Hanyan felt disappointed. To be honest, she would have preferred if the phone belonged to the CEO because people in such positions usually have certain tolerance and care about saving face. With some persuasion, things could usually be resolved. Secretaries, on the other hand, are more difficult to deal with.
Unfortunately, the situation turned out as she had expected. The secretary was a young and attractive lady, but extremely unfriendly. She came out from the CEO's office with a stern face, coldly glanced at Hanyan, and asked, "Is there anything left to discuss?"
Hanyan greeted her with a smile, "He's so young and made a mistake out of confusion. He should be given a chance to correct it, don't you think? I'll take him to apologize to you."
The secretary sneered, "Who didn't give him a chance to correct it? Let him correct it nicely in the police station. It's one thing to be poor, but it's even worse to be poor and ignorant. He needs a good lesson."
This was a harsh statement. The student standing behind Hanyan couldn't help but react passionately, "I didn't steal your phone, you seduced me, and when I refused, you framed me!"
Hanyan inwardly exclaimed "Oops" at the words. Regardless of their truth, publicly bringing up this sensitive issue was absolutely not the right move at that moment. As expected, the secretary's expression changed, "Whether it's an accusation from me or from you, let's invite the police to decide."
Hanyan had to quickly intervene with diplomacy. While the situation was chaotic, the elevator door opened, and a calm voice asked, "What's going on?"
His voice wasn't loud, but it silenced everyone. Hanyan felt like she was pricked with a needle and turned to see the clear and composed face of Fu Shenxing.
The secretary immediately restrained her arrogance and called out, "Mr. Fu."
Fu Shenxing glanced at her, then turned to Hanyan, and finally directed his gaze at the head of security. After the person in charge hastily explained the situation to him, Fu Shenxing looked at Hanyan and asked, "Teacher He, is this your student?"
She tightly clutched the student's arm, not allowing him to act impulsively, and replied to Fu Shenxing, "Yes, he's my student, and he's classmates with Yu Jia. His character, Yu Jia should know. He's not the kind of person who steals."
Miss Secretary was about to rush off, but was stopped by a glance from Fu Shenxing.
He looked at He Yan again and said lightly, "Since you are Teacher He's student, then let Teacher He take you back."
He Yan did not expect him to be so accommodating. She was momentarily taken aback, and when she saw him raise his eyebrows slightly, she quickly thanked him, "Thank you, thank you so much!"
She was afraid of causing any trouble, so she quickly took her leave with her student. As they were about to enter the elevator, he suddenly stopped her.
"Teacher He," Fu Shenxing lightly tugged at the corner of his lips and asked, "Do you have time tonight? How about having a meal together?"
She was momentarily taken aback, then replied ambiguously, "Sure, we'll treat you."
But he didn't fall for it, smiling sarcastically as he asked her, "Teacher He, do you really see me as having no integrity? It's just a meal, can I eat you?"
He made it clear, making it difficult for her to continue to feign ignorance. So she just smiled and straightforwardly said, "Mr. Fu, you've misunderstood. It's just that my husband is quite jealous, he doesn't like me having contact with other men. Even going out to eat with friends makes him jealous, I really can't do anything about it."
The corner of his mouth showed a scornful smile as he said, "Teacher He, you've also misunderstood. I have no intention of pursuing you, there are some things about Yu Jia that I want to talk to you about, and it's not convenient with other people present."
With that said, she had to agree, but still insisted, "But today I'll treat you, as a token of gratitude."
He smiled faintly, "Alright."
"Then wait for my call," she said.
She first drove the student back to the school. The young man remained silent until they entered the school gates. Then, he spoke somewhat stubbornly, "Teacher He, I really didn't steal the phone, that woman framed me, she, she..." He seemed unable to continue, his face turning red.
He Yan glanced at him and said calmly, "Regardless of what happened, she successfully framed you, which means you didn't handle it well enough."
The young man didn't argue back. He lowered his head in silence for a while, then suddenly asked, "Where are you going for dinner tonight?"
She raised her eyebrow, "Huh?"
"I'll come pick you up!" Although he was simple, he was not stupid, and he clearly saw that He Yan had to agree to the man's persistence because of this matter. "You tell me the location, and I'll wait outside for you. If anything happens, just call me."
