008: Misty Rain Falls

On a country lane, an old-fashioned bus wound its way through the misty drizzle. A young man, headphones on, sat with his eyes closed, resting, until the chime of a message interrupted his thoughts.

Cotton Candy Floating: “Xu Lin, didn’t you say your English isn’t great? Should I come over and tutor you?”

Don’t Call Me Big Lin: “I’m heading back to my hometown today to see my grandparents.”

Cotton Candy Floating: “You’re not coming back today?”

Don’t Call Me Big Lin: “Yeah, missing me already?”

“Who’s missing you?! Anyway, the weekend after we go back to school is the end-of-month test. Feeling confident?”

“If you come tutor me in English, as long as I’m not too distracted by your beauty to study, I should be fine.”

“Smooth talker. By the way, did you make Ms. Su angry?”

The topic shifted abruptly. Xu Lin narrowed his eyes—so Ma Zhiyu and Li Bin had sold him out. Why did they have to spill everything?

“How did you know?”

“Never mind how. You should apologize to Ms. Su when you get back. Your intentions were good, but you were too impulsive.”

“I understand.”

“What do you understand? If you really did, you wouldn’t have acted that way.”

“I get it. What I did let Ms. Su off the hook, but it made things really awkward for her. With so many people around, her parents might form a bad impression of her, too.”

“So knowing all that, why did you still do it and make her upset...?”

Ji Yun fired off her own questions, still annoyed after hearing the news from Li Bin that morning.

A high schooler meddling in adult matters—let alone a teacher’s personal affairs—was out of line. Worse, the way he’d handled it probably made Ms. Su feel even more uncomfortable. Now she’d have to face pressure from both families, and rumors might spread that she had a boyfriend but still went to matchmaking events.

But Xu Lin claimed he knew the consequences, which only made Ji Yun more curious.

“Because it’s better to rip off the bandage than to drag out the pain.”

“What? That’s your only reason?”

“Yes, that’s it.”

Ji Yun frowned and sent a few more WeChat messages, but Xu Lin didn’t reply.

She stared at the chat window, deep in thought.

Meanwhile, Xu Lin took a deep breath. He’d spoken the truth: better a short pain than a lingering one.

Of course, there was another reason—he wanted to save Su Qingwan.

Last time, he’d recalled that her future was bleak. Though it was a shooting that ultimately caused her death, at its root was her trip abroad. And what was behind that?

Before he’d acted yesterday, it had come back to him: Ms. Su resigned because of an engagement, then married, and went overseas after a divorce.

The divorce was due to domestic violence. He’d never met her husband, but at a later class reunion, he’d picked up on a few details: the man was a bespectacled type, and the split was blamed on “irreconcilable differences” and abuse.

Seeing the man’s face, he’d been sure—this was the abuser. And nothing disgusted Xu Lin more than domestic violence and arranged marriages.

So he hadn’t bothered with pretense. He’d rushed in, impulsive—but the result was satisfying.

He didn’t care about the fallout. Whether Su Qingwan was angry, or others accused him of acting out of youthful bravado or jealousy—it didn’t matter. As long as she survived, that was enough. Even if their paths never crossed again, he had saved a life.

Of course, it might be presumptuous. Maybe Su Qingwan secretly liked that kind of man, despite appearances.

He’d just done what he wanted, that was all.

“Folks, next stop is Qinglong West Village. Get ready to get off,” came the plain, unadorned announcement.

Xu Lin began to put away his headphones, took his umbrella from his backpack, and prepared to disembark—he’d arrived at Qinglong West Village, his family’s home.

Two or three minutes later, the bus stopped. Not many people got off.

This route ran from the city to Linnong Town, so most were headed further on, but the bus made a brief stop here.

As the doors opened, a chill wind swept down his neck. He tightened his scarf, stepped off, and opened his umbrella.

Two men with hefty bags followed, heading into the village.

As Xu Lin started down the slope, he heard a clatter behind him.

He glanced back. A familiar figure was struggling to get off, lugging a large suitcase that was difficult to manage.

No one on the bus could help, as the case was stuck on the steps and no one could reach.

Xu Lin set down his umbrella, grabbed the suitcase, and hauled it up.

It was heavy—he froze for a moment, unwilling to embarrass himself.

But in the next breath, he silently called up the system in his mind. In less than two seconds, he bought a short-term body enhancement card set to refresh tomorrow. Instantly, he felt stronger.

With a firm tug, he lifted the suitcase with one hand and set it on the ground.

The person stepped off quickly, nodded slightly, and thanked him in a husky voice.

“Don’t mention it, we’re from the same place,” Xu Lin replied offhandedly, facing her directly for the first time.

He’d noticed her at the bus station. Though she wore a mask and hat, her outfit was stylish—expensively so.

At first glance, it was just a shirt layered under a loose gray trench coat, with plain black wide-leg pants below.

But he’d seen that very coat online yesterday, and it cost over fifty thousand yuan. He couldn’t help thinking that even five million in his past life wouldn’t have been enough—it almost made him want to start making money.

Now, facing her, he saw that even with her face partly covered, her features were striking.

He suspected the system, like him, would appreciate such beauty—it might even meet the system’s standards.

But he wasn’t a creep; he couldn’t just reach out and touch her hand. Instead, he gave a slightly awkward smile, picked up his umbrella, and offered it to her.

“Didn’t bring an umbrella? Here, you can use mine.”

“No, no… cough!”

She waved her hand, and Xu Lin caught a glimpse of a faint needle mark on her hand, some still tinged with red, just starting to scab.

“I’ll hold the umbrella for you. Where are you headed?”

Xu Lin’s smile faded. He turned serious, lifting her suitcase in one hand and holding the umbrella over her head with the other.

“No need, it’s too much trouble.”

“It’s no trouble.”

Now, Xu Lin truly wanted to help her—not for some favor or to score points, but because she clearly wasn’t well.

He had an hour of enhanced strength; if he didn’t use it, it would go to waste. Better to help someone all the way.

Seeing his insistence, the bloodshot eyes of the woman softened a little.

“Alright, but don’t get yourself wet. Let’s share the umbrella.”

“No, what if I’m a bad guy? Forget that you’re a woman—just this suitcase is worth over ten thousand.”

“A bad guy… I’ve met enough bad people in my life. One more won’t matter.”

Her husky voice hinted at countless stories.

“No, I really am a bad guy!”

He shoved the umbrella into her hands, picked up the suitcase, and strode forward into the drizzle.

The chilly wind blew against his slender frame, fine rain like needles dancing across his youthful face.

Though it was a rainy day, she felt, for some reason, that the weather wasn’t so bad after all.