Chapter 040: Alone in the Bathroom
Ye Fuli had always been a woman of action.
Though she still had classes, she decided to skip them. She grabbed a couple of books from her desk, slung her bag over her shoulder, and walked straight out of the classroom.
The homeroom teacher spotted her passing by the office door and immediately called out to her.
"Ye Fuli!"
Ye Fuli turned back, glancing at her. "Oh, I forgot. I need to take a leave of absence to go home."
"Is that how you ask for leave?"
The homeroom teacher, still seething inside, spoke with no courtesy whatsoever.
"Graduation exams are coming up soon. No matter how important your business is, you need to return to class!"
Ye Fuli smiled faintly. "If you won't approve my leave, I'll just have to go to the academic affairs office myself."
"You!"
The homeroom teacher simply couldn't get a handle on her.
After a few seconds of standoff, the homeroom teacher reluctantly let her go.
With Ye Fuli's academic standing, getting leave from the Academic Affairs Office was a breeze. And if she so much as whispered a word against her homeroom teacher, trouble would follow.
Burning with resentment, the homeroom teacher sat at her desk, pounding the computer keyboard with a clatter, as if that alone could vent her frustration.
…
After leaving the building housing the elite class, Ye Fuli still made her way to the floor where Class F was located to check on Ye Zhen's situation.
"Ye Zhen? She hasn't shown up today."
"We have no idea where she went!"
"But her maid came and cleared out all the books from her desk. Looks like she's planning to stay away from school for a while."
Ye Fuli crouched down and glanced at Ye Zhen's desk.
Just as her classmates had said, it was completely cleared out—not a single scrap of paper remained.
She couldn't help but frown.
Not long ago, she had believed Ye Zhen's actions were entirely genuine. Yet this scene before her now made her consider the possibility that "the enemy lulled me into lowering my guard to slip away."
The moment this thought surfaced, the softening in her heart hardened like iron once more.
Escape?
Ye Fuli sneered coldly.
Who could possibly escape from her grasp?
A mere Ye Zhen would likely find it difficult to slip away from under her watchful eye.
"Alright, thank you for the information. Excuse me."
Ye Fuli walked out of Class F's classroom.
Going to the Ye family villa in broad daylight to look for someone would be utterly foolish. Mrs. Ye now despised her so intensely that she'd call the police the moment she saw her.
Therefore, if she was going, it had to wait until nightfall.
As the former owner of that villa in her previous life, Ye Fuli knew exactly where the surveillance blind spots were along the perimeter walls. She just had to wait until nightfall and climb in from there.
Of course, during the wait, she checked Ye Zhen's phone location to confirm she hadn't left the city, easing her mind somewhat.
"I hope you can give me a reasonable explanation when I find you, Ye Zhen."
Ye Fuli's gaze darkened.
"If you dare run away, don't blame me for punishing you."
……
……
At that moment.
The Ye family villa.
Ye Zhen, who had just returned from the hospital, entered the door surrounded by several maids.
Lying in bed, having every meal fed to her three times a day—it was certainly comfortable!
But this wasn't the life Ye Zhen wanted.
This feeling was like being imprisoned!
So, after repeatedly swearing to Mrs. Ye that she wouldn't cause any more trouble, she finally secured permission to leave the hospital.
As they passed the potted plants lining the corridor, Ye Zhen paused slightly and looked at Mrs. Ye: "Mom, can I have my phone back now?"
Madam Ye scoffed coldly. "Give you your phone? What would you do with it? Chat with Ye Fuli?"
Ye Zhen choked on her words.
They were both girls—what was wrong with chatting?
Besides, they didn't chat often anyway.
"Huang Li will be here shortly to tutor you. Go back to your study quietly, sit down, and read. Don't try any more tricks."
After last night's incident, Mrs. Ye's impression of this girl named Ye Fuli had worsened considerably.
She now believed this girl was calculating and scheming—absolutely unfit to be near her own Zhenzhen! Just think—even her own husband had been fooled by her facade. How terrifying was that?
All that innocence and understanding? Pure pretense!
The mere thought of Ye Fuli crying and wailing by the car, "I'm your real daughter!" filled Mrs. Ye with disgust.
From that moment on, she could only assume Ye Fuli approached every member of her family with ulterior motives.
"And you, the child's father." Mrs. Ye called out to Ye Dad, who was preparing to retire for the night, her words deliberate and measured. "You are forbidden from sponsoring Ye Fuli any further—not even a single penny!"
Ye Dad snorted coldly and stormed off without acknowledging her.
Seeing her husband like this, Mrs. Ye trembled with rage.
But remembering the doctor's advice to avoid anger—lest she suffer a heart attack at such a young age—she forced herself to suppress her rage.
"Everyone, leave. Don't loiter around me."
Ye Zhen dared not say anything, nor did she want to. She quickened her pace into the study and shut the door.
"I haven't shown up all day and haven't contacted Ye Fuli. She must be furious by now."
She paced back and forth in the room, biting her left finger and frowning deeply.
"If I'd known my phone would be confiscated, I should have texted Ye Fuli last night when things happened, telling her not to worry!"
Women tend to overthink things.
Especially someone like Ye Fuli, who was so incredibly insecure.
Ye Zhen felt utterly helpless at that moment.
She even quietly asked the system if it could function as a computer, letting her log into a messaging app to send Ye Fuli a message?
[You're really dreaming! Hmm, but you know, this little cutie thinks that feature would be pretty interesting too. I'll go ask the boss to develop it, hehehe~]
Ye Zhen: "…"
This useless system remained utterly useless today.
Time ticked by, second by second.
It was time for Huang Li to come give her a lesson.
The moment Huang Li pushed open the door, Ye Zhen rushed forward, palms outstretched: "Lend me your phone!"
Huang Li sighed and shook her head. "No wonder the moment I arrived today, your mom confiscated my phone. What did you get up to this time? Not only are you grounded, but your phone's been taken away too?"
Ye Zhen snorted.
"Nothing! Mind your own business."
Without a phone or internet access, the laptop Huang Li brought was as useless as scrap metal.
Ye Zhen slumped onto the sofa like a dried fish, staring blankly at the intricate patterns on the ceiling.
"I'm going to the bathroom."
"Oh, go ahead. I don't feel like teaching you anyway."
Using the bathroom as an excuse, Ye Zhen slipped into the restroom.
Sitting on the toilet seat, her hands cradling her chin, she felt a wave of unease wash over her at the thought of the serious consequences her disappearance might cause.
How could she have run away without Ye Fuli's permission?
The comic plot mentioned that guy was a master hacker, top-notch at tracking and apprehending people.
"With my intelligence, Ye Zhen, trying to pull off a deception is nothing but a pipe dream, and running away is just a waste of effort."
Knock knock knock—
The sudden knocking on the window startled Ye Zhen.
She stiffened her neck and slowly turned her head to look at the large glass window.
The window slid open inch by inch. Soaking wet, Ye Fuli leaped through and vanished inside.
Before Ye Zhen could scream, Ye Fuli pounced, covering her mouth and dragging her into the corner. With a click, the bathroom light went out.
In the darkness, Ye Fuli's icy voice whispered in Ye Zhen's ear:
"Tell me. Why did you run away?"