Chapter 34

While the others were attending class, Xu Qiuyun was still crying. No one paid much attention and went to class as usual. However, when they returned in the afternoon, they found Xu Qiuyun lying motionless on the floor.

A pool of blood had spread beneath her, sending everyone into a panic. Seven of them quickly rushed her to the school infirmary. The medical staff managed to stop the bleeding, but they were unable to provide full treatment, so she was taken to the hospital.

After being rushed into the emergency room, the group waited anxiously outside. Two hours later, the doctor came out and informed them that Xu Qiuyun had survived, thanks to their timely response.

Hearing that she was safe, everyone finally felt relieved. However, by the next day, news of Xu Qiuyun attempting to slit her wrists in the dormitory had spread throughout the entire school.

The principal had no choice but to suppress the news. When Xu Qiuyun regained consciousness and returned to the dormitory, she saw everyone gathered around her and couldn’t hold back her tears.

“I’m sorry… I don’t deserve to be saved. This is all my own doing. If I hadn’t been so vain, I wouldn’t have ended up like this. Thank you all.”

Previously, Xu Qiuyun had been determined to prove herself to others, but now she realized she had been wrong. No one ever truly looked down on her—except for herself.

“It’s okay. You’re still here, and that’s what matters. Don’t dwell on it.”

Hearing their comforting words, Xu Qiuyun cried even harder. She regretted everything. If only she had never gotten involved with Hu Dehai.

“Hu Dehai is a terrible person. I only realized it now. He told me he needed my help to move up in life, and I believed him. But after I helped him, he immediately abandoned me. Not only that, but he even took all my money.”

At first, Xu Qiuyun genuinely thought Hu Dehai cared about her. When he made unreasonable demands—like asking her to meet his superiors—she obeyed without question.

But once Hu Dehai secured his promotion, he completely cut ties with her. Seeing her in distress, her dormmates did their best to comfort her. There was no way to undo what had happened, but at least Xu Qiuyun was still young and could start over—as long as she was willing to stand up again.

Unexpectedly, there was more to the story. Hu Dehai was later taken away by the police. Xu Qiuyun knew she couldn’t just let him go unpunished, so she voluntarily went to the authorities and reported everything he had done. An investigation was launched, and Hu Liping, another person connected to him, was also implicated. However, since the two rarely had any direct contact, the police only questioned her briefly and did not pursue further action.

When Hu Liping returned home to pack her belongings, she found a letter hidden away. Inside that letter was a shocking secret.

She finally understood why Hu Dehai had never treated her well—because she was not his biological daughter.

Years ago, Hu Liping had been kidnapped by traffickers, and Hu Dehai had bought her from them because he was infertile. To avoid being ridiculed, he had made his wife fake a pregnancy and later bought a baby girl to pass off as their own child.

The letter was written by Hu Dehai himself. He had planned to tell Hu Liping the truth eventually, but he never expected her to discover it this way.

After everything settled down, life in the dormitory returned to normal. Surprisingly, Hu Liping and Xu Qiuyun grew closer, resolving their past conflicts. Now, they only wanted to focus on their studies.

However, just as things seemed to calm down, another incident occurred—this time involving Ren Caixia.

For the past few days, no one had noticed her return to the dormitory.

“Do you think something happened to Ren Caixia?”

“Let’s go ask around in her department.”

The dormmates decided to investigate. Since Ren Caixia and Li Pandi were in the same department, they asked her directly.

“Ren Caixia and Xu Yi both took a leave of absence. I heard they went home to meet his parents.”

“Pandi, do you know much about Xu Yi?”

“Not really. But from what I’ve heard, his family is quite poor. He’s the only college student from his village.”

After parting with Li Pandi, they questioned a few more classmates. The responses were all the same—Xu Yi often took advantage of his good looks to manipulate girls, and he had spent a lot of Ren Caixia’s money.

Hearing this, they concluded that Xu Yi was a scammer. After discussing their concerns, they decided to report him to the police.

At the police station, they explained the situation. The officers took their report seriously and immediately began searching for Ren Caixia.

Meanwhile, Ren Caixia had been feeling increasingly uneasy ever since getting off the train.

“Xu Yi, how much longer until we reach your house? It feels like we’re going farther and farther away.”

“Don’t worry, we’re almost there.”

For some reason, Ren Caixia felt that Xu Yi had changed. Ever since they got off the train, he had become much colder.

After walking for two hours, Xu Yi finally stopped in front of a house.

“We’re here. My parents are working in the fields right now. There’s no one at home, so I’ll go get them.”

“Alright.”

Ren Caixia didn’t think too much about it and was about to step into the courtyard. But just as she was about to enter, she hesitated. This was her first visit to his family’s home—was it really appropriate to go inside before his parents returned?

She decided to wait at the door instead. That’s when she overheard Xu Yi speaking with another man.

“I brought the girl. Five hundred yuan—no less.”

“Can you lower the price? Four hundred and fifty is the most my family can afford.”

Xu Yi hesitated but eventually agreed. “Fine. But make sure you watch her closely. I’m leaving.”

“Wait a minute. Are you sure she’s really a college student? Don’t trick me like last time when you brought over those second-hand girls from the village.”

“Yes, she’s absolutely a college student. Her parents are from Beijing. She’s a rich young lady. Keep her locked up, and once she has a child, she’ll have no choice but to accept her fate.”

At that moment, all traces of Xu Yi’s former charm were gone—he was nothing but cruel and deceitful.

Hearing this, Ren Caixia instantly realized why Xu Yi had been so insistent on bringing her home.

She had fallen into a trap.

She regretted everything. If only she hadn’t foolishly followed him.

Realizing the danger, she knew she had to find a way to escape. She quickly hid in a corner, recalling her parents’ and Zhou Meimei’s warnings. They were the ones who truly cared about her. A monster like Xu Yi deserved to be punished.

After waiting in silence for an hour, the conversation outside finally stopped.

Seizing the opportunity, Ren Caixia made a run for it.

“Xu Han, the girl is escaping! Catch her!”

Ren Caixia ran with all her might—she couldn’t afford to get caught.

But suddenly, a hand grabbed her from behind. She turned and saw Xu Yi’s furious face.

“Take her back inside! Don’t let her escape again. To avoid any trouble, we should hurry and get married tonight.”

“Good idea, Xu Han. You’re really smart.”

Ren Caixia was stunned.

Even his name was fake.

Xu Han thought he would never see Ren Caixia again, so he no longer cared if she learned his real name.

But he was gravely mistaken.

Everyone who does evil will eventually face retribution.