I was the leader of the righteous path in high school.

Gu Yun felt he couldn't escape being beaten.

Interfering in other people's family affairs is a matter of stance, especially when you see several burly men carrying refrigerators, color TVs, and other such items into the room.

Normally, Gu Yun would only say he was "terrified" in this situation.

But now that it was obvious he was going to support Chen Zhizhi, Gu Yun suppressed his sycophantic behavior and walked over to Chen Zhizhi's side.

Both legs trembled, and they almost ran away first.

Unexpectedly, the square-faced man didn't respond to his question. His gaze swept between Gu Yun and Chen Zhizhi before finally settling on their clasped hands.

"Who are you to her?"

He asked directly, with the bluntness typical of someone who does manual labor all year round: "Boyfriend? Classmate? Relative?"

Gu Yun opened his mouth.

Boy friend?

In the past eighteen years, I've never even properly held a girl's hand. Today is the first time I've ever done so.

classmate?

They are indeed classmates, but saying the word "classmate" now sounds as weak as begging for mercy.

relative?

He then had something to say: his relationship with Chen Zhizhi was like that of a monkey and a banana; they were not related at all by blood.

He paused briefly for 0.5 seconds.

In that mere fraction of a second, Aunt Chang's voice slowly and deliberately cut in from behind: "Alright."

Gu Yun turned to the side and saw Aunt Chang standing there.

He was still holding his arms, and his posture hadn't even changed; only the angle of his chin had been slightly adjusted.

"No matter who you are."

Her amiable tone seemed to carry a hidden barb: "I have a few words to say to Zhizhi now, she'll leave after she's done."

"Can you go outside and wait there?"

Before Gu Yun could answer, she gestured to the burly man with her chin and said, "Take him out of here, but don't hurt him."

The square-faced man responded and turned to face Gu Yun. This time, his hand was no longer in a "please" gesture, but reached out directly.

Gu Yun stepped aside.

The hand brushed past his shoulder, but he missed.

The square-faced man paused for a moment.

Another short-haired man behind him stepped forward, reaching out with both hands to brace Gu Yun's arms.

Gu Yun seemed to have eyes in the back of his head. He ducked to the left, and the short-haired man's right hand swung over his head.

With a flick of Gu Yun's elbow, Gu Yun's left hand stumbled forward and bumped into the square-faced man's back.

"Hey—you—"

A third person came from the side, trying to block Gu Yun's retreat.

Gu Yun turned his heel and stepped on an old sponge mat that someone had dropped on the ground. Like an oiled top, he swiftly slipped through the gap between the two people.

The third person couldn't stop in time and fell headfirst into the arms of the short-haired man.

Four people were blocking a teenager. The entrance was already crowded, and now they were tripping over each other and bumping into each other, like a pot of overcooked noodles all stuck together.

"Damn, this kid's slippery..."

"Don't you fucking pull my sleeve!"

"He went that way!"

Gu Yun stood two meters away, and even took the time to straighten the collar of his school uniform that had been rubbed askew.

He glanced at the four people in a chaotic mess, then at Aunt Chang.

Aunt Chang's expression finally changed.

Why is this child so stubborn and unresponsive? He's like an eel!

Gu Yun turned back and looked at Chen Zhizhi.

She was still standing there, but her eyes were red.

Gu Yun didn't ask "Why are you crying?" nor did he say "Don't be afraid".

He walked over and took her wrist.

"I'm gone."

Chen Zhizhi didn't say anything, but followed him and started walking.

The four people at the door were still directing someone to loosen up and not get tangled together.

Aunt Chang stood there, her lips pressed into a thin line, and ultimately did not speak again.

Chen Jianguo squatted on the edge of the balcony the whole time, his back to everyone, staring blankly at the old sofa.

Gu Yun pulled Chen Zhizhi through the porch, down the stairs, and into the gray-blue light of the evening.

Then, he took off running.

Being able to dodge doesn't mean you can take a beating. Gu Yun felt that one of his opponents could make five of him cry.

Now, showing off and running away is definitely the wisest choice. The people behind haven't realized what the problem is yet, and they don't dare to chase after us.

The cool night breeze carried a hint of barbecue smell. Gu Yun dragged Chen Zhizhi and ran for three blocks in one breath, his lungs gurgling like bellows.

He didn't dare to look back until he reached the bus stop.

No one chased after them.

Gu Yun was bent over, his hands supporting his knees, panting like a dog that had just come ashore.

My back was covered in sweat, and when the wind blew, I shivered.

He straightened up, about to speak, when he caught a glimpse of Chen Zhizhi out of the corner of his eye.

She was also panting, her chest heaving, her hair disheveled, with a few stray strands sticking to her cheeks.

But instead of bowing her head to catch her breath, she looked up at him directly.

Then she smiled and burst out laughing.

The laughter was soft, squeezed out from rapid breathing, with a slight wheezing sound, as if it had been held back for a long time and could finally be released.

Gu Yun was stunned for a moment, and the breath that hadn't quite caught in his throat suddenly turned into a laugh.

"What are you laughing at?"

Chen Zhizhi didn't answer, she just smiled.

She tucked her stray hair behind her ear, her fingers still trembling slightly, but she couldn't suppress the smile on her lips.

Gu Yun looked at her and suddenly laughed. As he laughed, a sense of fear belatedly welled up inside him, his knees buckled, and he slid halfway down the bus stop.

"What's wrong?" Chen Zhizhi asked, startled.

"Can I say I don't have the strength?"

My body did feel much better after the strengthening, but it still couldn't withstand squatting for twenty minutes and then running for almost two kilometers.

Seeing him like this, Chen Zhizhi's smile never faded:

"Then why are you dragging me along?"

"Nonsense, why wait until Chinese New Year to run?"

Chen Zhizhi lowered her head, her shoe tip crushing a fallen leaf on the ground, then she crushed another one.

Her shoulders were still trembling slightly, whether from laughter or something else, it was hard to tell.

After a long while, she stopped smiling and said to Gu Yun, "Follow me."

"Well, I can say it was a last resort..."

"abnormal."

Speechless after being choked by a single sentence, Gu Yun suddenly felt a pang of self-loathing for his mindset, which resembled that of Xiao Chu Nan.

Fortunately, he was able to change the subject: "By the way, why did you skip evening self-study today?"

"If the teacher catches you, even you won't be let off easily."

"Didn't you see it?"

"What did you see? I saw a beautiful young girl being harassed by a mistress and her own father, and in the end, I pulled her out like a god descending to earth."

"A grand escape under the sun isn't quite appropriate, but an escape under the moonlight would be much better."

Seeing that Chen Zhizhi did not refute, Gu Yun could only continue his rambling: "After that, it can be the standard plot, for example, I know your secret and then threaten you, and the much-anticipated eight babies in one pregnancy."

"Or you could like me, I'd accept your confession, and we'd be together. Ten years later, when your 'white moonlight' returns to China, you'd give me 3000 million, and we'd quickly divorce. After you lose me, you'd regret it and face a 'husband-chasing-in-the-cremation' scenario..."