Chapter 195 — A Startling Resemblance

Kang **'s voice was enormous — far louder than Tang Zhi, Liu Xinlan, or Song Huiping had been before him — and in the noisy crowd it stood out with striking abruptness.

This time the voice did draw the attention of Lan Zhi on the third floor. Her gaze somewhat vacant, she lowered her head and searched out the source of the sound. The moment she saw, an expression of disbelief came over her face, her eyes brightened faintly, and her whole person became greatly agitated. She murmured to herself, and though her voice was not loud, those close by below could hear her quite clearly.

"Zhaoming, is that you? You've finally come to see me..." A smile of joyful satisfaction crossed Lan Zhi's lips. "You came looking for me — you really didn't abandon me... Zhaoming..."

"?" Kang ** was baffled, not quite understanding what Lan Zhi meant, and looked in confusion at Tang Zhi and Liu Xinlan.

Tang Zhi and Liu Xinlan had been puzzled too, assuming Lan Zhi was hallucinating — but then, turning her head abruptly, Tang Zhi saw Kang **'s face and could not help crying out in astonishment: "Wenwen... he and that Kang Jingming..."

Earlier, Tang Zhi had felt there was something vaguely familiar about Kang **, but she had paid it no mind. Wei Zhao's henchman could hardly be a decent sort; he must be one of those thuggish students who were always brawling at school. So if he seemed familiar, it was probably because she had seen him doing something bad before, and she had thought no more of it.

But today, hearing Lan Zhi's words and looking again at Kang **'s face, Tang Zhi had to admit it — the resemblance was there! It was simply too strong!

If one did not think along those lines, it was hard to connect the two at all; but now, comparing Kang ** with the Kang Jingming of before, in the facial contours, the nose, the mouth... one could not call them identical, yet the likeness was startling.

"Oh no! Lan Zhi wouldn't take him for Kang Jingming, would she? Something mustn't go wrong!" Liu Xinlan was alarmed as well. How could there be so many coincidences in the world? Of all times, a boy who looked so much like Kang Jingming had to turn up at the scene of Lan Zhi's suicide attempt...

"Kang Jingming?" From Tang Zhi's and Liu Xinlan's words, Kang ** had guessed something. Lan Zhi must have been hurt in love, or she would never have said those baffling things. But the name "Kang Jingming" pierced Kang **'s heart like a sharp sword. His face twisted in an instant, his hands clenched into tight fists, and even his breathing grew hurried: "You're saying she took me for Kang Jingming?"

"That's right, you look so much like the man who abandoned Xiao Fen! You're not a relative of his, are you?" Liu Xinlan had not noticed anything unusual in Kang **'s expression, taking his reaction for simple bewilderment, so she spoke without restraint. "Get out of sight for now — your face is wearing the same outfit as his!"

"A relative, is it..." A savage look flickered through Kang **'s eyes, and he silently repeated those three words. Liu Xinlan had hit the mark — Kang Jingming was indeed a relative of Kang **'s family! He was the young grandson of the eldest great-uncle's branch; by the reckoning, he was Kang **'s second cousin.

"What are you muttering about over there? Hurry up and hide! Something mustn't happen..." Liu Xinlan had not caught what Kang ** was saying and frowned.

Bitterness and fury surged in Kang **'s heart... She had been abandoned by his second cousin, Kang Jingming? Such a fine girl, driven to throw herself from a building?

Just as Kang ** stood there dazed, Lan Zhi on the third floor suddenly wore a smile of blissful contentment: "Brother Zhaoming... I'm coming, wait for me..."

Tang Zhi, Liu Xinlan, and Song Huiping all thought, This is bad! Lan Zhi's mood was all wrong — she surely must not be thinking of doing something desperate?

"Xiao Fen..." Tang Zhi cried out instinctively in alarm, but before the cry was out, a white shape plummeted swiftly downward...

"Xiao Fen!" Song Huiping let out a scream torn from her throat, and Tang Zhi and Liu Xinlan were frozen with fright. They had never imagined Lan Zhi would jump just like that, without the slightest warning.

"Lan Zhi!" Kang ** lunged forward, meaning to catch Lan Zhi as she fell.

But neither in speed nor in judgment could he accurately gauge where Lan Zhi would land.

Wei Zhao sighed inwardly, dashed after him, and swiftly steered Kang ** into the correct position... In the circumstances, however, no one would notice these subtle adjustments. Wei Zhao did it very discreetly; anyone watching would think only that he had rushed over with Kang ** to save the girl, and would suspect nothing else.

On battlefields raining bullets and shells, surprise attacks from the enemy were impossible to guard against; fail to judge your position correctly, and you almost never walked out alive.

At the very instant Xiao Fen struck the ground, Wei Zhao feigned a frantic lunge forward, yet pushed Kang **'s arm and gripped it, catching Xiao Fen. Given the speed and height of Xiao Fen's fall, anyone not professionally trained could never withstand the force of that impact — most likely they would catch her and then lose their grip, and though the intervening buffer might help, it could still easily cost lives. So Wei Zhao could only assist Kang ** this once.

This brother who, ever since his transfer to the school, had trailed after him calling him "Boss" — Wei Zhao did not mind helping him play the hero and save the beauty once. But once Kang ** had caught Xiao Fen securely, Wei Zhao quietly released his arm.

In the tension of that moment, Kang ** would hardly have noticed anything unusual; at such a time there was only panic in his heart and chaos in his mind, and even if he thought back on it later and felt something was off, he would not remember it clearly.

"Xiao Fen!" Tang Zhi, Liu Xinlan, Song Huiping, and the crowd of onlooking shantytown residents all rushed over. Seeing that Kang had actually caught Xiao Fen, their relief was mingled with astonishment — Kang had actually caught Xiao Fen?

The incident had come so suddenly. The police had already been called, but it would still take some time for them and the fire brigade to arrive. In the space of mere minutes, no one had expected Xiao Fen to jump!

"Xiao Fen, how are you? Don't scare your mother — are you all right?" Song Huiping was the first to dash forward, meaning to snatch Xiao Fen out of Kang's arms, but Kang was stunned as well and held on to Xiao Fen for dear life, refusing to let go.

When Xiao Fen had fallen earlier, the only thought in his mind had been that he absolutely had to catch her, that she must not come to harm. Now that he had caught her, he instinctively gripped her tight, and naturally would not easily loosen his hold.