Forced into a romantic relationship

"Flash flood?"

Upon hearing this word, Han Zhou's heart skipped a beat, because the direction ahead was the one leading to Xiao Wang Leng Qiu's house, and he immediately ran there as fast as he could.

The rain was so heavy that he could barely see anything more than ten meters away. It wasn't until he got closer that he saw a large crowd gathered outside a teahouse at the intersection. Some of them were standing in the rain without even an umbrella, seemingly watching something exciting.

But that was all; the anticipated flash flood did not materialize.

Why are you suddenly running so fast?

As Han Zhou looked on in confusion, Teacher Chen, panting heavily, jogged up behind him, put her hands on her knees, and said, "The water is so deep, you can't see anything under your feet. It's dangerous for you to run like this."

"I just heard someone shouting about a flash flood," Han Zhou said, looking into the distance.

"You still dare to say that you'd run forward even after hearing about a flash flood? Are you out of your mind?"

Teacher Chen couldn't understand what this young man was thinking at all. Even if a flash flood really broke out, would he dare to risk his life to go find Wang Lengqiu?
Are their feelings for each other really that deep?

Han Zhou pretended not to hear and turned around to ask, "Teacher Chen, I don't quite understand what they're saying. Could you translate it for me?"

Although he did not see the so-called flash flood, he still did not let go of his worries, and his desire to get to Xiao Wang Lengqiu's side as soon as possible became stronger.

Regardless, at least this young man genuinely cares about Wang Lengqiu… Teacher Chen’s expression softened slightly. He stood there listening for a while, then said speechlessly, “These people are talking about the neighboring county. The terraced fields there have experienced soil erosion and flash floods, destroying a large area of ​​farmland. They’re betting on how many days the terraced fields in front can hold out.”

Han Zhou was stunned for a moment, then said blankly, "Are these people really that bored?"

They're just like Lord Ye who loved dragons but was terrified of them. If a flash flood really breaks out, they might not still be able to stand here chatting.

Teacher Chen didn't say much. She didn't mention much of what she had just heard. For example, the terraced fields were built with funding from the town, but many people suspected that there was shoddy workmanship during the construction process. So they were hoping for an unprecedented torrential rain so that they could see some people make a fool of themselves.

As for where this topic started, and what made so many people gather here to make a bet, she had no idea.

"In short, you shouldn't be so reckless anymore."

"it is good."

The two continued onward, and Han Zhou quickened his pace considerably. Walking through water was an extremely strenuous activity, and Teacher Chen complained incessantly, but could only grit her teeth and keep up. Finally, unable to continue any longer, she said, "Could you slow down a bit? I can't keep up."

"I'm sorry, Teacher Chen, I've been trying my best to control the speed."

Despite saying that, Han Zhou slowed his pace slightly and hesitated for a moment before saying, "The road ahead will only be more difficult. Why don't you go back? I'll go to Wang Lengqiu's house for you."

Although she seemed somewhat reluctant, the fact that she braved the heavy rain and waded through floodwaters to check on the student's home after receiving a phone call from a parent shows that this teacher, Ms. Chen, is very responsible. Other teachers might not have been able to do the same.

He respected this kind of teacher. Since he could do this on his own, there was no need to make the other person suffer as well. He could also gain some goodwill in the process. Why not?
“That won’t do.” However, Teacher Chen immediately rejected the suggestion, her attitude very firm.

She became increasingly curious about the relationship between this person and Wang Lengqiu. Whether it was out of politeness, to satisfy her curiosity, or simply to fulfill Wang Lengqiu's grandfather's request, she couldn't just leave like that.

Hearing this, Han Zhou stopped trying to persuade him. He turned around and saw the stubborn teacher walking with difficulty. After thinking for a moment, he stretched out his arm and said, "Why don't you hold my arm and walk? That should make it easier."

Teacher Chen didn't stand on ceremony. She took off her glasses and wiped the raindrops off the lenses, then reached out and grabbed his arm. After hesitating for two seconds, she reminded him, "Walk a little slower."

"it is good."

Han Zhou had no choice but to slow down again.

Teacher Chen was surprised that this young man, who didn't look strong, had such powerful arms. Even when he was dragging her, he didn't seem to be struggling. He walked very steadily, as if he didn't feel tired at all.

Perhaps because someone was standing in front of her, the previously biting wind and the raindrops flying onto her face disappeared, and she immediately felt much more relaxed, so she couldn't help but glance at the figure in front of her a few more times.

She suddenly felt it was a bit strange to just walk forward in silence, so she asked, "How much longer do we have to walk?"

"About twenty minutes," Han Zhou replied from the front.

"If you don't come along, it will only be ten minutes at most..." he muttered to himself.

