Heads-up! The CEO's Wife is a Hidden Big Boss! novel Chapter 1072

Chapter 1072: Extra - Yuan Yang (Part Two)

Editor: Atlas Studios

It was already late afternoon when Meng Jinyang arrived at Ming City, and it was pouring rain there.

Lu San, who came to the airport to fetch Meng Jinyang and Lu Qi, drove them to the neighborhood where Principal Fu lived. The latter was currently waiting at the entrance with Wu Luo, each sheltering themselves with a black umbrella.

The sound of the rain and splashing made by the car was noisy and annoying.

When a car gradually came to a stop near them, Principal Fu squinted his eyes and looked hard in the direction, only to see the car door open and Meng Jinyang getting out of it. He immediately went up to welcome her. "Jinyang."

Meng Jinyang opened her umbrella. The raindrops were really loud, and she raised her voice a little to ask, "Principal Fu, Officer Wu, what are you two doing out here when it’s raining so heavily?"

However, Principal Fu only said, "Let’s head indoors first."

They headed towards the building where Principal Fu lived. After shaking the water off their umbrellas, the group entered the lift. It was only then that Principal Fu spoke. "I came out because there are some things that aren’t convenient to talk about at home."

Upon recalling what he had briefly told her over the phone, Meng Jinyang nodded solemnly. "I understand."

"If I had found out about this matter any later, the child’s future would probably be ruined." Principal Fu let out a heavy sigh. "I’m not in the position to go into the specifics, but when you go up later, make sure you have a good talk with her."

Wu Luo looked at her. "Jinyang, that girl is very smart and resembles Ms. Gu a bit in terms of spirit. Pay more attention to her emotions when you talk to her. She might not necessarily listen to you."

"Got it."

"The university entrance exams are coming up. Being the first in her grade, she has a promising future. She mustn’t do anything stupid." At the mention of this matter, Principal Fu became really agitated as he said in disbelief, "Stealing the keys to enter the chemistry lab to make potassium cyanide to murder her own father..."

The knowledge she learned at school isn’t supposed to help her break the law... Principal Ren sighed once more.

Meng Jinyang said nothing in response, for not everyone was fortunate enough to meet someone who would spare no effort to pull them out of the abyss when forced into a desperate situation.

Principal Fu felt very assured when it came to Gu Mang and Meng Jinyang. The two had become legendary figures in Ming City High School and held god-like existences. Thus, he wasn’t worried about leaving the matter to Meng Jinyang. "I’ll leave this to you then."

"Okay."

When they arrived at Principal Fu’s home, it was his wife who opened the door.

Meng Jinyang politely greeted, "Auntie Chen."

"Jinyang, come on in." Chen Hua quickly ushered them into the house.

Meng Jinyang scanned the living room, but no one else was around.

Chen Hua explained, "Those two kids are in my daughter’s bedroom."

The bedroom of Principal Fu’s daughter was empty since she was currently studying abroad.

Meng Jinyang nodded. "I’ll go in and talk to her first. She’s already in Year Three. We have to settle this matter as soon as possible so that she can prepared for the university entrance exams with peace of mind."

Principal Fu, who had the same sentiments, looked at his wife. "Dear, take Jinyang to the room."

"Okay."

Meng Jinyang got Lu San and Lu Qi to wait outside while she followed Chen Hua further inside to the side bedroom.

When she pushed open the room door, she found a girl huddled up on the edge of the bed. Her head was down, and her fringe and chin-length hair were scattered and covered almost all of her face. Her expression thus couldn’t be seen clearly. There was a boy with a crew cut squatting in front of the girl, his hands wrapped around hers.

Meng Jinyang also noticed that the back of the boy’s hand had several scratches and was dripping with blood. She could imagine how hard the girl had struggled.

The sound of movements made the boy turn his head back. His eyes were all bloodshot, and there were scratch marks all over his neck as well. His features were rather sharp and hostile, making him look fierce and aggressive. However, he had a lost and helpless look on his face at this moment.

Chen Hua knew that her presence wasn’t wanted. After exchanging a look with Meng Jinyang, she lifted her chin toward the room and then turned around to leave, closing the door behind her.

