Chapter 102: So It Was You After All

Amidst the verdant bamboo grove, the only sounds were the rustling of branches swaying in the breeze, mingled with birdsong and the chirping of insects—altogether a serene and tranquil scene.

At this moment, Yang Zhilin could distinctly hear the pounding of her own heart. She sensed that Lin Yu’s ambush had been countered, and she had fallen into someone else’s trap designed to lure her away.

“Should I turn back? Just a glance would reveal that person’s face!” she whispered to herself.

The psychological pressure weighed on her more heavily than the moment she had grasped Lin Yu’s hand and walked out of the Grand Hotel on her seventeenth birthday’s final day.

“Enough. I am Yang Zhilin, and I refuse to be afraid without cause.” With that resolve in her heart, she nervously looked back.

As she turned, strands of hair at the corner of her mouth lifted with the wind, lending an indescribable grace to the cascade of her ebony tresses.

“It’s you!” A sudden tightness gripped her heart as she recognized the visitor.

“Heh, why not me? Can’t a teacher have affection for a student? Your foolish friends have already fled far away; none can save you now.” Physical education teacher Qu Bo smirked proudly, glancing at the white handkerchief in his hands, which had been soaked with anesthetic. “Even if you scream now, I can subdue you in a second.”

“Don’t you dare! Qi Yue will be back any moment!” Though her heart raced wildly, Yang Zhilin spoke clearly and calmly, without a hint of panic.

“Heh, if Lin Yu can make advances toward you, why can’t I?” Qu Bo chuckled. In truth, he could have acted immediately to avoid complications, but his neurotic temperament made it difficult to control his impulses.

“What exactly do you want?” Despite the danger, Yang Zhilin did not cry out for help but asked with composure.

Seeing her composed demeanor even in peril, Qu Bo, nearly six feet tall, laughed and applauded lightly. “Such poise—no wonder I’ve had feelings for you for three years. Of course, I want to do what everyone desires! The very thing Lin Yu did with you.”

“My relations with Lin Yu were consensual! You drugging me with ether is illegal,” Yang Zhilin argued.

“Heh, let others mock me all they want; I will sing and play until dawn. If I can have your body, what does breaking the law matter?” Qu Bo said, stepping closer.

Though the distance between them shrank, Yang Zhilin’s eyes grew colder, emitting a chill as piercing as ice and snow.

She neither dodged nor called for help; she simply stared at him. Her calm gaze unnerved Qu Bo, stirring an inexplicable fear within him.

“What kind of illusion is this?” he mocked himself with a laugh, then raised the white handkerchief to cover Yang Zhilin’s face.

“Die, you bastard!” At that moment, Wang Yan, who had quietly moved behind Qu Bo, swung a club and struck the back of his head, knocking him unconscious.

After the move, Wang Yan, one hand holding a video camera and the other the baseball bat, smiled at Yang Zhilin and praised, “You’re so calm. I was worried you’d react too strongly when I appeared and alert this guy.”

“It’s nothing. What do we do now?” Yang Zhilin nodded steadily, though a trace of fear lingered.

Lin Yu hadn’t revealed the entire plan to her—she knew nothing of Wang Libo’s feigned distraction of Zhang Zhilong and Dai Peng.

“Haha, now with this evidence recorded, we’ll hand him over to the police. Such a pest, abusing his role as a teacher,” Wang Yan spat disdainfully.

The gesture caused Yang Zhilin to furrow her brow slightly, but she said nothing, quietly awaiting the arrival of the others.

Just then, the two who had just relaxed saw Qu Bo suddenly rise from the ground and throw a punch at Wang Yan, who was momentarily reveling in his victory.

“Watch out! The camera!” Yang Zhilin whispered urgently.

Wang Yan shifted the camera slightly with his left hand and dodged the blow, cursing as he swung his club again.

Smack!

The nearly six-foot-tall Qu Bo blocked the strike with his arm, then delivered a sweeping kick aimed at Wang Yan’s calf.

At the critical moment, Wang Yan leapt to avoid the kick, quickly realizing that Qu Bo’s true target was the camera.

After Wang Yan dodged the sweeping leg, Qu Bo landed a heavy punch on the camera. The color video camera, worth over ten thousand yuan and belonging to the Qi Yue household, clattered to the ground.

Not stopping there, Qu Bo raised his foot to crush the camera beneath it.

Incensed by the attack, Wang Yan reacted swiftly, lifting his leg and delivering a powerful kick to Qu Bo’s abdomen, sending him staggering two or three meters away, almost collapsing.

At that moment, the black dragon embroidered on the back of Wang Yan’s school uniform seemed to come alive, radiating a fierce dominance.

Meanwhile, Yang Zhilin instinctively stepped back several paces, putting distance between herself and the combatants. Though calm by nature, she was no fool—she would not stand idly by waiting to be taken hostage.

As the fierce clash unfolded here, Dai Peng, Zhang Zhilong, and Wang Libo, having completed their staged roles, hurried swiftly toward the bamboo grove.

It must be said that after years of martial arts training, Wang Yan possessed considerable skill and strength. Despite appearing defensive against the towering Qu Bo, he never suffered disadvantage.

Protecting the camera from total destruction, Wang Yan’s counterattacks were deft, buying precious time for the others.

As time passed, Wang Yan grew more confident, knowing his comrades would arrive within the minute to help subdue their foe.

“What now?” Qu Bo pondered uneasily, struggling to destroy the camera while Wang Yan clung tenaciously.

“No, I must follow the greatest of stratagems: retreat!” After some thought, Qu Bo resolved to flee.

After this ordeal, he no longer had the face to remain in Bin City. The police wouldn’t pursue him for such a minor incident, so escaping to another city would ensure safety.

Clinging to this thought like a lifeline, Qu Bo seized a handful of dirt during a fall and flung it into Wang Yan’s unprepared eyes.

Momentarily blinded, Wang Yan staggered back.

Seizing the opportunity, Qu Bo dashed toward the deepest part of the bamboo grove, where a wall stood.

“If I can just scale this wall and use my knowledge of the terrain, I can quickly lose these brats!”

With excellent physical fitness, Qu Bo took a running start and climbed atop the wall.

At that instant, his mood shifted from dark to bright, secretly planning to exact revenge on Lin Yu and the others before leaving Bin City behind.