Chapter 46: A Hero Saves the Beauty
The subway lines were packed together like a giant spider web. They looked messy, but everything still ran in order. Zheng Qi already knew last night that she would drink a lot, so before leaving home, she gave up the idea of driving herself.
But after making things easier, another problem appeared. She stood by the roadside for a long time without seeing a single empty taxi. Ride-sharing also failed to find a good match. Today really felt strange!
Thinking about what she had to do later, Zheng Qi became a little anxious. She looked around and suddenly noticed the subway entrance across the street. After thinking about it and doing some quick math in her head, she realized it had been a long time since she last took the subway.
“As for speed, it’s not slower than a taxi. I’ll just treat this as reliving the old days.”
Buying a ticket and passing security went smoothly. Compared to when the subway had first opened, the place had changed completely. But... the condition of the subway card was even worse than before.
With a bit of dislike, she stuffed the card into the ticket machine. Thinking about the job ahead that would both be fun and make her money, a proud smile slipped out before she noticed.
Where there is happiness, there is sadness. Where there is good, there is bad. Yin and yang always exist together. The world has been like this since the day it was born.
On the platform, a young couple was arguing about something. Everyone waiting for the train had already turned to look at them.
“They’re attracting this much attention and still keep arguing? Aren’t they embarrassed to fight in public? Did they become enemies for life or something? If that’s the case, why keep arguing? Just break up already!”
“Why stay together? Just to torture yourselves for fun?!”
Zheng Qi secretly enjoyed the drama for a moment. When she turned back again, the subway had already arrived, along with a huge crowd of people.
“Whoa!”
The waiting area in front of her had been almost empty just now, but suddenly it was packed with people as if by magic.
Zheng Qi swallowed nervously. She had almost forgotten why Line 12 was famous.
There were simply too many people. At this point, squeezing in was unavoidable. She had no choice but to brace herself and force her way inside.
Her clothes became wrinkled from all the pushing, but she finally got in. It felt like entering another world. Hot, damp, and filled with a strange smell.
Exactly the same smell she remembered.
What a terrible feeling.
Zheng Qi really regretted not bringing her small bag. If she had, she could have packed a few whistles before leaving home. Right now, the air felt almost like poison gas, and she had nothing to block it.
The crowd kept growing. Zheng Qi had just managed to stand steadily, but now she was squeezed under the handrail again. Pressed against her was a fat man with greasy skin and a strong sweat smell all over his body.
Zheng Qi held onto the shiny handrail like a sloth hugging a tree. Then she turned and leaned against the train door, finally escaping from the “poison gas.” Only then could she lift her head and breathe properly.
Among the crowd was another person whose face had practically been squashed out of shape by the crowd. After spotting Zheng Qi, he pushed up his glasses and greeted her with a smile.
“Miss Zheng!”
Hearing the voice, Zheng Qi looked over. Standing one person away from her was someone she knew, the real nephew of Cheng Fei’s godfather. Explaining the exact family connection was too troublesome, so she simply called him “Little Brother Cheng,” Zhou Lin.
She had learned about him during dinner gatherings before. He seemed like an honest and simple man.
“Oh! Aren’t you a senior engineer? Not driving to work today? Taking the subway to support low-carbon travel?”
Zhou Lin smiled shyly and scratched his neck.
“Don’t let the title fool you. My job is basically just typing on a keyboard. It’s not as impressive as it sounds.”
“There’s still a big difference at least... You’ve already evolved into your final form!”
Zheng Qi was always relaxed with people she knew. Since they now shared the connection of being friends through Cheng Fei, she naturally joked with him in her usual playful tone.
Zhou Lin happily nodded again and again after hearing that.
“That’s true, we evolved! We’re not apes anymore, now we’re primitive humans.”
“Hehe!”
Zheng Qi had a cheerful personality, and even her laughter sounded bold and lively. It was completely different from the image people usually saw of her on camera.
The subway finally welcomed the last group of passengers. But suddenly, noise rose from the crowd. The whispers around the carriage were drowned out as everyone looked toward the door.
Their conversation had just gotten interesting, especially for Zheng Qi, when the scene pulled away her attention.
“Hey! They even came all the way here! Fighting outside wasn’t enough? There’s not even room to stand, and they still want to continue their battle?”
“Huh?” Zhou Lin looked confused.
“Just now—”
“I’ll ask you one last time! Are you breaking up with that bitch or not?!”
The sharp scream completely interrupted Zheng Qi’s thoughts. Inside the carriage, only the sound of the train running on the tracks and the swaying of the car remained.
The woman from the arguing couple was crying heavily now. After shouting angrily, she questioned the man again.
The man refused to back down and answered even louder:
“Only if I’m dead!”
The woman froze for a moment, then started sobbing. Her emotions were completely out of control. She grabbed the man by the collar and glared at him fiercely.
“In the three years of high school, I gave my body to you. During the three years of college, I gave my money to you! Compared to her, what part of me is worse? My looks? My figure? What exactly did I do worse than her?!”
The man’s face stayed calm after hearing that. He curled his lips into a cold smile.
“She’s not as crazy as you. You’re like some obsessive psycho girlfriend!”
Damn!
That gossip hit hard.
The crowded subway instantly exploded with noise. After watching the drama, the people around naturally started discussing it. Some felt bad for the woman’s devotion, while others believed the man’s words.
