"Gao Neng, you're my student. I've been your homeroom teacher since the start of high school, so I know your character well. I'm sure you didn't do anything wrong, it's just… Ah, never mind. Just come with me and clear this up." Zhang Dafan sighed softly as he finished.
"Okay, Teacher." Gao Neng nodded. He chose not to run. Even if he could get away, Xu Zilan couldn't.
'Of course, the most important thing was…'
'With this kind of entourage, where could he possibly run anyway?'
Soon, Gao Neng was led to an open-top military jeep. However, they weren't heading toward Third Senior High School. Their destination was the Golden Grand Hotel.
Gao Neng tightened his grip on the hammer in his hand but eventually relaxed, putting the hammer and his other tools away. Then he started humming and began to stretch, warming up his muscles and joints.
"One, two, three, four... Two, two, three, four... Three, two, three, four..."
"..."
Of the three soldiers, one was driving while the other two sat on either side of Gao Neng. They watched him continuously exercising in the vehicle, their expressions growing increasingly perplexed.
But no one said a word or tried to stop him.
As for Zhang Dafan, he just kept sighing.
'Such a good kid…'
'Could the pressure have finally made him snap?'
「Twenty minutes later...」
The military jeep pulled up to the entrance of the Golden Grand Hotel.
One soldier and Zhang Dafan led the way, with two other soldiers flanking Gao Neng. The group entered the lobby and took the elevator.
Before long, Gao Neng was brought into a conference room.
A total of seven people were sitting inside.
Gao Neng recognized four of them: Third Senior High School's Principal Li Qingping, Vice-Principal Tang De, and Qin Tianxiong. The fourth was the waitress who had handled his check-in the previous night.
Shen Ning'Er was not present.
He didn't recognize the other three.
"Is that him?" Qin Tianxiong shot to his feet the moment he saw Gao Neng and asked the question.
"Y-Yes… it's him, but…" The waitress opened her mouth as if to say more, but ultimately decided against it and fell silent.
"As long as it's him, that's enough. You're Gao Neng, correct? Do you have any idea why we've brought you here?" Having confirmed Gao Neng's identity, Qin Tianxiong's gaze grew sharp.
Gao Neng, of course, knew exactly why Qin Tianxiong had summoned him.
But he didn't look at Qin Tianxiong. Instead, he first scanned the faces of everyone present. Li Qingping was quiet and reserved. Tang De, by contrast, looked completely amiable, a faint smile playing at the corners of his mouth.
The others remained silent.
'Looks like they've already gotten their stories straight.'
'But they probably don't have any concrete evidence yet. Otherwise, they wouldn't be treating me like this.'
Gao Neng began to reflect on life.
Most people in this situation—99% of them—would start trying to establish an alibi. Or they'd force themselves to stay calm and play dumb, denying everything to clear their name.
But Gao Neng had never been 'most people'.
So, he folded instantly.
"Lieutenant Qin, don't kill me! I was wrong… I did it! Principal… Principal, please don't expel me! I know I made a mistake! I'm begging you, don't expel me! I'll never do it again!" Gao Neng promptly "collapsed" to the floor, his face pale with terror.
Of course, no matter how cowardly his act, he would not actually kneel.
His personal creed was simple: in this life, he would kneel to neither heaven nor earth, but only to the parents who gave him life!
'What the hell?'
'He confessed just like that?'
The three strangers looked at each other, utterly speechless.
"..." Qin Tianxiong was equally speechless. He had his whole "interrogation" planned out, but as it turned out, Gao Neng had caved the moment he walked through the door.
It's an awful feeling, being unable to deliver the lines you've spent all this time preparing.
More importantly, as a soldier, he despised spineless cowards—especially the kind like Gao Neng who went soft before the intimidation even began.
'Couldn't you at least show a little backbone?'
'I'm not asking you to be tough enough to take a beating, but at least argue your case a little, right?'
The three soldiers who had escorted Gao Neng in were also stunned by his behavior. He was just humming happily in the car a moment ago, so how did he turn into such a sniveling coward in an instant?
'So much for being a top student.'
'I heard he's always ranked number one in his year?'
'Students from the Forgotten Land…'
'Their caliber really is getting worse and worse!'
Qin Tianxiong and the soldiers were so taken aback by Gao Neng's immediate surrender that they failed to speak, giving Li Qingping an opening.
"Gao Neng, don't be afraid. The most important thing for a man is to take responsibility for his actions. Have some backbone. Tell us exactly what you did, from start to finish. If you've been wrongly accused of something, you can speak up about that, too." Li Qingping felt a little helpless himself. 'I don't remember Gao Neng being this way...'
'I suppose he's just too sheltered.'
When Tang De heard Li Qingping speak, a smile spread across his own face. "That's right, Gao Neng. Your academic performance at our school has always been excellent. Just tell us what you did wrong. A student who can admit their mistakes and learn from them is still a good student. Why don't you start by walking us through what happened."
'Walk them through it?'
Gao Neng's mind was racing. 'Tang De is here, so this must be related to Tang Weiwei.'
'Did something happen to Tang Weiwei?'
'Is she dead?'
'No, Tang De's goal here must be to find a scapegoat. If Tang Weiwei were dead, what would be the point of finding a scapegoat?'
'So she must be in a coma.'
Gao Neng quickly reached a conclusion. Then, he began to imagine…
He imagined being cornered in a dark alley by a bombshell of a woman in black leather. She had alluring eyes, a killer figure, and a long mane of hair. He was powerless to resist, with no path of retreat. The femme fatale was already starting to take off her clothes. He felt awful, pessimistic, and utterly helpless.
"WAAAAH!" Gao Neng burst into tears, looking for all the world like an eight-year-old child. "I… I'm the one who disappointed the principal, the vice-principal, and Teacher Zhang! I shouldn't have tried to take a shortcut! I shouldn't have come to the hotel to find Lieutenant Qin! I shouldn't have tried to get in through the back door…"
Tears streamed down Gao Neng's face as he threw himself forward and hugged Tang De's thigh. He then wiped a handful of snot on it, causing Tang De's lips to start twitching.
'Weak. Helpless. Utter wuss.'
Gao Neng projected every ounce of weakness he could muster onto his perfect features.
"'Get in through the back door'? What back door?" Qin Tianxiong froze for a second before it dawned on him. "What the hell are you talking about? What bullshit about getting in through the back door?!"
"I meant… Lieutenant Qin didn't let me get in through the back door… No, I'm the one who failed to get in through Lieutenant Qin's back door. That's what happened. I've disappointed the principals and my teacher…" Gao Neng's face grew even paler.
"Are you messing with me, you little brat?! Am I asking you about getting in through back doors?! I'm asking you why you rented a room by the hour at the Golden Grand Hotel!"
"I… I rented the room by the hour *to get in through the back door*?"
"Whose back door?!"
"Yours…"