crowds at the entrance of the Commercial Street were bustling.

The drop in temperature didn’t seem to affect their enthusiasm; they continued to laugh and chat as they squeezed past me.

A thick mist clung to the glass windows of the shops lining the street, making it nearly impossible to see inside.

I kept an eye on my reflection in the windows as I walked slowly toward the turn that led to the Company.

It happened to be the time when everyone was getting off work.

Several colleagues recognized me as they walked out and greeted me.

“Brother Li! I heard you were sick. Are you feeling any better?”

“A really pretty girl came for an interview today. I really hope she passes.”

“A-Xiao, all you talk about is girls. Can’t you show a little concern for Brother Li?”

They greeted me, and I squeezed out a smile, responding to them politely.

I walked into the office area, where a few more colleagues were still packing up their things.

I sat at my workstation and waited until everyone had left before heading toward the Supervisor’s office.

“Come in!”

Mo You’s voice came from the other side of the door.

I pushed the door open and saw her propping her forehead with both hands, her bangs peeking through her fingers.

She looked extremely troubled.

“Mo You, I’m sorry for keeping you after work.”

“Oh, it’s you. I was just about to look for you. I wanted to ask you to come back to work early… Li Mingshan?!”

Mo You looked uncharacteristically startled.

She coughed twice before sitting up straight, brushing away the faint blush on her face.

‘It’s normal that she wants me back at work, but what could be bothering her this much?’

“I’m sorry that my situation affected the Wings Star World project,” I said, bowing in apology.

“No, there was an impact, but it’s not that serious yet. The project got caught in the competition between the other party’s subsidiaries. We’re currently finalizing a transfer plan.”

If that was the case, did it mean the project previously managed by An Zhi was now being transferred to another subsidiary as a different project?

Regardless, it was a blessing that the Company didn’t lose a major project because of me.

“I’m sorry. It’s all because of my personal matters…”

“I originally intended to put you in charge of the project after the transfer.”

She rested her chin on her hands, her eyes staring straight at me.

“Originally?”

“The newcomer joining us this time has a lot of ‘potential’.”

She emphasized the word “potential” as if she were hinting at something.

‘Is she trying to pressure me into returning to normal as soon as possible?’

“I’ll try my best to come back as soon as I can. It’s just… I still have personal matters to resolve.”

‘How am I supposed to ask for help in a situation like this?’

“Right, you’re quite overwhelmed right now. If you can come back before she starts her job, this project will be yours. You decide.”

She closed the laptop next to her without offering any further explanation.

I wanted to take on the transferred project, but as for An Zhi’s side…

“Mo You, there’s something I want to ask of you.”

Under the heavy pressure, I finally spoke up.

“Let’s go. We’ll talk at the restaurant.”

“Alright.”

She turned off her desktop, slung her leather bag over her shoulder, and led me out of the Company.

Walking ahead of me, she naturally parted the crowd.

She possessed an air of unapproachability that followed her all the way to that Japanese restaurant.

She sat on a high stool, crossing her long legs wrapped in thick tights, and ordered two cups of sake.

Even a simple movement like that carried an invisible sense of pressure.

“Thank you for giving me an advance on my salary.”

I transferred the advanced money back to her.

Currently, the money my mother gave me was enough to live on.

“Is this what you wanted to talk about?”

She ignored the notification on her phone, took a sip of her drink, and turned her head to stare at me.

Her gaze felt as though it were trying to pierce right through my cheeks.

“An Zhi… has to pay a very large amount in liquidated damages.”

“I heard about it from Jiang Lulan.”

“Eh?”

So she had been paying attention to my personal matters all along.

“That woman’s personality is as stubborn as ever, just like before. I advised her not to make things difficult for my employee, but the more I spoke, the more energized she became. I don’t want to get involved with her anymore.”

Mo You spoke with the scent of sake on her breath, expressing her subjective thoughts.

…She had also indirectly rejected my request for help.

“Thank you for trying to persuade her for me.”

I took a large gulp of sake, tasting its bitterness.

“She and I were university classmates,” she continued.

“Because of that, I know her very well. She’s a profit-driven, competitive person who will use any means necessary to achieve her goals. Right now, I still have some private matters of my own that I don’t want her to know about.”

“I have a general idea of her personality. Thank you anyway.”

I didn’t know what had happened between Mo You and Jiang Lulan in the past, but for me, it was definitely bad news.

“Be careful. If anything happens, come to the Company. This dinner is on me. Fix your state of mind.”

“This…”

Seeing that I wanted to decline, she shoved the menu toward me with an undeniable look.

I had no choice but to order a set meal and finish the sake with her.

***

By the time I left the Old Urban Area, night had already fallen.

The pedestrians were like the few stars hanging in the night sky—sparse and conspicuous.

Since I failed to get help, who else could I turn to?

I took the subway back to the High Education Zone.

The University Student Commercial Street had lost its daytime liveliness.

Only a few students who had sneaked out for an all-nighter walked past quietly with their heads down.

As the night deepened, the temperature plummeted.

