Chapter 552 - 551: Chance Encounter

After parting ways with Wu Sheng, Su Li drove to Pinjun.

When Su Li first bought the factory where Pinjun was located, it was in the suburbs and the surrounding area was quite desolate. Now, however, it had slowly started to develop.

Su Li drove over slowly. Just as she was nearing Pinjun, she almost hit someone.

Su Li had been driving just fine, and she wasn’t going fast, but there was nothing she could do when someone suddenly darted out of an alley.

Su Li was startled and quickly slammed on the brakes.

Because she hit the brakes as hard as she could, she didn’t end up hitting the person. However, the person who had darted out was also scared stiff and fell to the ground.

The braking was so abrupt that Su Li lurched forward and hit the steering wheel. For a moment, the impact left her dizzy and seeing stars.

Shaking her head, Su Li endured the pain and got out of the car to check on the situation.

She had just opened the car door when another person shot out of the alley. The man on the ground in front of her car saw the newcomer, cursed under his breath, and scrambled to his feet to run. Unfortunately, he didn’t get more than two steps before he was tackled to the ground.

"Let me go! Let me go!" the pinned man shouted, struggling.

"Stay still!" The voice of the person holding him down was stern, and also a little familiar.

Su Li stood there, hand on her forehead, stunned. ’What in the world... what did I just run into?’

"Did you get him? Did you get him?" A breathless middle-aged man scrambled out of the alley right after.

Seeing that the man had been caught, he bent over, hands on his knees, gasping for air. He didn’t forget to offer praise.

"Why are you arresting me? I’ve been framed!"

"Framed, my ass! I saw everything. Not only did you rob someone, you dared to stab them. Stay still!"

Lin Huanzhu dragged the man over. She froze for a second when she saw Su Li. "Huh?"

Su Li smiled at Lin Huanzhu and gave her a thumbs-up.

She hadn’t expected to run into Lin Huanzhu, let alone see her catching a criminal.

Lin Huanzhu looked at Su Li’s car, then back at Su Li, and smiled too. "What a coincidence."

The middle-aged man, who had finally caught his breath, straightened up and looked between Su Li and Lin Huanzhu. "You two know each other?"

"Yes." Lin Huanzhu nodded readily. Looking at Su Li’s reddened forehead, she asked, "Does that hurt?"

Su Li touched her forehead. "I’m fine. I hit the brakes in time, so I don’t think I hit him."

The captured man spat. "What do you mean, you didn’t hit me? You did! If it weren’t for you, I would’ve gotten away."

"I told you to stay still!" Lin Huanzhu’s expression instantly hardened.

Handing the man over to the middle-aged man, Lin Huanzhu ignored the captive’s muttering—"Is that a woman or a man?"—and moved closer to Su Li to examine her forehead.

"It’s all red. Does it hurt a lot?"

Su Li looked at Lin Huanzhu’s rosy lips, suppressed a laugh, and shook her head. "It’s alright."

Lin Huanzhu looked the same as the last time they’d met, still with that handsome short haircut—or rather, it was even shorter than before. Dressed all in black, she just looked so... handsome.

Yes, more than "pretty," it was Lin Huanzhu’s "handsome" quality that was so captivating. It was an androgynous handsomeness that transcended gender, with that legendary, versatile appeal.

’If I didn’t know Lin Huanzhu was a girl, with her getting so close looking so handsome, almost as if she were about to kiss me... my heart might have skipped a beat.’

Lin Huanzhu, not fully aware of her own charm, was puzzled by Su Li’s suppressed smile. "What’s wrong?"

"Nothing." Of course, Su Li couldn’t tell Lin Huanzhu what she was really thinking. "What about you? Are you hurt?"

"Nope," Lin Huanzhu replied, waving her hand.

She had just answered when Su Li’s sharp eyes noticed a scrape on her elbow. The skin was broken, probably from when she was apprehending the man.

"Your skin is broken." Su Li immediately grabbed Lin Huanzhu’s arm. "You need to put some antiseptic on that. Does it hurt?"

