Chen Ye was busy admiring the young girl as she ate—the natural, rosy blush on her cheeks, her slender, fair neck, and her delicate, crimson lips. He was just getting into the rhythm of it when, holy hell, someone tells him he’s being threatened?
Luo Hongli looked at Chen Ye in shock, a few grains of rice still clinging to the corner of her mouth. Had Lin Feng not mentioned that Teacher Gao wanted to see him, Chen Ye would have liked to taste those few grains of rice himself just to see if they were salty enough.
"Don't look at me like that. I'm only going over there to give the teacher some face. Just finish your meal."
"Oh. I'm not interested either."
Lin Feng was anxious to the point of desperation. How could Brother Ye still be flirting at a time like this? Someone was about to die! Or, rather, two lives at once!
As he watched Chen Ye leave the classroom, Luo Hongli chewed her food mechanically. In her mind, a voice kept saying: *He’s not that kind of person; he just looks a bit bad...* But why did she feel such an inexplicable, suffocating tightness in her chest? That must be it—the rice hadn't been cooked properly!
***
Meanwhile, on the roof of the No. 8 Middle School complex building:
The vice-principal looked at Teacher Gao, furious. "Teacher Gao, when is that student of yours, Chen Ye, arriving? If nothing goes wrong, fine, but if this child jumps, you will be held solely responsible!"
The principal said calmly, "Director Fei, now is not the time to shift blame. As the Director of the Political Department, you should be thinking about how to teach the students a safety lesson!"
At that moment, the homeroom teacher of Class 3 sighed and shook his head as he approached. "Su Lili refuses to come down. She insists on seeing Chen Ye. Principal, Director, look at this for yourselves—it really is a diagnostic report from the hospital. She... she is actually pregnant."
Teacher Gao stepped back, stunned. She had just scolded Chen Ye during morning study. She knew the boy; he was mischievous, but could he really be capable of something like this? If it were true, her chances of promotion were likely gone.
Just then, Lin Feng arrived, breathlessly leading Chen Ye to the roof. He wasn't worried about Su Lili; he was worried that Chen Ye would be expelled over this. He genuinely saw Chen Ye as his brother.
Seeing Chen Ye arrive, Teacher Gao trotted over immediately.
Chen Ye waved his hand. "Teacher Gao, I’ll say this first: I am a virgin. I haven't done anything out of line."
Seeing Chen Ye’s calm face and firm gaze, Teacher Gao exhaled a long breath of relief. "Chen Ye, if it wasn't you, then... then why is she looking for you?"
"Probably because she’s unwilling to give up and wants to disgust me. Su Lili’s head isn't quite right." Chen Ye tapped his temple and walked toward the edge of the roof, looking back to give the teachers a reassuring nod.
When Su Lili saw that Chen Ye had actually come, she stood up. If the wind had been any stronger, she might have been blown off. It was only seven-and-a-half stories high—not exactly deadly, but she’d certainly be bruised and broken if she fell.
"So, the way you intended to make me regret this was by staging this scene? Su Lili, I haven’t done anything to wrong you, have I?"
"Chen Ye, I'm pregnant."
"And what does your pregnancy have to do with me?"
"It’s yours."
Chen Ye let out a dry laugh. "Darling, don't tease me. My sense of humor is low."
Su Lili’s hair was disheveled by the morning breeze. "Even if it isn't yours, it *is* yours. I have nowhere else to go. Chen Ye, you’re the only one who can help me."
Chen Ye sneered. "Su Lili, have you lost your mind? Find whoever you want; what does it have to do with me? You want me to be your fall guy? Keep dreaming. Die if you want to, goodbye." He paused, then added, "Oh, and after you die, I will demand the coroner open you up and perform a paternity test on that child. I will be cleared, and you will have died for a cause—perfect, right?"
