The sky was darkening. When Mo Xingyuan walked into the police station, he saw Su Li on a chair, her hair tied up high. Despite the exhaustion etched onto her face, she sat bolt upright. She sat there alone, like a stray cat left to fend for itself, with nowhere to go. At the sight of someone approaching, a flicker of light returned to her dull eyes, but when she saw who it was, the light faded into surprise. She had called Chi Mu, asking him to come to the station. If Lu Jing hadn't been out of town on business, she never would have bothered him. She just hadn't expected it to be Mo Xingyuan who showed up, not Chi Mu. Seeing him, she felt a pang of unease. They had only known each other a short while, yet he had already witnessed her in so many compromising situations. It was humiliating. Mo Xingyuan went into an office to handle the paperwork. When he came out, he glanced at Su Li. “Let’s go.” His voice was cold, devoid of emotion, a perfect reflection of their relationship. Su Li rose and followed him, clutching the jacket he had given her. The bag it was in had torn during the fight. Just as they were about to get in the car after leaving the station, He Shuming came running out. “Hey! You Su Li’s man?” Su Li’s brow furrowed. The shame was unbearable. Mo Xingyuan turned, his gaze sharp and icy as it fell on He Shuming. Su Li’s head throbbed. He Shuming was like a mad dog with a bone, relentless and unhinged. “Something I can help you with?” Mo Xingyuan’s tone was placid. He Shuming didn’t recognize Mo Xingyuan, but one look at his bearing and his clothes told him this was no ordinary man. “Hah. Su Li, is this your taste? You could have any man, and you pick a pretty boy who looks like a damn sissy,” He Shuming taunted. Mo Xingyuan was handsome, fair-skinned—beautiful, even. “Are you asking for another beating?” Su Li seethed, hating He Shuming with every fiber of her being. He Shuming sneered, his eyes raking over Mo Xingyuan with blatant disrespect. “What were you thinking, marrying a guy like this? He got any strength?” The vulgar insinuation was nauseating. Su Li raised her hand to strike him. Mo Xingyuan caught her wrist, his own eyes perfectly calm. “Home.” Su Li couldn’t believe it. He wasn’t even angry. She, on the other hand, couldn't swallow this insult. “See, Su Li? What a coward you found!” Seeing Mo Xingyuan’s lack of reaction, He Shuming grew even more arrogant, his words spilling out unchecked. “He’s got a pretty face, but he’s useless. What do you want with a man like that? To look good in photos?” Su Li started to curse him out, but Mo Xingyuan pushed her into the passenger seat, his gaze cold and heavy. “A war of words is useless.” Su Li bit her lip. Under his stare, she finally swallowed the curses she was about to unleash. Mo Xingyuan shut the car door. He Shuming, deprived of a response, grew even angrier. “Pathetic coward. Less guts than a woman.” Mo Xingyuan walked around to the driver's side and opened the door. He looked at He Shuming's snarling face over the roof of the car, his eyes dark. He spoke flatly. “You talk more than any woman I know.” By the time He Shuming processed the insult, Mo Xingyuan had already driven away. Su Li watched in the rearview mirror as he kicked a nearby tree in frustration. The night was deep now. The city outside was a blaze of lights and noise, but inside the car, the silence was oppressive. Su Li wanted to say something, but one glance at Mo Xingyuan’s expressionless face and the words died in her throat. If he wasn’t talking, she wouldn’t dare start, afraid she might annoy him. After all, she was the one who had caused all this trouble. While waiting at a red light, Mo Xingyuan made a call. “Handle it.” Four words were all Su Li heard. She assumed he was talking about work. The car stopped outside her residential community. Su Li unbuckled her seatbelt and looked down at the jacket in her hands. “I’ll get this back to you later.” It was pointless to have washed it; she’d been clutching it all afternoon. Mo Xingyuan finally turned his head to look at her. “You have terrible taste.” “...” Su Li had no rebuttal. It was true. “I’m sorry for all the trouble,” she apologized. Mo Xingyuan glanced at her. For a moment, she looked like her real self, stripped of all pretense. “As long as you know,” he said, turning his gaze away again. Su Li took the hint and got out of the car. The moment the door clicked shut, the car shot away. Hugging the jacket, Su Li felt completely deflated. There was only one word for it: tired. In the middle of the night, Su Li was jolted awake by her phone. The second she answered, Lu Jing’s excited voice burst through. “Check the group chat! Hurry, hurry, hurry!” Su Li forced her eyes open and tapped into the WeChat group, which had 999+ unread messages. She opened it and saw a flood of texts asking, “Who did this? So brutal.” She scrolled up for a long time before she found a video. In it, He Shuming was being held down in an abandoned warehouse, getting kicked and punched. He was powerless to fight back, his voice reduced to agonized howls. Seeing He Shuming's bruised and swollen face, Su Li frowned. The group chat had exploded. 「This angle… the video was definitely filmed by the attackers.」 「Who did he piss off to get a beating like this?」 「Who knows? It’s not like he has a short list of enemies. This was bound to happen sooner or later.」 The discussion was rampant, with no one seeming to care if He Shuming saw their comments later. Lu Jing called again. “Know who did it?” Su Li’s mind blanked for a second. “No idea.” “I checked who posted the video, but they already left the group. It wasn't their real name, so there’s no way to trace them. But damn, it feels good to see. He totally deserved it.” Su Li remembered the words Mo Xingyuan had said. Perhaps when he’d said *handle it*, he hadn't been talking about work. She watched the video again. He Shuming, a man so full of arrogance, was reduced to nothing but screams. The attackers were vicious but careful, avoiding any fatal blows in a one-sided beatdown designed purely to torture and humiliate him. Sleep eluded Su Li for the rest of the night. Her mind was filled with images of the beating, and she couldn't help but picture Mo Xingyuan as the one holding the camera. She lasted until dawn, then called him. When he answered, Mo Xingyuan’s voice was as cold as ever. “What is it?” Su Li swallowed. “Did you have someone beat up He Shuming?” After asking, she held her breath, her heart pounding. “Yes.” Her eyes widened. Even if it was him, she hadn’t expected him to admit it so readily. “Feeling sorry for him?” Mo Xingyuan asked. “No, of course not,” Su Li denied immediately. “I was just asking.” “And?” Su Li bit her lip. She hadn’t thought about what came next. She had only wanted to confirm it. “Did you… cover your tracks? With the video getting out, will they find you?” She was still worried. This had all started because of her, and she didn’t want to cause him any more trouble. “It has nothing to do with you,” Mo Xingyuan said coolly. “I didn’t do it for you.” “...” Mo Xingyuan hung up. She stared at the dark screen, a whirlwind of emotions she couldn't name stirring inside her. At noon, Mrs. Mo called and invited her to a meal. This mother-in-law of hers by name only always seemed gentle, but her requests carried a forceful edge that was impossible to refuse. The moment Mrs. Mo saw Su Li, her face lit up with a delighted smile. She told her to order whatever she liked and asked if her cold was better. It had been days; the question was pure pleasantry. As always, Su Li was the model of obedience in her presence, answering every question meekly. “Ali, you should move in with Xingyuan.”