Mrs. Meng paused, then asked with a smile, "Jingcheng No. 1 High School?"
Song Yu nodded, glancing at Ou Yilian and Wang Ci's mother. His voice was calm. "Yes, I've run into a little trouble. The teacher wants to see my guardian."
"Your guardian?"
Mrs. Meng sounded distinctly puzzled.
The sound of fruit being placed on a platter came through the phone. A servant came over and said something, and Mrs. Meng exchanged a few words with them.
She picked up the phone again, her tone a little more serious this time. "All right, Yuyu, wait there. I'll drive over right away."
Wang Ci's mother stood nearby, her eyes cold and chilling the entire time. The slap Song Yu had given her was like a thorn lodged in her throat.
But mindful of her status, she couldn't retaliate like a shrew.
Having Song Yu's guardian summoned was an outcome she welcomed. Adults' affairs should be settled the adult way.
Song Yu would regret this-for the rest of his life. Children his age had to witness society's cruelty before they learned to kneel and beg for mercy.
Wang Ci's mother sat down composedly, her smile never reaching her eyes. "You called your aunt? Don't you have a mother? Another wretch born but never raised, just as I thought. Ill-bred people really do stick together. Who knows how many lifetimes of bad luck landed my son with you two?"
Ou Yilian felt the resentment Song Yu had left bottled up inside her these past few days clear away at once. Because of his illness, the principal paid special attention to him, and as his homeroom teacher, she couldn't easily use any tricks against him. She had swallowed her anger around Song Yu all this time. Now that he had offended the Wang Family, it was immensely satisfying.
With a hypocritical frown, she urged, "Song Yu, regardless of what actually happened with Wang Ci, has no one taught you all these years that you mustn't hit people? Hurry up and apologize to Mrs. Wang."
When Song Yu was annoyed, every word he spoke stung. He glanced at her. "Was that a person I hit?"
Ou Yilian flushed at his retort. "And now you're insulting people!"
With the Wang Family backing her, she had gained confidence too. She simply poured out everything she wanted to say. The harsher she scolded him now, the happier Wang Ci's mother would be, anyway.
She pointed furiously at his nose. "You really think you're impressive? You really think you're somebody? If you're so good at fighting and swearing, why bother coming to school? When your guardian arrives, she can take you and get out."
"I've eaten more salt than you've eaten rice. In all these years, what kind of student haven't I seen? People like you can only throw their weight around at school. Once you enter society, see who respects you."
"You refuse to listen when I offer you kind advice. You won't drink a toast, so you insist on drinking a forfeit. People like you are just trash."
Every word rang out forcefully in the office.
Even the dean of students, who had remained silent all this time, couldn't bear to listen any longer. He stepped forward. "Teacher Ou, isn't that going a little too far when you're speaking to a student?"
Ou Yilian was getting into her scolding, filled with an innate sense of superiority. "Teacher Tian, you don't understand. Someone like him is beyond saving. You have to be harsh so he learns his lesson."
Song Yu's expression didn't change as he listened. He treated her words like so much hot air. His pale eyes were clear and cold against his delicate, fair face as he looked up at Ou Yilian. "Have you said these things to a lot of students?"
Ou Yilian said, "What's that got to do with you?"
Song Yu scoffed, his voice mocking. "You really are a cancer on education. If you love fawning over the powerful so much, why teach? Go be the Wang Family's watchdog."
Humiliated, Ou Yilian flew into a rage, her face turning white.
Song Yu no longer wanted to hear her speak. He said calmly, "Xie Sui was the one lured into that classroom. Xie Sui was the one verbally □□. He was even the one forced to fight back. After what Wang Ci said, if I'd been there too, he wouldn't be lying in a hospital now. He'd be lying in a cemetery."
"Instead of seeking justice for a student, you're here helping turn right and wrong upside down and twist the facts. You even dragged me into it."
"Ou Yilian, who do you think you are? Do you remember the girl you drove to the brink of depression and suicide a few years ago? Since you refuse to repent, you can reflect on it in prison."
His gaze was cold and sharp, clear enough to seem to pierce her soul.
Ou Yilian froze in place, staring fixedly at Song Yu, her eyes wide and her teeth chattering.
It was terror, guilt, disbelief-How did he know? How did he know?
Wang Ci's mother finally couldn't take it anymore. "What do you mean? You want to kill my son?!"
A cemetery!
Hearing that word, she sprang to her feet. Clutching the disposable plastic cup of boiling water, she flung its contents hard at Song Yu's face.
The ugliness and viciousness in her bones stood exposed as she spat through gritted teeth, "A murderer in hiding-you little bastard! May you die a horrible death!"
The water was scalding. If it splashed onto his face, it would certainly leave scars.
Her attack came without warning.
