Chapter 72: The Pitiful Female Supporting Character from a Patriarchal Family in the 2000s (19)

Xu Zhi saw that the situation was escalating. More and more people were gathering around. In a panic, he tried to run away but was subdued by a dark-skinned young man.

Ai Xiaoling called the police. Xu Zhi was still shouting that Ai Xiaofen was his wife and that this was a family matter.

The police asked everyone to go and give statements.

Ai Xiaofen and Xu Zhi were already divorced and were no longer considered husband and wife. It was also found out that Xu Zhi had threatened Ai Xiaofen yesterday and demanded money from her.

This was illegal and criminal. It was extortion and blackmail.

Moreover, Xu Zhi barged into the store today, hit someone, and tried to steal money. That was robbery.

At first, when Xu Zhi entered the police station, he was still shouting. But when he heard that he had committed robbery and would have to go to jail, he was so scared that he peed his pants on the spot.

Ai Xiaoling insisted on pressing charges, and Xu Zhi was detained.

After finishing the statements, Ai Xiaoling was most concerned about Ai Xiaofen and Ye Zhou’s injuries.

At that time, she had no way to escape. She had seen Ye Zhou rush over without hesitation, using his body to block the falling shelves and telling her to get out quickly.

At that moment, saying she was not moved would be a lie.

“You should go check how badly Ye Zhou is hurt,” Ai Xiaofen said to Ai Xiaoling with a worried and guilty expression.

Ai Xiaoling was also very concerned about her. “Sister, your injury—”

Ai Xiaofen had also been slapped by Xu Zhi.

“I’m fine. Just put some ice on it and it’ll be okay. Ye Zhou’s injury is more serious. You should take him to the hospital for a check-up.” Ai Xiaofen would instinctively tremble when facing Xu Zhi. If he hadn’t treated Ai Xiaoling and the others so badly, she wouldn’t have stood up to accuse him and agree to press charges.

She didn’t want the people around her to get hurt anymore.

Ai Xiaoling wanted to take Ye Zhou to the hospital, but he refused. “It’s nothing. I’ll just go home and apply some medicine.”

“Better get it checked at the hospital, okay?” Ai Xiaoling was still worried.

Ye Zhou shook his head.

“Can I at least take a look?” She had no idea how bad the injury was.

Ye Zhou remained silent.

She grew anxious and quickly stepped forward but didn’t know where to begin.

Ye Zhou had hurt his back and shoulder, and he was still wearing clothes.

“Crouch down so I can take a look,” Ai Xiaoling gestured with her hand. “I’ll feel better once I see it.”

He was so tall that she couldn’t even see properly.

Ye Zhou hesitated for a moment and bent down slightly, trying to reassure her. “It’s nothing. I just need a few days to recover.”

Ai Xiaoling reached out and gently lifted his collar with her fingertips.

Her cool fingertips brushed against Ye Zhou’s skin like a jolt of electricity. It sent a tingling sensation through him and made his body tense up stiffly.

After a while, seeing she hadn’t moved, Ye Zhou turned his head to look at her, his expression slightly dazed.

Ai Xiaoling’s eyes were slightly red, and there were tears in her eyes.

The two were very close. As their breaths mingled, Ye Zhou’s breathing became irregular, and his heart pounded like it was about to leap out of his chest.

“Let’s go to the hospital, okay?” Ai Xiaoling said with a choked voice.

Ye Zhou had a large bruise on his back, with red streaks around it.

Looking at it made her feel upset. Her chest felt heavy and stifled.

They went to the hospital. The injury looked serious, and the doctor was worried it might be a fracture, so he asked for an X-ray.

While waiting for the results, Ai Xiaoling was extremely anxious, pacing back and forth in the hospital corridor. When she looked at Ye Zhou, her eyes were full of guilt. “If Aunt Ye finds out, she’ll definitely be very worried.”

Even though Mother Ye didn’t seem to care much about Ye Zhou in words, no matter how hard life was, she still insisted on keeping this son by her side.

“Just don’t tell her,” Ye Zhou replied.

Ai Xiaoling frowned tightly. “What if it really is a fracture?”

