Cheng Xi didn’t say anything as she turned around, crouched down again, and hugged him forcefully.

In the future, Lu Chenzhou would ask her, “What would you have done if, after you ran in so recklessly, I hurt you?”

Cheng Xi would obstinately reply, “I had both steel drill bits and a brick in my bag, so I’m sure I would have been able to defend myself adequately.”

She wasn’t sure whether or not to be sad that Lu Chenzhou never gave her an opportunity to use her brick. But in the present, after she hugged him for a while, she found that his physical strength was terribly atrophied—his temples were sweating from just this brief exertion.

“What’s wrong with you?” she asked in shock as she put a hand on his forehead. He wasn’t feverish; instead, his sweating had made his skin cold and clammy.

Lu Chenzhou didn’t respond as he weakly leaned...