Meng Jinyang walked further into the room and pulled a chair to sit in front of the girl. She then looked at the boy. "Your name is Xie Hang, right? Go pour her a cup of hot water."

Xie Hang nodded, his voice hoarse when he spoke. "Lawyer Meng, I can go get the water, but please don’t send me away. I want to stay with her."

"Alright," Meng Jinyang promised him and before adding, "We’re from the same school, so you can just call me ’Senior’."

"Okay." Xie Hang then released the girl’s hands, opened the door, and strode out of the room. About ten seconds later, he came back with a disposable cup.

Throughout, the girl kept her head buried in her knees, seemingly refusing to communicate with anyone.

Meng Jinyang held the girl’s hand and put the cup in it while saying in a soft, gentle, and friendly manner, "Xu Ji, I’m Meng Jinyang. Here, have some water."

Xu Ji slowly lifted her head and stared blankly at Meng Jinyang for several seconds before opening her mouth to call Meng Jinyang. Her voice was all husky. "Lawyer Meng..."

The girl recognized Meng Jinyang.

Meng Jinyang took a look at Xie Hang and then at Xu Ji. "Both of you are first in your grades. Are you trying to destroy your future?"

Both of them were supposed to be second year students. However, about six months ago, Xu Ji suddenly applied to skip a grade and thus became a Year Three student. Still, even though she skipped a grade, she still came in first for her grade and even in the city.

Standing at the side, Xie Hang clenched his fists so tightly that the scabbed wounds on the back of his hands tore and started bleeding again. "I don’t care about my future. I just want hers."

"Get lost! I don’t need your concern! Scram!" Xu Ji roared agitatedly at him. "If you hadn’t told on me, I would’ve already killed that b*st*rd and avenged my mother!"

Xie Hang’s eyes were all red as he stood quietly on the spot.

"Who are you to care about me? I don’t need your concern! Just get lost!" Xu Ji hopped off the bed and switched between pounding and pushing Xie Hang. "Get out! I don’t want to see you!"

Xie Hang still didn’t say a word and just let her scold and hit him.

"I already told you to stay out of my business! Why did you have to butt in?!" Having gotten tired from hitting him, Xu Ji grabbed his clothes and sobbed. "Please, just ignore me and focus on your studies and get into Capital University. Don’t care about me anymore. Haven’t you got implicated enough? Have you forgotten how you got detained for fifteen days? You already have a record! Why won’t you learn from your mistake?!"

Xie Hang stubbornly stood there and clenched his chin. "You were the one who wanted to enter Capital University together, earn enough money to buy a house and fetch your mother over, and never to return to that hellhole again." I don’t need to know the reason why she suddenly skipped a grade or broke up with me, but I can’t sit by and watch her going to jail because of a scumbag.

Due to family problems, Xu Ji had already deferred her studies twice and had turned eighteen long ago. During the period she stopped schooling, Xie Hang quit school and went to work in construction sites to earn money to give to Xu Ji because the latter needed money. He even fought with her scumbag of a father twice because of her.

Hearing that, Xu Ji choked, "It’s too late. I can’t fetch her anymore..."

"There are many ways to solve a problem. Why do you have to choose the most extreme method?" Meng Jinyang remained very calm as she watched the scene play out. "The worst thing is that your futures will be destroyed as well."

Xu Ji suddenly looked up and stared at Meng Jinyang with red and swollen eyes while gritting her teeth. "That scoundrel beat my mother to death!"

Tears flowed from her bloodshot eyes. As she looked at Meng Jinyang’s indifferent expression, she understood that there was no empathy in this world. She didn’t expect anyone to understand her, and that was why she took the matter into her own hands.

"That *sshole killed my mother, but he was only given a three-year sentence! Three years! Four years of probation! He’s not even going to be locked up! He killed someone, but he doesn’t even need to pay the price!" Xu Ji’s eyes glowed red, and each of her words sounded like it was bleeding. "Abuse doesn’t equate to intentional homicide. What bullsh*t law is that?! Beating my mother to death isn’t murder? Just because it’s a family member, the punishment is less severe? Why?! That f*cker doesn’t even need to go jail for killing my mother! Why?!!! Isn’t it only right for a murderer to pay with his life?! Why the f*ck are there so many godd*mned reasons?! Isn’t it most horrifying that one gets killed by her own husband?!

