Chapter 293: I'm Ordering You, Not Asking You

"Did you guys have a fight? Did she get dumped?" Xiao Miao guessed. Then she felt a bit indignant on Xia Xiran's behalf. "We all said Jiang Muye was too cold-blooded. Turns out the one he actually cares about isn't Xiran. Now she's gone missing, and he's all fired up over the Cold Campus Belle."

Everyone sighed. Who could argue? The difference between people really was immense.

The one who was favored was always the luckiest.

If only Xia Xiran could be valued by Jiang Muye again. But Xia Xiran didn't have that chance anymore.

At that moment, Jiang Muye was crying out again and again, each shout heart-wrenching. Who wouldn't be moved by cries like that?

Who could remain indifferent?

But as for what had actually happened, none of them knew.

"Jiang Muye really is so deeply devoted," the Girl with Glasses sighed. "If only I could find such a good boyfriend."

"Right? If Xiran had really ended up with Jiang Muye back then, she'd have been the happiest one of all," Xiao Miao said with a sigh.

"What's the situation with the Cold Campus Belle, anyway? They aren't really going to break up, are they? If they do break up, Xiran should be happy. But in this huge rainstorm, where did Xiran even go?" Yuanyuan lowered her little face, deeply worried about Xia Xiran.

They'd already searched everywhere for Xia Xiran, only coming back disappointed.

Xiran's phone was already off, and they had no way of knowing what had happened. But it would be forty-eight hours before they could file a report, so the earliest they could call the police would be tomorrow night.

They still held out hope that Xia Xiran would come back tomorrow.

As Yuan Yuan's dorm room sank into gloom, at that very moment, Jiang Muye was frantically shouting.

Right now he just wanted to see the girl on his mind, Leng Ruoli. Nothing else mattered.

Seeing that there was still no sign of movement, Jiang Muye felt he had to break in. If that didn't work, he'd threaten the Auntie.

One way or another, he was going to see Xia Xiran today.

Just as Jiang Muye was about to act, he heard a faint voice from above. "Muye…"

Very, very soft.

So soft that Jiang Muye almost thought it was a hallucination.

"Don't… stay in the rain."

He looked up at Leng Ruoli, wrapped in a thick blanket, standing right by the balcony edge. Tears burned in his eyes.

One glance, and it felt like an eternity.

Seeing her pale, frail state, he wanted so badly to hold her, embrace her, kiss her.

Even at a time like this, what she was thinking about was him.

How could he not be moved?

Her purple fingers rested against the edge of the door, and just as she was about to step forward—BOOM!—a clap of thunder rang out. It frightened her so badly that her little face went as white as paper, drained of not a drop of color, and she crouched down in terror.

Jiang Muye roared, "Get inside! Hurry!"

Leng Ruoli's eyes were red beyond description, but she shook her head at Jiang Muye.

Rain pelted Jiang Muye's body. Though the winter night's rain was bitterly cold, Jiang Muye's heart was burning hot.

He just wanted her to go inside.

If he could, he'd block out every roll of thunder from the outside world.

She could barely move.

Jiang Muye, meanwhile, hated that he couldn't charge up into the women's dormitory.

He waved his phone at Leng Ruoli. "Answer the phone!"

Leng Ruoli nodded stiffly, then scrambled back inside to grab her phone.

"Beep—" Her phone was already ringing.

Leng Ruoli answered without a shred of hesitation.

BOOM—the thunder crashed.

Terrified, Leng Ruoli dropped the phone. Her face was full of dread, cold sweat streaming down.

She felt as though her whole body had been viciously shocked by something, completely numbed.

Tears were forced out of her eyes. Traces of tears already streaked her pretty, pale little face. Her crimson lips quivered, her whole body clenched tight, and she huddled on the floor, draped in her blanket.

The ice-cold, piercing floor chilled her body, making her tremble even more violently.

She was so afraid.

So afraid.

So afraid.

She wanted to run away.

So suffocating.

So terrifying.

"Don't kill me, don't kill me, don't kill me, don't kill me, boo hoo…" Leng Ruoli convulsed in agony, her hands clutching the blanket with a death grip.

She felt so awful her heart was about to tear apart.

Her whole mind was overrun by those terrifying images.

Leng Ruoli was on the verge of collapse. As she clutched her head, trying to force those awful images out of her mind, she faintly heard a voice from somewhere not far away.

"Ruoli! I'm here!"

Leng Ruoli's pretty eyes flew wide open.

In her most desperate moment, she spotted the phone not far away, glowing bright.

Her eyes flickered. She sniffled and scrambled on hands and knees to grab the phone.

She snatched it up like a treasure and pressed it to her ear.

"Hello!" Leng Ruoli burst into tears.

At that moment, when Jiang Muye heard Leng Ruoli's sobbing voice, his heart ached.

She was his most precious treasure.

Yet now she was enduring hardship all alone.

He had no way of knowing what had happened six years ago, but it was obvious that it had left Leng Ruoli with scars, scars that couldn't be healed.

Otherwise, Leng Ruoli wouldn't be this terrified.

And she wouldn't be suffering this much. Even through the phone, Jiang Muye could feel Leng Ruoli's emotional collapse and agony.

"Don't be scared, I'm here. You're not alone. I'm with you, there's nothing for you to be afraid of." Jiang Muye spoke in a soft, gentle voice, desperately trying to soothe Leng Ruoli.

Leng Ruoli's face was covered in tear tracks. Her slender fingers clutched tightly at her clothes, and she began to pant. "Boo hoo, I know… I know, but I'm still so scared… It's so dark, really so dark, so much blood!"

When Jiang Muye heard her description, his chest seized with pain.

"It's not dark, there's no blood, you're fine, there's nothing there." Jiang Muye fought to stay calm.

But in reality, Jiang Muye couldn't calm down at all.

He had already run to the entrance of the women's dormitory, and his attitude was even more resolute than before.

CLANG—Jiang Muye furiously kicked the iron gate.

The iron gate rattled weakly with a clang.

The Auntie, who had been about to go to sleep, heard the commotion and hurried out.

"Student, do you not sleep at night, coming here to damage public property!" The Auntie looked at Jiang Muye with displeasure.

Jiang Muye snapped, "Let me up."

"This is the women's dormitory!" the Auntie replied.

"I know! But I'm ordering you, not asking you! The situation is critical right now. If you don't let me up and something happens to her, you'll bear all the responsibility. You knew and didn't report it, you failed to supervise, you turned a blind eye—when the time comes, your job won't be safe, and you'll be held accountable!"

Jiang Muye's eyes were filled with killing intent, and his cold, rain-soaked face was a picture of murderous severity.

The Auntie's heart trembled. She was completely cowed by Jiang Muye.

She was just a dormitory Auntie, here to watch over the dorm. If something really happened inside and she hadn't stopped it, the consequences would be unthinkable.

From Jiang Muye's expression and actions, he was probably not joking.