NH chapter 015

Chapter 15 Equipment Room

The sunset’s afterglow cast a cold glimmer on the keyhole. The equipment room was tightly shut, sealed to perfection. On such an inappropriate day, it felt undeniably uncanny no matter how one looked at it.

Huo Ye stood motionless, staring at the door lock, listening intently to the sounds coming from inside. He was sure that the previous sounds he heard were definitely not an auditory hallucination.

After a few seconds, the barely audible sound of stifled sobbing indeed slipped through the crack of the door, sounding like a girl was incoherently crying out for something, “no,” but she still dared not scream for help, fearing it would attract attention.

This was somewhat contradictory.

The helplessness was real, but the unwillingness to seek help was also real.

Huo Ye forcefully twisted the doorknob, creating just the right amount of noise as a sign of intimidation, and asked in a deep voice, “Who’s in there?”

“……”

No one answered.

The air suddenly turned eerily silent.

After two minutes of stalemate, with nothing happening, Huo Ye outside the door seemed to lose his curiosity and doubt, turning to leave with large strides.

Thinking he had left, inside, the girl let out a quiet sigh of relief, and couldn’t help but release a soft whimper.

Unbeknownst to her, before that whimper could settle, a shocking bang echoed at the door: “Bang!!—” In an instant, it felt as if a thunderous force crashed in, dust swirling everywhere, and the two people inside covered their heads, obviously frightened.

Huo Ye used a feint, turning to kick open the door. His tall figure almost blocked out the light, the fiery clouds behind him illuminating the entire equipment room. Standing against the light, his face was divided into two sides by the afterglow; one side was a strong, cold demeanor, while the other radiated gentle compassion, like a deity descending as a savior.

With the light still shining, Huo Ye surprisingly saw two familiar faces.

On a sponge mat in the equipment room lay a disheveled boy and girl. The boy was Liao Zheng from Class 2B whom Huo Ye had dealt with not long ago; the girl he had forcibly embraced had a cute round face, her eyes swollen like two walnuts from crying, her lips cracked and bleeding.

—It was the round-faced girl who had almost collided with Huo Ye at the school gate on the first day of school when she panicked and dodged away.

Liao Zheng came back to his senses, pushing the girl away, and said hastily with a stiffened expression, “Don’t misunderstand, I didn’t do anything!”

Huo Ye’s expression was terrifyingly dark, and he remained silent at Liao Zheng’s incoherent explanation, suddenly stepping forward menacingly toward him. It was an overwhelming presence, each step felt like stepping on a vigorous and dangerous drumbeat.

Liao Zheng was scared; he truly felt afraid, unable to utter a word, retreating step by step until he was forced against the wall.

Huo Ye grabbed his collar and landed a punch. The impact was so strong that when Huo Ye released him, Liao Zheng fell to the ground.

He covered his face, groaning nonstop, a warm sensation spreading from his palm; looking down, it was bright red, blood streaming from his nose. Liao Zheng trembled, cursing loudly, his voice hoarse, “Huo Ye, have you gone mad?! How dare you hit me; even my dad has never hit me like this!!”

“Turns out you have parents; I thought you were an orphan raised by nobody,” Huo Ye coldly gazed down at him, softly saying, “Your dad doesn’t teach you how to be a person, and you come to school to act like a beast, hmm? Is that right?”

The girl hurriedly adjusted her clothes, desperately holding her neckline. Upon hearing this, she could no longer suppress her tears, bowing her head and crying openly.

If Huo Ye hadn’t shown up, she could have continued to endure. But now that he was here, she couldn’t hold back for even a moment.

Liao Zheng’s eyes turned red, feeling reckless, he shouted, “So what if it’s true?! What can you do to me?!” He pointed at the girl, shouting, “It’s Gao Xiaoyuan who has needs from me, owing a mountain of debt wanting me to lend her money; she sold herself to me! I gave her so much money just for a few hugs, and she cries like I’m forcing her! Coming out to sell and still pretending to be high and mighty?!”

Huo Ye stepped forward, yanking Liao Zheng up, ready to use his fists to stop this beast from saying anything more disgusting. But just as Huo Ye swung his punch, two frail hands intercepted it mid-air.

—Gao Xiaoyuan had almost clung to his arm, her tear-streaked face pale as paper, perhaps mustering all her courage to rush over. She was so weak that it was unclear how she managed to stop Huo Ye’s powered-up punch.