"Did you just come back from Wang Lengqiu's house last night? That's why you were wandering around the streets at that time," Teacher Chen asked again.

Han Zhou gave a wry smile: "Saying it's just a casual stroll is too harsh, isn't it? Besides, that child just recovered from her fever and was discharged from the hospital. It's perfectly reasonable for me to take her home, isn't it?"

"I didn't say it was unreasonable, why are you so nervous?"

Teacher Chen's expression changed strangely. "What exactly is your relationship with Wang Lengqiu?"

"I told you, we're just ordinary friends."

"You'd better not lie to me." Teacher Chen tightened her grip and said seriously, "I will ask Wang Lengqiu the same question again."

"We are really just ordinary friends."

Han Zhou remained unfazed, completely unafraid that Teacher Chen would ask Xiao Wang Leng Qiu for confirmation. After all, the latter would at most say that they weren't even friends, so there was nothing to be afraid of.

Teacher Chen remained noncommittal, asking with suspicion, "Do you care this much about ordinary friends?"

Unlike Han Zhou, who felt respect for her for checking on the students after just one phone call, she found it extremely suspicious that she would make a special trip to visit an "ordinary friend" in this weather.

Their relationship could never be that simple.

"In a sense, yes."

Han Zhou smiled, his expression calm. "Besides being just friends, Xiao Wang Leng Qiu is still a child, so it's normal for me to give her more care, right?"

"You're quite respectful of the elderly and kind to the young."

After holding it in for a long time, Teacher Chen could only utter this one sentence.

Han Zhou did not respond.

If the interpretation of "respecting elders" is respecting elders and easily liking people younger than oneself, then he is indeed such a person.

"By the way, you yesterday..."

Teacher Chen wanted to ask more questions, but suddenly a muffled thunderous roar came to her ears. Before she could react, she saw Han Zhou in front of her suddenly turn around, drop the umbrella without thinking, pick her up and run away, seemingly cursing a curse under his breath.

What are you doing...?

Teacher Chen was stunned for a moment, but the question stuck in her throat the next second, and her pupils contracted.

Flash flood!

It really was a flash flood!
In her suddenly elevated field of vision, she saw two yellowish-brown waves that had appeared on the slopes on both sides of the road, carrying tree stumps and rubble down from the mountaintop and instantly submerging the terraced fields below.

The next second, as if it were a devastating blow, the terraced fields collapsed from top to bottom. Under the power of nature, they had almost no resistance and were completely shattered within a few seconds, becoming part of the giant yellow wave.

Wherever they went, trees as thick as bowls were uprooted and crashed onto the road the two had just crossed, along with rubble and muddy water. "Run! Run faster! The flood is coming!"

Teacher Chen shouted urgently, her words shattered by the impact, and she was thrown onto Han Zhou's shoulder like a sack, her bones aching painfully, but she could only endure it.

Han Zhou gritted his teeth and ran wildly, veins bulging on his neck. He didn't have time to look back. Even though he had increased his speed to the maximum, he could still hear the booming sound of water getting closer and closer behind him. The turbid waves seemed to be carrying pebbles and broken branches to his heels.

Even though he sensed the danger early on and his body had been enhanced by the status bar, he was still made of flesh and blood and could not contend with the power of nature.

Fortunately, just then, Teacher Chen, who was on his back, suddenly shouted, "Slow down! The flood has slowed down! It's not chasing us anymore!"

She was clearly terrified, so much so that her words were somewhat incoherent, but Han Zhou still understood what she meant—there was no need to run anymore.

His tense nerves relaxed a little, but he didn't dare stop running. He ran for a full minute before stopping, panting, and looking back.

As expected, the flash flood did not "chase" after it, because it had just been running uphill. After expending the enormous potential energy accumulated on the hillside, the flash flood no longer had the strength to "chase" and was surging towards the lower ground, leaving scars in every place it passed through, like sores on the earth.

Seeing this scene, Han Zhou showed no joy at surviving a disaster, because the flood was heading in the direction of Xiao Wang Leng Qiu's house.

"Um... you can put me down now."

Ms. Chen kept trying to get off Han Zhou's shoulder, but he was too strong and she couldn't break free. She could only speak to him, her tone somewhat awkward and complicated.

If Han Zhou hadn't carried her away, she might... no, there's no "maybe," she would have already been swept into the floodwaters, with no chance of survival.

Upon hearing the sound, Han Zhou remembered that there was someone on his shoulder and immediately put Teacher Chen down.

At the same time, he heard a group of people approaching from a distance, so he immediately took out his soaked mask from his pocket, put it on, and said, "Teacher Chen, I would like to ask you for a favor."

"Thank you so much this time..."

Teacher Chen was about to express her gratitude when she heard this and was taken aback. Han Zhou's gaze made her a little nervous, even a little scared—it was a resolute look that seemed somewhat crazy to her.

