Qi Song’s hand paused mid-air. Then, without a word, he slapped a piece of gauze onto Chu Xingxiao’s face and left him to bandage himself.
“What happened?”
Chu Xingxiao fumed, the anger boiling in his chest with nowhere to go. If the campus security hadn’t shown up when they did, he would’ve beaten that two-faced bastard until he couldn’t recognize his own relatives. He sneered, “Aren’t you supposed to be a star student in the Command Division? And yet you don’t even know this?”
Qi Song ignored the jab. His face remained calm, showing not the slightest sign of irritation.
“Who told you about it?”
“My gege, obviously,” Chu Xingxiao snapped. “It’s not like he’s the kind to blab about his relationships.”
“Then why’d he tell you?”
“…Maybe I’ve been tailing him too closely lately, and he got fed up.” Chu Xingxiao’s tone turned sulky. “He probably thinks I’m some creepy stalker.”
Qi Song replied blandly, “Aren’t you?”
“Hey! Whose side are you on, huh? We’re supposed to be on the same team! What we should be doing is teaming up to beat that bastard senseless—”
“Beating him up—is that going to fix anything?”
“At the very least, it’ll scare him off—make him think twice about dating my brother! He doesn’t deserve him!”
Qi Song gave Chu Xingxiao a glance.
“And you still haven’t noticed what’s wrong here?”
“What’s wrong?”
“Knowing your gege, he’d never share something as private as a relationship with someone completely unrelated. And to him, you’re just some weirdo who randomly clung to him during a training exercise.”
“You’re really something,” Chu Xingxiao was about to retort when he abruptly paused. His expression shifted, thoughtful now.
It was true. The moment he’d heard those words, he’d flown into a rage, too furious to think. He’d only wanted to beat that pretty-boy senseless. But the more he thought about it, the more it didn’t add up—his gege, saying something like that out loud?
“You mean…” Chu Xingxiao’s eyes darkened.
“That so-called pretty boy is probably not a romantic partner,” Qi Song said. “More likely, your gege used him as a pawn—to get you off his back.”
Chu Xingxiao looked genuinely stunned.
“That does make a lot of sense… but it’s not like my gege to play mind games like that.”
“That’s just you being an idiot,” Qi Song said flatly. “Too naïve. He’s not good at protecting himself yet. Honestly……I’d rather he change.”
Qi Song sat in front of his computer, the pale glow from the screen casting his features in sharp relief. His face looked colder than ever, fingers flying over the keyboard.
Chu Xingxiao watched him idly and muttered, “Hacking into the military database to check a citizen’s file—if you get caught, that’s gonna be way worse than my little brawl.”
“I’m not you,” Qi Song replied.
“Tch. Admit it—you’re scared he really is dating that guy, and that’s why you’re in such a hurry to dig up his background.”
Qi Song pulled up several windows on the display, one of which contained Cen Chi’s personal records.
He skimmed through it rapidly and came to a conclusion.
“There’s something off with his file.”
“It’s too clean—like someone scrubbed it on purpose,” Chu Xingxiao said, stroking his chin. “Could be he’s got shady intentions and got close to my gege deliberately.”
“He did submit a request to switch dorms,” Qi Song noted. “But it went through the standard system. Aside from requesting to be transferred far from the main campus, there’s no indication he aimed for a specific dorm. That points to coincidence.”
“Guess we’ll have to dig deeper.”
Qi Song didn’t comment.
Leaving someone with an unclear background by Chi Zhan’s side—it was dangerous.
But they couldn’t alert him prematurely.
The best move now… was to go to that place and call in a favor from someone they trusted.
***
S finally accepted the friend request.
Chi Zhan sent a polite greeting, but the reply was strictly business: an address and a prepayment code. No pleasantries, no fuss. Just the kind of directness Chi Zhan preferred.
He considered for a moment and asked, “Is he reliable?”
“Totally. Rock solid,” Tao Ran said as he stuffed a few books into his bag. “I gotta run—I’m gonna be late for class!”
Tao Ran’s hand was just about to grab the doorknob when it was pushed open from the other side.
There was a brief silence, then Tao Ran let out a surprised yelp.
“Cen Chi, are you okay? You really got into a fight? Oh my god, that looks serious!”
Chi Zhan sent the payment, shut down his terminal, and looked toward the door.
Cen Chi’s tone was breezy.
“It’s just a scratch—nothing serious.”
“Really? Ugh, I have to go or I’ll be late! We’ll talk when I get back!” Tao Ran dashed out.
Cen Chi’s cheek looked like it had taken a solid hit, faint lines of blood threading across the skin. Chi Zhan got to his feet.
“You’re really hurt… come on, let’s get you to the infirmary.”
“No need. Just a quick clean-up and I’ll be fine.”
“I’ll do it.” Chi Zhan’s tone left no room for argument.
Cen Chi gave a faint smile, something unreadable flickering in his eyes.
“Sure.”
He sat down quietly while Chi Zhan fetched the emergency medical kit. Cen Chi waited without complaint.
Chi Zhan wiped away the blood that kept welling up, took out a disinfectant spray, and tilted Cen Chi’s chin upward. Cen Chi cooperated, tilting his face obediently. It became clear then that Xiao Xing’s punch had gone straight for his face—but Cen Chi must’ve dodged just in time, avoiding a full-on beatdown.
Pity.
The antiseptic mist sprayed evenly over the wound. Cen Chi had to close his eyes, though the usual gentle smile lingered at his lips.
“Why are you smiling? Doesn’t it hurt?”
“It hurts a lot. But you’re the one treating me. If Xiao Xing knew… he’d probably be furious.”
“What does that have to do with him?” Chi Zhan’s brow knit slightly. An uneasy premonition crept over him.
