35: Chapter 35 I've made up my mind, I want a divorce.

The duty hall of the Police Station was blindingly bright; the fluorescent lights shone on the walls, reflecting a harsh glare.

A policewoman poured them some hot water. Looking at Zhou Yurou's disheveled state and the injuries on Zhang Fan's face, she sighed, "Don't be afraid. We've pulled the surveillance footage from the garage, and those scumbags won't get away. Cheng Hu has a criminal record, and this time, being suspected of attempted rape is enough to put him in serious trouble."

Zhou Yurou held the cup, her fingertips trembling slightly. The steam blurred her face and the emotions in her eyes; only her knuckles, gripping the cup, were white.

Zhang Fan leaned against the bench, waves of pain hitting his back, as if countless needles were pricking him.

He closed his eyes, able to clearly recall every moment in the garage—Cheng Hu's ferocious face, Zhou Yurou's torn clothes, and the dull ache in his ribs when he was kicked and slammed into the concrete floor.

He really regretted it a little now.

From childhood to adulthood, he had always been someone afraid of causing trouble.

In high school, when he was cornered in an alley by a school bully to have his money stolen, he obediently handed over his lunch money; at Blue Whale Games, when his boss took credit for his work, he gritted his teeth and said nothing.

The courage he had mustered in the garage just now seemed like a high fever in retrospect; now that the fever had broken, only soreness and exhaustion remained throughout his body.

He was just an ordinary person, not a hero. It was just that when he saw Zhou Yurou's eyes filled with fear, his pathetic sense of justice couldn't be suppressed.

Just as he was drifting off, the door of the Police Station was kicked open with a "bang." Cold wind mixed with rain poured in, making the bulletin board in the corner rattle. Yang Lei and Yang Linlin barged in.

Yang Linlin was wearing a black crop top, her jeans had several holes in them, her hair was a mess like a bird's nest, and there were still undried tear stains on her face.

As soon as she saw Cheng Hu handcuffed to the chair, she screamed, "Brother! Hurry and save Brother Cheng Hu! It was Zhou Yurou who framed him! She's a bitch, she deliberately seduced Brother Cheng Hu!"

"Shut up!" Yang Lei's face was livid, veins bulging on his forehead.

He didn't look at Zhou Yurou but pointed at her, his tone filled with suppressed anger, "Why did you go to the underground garage in the middle of the night? And dressed like this?"

Zhou Yurou raised her head, her eyes as cold as ice, even colder than the rain outside: "Ask your sister. Ask her how she conspired with her boyfriend to attempt to rape her sister-in-law."

"Nonsense! I didn't!" Yang Linlin jumped up and pointed at Zhou Yurou's nose, cursing, "You're the slut! Wandering around the garage in your pajamas in the middle of the night—if that's not seduction, what is? You're just jealous that Brother Cheng Hu dotes on me, and you're deliberately framing us!"

"Slap!" A crisp slap cut her off.

Yang Linlin covered her face, staring at Yang Lei in disbelief, tears welling up instantly: "Brother! You hit me? You hit me for the sake of this bitch?"

"Have you had enough!" Yang Lei's hand froze in mid-air, his voice full of exhaustion and disgust, as if he had been drained of all strength by this endless farce.

He turned to Zhou Yurou, his tone softening a little, but with an unquestionable firmness: "Yurou, Cheng Hu is Linlin's boyfriend. Making a big deal out of this won't benefit anyone. Sign a letter of reconciliation and say it was just a misunderstanding. I guarantee he won't dare to do it again, and later... later I will compensate you."

Zhou Yurou looked at him and suddenly laughed, the smile laced with shards of ice that chilled one to the bone: "Yang Lei, he tried to rape me, and you want me to sign a letter of reconciliation?"

"I know you've been wronged," Yang Lei avoided her eyes, his voice lowering, "but family scandals shouldn't be aired in public... We still have Mimi; we can't let her be pointed at in school..."

"Family?" Zhou Yurou repeated the word, as if chewing on something bitter. Her gaze swept over Yang Lei, landed on the weeping Yang Linlin, and finally stopped on her own knees, where a bruise from the struggle earlier still remained. "In your eyes, Yuan Mubai is family, your sister is family, and only I am an outsider, right?"

The hallway of the Police Station was terrifyingly quiet, with only the wall clock ticking, as if counting down for this long-decayed marriage.

Zhang Fan leaned against the bench and closed his eyes. The pain in his back was getting worse, and he really didn't want to get involved in other people's family affairs anymore.

After all, he and Zhou Yurou were just neighbors, and they had known each other for less than a week. Taking a beating for her and recording a video as a witness was already fulfilling his duty to the fullest.

But looking at Zhou Yurou's lonely back standing there, he felt a bit uneasy. Her shoulders were thin, and wearing his oversized down jacket, she looked like an abandoned child, appearing exceptionally fragile under the pale light.

At this moment, Cheng Hu was led away by a police officer after his handcuffs were unlocked, saying he was going to be temporarily detained at the detention center. As he passed Zhou Yurou, he glared at her fiercely. The look was like a venom-tipped snake's tongue, so sinister it sent chills down one's spine.

"Brother Cheng Hu!" Yang Linlin chased after him, crying, while still cursing, "Zhou Yurou, you just wait! I won't let you off!"

Yang Lei stood where he was, looking at Zhou Yurou's back, then at his sister who had chased after them. In the end, he said nothing and turned to leave.

His footsteps were heavy, as if dragging a thousand-pound burden, yet there was not a hint of reluctance, as if the person behind him wasn't his wife, but an insignificant stranger.

"Thank you." Zhou Yurou walked up to Zhang Fan, her voice very soft, as if afraid of disturbing something.

"It's nothing." Zhang Fan opened his eyes and tried to stand up, but the pain in his back made him stumble. "Sister Zhou, I'm going to the hospital first. The police said I should go get my injuries documented."

"I'll go with you," Zhou Yurou said immediately.

"No need," Zhang Fan waved his hand, "You're tired too, go back and rest early."

Zhou Yurou looked at him and suddenly asked, "Do you think I still have a home?"

Zhang Fan was stunned.

He looked into Zhou Yurou's eyes. In those eyes, the previous gentleness was gone, and there was no fear, only a landscape of dead, silent ashes. He remembered the red marks on her wrists, remembered the child she had lost, and remembered Yang Lei's words, "family scandals shouldn't be aired in public," and suddenly felt his throat tighten.

He didn't know how to comfort her. Some wounds were too deep to be smoothed over by a simple "it will get better."

"I..." He opened his mouth, but in the end, he only said, "Let's go to the hospital first. Your forehead needs to be treated, too."

Zhou Yurou didn't insist anymore, just nodded. She raised her head and looked out the window. The sky was already dawning; a fish-belly white was emerging in the east, dyeing the Police Station's glass windows a pale gold, carrying a hint of faint warmth.

"Zhang Fan, I've decided." She took a deep breath, as if having made a major decision. Her voice wasn't loud, but it was exceptionally firm, "I want a divorce, right away."

Zhang Fan looked into her eyes. The previous cowardice and forbearance were gone, leaving only a kind of desperate determination, like the sky after rain—though there were still clouds, the light was already breaking through.

He nodded: "Okay."

Some roads must be walked alone. But at least this time, she was not alone.