Chapter 20: Seeking His Help

Li Wan was on the phone in the living room, her face clouded with a deep scowl, her expression cold and tense.

“Why can’t you get through? Don’t you have even that much ability?” she snapped.

“Who exactly gave the strict order not to let you take on Yu Ling’s case?”

Yu Ling’s heart sank with a jolt. From Li Wan’s words, it was clear that someone had issued an absolute directive barring any lawyer from intervening in this matter.

As for who that person was, Yu Ling already had a clear suspect in mind.

Only after Li Wan hung up did she notice Yu Ling sitting on the sofa. Not wanting to hide anything, she asked, “Did you hear all that?”

Yu Ling nodded blankly.

To Li Wan, Yu Ling’s listless demeanor was the image of someone on the verge of collapse after enduring successive blows.

Suddenly, Li Wan’s eyes reddened. “Yu Ling, I’m sorry. I’ve failed you.”

There was no need to say more; both understood the weight of those words.

Yu Ling shook her head gently. “It’s alright, Sister Li. You did your best.”

Even at a time like this, Yu Ling was comforting her. The surge of gratitude and guilt within Li Wan almost overwhelmed her.

How could this girl be so foolish, yet so kind?

She was being bullied to such an extent, yet she still cared about others.

Li Wan felt even more ashamed. Usually strong and decisive, she suddenly softened, tears shimmering in her eyes.

Yu Ling tenderly wiped away the tears before her. “Sister Li, things aren’t that bad yet. I have a plan.”

Li Wan raised her tear-streaked face. “What plan?”

Yu Ling remained silent, her expression grave.

Li Wan wiped her tears and, unable to suppress a troubling thought, quickly grabbed Yu Ling’s hand. “Listen to me. Don’t go to President Wang. He can’t help you. The person who gave the order is a big shot; someone like President Wang is insignificant in his presence. Don’t sacrifice yourself for nothing…”

Before she could finish, Yu Ling interrupted her.

She clasped Li Wan’s hand in return, smiling softly with a hint of playful reproach.

“Sister Li, where are you getting these ideas? What do you take me for? Of course I wouldn’t go to President Wang. Didn’t I already refuse him the other day?”

Yu Ling felt a bit exasperated. President Wang was a small-time boss she had met at an event before. The moment he saw Yu Ling, he launched a relentless pursuit.

But he exuded the aura of a nouveau riche—yellowed teeth, thinning hair, and a big belly.

Most importantly, he was married.

To put it bluntly, he just wanted Yu Ling to be his mistress.

Maybe not just the mistress—perhaps the fourth or fifth.

Yu Ling would never become a mistress. Even in her poorest moments, she never considered selling her body or soul, especially to someone like President Wang, whom she found utterly repulsive.

She was, to be honest, somewhat particular about appearances.

President Wang’s looks were simply unacceptable to her.

Dragging the topic back, Yu Ling shook her head and withdrew her hand from Li Wan’s grip. “Sister Li, give me some time and space. I’ll handle this.”

With that, she retreated to her room and closed the door.

The slip of paper clenched in her palm remained unused. She unfolded her hand and noticed it was damp with sweat, the ink smudged.

There was a SIM card in her backup phone, so she could make calls.

But…

Yu Ling was at a loss. She didn’t have Chi Ran’s phone number.

What should she do?

She sighed deeply. At this point, all she could do was put her hope in the live comments—the barrage of messages, like a magic lamp, could it grant her one more wish? Tell me Chi Ran’s number?

Yu Ling watched the scrolling comments with rapt attention, afraid to miss or misread any.

[Oh no, Gu Tingchuan has intervened. No lawyer dares to take Yu Ling’s case anymore. Since Yu Ling started streaming, she hasn’t spoken out. Now, public opinion is swinging toward Lin Mianmian. Many onlookers have been misled, thinking Yu Ling is tacitly consenting, ashamed to speak up.]

[Only Chi Ran can save Yu Ling now.]

Yes, yes, yes, Yu Ling nodded wildly in her heart.

Only Chi Ran can save me, but I don’t know how to contact him.

Tell me, please tell me.

Yu Ling silently pleaded.

[But Yu Ling seems not to know how to reach Chi Ran. Last time, Chi Ran wanted to exchange contact info with her, but she ran away when she saw him, deeply hurting his innocent, pure heart. He couldn’t sleep all night, his pillow soaked with tears.]

What?

Innocent, pure heart?

Is that how you use those words?

Did he cry that day?

Suddenly, Yu Ling found herself unseasonably imagining the scene of Chi Ran biting his pillow and crying.

The image was too beautiful; she dared not look.

She shivered, goosebumps rising on nonexistent skin, and focused intently on the comments.

[Yu Ling doesn’t know Chi Ran’s number, but I do.]

[But I can’t travel into her world to tell her the number is 1…622. Oh heavens, what should I do?]

Yu Ling’s eyes suddenly widened. She hurriedly memorized the string of digits.

But… is this really Chi Ran’s number?

Yu Ling bit her lip, hesitating at the crucial moment.

She stared at the thin slip of paper with those digits, as if willing to see through it.

Her hands nervously twisted the paper, her heart a battlefield.

What if this isn’t Chi Ran’s number?

While she wrestled with doubt, she saw a comment:

[Upstairs, is this really Chi Ran’s number? How come I didn’t know?]

Upon reading that, Yu Ling’s heart sank halfway.

[The author mentioned it before. This is a deliberately set number; the last three digits are Yu Ling’s birthday. Check the author’s Weibo and scroll through it slowly.]

[Chi Ran is on the other side, his heart on fire. When the scandalous photos broke out, he called Yu Ling but couldn’t get through. The poor boy thought Yu Ling didn’t want to talk to him, pacing anxiously. He even sent private messages through Yu Ling’s Weibo but got no reply. He had to hire a group of internet trolls and is currently battling fiercely with Lin Mianmian’s hired trolls.]

[He almost shared a fake news post on his main account to clear Yu Ling’s name. If it weren’t for Zhou Yan’s quick reflexes snatching the phone away, Chi Ran would have been dragged into the trending topics alongside Yu Ling.]

Yu Ling was stunned by the flood of information from the comments, her mind in turmoil.

She even felt as if her eyes were about to go blind.

Chi Ran, he…

Her emotions churned—sour and bitter beyond words.

After a long hesitation, she input the string of digits and pressed the call button.

The moment her finger touched the phone screen, her heart skipped a beat.