Liu Yutong sometimes truly felt that since her rebirth, many things had changed.
Take, for example, why Hua Muying had that girl’s photo—tracing it back, the root of it all actually lay with her.
In her past life, none of this had happened.
Back then, she had simply been an ordinary student who got into university, graduated, and became a trainee lawyer.
In other words, she should have had no connection whatsoever with Yun Cheng and the others.
But in this life, everything was different.
It was precisely because Yun Cheng and his group had shown up with that photo, mistakenly identifying her as the young mistress of the Righteous Alliance, that Hua Muying had later stumbled upon information and photos of the girl who might actually be the true young mistress of the Righteous Alliance.
The confrontation between the Righteous Alliance and her was now inevitable.
Hua Muying, that money-grubber, had secretly gathered so much information about her, all for the sake of selling it at a high price someday.
But in the process, she had accidentally discovered the girl who might be the real young mistress of the Righteous Alliance.
In short, if Yun Cheng and the others hadn’t mistaken Liu Yutong for the young mistress, Hua Muying would never have gathered that information about the possible true heir.
Of course, whether it was Liu Yutong’s side or Hua Muying, they could only speculate for now—nothing was confirmed.
After all, concluding that the girl was definitely the daughter of the Righteous Alliance’s boss based on just one photo was far too rash.
From what she remembered of her past life, that girl’s records had never once mentioned her father being the leader of the Righteous Alliance.
Instead, she was a third-generation cop, born into a family of law enforcement.
Regardless, whether it was a misunderstanding or the butterfly effect caused by Liu Yutong’s rebirth, she felt there was no need to drag that girl into this mess.
"Yun Cheng, send someone to keep an eye on Hua Muying’s residence, especially Garden Community. He probably has more than one address," Liu Yutong instructed.
"Understood, Young Mistress!" Yun Cheng turned to leave.
"Wait." Liu Yutong suddenly called him back.
She then took out gauze from the first aid kit and gently held Yun Cheng’s injured left hand, disinfecting and bandaging it. The moment the iodine-soaked cotton touched the wound, Yun Cheng’s muscles visibly tensed, but he didn’t make a sound.
Liu Yutong glanced up at him and lightened her touch. "Don’t be so reckless in the future."
Yun Cheng’s Adam’s apple bobbed as if he wanted to say something, but in the end, he just gave a firm "Mm."
...............
Li Xiaohui had been waiting in the dorm for Liu Yutong to return.
She didn’t have a laptop—only Liu Yutong did.
But without Liu Yutong’s permission, she would never use someone else’s computer, especially since Liu Yutong’s laptop was password-protected.
After waiting for what felt like forever, Li Xiaohui finally pulled out her phone and dialed Liu Yutong’s number.
"Yutong, where are you? Hurry back! I’ve got everything ready, just waiting for you to see it."
"I have something to take care of. We’ll look at it tonight," Liu Yutong replied over the phone.
"Fine..." Li Xiaohui pouted and hung up—only for her phone to ring again immediately. Seeing the caller ID, her face fell.
"Okay, Uncle Gao, I’ll be there soon."
An hour and a half later, Li Xiaohui stepped out of Uncle Gao’s house, accompanied by a tall, upright police officer—Qi Wei, the newly appointed district police chief who had just been transferred from Wushui County.
Qi Wei had earned his promotion by dismantling the largest criminal organization in Wushui County, and now he had been assigned to Bright Pearl City’s Lijin District as the local police chief.
"Get in," Qi Wei said, opening the back door of the police car.
Li Xiaohui reluctantly climbed in, pressing herself against the door and staring out the window.
Since Qi Wei was Uncle Gao’s student and Uncle Gao had asked him to escort her back, she couldn’t refuse.
Maybe because of the age gap or the fact that they’d just met, the two barely spoke during the ride.
Li Xiaohui had never been comfortable around police officers, especially serious ones like Qi Wei.
Qi Wei noticed but didn’t push the conversation.
When they arrived at the university, Li Xiaohui got out, but Qi Wei suddenly asked, "Are there any students involved with gangs at your school?"
Li Xiaohui stiffened. "No, our school’s discipline is strict."
She kept her voice steady, but her heart pounded. Had Uncle Gao found out something?
"Then do you know Liu Yutong?" Qi Wei pressed.
Li Xiaohui nodded. "Yeah, she’s pretty famous at school—she’s really beautiful."
Normally straightforward, she decided to play dumb this time.
"Why do you ask?"
Qi Wei said, "No reason. Just a word of advice—stay away from her. She’s not a good person."
The moment those words left his mouth, Li Xiaohui’s opinion of Qi Wei plummeted.
What kind of nonsense was this? Talking about my best friend like that?
After a month of friendship, she already considered Liu Yutong a close confidante. Hearing Qi Wei’s warning made her furious.
Without another word, Li Xiaohui snorted and stormed off.
Qi Wei stood there, scratching his nose. "Did I say something wrong?"
He didn’t linger, driving straight back to the station. He still had an important task—personally welcoming a new trainee officer.
This officer was special, the child of a fallen comrade, and deserved the utmost respect and care.
Qi Wei planned to personally apply for the reactivation of a retired badge number—one that had been sealed for nine years—once the trainee completed probation.
Meanwhile, Li Xiaohui had just stepped onto campus when she remembered Liu Yutong wasn’t coming back. She turned around and headed out again, deciding to kill time at an internet café.
As she walked, she kicked at pebbles on the road, Qi Wei’s words echoing in her mind.
"Stay away from her. She’s not a good person."
"What nonsense! Yutong’s gorgeous, gentle, hardworking, and so kind to me. How could she be bad?"
"Ridiculous!"
Just as she reached the street lined with internet cafés, she noticed groups of dyed-haired delinquents hurrying east.
Li Xiaohui paused, realization dawning.
"Wait… isn’t today the vocational school’s turf war?"
She had promised Liu Yutong she wouldn’t get involved in this kind of trouble, but the scene before her stirred up an old excitement.
She’d watched plenty of gangster movies but had never seen the real deal.
"I’ll just watch from a distance. What’s the harm?"
At that moment, a man who looked like a gang leader stepped out of an internet café, yawning, and spotted Li Xiaohui.
His eyes lit up. "Hey, girl! What’re you staring at?"
Li Xiaohui turned to see a man with a silver chain around his neck and a third-eye tattoo on his forehead walking toward her.
"Brother Hao! I was just seeing where those people are heading."
Liu Hao grinned, swaggering over as he casually lit a cigarette and squinted at the distant crowd.
"Where else would they go? Just chasing some excitement, that’s all."
He blew out a smoke ring and shot Li Xiaohui a sidelong glance. "What, you wanna go too?"
Li Xiaohui hesitated, murmuring softly, "But... isn’t it too dangerous?"
Liu Hao burst out laughing, thumping his chest. "Dangerous? In this university district, who dares disrespect the ‘All-Seeing Eye’? Come on, little sis, if you’re curious, I’ll take you there myself!"
Li Xiaohui’s eyes lit up. "Really? Thanks, Brother Hao!"
Liu Hao chuckled and waved to his crew behind him. "Let’s go! Time to show our little sis how things work around here!"
