Forced into a romantic relationship

Just like most cliché plots, Han Zhou quickly dealt with the group of thugs, retrieved the ring, and also stole four concert tickets—including Zhang Yang's two.

As he expected, these guys were indeed after him, but by a twist of fate they mistook Zhang Yang for him, and Zhong Yin and Liu Shiyue were caught in the crossfire.

Ultimately, everyone was implicated because of him.

This is precisely the situation he is most worried about and least willing to see.

Han Zhou had made up his mind to change the past, but what troubled him most was still that one thing—his excessive involvement might cause things to develop in the worst possible direction, ultimately leading him to create the tragic future that he already knew about and did not want to see again.

His original intention in coming here today was to help Sister Yin, but instead he attracted this group of thugs who dared to act recklessly in broad daylight. Coincidentally, these thugs didn't show up earlier or later, but they just happened to appear when he went to the toilet, which almost put Sister Yin in danger.

If he hadn't left at that time, even if there had been twice as many of those thugs, they wouldn't have been able to get even a step closer to Sister Yin.

So... could this be a warning from fate?
In fact, from the moment he said "I will take full responsibility," Han Zhou was already prepared to bear all the consequences.

Undeniably, even if he is willing to take all the responsibility, in the end, the only ones who will truly bear it are Sister Yin and Senior Sister.

Just like what happened today, he can certainly leave Lincheng at any time, but won't these unscrupulous thugs retaliate against Sister Yin in the future?
Not entirely.

To prevent such a thing from happening, Han Zhou deliberately took these guys to a secluded place and demonstrated the limits of "powerful throwing" in front of them.

When they saw someone break a brick with a pebble using their bare hands, everyone's eyes widened in astonishment.
"What the hell is the difference between this and firing a gun..." someone murmured.

Han Zhou remained expressionless, bent down to pick up a few more pebbles, and casually tossed one out, which accurately embedded itself in a crack in the wall: "The difference is that carrying a gun is illegal, but grabbing a handful of pebbles from the ground is not."

Everyone understood the threat in his words and couldn't help but swallow hard. Hai Ge, who had been arrogant not long ago, broke out in a cold sweat, feeling as if the stone in the other person's hand might be thrown at his head at any moment.

Fortunately, Han Zhou ignored him and looked past him, instead focusing his gaze on a younger brother who was trying to keep his head down.

"I've seen you."

Under everyone's gaze, Han Zhou tossed aside the pebble, walked up to the henchman, dusted off his hands, and said, "I remember you were beaten up the night before last. Can you tell me why you're here today? To get revenge on me?"

That's right, this man is one of the henchmen who came to collect debts with Baldy the night before last, and his purpose in appearing here today is self-evident.

"me……"

The underling was pale and stammered, unable to speak. However, Han Zhou didn't want to listen to his excuses and broke his arm without hesitation.

This was the first time he had ever used such force against someone.

"what!"

The henchman let out a piercing scream, clutching his arm in agony, drenched in sweat.

Hai Ge and the others were horrified, not only because of Han Zhou's "cruelty," but also because the other party's strength was terrifying; breaking a person's arm was no different than breaking a noodle.

Thankfully, this guy held back when he beat them up earlier, otherwise they would be in far more serious condition than just bruises and swelling.

"Perhaps I didn't explain myself clearly enough that day."

Han Zhou gazed at his underling, who was writhing in pain, and said in an unusually calm tone, "Or perhaps I went too easy on you, making you think I was joking. Since we have a new friend today, I'll repeat myself—"

He looked around, his gaze sweeping over Hai Ge and the others in turn. "If you want to collect a debt, go find the person who owes you money. Similarly, if you want revenge, go find the person you have a grudge against."

"You can come and seek revenge on me anytime, but please don't involve anyone unrelated to this... Do you understand what I'm saying?"

"Yes, I can understand!"

The thug whose gaze had just swept over him trembled and quickly nodded in agreement, "From now on, if we want revenge, we'll come after you. We'll never bother anyone else!"

"I'm going to your mother!"

Hearing this, Hai Ge was so angry he almost fainted. He quickly kicked him and said with a sheepish smile, "Brother, this kid doesn't know how to talk. What he means is that we will never cause you and your wife any more trouble in the future, or we'll be struck by lightning!"

sister in law?

Han Zhou raised an eyebrow and said noncommittally, "You must have made quite a few oaths over the years, right?"

"Brother, believe me, what I said is absolutely true!"

Hai Ge was so anxious he was almost crying. He had completely lost his previous arrogance and was stammering, "Heaven and earth bear witness, Brother, you're such a good fighter, and you can even use pebbles as bullets. Even if we wanted to get revenge, we wouldn't have the guts!"

He had already figured it out. This guy didn't care at all whether he would seek revenge in the future, and he didn't need to care about his strength. What he really cared about was that big-breasted... oops, that sister-in-law. And he was the one who had bullied her the most before. If he couldn't get her forgiveness, he might end up with his arm broken.

Han Zhou stared at him for a while, then suddenly asked, "What's your name?"

Hai Ge's heart skipped a beat, but he still gritted his teeth and honestly answered, "Chen Hai, my name is Chen Hai!"

"Chen Hai, right? I'll remember you."

Under Chen Hai's fearful and uneasy gaze, Han Zhou patted his shoulder forcefully, and after a few seconds continued, "I'll only emphasize one thing: if anyone around you dares to cause trouble for your sister-in-law and her family in the future, I will come after you, understand?"