He Yan smiled as she listened, feeling warm inside. "You little rascal, what can you handle? Hurry back to school for self-study! Also, reduce your part-time work, I'll try to help you get a scholarship this semester. If it isn't enough, you can take some money from me first and pay me back after you graduate. After all, the money in my bank doesn't earn interest. But you have to give me an IOU! Let's be honest."
"Teacher He..." The young man's eyes turned slightly red again.
"Hey! Hey! Hey!" She stopped the car by the side of the road, pointing at the young man with her finger playfully, "You're supposed to be a big man, so don't say anything sentimental! Everyone knows I'm a good person, you don't need to tell me. Also, I have a husband, so don't secretly love me!"
Her words made the young man burst into a smile through his tears, "Teacher He, you... you're really self-absorbed, I won't like a woman older than me."
"Go go go!" She pretended to be angrily and urged the young man to go back to self-study, "Hurry up and go back to self-study! You're being impertinent!"
The young man got out of the car, but still didn't let go of the door. He bent down and asked her, "Teacher He, where are you going to have dinner with that person later?"
She understood his good intentions, looked into his clear eyes, smiled and said, "I'm not a rich person, I can't go to any expensive places, let's just find a place near the school. Um... what do you think about 'Zizaitian' on the west side of the school?"
"Zizaitian" was just outside the west gate of the school, not large in scale, of medium grade, not exactly shabby, but definitely not high-end. He Yan had a psychological shadow about Fu Shenxing's appearance and was also repulsed by his domineering behavior. Naturally, she didn't want to be alone with him and deliberately chose a private room.
She has always been punctual, but Fu Shenxing arrived earlier than her. "I'm in room 502, Miss He, have you arrived?"
Having taken the initiative, He Yan could not ask him to come out and wait, so she had to reluctantly go upstairs.
When she pushed the door and entered, he was standing by the window. He turned around lightly at the sound of the door, then turned back to look out the window and said slowly, "I always feel like this city is like a strange beast. It lies still during the day, but wakes up at night, luring you with all sorts of lights, and then swallowing you up, leaving you trapped in darkness forever."
He Yan couldn't understand his inexplicable sentiment. She raised her eyebrows slightly and said, "Perhaps it's the innate fear of darkness that humans have, after all, humans are not nocturnal animals."
Fu Shenxing let her sit at the table and asked, "I've already ordered the food, is that okay?"
In front of his face, she always found it difficult to control her nervousness and instinctively used humor to ease the tension. "It's okay, as long as it's not too expensive."
He lightly smiled, "It should be fine."
The two of them didn't have much to talk about. He remained silent, and she simply focused on eating without initiating a conversation. When the meal was almost half done, he suddenly asked her, "Miss He, can you tell me why you are so afraid of me?"
She was stunned and looked up at him.
"Please don't say anything like I misunderstood. Your reaction doesn't seem like a playful tease but rather a genuine fear of me, which makes me very curious," he said.
She looked at him silently for a while, put down her chopsticks, and confessed, "A few years ago, I encountered a robber who looks a bit like you, so..." She apologetically smiled, "So it was a misunderstanding, not to deceive you."
He lightly tugged the corners of his lips, "Just a bit like?"
She shrugged helplessly, "Alright, not a bit, but very much alike. The encounter left a deep shadow on me, that's why I reacted that way when I first saw you. I hope you can understand."
Fu Shenxing smiled, "I should be the one to apologize, after all, I'm the one who startled you."
With the conversation opened, He Yan felt a bit more at ease and said with a smile, "So don't misunderstand, I'm really not playing hard to get with you. I am already married, and I have a great relationship with my husband."
Fu Shenxing nodded slowly and gestured for her to drink her beverage, then gently said, "I'm sorry, I haven't mentioned the purpose of inviting you. It's to express my gratitude for what happened before and give you a gift." As he spoke, he reached under the table and took out a gift box, passing it to her across the table.
She was somewhat surprised, thinking he was referring to what happened with Yu Jiaxiu, and hurriedly said, "You are too kind, I cannot accept this."
He, however, extended his hand and refused to take it back, "Take it, it's not something valuable. Open it and see if you like it."
He Yan had no choice but to take the book-sized gift box and open it in front of him. As soon as she opened the lid, her face changed suddenly, and she instinctively threw the box away as if it were hot. Photos spilled out of the box, scattering everywhere. One of the photos fell directly onto her plate, showing a man with hollow eyes covered in blood, but the white bones of his neck were clearly visible.
He was the thug called "Monkey", she remembered, she would always remember.