Chapter 5 — The Watch of Retribution

A sharp, ringing slap echoed through the mediation room, landing squarely across the cheek of the junior police officer.

The sudden violence silenced the room instantly. Every eye widened in disbelief as the face of the leading officer hardened into a dark, furious scowl.

“What do you think you are doing? Are you trying to assault an officer? Subdue her immediately!”

Several policemen surged forward, their professional training taking over in a blur of motion. Within seconds, the mother was slammed hard against the table, pinned fast. Panic erupted from the father, who scrambled furiously for his phone with trembling hands.

“How dare you lay a hand on my wife! Do you even know who I am? I am personally acquainted with your chief!”

The senior officer let out a cold, humorless laugh.

“It does not matter who you know. Acquaintances will not save you here.”

“Your daughter is facing grave allegations of theft, and your wife is now looking at charges of assaulting an officer.”

“Not a single one of you is walking out of this building today.”

The father froze, the reality of the situation finally crashing down upon him like an avalanche. Desperation clouded his eyes as he looked toward Yan, noting the man’s impeccably tailored clothes and the formidable aura of authority radiating from him. Instantly, the father twisted his features into a desperate, servile smile.

“Sir, please, there must be some terrible misunderstanding here.”

“My daughter is a very good girl at heart, I assure you she could never steal a thing.”

“If this is about money, we are more than willing to compensate! We will pay double!”

Yan remained seated, not even lifting his eyelids to grant the man a glance.

“Double?”

“Five million two hundred thousand. Do you actually have that kind of cash on hand?”

The father gasped, sucking in a sharp breath as all the color drained from his face. Though their family possessed a modest sum of wealth, producing over five million in liquid cash on a moment’s notice was utterly impossible.

“This… how could a mere watch possibly cost that much…”

“When she shoved it into the iron bed frame, the casing was scratched.”

Yan’s voice was terrifyingly cold.

“The carbon fiber housing of a Richard Mille cannot simply be repaired. The entire assembly must be replaced.”

“The repair fee alone is seven hundred thousand. You can pay for the damages, or you can spend your time in a prison cell. Choose.”

The father collapsed backward into a chair, his legs giving out entirely. In that single, agonizing moment, he seemed to age ten years. Just then, the door to the mediation room was pushed open once more. A middle-aged couple rushed in anxiously, the man’s hair threaded with silver, the woman clutching a cheap plastic bag filled with a few loose tangerines.

“A Van! A Van, are you alright, my child?”

The moment I laid eyes on them, a burning sensation pierced the bridge of my nose. Tears welled up instantly, stinging my eyelids, but I fought desperately to swallow them back.

“Dad… Mom…”

In my past life, they had received a frantic call from the academic advisor, told that I had stolen property and was facing imminent expulsion. They had driven through the night to reach the university, only to be caught in a fatal accident on the highway. In this lifetime, however, they stood safely before me. My father’s hair was a little grayer, and the bag of tangerines in my mother’s hands remained my absolute favorite fruit. The dam broke. I could no longer hold back the tears. I lunged forward, throwing my arms around them and sobbing uncontrollably. Every ounce of grievance, fear, and profound terror that had accumulated over two lifetimes released in that single embrace. My father patted my back firmly, his eyes burning red as he glared at the police.

“Officer, my daughter has been an exemplary student with the highest moral character since she was a child. She would never commit theft!”

“We trust that the law will clear her name and restore her innocence!”

My mother’s hands trembled as she held me, though she did not utter a single word. Instead, her palms kept brushing my face over and over, frantically checking to see if I had been hurt. I finally pulled back from their embrace, lifting my head to wipe away the remaining tears.

“Dad, Mom, I am fine.”

“The ones with the problem are right over there.”

My mother followed my gaze, her eyes landing on the younger girl sprawled pathetically on the floor, and then on the equally miserable parents beside her. She froze for a fraction of a second before her hand tightened around mine in a fierce grip.

“Understood.”

It was the only word she spoke, yet I could feel the tremor running through her frame. By the time we stepped out of the police station, night had completely fallen. My parents went to check into a nearby hotel while I stood beneath the amber glow of a streetlamp to wait for a rideshare. A sleek black SUV pulled up smoothly in front of me, the window rolling down to reveal Yan’s impassive face.

“Get in. I will drive you back to campus.”

His tone still carried that innate command, though the deep disdain from earlier had vanished. I took an involuntary step backward.

“There is no need. My car will be here shortly.”

Yan frowned slightly. He pushed the door open and stepped out onto the pavement, his tall frame cutting off the light from the streetlamp.

“About what happened today… I owe you an apology.”

His voice was stiff, clearly unaccustomed to lowering his pride before anyone.

“I acted rashly without investigating the facts properly, and I wronged you.”

I looked up at him, suddenly finding the situation rather absurd.

“Wronged me?”

“Coach Yan, you did not simply wrong me.”

“You are just entirely accustomed to your own arrogance.”

“You believe that because you stand at the top, everyone around you is constantly scheming against you.”

“That is why you never even deigned to listen to a single word of explanation.”

“If I had not installed that surveillance camera today…”

“If I had been unable to produce concrete evidence…”

“Would you have ever bothered to listen to my side of the story?”

“You would have crushed me like an ant under your boot, expelled me, thrown me into a prison cell, and ruined my entire life without a second thought.”

Yan’s expression stiffened. He fell utterly silent, maintaining a heavy quiet for a long, agonizing stretch. I could hear the faint sound of his knuckles cracking as he clenched his fists by his sides.

“You are entirely right.”

He finally spoke again, his voice dropping significantly lower than before.

“I am far too used to being arrogant.”

“This is a debt I owe you.”

He raised his eyes to meet mine directly.

“However, when I was standing in the broadcasting room today and reviewed that security footage…”

“I saw something else.”

He paused, swallowing hard.

“I saw in the video that when she slipped the watch beneath your pillow, your hand beneath the blanket was gripping the bedsheet so tightly.”

“You were not moving.”

“You were pretending to be asleep.”

“Yet the knuckles of the hand clutching that sheet had turned completely white.”