Lu Xuan took a deep breath, knowing that today's act had to be flawless, otherwise he would be nailed to Yan University's pillar of shame along with Shen Yahui, that rotten mud.
He glanced at the growing crowd of onlookers from the corner of his eye, a cold sneer in his heart, but his face had already transformed into an expression of profound heartbreak and despair.
"Shen Yahui," Lu Xuan's voice carried a hint of just the right amount of hoarseness, as if something was caught in his throat, or as if he was trying to suppress immense grief, "Are we... really going to come to this?"
He tilted his head slightly, his eyes seemingly glistening with moisture, looking exactly like a poor soul cruelly hurt by the one he deeply loved.
Shen Yahui was stunned by his sudden change of expression, momentarily forgetting to continue her tantrum, and stared blankly at him: "Lu Xuan, you... what trick are you trying to pull now?"
Lu Xuan gave a desolate smile, shook his head, his voice filled with weariness and disappointment: "A trick? In your eyes, all my kindness to you, all my tolerance, are just tricks? I ask myself, when we were together, you knew how I treated you. Now that we've broken up, I still hoped you would be well, but why did you have to chase me to the university and use this method... to ruin me? What exactly did I do wrong to make you hate me so much, to force me to such a desperate situation?"
This series of questions, brimming with "deep affection" and "grievance," exploded like heavy bombs among the onlookers.
"Holy crap! What's going on? From the sound of it, the guy was dumped, and the girl chased him to the university to cause trouble?"
"No way, I clearly heard that girl cursing him for messing around in a hotel just now?"
"Tsk tsk, there's a story here! Quick, peanuts, sunflower seeds, and mineral water for the front row!"
Liu Ming stood aside, completely dumbfounded.
He looked at Lu Xuan's heartbroken expression, then at Shen Yahui's bewildered face, his mind completely unable to process it.
Is Brother Xuan... being cuckolded by this woman, and she's even turning the tables on him?
Shen Yahui finally reacted, trembling with rage, and shrieked, pointing at Lu Xuan: "Lu Xuan! Don't you dare twist the facts here! It was clearly you, you were involved with other women! How dare you say I ruined you?!"
"We've clearly been broken up for so long!" Lu Xuan suddenly raised his voice, with a hint of desperation at being pushed to his limit, "Why won't you just let me go? Do you think I really don't know anything?"
He took a deep breath, as if making a certain decision, and his gaze swept over Shen Yahui with a desolate look: "I've known about your cheating for a long time! I originally thought, since we loved each other, we should part amicably and let you keep some dignity! But what about you? You actually ran to my university, in front of so many people, and insulted me like this!"
"You're just a slut!"
"What? Cheating?"
"Oh my god, a reversal? The girl cheated?"
"I knew it, this guy looks so handsome, he doesn't seem like that kind of person!"
The discussions among the crowd grew louder, and gazes, like searchlights, swept back and forth between Lu Xuan and Shen Yahui, filled with curiosity, gossip, and even a hint of... schadenfreude?
Shen Yahui's face, at this moment, had turned from red to white, then from white to green, a spectacular display, comparable to a Sichuan opera face-change.
She never expected that Lu Xuan would bite back, and say it with such "sincerity"!
"I know all about your affairs!" Lu Xuan's voice suddenly turned cold, carrying a hint of suppressed anger, "Not only did you cheat, but you were also two-timing! That greasy fatso, isn't he old enough to be your father?"
"Shen Yahui, are you just going to demean yourself like this, demean our past relationship? Now, you're even running here to throw this dirty water on me. Do you think I, Lu Xuan, am easy to bully, or do you think everyone in the world is a fool?!"
"Boom!"
The crowd completely erupted!
"Two-timing?!"
"Oh my goodness! And an old man? That's a bit much!"
"What for? For his age, for him not showering?" A male student couldn't help but let out a snicker, causing a burst of laughter from those around him.
"No wonder she's still causing trouble after breaking up, she's a master of managing her fish pond, and one of her fish got away, so she's not reconciled, right?"
Shen Yahui was completely defeated by Lu Xuan's series of "revelations" and the surrounding jeers. Her head buzzed, and her vision blurred.
She didn't know how Lu Xuan knew these things; she thought she had hidden them very well!
Her face was ashen, her lips trembling, she wanted to explain, but found her throat seemed blocked, unable to utter a single word. She could only gasp for air, trying to calm herself down.
"You... you... you're slandering me!" She finally squeezed out a few words, her voice dry and hoarse, full of helpless pallor, "What evidence do you have! You're just slandering me! When did we break up? We never broke up!"
Lu Xuan seemed to have anticipated her words, a mocking curve playing at the corner of his lips. His gaze swept over the students around him, who had been completely swayed by him and were now looking at Shen Yahui with disdainful eyes.
"How long have we been broken up? Don't you know yourself?" Lu Xuan sneered, "If you don't want others to know, don't do it! Shen Yahui, who do you think you can hide your messy affairs from? Your good friend couldn't stand it anymore and told me all your glorious deeds! That's why I made up my mind to break up with you!"
"Friend?" Several names flashed through Shen Yahui's mind instantly, and her eyes grew even more panicked.
Just then, a loud, powerful roar came from outside the crowd: "Hui Hui! Which blind dog is bullying you? I'm here to get revenge for you!"
Before the words finished, a burly young man, wearing a tight T-shirt, with a dragon tattoo across his shoulder on his arm, and a gold chain as thick as a pinky finger around his neck, pushed through the crowd and rushed in aggressively.
His face was full of flesh, clearly not someone to be trifled with, and sweat was beading on his forehead, indicating he had run there.
The young man immediately saw Shen Yahui, pale-faced and swaying, surrounded by the crowd, and Lu Xuan, standing opposite her with a "grieved" expression.
"Hui Hui, why didn't you wait for me, you ran so fast!" The young man walked carelessly to Shen Yahui's side and asked in a gruff voice, then glared fiercely at Lu Xuan, "You're that pretty boy named Lu Xuan? You dare bully our Hui Hui, I think you're tired of living! Today, I'm going to make you see how red flowers are!"
With that, he began cracking his knuckles, making "kaka" sounds, looking as if he was about to strike.
Shen Yahui saw her savior arrive, as if grasping a life-saving straw, and was about to speak, but Lu Xuan preempted her.
Lu Xuan looked at the tattooed young man, a complex expression of understanding mixed with a hint of sympathy on his face, and sighed softly: "Another one... Alas, big brother, you were also deceived by her, weren't you?"
Lu Xuan knew that this person was one of the other three, named Chen Kui, a fitness trainer.