Just Wanting to Divorce My Love Rival - Chapter 13

The infirmary was empty, devoid of a single patient. Bored, Lin Zhuo had brewed a cup of coffee and was leaning against the doorframe, sipping it quite leisurely.

In the distance, he saw a figure approaching rapidly, carrying a girl. The person doing the carrying looked somewhat familiar.

He squinted, fixing his gaze. Once he saw the face clearly, he was slightly astonished. The person coming was actually Zhong Yingzhi.

Zhong Yingzhi—the girl who would flare up if someone so much as brushed against her—was actually carrying someone. It was the wonder of the world.

Zhong Yingzhi: “She’s injured. Take a look at her.”

Lin Zhuo quickly put down his coffee and trotted forward, reaching out his hands to take Mu Cheng. “What happened?”

Zhong Yingzhi glanced at Lin Zhuo’s extended hands and frowned. Instead of handing the girl over, she bypassed him, walked straight to the hospital bed, and gently placed her down.

Watching Zhong Yingzhi’s movements, Lin Zhuo’s astonishment rose once more.

Since when could Zhong Yingzhi be this gentle? The way she laid the girl on the bed was so light and slow, as if she were handling a porcelain doll, terrified of a single bump or bruise.

Lin Zhuo knew Zhong Yingzhi treated Mu Cheng differently, but he hadn’t expected it to reach this level.

“She was beaten up just now. Someone kicked her in the stomach several times,” Zhong Yingzhi stated. Seeing Lin Zhuo still standing by the door, she said displeasuredly, “What are you staring at? Get over here.”

Shaking off his surprise, Lin Zhuo walked over and asked Mu Cheng, “Where does it hurt?”

Mu Cheng pointed to her abdomen. “My stomach hurts a lot.”

There was a large bruise on her belly. Lin Zhuo pressed lightly on the area and asked, “Does it hurt here?”

Mu Cheng hissed in pain and nodded. “Yes. Stop pressing, it hurts too much.”

As Lin Zhuo continued the examination, his hand pressed lightly against her abdomen.

Seeing this, Zhong Yingzhi’s face instantly went cold. “Where exactly do you think you’re putting your hand?”

The sudden shout didn’t register with Lin Zhuo immediately, but it made Mu Cheng flinch. She looked at Zhong Yingzhi with total bewilderment.

Lin Zhuo was both annoyed and amused. He explained, “I’m examining her. I need to know exactly where the pain is coming from.”

Zhong Yingzhi’s face remained grim, but she didn’t say anything further.

It wasn’t until Lin Zhuo finished the exam and withdrew his hand that her expression softened slightly. However, the look she gave Lin Zhuo was still full of hostility, as if he had just taken advantage of Mu Cheng.

The situation left Lin Zhuo feeling helpless. “There are no obvious open wounds, but the abdominal bruising is significant, and it’s tender to the touch. There could be internal organ damage. To be safe, she needs a color ultrasound. The infirmary isn’t equipped for that; she has to go to the hospital.”

Hearing “hospital,” Mu Cheng found it troublesome. “I don’t think I need to go. It doesn’t hurt that much. A warm compress should be fine.”

Ignoring her refusal, Zhong Yingzhi stepped forward to pick her up again.

Lin Zhuo cleared his throat and reminded her, “In her condition, it’s not necessary to carry her. She is capable of walking.”

Zhong Yingzhi’s hands froze in mid-air. She cast a cold glance at the “well-meaning” doctor.

Lin Zhuo felt a chill run down his spine and immediately changed his tune. “Actually, she must be carried. If the injury is serious, walking could easily aggravate it. Carry her, you must carry her.”

Zhong Yingzhi retracted her gaze with satisfaction and picked the girl up.

Mu Cheng looked at Lin Zhuo, then at Zhong Yingzhi, sensing the atmosphere was extremely weird. “Um, I really feel like I don’t need the hospital. And I don’t think it’s that serious; I can walk, you don’t have to carry me like this.”

No one listened to Mu Cheng. She was carried out by Zhong Yingzhi once again, inevitably drawing more stares and whispers along the way.

After a detailed check-up at the hospital, fortunately, it wasn’t serious. It was mostly superficial trauma. With some topical ointment and medicine to aid recovery, she would be fine.

On the way back to the dorm, Mu Cheng kept stealing glances at Zhong Yingzhi beside her.

Zhong Yingzhi, feeling uncomfortable under the gaze, said irritably, “Are you a thief? Your eyes are darting all over the place. Or do you have strabismus (crossed eyes)?”

She had been silent the whole way, only to successfully stifle Mu Cheng the moment she opened her mouth.

“If you don’t know how to speak nicely, you can just not speak. Silence is golden,” Mu Cheng suggested solemnly.

Zhong Yingzhi stopped and turned to look at her. “I was being very tactful. The way you were peeking makes you look like a pervert. I didn’t say ‘pervert’ directly—isn’t that a tactful way of putting it?”

“I…” Mu Cheng took a long breath, calming herself down and trying not to get angry. “I was just choosing my words, thinking of how to thank you because you helped me so much today. I was looking at you unconsciously while thinking. How did a normal behavior become ‘perverted’ in your mouth?”

