LC chapter 36

 

Lin Ruan took two days off and didn’t feel like going out, so he stayed home. He had been studying Chinese architecture for a while and had slowly developed a passion for it, occasionally drawing.

It was his first hobby, and he took it very seriously, intending to delve deeply into it.

Meng Zhen called him and told him that Li Mingwen had posted the posters. The school had criticized Li Mingwen and asked him to publicly apologize to Lin Ruan.

Lin Ruan responded, but, to be honest, he wasn’t terribly surprised. What he didn’t understand was why Li Mingwen hated him so much.

After a pause, Meng Zhen continued, “But that’s not all. This afternoon, police came to the school looking for Li Mingwen. They say he stole valuables from his employer while working outside. The jewelry involved is worth over three thousand yuan.”

Lin Ruan was startled. Meng Zhen said, “I was wondering how he suddenly became so wealthy. He stole it…”

After the call, Lin Ruan was still in a daze. Shi Ning was just moving Uncle Tong’s hydrangeas inside when Lin Ruan asked him about it.

“Li Mingwen is the Seventh Princess’s lover,” said Shi Ning, rolling up his sleeves as he carried a four-foot-square flowerpot.

“He started out as a gardener in the palace and somehow ended up with the Seventh Princess. She gave him a lot of gold, silver, and jewelry. It was probably the Seventh Princess who told him about your situation.”

The Seventh Princess was unaware of the relationship between Zhan Xi and Lin Ruan. In her view, Lin Ruan was merely a child bride and a plaything of Zhan Xi’s. Because of this, Li Mingwen didn’t believe Lin Ruan had any support and dared to bully him brazenly.

Shi Ning let out a breath and said, “The so-called theft involved palace property. Concubine Li had someone call the police, but to save face, he didn’t make it public.”

“Furthermore, Seventh Princess truly loved that boy,” Shi Ning continued. “When she heard he had been arrested, she went to the police station herself and had the case dismissed. However, because of the suspected theft, Li Mingwen was expelled from school.”

After hearing this, Lin Ruan suddenly sighed inappropriately. He thought that Li Mingwen’s life was incredibly eventful and far more exciting than his own.

Shi Ning had only told him part of the story. Lin Ruan didn’t know the rest, and Shi Ning didn’t tell him. Lin Ruan thought for a moment, then helped Shi Ning move all of Uncle Tong’s flowers inside.

The next morning, the sky was overcast and windy. Fortunately, Tong Bo’s flowers and plants had been moved inside. Otherwise, they would have been blown down.

Zhan Xi and Shi Ning had left early. They had finished the banknote issuance and planned to rest for a few days, but they were busy again sooner than expected.

The phone rang sharply downstairs, suddenly shattering the silence of the Lan Mansion. Lin Ruan ran downstairs, sat on the sofa, and picked up the receiver.

“Hello?”

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone. “It’s me, Li Mingwen.”

Lin Ruan was stunned. “You…”

As soon as Li Mingwen heard Lin Ruan’s voice, he couldn’t suppress his hatred. “I’m fired. Are you happy now?”

Lin Ruan was silent. “You were fired for stealing. What does that have to do with me?”

“You!” Li Mingwen stopped abruptly, as if suppressing his anger. “Don’t you want to know why I hate you so much?”

Lin Ruan took the receiver. “Yes, I want to know why.”

“Then let’s meet.” Li Mingwen read an address and asked, “You wouldn’t be afraid to come, would you?”

“No,” Lin Ruan said flatly. Li Mingwen hung up the phone.

Lin Ruan hung up, hesitated for a moment, and dialed another number.

Li Mingwen gave the address of a teahouse in an alley. It was across from a closed grocery store and not far from the dock. The teahouse was deep in the alley and was flanked by several old locust trees. Their leaves were a lush green, and the trees were already bearing clusters of buds the size of rice grains.

Lin Ruan walked into the teahouse. It was quite old, and the people sitting inside were wearing short jackets like the workers at the dock. They weren’t just drinking tea; they were also eating soup noodles, steamed buns, and hot pots, making it like a small restaurant.

Li Mingwen sat at a table by the window. He wore a gray gown and maintained the refined demeanor of a student, but anxiety showed in his eyes, and his beard was noticeably unkempt.

The moment he saw Lin Ruan, it was as if all the thorns on his body stood up.

Lin Ruan sat across from him. Li Mingwen was about to speak when Lin Ruan said, “I want to know why you hate me so much.”

Li Mingwen’s lips twitched sarcastically. “Don’t you know why I hate you?”

“I don’t remember ever offending you,” Lin Ruan said.

“Some people don’t have to do anything. Just being there offends me.” Li Mingwen’s eyes darkened. “When I first started freshman year, you and I shared a dorm. You were so glamorous back then, like a prince. Your clothes and pens cost me several months’ wages!”

Li Mingwen gritted his teeth. “Just standing there, it was like you were mocking my poverty. Are you really that annoying?!”

Lin Ruan opened his mouth, but no words came out. “What’s even more ridiculous is that you’re not a young master,” said Li Mingwen, his eyes filled with resentment. “You and I are both low-class people. Why do you have such a good life? Why?!”

After a long silence, Lin Ruan spoke. “People shouldn’t be divided into different classes based on their background. My family isn’t wealthy, but I’m not low-class.”

Upon hearing this, Lin Ruan felt there was no need to say anything more. He was certain that his conflict with Li Mingwen wasn’t due to anything he had done wrong, and that was enough for him.

Lin Ruan stood up and left. Li Mingwen sneered at him from behind, saying, “You and all your high-sounding words, go to hell!”

Lin Ruan turned to look at him and saw clear hatred and pleasure in his eyes. Unsure what was going on and unwilling to pursue the matter, Lin Ruan turned and walked out of the teahouse.

He had taken just two steps when several men emerged from the teahouse. They wore cloth jackets and shoes and wielded clubs, axes, and knives. One or two even held guns.

Each of them had the same tiger-shaped tattoo on their arm.

A gang fight? Lin Ruan wondered instinctively, but then he saw that they were all looking at him. Undoubtedly, they were coming for him.

Seeing that the situation was bad, Lin Ruan ran for the alley entrance. Seeing him flee, the men behind him followed suit. Some shops in the alley had their doors closed, while others remained open.

Lin Ruan ran to the alley entrance, where a group of about a dozen people suddenly appeared. They were all wearing identical blue cloth jackets and carrying their belongings. They approached Lin Ruan one by one.

Lin Ruan ran over to them, but they didn’t stop him; clearly, they weren’t from the same group as the men behind him. Lin Ruan glanced back as he ran. The two groups had already begun fighting. The tattooed men were charging at Lin Ruan but were quickly stopped by the men in blue.

The wooden sticks struck the men, making a muffled sound.

Lin Ruan only had time to glance before a car stopped at the end of the alley. The door opened, and he jumped in. Zhan Xi scooped him into his arms and covered his ears with his hands.

The sound of gunfire behind them startled a flock of birds.

Lin Ruan didn’t dare look again. Zhan Xi calmly said, “Drive.”

Shi Ning started the car and slowly drove away from the alley filled with blood and blades.

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