Huo Ye forcibly stopped his fist, fearing he might accidentally hurt her, his chest heaving violently for a few moments; Liao Zheng was nearly frightened soft by that punch, and for a moment, all three were left in shock.

“…Please don’t hit anymore, I beg you.” Gao Xiaoyuan held onto Huo Ye’s arm tightly, tears streaming down her face as she pleaded, “What he said is all true, I… I did it voluntarily, please don’t hit anymore.”

Liao Zheng seemed to seize a lifeline, his swollen face grinning with his teeth bared said, “Did you hear that? You madman!”

Inside the equipment room, the silence was broken only by the sounds of heavy breathing—constrained, suppressed, and filled with humiliation, alongside the sound of one breathing heavily and smirking.

Though Liao Zheng was still being held by the collar, the fear in his brow faded, replaced by sharp sarcasm as he chuckled, “It’s only right to pay back debts, and since you love to be a hero, why don’t you help her repay her hundreds of thousands or millions in debts?”

Huo Ye’s gaze was icy, his thin lips pressed tight, neither speaking nor releasing his grip. Gao Xiaoyuan tearfully shook her head, saying, “It’s my family who owes you, it has nothing to do with anyone else; please don’t make trouble for him.”

Liao Zheng snorted coldly, looking at his own collar, and Gao Xiaoyuan immediately understood, pulling Huo Ye back, desperately pleading, “Thank you for your kindness, thank you. This matter is between Liao Zheng and me. If you want to help me, please don’t involve yourself anymore, okay?”

Huo Ye still didn’t speak, but the strength in his hands steadily eased until Gao Xiaoyuan finally pulled him away from Liao Zheng. Liao Zheng spat out a mouthful of blood and crawled to the ground, still a bit dizzy, holding his head and muttering something under his breath, shooting a glowering gaze at Huo Ye before stumbling off.

Before leaving, Liao Zheng threatened, “Lanjing No.2 isn’t Thirteen Middle School; there are plenty of people here you can’t provoke. You’re provoking the wrong crowd, and sooner or later you’ll get smashed to pieces.”

“…Huo Ye, just you wait and see.”

The door to the equipment room was slammed shut with a bang, not much lighter than when it was kicked open. Gao Xiaoyuan slumped to the ground at the sound, trembling hands slowly covering her face.

After a long silence, Huo Ye spoke softly, “How long has this been going on?”

“W-What?” Gao Xiaoyuan lifted her face, a bit stunned.

“How long has this been happening?”

Gao Xiaoyuan’s voice was very weak as she responded, “Not… not long. Since school started, he’s only sought me out two or three times. Actually, he hasn’t done anything to me, I…”

She suddenly choked up, “I’m clean.”

Huo Ye’s knuckles relaxed slightly, his tone softening with a hint of comforting intention, and he asked, “Besides you, are there others?”

Gao Xiaoyuan hesitated for two seconds before replying, “No, there aren’t any.”

Huo Ye stared into her evasive eyes, his expression heavy like a deep abyss, resembling a mirror reflecting her heart, leaving her nowhere to hide.

Gao Xiaoyuan stumbled a few steps to stand up, forcing herself to appear calm as she walked towards the door, “Thank you, really thank you. I have to go take a shower; otherwise, I’ll miss evening study… I’ll go now.”

She hurriedly exited the equipment room but didn’t notice when she collided with someone and didn’t dare look up to see who it was, quickly muttering an apology and rushing away.

Seeing her disheveled state, Shen Tingyu furrowed his brow in confusion, entirely unaware of what had just transpired.

“What happened?” Shen Tingyu approached Huo Ye and asked.

Huo Ye leaned against the sponge mat without answering. Shen Tingyu recalled that girl’s swollen eyes, cracked lips, and her somewhat distressed face, and the more he thought about it, the heavier his heart became.

Shen Tingyu’s expression darkened as he continued, “Who was that just now? What’s your relationship with her? Why aren’t you speaking?”

Huo Ye tilted his head slightly, picking up on his displeasure, and raised an eyebrow, slowly saying, “Young Master seems quite interested in my private matters?”

“Your unwillingness to answer directly means you have something to hide.” Shen Tingyu stepped closer, the distance between their noses dwindling to merely half a meter.

But he kept inching in.

Huo Ye placed a hand against Shen Tingyu’s shoulder, barring him from crossing the final line. However, Shen Tingyu was relentless, seething as if betrayed, coldly questioning, “Do you have a girlfriend?”

Huo Ye: “……”

In truth, he did not.