Su Ling was led by the other person. His knees and broken leg were protected by knee pads, but he could only endure the pain and walk forward. Despite that, he still felt a subtle ache, especially in his broken leg. Every step felt like tearing flesh. He wasn’t walking slowly, which meant he had to bear even more pain. He didn’t dare to slow down, afraid that if he did, Liu Ruyan would hit him.
Liu Ruyan led him into a room that looked like a private booth in a KTV. The only difference was that there were additional rooms inside. Su Ling glanced at them and quickly looked away. He didn’t want to know what was in there. Right now, he just wanted to rest—his leg hurt too much, and it felt like the broken part was bleeding. Each step was pure agony.
Liu Ruyan led Su Ling to the sofa. When she stopped, Su Ling could no longer hold himself up. His arms gave way, and his body crashed heavily to the floor.
“Tsk, you’re so useless. Can’t even handle this?”
“You’ll have to walk like this from now on, you know?”
Liu Ruyan picked him up. His body instantly tensed, and he bit his lip uneasily. A flash of displeasure crossed Liu Ruyan’s face. She pinched the soft flesh at Su Ling’s waist. Tears welled up in Su Ling’s eyes as he looked at her pleadingly. He thought Liu Ruyan was going to do something here… but clearly, he was mistaken. Soon after, she picked him up again, set him aside, and bent down to remove the knee pads from his legs.
Su Ling silently breathed a sigh of relief. But before he could relax for long, the pain from his broken leg made him grab her arm.
“Bear with it. Don’t move. The wound is bleeding. If we don’t treat it, things will go wrong.”
Su Ling forced back his tears and nodded. Noticing the damp corners of the little cripple’s eyes, Liu Ruyan lightened her touch. The bloodstained knee pads were finally removed, revealing the crimson mess of his broken leg. Su Ling glanced at it and looked away. He didn’t dare—didn’t dare to look.
“Stay here. I’ll get the medicine. Also, I sent someone to bring those two little things over. They should be here soon.” With that, Liu Ruyan left.
Su Ling sniffled. He sat on the sofa, afraid to move because of his leg wound. As time passed, he grew restless. He couldn’t help thinking, ‘Why isn’t Liu Ruyan coming back?’ He should hate her—want to kill her—but deep down, there was no hatred, only resentment and a sense of grievance. He should hate her, should want to… ‘No, it’s not just dislike. It should be hate!’
Su Ling lowered his head. He couldn’t hate her, and he didn’t know why. He should hate her, should want to kill her. But he shook his head. He didn’t want to think about her. He disliked her. Maybe he just didn’t dare to hate. Su Ling stared helplessly at his fingers, unsure of what to do.
Suddenly, the door was pushed open, and a figure entered. Su Ling looked up, thinking it was Liu Ruyan returning, but it wasn’t her.
A boy with striking white hair walked in—it was Lin Feng. Beside him was another boy, the same one who had given Su Ling a bun earlier: Bai Ruo. Bai Ruo had a slender frame, looking even frailer than Lin Feng. He timidly hid behind Lin Feng, nervously twisting the hem of his clothes with both hands.
Su Ling looked at them with complex emotions. He wanted to say something, but when he opened his mouth, no sound came out. He had forgotten again—forgotten that he could no longer speak.
Lin Feng shielded Bai Ruo behind him and asked warily, “Did you call for us?”
Su Ling nodded slightly.
“What do you want?” The other’s wary demeanor made Su Ling’s heart ache.
“Brother Lin Feng, don’t be like that.” Bai Ruo cautiously stepped forward, his eyes fixed on Su Ling’s broken leg. “Your leg…”
Bai Ruo wanted to walk over, but the moment he took a step, Lin Feng grabbed his shoulder. Lin Feng’s expression was serious as he slowly shook his head.
“Brother Lin Feng, he’s hurt. Let me just take a look—just a look, okay?”