"I thought the law could seek justice for my mother! I thought it would make that scoundrel pay with his life! But he’s fine! He killed my mother, yet he’s been let off scot-free?! My mother was beaten to death for goodness’s sake! Do you know how painful it is to be beaten to death?, Lawyer Meng?! The door was locked. My mother locked me out, so I couldn’t go in... And by the time the police arrived, she wasn’t breathing anymore... She was lying on the floor... with blood and bruises all over..."

Xu Ji’s throat twitched uncomfortably as she squatted on the ground and pulled her hair out of agony as if she wanted to rip her scalp off as well.

"Xu Ji!" Shocked to see this, Xie Hang immediately grabbed her hands and pried her fingers open, which already had a bunch of hair in between them.

Meng Jinyang frowned and hurriedly bent down to help her up.

All of a sudden, Xu Ji looked up, her tear-stained eyes filled with ruthlessness. "I want to kill him!"

If Xie Hang hadn’t followed her, found out that she was making potassium cyanide in the school’s chemistry lab, and then called Principal Fu over, she could’ve become an orphaned murderer and ended up in jail by now.

Meng Jinyang remained calm and composed. There were too many evils in the world, and she naturally understood Xu Ji since she had experienced them herself before. It was just that having handled all kinds of cases, she no longer wore her emotions on her sleeves. She brought Xu Ji to the bed and made her sit down on the edge. "Do you know why I’m here?"

Xie Hang’s gaze landed on Meng Jinyang as he squeezed his hands nervously. He had placed all his hopes on her.

Xu Ji looked into Meng Jinyang’s eyes and stubbornly wiped off the tears in her youthful eyes. "Yes, Principal Fu asked you to come and persuade me to do well in the university entrance exams."

Meng Jinyang nodded. "That’s part of the reason."

"Senior." Xu Ji stared unblinkingly at her. "I know about your case. The culprit was only given the death sentence after twenty years. But during that period, have you ever thought about killing that person?"

Meng Jinyang shook her head.

"Not at all? But that jerk ruined your whole life!" Xu Ji found this unbelievable. He left such serious irreversible damage on her. Not only can she not get pregnant, she even has to keep going for regular checkups. She won’t recover at all. Doesn’t she hate him?

"I was only five at the time, so I was clueless about a lot of things. All I knew was that I was seriously injured. But Gu Mang wanted to kill him." Meng Jinyang sat next to Xu Ji and turned her head to look at her. "So, I understand you."

The law wasn’t perfect back then, so it couldn’t help Meng Jinyang in any way. It was also why Gu Mang wanted to settle it on her own. The same went for Xu Ji.

"Then you should know that I won’t listen to you. You can stop me once, but you can’t stop me the second or the third time," said Xu Ji with conviction.

"Why did your mother push you out of the room?" Meng Jinyang suddenly changed the topic.

Upon recalling how she saw her mother for the last time through the gap of the door, tears started flowing uncontrollably. "She didn’t want to scare me since I’m currently in the critical period of my senior year."

"Exactly. She wanted you to study hard and break free from your current situation." Meng Jinyang looked at the girl. "Don’t you understand her intentions?"

Xu Ji cried even harder. "I do. I know that she wanted me to study hard and have my own life in the future so that I wouldn’t have to hear quarrels when I return home at night, hear things smashing when I’m doing my homework, or even wake up in fear in the middle of the night. I wouldn’t have to live in fear all day..."

"Since you understand, then don’t make her sacrifice her life for nothing," said Meng Jinyang gently.

Xu Ji bit her lip and sobbed. "But I... I can’t just watch the person who killed my mother remain unrepentant and pretend to be the victim. He said to the judge that my mother was an immoral woman who cheated on him. He slandered her! He refuses to let her off even when she’s dead and said that he only beat her out of anger. He even had the cheek to cry! My mother lost her life, so there’s nobody she can air grievances to!"

