From their reunion until now, this seemed to be the first time Sang Yan had called her name.
Wen Yifan's nerves were stretched to the limit, and in her panic, she almost thought she was hallucinating. She didn’t have time to stop and confirm, instinctively running a few more steps forward.
The next moment, Sang Yan grabbed her wrist.
He yanked her toward him with considerable force. Wen Yifan looked up, her vision filled by the sharp lines of his profile. His lips were pressed into a tight line as he opened the car door with one hand, clearly irritated.
"What are you standing around for?"
Breathless from uncontrollable fear and the frantic run, Wen Yifan met his gaze but stayed silent, complying with his gesture and words as she got into the car.
Sang Yan shut the door behind her.
Through the window, she saw him casually press the lock button.
The three men had already caught up.
Taking in the scene, the man with the tiger tattoo peered into the car, confirming no one else was inside before sneering, "Hey, handsome, this your girlfriend? She’s pretty hot."
Sang Yan lifted his eyes, enunciating each word coldly, "None of your damn business."
His tone instantly pissed off the tattooed man, who stepped forward and shoved his shoulder. "What’s with the attitude? Did I say it was my business? Can’t take a compliment, huh?"
Sang Yan swiftly seized his arm, grip tightening before flinging it away as if touching something filthy.
His eyes were icy, voice devoid of emotion. "Leaving or not?"
"Fine, I’m not unreasonable." The tattooed man took it as a concession and pointed at Wen Yifan. "Just have that slut in your car come out and apologize to me first. Looks like she’s just begging to be fu—"
As if hitting a nerve, Sang Yan suddenly kicked him square in the stomach without warning.
The blow was delivered with full force, completely unrestrained. Even inside the car, Wen Yifan heard the sickening thud.
The tattooed man’s words cut off as he staggered back, doubling over with a pained curse. "Fuck your mother—"
The two men behind him froze before rushing to help upon hearing his curses.
Wen Yifan lowered her gaze, suppressing her trembling as she pulled out her phone to call the police.
Sang Yan had always carried himself with lazy indifference, as if nothing could bother him. His usual mocking smirk was gone now, replaced by an expressionless mask of fury.
His dark eyes were pure and ruthless, staring at the men before him like they were nothing but rotting flesh.
The two lunged at him simultaneously, trying to pin him down.
Sang Yan reacted instantly, grabbing one by the hair and slamming his head into a nearby lamppost. The other took the chance to land a vicious punch to his face.
He barely dodged in time, his head snapping to the side.
A brief pause.
As if devoid of reason or pain, Sang Yan laughed despite the injury.
Knowing she’d only be a liability if she stepped out, Wen Yifan shut her eyes briefly. She couldn’t bear to watch Sang Yan get hurt, yet she feared one of them might pull a weapon.
Forcing her eyes open again, she stared unblinkingly at the scene outside.Unless the other two were too aggressive, Sang Yan's movements were all targeted, with all his strength directed at the man with the tiger tattoo. At one point, Wen Yifan saw his lips part briefly as he said something.
But they were too far apart.
Wen Yifan couldn’t hear a word he said.
Fortunately, the nearby patrol officers arrived quickly, shouting, "Hey! What’s going on here?"
Seeing this, Wen Yifan immediately got out of the car and walked toward Sang Yan. Afraid the police might mistake him for a troublemaker, she pulled him behind her and forced herself to stay calm. "Officer, I was the one who called the police earlier. This is my friend..."
Sang Yan’s injuries were obvious—his lips were split and bleeding, his skin scraped in several places, and his face bruised in shades of blue and purple. The intensity in his eyes had faded somewhat as he lowered his gaze, staring silently at the pale nape of Wen Yifan’s neck.
...
They were taken to the police station for questioning.
Judging by the injuries on both sides, this couldn’t be considered self-defense and leaned more toward mutual brawling. However, the man with the tiger tattoo had a prior record, and the fact that he had just been released and immediately sought trouble with his previous victim made his case more severe.
Except for the man with the tiger tattoo, the others were given a verbal warning and fined a few hundred yuan before being let go.