"What kind of help?" Her tone unconsciously became tense.

"Don't tell anyone that I came here with you, and don't tell anyone what I'm going to do next."

Han Zhou spoke very quickly, but fortunately, it was still barely audible.

"What do you mean... what are you planning to do?"

Looking at the still-raging flash flood in the distance, Teacher Chen vaguely guessed what was going on, and her expression suddenly turned horrified. "Are you crazy! You're not planning to go find Wang Lengqiu, are you? That's a flash flood! A real flash flood! We almost died just now! What we should be doing now is calling as soon as possible..."

She hoped she was wrong, that the young man might not have such crazy ideas, but simply had other concerns, or that his parents happened to be nearby and he didn't want to be seen.

But she was soon disappointed.

"It's precisely because I don't want people to think I'm crazy that I hope you can keep this a secret for me."

Han Zhou let out a soft breath, his pupils reflecting Teacher Chen's increasingly grim expression. He spoke quickly, "Just like you said, call the police as soon as possible, any police will do. Tell the search and rescue team that there's an old house downstream from the flood, and a girl lives there. But don't mention my name. Just pretend I don't exist, okay?"

He simply didn't want to deal with the police to avoid the trouble of not being able to explain his identity, but Teacher Chen heard this to mean something completely different, and thought that he was prepared to die in the flood.

crazy.

This person is absolutely insane.

The thought flashed through her mind, and she quickly grabbed Han Zhou's arm tightly, saying sternly, "No, you can't take the risk! You're playing with your life!"

"I don't want to joke around, so I'm asking you for a favor."

Han Zhou seemed to chuckle, pushing her hand away as he said in a half-joking, relaxed tone, "Tell the search and rescue team to be more careful when they're searching. If there are any caves or anything, keep an eye out. Maybe we're right there—just think of us as Spider-Man who can go anywhere."

He knew better than anyone else that Wang Lengqiu was still alive, which meant that she had successfully survived the danger, or at least had not faced any life-threatening danger.

However, he couldn't be sure if the girl's escape was related to him, nor could he be sure if she would have survived the flood without his intervention.

No one can say for sure about these things.

Perhaps even without his appearance, Xiao Wang Lengqiu could have successfully saved herself. Whether she climbed onto the roof or drifted with a plank, in order not to have a serious impact on her future, with the adjustments made in the status bar, she could have survived no matter what.
Perhaps he was overthinking it. The flood might be moving in a completely different direction than he expected, possibly even deviating by ninety degrees, thus failing to reach the other side.
Or perhaps Xiao Wang Leng Qiu isn't at home right now, but came to town early in the morning and is probably having breakfast at a restaurant.

The status bar can correct the past, so it's highly unlikely that someone living in the future would be allowed to die in the past. Even without his involvement, Xiao Wang and Leng Qiu would probably be safe and sound.

But he dared not gamble, nor did he want to gamble.

Gambling is the thing Han Zhou hates most in his life.

He couldn't sit at the poker table, put out his chips, let the card numbers and dice rolls determine the win or loss, let irrelevant things dictate his fate, and then sit in his seat silently praying and waiting for the outcome...

He didn't want to resign himself to fate, just stand there doing nothing and leave everything to the seemingly known future.

Whether the future is predetermined or will change unexpectedly is something he can only confirm after returning to the future.

Before that, all he wanted to do was seize the present moment.

Of course, Han Zhou knew his own limitations. Jumping into the floodwaters like that would be tantamount to suicide, and there was no way he could swim with the flood to Xiao Wang Leng Qiu's house and easily take her away.

But he believed that "there would be a response."

Although the previous attempts to trigger it failed, things might change next time.

Once the teleportation effect is successfully triggered, he may arrive at Xiao Wang Leng Qiu's house before the flood, and take the other party to a safe place ahead of time.

Even if he couldn't activate "A Response is Guaranteed," he could try to find a safe path, which was better than staying here and doing nothing.

"Do you absolutely have to go?"

Ms. Chen didn't know what Spider-Man was. At this moment, all she wanted to do was advise Han Zhou not to do anything foolish. This person must be crazy to think he could survive after getting close to a flood.

"Yes, we absolutely have to go."

Han Zhou didn't say much. He had no time to waste. If he could arrive a second earlier than the flood, Xiao Wang and Leng Qiu would be safer.

After speaking, without giving Teacher Chen a chance to stop him, he immediately rushed back in the direction he had just fled.

Teacher Chen raised her hand, but only grasped at air. She opened her mouth as if to say something, but couldn't utter a single word. She could only watch helplessly as the figure disappeared into the distance.

Standing there motionless for a long time, she seemed to wake up from a dream and hurriedly took out her phone to call the police.

(End of this chapter)