Meng Jinyang was reminded of her own case whereby the man sitting in the defendant’s seat claimed that he didn’t know what he was doing because he had forgotten to take his psychotropic medications and that she had approached him first. In just a few sentences, he pushed all the blame onto her and then cried in remorse that he was inhumane to hurt such a little kid.

She had seen too many cases where the culprits passed themselves off as the victims. They claimed that they were helpless and had no choice, while the victims had nowhere to go to seek justice and had to hear people saying that they deserved it.

"The law shouldn’t be like this, right?" Xu Ji looked up with trembling lips. "The murderer is let off scot-free, while my mother lost her life just like that!"

Meng Jinyang put an arm around Xu Ji’s shoulders and gently patted her. "Listen to me and leave this matter to the adults. Your top priority now is to prepare for the university entrance exams. Don’t let your mother down."

Xu Ji looked at her. "Just like how you didn’t let Senior Gu down?"

"Yes." Meng Jinyang smiled.

It was Gu Mang who pulled her out of hell and accompanied her on her journey to the top.

"Don’t do anything stupid. You have to love yourself, given how far your mother went to protect you." Meng Jinyang then added, "She’s watching you from above."

Xu Ji’s eyes, which had been filled with ruthlessness moments ago, moved slightly. It seemed that she was starting to waver. All of a sudden, she grabbed Meng Jinyang’s hands. "Can you help me, Senior? I can’t take this lying down. I want to appeal."

Meng Jinyang took a piece of tissue and wiped her tears. "Other than to persuade you to focus on your studies, I’m also here to help you with your case."

"Really?" Xu Ji widened her eyes in excitement.

Meng Jinyang nodded.

"T-Thank you, Senior," Xu Ji choked. At the thought of something, however, she looked down uneasily, pursed her lips, and then whispered, "But I don’t have much money to engage your services..."

Given Meng Jinyang’s current status, the fees she commanded could reach as high as tens of millions per case. She patted Xu Ji’s head. "It’s only right that I help my junior. I’m not charging you a single cent."

Xu Ji’s eyes turned wet once more. "Thank you, Senior."

Meng Jinyang wiped her tears away. "Alright, stop crying. Just leave this matter to the adults."

Xu Ji nodded tearfully.

Seeing that Xu Ji had calmed down and was in a better mood now, Xie Hang finally could relax a little. He looked at her. "You don’t have to worry when we have Senior Meng around."

I don’t have to worry? Xu Ji fell silent for a few seconds as she bit her lower lip. "Senior, can the law really be trusted? After the verdict was out, I looked into many similar cases. Domestic violence fatality and abuse are categorized under negligent death, and not intentional homicide. If found guilty, the culprit will be sentenced to imprisonment of not less than three years and not more than seven years. Even if the appeal is successful, that b*st*rd only needs to be locked up for seven years at most."

Meng Jinyang patted her hand and looked straight into her eyes. "Believe in the law. Believe in me as well."

Perhaps it was because of her persuasive look, hope sprouted in Xu Ji’s heart. She kept quiet for a moment before asking, "Can we really make that scoundrel pay with his life?"

Meng Jinyang fell silent and asked a couple of seconds later, "Are you sure about that? That’s your father after all."

Hatred filled Xu Ji’s eyes as if she had heard something disgusting. "He’s not worthy of being my father."

"Alright." Meng Jinyang nodded. "But before that, there are a few things I have to warn you about."

Xu Ji looked at her.

"Your father having a criminal record will have a great impact on your future prospects. Once he’s convicted and jailed, you..." Meng Jinyang stopped there.

"I don’t care. I want him to pay!" Xu Ji hissed as she stared into Meng Jinyang’s eyes. What’s there to be scared about when I’m even prepared to kill him?

"I got it."

Xu Ji lowered her gaze. She had completely calmed down by now.

Seeing this, Xie Hang relaxed and handed the cup of water to her. "Have some water."

When Meng Jinyang saw the wounds on his hand, she looked up and said, "Xie Hang, go treat your wounds later."

At that, Xu Ji snapped back to her senses and looked at Xie Hang’s hands, which were all scratched up by her. She gasped at the sight and pursed her lips.

