Chapter 425 - 312: Lin Ruoxi’s Apology

’This is bad!’ Xue Rui thought grimly. He pressed his back tightly against the wall, hoping the cold surface would calm him down.

His body’s subconscious reaction betrayed his anxiety. Large beads of sweat trickled down his cheeks.

He couldn’t figure out what was going on. Why were those two together now?

He suddenly understood how Old Wang must have felt, curled up shirtless on someone else’s balcony in the middle of winter.

This was so damn nerve-wracking!

No, he felt even more nervous than Old Wang being caught in the act!

Hugging the wall of the stadium corridor, he cautiously peeked his head out for a quick glance, then immediately pulled it back, analyzing the afterimage in his mind...

After confirming that the little lass and the little miss hadn’t noticed him, he stared more boldly in their direction, his brow furrowed tightly.

’What’s the point of seeing them if I can’t hear what they’re talking about? I’d rather not see them at all!’

The moment they turned their heads slightly, he vigilantly ducked back into hiding.

However, when he peeked out again, he nearly collided with a female student.

"Ah!" The girl, startled, clutched her chest and gave him a wide berth, muttering words like "pervert" under her breath.

Xue Rui’s brow twitched. ’The corridor I’m hiding in... the other end is the women’s restroom?’

But this was the only safe angle for observation. The only other option was to run up to the stands...

’The stands are too high. What if I fall while trying to eavesdrop?’

’Wouldn’t the little lass cry her eyes out?’

’Hmm, the little miss would probably be the same...’

So that idea was absolutely out of the question.

Suddenly, Xue Rui spotted a burly young man standing at the entrance to the men’s restroom diagonally opposite him. His military training uniform was stretched taut over his powerfully built frame, and he stood at least 1.9 meters tall. Right now, with his lips pursed and eyes askew, he was staring at a phone screen held at his waist. The phone’s rear camera was pointed directly at him.

Xue Rui pinched the bridge of his nose, speechless.

’Damn it! Filming me right in my face? The nerve!’

’He’s not planning to post this on the All-Purpose Campus alumni network, is he?’

A bold, size-3 headline in a sans-serif font subconsciously flashed through his mind: [Shocking! Man Caught Doing THIS in Front of Jiao University Women’s Restroom!]

Xue Rui gritted his teeth. After stealing a glance in the two girls’ direction, he grabbed the collar of the military training uniform, dragged the student who was filming him into a corner, and narrowed his eyes as he said in a low voice:

"Talk. What department are you in? What’s your student ID? Sneakily holding up your phone to film someone outside the women’s restroom... I’m going to have to inform your dean."

"Oh, and if you circulate my picture, that’s a violation of my image rights. Just wait for a letter from my lawyer."

Xue Rui was anxious and irritable. This kid deliberately holding up a phone in his direction was just too conspicuous!

’What if the little miss sees me?’

He took the initiative, questioning the guy. Even though the other man was huge, Xue Rui needed to overpower him with sheer presence and force him to leave quickly.

"%&*%..."

"What? You want to start something? Because I can just lie down right here." Xue Rui leaned in, trying to hear better. He couldn’t understand the dialect. ’Is he cursing at me?’

"No, I wasn’t doing anything." The student realized he’d misspoken and nervously hid his phone behind his back.

He subconsciously recoiled. ’Who is this guy?’

’Aren’t you the one being sneaky? And now you’re trying to turn this on me?’

’Besides, you grabbed me first, and you’re the one threatening to send a lawyer’s letter?’

’What even is a lawyer’s letter? I don’t know, but it obviously has something to do with lawsuits...’

’And what’s this about lying down? Is he trying to scam me?’

"Doesn’t matter who I am. By filming me, you’ve gotten yourself into big trouble." Xue Rui grinned. This kid was a lot taller than him, at least 195 centimeters, tall and sturdy, yet he was this timid?

The student’s Adam’s apple bobbed. ’City thugs are way scarier than the village ones! This one even knows the law!’

He remembered his parents’ words at the train station when school started: ’Don’t get into trouble out there. We can’t afford to pay for it...’

"Bro, can I just show you my phone?" the student asked, slowly handing his phone—a brand new Redmi 1—to Xue Rui.

"Who wants your phone?" Xue Rui pushed the phone back. After a quick glance at the student’s military training uniform, a smile unconsciously spread across his face. He had an idea.

’I can just pretend to be a student in military training passing by, can’t I?’

’This big guy’s clothes are so baggy, and his hat is a size bigger than normal. It’ll be more than enough to cover my face.’

"My friend, let’s talk over here. I have a proposal." Smiling, Xue Rui slung an arm around the student and quickly pulled him into the men’s restroom.

The student’s mind went blank. ’Have I really run into a pervert?’

He was a head taller than most people. When others encountered him in a narrow space like a restroom, they were the ones who gave him a wide berth. Even if they looked at him, it was with caution. How could someone look at him with such a disdainful gaze?

’Slung an arm around me, with that kind of malicious smile?’

An unknown fear enveloped him, sending a shiver down his spine and making the hairs on his arms stand on end.

"I need to borrow your jacket. I’ll pay you for it, I’m not borrowing it for free." Xue Rui pulled out a 100-yuan bill. He didn’t even look at the student as he spoke, his gaze fixed on the little miss through the crack in the door.

"Please be quick, I’m in a real hurry." Xue Rui’s tone softened a little. At least from his vantage point, he could see the corners of Gu Muxue’s mouth turned up in a smile, though her lips weren’t moving. As for Lin Ruoxi, her head was bowed, and he couldn’t make out her expression.

Wu Xiaozhuang’s face was full of worry. ’The guy is being so polite. How am I supposed to say no?’