Attention Sir, I Have Your Heart Handcuffed!-Chapter 373 - 253: Don’t Leave Me Alone in the Darkness, Okay? (2nd update 2)
The nine squares divided on the screen are ultimately just about one person.
She walked across the large lawn. The winter wind swept up the fallen leaves, swirling around her. Her face was initially a bit tense, perhaps because she was about to meet that person, or maybe because of the upcoming exam... But when she saw the fallen leaves dancing around her, she blinked and smiled, temporarily casting aside her anxiety, and joined the whirlwind of leaves, twirling in a circle with the wind. Her red plaid wool coat, with its fitted waist and wide skirt, twirled into a flower in the wind.
But no matter how naturally graceful the wind’s dance with the leaves, or how bright and beautiful her coat was, it still couldn’t compare to the smile on her face.
At first, there was surprise, then a calm smile followed by dancing along... Her smile was pure and transparent, completely unguarded, so beautiful that it was contagious.
Thus, when he saw the image in that square, mr. was also smiling.
At this moment, Xia Zuo suddenly understood mr.’s feelings facing Shi Nian back then.
With mr.’s character, it was hard to imagine that he could be moved by the innocent smile of a thirteen-year-old girl outside the window, so much so that he willingly waited for six years for her to grow up. To the extent of doing many foolish things now because of her, even things that were dangerously close to the edge of a cliff.
Just because, with mr.’s insight, back then as he kept to that window, it was too easy to see through the truths and falsehoods of the outside world. At that time, what surrounded him was the loss of family affection, indifference from relatives, the unfairness of fate... The only sincerity and beauty that could enter his vision through that window was from that little girl.
.
But then mr.’s smile disappeared, and his slender fingers gently tightened around the sofa armrest.
Xia Zuo followed mr.’s gaze and understood he was watching her walking into the corridor with a backpack.
She tried to stay calm, keeping her gaze straight and her chin slightly raised; however, her shoulders still betrayed her tension, unable to relax, and instinctively shrugged a few times.
Mr. had taught him, that was [unconstrained tension].
But in this scene, there was no information about Tang Yanqing, so the reason mr. clenched the sofa armrest tight, showing tension, was not because of seeing a rival, but—because he was nervous for her.
This was empathy.
Xia Zuo couldn’t bear to look any longer, retracting his gaze, and gently lowered his eyelids.
.
The images on the large screen also included scenes from the behavior analysis classroom, the entrance and corridor of the Eastern Studies Department dormitory building, the fifth-floor corridor, and the entrance of dormitory 507.
Every key point was still because of her.
Mr. held his breath and watched the classroom scene repeatedly. The scene stopped abruptly at Tang Yanqing flicking her sleeve and leaving, while Shi Nian hesitated deeply but still followed.
But at least from the exam and the detention process afterwards, everything seemed calm and smooth.
Yet mr. seemed a bit uneasy, irritably turning off the nine-square grid, leaving only one image.
Enlarged, on the huge concave LCD screen it was so big it didn’t feel like video footage, but right before his eyes. It was another parallel space, a step away from entering.
That was Tang Yanqing’s office.
In the image, Tang Yanqing opened the door to receive the test papers Shi Nian threw at her, raising her hand high. Those test papers fluttered like snowflakes in the air, obscuring the surveillance camera’s focus at the right angle. Then Tang Yanqing paced irritably around the office a few times, before sitting back at her desk sulking for a while, but she controlled herself and began reviewing the test papers.
The image seemed to be still, only capturing Tang Yanqing quietly reviewing and marking papers until dusk fell.
The enlarged image, so the timestamp on the screen was also enlarged, Xia Zuo couldn’t help but squint to look closely at the time.
No problem, it precisely matches the time when Tang Yanqing and Shi Nian successively left the classroom, with a few minutes’ time difference, just the duration of walking back from the classroom to the office. Calculating by Tang Yanqing’s leg length, stride length, and usual pace, it matches perfectly; also calculating Shi Nian’s leg length and pace, considering she might have jogged following her, the time difference is also reasonable.
Yet mr. just kept staring at the image, seemingly in disbelief.
Xia Zuo was worried, fearing mr. was overthinking and getting stuck in a rut.
"Rival" was a foreign term to mr., he had adversaries over the years, but whether it was George or Jamie, or competitors faced in the business arena like Ford Group, they were merely momentary equals. Mr. soon overcame them, even anticipating their future fates. Only with Tang Yanqing did mr. seem unable to let go, always in a state of anxiety.