...

Meng Jinyang walked out with the two students.

Outside, Principal Fu and Wu Luo were currently chatting with Lu San and Lu Qi. Lu San and Lu Qi were Lu Chengzhou’s trusted aides and had high statuses. Principal Fu couldn’t help feeling very nervous even though Wu Luo was around as well. It was only when Meng Jinyang emerged from the room that he relaxed a little.

Chen Hua’s mind was put at ease when she saw how calm Xu Ji appeared. "Xu Ji, you may stay in my daughter’s room for the time being."

However, Xu Ji shook her head. "Thank you, Auntie. There’s no need for that. I’ll go home."

"But your father..." Chen Hua couldn’t help saying out of worry.

Xu Ji slung her backpack over her shoulder. "It’s fine. He’s currently on probation, so he won’t dare to beat me."

Seeing how insistent Xu Ji was, Chen Hua didn’t force her to stay either. "Alright, give us a call if you need any help."

Meng Jinyang then said, "Focus on your studies and leave the rest to me."

"Mm, I won’t let my mother down."

Meng Jinyang smiled gently at her.

After Xu Ji and Xie Hang left, the rest of the people sat in the living room. Principal Fu looked at Meng Jinyang. "Jinyang, it’s all thanks to you that that child was persuaded."

Lawyers were good at negotiation in the first place.

Upon recalling the look in Xu Ji’s eyes earlier, Meng Jinyang knitted her eyebrows slightly.

Principal Fu, who was surprised to see the grave look on her face, asked, "What’s wrong?"

Wu Luo looked in the direction of the door. "Xu Ji has her own views. Once she decides on something, nobody can change her mind."

Having been in touch with Xu Ji for a long time because of this case, Wu Luo had come to know of the girl’s character.

"Then what’s going on just now?" Principal Fu frowned. She seemed to have calmed down and changed her mind.

"It’s just an act to make us drop our guard around her. If her father isn’t given the death penalty during the second trial, she’ll take action on her own." Meng Jinyang sipped on her cup of water. How could someone—someone who deferred her studies twice but still managed to skip a grade halfway through her second year and remain at the top of her grade and so calmly went to the chemistry lab to make potassium cyanide—possibly give up what she wants to do because of a few words from others?

"But..." Principal Fu and Chen Hua exchanged a worried look.

...

At the pharmacy.

As Xu Ji carefully cleaned Xie Hang’s wounds with an iodophor cotton swab, she asked softly, "Does it hurt?"

"No." Xie Hang looked at her face. "Tell me, are you up to something again?"

Having grown up together, Xie Hang knew Xu Ji’s character very well. Although he might not have realized it earlier, he naturally realized that something was odd with her as he looked at her now. She had calmed down too quickly and was behaving like a completely different person from the hysterical girl she was that morning.

The girl froze and looked up. "Pardon?"

"You know what I’m talking about."

Xu Ji shoved the cotton swab into his hand. "It’s time I go home. Settle it yourself."

After saying that, she took her backpack and moved to leave.

Xie Hang grabbed her arm. "Senior Meng has already promised to help you. Don’t do anything foolish."

"It’s none of your business." Xu Ji shook his arm off and left the pharmacy without so much of a head turn.

By the time Xie Hang kept the ointment and ran out of the pharmacy, Xu Ji had long gone up to her rental apartment.

...

When Xu Ji returned home, she saw her paternal and maternal grandparents sitting in the living room and chatting happily with her *sshole of a father.

Five hundred thousand. That was the amount of compensation settlement her maternal grandparents received for agreeing to settle. Her paternal grandparents bought her mother’s life with half a million yuan, which was just ridiculous. Not only did her maternal grandparents not care about her mother’s death, they even used her death to make a windfall. With such parents, it was no wonder that her father dared to beat her mother up for so many years without any qualms.

"Ah Ji, you’re back." Old Master Ji straightened his back slightly against the sofa.

Xu Ji ignored them and headed straight to her bedroom.

"Ah Ji," Xu Kangping called out, acting like a normal person in the presence of others. It was like he was a completely different person from the person who had whipped his wife and smashed her head against the wall.