After leaving the station.
Wen Yifan stole a glance at Sang Yan’s face and pursed her lips. "Do you want to go to the hospital?"
Sang Yan was in a foul mood and ignored her.
"Are you hurt anywhere else?" Feeling guilty and uneasy for dragging him into her mess, Wen Yifan pressed on. "Let’s go to the hospital. It shouldn’t take too much—"
Sang Yan cut her off. "Wen Yifan."
Wen Yifan looked up. "What?"
Sang Yan stared at her and suddenly blurted out, "Was I invisible standing there?"
Wen Yifan didn’t understand. "What?"
"You ran off without even calling for my help?"
"..."
"And you didn’t hear me telling you to come over?" Sang Yan’s tone was sharp, dripping with sarcasm. "Blind, deaf, mute—just your legs work for running, huh?"
Wen Yifan didn’t take offense at his harshness. He had saved her and gotten hurt in the process, so no matter what, she felt indebted to him. "I did want to ask for your help, but I didn’t know if they’d actually attack. I didn’t want to drag you into it."
Sang Yan’s gaze darkened as he listened to her explanation.
"And," Wen Yifan added honestly, "there were three of them. I didn’t think you could win."
"..."
Sang Yan let out a humorless laugh, rendered speechless by her words.
They happened to pass by a pharmacy.
Wen Yifan stopped and glanced at his face again before saying, "Wait here for a moment."
Without waiting for his response, she went in and bought some ointments for bruises and sprains. When she came out, she scanned the area and spotted a bench in a secluded spot nearby.
They walked over.
"Put some medicine on," Wen Yifan handed him the bag, speaking earnestly. "You can’t go out looking like this."
"..."
Sang Yan’s breathing seemed uneven. He stared at her for a moment before silently tearing open the bag of medicine.
Wen Yifan stayed quiet as she watched him roll up his sleeves and spray the ointment on the bruises on his arms. The more she looked, the heavier her guilt grew—already overwhelming to begin with.
Sang Yan applied the medicine roughly, focusing only on speed. Wen Yifan felt like it barely made a difference.
Next were his knees, and finally, his face.The process became difficult from this point on.
Since his face was a blind spot in his vision and there were no mirrors around, Sang Yan could only apply the antiseptic blindly. His movements were rough and uncontrolled, and he kept missing the right spots, causing his brows to furrow unconsciously.
Wen Yifan couldn’t stand watching anymore. "Let me help you."
Sang Yan glanced at her, paused for a few seconds, then handed her the cotton swab.
Just as Wen Yifan leaned in, she heard him say,
"Don’t take this as an opportunity to take advantage of me."
"..."
Wen Yifan hesitated before repressing her irritation. "Alright, I’ll be careful."
She picked up the iodine swab and carefully dabbed it on his wound. The moment she touched it, Sang Yan let out a displeased sound, as if she had stabbed him with a needle.
Wen Yifan froze immediately.
As if deliberately making a fuss, Sang Yan grumbled, "Can you watch your strength?"
Wen Yifan: "..."
She didn’t even feel like she had touched him yet.
Suppressing her temper, she said, "Fine, I’ll be gentler."
The distance between them gradually closed.
Wen Yifan focused intently on his wound, applying the antiseptic with extreme caution, afraid of displeasing him again. As she moved downward toward the corner of his lips, she took a new iodine swab, snapped it open, and lightly dabbed the area.
Once she finished, her gaze lifted slightly and met his eyes.
The air seemed to freeze for a moment.
"Just applying some medicine," Sang Yan’s voice was low and slightly hoarse, his eyes dark, "Was it necessary to get this close?"
"..." Wen Yifan straightened up. "Sorry. The lighting here isn’t great, and I couldn’t see clearly."
Then she added, "It’s done."
There was nothing else to do afterward.
Sang Yan leaned back in his chair and asked casually, "What’s the story with you?"
Wen Yifan lowered her eyes, tidying up the items on the bench as she explained slowly, "Let’s just say there’s some bad blood. The biggest guy from earlier lives next door to me. He used to knock on my door all the time. I reported him to the police once, and he got locked up for five days. Probably made him hold a grudge."
