Before Zhao Yanyan could even dial a number, one of the men snatched the phone right out of her hands and tossed it over to Gu Yining.
Gu Yining caught the phone, and out of curiosity, she opened the photo gallery.
To her surprise, it was filled with countless pictures of Mu Zuocheng—taken in secret. Photos of him during class, while running, playing basketball—each image captured his side profile, every smile, recorded with painstaking detail.
Wow, she thought. So it turns out Zhao Yanyan really does have a massive crush on Mu Zuocheng.
"Give me back my phone, Gu Yining!" Zhao Yanyan lunged forward in a fit of rage, but one of the men quickly stopped her and roughly shoved her back into the corner.
The fury on Zhao Yanyan's face completely wiped away any trace of her usual school beauty queen elegance. Her eyes were blazing with anger.
Gu Yining continued scrolling through the phone's contents. She even took the liberty of using a special tool to check for any hidden, encrypted albums or files. Fortunately, there didn't appear to be anything scandalous or incriminating against her. Once she was satisfied, she tossed the phone back to Zhao Yanyan. "You should count yourself lucky that there was nothing in your phone that could harm me. Otherwise, I would've made copies of every last one of them and spread them to every phone in this school."
Then, turning her attention to the thugs, Gu Yining calmly instructed, "Alright, you guys can get started."
Zhao Yanyan found herself completely cornered, trapped between the men and the cold brick wall. She was utterly powerless to escape.
The thugs leered at her, their faces twisted with wicked smiles. One of them reached out, tilting her chin up with his fingers. "Well, well, such a pretty face. We're in for a real treat, aren't we?"
"Don't touch me! Gu Yining, you're despicable! Mu Zuocheng will never forgive you once he finds out about this!" Zhao Yanyan screamed in a panic, but even in the face of fear, she stubbornly refused to beg Gu Yining for mercy.
Gu Yining leaned her back against the alley wall, letting the warm morning sun wash over her face. The light shone brightly, illuminating the narrow alleyway, but it couldn't reach the darkness where Zhao Yanyan was trapped.
Some people, Gu Yining thought to herself, were destined to remain in the shadows.
"Such smooth skin," one of the men sneered.
"Come on, sweetheart, let's have some fun," another thug added, his hands sliding up her leg while another started tugging at the hem of her dress.
Zhao Yanyan's voice cracked as she screamed in desperation, "Don't touch me! You filthy animals, you scumbags!"
Her dress was torn open, buttons snapping and scattering as more of her skin was exposed to the cold air. Tears welled up in her eyes, streaming down her face, mingling with sweat. Her cries for help grew hoarse, her voice barely above a whisper now.
For Zhao Yanyan, who had been raised in wealth and privilege like a delicate flower in a greenhouse, this was the ultimate humiliation. Every touch, every lewd gesture, was an unbearable insult to her dignity.
Gu Yining glanced at the time on her phone. It was almost time for class. "That's enough. We're done here," she announced.
In reality, none of the men had actually crossed any serious lines. Their actions, though vulgar, hadn't gone beyond suggestive gestures and threats. But the mere threat of what could've happened was enough to terrify Zhao Yanyan to her core.
The thugs, disappointed but obedient, reluctantly pulled away. "Tch, we didn't even get to have any real fun," one of them muttered as they walked away.
As soon as they left, Zhao Yanyan's knees buckled. She slid down the wall, her entire body trembling uncontrollably. Her carefully applied makeup was smudged, her bangs disheveled, and her face—normally radiant—was now as pale as death. Sweat and tears soaked her hair as she sat in a heap on the ground, still paralyzed with fear.
Gu Yining casually walked over, holding Zhao Yanyan's phone. She tossed it back into her lap, looking down at her with an air of superiority, like a queen surveying her subject. Her presence was commanding, her gaze cold.
"Liking someone is supposed to be a noble thing," Gu Yining began, her voice firm. "You've got looks, you've got status—use those to your advantage. There's no need to resort to such underhanded, dirty tactics. For the record, I don't even like Mu Zuocheng. We were never rivals in love."
Her eyes narrowed as she continued, her voice lowering to a dangerous whisper. "The pain you inflicted on me that day was a hundred times worse than what you're feeling right now. Today, this was just a small warning. If you dare cross me again, I'll make sure your reputation is utterly destroyed."
With that final, cutting remark, Gu Yining turned on her heel and walked away, leaving Zhao Yanyan trembling and broken against the wall, too shaken to move.