28: Chapter 28: The Aftermath of the Incident

The three men scrambled to clean up the torn dress and scattered equipment from the floor, preparing to slink away.

Just then, the petite girl wearing glasses, who had been on the verge of tears earlier, saw them about to leave. She mustered her remaining courage and timidly added, "Um... we... we worked half a day part-time, but we haven't been paid the wages we agreed on..."

The voice wasn't loud, but it was exceptionally clear in the suddenly quiet studio.

The steps of the men preparing to leave froze. The bald man's facial muscles twitched, and he turned back to glare fiercely at the girl, scaring her into shrinking behind her companions.

Qiao Yichen, who had originally intended to leave immediately after the incident was over, stopped when he heard this. He turned around, looked calmly at the embarrassed and annoyed men, and spoke without much inflection, yet with an undeniable tone:

"What are you looking at? Settle the labor fees you owe before you go. One thing is one thing."

A skinny man wearing a floral shirt glanced at the bald man's expression. Seeing that the other party didn't object despite his grim face, he reluctantly pulled out his phone, muttering, "What rotten luck..."

He walked up to the girls, opened his WeChat to scan the code, and continued grumbling, "Four people total, three hundred each, right? Hurry up!"

A series of transfer notification sounds rang out. The girls who received the money finally showed expressions of relief.

"Alright, money's paid. Can we leave now?" The man in the floral shirt shouted irritably in Qiao Yichen's direction.

Qiao Yichen ignored him, merely slightly stepping aside to clear the path to the door.

As if granted amnesty, the three men quickly vanished through the exit on the other end of the studio, clutching their belongings without looking back.

In the messy studio, only Qiao Yichen and the four college students, who were finally regaining their composure, remained.

Silence stretched for a few seconds. Wu Mengyao looked at the unfamiliar man standing not far away, his expression calm.

Her heart was still pounding intensely from what had just happened. Afterward, a strong mix of gratitude and lingering fear washed over her.

She took a deep breath, walked two steps forward, and sincerely bowed to Qiao Yichen: "Th-thank you! Thank you so much! If it weren't for you..."

The other three girls followed suit, stepping forward to express their thanks, though their voices trembled.

Qiao Yichen waved his hand, interrupting their cascade of gratitude. "No need to thank me."

His tone was flat. His gaze swept over the young faces still bearing traces of panic before he said, "In the future, when you look for part-time jobs, especially those advertised as 'high-end' or for 'filming,' be more cautious. Clarify things like contracts, job descriptions, and payment methods beforehand. If something feels wrong, like the forced compensation demand that happened today, don't hesitate—call the police immediately. You are students, and the police generally take such matters more seriously."

After giving his advice, he walked straight out of the studio.

"Hey, you..." Wu Mengyao subconsciously wanted to chase after him to ask for his name, or at least get his contact information to thank him properly, but just as she moved, she heard a tearful call from behind her: "Mengyao..."

She turned around and saw her three classmates still pale, leaning on each other, clearly not having fully recovered from the fright.

They had come out together, and she couldn't abandon them.

In that moment of hesitation, when she turned back, the man in the suit had completely disappeared.

Wu Mengyao stood in place, gazing at the empty doorway, feeling an inexpressible sense of wistfulness and gratitude.

"Forget it, let's leave this place first. This location feels really uncomfortable," one roommate suggested quietly.

"Right, let's get out and talk when we're back at school." Wu Mengyao suppressed the turmoil in her heart and nodded, helping up her still slightly weak companions. The four girls supported each other and hurriedly left Studio No. 3, which had almost landed them in trouble.

Once outside the Creative Park and breathing the relatively fresh air, with weak sunlight managing to filter through the clouds, Wu Mengyao and the others finally felt their tense nerves relax slightly.

"Mengyao... my legs are still a bit weak." The petite girl wearing glasses, Xiao Qing, was practically leaning her entire body on Wu Mengyao, her voice carrying the exhaustion of having narrowly escaped disaster.

"Me too, my heart won't stop racing." Another short-haired girl, Xiaolin, linked arms with Wu Mengyao's other arm, her face still pale.

Their most steady roommate, Lin Yu, walked slightly ahead, but her steps were also unsteady.

She looked back at the Creative Park, only feeling that the building's silhouette, which still seemed gloomy even under the sun, was now a source of lingering dread: "In the future... we absolutely cannot trust part-time jobs we find online, especially those that haven't been verified by the school's Work-Study Center."

Wu Mengyao felt the weight and slight tremor from both arms. The lingering fear mixed with self-reproach for her rash decision to bring everyone here.

But she knew she had to stay composed now. "Yeah, never again." She nodded firmly, her voice resolute, both comforting her companions and warning herself. "Let's go back to school first, rest well, and drink some hot water."

They flagged down a taxi by the roadside. Once inside the cramped space and the relatively quiet environment, the emotions they had suppressed earlier began to resurface.

Xiao Qing, leaning in the back seat, her eyes reddened, started sobbing quietly: "I was so scared... They were so mean... If that person hadn't come in..."

"Okay, okay, it's over now, it's all in the past," Lin Yu quickly hugged her shoulder and comforted her softly, though her own voice was a bit unsteady.

Wu Mengyao sat in the front passenger seat, watching her three friends in the back seat looking shaken through the rearview mirror, causing her heart to clench even tighter.

As the taxi drove into the campus of the University of Finance and Economics, the familiar plane tree-lined road and the green-tiled teaching buildings gradually came into view. This routine scenery acted like a gentle sedative, slowly dispelling the gloom in the girls' hearts.

The car stopped downstairs at the dormitory building. Wu Mengyao rushed to pay the fare, then carefully helped Xiao Qing out of the car. The four girls supported each other and walked somewhat unsteadily into the dormitory building.

The dorm supervisor saw their troubled expressions and asked with concern. Lin Yu managed a weak smile and replied, "It's nothing, just a bit tired," before they hurried up to their floor.

Once they were back in their familiar Room 408 and the door was closed, a true sense of security gradually returned.

Xiao Qing threw herself onto her bed, burying her face in the pillow, and finally burst into loud sobs.

Xiaolin and Lin Yu also collapsed onto chairs, looking exhausted.

Wu Mengyao poured a cup of warm water for everyone. Seeing them like this deepened her sense of guilt. "I'm sorry... It was all my fault today. When I saw that recruitment notice, I thought it was a good opportunity, and I brought everyone here without verifying it carefully..." Her voice was a little husky.

"It's not your fault, Mengyao," Lin Yu took a sip of water and shook her head. "We all agreed to it. We learn from this experience; we'll all be more careful in the future."

"Right, and... at least we got the money back," Xiaolin shook her phone, trying to lighten the mood, though her smile was still forced.

Xiao Qing cried for a while, venting her emotions, which made her feel a bit better. She sat up and said with red eyes, "That person who helped us... we didn't even thank him properly. We don't even know his name..."

This statement brought a moment of silence to the room. All four girls recalled that figure who had suddenly appeared and quickly vanished.

...On the other side, Qiao Yichen, feeling that attendance issues could not happen again, returned to the company before quitting time.

After returning, there was still ample time before he could leave work. Since he had nothing else pressing to do, he began studying the antique book he had borrowed earlier.