After coming out of the academic building, He Yan hurriedly said goodbye to Fu Shenxing, without shaking hands with him. She didn't even look at his reaction, turning around and quickly walking to her car parked on the side of the road. It wasn't until she unlocked the car that she suddenly found the left front tire flat, not knowing when it had been punctured.
The tire was severely flat. Apart from changing the spare tire, there was no other way. It was fine when she drove here just now, how did it lose air so quickly! She couldn't help but feel angry, and kicked the wheel in frustration.
Fu Shenxing's car slid over from a distance and stopped behind her. He lowered the car window and asked, "What's wrong, Ms. He?"
She instinctively startled, turned around, and concealed, "Nothing."
He tilted his head and looked past her at the deflated tire, then turned his gaze back to her, saying, "Ms. He, do you need to go somewhere? I can ask the driver to take you."
"No need," she refused without thinking. Seeing Fu Shenxing raise an eyebrow, she realized that she had rejected too strongly, so she explained, "I still have things to do in my class, you can go, I'll walk over."
She was clearly lying. She had just said that there was an urgent matter to attend to when she was at the office, but he didn't expose her. Instead, he just lightly smiled and politely bid her farewell, "Alright, goodbye, Ms. He."
He signaled the driver to go, and the car disappeared quickly into the campus.
He Yan stood by the road, watching his car disappear, then rolled up her sleeves to change the tire by herself. There was no shortage of energetic and enthusiastic male students in the engineering college, so she soon had two male students passing by to help her, and she didn't hesitate to direct them to change the spare tire.
She didn't go back to her alma mater to seek help, nor did she go home. Instead, she drove to the Nan Zhao City Public Security Bureau.
Officer Chen was somewhat surprised when he received her call, but he didn't refuse her invitation and met her at a tea house next to the city bureau. "Is there something you need to discuss with me? It's sudden for you to want to see me," he asked.
He Yan didn't know how to tell him. They weren't really acquaintances, and she made the decision to come find him on impulse. "Do you remember me?" she asked.
Officer Chen smiled, "I do."
Naturally, he remembered her; she was the victim of a case he had handled four years ago. In that case, faced with three vicious criminals, after being assaulted, she used a fruit knife to kill one of them and ran over another one's legs with her car, and the first thing she did after escaping was to call her boyfriend and ask him to call the police.
There were many beautiful women, and many intelligent and beautiful women; however, very few could remain calm and rational in critical moments and be smart and decisive at the same time. So even though they hadn't seen each other in years, he still remembered her.
While He Yan was still considering how to describe the situation, it was indeed unbelievable, and if she didn't articulate it well, it would make people think she had mental problems. She looked into Officer Chen's eyes and asked, "It's about that case four years ago. Are you sure that the criminal you finally arrested, Shen Zhijie, was executed, right?"
Officer Chen was stunned by her question, "Um?"
"Shen Zhijie, it's Shen Zhijie." She directly uttered this terrifying name and unconsciously increased her speaking speed, "I recently saw someone who looks very much like him, the voice, appearance, they are very similar, no, not just similar, almost the same person!"
Her nervousness elicited sympathy from the middle-aged man in front of her, and his eyes revealed pity. "He Yan, it's He Yan, isn't it? If I remember correctly? Take a moment to calm down. I can assure you, Shen Zhijie was executed two years ago."
He Yan pursed her lips and asked, "Are you sure?"
"I'm sure," Officer Chen nodded solemnly and continued, "I remember that person clearly, not only because of his history of heinous crimes but also because I heard that before his execution, he did something very surprising."
“What’s the matter?” she couldn’t help asking.
“He volunteered to donate his corneas.”
He Yan was also very surprised that such a vicious and evil person could suddenly become noble before he died, which was indeed unexpected. She fell silent and after a while said, “But that person really looks like him.”
“In this world, there have always been people who look very similar. There are also people who look like twins, but actually have no relationship at all. Maybe, in some place, there is also a girl who looks exactly like you,” Officer Chen said.
“But he, he...”she tried to find the right words to express herself, “He tried to get close to me, he asked for my phone number, approached me, and later even wanted me to sit in his car. Please don't misunderstand, I am not being presumptuous, I can feel it.”
Officer Chen couldn't help but smile and asked her, “Miss He, you are so beautiful, you must have been approached by the opposite sex on the street, haven't you?”
The meaning of his words was clear, even if there really was such a man, and that man did try to approach her, it was just ordinary interaction between the opposite sexes.
