MTLNOVEL Chapter 24:
Chapter 24: Li Ruochen Is Missing:
Lin You watched helplessly as the number of comments on the Weibo post climbed by dozens every second, and his head began to throb. Thankfully, when the comments reached around seven or eight hundred, someone posted a three-word comment: “Reported!”
Soon, countless others followed suit, and dozens of replies echoed the same word: “Reported!”
Lin You sighed in relief and added his own comment under the thread: “Reported!” At this rate, he figured the post would be deleted within an hour, and severe accounts might even face penalties. For now, that was enough. As long as the situation didn’t spiral out of control, he could deal with the aftermath later.
Glancing at the clock in the lower right corner of the computer, Lin You saw it was already 7:35 a.m. on April 28th. That left less than thirteen hours until the explosion predicted by Xuan Chi.
Lin You shut down the computer and went to the Internet café counter to buy a cheap toothbrush, toothpaste, and a towel. The café’s network manager, a lively girl with dyed yellow hair, teased him as he approached. “Hey, handsome, want to sleep in my room?”
Lin You forced a smile. “You’re really considerate.”
He couldn’t be bothered with her flirtations, knowing better than to get involved. Places like Internet cafés and billiard halls near schools were often controlled by local gangsters. This yellow-haired girl was likely the girlfriend of one of those gang leaders. Acting on impulse would only result in getting beaten up and extorted.
After a quick wash, Lin You returned to his computer and logged into Xuan Chi’s Weibo account. He found that the controversial post had already been deleted, but Xuan Chi hadn’t taken any other action. It seemed his master had judged that the situation hadn’t escalated enough to warrant further intervention. Lin You finally relaxed and left the café.
On his way back to school, he spotted Li Ruochen. However, she seemed unusually downcast, her eyes rimmed with tears. The usually composed and elegant Li Ruochen now exuded a sorrowful beauty, reminiscent of a Korean drama heroine after a devastating heartbreak.
Lin You was about to approach her when he noticed Zhang Xi heading toward her with breakfast in hand. Zhang Xi clearly saw Lin You but didn’t greet him. Instead, his eyes darted past him to someone else. Lin You turned around and saw Zhang Xiaoyu and her best friend walking behind him.
Zhang Xi hurried past Lin You, his breakfast obviously intended for the girl he liked. Just as Lin You decided to move on, Zhang Xi called out from a distance, “Lin You! Your breakfast is on your desk. It’s your favorite pancake!”
A warm feeling rose in Lin You’s chest. Zhang Xi was one of the few people who cared about him outside of his master and his fellow junior brothers and sisters. Lin You wished he could warn Zhang Xi about tonight’s predicted explosion, but he wasn’t sure if it would actually happen. After all, the vision of the future he had glimpsed wasn’t always reliable.
The morning classes passed uneventfully. Even the physical education teacher didn’t bother with lessons. It wasn’t until Lin You saw his homeroom teacher, Yuan Shangjie, that he remembered he needed to speak with her about her so-called foreign boyfriend.
During lunch, Lin You went to the cafeteria but didn’t see Li Ruochen. He assumed she had gone elsewhere to eat. However, when she didn’t show up for the afternoon classes, a sense of unease crept over him. Lin You wracked his brain, recalling the glimpse of the future he had seen, and realized that from this day forward, Li Ruochen hadn’t appeared at all. Something must have happened to her that afternoon.
Anxiety gripped him. Lin You had planned to confront Teacher Yuan after dinner about her boyfriend, but he decided to put it off. Instead, he headed straight to the girls’ dormitory, where Li Ruochen lived. He asked the dormitory attendant about her, but the woman said she hadn’t seen her. When Lin You asked to check her room, the attendant refused. With no other choice, he paced outside the dormitory.
The dormitory attendant didn’t seem surprised by his presence. Boys lingering outside the girls’ dormitory was a common sight. After an hour of waiting, one of Li Ruochen’s roommates came out and mentioned that she had seen Li Ruochen leaving earlier with some simple clothes. She seemed to have been crying.
Lin You felt helpless. He didn’t know where Li Ruochen lived or anything about her family. He considered going to the school office to inquire about her background, but just then, he spotted Zhang Xi waiting near the dormitory. Zhang Xi was likely there for Zhang Xiaoyu. When he noticed Lin You, he asked curiously, “Lin You, what are you doing here?”
In Zhang Xi’s eyes, Lin You was a model student, someone too focused on academics to be concerned with romance. Lin You simply glanced at him, unwilling to explain, and walked away.
He searched every corner of the school where someone might hide but found no trace of Li Ruochen. Frustrated, he decided to search outside the school. By the time he left the school gates, it was already five in the evening, leaving just over three hours until the explosion predicted by Xuan Chi.
Standing at the gate, Lin You felt lost. The outside world was vast, and he had no idea where to begin looking for a classmate he barely knew. Although he had her phone number, his calls went unanswered despite trying over a hundred times.
Wandering aimlessly near the school, Lin You suddenly spotted the yellow-haired girl from the Internet café. She was carrying a baseball bat on her shoulder and was accompanied by two skinny gangsters. The three of them were heading north, loudly cursing as they walked.
Lin You, focused on finding Li Ruochen, didn’t initially pay attention to them. However, his mind drifted to a dark memory.
Two years ago, several female school bullies had assaulted a classmate in the girls’ restroom, stripping her and recording the attack. When the incident came to light, the perpetrators escaped severe punishment due to their family connections. Devastated, the victim had taken her own life.
Her father, consumed by rage, had stormed the school with a shotgun, killing seven people, including the bullies, the vice principal who had shielded them, and their head teacher.
The tragedy had made national headlines, leading to the resignation of several officials and a crackdown on school violence. While overt incidents had decreased, violence had merely moved off-campus.
The memory made Lin You shudder.
Could something similar have happened to Li Ruochen? The yellow-haired girl clearly had ties to the local underworld.
Without hesitation, Lin You decided to follow her and the two gangsters.