Su Lili was only seventeen; how could she compare to Chen Ye, who had lived for thirty-eight years? Even though he had spent twenty years in prison, he had learned plenty there. It was an elite environment—everyone locked up with him was a white-collar criminal, from coders who could drain company accounts with viruses to all sorts of geniuses.
Su Lili clearly hadn't expected Chen Ye to talk like that. She had simply assumed he was easy to manipulate.
"You're too heartless! My stepmother kicked me out, and Wang Qiang doesn't want me anymore. You’re the only one who can help me, Chen Ye. Do you really want to force me to my death? You weren't like this when you were chasing me!"
"And? Does that have a single thing to do with me?"
"You held my hand before! That’s what got me pregnant!"
Chen Ye’s worldview was rocked once again—how absurd! Luckily, he had recorded the conversation on his phone. If she really had jumped, would he have actually had to go to the coroner for a paternity test? *Damn, how did I not realize this girl was so brain-dead before?*
Just then, Chen Ye spotted a yellow helmet appearing from the side. Had the firefighter flown up? He understood the gesture the man made. He had to keep playing along. "Fine, tell me then. What do you want me to do?"
Su Lili’s expression turned smug. "Chen Ye, I knew it—you still like me. I know everything now; the teahouse is yours. I want to keep the baby. Consider it a loan from you."
Chen Ye sneered inwardly. So that was her game. Wang Qiang must have told her. She was young, but her ambition was far from small. If he accepted this today, even if it were proven later that the child wasn't his, his reputation would be ruined. Rumors were just that ridiculous. Don't believe it? It was probably already spreading through the school that Chen Ye from Class 2 had gotten a girl pregnant and she was threatening to jump. There were probably even wilder rumors, like how this was Su Lili’s second pregnancy.
*Firefighter, hurry up! Stop hovering and take the chance to tackle her!* He didn't want to hear another word.
"If you're feeling uncomfortable, I can help you have a child."
Chen Ye couldn't help it; he rolled his eyes. "Su Lili, are you on something?"
Su Lili smiled serenely. "Ever since Wang Qiang took me away that night, I haven't been the same. If it weren't for you..."
"Fine, fine, you're going to say I shouldn't have helped you find a place to stay, right? Fine, consider my kindness a waste of effort. I can lend you money, but getting me to own up to this? Not happening."
"Chen Ye, I told you I could help you have a child, what more could you possibly be dissatisfied with? I don't need anything. Don't you like Luo... Ah! Let go of me! Let go! Let go!!!"
Seeing the firefighter tackle her from behind, Chen Ye finally relaxed. It was a good thing he hadn't let her ramble on. If all that nonsense had been recorded, he would never have been able to clear his name.
Su Lili was still screaming, "The child is his! It’s his! Let me go! Chen Ye, you big liar..."
Chen Ye found his homeroom teacher, Teacher Gao, and followed her to the principal’s office. He copied the recording file to the computer and walked out. He trusted that once they heard the contents, they would be the ones clearing his name.
He wanted to go back to the classroom, but the issue was that Old Chen and Su Lili’s parents had already been called. *Forget it, I’ll head back to class for a moment. If Luo Hongli has any conscience at all, she should be worried about me right now, right?*
Back in the classroom, facing the stares of forty or fifty pairs of eyes and Cheng Ziwen’s sneer, Chen Ye sat down next to Luo Hongli and shoved his phone into her hands.
Cheng Ziwen let out an abrupt, cold huff. "I never thought you were that kind of person."
Chen Ye didn't even acknowledge him. Instead, he leaned toward Luo Hongli and whispered, "You can listen to this recording—it’s quite interesting. Keep my phone for a while, and remember to come home with me after school to help me study."
Luo Hongli didn't have Chen Ye’s thick skin. With so many people peeking at her, she wished she could crawl into a hole. She thought to herself, *How can this guy be so heartless after such a huge incident?*
While the teachers were still away, she hesitated, plugged in her earphones, and began to listen to the recording.