He Yan found it hard to refute. She was indeed very beautiful, boys had been pursuing her since elementary school, and this good relationship with the opposite sex had continued until now, even after she got married and wore a wedding ring, it didn't stop the enthusiasm of the opposite sex.
Officer Chen looked at her in silence with a smile and advised her, "Stop overthinking, forget about the past."
As things progressed, it seemed that all of her fear and worry were simply due to her inability to forget the past injury. He Yan couldn't help but doubt herself, she pondered for a moment, then asked Officer Chen one last question during this meeting, “Can you do me a favor?”
Officer Chen did not respond directly, just asked, “What favor?”
She took out a pen and paper from her bag and wrote down the name, date of birth, and address of Fu Shenxing one by one, and handed it to Officer Chen, saying, "This is that person's information, can you help me verify it? Are these all true?"
Officer Chen glanced at the note and looked surprised, "You know all this so clearly?"
"He showed me his ID, I only glanced at it at the time, and couldn't remember the ID number," she replied.
Officer Chen couldn't help but smile again, "You remembered so much from just a glance, your memory is good."
Her memory was indeed very good, otherwise she wouldn't remember the events of that night so deeply, his face, his voice, the way he looked at her... repeated in her nightmares. She reminded herself not to think about these things and just looked at Officer Chen with a pleading expression, "Can you? Can you help me with this favor?"
It's always hard for a man to refuse a request from a beautiful girl. Officer Chen smiled and put the note in his little notebook, “Alright, I will help you check when I get the chance.”
He was a kind-hearted person, and in a few days, he called He Yan back.
“Miss He, I checked it for you, Fu Shenxing is indeed a real person, and all the information is true. How should I put it?” he paused, then smiled, “I don't blame you for being startled, I was taken aback when I saw the photo too, but compared with the photo of the criminal, you can tell the difference, they are two different people.”
He Yan felt relieved and thanked Officer Chen, “Thank you very much.”
Officer Chen then asked her, “Did that person contact you again?”
“No,” she replied.
“Hey, maybe the young man just wanted to pursue a beautiful girl, he might find it strange himself. Clearly he's handsome, how could he be suspected by the girl as a thief!” Officer Chen joked with her, and once again encouraged her, “He Yan, forget about that incident, live your life well!”
She was really grateful to this officer, and thanked him again.
“If you encounter any other troubles in the future, you can find me, don't be polite.” Officer Chen smiled, and finally said, “If that kid bothers you again, you can ask me for help!”
Actually, all things considered, the previous two instances couldn't be considered entanglements. After He Yan confirmed that Fu Shenxing and Shen Zhijie were completely unrelated individuals, her approach to the issue became much more rational and objective. She understood that it was entirely her own fault that she had been so suspicious and fearful.
Fu Shenxing didn't contact her again.
On one occasion, she ran into a female colleague from the academic affairs office at school. The colleague, looking dejected, told He Yan that Fu Shenxing hadn't turned up. She had called him, and he had answered, but still hadn't come. Another man, tall and robust, with a stern face, had come to the school to pick up the form.
As soon as she said this, He Yan knew that the man was the one who had driven Fu Shenxing last time, as if he were his bodyguard.
She comforted her colleague with a few words, but she felt even more relaxed. Her life suddenly seemed to return to calmness. Fu Shenxing appeared suddenly, gave her a huge scare, and then disappeared without a trace.
She applied for a doctoral program at her alma mater. Her advisor was her former master's advisor, an old man who had dedicated his life to academic research, was upright, and had a rigorous academic style. Although he liked her as a student, he made it clear that she had to rely on her own abilities to get in, and he wouldn't give her any special treatment.
He Yan sent a "crying and laughing" image to her teacher online, to describe her own sad and helpless feelings.
Her parents weren't very supportive of her pursuit of a doctorate. Although their family wasn't wealthy, they were not lacking in money, and they felt that she could live an easy life without needing to work so hard. Fortunately, she had the support of Liang Yuanze, who helped her with research and running errands. She regretted that he wasn't in the same field as her and couldn't help her with tutoring.
While she was struggling in her studies, good things were happening frequently to her family members. First, her parents won a big prize in a lottery for a trip, and the elderly couple went to travel around the country. Then, Liang Yuanze also got a precious opportunity for overseas training.
He Yan both envied and resented, and while packing Liang Yuanze's bags, she couldn't help feeling sour. She threw his luggage to the ground and said, "Never mind, I'm going to become a resentful wife soon. What's the point of pretending to be a good wife and mother!"