“I’ll heal after some rest.”

Ye Zhou spoke in a light tone, which only deepened Ai Xiaoling’s guilt. “I dragged you into this—”

“Don’t say that. As long as you’re okay.” Ye Zhou forced a smile and pointed to the seat beside him. “Sit down and wait. Standing will tire you out.”

Ai Xiaoling sat down and looked at his shoulder. After thinking for a moment, she gently pressed it twice. “Does it hurt?”

The moment she touched him, Ye Zhou’s thoughts scattered. He shook his head.

“What about here?” She moved her hand slightly inward and added a bit more pressure.

“It doesn’t hurt.” Ye Zhou still gave her a small smile.

“You’re still smiling.” Ai Xiaoling pulled her hand back, lowered her head, and twisted her hands anxiously. She was on the verge of losing it.

Ye Zhou tilted his head to look at her and said softly, “It’s really nothing. I know my body.”

“You’re just comforting me.” She mumbled.

“Really.” After Ye Zhou said that, he suddenly changed the subject. “Are you thirsty? I’ll go buy you a bottle of water.”

Hearing that, Ai Xiaoling suddenly looked up at him, her eyes full of emotion. She then lowered her head again, feeling a slight sting in her nose.

Seeing her like that, Ye Zhou felt flustered and kept saying, “It really doesn’t hurt at all. Really.”

Ai Xiaoling didn’t say anything until they received the X-ray report. The results showed that there were no issues with the bones. Only then did she finally breathe a sigh of relief.

The doctor prescribed medicine for Ye Zhou to apply at home.

Three times a day, each time required rubbing for about ten minutes.

Ye Zhou took Ai Xiaoling back to the supermarket. When they were downstairs, she said to him, “I’ll help you apply the medicine before I go back.”

Ye Zhou got nervous. “No need. I can do it myself.”

“How are you going to apply it to your back? You can’t even reach.” Her clear eyes looked at him with insistence.

Ye Zhou: “……”

“Take off your shirt.” Ai Xiaoling opened the package and took out the medicine.

Ye Zhou didn’t move.

“You’re a man, are you afraid I’ll see your upper body or what?” Ai Xiaoling joked with a relaxed tone to break the awkwardness.

“No.” He stiffly took off his shirt and turned his back to Ai Xiaoling. “I just don’t want to trouble you.”

“I’ve troubled you so much. You didn’t even complain.” Ai Xiaoling poured the medicine into her hand and then applied it to the bruised area.

The moment her hand touched his skin, her heart began to pound. She moved mechanically, stiffly continuing with the task.

She had decent emotional intelligence and enough intelligence. She learned everything quickly.

But when it came to love, she had no experience at all. It was an empty field.

Ye Zhou’s breathing stopped the moment she touched him. His body temperature rose sharply, and sweat kept forming on his forehead. He replied in a warm voice, “I never thought you were a bother. I just feel like you’ve been avoiding me.”

These past few days, he couldn’t figure it out. He couldn’t sleep.

He felt a bit sad.

A sadness that couldn’t be described.

The moment he said that, the person behind him paused, clearly caught off guard by his words.

Ye Zhou’s heart sank halfway again.

After a while, just as he was racking his brains for a topic to ease the mood, Ai Xiaoling finally spoke, “You treat me so well, I don’t know how to repay you.”

That was the truth.

Ye Zhou treated her too well, especially after He Wenlei told her those things, which made her even more afraid of getting entangled in a relationship that was hard to cut off and unclear.

“I don’t need you to repay me.” Ye Zhou didn’t argue with her over this.

“Why are you so good to me?” Ai Xiaoling continued applying the medicine to his shoulder, “I feel undeserving of it.”

Ye Zhou pressed his thin lips together and did not answer her. Instead, he asked a question that had been weighing on his mind for a long time, “Why him?”

“What?”

“We were the ones who met first, so why did you choose to get close to him?” Ye Zhou said as he turned to look at Ai Xiaoling. His eyes carried a mix of emotions. He tried to speak gently, but it was still filled with indescribable sadness. “I just want to know the reason.”

She said he treated her well, so why did she choose He Wenlei?

Ai Xiaoling was stunned.

