The car was driving on the elevated road leading to Badu University, with a popular internet hit song playing from the car stereo, its melody light and catchy.

Xu Na tapped her fingertips lightly on her knees in rhythm, seemingly in a fairly good mood.

"Buzz..."

Lu Jingxiu's phone, which was mounted on the air vent phone holder, suddenly vibrated.

A green message preview pops up on the screen, labeled "Li Qingqing," followed by a short text.

Then, there were several more "buzzing" sounds, one after another, as if the other party had sent out a series of messages.

"Brother," Xu Na turned her head, her gaze slowly shifting from the phone screen to Lu Jingxiu's profile.

She still had a smile on her face, but the warmth in her eyes visibly dropped: "This is news from Li Qingqing, you know. It wouldn't be right not to reply, would it?"

She reached out, her fingertips almost touching the edge of the phone: "Shall I take it down and read it to you?"

"No need, I'll see for myself later." Lu Jingxiu gripped the steering wheel, looking straight ahead, and refused outright.

"Okay." Xu Na nodded obediently, then reached out and took the phone off the stand.

Lu Jingxiu caught a glimpse of her movement out of the corner of his eye, and his lips twitched slightly: "...I said I'll see for myself."

"Oh, okay, I know." Xu Na replied casually, her finger already swiping across the screen and clicking into Li Qingqing's chat box.

She already knew the password and had secretly recorded her fingerprints and facial recognition data.

She skillfully opened WeChat, found that glaring profile picture, and clicked into the chat window.

Then, she began to read aloud with a dramatic, inflectional tone, as if she were on a teleprompter:

"Lu Jingxiu, thank you for last night."

"If it weren't for you, I might have..." She pouted, her tone clearly showing disdain, then mimicked the other person's likely aggrieved tone, "...tsk."

"Are you coming to school today? I have something to tell you, about..." Her voice trailed off.

Then, her voice returned to normal, flat and without any inflection, as she uttered the last few words, one after another: "...your sister's."

After reading it, she put the phone back on the stand very quietly, without making a sound.

"Brother," Xu Na leaned back in her chair, tilting her head to look at Lu Jingxiu, the same smile still playing on her lips as if nothing had happened, but her eyes were dark and gloomy, "You tell me, what could she possibly want to talk about with you about me?"

She pretended not to care and asked with a smile, but her fingers unconsciously tightened around the hem of her skirt.

Lu Jingxiu kept his eyes fixed ahead: "I don't know either."

Xu Na smiled, her tone light and airy, as if testing the waters: "Could it be that I've offended her somehow?"

After she finished speaking, her gaze was fixed on Lu Jingxiu's face, not missing a single subtle change in his expression.

"Probably not." Lu Jingxiu's answer was straightforward. "Don't worry, you don't need to worry about her. She's just a stranger, and I won't care about anything a stranger says."

Xu Na's fingers, which were gripping the hem of her skirt, gradually loosened.

"...Mmm." She nodded softly.

The car continued driving forward.

The buildings on both sides of the elevated road rushed past, and Xu Na turned her head, facing the car window.

She remained silent for a long time, so long that Lu Jingxiu thought she wanted to change the subject or simply stop talking.

Then, she turned to look at Lu Jingxiu and gave him a sweet smile: "Brother, no matter what happens, you won't abandon me, right?"

Lu Jingxiu glanced at her, his brows furrowing slightly. "Why are you suddenly asking this?"

Xu Na shook her head, her smile unchanged: "It's nothing, I just wanted to hear what you had to say."

Lu Jingxiu nodded without the slightest hesitation this time: "Yes, I won't abandon you."

"Then you must remember," Xu Na's smile vanished abruptly, her face turning serious as she stared intently at him, saying each word carefully, "what you say."

"I said..." Lu Jingxiu finally couldn't hold back anymore.

He turned his head, reached out, and pressed the back of his hand directly against her forehead, his brows furrowing: "Are you out of your mind? You've been acting strange since this morning, have you got a fever?"

Xu Na was taken aback by his sudden action, then blinked, and the serious look on her face vanished instantly.

The corners of her mouth turned up again, and she reached out to pull his hand off her forehead, her voice regaining its previous lightness: "I'm not sick, I'm perfectly fine—"

A sudden change has occurred!

In the adjacent lane, a black SUV that was driving normally suddenly swerved without warning and crashed straight into the side of Lu Jingxiu's Passat!

The distance was too close and the speed too fast; there was simply no time to make any effective reaction.

"Thump!"

A dull thud.

The enormous impact came instantly from the right side, and the entire Passat jolted violently, drifting sideways!

"Sizzle—"

The tires screeched on the asphalt road, skidding wildly, and the burnt smell of rubber friction instantly filled the air.

The out-of-control Passat wobbled and swerved, its front end swinging uncontrollably forward—

"Bang--!"

Another loud, solid thud followed as the front of the car slammed into the rear of a white sedan in front of it. The white sedan was thrown forward and then lost control.

"what!"

Xu Na's short scream was drowned out by the series of terrifying impacts and shattering sounds.

Lu Jingxiu felt as if the whole world was spinning, and the huge inertia was throwing him around, but the seat belt held him firmly in the seat.

He instinctively slammed on the brakes with his right foot.

"Bang--!"

A series of muffled explosions erupted almost simultaneously!

The driver's and passenger's airbags suddenly deployed, like two huge white cotton candies, carrying a pungent chemical smell and fine powder, and smeared them hard on Lu Jingxiu and Xu Na's faces!

"Holy crap!"

Lu Jingxiu's face was covered by the airbag, and his face felt like it had been hit by a heavy punch. The huge impact was accompanied by intense burning and friction pain.

It wasn't just pain, it was an excruciating pain that made my vision go black!

The carriage was instantly filled with an indescribable chemical smell and floating white powder.

"Cough cough—!"

Lu Jingxiu felt as if a thick cloud of smoke had covered his mouth and nose. His nose instantly became so numb and tingly that he lost all feeling. Warm liquid welled up, his vision blurred, and tears streamed down his face uncontrollably.

"Ugh... Brother... Waaah..."

My face was burning with pain, blood from my nose mixed with tears was smeared all over my face, and I tasted a metallic, sweet flavor in my mouth.

But amidst the chaotic ringing and excruciating pain, he still managed to catch a faint, painful whimper coming from beside him.

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