Chen Hai was taken aback at first, then immediately nodded like a chick pecking at rice: "I...I understand!"

"Good, you can all leave now. Remember to take him to the hospital."

Having received the answer he wanted, Han Zhou ignored Chen Hai, glanced at the henchman whose arm was broken, took out the last two hundred yuan from his pocket, threw it on the ground, and then turned and left without looking back.

He seemed to have hit hard, but in reality… well, he did hit hard, but he still had some restraint. A little lesson is enough for this kind of person; if he really crippled someone, it would only increase the risk of retaliation against Zhong Yin's family. His purpose in doing all this was simple: to emphasize one thing—the grievances have their perpetrators, and the debtors have their debtors. Revenge against him is acceptable, but revenge against those around him is not.

Although his final threat to Chen Hai was somewhat hypocritical, it was the simplest and most effective method. It is much easier to control one person than to control a group of people. In order to avoid future trouble, Chen Hai would also try his best to control his subordinates.

Unless he's a ruthless person who's ruthless to others but even more ruthless to himself.

But judging from his behavior just now, he is clearly not that kind of person.

"Let's go, Sister Yin, the matter is resolved."

Han Zhou walked to a sycamore tree and smiled helplessly, "I already told you there was no danger, but you just wouldn't believe me."

Zhong Yin flicked her ponytail and said irritably, "You say there's no danger, so there's no danger? What if those guys ambush you?"

Although she had just witnessed Han Zhou chasing after more than a dozen people by himself not long ago, she was still worried about him coming to such a remote place alone with that group of thugs. So she insisted on following him. Han Zhou couldn't persuade her otherwise, so he had to let her come along, but he didn't allow her to get too close.

Although Zhong Yin couldn't get close, she wasn't too far away either. So she actually heard both the screams and the calls of "sister-in-law," but she didn't ask.

She could tell that although Han Zhou's expression and tone were relaxed, he was not in a good mood. The stone that was already pressing on his heart seemed to have been pressed even deeper.

She pretended not to notice, asked nothing, said nothing, and simply walked silently side by side with Han Zhou on the way back, with her hands behind her back.

After walking for a while, she quietly moved her right hand outwards. Glancing at him out of the corner of her eye, she saw that Han Zhou still didn't react, so she simply took his hand.

"Sister Yin?"

Han Zhou, who was deep in thought, came back to his senses and looked over with some surprise.

"We're a couple for today, aren't we?"

Zhong Yin seemed to have guessed what he wanted to say. Fei Fan did not avoid his gaze, but instead subtly increased the force in his hand.

As the sun set, the girl's cheeks flushed slightly, it was hard to tell whether it was shyness that made her face blush or the glow of the sunset reflected in her hair.

"But wasn't that just to appease your male classmate..."

"Who said it was just to appease him?"

Zhong Yin glared at him fiercely, opened her mouth as if to say something, but in the end she just turned her head slightly and said after a while, "And what about Liu Shiyue? She has already decided that we are a couple. If she suddenly finds out that all of this is fake, I'm afraid she won't be able to accept it at all, and may even break down on the spot."

"That's so exaggerated?" Han Zhou was slightly taken aback, then couldn't help but chuckle.

"Yes."

When this was mentioned, Zhong Yin smiled and said, "She said that if even the two of us can't be together, she will never believe in love again."

Han Zhou was both amused and exasperated: "Do we really look that much like a couple?"

"Who knows."

Zhong Yin turned her head away, not wanting him to see her expression, and after a few seconds muttered softly, "But it probably did look a lot like that back then..."

"At that time?" Han Zhou asked, somewhat puzzled.

Zhong Yin didn't know if he was really stupid or pretending, and said irritably, "It was when you kicked that thug away, pulled me behind you, and told me not to be afraid... You're so stupid."

Han Zhou then realized what was happening and chuckled, "Didn't I already say that I'm really capable? I wasn't just showing off."

Zhong Yin was amused by his smug look, but still deliberately kept a straight face and said, "You must have fought too many times in the past to be so good. You still say you're not just showing off?"

Without giving Han Zhou any chance to "explain," she continued, "I just called Zhang Yang and asked him to come and take back the tickets and money that were stolen, but he refused no matter what. He even thought I was lying to him. I told him it was true, but he just wouldn't believe me. He even said that if I could really get the tickets back, then I should just consider them a gift."

"He's probably afraid of retaliation."

Han Zhou felt a little ashamed and silently apologized to himself. The reason why this brother named Zhang Yang was in such a miserable state was all because of him.

"Please remember to apologize to him for me when you have time."

Zhong Yin sighed, "I've already told him, but he thinks I'm just trying to comfort him and that you're a good person."

"..."

Han Zhou never expected that the first time in his life he would be given a "friend card" would be by a man.

Zhong Yin had no idea what Han Zhou was thinking. She secretly peeked at his expression and thought to herself that she would probably never see him take the initiative in her entire life.

But that's okay, she can take the initiative.

As the sun sets, the drifting clouds are tinged with a gentle orange-red hue.

Occasionally, a bird flies across the sky, like scattered musical notes, writing languid verses in the gaps of light.

The sky was gentle and serene, and time seemed to gradually thicken, flowing slowly amidst the autumn colors. Only a gentle breeze was still softly passing through the treetops, leaving behind a delicate sound like shattered jade.

"I'm talking about Sun Wukong..."

"Let's go to a concert together tonight while we're still a couple." (End of Chapter)