The Pleasures of the Human Heart

"He's always been one of the top students in his class, getting perfect scores on every test. Teachers praise him for being smart and a promising student, but his grades have dropped a bit recently..."

"Your grades are probably dropping because of your boyfriend."

The woman's smile vanished instantly, replaced by a gloomy expression, and she nodded with difficulty.

"If I had a way to stop your man from bothering you, what price would you be willing to pay?"

The woman exclaimed in surprise, "You really have a way?"

Yu Shuying nodded and said, "The key lies in your determination."

"I'm willing to do anything to stop him from harassing me and my child!"

"That's enough, as long as you..."

Yu Shuying had just started speaking when she was interrupted by a series of urgent knocks on the door.

"Open the door! You filthy woman, I know you're in there. I saw you at the market this morning. Don't pretend you're not here. Open the door now, or I'm kicking it down!"

A man's fierce voice came from outside the door, and the woman immediately shrank back in fright, trembling as if by reflex.

Yu Shuying gave Si Ming a wink, and the latter understood, stepping forward to open the door.

"You wretched woman, at least you still have some conscience—"

Before the emaciated, sickly-looking man could even unleash his fury, Si Ming grabbed him by the throat and lifted him up.

"Let go of me! Who are you?"

The man looked terrified, flailing his arms and legs wildly, grabbing and kicking at Si Ming, but to no avail; instead, he was jolted and hurt.

Yu Shuying approached the woman, shoved a pair of scissors into her trembling hand, and said in a seductive voice, "Now, immediately, kill this man."

Chapter 211 The Pleasures of the Human Heart

Upon hearing this, the woman was so frightened that she let go of the scissors and almost dropped them on the ground. Fortunately Yu Shuying had anticipated this and reached out to catch them.

"Killing... I can't do that, I'm not capable of it." The woman quickly waved her hands and shook her head.

Yu Shuying said, "You said it yourself, you'd do anything to get rid of this man. What could be more effective than killing him?"

The woman lowered her head, avoiding his gaze, and timidly said, "But murder is punishable by death."

"Don't worry, you won't pay with your life. Your situation is rather special. First, the victim is a drug addict, and second, the other party has a long history of domestic violence. These two points are enough to garner a lot of sympathy for you, and the judge will definitely give you a lenient sentence. In addition, you mentioned before that this man threatened to haunt you for life and intimidate others from marrying you. This proves that you were forced to fight back. According to the criminal law, intentional homicide, if the circumstances are minor, is only punishable by three to ten years in prison."

As soon as Yu Shuying opened her mouth, she defined the other party as a victim, speaking in a tone that seemed to indicate that the situation was already predetermined. This frightened the person, who struggled desperately but could not break free from Si Ming's Five Fingers Mountain. Moreover, because his throat was being choked, he could not even speak.

The woman still hesitated. "Ten years is still too long..."

Yu Shuying continued to comfort her, "You won't get ten years. When the trial is about to start, we'll pay some media outlets to report on this, creating a hot topic. At the same time, we'll find neighbors to testify, which will generate public opinion and make the whole society feel indignant on your behalf, believing that the victim deserved to die. This will influence the judge's sentence. Besides, I happen to know some important people. Just a word from them and they'll give you a little preferential treatment. In the end, you'll only get three to five years at most. And if you seriously abide by the prison rules and actively accept education and reform while serving your sentence, you can even try to get a reduced sentence. Maybe you won't even need three years to get out."

Si Ming wasn't very familiar with legal provisions, but he vaguely felt that Yu Shuying might be hiding something. However, since they were currently in the same boat, there was no reason for them to undermine each other.

Moreover, Si Ming believed that Yu Shuying's intention was not really to persuade the other party to kill. After all, if she had done so, she would have committed the crime of instigating murder. Therefore, he chose to wait and see.

"But... but what about the children? What will happen to them if I go to jail...?"

"The government will naturally help adopt the child. In fact, if you truly care about the child, you should do it. The welfare benefits in an orphanage are far better than the living conditions here," Yu Shuying said, looking around the empty house with a mocking smile. "Many poor families want to send their children to orphanages, but the government is unwilling to accept them because, according to regulations, if either parent is capable of raising the child, they must fulfill their obligation to care for the child. But as long as you kill this man, the father is dead, and the mother is in jail, your child meets the requirements."

"But then the child will lose their family bond..."

"Having a scumbag father is worse than not having one. Once your child enters an orphanage, he's cut off from the past, and his classmates will no longer laugh at him for having a drug-addicted father. Besides, must family affection always come from parents?"

Yu Shuying pointed at Si Ming and said, "My companion grew up in an orphanage. He had no parents from a young age, but didn't he grow up healthy and strong? He's currently studying at Tange No. 1 Middle School, where he's at the top of his class and deeply trusted by his classmates. He's also a helpful and kind-hearted member of the Mohist Knight Guard, truly an excellent student and a model of character. Many people worry that the atmosphere in the orphanage is cold, but that's not the case at all. Because everyone is an orphan, they can understand and support each other. The older generation is very caring towards the younger generation, and the peers are as close as brothers. Although there's no blood relation, it's far better than those blood brothers who turn against each other over inheritance."

Si Ming wanted to roll his eyes after hearing this. Did "showing great care" refer to Yao Bilian? Did "being as close as brothers" refer to Ying Zhou? You're lying with such a "touching China" tone. If I weren't the person involved, I would have believed you!

Recalling his situation before his transmigration, although the Minggui Orphanage couldn't be described as a den of dragons and tigers, the environment there could easily twist a person's personality.

Of course, things are much better now. Lu Mao brought delicious food, Murong Qing brought discipline, and Murong Wu is an adorable mascot.

"An orphanage can provide a child with a stable living environment, a warm home where they won't be disturbed, a fresh start, and even some pocket money each month for them to spend. All of this is what you're giving your child."

The woman's expression clearly wavered. "I... but..."

Yu Shuying suddenly turned serious. "You think the child needs you? You're wrong. It's you who needs the child. To fill the emptiness in your heart, you forcibly keep the child by your side, seeking reliance from the child. You clearly know that the child would be better off without you, but you're unwilling to let him go. This isn't maternal love; this is selfishness!"

The woman's face turned deathly pale, as if her spine had been removed. She lost all strength, the last thing she could use to support herself, and couldn't even stand up. She fell backward uncontrollably, but luckily the bed was right behind her, so she wasn't injured.

"That's not it... I'm not selfish..." She wanted to deny it, but couldn't find a reason to refute it, and her voice grew softer and softer.

Yu Shuying showed no sign of pity. Instead, she handed over the scissors again and pressed on, saying, "Then kill this man and prove to me that you truly love your child."

Before the woman could make a decision, Si Ming finally couldn't hold back any longer. "Hey, you've gone too far!"

He threw the man to the ground, stepped forward, and stopped Yu Shuying.

"I've already said, I'll take care of the whole thing. You just need to watch from the sidelines." Yu Shuying returned a cold gaze.

"But you still went too far! You may have your own reasons, but you shouldn't insult and slander a mother's love," Si Ming shouted.

"What I said is the truth." Yu Shuying insisted on her opinion without backing down.

"Facts don't equal correctness. If an elderly person is celebrating their birthday, are you going to go up to them and say, 'You're one step closer to death'?" Si Ming retorted.

"If this can teach the elderly to cherish their remaining time, then it's not necessarily a bad thing."

"Then it's understandable that the other guests couldn't stand it and came up to kick you out."