Zhong Yingzhi gave an “Oh.”

Then, she delivered a shocker: “Then you might have the potential of a pervert, so any expression you make looks especially like one.”

Mu Cheng felt a lump in her chest. “Fine. Stop talking. Just go back to being quiet. Seriously, don’t talk.”

Mu Cheng was the one who told her not to talk, yet after a short while, she was the one who initiated the conversation again. “How did you know Liu Sihui and the others had me cornered in that alley?”

Zhong Yingzhi walked on in silence, acting as if she hadn’t heard the question.

Mu Cheng blinked. “Why are you ignoring me again?”

“Didn’t you tell me not to talk? Now you blame me for ignoring you. Do you have amnesia?” Zhong Yingzhi asked impatiently.

Mu Cheng took a deep breath and kept her tone as calm as possible. “Let me answer your previous questions. First, I am not a chatterbox. Second, I don’t have strabismus. Third, I don’t have amnesia. Fourth, I’m telling you, I have no medical issues whatsoever. I am perfectly normal.”

Zhong Yingzhi looked at the girl who was clearly exasperated yet trying to act magnanimous. She sneered, “One second you say you want to thank me, and this is your attitude? I seem to recall you calling me an ‘ungrateful wolf’ before. Now it seems that title is a much better fit for you.”

Mu Cheng said speechlessly, ” I was talking to you nicely, but you were the one who kept snubbing me with sharp words first, okay?”

Mu Cheng waved her hand. “Forget it, I’m not going to argue with you about this.”

The two fell silent again. As they approached the dormitory, the talkative Mu Cheng couldn’t hold it in anymore. She asked curiously again, “You still haven’t answered me. How did you actually know I was in that alley?”

Zhong Yingzhi glanced at her and mocked, “I was just passing by. Do you think I’d go out of my way to save you? Do you really think you’re that important?”

Fine. If I talk to you again, I’m a pig, Mu Cheng vowed silently.

Zhong Yingzhi suddenly quickened her pace.

She walked too fast for Mu Cheng to keep up. Although the hospital check-up showed no major issues, her stomach still hurt, and she couldn’t walk fast. “Slow down and wait for me! It hurts, I can’t walk that fast!”

The person ahead vanished from sight. Mu Cheng scratched her head, still obsessing over the question. Why would she appear at that alley entrance? That place was remote; no one usually went there. How could she just “pass by”?

The reason Zhong Yingzhi had quickened her pace was precisely to avoid Mu Cheng’s inquisitive question. Her mouth said she was just passing by and even mocked Mu Cheng as unimportant, but the reality was…

Fifteen minutes before Mu Cheng was dragged into the alley:

Zhong Yingzhi was unaware of the situation. She was at the campus store buying things, standing behind four or five people in the checkout line.

No matter where Zhong Yingzhi was, she was always the center of attention. Not just because of her unique status, but mostly because of her striking face—she was so beautiful that people couldn’t help but look.

The people in line kept turning back to steal glances at her. Zhong Yingzhi remained indifferent, treating them as if they didn’t exist.

The boy in front was so distracted by his peeking that he just stood there dazed when it was his turn. Zhong Yingzhi frowned and said coldly, “If you aren’t checking out, move aside.”

The boy froze, embarrassed and flustered, and actually stepped aside to let Zhong Yingzhi go first.

Just then, she heard people whispering nearby, and she faintly caught a familiar name.

A girl in purple looked conflicted. “Liu Sihui just took her gang and dragged that person into the alley. Will something happen? Should I tell the counselor? Or maybe just call the police?”

The girl’s companion discouraged her. “Are you crazy? Messing with Liu Sihui? You must want to die.”

The girl in purple bit her lip. “But we can’t just ignore it. Even though we aren’t close to Mu Cheng and haven’t spoken much, we’re in the same class. It feels wrong to watch and not help.”

The companion tutted in disapproval. “Classmates or not, don’t say I didn’t warn you. Just look out for yourself. Put away that unnecessary kindness. If you dare tell the counselor and Liu Sihui finds out you snitched, the next person dragged into that alley won’t be Mu Cheng—it’ll be you.”

The girl in purple was torn. As she was having an internal struggle, her arm was suddenly grabbed.

Zhong Yingzhi’s expression was fierce. “Who did you say was dragged into the alley?”

The girl stared at the blonde beauty in front of her, dazed, and didn’t reply immediately.

Zhong Yingzhi’s face was like still water. “Speak.”

The girl snapped out of it and stammered, “It… it’s Mu Cheng.”

Zhong Yingzhi’s eyes darkened. “Which alley?”

“The one by the school’s back gate. You should see it if you turn left at the gate.”

Once she had the address, Zhong Yingzhi didn’t care about anything else. She rushed toward the spot without stopping, her pace going from a walk to a trot, and finally into a full-blown sprint.

Thinking back now, Zhong Yingzhi only felt frustrated and was even less willing to answer Mu Cheng’s question.

Why was I so anxious back then? She clearly isn’t anyone important. Whether she lives or dies has nothing to do with me.

Things have been a bit strange lately. I keep meddling in her business. Zhong Yingzhi felt troubled and wanted to escape this predicament, yet every time Mu Cheng made a move, she found herself inexplicably caring.