I paced back and forth several times on the stretch of road between the Commercial Street and my neighborhood, pulling my drafty collar tight.

I thought of a dangerous method.

It wouldn’t trouble my friends, and it might be worth a try.

Stepping toward the street entrance once more, the stationery store nearby happened to turn off its lights and close for the night.

The only illumination left was the pale yellow light cast by the streetlamps.

I turned around, took a deep breath, and shouted into the white mist dissipating in the air, “Have you followed me enough? What exactly do you want? I’m not going back!”

Not far away, the men hiding behind rolling shutters and signs revealed themselves.

There were about four of them, all wearing tattered thick jackets, blackened jeans, and slippers.

They didn’t look particularly sturdy, but their eyes were fierce.

They must have been the ones following me this morning.

“Hey, kid, let’s have a chat, shall we?”

The man in the lead walked up to me, and the four of them suddenly surrounded me.

“Who sent you? Make it clear, or I’m not going anywhere.”

I quietly felt for the phone in my pocket, preparing to record.

I had learned this trick from Su Xixia.

“Who sent us? What a joke! Do we look like the kind of guys who listen to others?”

the man shouted, while the others laughed and jeered in support.

It seemed things weren’t that simple…

“I’m not going with you.”

If my guess was correct, their goal was to find out where I lived and find An Zhi.

If An Zhi were forcibly taken back to Wings Star World, I didn’t know what they would force her to do.

Would they make her continue livestreaming to pay off the debt?

Or would they force her to do something even worse?

‘I can’t back down if I want to find evidence that they’re connected to Wings Star World.’

“Look at you, why be so stubborn! We just want to have a few drinks and some late-night snacks with you. Are you really going to disrespect us like that?”

The men walked around me as they spoke.

Due to the cramped space, I had no way to walk away and could only be shoved forward.

“Fine, I’ll go.”

As I spoke, I quietly observed the men’s appearances.

They looked like ordinary street thugs, with ragged clothes and tattoos visible on their wrists.

I couldn’t find any flaws in their appearance…

In a short while, they escorted me to the entrance of the student apartment complex where I lived.

“I see, you live in this complex, don’t you? There are barely any lights on!”

The apartments here didn’t belong to the school; they were public.

There was no security at the gate, and anyone could enter.

“……”

I didn’t say a word, fearing that An Zhi might hear my voice.

I needed to leave this place quickly.

“Say something! The boss is asking you a question!”

The man roared and shoved me hard with his shoulder.

I immediately felt a sharp pain in the area above my collarbone.

Unpleasant memories flooded back into my mind.

I had endured similar pain countless times before.

“Oh? I don’t know. Do you really want to find out that badly?”

I responded, my voice hardening.

I knew exactly what would happen next.

“How could that be? We just want to invite you for a drink and some good food. Right?”

The man pinched my shoulder and looked to his companions for a response in a coaxing tone.

“Kid, you’re really being stubborn.”

“Exactly! How about we go inside and take a look?”

“Let’s go have a look! If you accidentally make some noise while you’re drunk, your family can help out.”

The men’s voices grew louder and more aggressive.

They shouted into my ears as they forced me toward the apartment complex.

When I heard the word “family,” a surge of heat rushed to my brain.

‘Are they talking about An Zhi?’

If this continued, An Zhi might actually hear them, and she would definitely come running out.

No matter what, I couldn’t let that happen.

“Go to hell!”

I cursed, suddenly slamming into the nearest man.

Taking advantage of the gap as he staggered, I dashed through the opening.

“Damn it, you want to do this the hard way, don’t you!”

The men were quick to chase after me.

Multiple sets of footsteps followed closely behind.

I drove my legs forward with everything I had.

Run!

Run!!

Run as far away from here as possible!

The tight muscles in my legs sent waves of aching pain as a warning to my brain.

It was just like the past…

I was sprinting as if my life depended on it, trying to escape the boys who were chasing and hitting me.

I didn’t feel afraid because I believed I was doing what was right.

Even if I was caught and beaten, my heart would not surrender.

However, the men behind me were not the young boys from back then.

They stayed close behind, and the distance didn’t widen at all.

Cars sped past me, their headlights flashing repeatedly before my eyes.

I ran toward the gate of Sucheng University.

As long as I turned the corner ahead, I would be spotted by the security guards at the gate.

Just a little faster!

I clenched my teeth, enduring the stinging pain in my legs from fatigue.

The intersection was almost there!

Wait, who were those two people in front?

I only just noticed that under the streetlights at the intersection, two more men were standing.

Their long shadows gradually covered my legs.

I wanted to dash into the street, but several pairs of rapidly approaching headlights told me it was already too late.

***

Sitting at the table, An Zhi stuffed the long-cooled rice into her mouth.

She thought she heard men shouting, so she put down her chopsticks and walked to the window.

‘Who could it be?’

Her small hand pressed down on the lawyer’s letter at the edge of the table as she opened the window.

A blast of cold air rushed in.

Outside, there was nothing but the sound of the wind.

‘I must have misheard,’ she thought.