Liang Yuanze couldn't help laughing, jumped on the bed and pinned her down, "If you don't like it, I won't go. My parents aren't at home; I can't leave you alone."
This was just talk. She wasn't a child who needed a guardian by her side all the time, and this opportunity was rare and would be very beneficial for his future development. She grabbed his collar and half-jokingly said, "Don't worry, I won't hinder you at a critical moment. Go and practice your skills with confidence. I will bury myself in studying at school, and in the future, we will soar together like two wings."
Liang Yuanze laughed at her words and kissed her repeatedly, and soon they lost themselves in passion. As they tumbled on the bed, most of the time he was on top, but sometimes she would take control and ask him arrogantly, "Do you submit? Do you submit?"
Why wouldn't he? He was panting, but his eyes were gentle as he answered her misplaced question, "Yan Yan, I love you."
She leaned down and kissed his lips, responding, "Yuanze, I love you too."
She loved him, very deeply.
After seeing off Liang Yuanze, she packed her bag and went to school to review her studies. She spent her days studying alongside students in the library. People often mistook her for a student. In just two days, even unfamiliar male students volunteered to save her a seat.
She called Liang Yuanze and spoke proudly of this, "Ah, Yuanze, you really hit the jackpot by marrying me. I look so young. When you're nearly fifty, I'll still look like I'm in my thirties. By then, everyone will think you're a successful person. Otherwise, how could you have gotten such a young girl!"
Liang Yuanze laughed and agreed with her, then told her to take care of herself, "If you find it too difficult, just quit. If you don't get in this year, you can try again next year. I can still support you."
"Get out! You jinx! Who said I won't get in this year? Don't underestimate my intelligence! I was a famous teenage genius back then!" She scolded him but was also worried that he would be concerned. "Actually, there's not much going on at school. The students are very mature and rarely cause trouble for me."
People often say, boast and it comes back to bite you. No sooner had she said this than, the next day, a student in her class caused trouble for her.
It was a student from a poor background, good grades, and was responsible, working part-time jobs to relieve the burden on his parents. Unexpectedly, he was suddenly mistaken for a thief and arrested.
Hanyan couldn't believe it when she received the call. She hurried to the security office of the company, and the young man was sitting in the corner with his head down. When he saw her come in, his eyes immediately turned red. "Teacher He, I didn't steal the phone, and I don't know how it got into my bag," he said.
She nodded gently, comforting him, "Don't worry, I'll go find out the situation with them first."
The situation sounded simple. The young man worked part-time delivering takeout at a nearby restaurant. Today, when he delivered the food, he surreptitiously put the new phone of the customer in his bag when the customer wasn't paying attention. He was caught red-handed. Hanyan immediately noticed a flaw in the story, "The phone was just lost over there, and you quickly stopped my student here. Isn't that too coincidental?"
The other side explained, "The owner found the phone missing and immediately dialed their own number. At that time, the young man hadn't even left the building and was frantically searching his bag for his phone. We found him suspicious and stopped him."
Hanyan smiled and said, "Maybe this child offended someone, or maybe it's a joke between your employees, and he's innocently implicated. You don't know, this child has always had good behavior at school."
"Teacher He, that's the current situation. We have video evidence. We don't mean to wrongly accuse anyone and are planning to report to the police to handle this matter."
He showed Hanyan the video. The young man came out of the office looking visibly flustered, hurriedly walking out, and the lobby camera clearly captured him anxiously pulling out the phone from his bag. Whether the young man was wronged or not, the evidence clearly worked against him.
Hanyan had to soften her attitude, and with a forced smile, she said to the person in charge, "Don't be hasty. Let's discuss this further. He's still a student, even if he made a mistake out of confusion, can we give him a chance to correct it? Let's settle this here and not trouble the police, okay?"
"Our staff have suffered a violation, and the security department is responsible," the other party said.
Hanyan laughed awkwardly, "You found the phone, the security department has been responsible enough. Really! I've never seen anyone more responsible than you. You don't know the people at our school. Even if it's just a small phone, if you take away the principal's desk, they wouldn't dare to stop you."
The person in charge chuckled, and she saw an opportunity and quickly said, "Would that be alright? I'll take the student to apologize to the owner, request forgiveness, and then I'll bring him back for proper criticism and education."
The person in charge didn't want to escalate the situation too much, so after hesitating, he asked her to take the student to meet the owner.
As they rode the elevator, stopping on the top floor, she couldn't help but ask the head of security, "Is the phone that of your CEO?"
"No, it's the CEO's secretary's," he replied.