Clearly, Tang Yanqing couldn’t compare with mr. in age or experience, mr. just needed to remain calm and respond with his usual composure. But with Shi Nian around, mr. couldn’t help but get irritable. As a result, although he had the upper hand over Tang Yanqing, he couldn’t help but feel uneasy now.
Rival... Even Xiang Yuan in the past, mr. never took to heart. But now facing this Tang Yanqing, she seemed to be the only "rival" mr. acknowledged.
It’s mr.’s first experience facing a rival in love.
.
Huangfu Huazhang watched for a long time, finally turning his head. His blue eyes in the darkness seemed even deeper than true black eyes.
"Take a look, is there anything wrong?"
Xia Zuo examined the timestamp again, looked at the flow of the footage and the logicality of Tang Yanqing’s words and actions... In the end, he shook his head: "It doesn’t seem edited. Is mr. worried this has been tampered with?"
Huangfu Huazhang nodded.
Xia Zuo then comforted him: "Don’t overthink it, mr. This upgraded surveillance system was commissioned from the world’s top ’Bright Mirror’ company at great cost. Their technicians are even superior to the FBI and CIA’s."
Huangfu Huazhang leaned back, folding his long legs, eyes lightly closed.
"Xia Zuo, have you ever been in love?"
Xia Zuo’s face turned red: "Why does mr. ask such a thing? Following you now, where would I find time for that?"
Huangfu Huazhang laughed: "When I met you at the orphanage in Vietnam and wanted to take you away, you clearly couldn’t let go."
Xia Zuo blushed: "... The younger siblings at the orphanage were bullied, only I could protect them. If I left, they’d be bullied again."
Huangfu Huazhang lightly shook his head: "But you weren’t the only one who could protect the younger siblings. The day you left, a girl rushed up and beat you half to death."
Those unbearable past memories, that... person he dared not think of.
Xia Zuo closed his eyes: "... It’s all past, mr."
Huangfu Huazhang nodded: "A man is a man, there’s always a time when he won’t be outdone by a girl. So if you were Tang Yanqing in the image, seeing her catching up to deliver test papers... would you easily let her go, then sit down calmly to read papers?"
His blue eyes flashed intensely, "I’d dominate her... conquer her, make her see my intentions. Tang Yanqing has such a character too, how could he not do anything?"
Xia Zuo was startled: "Mr?!"
Huangfu Huazhang’s face turned pale, but the light in his eyes grew even more intense: "...In my mind right now, I am Tang Yanqing; I’ve already forced her. So the image before me is off!"
Xia Zuo’s heart tightened, hurriedly bowing: "I’ll investigate right away!"
.
As Xia Zuo’s figure departed, Huangfu Huazhang closed his eyes and sank into the wide, soft leather sofa.
The imagination in his mind wouldn’t stop, he was nearly driven mad by the desire to have her!
His little girl, even in the darkness, still a soft and sweet young girl, yet under such despairing circumstances, she bravely reached out to him.
Though she didn’t know who he was, she told him with firm confidence: "Don’t be afraid, because the police will not let the bad guys succeed for long. Trust me, for I am the daughter of a police officer."
She gently patted the back of his hand, "...From now on, I will be your light. With light in your heart, you will no longer fear the darkness."
He gripped the armrest tightly, inhaling deeply.
"...You are my light, you’ve said it yourself. You said you would protect me, accompany me."
.
Shi Nian rushed to the castle after work, finding Huangfu Huazhang had already returned to normalcy.
His blue eyes, deep like the darkest night.
"Look," he said softly, smiling. "Do you see anything wrong?"
Spying that Xia Zuo had left, Shi Nian couldn’t help but glance around at the few servants. Then she leaned toward him and whispered, "Didn’t Xia Zuo notice anything?"
Huangfu Huazhang chuckled softly, lowering his voice, "What can a single-hearted person like that notice? You’re more observant than him. That’s why I chose you."
Shi Nian looked down, hoping to hide the blush creeping across her cheeks.
Huangfu Huazhang reached out and lifted her chin gently, "I’ve been waiting six years for you to grow up, and you finally have. I have so much I want to tell you—"
Shi Nian interrupted him softly, "What a silly thing to do."
But she didn’t pull away.