“Knock knock knock—”

“What are you doing?”

There was a sudden knock on the car window behind Ai Xiaoling. She was startled and instinctively threw herself forward and fell into a warm embrace.

With no clothing in between, Ai Xiaoling’s face was pressed against Ye Zhou’s bare chest.

A pair of strong arms held her steady.

Two motorcycles passed by the window. The spirited young guys saw them in the car, with Ye Zhou shirtless, and assumed they were doing something indecent, so they joked as they passed.

The motorcycles quickly left, but Ai Xiaoling remained frozen in place. All she could hear was the strong and powerful beat of his heart in her ears.

Inside the cramped car, the atmosphere gradually turned ambiguous.

“They’re gone,” Ye Zhou said in a low voice.

Ai Xiaoling quickly sat up, but her face was already bright red, burning hot.

She handed him his shirt, “The medicine’s applied. Hurry and put your clothes on, or you’ll catch a cold.”

“Mm.”

Ye Zhou put on his shirt, but because his shoulder hurt, his movements were slightly slow.

“I’m heading back.” Ai Xiaoling opened the car door and got out.

“Xiaoling, did I do something wrong?” This time, Ye Zhou didn’t hesitate. He quickly followed her out of the car and couldn’t help asking. After speaking, he even reflected, “Or was I too strict with you?”

He did have expectations of her and always encouraged her to learn skills and get certifications.

But those weren’t meant to make things difficult for her.

Ai Xiaoling didn’t answer his question directly. Instead, she said, “Didn’t you say your employees aren’t allowed to have romantic relationships? I’m afraid you’ll fire me. It took me so long to finally earn a living.”

“I just didn’t want you to date someone else.” Ye Zhou was afraid she’d misunderstand and hurriedly explained, “I didn’t mean to be harsh with my words. I just like you. I take back what I said that day. I’m sorry.”

Although Ai Xiaoling had sensed that Ye Zhou might have some feelings for her, when he actually confessed, her heart still skipped a beat.

She had received confessions before, but this one felt different.

There was a bit of joy.

“I didn’t force you to make any decision. Aren’t you still getting to know He Wenlei? How’s that going?” Ye Zhou asked nervously.

“Just normal friends.”

When Ye Zhou heard that, his mood immediately lifted. His fingers clenched together as he looked at her with hopeful eyes and asked cautiously, “Then do I still have a chance?”

Ai Xiaoling bit her lip in hesitation, “If we start dating and it turns out we’re not compatible and break up, wouldn’t that be embarrassing? I might even lose my job. It took me so much effort to finally find a stable job.”

After she finished speaking, her beautiful eyebrows knitted together and her face tensed, “Finding a job is really hard. Money is so hard to earn out there.”

Ye Zhou didn’t quite understand, “Can’t we just not break up? I don’t think earning money is hard. I can give you all the money I make.”

Ai Xiaoling really thought Ye Zhou was a good man, such a good man. But she also thought of the ending from her previous life, “But what if? What if we do break up? Can we just stay friends? You can still help me make money. I want to earn a lot of money.”

Love and career.

She wanted both right now.

If Ye Zhou were to move to another province in the future and meet his fiancée, then let them break up.

Ai Xiaoling had figured it out. In life, at the end of everything, all things are fleeting. If you want to do something, just do it.

Ye Zhou thought for a moment and solemnly told her, “If we break up, it must be because I didn’t do something well enough. If feelings can’t make up for it, then I will do my best to make up for it in our careers.”

Ai Xiaoling’s heart finally settled. She asked him again to confirm, “You said this yourself.”

“I said it,” Ye Zhou replied. Then he mustered the courage to look at her, “Can you try getting to know me? With the intention of being in a relationship.”

She immediately broke into a smile, “I agree.”

Ye Zhou thought he had misheard and stood frozen in place.

Ai Xiaoling ran over to him, stood right in front of him, and looked straight into his eyes with her beautiful gaze. Then she tiptoed and lightly kissed his lips like a dragonfly skimming the surface of water.

Her eyes curved into a smile and her voice was sweet, “I don’t want to waste any more time. I agree to be with you.”