Xu Ji remained indifferent to his calls and went back to her room, slamming the door close behind her before locking it from the inside.

Old Master Ji said somewhat awkwardly, "She’s always been a hot-tempered kid. She only has you now. As her father, you have to teach her well."

"Don’t worry, she’ll be taking the university entrance exams soon. Given how good she is at studying, we might be able to produce a top scholar in our family."

The four elders nodded their heads.

After pondering for a few seconds, Old Master Ji said, "When her results come out, we have to throw her a banquet. It’ll help to squash your foolish mistake down."

"I got it." Xu Kangping readily admitted to his mistake. "I’ll go talk to Ah Ji about it."

He then got up, walked over to Xu Ji’s room, and knocked on the door. "Ah Ji, it’s Dad. I want to talk to you."

Xu Ji took out all the exam papers and review materials from her school bag and put them down on the table before looking down to see a white weighing paper that was wrapped into a ball at the bottom of her bag. She continued to ignore her father as she took out that ball and unwrapped it.

Inside were white granular crystals of potassium cyanide that she had secretly hidden. If the verdict of the appeal remains the same, I’ll...

Outside, Xu Kangping continued speaking when he didn’t receive a reply from his daughter. "It’s fine even if you don’t want to talk to me, Ah Ji. I know my mistake. What’s important for you now is the university entrance exams. Don’t let these trivial matters affect your studies."

Xu Ji tugged the corners of her lips. Trivial matters? Mom’s death is a trivial matter?

Xu Kangping added, "It’s only the two of us now. What happened to your mother was my fault. I’ll make it up to you and see you to university."

Xu Ji remained quiet as she wrapped up the potassium cyanide and looked around her room. Eventually, she went to her bedside and shoved the white packet into the mattress slit.

"I won’t disturb you from studying any longer. Don’t stay up too late and go to bed early." After saying that, Xu Kangping turned around and returned to the living room.

Old Master Xu didn’t think that his daughter-in-law’s death was a big deal. After all, given how rich they were, there would be no problem with his son finding another wife. "Ah Ji is still angry. Let’s talk about this again when her anger subsides."

Xu Kangping nodded. "I’ll find a chance to talk to her properly. I won’t make the same mistake again. She’s the only child I have."

"I’m glad you have this awareness." Old Master Xu then got up and exhorted his son before leaving, "You’d better behave yourself for the next four years."

"Will do."

After the elders from both families left, Xu Kangping closed the door and smirked. He then stretched and swaggered his way to the master room. While passing by Xu Ji’s bedroom, he kicked the door and said smugly, "Did you think I was going to be jailed for sure, you little b*tch?"

Xu Ji was doing a mock exam paper when she heard that, and the tip of her pen poked through the paper.

"How well do you think you’ll be able to live after sending your father to jail? There will be nobody to give you pocket money and provide for you." Xu Kangping kicked the door again. "Have you no conscience? How dare you say that I intentionally killed your mother in court? Did you think you were the judge? What right do you have to show me attitude when I’m the one who provides food and shelter for you?! I gave you your life! If you hate me so much, why don’t you just go die?"

Xu Ji tensed up. Her chest undulated fiercely, and she had a murderous expression on her face.

Xu Kangping let out a laugh. "Your mother was just a lowly b*tch, yet you dream of sending me to jail because she’s dead? Ptooey! She’s better off dead."

Feeling better after cursing to his heart’s content, he turned around to head to his room to sleep. However, his daughter opened the door all of a sudden and shoved him hard from behind before he could react.

With a bam, his head crashed against the wall, and he hurriedly tried to support himself up with the corner of the wall. Xu Ji had pushed him with all of her might, so one could imagine just how hard he had banged against the wall.

His head hurt and was spinning. He shook his head for a bit and could hear a ringing sound in his ears. It took a long time before he recovered. He then turned around and glared at his daughter while raising his hand to slap her in the face.

Xu Ji lifted her face in defiance with no intention of hiding or avoiding his slap. She stared at him with narrowed eyes.

However, just as Xu Kangping’s hand was about to land on her face, he suddenly stopped. His expression was sinister as he pointed a finger at her. "You have some nerve! You’re trying to make me hit you so that the police will take me away and detain me, right?"

