Chapter 3: The Luck of Spite

The two of them found no common ground in conversation, and before long, Su Qingcheng instructed Mo Ran to drive her back to the villa.

As the afternoon clock struck four, Mo Ran emerged from his room on time, took the car keys, and set out to pick up Su Qingsnow.

But scarcely had he driven out when Mo Ran witnessed a car accident with his own eyes.

A green-plated electric car, moving at breakneck speed, shot out from the adjacent lane and rammed straight into a vehicle passing the traffic light, flipping a black BMW SUV upside down with ease. In the sudden chaos, before anyone at the intersection could react, Mo Ran, sharp-eyed, saw flames begin to spurt from beneath the electric car’s chassis.

“Battery thermal runaway!” Although he’d seen countless videos and images of electric car fires on TV and the news, nothing compared to the shock of witnessing it in person. The abruptness of the moment left Mo Ran, sitting in his car, utterly stunned.

What was more urgent was that not far from the electric car lay the overturned fuel vehicle; if the fire spread, with leaking battery fluid and gasoline scattered about, the consequences would be disastrous.

In a flash of instinct, Mo Ran didn’t know where the courage came from. He leaped out of the car, grabbed the two small extinguishers he kept in the trunk, and dashed toward the blaze.

“Sigh, the people in those cars are doomed. When an electric car explodes, there’s simply no time to save anyone.” Everyone watched helplessly as the electric car caught fire at the intersection, billowing smoke, each silently lamenting the tragedy.

In the next instant, they witnessed a scene they would never forget: a plainly dressed young man, brandishing two small extinguishers, charged forward. He smashed one extinguisher hard against the driver’s side window.

The glass shattered under the blow. Without a second thought, Mo Ran tossed the extinguisher aside, braving the imminent danger of a battery explosion. He reached for the embedded door handle, hoping to unlock the door. At this critical moment, the flaw of the flush door handle became apparent—without power, it would not pop out.

With a sharp snap, the mechanical system, thankfully intact, allowed Mo Ran to open the door.

The female driver had already lost consciousness from the airbag’s violent impact. Feeling the rising heat, Mo Ran gritted his teeth and reached for the seatbelt buckle.

With a click, the belt released. Wasting no time, Mo Ran hurriedly lifted the girl out of the car, carrying her to safety.

It all happened in a heartbeat. To the onlookers, it seemed as if he’d moved just in time: only seconds after he carried the girl away, a deafening explosion erupted, and the battery fire instantly engulfed the entire vehicle.

A wave of heat surged behind Mo Ran, nearly making him drop the girl, but at the crucial moment he quickened his pace and escaped the blast’s reach, keeping her safe.

He gently laid her on the ground, then, gritting his teeth, dashed back once more, determined to try his luck. Hadn’t that feng shui master, three years ago, said a good son-in-law would bring prosperity to the Su family for three generations? He decided to gamble on his own fortune—success would be a deed of merit, and failure would be the end.

He grabbed the extinguisher he’d tossed earlier and rushed forward again.

To the watching crowd, Mo Ran was nothing less than a hero—standing between the raging fire and the overturned BMW, wielding two extinguishers and battling the advancing flames.

Soon, the first extinguisher was spent; without hesitation, Mo Ran tossed it aside and switched to the second. He pulled the pin and unleashed a torrent of powder at the fire, the flames and suppressant swirling together in the air, until thick, gray-white smoke filled the intersection.

At last, just as the second extinguisher was nearly empty, the fire brigade arrived. With professional efficiency, they deployed larger extinguishers and finally subdued the fire threatening the BMW.

“Rescue the trapped!” At the captain’s command, well-trained firefighters sprang into action, swiftly cutting open the car door and rescuing those trapped inside.

The entire ordeal ended with a brush with disaster. Were it not for the charred remains of the electric car, the badly damaged BMW, and the debris-strewn road, one might have thought it all a dream.

At some point, applause broke out among the crowd. First one, then a few, then everyone present—moved by the atmosphere, they erupted in ovation for Mo Ran. All eyes turned to him, admiration shining in every gaze, all awed by his heroism.

“Comrade, may I leave now?” Mo Ran picked up the empty extinguisher and asked the fire chief, who was overseeing the cleanup.

“Not yet, sir. There are a few formalities to complete—it won’t take long.” The fire chief stopped him at once.

“Formalities? Do I have to?” Mo Ran asked.

“No skipping the procedure. Otherwise, who would I give the Good Samaritan reward to?” the captain replied.

“Reward? How much?” At the mention of money, Mo Ran’s eyes lit up—he was in dire need.

“According to regulations, it ranges from ten thousand to one hundred thousand. The exact amount will be determined after review by our leadership,” the captain said with a knowing smile.

“Great!” Mo Ran nodded enthusiastically. After registering his information, he suddenly remembered that Su Qingsnow was still waiting for him at school. Flustered, he hurried off to pick her up.

Little did he know that in just those few short minutes, a video of his daring rescue had already been posted online. The number of views and likes soared at a geometric rate, and shares multiplied as well. By the time Mo Ran, breathless with urgency, arrived at Su Qingsnow’s school, he was already a viral sensation—the real-life hero who had burst onto the national stage.

Meanwhile, the official account of the Shanghai Fire Brigade released photos of Mo Ran’s registration, showing both his profile and full face. His handsome features and resolute jawline immediately shot him to the top of the trending charts.

Netizen: “Aaaah! This guy is so handsome—I want to have his babies!”

Netizen: “Handsome and brave—absolute charisma. I have to admit, besides Eddie Peng, there’s now another man in the world more handsome than me.”

Inspired by the video, viewers scoured the web for every scrap of information on Mo Ran.

One user, claiming to own three rental buildings in Shanghai, wrote: “Three minutes—I want all info on my future husband. Money is no object.”

Unaware of all this, Mo Ran stood anxiously outside the school gates, searching for Su Qingsnow.

At that moment, a parent, idly scrolling their phone, looked up and caught sight of Mo Ran searching for someone nearby. At first the parent thought his eyes were playing tricks—how could a hero just appear like that in real life?

After rubbing his eyes and focusing, the parent realized it really was Mo Ran. He strode over and seized Mo Ran by the wrist.

“Uh—hello,” Mo Ran said, startled by the sudden approach, wary of attracting trouble.

“You’re the hero who rescued three people at XX intersection, aren’t you?” the parent asked, smiling warmly.

At these words, parents waiting nearby all turned to look at Mo Ran, hurriedly pulling out their phones to check their feeds and compare faces.

In an instant, the scene became a fan frenzy, with parents crowding around Mo Ran, snapping pictures and leaving him both amused and exasperated.