I walked cautiously toward Room 802, still uncertain. Pressing my ear to the door, I faintly heard David's sinister laugh:
"Heh… you may be clever and know how to scheme, but do you really think I'll let you walk out of this room with that phone tonight?"
Then came Linda's scream, followed by the sound of a phone smashing on the ground. A chaotic noise erupted from within, laced with David's aggressive growl:
"Tonight, I *will* have you. You can scream all you want—no one's coming to save you."
Hearing this, I didn't hesitate. I raised my fist and *bam bam*, slammed it against the door. The sounds inside abruptly stopped, and David's furious voice rang out:
"Who's there?!"
I steadied my breath and imitated a staff member's tone:
"This is housekeeping from Junyue Hotel. There's a fire in the neighboring room. The manager asked us to evacuate all guests immediately."
"What?!"
David, startled, opened the door and stuck his bald head out, panic on his face. "A fire?!"
The moment he saw me, his beady little eyes widened in disbelief. Before he could react, I shoved the door hard—*BANG!*—it slammed into his face. He cried out in pain, clutching his nose and crouching down.
I took the chance to step into the room, slammed the door shut, and turned around with a cold expression.
"Andrew—"
Linda, now able to see who it was, called my name. Her clothes were still neat, but there was a handprint on her cheek and tears in her eyes. It was clear David had tried to force himself on her and had even slapped her. Her iPhone lay shattered on the floor.
"Are you okay?" I asked.
Linda shook her head. "I'm fine."
I told her to gather her things and leave first, to wait for me outside. Still shaken, she wiped away tears with the back of her hand, nodded, picked up her broken phone and LV handbag, and prepared to leave.
"You're not going anywhere!"
David stood, clutching his bleeding nose, and tried to block Linda. I grabbed his collar and landed a powerful punch to his beer belly, sending him crashing back down.
Linda looked at me with a complex expression and softly said, "Be careful. I'll wait outside."
Then she stepped out and gently shut the door behind her.
Even now, the old pervert David still didn't get it. He glared at me through gritted teeth:
"You little bastard… how dare you lay hands on me? You're finished. I'll make sure you're expelled. I'll find people to deal with you. You're dead!"
I kicked him down again, then dragged a chair over and sat down comfortably, eyes narrowed.
"Heh… still acting tough? Well, your good days end tonight."
"What do you mean?"
David struggled to his feet, his face bruised and nose bleeding. Gone was the swagger of a school director—he now looked utterly pathetic.
I pulled out my phone and casually scrolled through the photo album. One by one, I showed him the photos we took at Sun God Park the night before.
His face turned pale instantly. He clenched his fists, looking like he was about to lunge at me to snatch the phone—but seeing my cold, mocking smirk, he suddenly remembered he wasn't my match. He backed down.
He now realized how serious his situation was. His beady eyes locked onto mine. Hoarsely, he asked, "What do you want?"
I lazily twirled the phone in my hand.
"First, you're never to go after Linda again."
David's eyes darted nervously. "Fine. I promise. I won't bother Linda, and I won't come after you, either. But in exchange, you have to delete those photos. That's fair, isn't it?"
He thought he was smart. If I deleted the photos, he'd have free rein to retaliate later.
I looked at him and said, "David, do you really take me for a child? You think you're in any position to negotiate? I could drop out of Second High, sure—but can you afford for these photos to go public?"
If the photos leaked, David would be fired without question. Li Chunping's husband was a known butcher—a hot-tempered brute. If he found out David had been with his wife, he'd probably come after him with a cleaver. And David's wife? Also no pushover. She'd probably kill him herself.
David's smirk disappeared. He was visibly panicking.
"What… what do you want from me?" he stammered.
Seeing him so helpless, I felt a strange sense of satisfaction—like I held his fate in my hands.
I gave him a mocking smile. "For scum like you, expulsion is honestly too easy."
He flinched.
"Don't let your usual arrogance fool you. If you get kicked out, you're nothing. Less than nothing. But if I let you stay, you'll be nothing more than *my dog*. Understand?"
"You—!" David's face twisted in fury, but he dared not explode.
I stared at him coldly. "Decide. Be a loyal dog—or get reported and thrown out of the school."
David trembled, sweat pouring down his forehead. I said, "I don't have all day. One minute."
"I'll listen to you from now on!"
He broke, collapsing onto the sofa as if all strength had left his body.
I gave a satisfied nod. "Don't bother Linda again. And don't even *think* about trying to get the photos back. If I catch even a whiff of that, you're done."
His frightened eyes confirmed my suspicion—he had probably planned to stall for now and come after me later.
I left him there, speechless and defeated, and stepped outside. Linda rushed toward me, eyes full of concern.
"Andrew, are you okay?"
"I'm fine. Let's go."
She let out a breath of relief and walked with me out of Junyue Hotel. We walked side by side under the dazzling city lights. A few times, she looked like she wanted to say something.
I asked, "What's wrong?"
She bit her lip. "How did you know I was at Junyue Hotel?"
I lied. "A classmate eating at the hotel saw you. He recognized David as a creep and knew you were my relative, so he called me. I rushed over."
She believed me. But she still asked, "What did you say to Director David? I thought I heard you threaten him with photos. What photos?"
Looking at her stunning face and curious eyes, I couldn't resist teasing her. I handed her my phone. "Here, take a look."
Just as I expected, her face turned bright red.
"Andrew! You bastard! You were spying on David?!"
I denied it, saying Bucktooth and the others had taken them by accident.
She glanced at a few of the photos, then quickly turned off the phone and shoved it back to me.
"I can't believe Ms. Li Chunping is *that* kind of woman. You'd better delete those photos when you get home. Honestly—how can you keep that kind of stuff on your phone?"
We arrived at the bus stop and boarded a bus home.
It was a fifteen-minute ride, and neither of us spoke. A bit bored, I glanced over to see a couple nearby. The guy had dozed off, resting his head on the girl's shoulder. It looked sweet.
I turned to look at Linda beside me. She was staring out the window, lost in thought. Her smooth neck caught my eye.
I couldn't help myself. Pretending to fall asleep, I slowly leaned my head toward her shoulder, trying to mimic the couple and maybe catch a whiff of her scent.
But just as my head touched her shoulder, *SMACK!*
She slapped me and scolded, "Nice try! Five minutes on the bus and you're already asleep? Fooling who, exactly?"
Damn… rookie mistake. I rubbed my cheek, totally embarrassed.