"Yeah, don’t you love beating people up? Beat me if you dare," Xu Ji sneered.

Xu Kangping’s expression darkened, but he eventually controlled himself and put down his hand. "Just you wait, you little b*tch."

"I warn you, if you dare to say a word about my mother again, believe it or not, I’ll stab you to death in your sleep." Xu Ji’s eyes were glacial when she said that.

"I dare you—" The rest of Xu Kangping’s words got stuck in his throat when he met his daughter’s cold eyes.

"Try me."

Xu Kangping looked at her for a long time and eventually burst out laughing. "Xu Ji, do you hate me a lot? Unfortunately, no matter how much you hate me, your last name is the same as mine. Even when you make a name for yourself in the future, you’ll just be bringing honors to me and the Xu family. Everyone who mentions you will say that you’re Xu Kangping’s daughter. I gave you your life, you know."

Xu Ji’s face darkened.

Xu Kangping deliberately said the things that annoyed her the most. Seeing how she was about to lose control of herself, he smirked and patted her cheek. "You’d better not provoke me again, or I won’t give you a single cent, and you’ll even be kicked out of my house."

He then patted Xu Ji’s head and turned around to enter his room.

"You’re not old enough to deal with me. Not even the law can do anything to me, what more a young lass like you." He snorted and then closed the door. However, it seemed that he was really afraid that his daughter might really go crazy and kill him, for he locked the door immediately after.

"Xu Kangping, this matter isn’t over yet. I’ve appealed to the court. Just you wait!" After saying that, Xu Ji returned to her room.

When Xu Kangping heard that, he let out an indifferent snort. I’ve already consulted my lawyer. Her appeal will definitely be rejected because I’m the only one who can take care of her. The court will surely consider all these factors and not do anything to me. Appeal? Dream on!

...

The next day.

Xu Ji was attending chemistry class when the classroom door suddenly opened. Xi Yan, who was already six months into the pregnancy, turned her head and saw a murderous-looking Xu Kangping standing at the doorway.

The smell of alcohol wafted into the classroom.

Xu Kangping’s enraged gaze landed on Xu Ji. He stormed up to her, grabbed her by the collar, and lifted her from her seat before slapping her in the face.

Xu Ji was sent crashing to the ground from the impact. Blood dripped from her nose and stained the floor with its glaring red color.

Everything happened so quickly that nobody had the chance to react in time.

Blood drained from Xi Yan’s face as she threw her chalk aside and stepped down from the lectern. "What are you doing, Mr. Xu?!"

"B*tch! how dare you find a lawyer and appeal to court!"

Just as Xu Kangping aimed a kick at his daughter, the boys in the classroom came back to their senses and immediately stood up and swarmed forward to pull him back by his neck. The girls, on the other hand, went to help Xu Ji up and took her far away from her father. Someone even brought over a pack of wet napkins for her to wipe her blood.

"Wench, I feed and cloth you, yet you want me to end up in jail?! Why you little!" Xu Kangping’s snarls resonated throughout the entire school building as he struggled to kick Xu Ji but ended up accidentally kicking Xi Yan on the back.

The girls in the classroom shrieked in alarm while a few boys hurriedly went forward to support their pregnant teacher. The entire classroom was a mess when Chen Bo from the mathematics class next door rushed over to check out what was happening.

...

Someone had called the police. In less than thirty minutes, Wu Luo and his team arrived at the classroom and took Xu Kangping away in handcuffs. Xu Ji, on the other hand, had already been sent to the infirmary.

It had already been a few years since Xi Yan had gotten married to Wu Luo, and she was now expecting their second child.

Wu Luo nervously held Xi Yan’s shoulders as he looked at the footprint on her back. "How are you feeling? Did you get hurt?"

Xi Yan shook her head. "I’m fine, thanks to the boys in my class who helped support me. Xu Ji, however, bled a lot. I have to check on her."

She then worriedly turned around and walked forward, only to make a U-turn and head back to the classroom again when she suddenly remembered something.

