Chapter 23 Chapter 23
"That's not true," Wen Ying repeated, "someone is just deliberately making up rumors to cause trouble."
"I know," Shen Li said helplessly, "It's only been ten minutes since I walked in, and you've already explained it to me four times."
Wen Ying felt a little embarrassed and touched the tip of her nose: "How can there be so many?"
Shen Li tilted his head back and turned it twice, then sighed wearily, "I've been working non-stop for almost ten days now, and I've finally finished most of the things I have on hand. Tomorrow and the day after tomorrow are weekends, and I really hope I don't get a call from the hospital."
Wen Ying was still worried that Shen Li would misunderstand, so she leaned over and whispered, "Zhou Boyu and I really don't have anything."
Chen Li hugged Wen Ying's neck, buried his head in her shoulder, and let out a long, helpless laugh: "I know, I know."
He raised his head and looked at Wen Ying again: "Are you okay?"
Wen Ying was startled: "Me?"
Chen Li said, "You always tell me good news but not bad news. With news like this, I don't even need to look at your phone to know that WeChat must be bombarded with messages. Right?"
Wen Ying sneered: "I turned off my phone. I haven't turned it on for a day."
"What about the mailbox?"
"I turned off the new message notification and haven't turned it on for a day."
Shen Li was puzzled: "The second trial is about to begin. If you close all social media apps, how can Yu Jiaran contact you?"
Wen Ying said, "I still have the QQ account I used when I was in school. We can keep in touch through QQ."
Chen Li could see that Wen Ying was pretending to be relaxed while hiding her heavy worries, so he ruffled her hair and said, "You don't have to be like this in front of me. If you want to cry, you can cry. If you want to curse, you can curse."
Wen Ying's lips drooped, and she looked listless. "This incident is definitely related to the final trial. I was careless. I didn't expect them to pull such a fuss behind the scenes. This news has directly pushed Zhou Boyu and Guan Qianqian's divorce lawsuit to the forefront. It's very heated, and everyone is paying attention to the final court ruling. When the final trial begins, as long as Guan Qianqian claims that Zhou Boyu and I had an improper relationship, even if the court doesn't admit it, Zhou Boyu and I will never be able to clear this dirty water."
"Killing ten thousand enemies and losing eight thousand of your own, Guan Qianqian must be crazy to come up with such a plan," Shen Li felt a breath of foul air stuck in his chest, "The only person who could come up with such a despicable trick except Zheng Di."
"I can guess that," Wen Ying said with a headache, "it's all because of your handsome appearance that makes people's hearts flutter. That's why you regard me as a thorn in your side and want to torment me in various ways."
Shen Li's face turned cold: "I have never had any close contact or conversation with her."
Wen Ying, however, felt tired and helpless, pushing him away. "I want to be alone for a few days, so please don't disturb me if you're home. I'm really tired, and I'm really tired of dealing with all these trivial matters."
Shen Li was worried about her arm: "I've been too busy these days and haven't been home much. How is your shoulder?"
Wen Ying reluctantly moved, pulling at the corners of her lips into a wry smile: "Misfortunes never come singly. It's not good. My shoulders are weak, so I can only rely on one hand."
"Why don't you make an appointment with a specialist tomorrow to take a look?"
Wen Ying refused: "Let's wait until the final trial is over. I'm afraid of being chased and blocked if I go out now."
That's the truth. Zhou Boyu's divorce news was trending, and Wen Ying wasn't immune either; her name and law firm were already mentioned. Lawyer Yan was displeased and had Yao Fangzhou inform her not to come to the firm for the time being, lest it negatively impact the firm.
She said bitterly, "Perhaps your secret marriage is the right choice. If necessary, I can divorce you."
Chen Li felt a dull pain in his heart, hating himself for not being able to protect her. First, he let her be attacked in the garage, and now he let her face the storm of verbal attacks alone.
He shook his head. "You just need to do your job well and don't worry about other things. The pace of life is too fast nowadays. Just wait for a while and these rumors will soon disappear."
"I hope so," she lowered her head, "let me be alone for a while."
Seeing her walk into the bedroom, Shen Li's tall body seemed a little depressed for a moment.
After standing quietly for a while, Shen Li took out his cell phone, found a number and dialed it.
The call was connected after a while, and Shen Li said, "Director Liang, I'm sorry to bother you so late."
Liang Ji was really surprised: "Xiao Shen, what a rare guest, how come you have time to call me?"
Shen Li smiled and said, "I heard that you have already completed the interview and will soon be going to the provincial department. Congratulations, Director Liang. I guess you will soon be called Director Liang."
Liang Ji laughed heartily and said, "I will indeed be leaving the Municipal Public Security Bureau soon, but I haven't heard where I'm going yet, let alone the name 'Director Liang'. But you, on the other hand, never come here for no reason. If you have something to say, just say it directly."
Chen Li told Liang Ji about the online news about Zhou Boyu's divorce. He scratched his brow, feeling a little awkward. "I'd like to ask you, can you find the original source of the news through Internet monitoring?"
Liang Ji said, "Regardless of how closely your Procuratorate and our Public Security Bureau are brother organizations, just because I studied under Professor Shen, I will help you with this favor."
He pondered for a moment and said, "Xiao Shen, you have to tell me the details before I can help you."
------
Wen Ying had just taken a shower and came out of the room to find something to eat.
