Lu Beixiao stood in an upright posture with both arms by his side. He had never behaved so well in front of Lao Cai before, but he had to this time. He needed to see his girl.
“Report. I’m going to see my girlfriend!” He answered aloud with a sonorous and forceful voice.
Meanwhile, Lao Cai choked on a mouthful of tea. His earlier assertion of authority had become shattered all at once.
Lu Beixiao had never assented cordially to anyone in the Special Forces, nor had he formally requested for anything. Hence, this request was truly out of the ordinary.
Lao Cai tried very hard to keep himself from coughing. “Is it a must?” He looked sharply at him.
“Report. It is a must!” Lu Beixiao sounded resolute and decisive.
Lao Cai felt chagrined that his itchy throat had become increasingly unbearable. He thought to himself that he needed to give Lu Beixiao some benefits, or he would start making trouble.
“What if I deny your request?” Lao Cai strictly said.
Lu Beixiao only responded with a sneer, trying to make him feel threatened. If Lao Cai ended up refusing his request, he had no choice but to answer his insensibility with revolt.
“You have to be back by ten!” Lao Cai finally said.
Lu Beixiao displayed a firm determination as he countered, “12!”
“Eleven!” Lao Cai responded. However, Lu Beixiao really had no regard for his superiors.
“12!” Lu Beixiao refused to give in. It was almost seven now.
Lao Cai’s face began to redden as he could barely suppress his cough anymore. “Don’t let the rest of them know about this.”
“Sir, yes, sir!” Lu Beixiao firmly said. He gave Lao Cai a salute before rushing out of his temporary office. As soon as he left the room, Lao Cai began coughing violently.
“What a pretentious fella,” Lu Beixiao thought.
…
After a round of stern rebuke, Ye Qiao wanted to get Qiao Tian to come along with her and leave N City behind, but he refused to. Unanticipatedly, Qiao Tian’s girlfriend, Ning Jing showed up at the door. Ye Qiao had only heard about her. They had not officially met before.
Ning Jing looked very attractive and was two years older than Qiao Tian. She used to work in a small boutique right next to Qiao Tian’s college.
After a brief introduction, Ye Qiao went straight to the point.
“Sister Ning, what’s the plan that you and my brother have come up with?” Ye Qiao’s mother told her about their love story. They had grown very attached, so when Qiao Tian was about to leave, she ran after the bus for quite some time.
Ning Jing’s parents despised the poor. Being the only daughter in the family, her parents simply would not allow her to be with Qiao Tian. The Qiao family, on the other hand, did their part and brought Qiao Tian home to keep him away from all the unwanted societal pressure.
Certainly, the story was just an account of the past that was given by her mother. Now that both parties were present, she needed to seize this chance and make everything clear.
“Qiao Qiao, I’ll talk to my parents about my plans of going with Qiao Tian to the South and starting our own clothing business,” Ning Jing said with a note of seriousness. Suddenly, Qiao Tian noticed something unusual, so he went to check the door.
“Run!” He abruptly said. Without any ado, he grabbed them both by their hands and ran towards the backdoor with urgent haste.
They must have been tailing Ning Jing on her way here.
Ye Qiao had her own protection. Her bodyguards quickly emerged to stop the intruders from forcing an entrance, and they ended up exchanging blows, but there were just too many of them. Some of the intruders managed to get through her men’s barricade and broke into the house.
The three of them made it to the alley but were spotted by the gangsters. Their only chance was to outrun their pursuers.
“Brother, don’t worry about me. I’m a runner!” Ye Qiao let go of Qiao Tian’s hand and said.
Somehow, Ye Qiao had a feeling that her stamina had greatly improved after her rebirth. She was able to sustain prolonged physical strain and run as if she had wings. Ning Jing, on the other hand, was already gasping for air. “Brother, there’s a school on the right. You should run there!” She was conscious of her surroundings to notice that there were many colleges around.
The colleges must be guarded so the gangsters would not risk stirring up troubles in establishments that were equipped with heavy public security.
“Qiao Qiao! Are you going to be alone?” Qiao Tian was concerned for her safety, but she ran so fast that she was already long gone. Hence, Qiao Tian had no choice but to split up and run.
“Damn it! She runs so fast!” Five gangsters were running after Ye Qiao, but they just could not catch up with her. Breathless from the chase, they watched helplessly as she sped up and left them far behind.
Judging from her endurance, Ye Qiao was almost convinced that she could actually sign up for a marathon. Her sweet dream, however, was short-lived as the path she took led to a dead end.