Lin Feng wanted to refuse, but seeing Bai Ruo’s pleading eyes, he couldn’t bring himself to say no. He let go. Feeling the pressure on her shoulder disappear, Bai Ruo gave a small smile and hurried over to Su Ling.
“Are you okay?”
Su Ling shook his head and forced a faint smile. Bai Ruo stared at the wound on Su Ling’s leg, his face full of worry. “Why aren’t you saying anything?”
Su Ling’s smile froze slightly. After a moment of silence, he pointed to his throat and shook his head.
“You… you can’t speak?”
Su Ling nodded, a bitter feeling rising in his heart. Lin Feng, standing nearby, bit his lip. He hadn’t expected the boy around his age to be mute. No wonder he hadn’t said thank you when Bai Ruo gave him the bun earlier. But… what did that have to do with him? Was he supposed to apologize? Ha, impossible! If not for him, he and Bai Ruo wouldn’t be in this mess. Lin Feng thought to himself, ‘What does it have to do with me? Should I apologize? Impossible! If it weren’t for him, Bai Ruo and I wouldn’t be like this.’ His face remained expressionless.
Just then, the door opened again, and Liu Ruyan walked in with a spring in her step. She was carrying a medicine box and wearing a nurse’s uniform.
‘What?’ Su Ling stared at her, dazed, not understanding what game she was playing now.
“So, little cripple, surprised to see me in this outfit?”
Su Ling opened his mouth.
“Tsk, forgot you can’t talk.” Liu Ruyan pursed her lips, a bit disappointed, but still walked over.
Lin Feng’s heart tightened at her approach. He immediately pulled Bai Ruo behind him, shielding her. Su Ling glanced at them and suddenly thought of his sister. Would his sister protect him like that? ‘Probably not.’
Liu Ruyan paused mid-step, as if just noticing Lin Feng and Bai Ruo. “You two, get over there!”
Lin Feng said nothing and dragged Bai Ruo to the side. Su Ling looked at them, a strange feeling in his chest.
“So, still hurt?”
Su Ling nodded. It wasn’t as painful as before, but it still ached. Liu Ruyan lifted his broken leg roughly, making him hiss in pain. She took out iodine, but just as she was about to open it, she seemed to think of something. She set down the iodine and picked up a bottle of alcohol instead.
Watching from the side, Lin Feng was startled. ‘This person…’ He glanced back at Bai Ruo. Luckily, she didn’t understand this stuff, or she would have rushed in to stop it. That would definitely offend this woman, and he couldn’t imagine the consequences. In this environment, he really didn’t have much confidence in protecting Bai Ruo. But she was the only one he cared about, the only one he wanted to protect. He absolutely couldn’t let anything happen to her.
Liu Ruyan was about to drip the alcohol when she stopped again. ‘What if this little cripple moves?’ Thinking this, she waved at the two standing in the distance. “You two, come here and hold him down!”
Lin Feng frowned, took a deep breath, and said coldly, “I can do it myself. He doesn’t have enough strength to break free.”
“Brother Lin Feng, I…”
“Don’t talk. Just stay put.”
“Tsk, disgusting.”
Lin Feng clenched his fist but held back. He couldn’t beat her—that was the most realistic problem. Even though he was a boy, he was naturally weak, and her height was twice his. With such a gap, he couldn’t even hope to touch her, let alone fight.
“Then come here. If you can’t hold him down, don’t blame me for being harsh.”
Su Ling bit his lip, watching helplessly as the boy walked over and pressed his hands on Su Ling’s shoulders. His fear grew with each passing second. ‘What is she going to do? Why does she need someone to hold me down?’ Instinctively, he wanted to escape, but his body was firmly pinned. The boy’s strength was greater than he’d imagined, and he couldn’t break free at all.
Unable to do anything else, Su Ling looked up with pleading eyes. Lin Feng turned away, refusing to meet his gaze. In his heart, he told himself, ‘This person has nothing to do with me. Even if he dies, it’s none of my business!’
“Little cripple, I’m starting now!”