Forced to Love (GL) - Chapter 13

Lingxi dodged the incoming punch, using her right hand to grab the man’s arm and shift her body sideways, leveraging his strength against him. Then, she kicked the back of his knee, forcing him to crouch down.

The next second, another fist came at her from the side. Lingxi quickly adjusted her angle, leaned back, and used her left hand to redirect his force. At the same time, she lifted her knee and struck him under the armpit.

The man groaned in pain, his expression twisted in agony.

But that did not stop the others from charging forward. In fact, it only fueled their anger.

After all, several grown men had surrounded their target, yet they had ended up in such an embarrassing situation. Not to mention, there was still someone in the background whom they hadn’t even touched yet. The humiliation was overwhelming.

Lingxi faced them directly, but her peripheral vision kept glancing behind her.

Noticing her movements, they exchanged looks. The man in the center signaled to the ones on the outer edge. In response, a few of them quickly dispersed and moved toward Shen Sui.

Lingxi still held onto the crouching man’s hand. Without letting go, she forcefully slammed the two initial attackers into each other. Then, she suddenly jumped, stepping on their bodies and using them as a platform to push off. The two men fell backward, crashing into the ones charging from behind.

Using the momentum, Lingxi flipped mid-air and landed beside Shen Sui.

Lingxi and Shen Sui locked eyes. Shen Sui gave her a subtle nod.

The attackers had already closed in. Lingxi changed her approach, taking the initiative to throw a punch. Her strikes were fast, precise, and ruthless. She took down the one closest to the edge, creating an opening in their encirclement.

“Run!”

Lingxi suddenly shouted.

A figure dashed out from the crowd’s edge. Taking advantage of their momentary distraction, Lingxi swiftly lowered herself and swept her leg, knocking away the nearest opponent. Just as she was about to follow, her foot had barely touched the ground when—

In an instant, a sharp force lunged at her. Relying on her combat instincts, Lingxi instinctively raised her hand to block and quickly retreated.

A cold blade gleamed; its edge now smeared with red.

The surroundings fell silent. A man, addressed as “Brother Zhao” by the others, let go of Mi Tongtong’s hand and made a gesture. His expression darkened viciously. “Forget chasing. Just her. Just her! If she gets hurt, I’ll take responsibility!”

Lingxi looked down at her hand, watching the bl00d seep from the wound. The pain traveled from the injury to her brain. She opened and closed her fingers, testing the movement, feeling the wound stretch with each motion.

“Hmm. It’s not too bad.”

She spoke as if she hadn’t heard the man’s words, murmuring to herself.

When she looked up again, her expression remained unchanged. She scanned the people around her and repeated the same words: “Hmm. It’s not too bad.”

…

Sunlight shone on Lingxi like a spotlight. She kicked out, her foot forming a perfect arc before returning to position. The only sound left was the men groaning in pain.

Those who had been standing moments ago were now on the ground, clutching their injuries.

Mi Tongtong sat on the ground, too afraid to speak. Brother Zhao had already seen the situation turning against him and had fled, abandoning not only her but also his so-called “brothers.”

Lingxi turned to look at Mi Tongtong. The girl instinctively scooted backward, clearly terrified that Lingxi would attack her.

“I… I…” Mi Tongtong stammered, trying to say something.

Lingxi coldly interrupted her, “This ends here. There won’t be a next time.”

Without another glance, she stepped over the “obstacles” lying on the ground and walked away.

As she made her way down the path, wondering where to find Shen Sui, she suddenly saw a familiar figure running back toward her—from afar, followed by two uniformed… security guards?

Shen Sui stopped in front of Lingxi, panting heavily, her cheeks flushed.

“Are you okay?”

“Why did you come back?”

They spoke at the same time. Lingxi instinctively wanted to reach out to support her, but considering their master-servant relationship—and the fact that one of her hands was injured—she hesitated and stopped.

“I looked back and saw you weren’t following me.”

“I… got blocked. I’m fine. Don’t worry. Rest first before talking.”

Lingxi hid her injured hand behind her and used her other hand to fan Shen Sui, trying to cool her down.

“Ah! Young lady, you’re hurt!”

Shen Sui hadn’t noticed yet, but one of the security guards had sharp eyes and immediately spotted the bl00d on Lingxi’s hand.

“…Oh, it’s nothing.”

“Nothing? Look at that wound!”

Ignoring her protests, the security guard pulled out Lingxi’s injured hand. A deep, diagonal cut ran across the back of her hand. The dried and fresh bl00d against her pale skin made it look quite alarming.

The other guard quickly added, “Did this happen just ahead? Let’s check the scene first! We need to call the police! Young lady, are you hurt anywhere else? We’ll call an ambulance.”

“No, I’m—”

Before Lingxi could finish, Shen Sui cut in, “Thank you both very much.”

“No problem. You stay with her. We’ll go ahead.”

“Alright.”

The two security guards ran forward. Once they left, only Lingxi and Shen Sui remained.

Shen Sui didn’t speak. She simply looked down at Lingxi’s wound. Lingxi couldn’t see her expression.

“I’m fine. Why did you come back?”

Shen Sui remained silent for a long time, head lowered.

Lingxi stood there, feeling a bit uneasy. Just as she was about to pull her hand back, Shen Sui stopped her.

Their palms touched. But instead of warmth, Lingxi felt as if her heat was being drawn away.

Shen Sui’s fingers hovered just above the wound, as if wanting to touch the skin near it, yet hesitating, afraid that even the slightest contact might cause pain.

“Does it hurt?” Shen Sui asked.

“No. Not at all,” Lingxi shook her head.

“I should have…”

Shen Sui stopped midway. She had thought of countless things she could have done differently to prevent this injury.

If she had to be honest, she would rather have taken the wound herself.

“You shouldn’t,” Lingxi understood her meaning. “If it were you, it would’ve been much worse.”

If Shen Sui had been the one hurt, it wouldn’t have ended with just a few men lying on the ground. Lingxi knew that.

“Why did you help me?”

Shen Sui slowly looked up at her.

Her dark pupils, once veiled in hesitation, now shone with clarity. Lingxi sensed something had changed.

“Because…”

“If you hadn’t helped me, you wouldn’t be in this mess.”

“I only helped you with your studies.”

The sun hid behind the clouds, but Lingxi still felt its warmth.

Lingxi thought for a moment before answering seriously: “No matter how many times you ask, I will always answer the same—I want to help you.”

She paused, then murmured, “I just don’t want you to be mad. When you’re mad, I don’t know what to do.”

Shen Sui fell silent. But she never let go of Lingxi’s hand.