The originally noisy classroom became silent the moment she walked in. She looked sternly at her students and instructed, "Quietly study on your own, and no talking. Class reps, maintain order in the classroom."

"Yes, Ms. Xi, ’’ responded the class reps.

After settling her class, Xi Yan immediately trotted towards the stairway.

Wu Luo, who was right next to her and supporting her by the arm, wore a grim expression. "I really didn’t expect that lunatic to barge into the school and beat Xu Ji." Who knew that that scumbag was so crazy?!

...

Meng Jinyang had come together with Wu Luo. While the latter headed to the school building, the former went straight to the infirmary to look for Xu Ji.

Xie Hang, who had rushed over as soon as he received the news when his class ended, was currently taking care of Xu Ji.

The girl was lying on the sick bed with one side of her face swollen and red. There were even bloodstains on her face that couldn’t be washed off at the moment.

When Xie Hang saw Meng Jinyang coming in, he greeted, "Senior Meng."

Meng Jinyang nodded an acknowledgment to him while he pulled a chair over for her to sit.

She thanked him and sat down before looking at Xu Ji. "What did you say to him last night?" Why was she the first person Xu Kangping came looking for after receiving the news of the appeal from court?

Xu Ji looked down. "It’s no longer important. He’s been detained anyway."

Still, even without her answer, Meng Jinyang could guess why. Xu Ji just wanted to tell Xu Kangping that she was appealing to court.

Xu Kangping didn’t take his daughter’s words seriously at first. He thought that it was just an empty talk, for the latter didn’t have money and had to rely on him for support. He didn’t expect her to be serious about it, much less expect the court to approve her appeal.

Lu Qi, who could also guess the reason, couldn’t help but be impressed by this young girl for using herself as bait to send her father into the detention center. Her face is all swollen. She sure is cruel to herself.

A hint of appreciation shone in Lu Qi’s eyes. She has some potential. Once this matter is over, I can try and recruit her to Red Scorpion.

Meng Jinyang looked at Xu Ji and didn’t ask any more questions. Instead, she gently said, "Alright, get some rest before you go back to class. The university entrance exams are important, right?"

Xu Ji nodded.

After thinking about it for a moment, Meng Jinyang asked, "Do you want to transfer to another school? This matter has blown up so much that you’ll be in the center of gossip. If you’re afraid of being affected, I can help transfer you to another school. You can enter Capital University Affliated High School with your current results."

Xu Ji looked up. "It’s okay, Senior. I don’t care about all that."

Her answer reminded Meng Jinyang of what Wu Luo had said to her about Xu Ji resembling Gu Mang a little. Looks like she doesn’t care about being gossiped about.

Just then, they heard anxious footsteps coming from outside.

All four of Xu Ji’s grandparents were quickly walking toward the infirmary. Walking along with them was a middle-aged man in a suit carrying a briefcase, while further behind were Wu Luo and Xi Yan.

Old Master Xu didn’t know who Meng Jinyang and Lu Qi were and just assumed that they were the teachers here. He didn’t spare them a single glance as he made a beeline to Xu Ji’s bed and coldly questioned, "Did you get a lawyer to sue your father?" 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

Xu Ji sat up, her gaze devoid of any warmth as she replied, "Yes, what about it?"

"That’s your father!" Old Master Xu rarely flew into such a huge rage. "Withdraw the lawsuit right away."

"That’ll never happen," retorted Xu Ji.

"You!" Old Master Xu stared silently at her. The lawsuit came as a complete surprise to him, and never in the world did he think that the court would actually approve his granddaughter’s appeal request.

No, I must be mistaken. Upon realizing that he was being overpowered by a young female lawyer who wasn’t as experienced as him, the lawyer’s face completely darkened.

When Principal Fu saw Gu Mang and her entourage, his legs nearly gave way out of shock. He opened his mouth and silently mouthed, Holy moly... Gu Mang, Lu Chengzhou, Qin Fang, and Yun Ling... These big shots who don’t usually reveal themselves are all here...

Principal Fu was speechless. Do big shots behave so childishly?

Principal Fu’s heart started racing when he saw that Gu Mang was actually very respectful of him. I can’t believe that these big shots are all here because of Xu Ji’s case.

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