"It’s nothing. A little thing like this... it’s not even an injury." Lin Huanzhu looked a little uncomfortable at the sight of Su Li’s furrowed brow. But seeing how concerned Su Li was, she couldn’t help but smile.

"Even a small wound is still a wound." Su Li didn’t agree with Lin Huanzhu’s dismissive attitude. "You should still disinfect it and treat it. Otherwise, it might leave a scar."

Su Li opened her trunk. "Wait a second, I’ll put some medicine on it for you."

Su Li kept common medicines both at home and in her car, including antiseptics for external wounds.

It was too late for Lin Huanzhu to stop her and say it was fine.

She retracted the hand she’d reached out to stop Su Li, looked at her elbow, and scratched her head. "I’m not afraid of a scar..."

Although she grumbled, Lin Huanzhu still stood there obediently and let Su Li apply medicine to her elbow.

"Do you want me to put some on you, too? On your forehead," Lin Huanzhu asked, looking at Su Li’s slightly swollen forehead.

"Yes, that’d be good. When I’m done with yours, you can help me with mine." Su Li could still feel a dull ache in her forehead and figured it was probably going to bruise, so she nodded.

"There. Put more on again tonight when you get home." Su Li finished by loosely bandaging Lin Huanzhu’s arm with some gauze and tape. "It should start scabbing over by tomorrow."

Lin Huanzhu looked at her bandaged elbow, feeling very awkward. ’If I go back like this, my colleagues will probably think I’m seriously injured.’

But... besides the awkwardness, she felt a sense of warmth. "Thanks."

"Don’t mention it. I’m pretty practiced. When Little Mo gets a bump or a scrape, I’m the one who patches him up."

Su Li shook her head. It wasn’t just Little Mo who occasionally got bruised or took a tumble; she had also treated Wu Sheng’s wounds several times.

Wu Sheng would sometimes get scrapes and cuts on his hands and face. Just like Lin Huanzhu, he couldn’t be bothered with them, and if Su Li didn’t see them and take care of them for him, he would just ignore them.

"Even if it’s just a small injury, you should still treat it when you have time. It’ll hurt less." Su Li packed her things away. Thinking of Wu Sheng, she added a reminder for Lin Huanzhu.

Given the nature of Lin Huanzhu’s job, she was bound to get injured far more often.

"Okay." Listening to Su Li’s gentle reminder and looking at her soft profile, a thought flashed through Lin Huanzhu’s mind.

’No wonder Tang Yuanxiao still can’t forget Su Li... and no wonder Wu Sheng likes her...’

’If I were a man, I’d probably like Su Li, too.’

Lin Huanzhu shook her head, ignoring the strange feeling in her heart. "What should I put on your forehead? I’ll do it for you."

"Just this." Su Li handed the ointment to Lin Huanzhu.

"Okay." Lin Huanzhu carefully applied it for Su Li.

"Thanks." Su Li put her small first-aid kit away. As she closed the trunk, she asked, "Have you had lunch yet?"

"Not yet." Lin Huanzhu rubbed her stomach. "Now that you mention it, I am getting hungry."

"Your workplace is still a long way from here. Let’s get something to eat first, and I’ll give you a ride afterward." Su Li had always remembered Lin Huanzhu’s previous help. Even though she had helped because of Tang Yuanxiao, Su Li had never forgotten the kindness.

"No, no, it’s fine. I can get back on my own. I’m actually off today. I just came to help out with something, so I can go straight home."

Lin Huanzhu immediately waved her hands in refusal.

"Then let’s head back together in a bit. It’ll take you a long time to take public transit on your own. If you’re hungry, let’s eat first."

Su Li ushered Lin Huanzhu into the car, and just like that, it was decided.

「Two hours later.」

When Su Li dropped Lin Huanzhu off at the entrance of a sanatorium, she unexpectedly ran into Tang Yuanxiao and Mrs. Tang.