On a Stormy Night, the Campus Belle Knocked on My Door Seeking Shelter
Chapter 21: That Night

Chapter 21: Chapter 21: That Night

Chen Mo only knew the general gist of Su Yuqing’s family situation.

To investigate Su Yuqing’s case, he had previously visited her parents a few times, but he’d gotten almost no useful information.

Her parents were divorced and had each started new families.

Su Yuqing had always lived with her mother.

However, regarding Su Yuqing’s death, both families were incredibly tight-lipped. It seemed each family had played a part in leading her to her tragic end that night.

No matter which family Chen Mo went to investigate, he would be impatiently shooed away after saying just a few words.

Then again, it was understandable that he was driven away from her mother’s home, because by the time Chen Mo visited, Su Yuqing’s mother had already gone insane.

She had gone mad the very day she learned what had happened to Su Yuqing and had never recovered. Chen Mo tried visiting her several times, but he could never get anything out of her. If he pressed with too many questions, she would start screaming, causing Su Yuqing’s stepfather to throw him out immediately.

This made Chen Mo feel that Su Yuqing showing up at his door last night, desperate and with nowhere to go during the storm, had everything to do with her family.

Although her parents refused to talk, Chen Mo had managed to glean some information from neighbors and local witnesses.

That night, Su Yuqing had stormed out of her house into the rain, reportedly after a conflict with her stepfather. It was rumored she had even stabbed him.

Chen Mo had been utterly shocked when he heard this.

He had gone back and asked a senior colleague who worked the case. On the very first day, they had received the same tip and had gone to question her parents.

But when they questioned Su Yuqing’s mother and stepfather, the couple vehemently denied the accusation.

Her mother and stepfather weren’t at home that day; they were at the hospital receiving treatment.

According to the police report from the hospital, the story from her stepfather and mother was...

They claimed the floor at home was slippery, and the stepfather had lost his footing, stumbling into the mother who happened to be peeling an apple. This resulted in him being accidentally stabbed in the abdomen with the fruit knife.

And so, they had frantically rushed to the hospital.

As for why Su Yuqing had run out into the rain, they claimed the stepfather had seen photos of numerous boys on her phone. He felt she was too young to be dating and had admonished her, which led to an argument.

And Su Yuqing had run out of the house right after.

According to the investigative timeline, not long after Su Yuqing left, her stepfather and mother rushed to the hospital because of the "accident" mentioned above.

The hospital’s security footage confirmed their arrival time. Su Yuqing was still alive then.

They remained at the hospital the entire time, which cleared them of any suspicion in the crime itself.

However, according to the investigating officer’s recollection, when they were informed of Su Yuqing’s death, her stepfather showed no reaction. Her mother, on the other hand, fainted on the spot and subsequently lost her mind completely.

This made it even more difficult to make any headway in the case.

The ongoing investigation revealed that after leaving her mother’s house, Su Yuqing had actually gone to her father’s.

But she wasn’t there for long before she left again.

Security footage showed Su Yuqing leaving her father’s apartment and entering the elevator. Her head was hanging low the entire time, her spirits visibly much lower than when she had arrived.

Finally, she arrived at another person’s home... and that person was Chen Mo.

In other words, on that stormy night, Su Yuqing had left the homes of her two closest relatives, one after the other, only to finally arrive at Chen Mo’s home.

It was only when Chen Mo uncovered all this that he realized the immense trust Su Yuqing must have had in him, and the incredible courage it must have taken for her to knock on his door, drenched and looking so wretched.

He now understood that when she had asked him to take her in, her heart must have already endured an unimaginable series of crushing, despair-inducing blows.

’How desperately she must have clung to her last shred of hope, mustering all her remaining strength, to say words that would embarrass any girl, all because she had no other choice.’

’In such a desperate situation, how could I have failed to notice? Why didn’t I reach out and save her in time?’

The moment he learned the whole story, the regret in Chen Mo’s heart became even more intense than when he first heard she had died.

From that moment on, he wished desperately that he could go back to that night—the night she needed care and warmth the most—and meet her all over again.

He wanted to be the one to cast that single, final ray of warm light she was searching for into her already darkened world.

Even so, Chen Mo didn’t know for sure if Su Yuqing had run away for the reasons her mother and stepfather gave, nor did he know exactly what she had gone through in those two homes.

He wasn’t going to press the issue. These were things an outsider couldn’t easily pry into.

What he wanted to do—what he *could* do—was ensure that no matter what, Su Yuqing could find a safe harbor with him, a place where she could receive some comfort and care.

They used the tea Zhou Hao had given them for an afternoon break, leisurely enjoying it with pastries for the rest of the afternoon.

As time passed, twilight began to seep through the sheer curtains, tinting the living room with its colors. Curled up in a corner of the sofa, Su Yuqing flipped through the pages of a book, the warm lamplight tracing the delicate outline of her frame.

As Chen Mo walked over with a glass of warm milk, he caught a glimpse of her unconsciously stroking the inside of her left wrist. There, a faint, crescent-shaped pink scar was visible.

"Try it. I added some honey," he said, casually placing the glass in her palm. Its warmth was a perfect comfort against her cool fingertips.

Su Yuqing started to thank him but stopped, suddenly remembering Chen Mo’s "ban." She pressed her lips together, swallowing the words. As she took a small sip, her eyelashes fluttered.

Amidst the sweet, milky steam, Chen Mo noticed that Su Yuqing was actually reading the *Zhou Yi*. ’That’s the kind of book only my dad would like,’ he thought. ’I just have it on the shelf to fill space.’

"What’s this? Thinking of becoming a fortune-teller?" Chen Mo asked with a laugh.

"That’s right. Once I’ve figured it out, I can do a reading for you, how about that?" Su Yuqing replied with a playful smile.

In truth, the *Zhou Yi* was more than just a book for divination and reading hexagrams; one could learn a great deal from it.

As they were talking, the sudden screech of tires from a car braking sharply outside shattered the quiet.

Su Yuqing’s back went ramrod straight, and she nearly spilled her milk.

Chen Mo quickly steadied her trembling hand and moved to the window. A moment later, the car drove off. Nothing was wrong.

Chen Mo glanced at her rattled expression, his heart aching with compassion. He walked back to her side and gently took her small hand in his. "Don’t worry," he said softly. "You still owe me a debt. Until it’s paid in full, I won’t let anyone take you away."

Su Yuqing, whose heart was already pounding from the scare, found that his words didn’t calm her down at all. In fact, they made her heart beat even faster.

But a smile spread across her face.

"Once you learn how, you can do a reading to see if we’re compatible. I’d hate for you to jinx your creditor," Chen Mo said with a grin.

The truth was, Chen Mo already knew their astrological charts. Even if they weren’t deemed compatible, he had his own retort ready.