Hearing this, Sang Yan’s expression darkened. "You’re still staying in that dump tonight?"
"I’ve already found a new place, just haven’t had time to move yet. I was planning to just find a random ho—" She paused, correcting herself, "I’ll stay at a friend’s place tonight."
Sang Yan didn’t respond immediately, only letting out a noncommittal "Hmm" after a long silence.
Noticing the time, Wen Yifan stood up first. "Let’s go. It’s late—you should head back and rest. Su Haoan’s car is still parked near my place, so you’ll have to make another trip."
Sang Yan merely nodded without a word.
They hailed a cab back to City Garden Residence.
After getting out of the car, before Wen Yifan could even say goodbye, Sang Yan strode straight into the neighborhood. Unsure of his intentions, she hurried after him. "Do you still have something to do?"
Sang Yan glanced sideways. "Going up to pack your things."
Wen Yifan was taken aback. "Huh?"
His tone was dripping with disdain for the place. "You still plan on coming back to this dump?"
"..."
It sounded like he intended to accompany her upstairs to pack.
Wen Yifan had been worrying about this very issue—she didn’t dare go up alone in the short term, and she couldn’t find anyone to accompany her on such short notice. She also hadn’t wanted to trouble Sang Yan for help.
But since he had brought it up himself, she felt a wave of relief.
"Thank you," Wen Yifan said.
Sang Yan couldn’t be bothered to respond.
The property management in this neighborhood really was terrible.The lights on several floors of Wen Yifan's building were broken, casting a darkness that made it hard to see the path. No one had come to fix them. Piles of uncollected garbage lingered at the stairwell corners, emitting a damp, unpleasant odor.
Previously, Wen Yifan hadn’t thought much of it, but with this young master around, she inexplicably felt her situation was somewhat embarrassing.
Yet this time, Sang Yan didn’t say a word.
Arriving at her door, Wen Yifan took out her keys to unlock it.
Sang Yan didn’t casually enter a girl’s home. Instead, he stood outside with his hands in his pockets. “I’ll wait out here.”
Wen Yifan nodded.
She stepped inside and pulled her suitcase from under the bed.
Having been in Nanwu for less than three months, she had sold or discarded many of her belongings before moving. Since she hadn’t had time to acquire new things, packing now was no different from when she first arrived—just one suitcase and a duffel bag.
After confirming she hadn’t forgotten anything, she opened the door and walked out.
Sang Yan glanced at her luggage. “That’s all?”
Wen Yifan: “Yeah.”
Without another word, he carried both pieces downstairs for her. After leaving the complex, he placed the luggage in the trunk and got into the driver’s seat. “Where does your friend live?”
Wen Yifan debated whether to find a hotel or discuss moving in with Wang Linlin today.
Sang Yan lost patience. “Did you hear me?”
Reluctantly, Wen Yifan replied, “Imperial Capital Flower City.”
Sang Yan frowned at her before starting the car.
The drive there was short—less than five minutes.
As they neared the destination, Sang Yan asked casually, “Which building?”
“...” Wen Yifan remembered the location but hadn’t noted the building number. “I don’t recall.”
Sang Yan wasn’t fazed. “Ask her.”
Wen Yifan had already messaged Wang Linlin on WeChat, but she likely hadn’t checked her phone yet. Not wanting to inconvenience Sang Yan further, she added, “She hasn’t replied. It’s fine—you can just drop me at the gate.”
Silence.
Sang Yan’s tone was unreadable. “Do you really have a friend living here?”
“...” Wen Yifan didn’t understand. “What?”
Sang Yan said nothing more.
At the entrance of Imperial Capital Flower City, Sang Yan got out and retrieved her luggage.
Wen Yifan thanked him politely again. “I really appreciate your help today. Let me know when you’re free—I’d like to treat you to a meal.”
“No need for meals.” His voice was cool, his words blunt. “I’d do the same even for a stranger.”
Wen Yifan stared at the bruises on his face and couldn’t resist asking, “With all this heroism, does your face ever look presentable in a year?”
“...”
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