Chapter 052: Zhou Quan Returns (Fourth Hour) As the saying goes, good things seldom leave the door, but bad news travels far. Lu Yun had been caught stealing sports equipment from the school and was taken to the police station—news that swiftly spread like a whirlwind across campus. Teachers and students alike were discussing the incident, with familiar faces stunned and sympathizing, while others expressed scorn, calling Lu Yun a disgrace who deserved to be sent to prison. The rumors flew thick and fast. Ms. Liu had seen the police car pass by her convenience store, but never imagined it would be coming for Lu Yun—nor could she believe that Lu Yun, someone she'd always regarded as simply playful yet well-behaved, would now have done something so dishonorable. Since then, she’s been utterly overwhelmed; customers' items have vanished left and right without a trace. Miss Liao Xinlan, however, remained remarkably calm—not because she was indifferent to Lu Yun's plight, but because she simply didn’t believe that Lu Yun would have gone to the gym at night to steal a single bar. She firmly suspected there was something behind it all. So she took a leave from work and began quietly reaching out for connections to secure Lu Yun’s release before investigating further. Miss Ling Xiaoman, who had only recently joined the school, knew little about campus affairs and thus didn’t feel particularly alarmed when she heard of Lu Yun's arrest. Still, from their brief interactions earlier in the week, she sensed that Lu Yun wasn’t someone likely to commit such an act. The very model student, Liang Hongyu, spent the entire morning immersed in sorrow—her eyes swollen with tears, her gaze heavy and strained. She barely listened to a single word of the teacher’s lecture. Her mind was entirely occupied by what would happen to Lu Yun once he arrived at the station: Would he be beaten? Would he suffer humiliation? Oh, Lu Yun! How could you be so foolish? You didn’t need to steal—you could have asked me for money instead. Now I’m furious with you—wheeze, wheeze! Only Mr. Wang Zhiyang—the "crooked-boned roasted chicken" of the school—was truly delighted by Lu Yun’s arrest. “There he is—a real pest! It’s about time we got rid of him early. A good case for eliminating one toxic element from society!” “By my grandmother's crooked-boned roast chicken!” In truth, Lu Yun wasn’t as badly off as he’d imagined. Even though the police vehicle was a battered Tianjin Faw with nearly expired parts, he felt an overwhelming sense of excitement. This was his first time riding in a four-wheeled passenger van—anything beyond a tractor! He kept glancing around, occasionally tapping on the windshield. “What’s this made of? The clarity is quite good—it almost matches the mirror I’ve created from my winter urination!” The two officers, guided by an implicit suggestion from the education bureau director, didn’t attempt to calm Lu Yun’s anxiety. Instead, they kept chatting with him about all sorts of topics—anything from school policies to their childhoods—so much so that Lu Yun felt as if he were being whisked into a whole new world. At the police station, they treated him like a routine case: assigned him a small room, served him a cup of water, and reassured him that he wouldn’t be kept long—he’d soon be released—and then promptly left him to his own devices. Lu Yun hadn’t imagined that his first experience being detained would unfold in such an absurd way—how unpredictable life could be! --- “Classmate Lu Yun—is there something wrong with him? How did he end up at the police station? All these people outside are saying it’s true?” After lunch, during the midday break, Zhou Quan returned to school only to hear that conversations about Lu Yun were already buzzing everywhere. After a quick inquiry, she learned that Lu Yun had been caught for stealing sports equipment from the playground. She rushed back to her classroom and found Liang Hongyu sitting at her seat, quietly weeping. Liang Hongyu hadn’t eaten lunch yet—she'd just sat down at her desk, tears steadily flowing. This young girl was truly heartbroken; she couldn't cry out loud for fear of embarrassing herself, only allowing silent sobs to fall like raindrops. Just as she was on the verge of falling asleep, a flurry of questions suddenly broke through the silence. She lifted her red, swollen eyes—only to see Zhou Quan—and immediately burst into tears: “Zhou Quan! Please think of something—please get Lu Yun out of there before he suffers too much—please, please!” Now that Liang Hongyu was so deeply affected, Zhou Quan found herself less concerned about Lu Yun's arrest. “Why is it such a big deal?” she thought. She sat down beside her and said gently: “Don’t cry yet, Classmate. Lu Yun won’t suffer much—please believe me. I just want to confirm—he was truly caught stealing the single bar on the playground.” Liang Hongyu wiped away her tears, nodded, and said softly: “He’s got both the evidence and the goods.” With these four words, Zhou Quan jumped up in frustration. “This idiot!” she exclaimed. “Zhou Quan,” Liang Hongyu said, looking at her with hesitation, “don’t blame Lu Yun—he must’ve been set up. You just need to find a way to get him out.” It was the first time she'd ever seen Zhou Quan so worked up. Zhou Quan kicked over a desk and finally calmed down—thinking: *Thank goodness I met my cousin in the county—I can’t imagine how difficult this would be otherwise.* “Classmate,” she said, “when exactly was Lu Yun taken?” “It was early this morning, just before first period started.” She looked at Liang Hongyu’s puffy eyes and sighed. “You don’t have to cry anymore—today afternoon, I’ll personally get Lu Yun released. You’ve cried so much already—it looks like you’re in love with him now!” As soon as she finished speaking, Liang Hongyu blushed deeply and looked at her with a mix of surprise and delight: “Are we that late? What’s going on—how can you even think of this kind of thing?” Zhou Quan hadn’t meant to say it quite so casually—but now, watching Liang Hongyu's heartfelt distress, she realized the girl truly cared for Lu Yun. Otherwise, why would she be so deeply involved and so eager to see him released? D’oh! This has been going on—since I’ve known Lu Yun, I’ve never had a single romantic moment. Now here it is—what a shock! “Classmate,” Zhou Quan said, “haven’t you eaten yet? I came back hurriedly and haven’t had lunch either. Shall we share a meal? I suspect Lu Yun is having lunch right now in the station—I don’t want to arrive too late and find you already hungry. After all, I can't face him with an empty stomach!” Zhou Quan saw that Liang Hongyu was genuinely worried about Lu Yun—she hadn’t eaten at all by now. Most importantly, her cousin still had matters in the county city to attend to before coming to assist. So, Zhou Quan didn’t feel rushed to go straight to the town police station right away. After all, Lu Yun wasn’t yet eighteen—he’d only stolen a few things—so he’d likely be released after just two or three days. Everything could wait until her cousin arrived. With these thoughts in mind, Zhou Quan didn’t wait for Liang Hongyu’s reply—she simply walked over to her desk drawer, pulled out a food pot from it, then took out one of her own and stepped out of the classroom without another word—toward the cafeteria she went. --- Fourth Hour Update: If you're enjoying this story, please give this post a solid hit with your vote! Don’t forget to recommend it, save it, save it, save it again! Chapter 052 – "Zhou Quan Returns" updated and completed! Author: Rural Woman