It was late at night, but the lights in the living room were still bright. Shen Li was sitting cross-legged on the sofa, holding a thick roll of materials in his hands.
Seeing her come out, Shen Li seemed to breathe a sigh of relief: "Wen Ying, you have locked yourself in the room for more than eighteen hours."
Shen Li seemed to have been sitting there, facing the direction of her bedroom, waiting for her to come out.
Wen Ying was a little stunned and thought for a moment. "Has it been that long?" She rubbed her sore eyes and walked slowly towards the kitchen. "I've been reading the materials. The trial will start in less than a week. I can't lose this time."
Shen Li got up from the sofa: "Are you hungry? Let me cook something for you?"
Wen Ying shook her head and refused, then took two apples and an orange from the fruit basket: "I don't have an appetite, just some fruit will be fine."
Chen Li wore black-framed glasses and had neat hair, looking like a college student.
He stared at her, which made Wen Ying feel uneasy: "What's wrong?"
He looked at the dark circles under her eyes, opened his mouth, and didn't know how to comfort her.
Wen Ying has always been strong-willed. The loss in the first trial had already doubled her pressure. Coupled with the overwhelming rumors now, if she still loses the second trial, Shen Li can hardly imagine what kind of online violence Wen Ying will suffer.
What worried him more than external violence was the shackles Wen Ying had put on herself.
She must not allow herself to fail.
Shen Li looked around and his eyes fell on the TV. He invited her, "We should take a break for two or three hours. We haven't watched a movie together in many years. How about a horror movie tonight?"
Horror movie?
That sounds good.
Watching horror movies was a common way for Wen Ying to relieve stress, so she paused for less than a second before nodding, "Okay."
She also emphasized: "It has to be scary, very scary. I won't watch anything that's not scary."
Chen Li turned around and walked towards the living room: "I guarantee you will be satisfied."
------
It's a horror movie of the right flavor.
All the lights in the living room were off, and it was pitch black everywhere, with only the dim light from the TV.
The living room was equipped with a whole-house audio system, and the mournful and mournful sounds made Wen Ying feel creepy.
The new Chinese style of horror is far more frightening than the bloody, direct horror of the West. It is a kind of eerie and terrifying that can only be understood by the heart, and every frown and smile of the characters reveals a shuddering sense of death.
A blanket covered the two people on the sofa. The sofa was wide, and Wen Ying huddled up, hugging her knees, leaving only her eyes above them. Chen Li was better off, but not much better. He had a stern face and held his breath, not daring to make a single sound.
The music became shrill, and Wen Ying subconsciously moved towards Shen Li.
Chen Li stretched out his hand and placed it on the back of the sofa, just enough to wrap around Wen Ying's shoulders.
The other hand found her hand under the blanket and held it in his palm.
The music suddenly stopped, and the screen went dark. Before Wen Ying could react, the music suddenly started again, and a cold, cyan face, stained with blood and tears, appeared on the screen.
Wen Ying screamed and threw herself into Shen Li's arms, trembling and not daring to look up.
"Turn it off," she said, covering her eyes. "I'm not going to watch it anymore. I need to slow down."
As always, Shen Li pulled her hand down with one hand and put the other arm around her body to make her sit up straight: "You have to finish watching it. Didn't you say you won't watch it if it's not scary?"
Wen Ying also had an injured shoulder, which made it difficult for Shen Li to control her.
Wen Ying couldn't move and could only control the opening and closing of her eyelids, but the faint background music still inevitably penetrated into her ears.
Her voice was trembling: "Chen Li, you bastard." She scolded him, "Next time if you agree to watch a horror movie with you, I will be a puppy."
Chen Li smiled softly and moved his body to get closer to Wen Ying.
The house was heated, so both of them wore only thin home clothes. Beneath the thin fabric, Wen Ying could clearly feel the firmness and warmth of Chen Li's thigh muscles.
She was surrounded by Shen Li's aura, the temperature gradually rose, and a slight hot flash spread throughout Wen Ying's body.
She moved forward, but was pushed back by Shen Li.
"Don't move." His voice seemed even deeper and hoarser than usual, like gravel rubbing against Wen Ying's eardrums. "Focus."
Chen Li's fingers first rubbed slowly on the back of Wen Ying's hand. It seemed that he had found something interesting, and then he grasped it in his palm and played with it back and forth.
He gently pinched each finger, turned it over, and gently stroked the soft part of the palm.
It's just a hand, but it looks like some rare treasure.
Chen Li finally found the gap between her fingers and slowly inserted his fingers into them one by one, interlocking theirs until there was no gap left.
Wen Ying was glad that there was no light in the room, as the light from the TV screen was not enough to illuminate her flushed cheeks.
The horrific and bizarre story had long since vanished into thin air, and Wen Ying's body softened inch by inch. She rested her forehead against the side of his neck, and could clearly feel the throbbing rhythm of the artery in his neck.
After a long time, Wen Ying gradually relaxed.
Her eyes were filled with a long-lost bitterness and fatigue. Her body leaned against another passionate and energetic body, bringing her lasting peace and tranquility.
I’m so tired. This was Wen Ying’s last thought.
It was impossible to open his eyes again. Wen Ying felt as if his body was embedded in a soft cloud, falling slowly and quickly, sinking deeply into a long dream.
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