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"Get up. Time to go." A gruff voice called out to her. Yan Wei barely had time to open her eyes before she was roughly hoisted up by her arms and dragged out of the dark cell into the bright light of the sun outside the police station. She blearily brought her cuffed hands up to her face to rub her eyes. The guards bundled her roughly into the car and sat at each side of her and off they went. With nothing else to do, she studied the handcuffs in her hands. High grade stainless steel... melded clumsily together with a cheap single spring-loaded bar lock. It would have been so easy to pick her way out of the cuffs and dispatch of the two guards next to her. However, escaping now meant leaving ShangHai, losing her most beloved... You Yi, the only one who had ever showed her true love. It sounded dramatic, but after a harsh life spent in the shadows with no true friend or company, You Yi's gentle coddling and love was like the light at the end of a long, dark tunnel. She wasn't sure she could go back to the darkness of her previous life anymore.
You Yi had promised to take care of everything, so she would put her trust in her.
Her girlfriend was sitting outside the courtroom when they arrived. She was wringing her hands in the seams of the stylish green dress that she wore, head bowed as if in a silent prayer. In the few days that they did not see each other, You Yi had become thinner, Yan Wei noted worriedly. That couldn't be good for the baby. At the sound of footsteps, You Yi looked up and their eyes met. A few electrifying moments passed before You Yi broke eye contact to tenderly run her fingers through the braid of Yan Wei's hair, trailing down to adjust her rumpled coat. Yan Wei sought after her eyes again. As if feeling the weight of that intense stare, You Yi finally looked up at her with bright eyes and gave a slight nod.
I've got you. The words were unspoken but the meaning was loud and clear. Yan Wei blinked back in relief and allowed herself to be led into the courtroom. She spared a final glance as You Yi slouched back down onto the bench, fingers rubbing circles on her temples and felt worry bubble up in her chest again. Her girlfriend had looked tired and drawn, as if she hadn't slept well. The fact that she didn’t know what her girlfriend was up to these few days weighed heavily on her mind. It's not that You Yi couldn’t take care of herself, but she could really go overboard sometimes, especially when she had a task in mind.
Yan Wei sighed as she heard the metal grating closed behind her. She could feel Zhou Hui Zi's mother glaring daggers into her back. Despite herself, she felt a prickling irritation that they had somehow pushed the blame of this murder onto her hands. Damnit lady, it really wasn't me this time. She set her chained hands on the pulpit in front of her and smoothed her expression in spite of the heavy pounding of her heart.
The pompous police chief stood up to announce his report on Yan Wei to the judge. Turning to Yan Wei, he immediately accused her of the murder, throwing all sorts of reasons in an attempt to vilify her. Unbothered, she turned to watch as Mr. Liew, the lawyer that You Yi had hired for her, quirked his thick eyebrows up in apparent annoyance. He had an intimidating air around him, tall and broad-chested but still carrying a polished elegance. She watched as he shuffled his papers and stood up to present the counter argument. From the overall feel Yan Wei got from him, she had no doubt that he knew what he was doing and was good at his job. He proved her conjuncture right by immediately clamping down on the pitiful excuses the police chief had presented. Murmurs of agreement ran through the jury while Mr. Liew presented his points and Yan Wei snickered as the police chief turned away, rendered speechless by him. That lawyer was worth every penny that You Yi put into him. Yan Wei internally decided to give him an extra tip from her own pocket. Mrs Zhu, that was "threatened by her into silence" also stood no chance against Mr. Liew. Her testimony was easily dismantled by a few quick questions when she contradicted herself. Yan Wei purposely pinned her stare on the lady and chuckled to herself as she watched her squirm beneath her gaze.
The tables had turned so quickly... Yan Wei chuckled to herself incredulously.
"Let me bring in my witness." Mr. Liew gestured for You Yi.
Yan Wei turned her head to watch in eager anticipation as her girlfriend strode into the room. With her fancy hairbow and smartly fitted dress, she was the picture of elegance and calm. Gone was the childish bright smile that endeared the older girl so much to her. She stalked up to the witness stand and gave the judge a grave bow, before giving the oath that she would speak the truth.
Mr. Liew started his questioning. You Yi furrowed her brows in concentration as she answered each question, carefully keeping her expressions even. Her voice carried across the courtroom with ease, strong and confident. Sometimes the duality of her girlfriend surprised her. The way she just flipped between the haughty toity public figure Xu You Yi and her softer side so easily was admirable to Yan Wei, who's best attempt at hiding her thoughts was to slap on an unbothered face.
The judge, seemingly satisfied with You Yi's testimony, concluded the questioning and asked her if she had anything to add on to her statement.
You Yi bit her lower lip in concentration as she spoke up. "I know who killed Chu Hui Zi." Shocked murmurs punctuated the quiet courtroom as You Yi's blazing eyes darted across the crowd until they settled on her ex-husband. "The murderer is none other than my ex-husband, Zhou Heng!" Yan Wei gulped at the fiery passion in her girlfriend's voice and watched as she darted her tongue out to moisten her lips. Why does she look so damn hot...
Great. Her girlfriend was fighting tooth and nail to keep her out of jail and here she was, just stupidly ogling at her like a hormonal teenager. She shook her head to clear her thoughts. Pull yourself together!
She refocused her attention back on the judge, who was was now flipping through the pictures that You Yi passed to him. His frown tightened as he paused on an image of Zhou Hui Zi intimately hanging off Zhou Heng's arm. "Even if they had some sort of relationship, what does it matter?"
You Yi drummed her slender fingers on the wooden pulpit impatiently as she continued presenting her case to the judge. Yan Wei couldn't help but to trail her eyes slowly down her slim frame. Even with her baby 3 months along the way, her girlfriend had maintained a slender frame. You Yi always complained about the baby making her look fat and ugly, but Yan Wei had seen the quiet tenderness when she caressed the swell of her belly and sang sweet lullabies.
