Plans

"Xue Chen, I want your life! I'll make you pay for bullying my parents!" After seeing his mother restrained by the police, Xue Hao pulled out the fruit knife he had brought from home without a second thought and slashed it at Xue Chen.

"Watch out!" Father Lin shouted when he saw Xue Hao charging at Xue Chen with a knife, hurrying forward to stop him.

But just as he stepped forward, Xue Chen, who had supposedly been scared senseless, made a sharp turn and dodged the incoming fruit knife. Still, his arm was cut open, and blood immediately began pouring out. Xue Hao wore a smug expression as he raised the knife and stabbed forward again.

"Murder!" someone shouted. The onlookers were all startled. One man rushed out, kicked away the fruit knife that was about to plunge into Xue Chen's lower abdomen, then used a grappling hold to subdue Xue Hao.

"Let me go! I'm going to kill that bastard! I'm going to kill him—" Even after being pinned down, Xue Hao struggled desperately. If the good Samaritan had not been strong enough, he really might not have been able to restrain him. "Attempted murder, and you still dare to mouth off like that? If you don't get twenty or thirty years, won't you just come out and harm people again?"

"Good!" As the crowd cheered, applause broke out. An auntie in a cheongsam said with a pale face, "Oh my, good thing Mr. Liu acted quickly. Otherwise, that child from the old Xue family would've been in serious trouble. Really, like father, like son. Mr. Xue was at least a good shoot growing from that family."

"Uncle Lin, this is my cousin. He just turned eighteen last month..." Xue Chen glanced at the restrained Xue Hao. His face was pale from excessive blood loss. Before he could finish speaking, he fainted on the spot. A police officer beside him hurriedly caught him. "Captain, we should get this kid to the hospital right away. Losing this much blood can kill someone."

"I already called an ambulance. Hurry and get this child to the hospital. His life is too hard. His parents have only just met with disaster, and now this has happened to him too. Sigh!" The auntie in the cheongsam was clearly a very warmhearted person. When the ambulance arrived, she climbed aboard with Mother Lin, who had rushed over upon hearing the news and was crying uncontrollably.

Watching the ambulance disappear into the distance, one onlooker frowned and asked Father Lin, "Officer Lin, how many years do you think Xue Hao will get? Don't just lock him up for a year or two and let him out. He's so vicious at such a young age. If Mr. Liu hadn't helped today, that child from the old Xue family would've been in real danger."

"Everyone is equal before the law. With parents who raised him like this, if the state doesn't educate him properly, he'll definitely become a murderer in the future." The others were also still shaken, especially at the large pool of blood on the ground, which clearly reminded them of what had just happened.

"He is already eighteen and meets the standard for criminal liability. Under the relevant regulations, he should face criminal punishment. Given his age, the sentence may depend on the severity of the victim's injuries, but he won't escape a ten-year sentence. On top of that, even while being restrained, he continued threatening the victim. He may very well receive consecutive sentences for multiple offenses," Father Lin said.

"Then his punishment will definitely be severe. If that's the case, I can rest easy." The crowd exclaimed in amazement.

"Lin, everyone knows you're close to the Xue family! This is retaliation! I'm going to sue you! I'll make sure you can't even stay a police officer!" Hearing that her son might face prison, Li Cuilan immediately panicked. She cried and shouted at the same time, her shrill voice echoing throughout the neighborhood.

"Li Cuilan, you are suspected of disrupting official duties and insulting law enforcement personnel. At the least, you will receive a warning and a two-hundred-yuan fine. At worst, you may be detained for five to ten days, or, in serious cases, sentenced to up to three years in prison," Father Lin said coldly.

Only then did Li Cuilan realize how serious the matter was. Terrified, she no longer dared make a sound. The viciousness had also vanished from Xue Hao's eyes. He kept thinking about the smile Xue Chen had shown him before leaving, and he knew his life was over.

Plans

After Xue Chen was taken to the hospital and underwent a series of emergency treatments, he was found to be fine aside from excessive blood loss. Mother Lin, however, scolded him for giving those bad people a chance. After hearing from Father Lin, who had arrived later, that Xue Chen wanted to give Xue Hao a chance, she immediately objected. Even the auntie who had come with him strongly disagreed. "If you ask me, Xiao Chen is just like Old Xue—too softhearted."

"Exactly. This child has had such a hard life. He's clearly so outstanding, yet he's been saddled with all this." Mother Lin rubbed Xue Chen's head, her face full of heartache.

During Xue Chen's hospital stay, Mother Lin stayed by his side to care for him. Father Lin and Mother Lin also visited him often. Lin Ran even notified his teachers and classmates at school. His homeroom teacher, Old Xu, especially advised him that people who did wrong had to be punished, and that he could not let a moment of softheartedness create unnecessary future trouble for himself.

Xue Chen was rather surprised by those words. His homeroom teacher had always stressed forgiving others when one had the moral high ground, yet he had not expected him to say this.

"Xue Chen, it's been almost half a month since the college entrance exam. You've received your admission notice too. What do you plan to do next?" Old Xu asked with a smile as he sat beside the hospital bed.

"Sir, I want to go out and travel. I told my parents before that once I received my admission notice, I'd go see Hong Kong. Even though they're no longer here, I still want to go." Lying in bed, Xue Chen looked at the sky outside the window. The sun shone brightly, white clouds drifted through the blue sky, and a gentle breeze blew. An indescribable peace filled his heart.

Old Xu nodded. "Xue Chen, you're the student I've been most satisfied with in all my years of teaching. Go out and see the world. Leave behind all those unhappy things from the past. I think your parents wouldn't want you to stay so depressed either. Remember to send me a photo every place you visit. Your old teacher here has never even seen what Hong Kong looks like, so don't disappoint me."

"Aren't you worried I'll get sold off when I go there?" Xue Chen asked with a smile.

"You're smarter than anyone. With the things you're talking about, I'm more worried you'll sell someone else off and they'll still be helping you count the money." Old Xu laughed. "As it happens, I have a classmate in the immigration administration department. You're grown now; it's time to go out and make your way in the world. But remember to call back every three days so I can rest easy."