"We can't call the police!" Zhou Yi suddenly interjected, his tone resolute and final.
"Why not?" Qiqi looked at him.
Zhou Yi shot a fierce glare at Zhou Zhibi, his face dark and sullen, but he didn't answer.
Zhou Zhibi's small face was pale, the princess crown she used to tie her hair long gone, her hair disheveled and her expression flustered.
She glanced at her brother, then at Qiqi, and suddenly burst into tears, throwing herself beside Lu Wei: "Brother Wei, I'm sorry, it's all my fault..."
Gu Qiqi's eyes widened, and it took her a moment to process—could it be that those black-clad men were really Zhou Zhibi's doing?
Was this girl out of her mind?
Rage surged within her, and with a surge of boldness born of fury, she shoved Zhou Zhibi to the ground: "You damn loli! Are you brain-dead? How could you strike so viciously!"
Zhou Zhibi wailed, shouting even louder than her: "It wasn't me! It wasn't me! I swear it wasn't me!"
"If it wasn't you, why are they all covering for you? I don't care, I'm calling the police! Let's see you deny it then!"
Furious, Qiqi pulled out her phone to dial—this was too much! First disfigurement, then murder? What kind of grudge did she have against her?! Did she really have to go this far?!
But Lu Wei and Zhou Yi both grabbed her hand at the same time: "Don't!"
Lu Wei said urgently, "Qiqi, don't be impulsive! Calling the police will drag Zhibi into this!"
Qiqi fumed, "But she wanted to disfigure me and kill me!"
Zhou Yi's tone carried a rare plea: "Miss Gu, Zhibi just acted on impulse. She said she only wanted to teach you a lesson, not to actually go through with it!"
Gu Qiqi didn't believe it at all: "Who are you kidding? Not actually going through with it? Was that bottle of sulfuric acid just sugar water?"
Zhou Yi's face darkened, and he turned to glare at his sister, demanding, "Zhibi, explain yourself!"
Zhou Zhibi shrank back, crouching on the ground with her head in her hands, sobbing: "No, I didn't tell them to use sulfuric acid, I didn't tell them to kill anyone... Wuwu... I just told them to teach you a good lesson... Wuwuwu..."
Qiqi snorted coldly: "So you mean those black-clad men treated me like that just because they were overzealous in protecting you and twisted your meaning, Miss High-and-Mighty?"
Zhou Zhibi's face went pale, and she cried even harder.
Lu Wei grabbed Qiqi's hand and said, "Qiqi, trust me, I will get to the bottom of this and give you an explanation! Please don't call the police, okay?"
His movements were too hasty, aggravating the wound on his back, and he broke out in a cold sweat from the pain.
Qiqi helplessly put down her phone, crouched down to continue rinsing her senior's wound, tears welling in her eyes as she did: "At least, at least call an ambulance, right? Just rinsing with water won't do! You need to go to the hospital for proper treatment!"
Lu Wei replied, "There's a makeshift operating room on the top floor of the villa with basic medical equipment. Take me there, and I'll handle it myself!"
"Injured this badly, how can you handle it yourself?" Qiqi was worried.
Lu Wei gently patted the back of her hand: "Qiqi, don't be afraid. You'll be my assistant! I trust you!"
His gaze was warm and steady, his hand trembling slightly, yet it seemed to carry a calming power.
Gu Qiqi finally calmed down a bit, turned to glare fiercely at the Zhou siblings, and then decided to follow Lu Wei's plan for now.