Chapter 35: Humanitarianism

At the entrance of the construction site.

As Jiang Chen walked out, he let out a sigh of relief, feeling as though he had just narrowly escaped death.

"Shurui, I owe you this one. Otherwise, the consequences would have been unthinkable."

Then, he asked curiously, "By the way, how did you find me here?"

"When I was picking up a delivery, I saw you getting into a car with that man surnamed Bai."

Li Shurui spoke in a flat tone as she walked forward.

Jiang Chen followed beside her.

"Surnamed Bai... do you know him?"

"He's a friend of Liang Zhenlun. I've met him once before."

Jiang Chen nodded thoughtfully and let out a soft sigh. "I didn't expect Liang Zhenlun to hate me this much."

Li Shurui frowned slightly. Although she subjectively had no desire to get involved in this matter, they were, after all, alumni.

So, she stopped and offered a reminder: "Don't tell me you aren't aware of Liang Zhenlun's personality—especially since Ai Qian wants to break up with him. It would be stranger if he *didn't* come looking for trouble."

"Even you know?"

Jiang Chen was quite surprised, then gave a bitter smile. "What does Ai Qian breaking up with him have to do with me? I've already told him that I won't be seeing her again."

"What if the reason Ai Qian is breaking up with him is because of you?"

Having said that, Li Shurui continued walking forward.

"Because of me?"

Jiang Chen froze, then hurriedly caught up. "Shurui, what do you mean by that?"

"My meaning is simple: your long-held wish is about to come true. Ai Qian wants to reconcile with you."

Li Shurui's tone was devoid of any emotion, as if she were a complete outsider.

In fact, she was indeed an outsider, though she had been inexplicably dragged into this mess.

"She wants to reconcile with me? How is that possible?" Jiang Chen expressed his disbelief.

"She told me so herself."

Jiang Chen was even more astonished. "She looked for you?"

Li Shurui nodded.

"Mhm. She also said she wanted me to give you back to her."

Jiang Chen was speechless, finally realizing why she had suddenly blocked him.

"Shurui, I am truly sorry for causing you trouble."

Li Shurui gave no particular reaction. She walked to the roadside and raised her hand to hail a car.

Soon, a taxi pulled up.

"Donghai University."

Before Li Shurui had even settled into her seat, Jiang Chen had already circled around to the other door and climbed in.

Although her attitude was lukewarm, Li Shurui did not kick him out of the car.

The taxi set off.

"Shurui, I really didn't know about this. If she went to see you, you should have told me," Jiang Chen apologized sincerely.

Li Shurui stared out the window, refusing to even look at him.

"Tell you? Are we that close?"

Feeling the sting of his rejected advances, Jiang Chen felt quite embarrassed. He instinctively glanced at the rearview mirror and saw the driver stealing glances at him.

"Ahem..."

Jiang Chen cleared his throat. "Regardless, this matter started because of me. Shurui, please take me off your blacklist. If Ai Qian comes looking for you again, just tell me and let me handle it."

"There's no need."

Li Shurui was no naive young girl; she could see right through his ulterior motives. She finally turned her gaze away from the window, but she still wouldn't look at him, keeping her eyes fixed ahead. "I saved you this time purely out of humanitarianism. Don't read too much into it."

*What a fine example of humanitarianism.*

If any other man had heard such cold words, he would have been deeply discouraged, but Jiang Chen didn't care in the slightest.

Women always liked to say one thing and mean another.

Besides, favorability ratings couldn't lie.

Although it was still at -80 with no progress, it also hadn't worsened.

"Shurui, you don't have to say that on purpose. I know you don't want me to feel indebted to you, but I, Jiang Chen, have always been someone who repays kindness. How could I turn a blind eye to such a heavy debt? If word got out, what would people think of me?"

Jiang Chen was very serious and sincere. "Shurui, I don't have much of value to offer, so I'm afraid I can only offer myself in marriage."

"Cough, cough, cough..."

The driver suddenly seemed to have a throat issue and began to cough violently.

Li Shurui's breathing became heavy; she was already starting to regret her momentary impulse of compassion.

"If you are truly grateful to me, then please stay far away from me in the future."

"Shurui, I really can't fulfill that request. Asking me to stay away from you is worse than asking me to fall to my death just now."

Jiang Chen steeled himself. For the sake of his mission, he was going all in.

He had never said such cheesy things, even in front of Ai Qian.

"Cough, cough, cough, cough..."

The driver seemed to have developed laryngitis, coughing incessantly while feeling utterly amazed in his heart.

*Young people these days are truly something else.*

If he had possessed this kind of thick skin back in the day, he might have captured the heart of the class monitor he had always dreamed of.

The driver's eyes were filled with wistfulness as he drove, unable to help but reminisce about his youth.

"If you want to die, you can jump out right now. I definitely won't stop you."

Li Shurui wasn't buying it. Instead of being moved, she let out a cold sneer.

However, a beauty was a beauty; even when she was being sarcastic, she was pleasing to the eye.

"If I jump out, wouldn't I be inconveniencing the driver? That won't do."

Jiang Chen pushed shamelessness to its absolute limit.

Li Shurui had encountered many men, but she had never felt such complex emotions toward any man before.

Sometimes she felt he was pitiable, sometimes she felt a bit of admiration for him, and sometimes she hated him so much her teeth ached...

Li Shurui let out a slow breath.

"Jiang Chen, I must remind you: although you escaped a disaster this time, Liang Zhenlun will not let this go easily since he failed to achieve his goal."

After saying this, she deliberately stared at the young man's face, hoping to see expressions of trepidation, panic, or fear. But in the end, she was disappointed.

Not only was Jiang Chen not afraid, but the clean, handsome face in her vision gradually curled into a smile.

"What are you laughing at?" Li Shurui asked instinctively.

"Do I look handsome?" Jiang Chen asked meaningfully, the curve of his mouth widening.

Li Shurui froze, then hurriedly looked away, but her milky-white cheeks couldn't help but flush with a hint of red.

"Shameless!" she finally couldn't help but snap.

Jiang Chen's smile didn't fade. Instead of holding back, he began to praise himself: "Shurui, actually, I look quite decent, right? Being with you, even if we aren't a match made in heaven, we're at least a handsome man and a beautiful woman..."

"Shut up!"

Li Shurui completely lost her composure, unable to maintain her "cold goddess" persona any longer. She glared at him through gritted teeth.

"If you keep talking nonsense, believe me, I'll kick you out of this car!"

Jiang Chen instinctively glanced at the Valentino studded high heels on her feet.

Wearing shoes like that while walking on a construction site must have been quite uncomfortable.

"Fine, I'll shut up."

Jiang Chen made a gesture of surrender.

Out of "humanitarianism," Li Shurui turned her head sharply toward the window, unwilling to look at him again.