Their baby. The thought filled her with pride. Yan Wei remembered the shining tears that welled up in the shorter woman's eyes when she promised You Yi that she would take care of the baby together with her. She had kissed her then, emotions swelling in her chest, blood roaring through her ears with the beat of her pounding heart. You Yi had returned her kiss with the same passionate abandon. Afterwards, You Yi had held her close throughout the night, whispering sweet nothings and caressing her tenderly as they lay in bed together. Yan Wei sighed dreamily as she recounted that night. She couldn't wait to get back to their comfortable domestic life, cooking for her, taking care of her…
Before that however, they had to settle the biological father.
All eyes turned towards Zhou Heng as the judge called for him. Put on the spot, he shrugged and strode to the front of the courtroom to confront his former wife full of slimy confidence. He kept his voice dark and venomous as he twisted the narrative, painting You Yi as the villain in their cursed love story. You Yi flinched at the intensity of Zhou Heng's screech as he launched into a long rant about how he had lifted her up from dust to become a world famous author, about how the only thing that he had done wrong was to not let her go. Seeing angry tears start to fill You Yi's eyes sent all the blood boiling in Yan Wei. She wanted nothing more but to be by You Yi's side. She seethed at the self-righteous speech that Zhou Heng was sprouting. This was the man that ordered a hit attempt on You Yi! The audacity of this man to speak as if he was in the right the whole time.
The scene of You Yi's fearful face, hands desperately hitting against the glass of the submerged vehicle as Yan Wei picked the lock of the vehicle was deeply imprinted in her mind. You Yi had fainted immediately after coughing up a copious amount of seawater and was struck by a delirious fever, fading in and out of a consciousness the whole way to the hospital. The image of You Yi looking so fragile and pale on the hospital bed with the many drips and monitors attached to her still teared at Yan Wei's heart. You Yi had acted like the incident hadn't fazed her, but Yan Wei knew from the nightmares that had plagued her since the incident, from the way that she woke up shivering and sweating every night, from how she clung onto Yan Wei like her life depended on it… She had been terrified.
She clenched her fists and imagined the many ways she could kill the man. As if sensing the burning anger in her, her girlfriend shot her a warning look that communicated: Behave.
Yan Wei took in a deep breath to compose herself. She gave You Yi a small nod and turned her attention back on Zhou Heng. He had finally finished his mad ramblings and was now looking slightly discomfited at the fact that You Yi still held her relaxed demeanor.
In the middle of the courtroom, with all eyes fixed upon her, Xu You Yi was strong and domineering, staring down her former husband coldly. Sometimes, with all the whining and wheedling at home, Yan Wei forgot how intimidating her girlfriend could be when someone really angered her. Even as a trained assassin who had participated in multiple military conquests, she was undeniably glad that she was not the target of said ire.
It was also... undeniably hot.
Ugh... Get your mind out of the gutter.
You Yi threw Zhou Heng a dark chuckle. "You said everything with so much emotion... I almost believed you." She turned to the judge. "Please allow me to call on my final witness." Gasps of surprise sounded through the room as a strong and clear voice rang through the room and Mr. Detective shouldered into the room with a familiar assassin in tow.
Huh... She never ceases to surprise. Somehow, her girlfriend had managed to rope in the hard-headed detective to help her. Zhou Heng's face crumpled at the sight of Bai walking into the room. You Yi's eyes glinted in the sunlight and her mouth twisted up almost cruelly at Zhou Heng as she stepped down from the witness stand for Bai to take her place.
Yan Wei couldn't deny how much she loved it when her girlfriend showed her darker side. Usually this was something reserved for the bedroom... but seeing it in a public setting really enhanced the allure.
Bai gave Zhou Heng a quick apologetic look before announcing. "Mr. Zhou gave me 700 yuan in advance. The rest of the payment I was told I would get after the deeds were done." He bowed his head down in resignation. The figurative final nail in the coffin had been hammered in place. Zhou Heng stared at You Yi in the shocked silence that followed. It was satisfying to watch Zhou Heng finally get put in his place.
You Yi's eyes locked with hers, still fully in character. Yan Wei associated that look with Lucky's predatory gaze when she had her sights on prey. She dismissed the shiver that coursed through her and lowered her eyes, carefully keeping her emotions hidden. Yan Wei didn’t know what exactly made You Yi appear so attractive when she was angry but she knew she wouldn’t hear the end of it if You Yi noticed how affected she was. She resolved to keep her thoughts today a secret to her grave.
The rest of the court proceedings finished in the blink of an eye. The evidence and testimonies were cut and dry and she was quickly released from her shackles, which were tightly locked onto Zhou Heng instead. She sensed You Yi sliding up beside her as they watched the men lead Zhou Heng away and chanced a glance at her. If looks could kill… Zhou Heng would have dropped dead on the spot. Yan Wei let herself smile slightly up at her the older girl when their eyes finally met. All the condescension and anger melted out of You Yi's expression and was replaced by a warm smile. She linked their arms together and pulled the taller girl with her out of the room.
The reporters swarmed the steps of the pavilion outside the court. Yan Wei started to feel increasingly overwhelmed by the flashing lights and crowd of people shoving their microphones at her face. She had never been the center of so much attention before. Looking to You Yi, she saw her girlfriend take a big breath to steady herself before gently smiling at her, taking her hand to lead her through the crowd.
Staring at the slender hand that firmly gripped her and the small but strong back, Yan Wei finally let herself relax. Trusting someone was a difficult thing, but if that someone was You Yi, she didn't mind putting everything on the line.