“So now that you’re tired of me, you want to kick me away just like that? Let me tell you, Mr. Niu, dreaming is easy, but doing it won’t be that simple!”
The woman roared angrily and shoved the man hard.
Unfortunately, the push sent the man’s head straight into the subway wall. Feeling humiliated, the man struggled to break free. Maybe the woman had trained before, or maybe the skinny man was simply too weak. When the woman pushed again, the back of his head slammed heavily into a red button!
The crowd had only just finished enjoying the drama, and before they could even process it, something far worse happened.
A sharp alarm sound spread through the train. People near the windows could clearly see sparks flying from the dark tracks below.
It felt like an invisible wall pushed everyone forward.
The whole train screamed in shock.
At the same time, Zheng Qi, like many others, was suddenly thrown into the air despite only weighing a little over fifty kilograms. In that instant, time seemed to slow down many times over.
Zheng Qi saw Zhou Lin’s face right in front of her. If things continued like this, she would crash directly into him and use him as a human cushion. Behind him was a bright metal handrail. If she hit it herself, it would already be terrible. With her body weight added on top of him, the result would be even worse.
But her body had already been thrown forward and was completely out of her control.
Everything that could happen took place within only a few seconds.
Zhou Lin’s entire back slammed into the hard metal rail, producing a sharp cracking sound.
The sound of sirens pulled everyone back to reality.
Zheng Qi only felt dizzy and disoriented. She found herself lying inside the train carriage on top of Zhou Lin while firefighters in orange rescue uniforms rushed around them.
Only after being carried into an ambulance and taken to the hospital did Zheng Qi finally become fully awake.
The scenes from before completely destroyed her calmness.
While Zheng Qi was still lost in chaotic thoughts, a nurse came to change her IV bottle about ten minutes later and gave her an extremely shocking piece of news.
Another hour passed, and the two of them walked out of the hospital together.
Even now, Zheng Qi still could not believe it.
What kind of “training” had Zhou Lin done? What kind of body-protecting martial art did he practice? After being smashed into by her and then crashing into a steel rail hard enough to bend it, he somehow had no injuries except some bruises. Not even the slightest crack in his bones!
When Zheng Qi woke up earlier, she had completely fallen into despair.
From what she had seen, she thought her whole life was over.
She made her living with her face and figure, not with deep talent or skill. Saving her face meant saving her career. In a way, Zhou Lin had saved her life.
But in order to save her, Zhou Lin had first taken her full weight crashing into him, then slammed his back into the rail. That cracking sound... surely it could only mean broken bones.
Back. Spine.
What did a spinal fracture mean?
As someone with a good education, Zheng Qi did not need to think much to know the answer: paralysis.
What did that mean for a man?
His bright future would basically be destroyed.
Even though the accident was caused by that arguing couple, Zhou Lin had still stepped forward at the critical moment.
The values she learned since childhood told her that she had to take responsibility somehow. At the very least, she should take care of him.
But her career was not easy to maintain. One mistake could destroy everything. Youth-based careers had a very short lifespan. Right now she still had work opportunities, but what about the day when she became older and could no longer earn money?
Shaking away those nightmare-like thoughts, Zheng Qi secretly glanced at Zhou Lin beside her. She did not even dare to look at him for too long. Whenever Zhou Lin’s eyes seemed about to turn toward her, she quickly looked straight ahead again.
Her shy expression made her seem like she had returned to her university days, back to the time of first love.
Walking together to the hospital entrance, Zheng Qi finally could not hold back the words in her heart anymore.
It was also the sentence she worried about the most and had repeated many times already.
“You... are you really okay?”
Hearing that, Zhou Lin gave his honest, simple smile.
“If you still don’t believe me, I can find a dumbbell.”
“A dumbbell?” Zheng Qi asked in confusion.
“I’ll lift it up for you to see. Maybe even do a little juggling act to prove I’m fine!”
Zheng Qi pressed her lips together in a small smile. He looked honest and simple, but he was actually pretty good at talking.
“Thank you.”
As she spoke, Zheng Qi straightened her body and looked directly at his smiling face. Then she slightly lowered her head and bowed.
Big kindness could not be repaid with just words. Real actions were more meaningful.
“Ah— don’t do that.”
Seeing this, Zhou Lin quickly stopped her. Doing that in public was too embarrassing. He looked around, then gently held her shoulders and helped her stand up.
Zhou Lin’s personality was naturally conservative, so even placing his hands on her shoulders already felt a little improper to him. He quickly pulled back his hands, afraid it might look like he was taking advantage of her, and laughed awkwardly again.
“You’re Sister Cheng’s best friend, and I’m her family. That makes us friends too. Even strangers would help in that kind of situation. It was only a small favor. If you really want to thank me, I appreciate the thought, but there’s no need for such a formal bow.”
Since he had already said so much, Zheng Qi could not continue insisting.
She reached into her pocket and pulled out a thick wallet.
Opening it, she took out three cards. Zhou Lin thought she was about to give him money and immediately wanted to refuse again.
“Don’t reject it so quickly. These aren’t money cards.”
Zheng Qi held the cards flat between her fingers so Zhou Lin could see them clearly.
There were no numbers, no bank logo, and no visible chip. The black cards really were not bank cards.
However, printed on the cards was a woman wearing lace underwear, looking charming and seductive, even more eye-catching than the numbers on a bank card could ever be.