Before Song Yu could react, he saw the cup spinning toward him through the air.
Then someone pulled his arm, drawing him a step backward.
Someone stood beside him, radiating coldness. He deftly caught the cup and hurled it back without mercy.
Wang Ci's mother immediately shielded her face, but the back of her hand was scalded red, and the heat seared her eyes painfully.
"Aaaah-!"
Ou Yilian was dumbstruck. She hurried over and took out a wet wipe. "Mrs. Wang, are you all right?"
Wang Ci's mother trembled with fury. "You're finished, Song Yu! You ill-bred brat! I'll make sure your whole family can't survive in Jing City!"
Song Yu sneered.
Just then, the office door was pushed open.
The crisp click of high heels sounded, accompanied by a woman's icy voice. "Whose family are you going to stop from surviving in Jing City?"
Song Yu froze and looked back.
"Aunt?"
The woman standing in the doorway was indeed his aunt.
Hearing her voice, Ou Yilian rejoiced inwardly-Song Yu's family was here? Wonderful! A deep thrill of revenge welled up inside her. In her mind, Song Yu was merely a child from an ordinary family. His guardian would be easy enough to handle.
But when she turned her head, she froze completely.
From that distance, with the light reflecting off the walls, she couldn't make out the woman's features, but she knew her bearing was extraordinary.
She had an imperiousness similar to Wang Ci's mother-but without being so disagreeable. Instead, she was more refined and radiant. In a smoky-gray blouse and a wine-red, figure-hugging mermaid skirt, with chestnut curls, she exuded elegance and charm.
As she walked closer, Ou Yilian could see her face clearly-she wore light makeup and looked as though she had simply stepped out casually. Her skin was exceptionally well cared for.
Out of an instinctive female reaction, Ou Yilian secretly sized her up, comparing herself to her. In the end, however, she gritted her teeth and clutched the corner of the desk, uneasy and frightened.
As soon as she entered, Mrs. Meng stepped forward, a cold smile on her lips as she gazed steadily at Wang Ci's mother.
"Ill-bred? Who were you calling ill-bred just now?"
Wang Ci's mother was covering her eyes. Without even looking, she cursed furiously, "Can't you tell who's ill-bred? That murderous bastard of a nephew of yours-"
Smack.
A backhanded slap landed on Wang Ci's mother's face.
The water hadn't actually gotten into her eyes, after all.
Shocked and furious, Wang Ci's mother raised her head, eyes wide. "You-"
But she never finished the words on her lips.
Every trace of color drained from her face. Her anger and resentment turned to shock.
She stood rigid, staring at the woman before her. After a long moment, she squeezed a trembling voice from her throat. "Wen... Yuan?!"
Mrs. Meng-Wen Yuan-had also recognized her. The smile in her eyes remained, mocking and scornful. "I wondered who was so powerful that she could make my whole family unable to survive in Jing City. So it was you, Wu Xinmei."
Her lipstick was vivid, but her words were exceptionally cutting.
"Ill-bred? Are you fit to say that?"
Wang Ci's mother felt as though she had been slapped hard, but in front of Wen Yuan, she couldn't say a word. Wen Yuan's entire life seemed to exist as a contrast to hers.
Born a wealthy socialite, she had later married into the equally well-matched Meng Family. Everything had gone smoothly for her.
She had simply never imagined that Song Yu's aunt-would actually be Wen Yuan!
Wen Yuan curled her lips.
"Drugging him, climbing into his bed, becoming his mistress, then waiting out his first wife's death to take her place. You married an old man twenty years older than you, and after clawing your way into the Wang Family, you actually think you're somebody?"
The more Wen Yuan spoke, the colder her eyes became.
"A thing that climbed social classes just to become our laughingstock-who gave you the nerve to call my nephew a bastard?"
The office fell silent.
Even Song Yu was stunned by this barrage of Jing City high-society secrets. Although he had long known that his uncle was refined and gentle, and his cousin had inherited his volatile temper from his aunt, he hadn't expected her to be so fierce when tearing into someone.
Ou Yilian was dumbfounded too. Looking at the aggressive woman before her, she felt a surge of emotions-inferiority, alarm, even fear.
"You're... Song Yu's aunt?"
Wen Yuan swept a cold glance over her, sizing her up from head to toe. Almost one look was enough to see her true nature. She smiled scornfully. "Yes. I'm here to pick up my nephew. I heard he was being kept in the office. Tell me what happened."
Ou Yilian's face was deathly pale, her lips trembling. She couldn't speak.
From Wang Ci's mother's reaction alone, she could tell that this woman's background was anything but ordinary. Someone from that social stratum was beyond anyone she could afford to offend.
So Song Yu...
She panicked and nearly fainted, but under Wen Yuan's gaze, she forced out a smile, her face pale. "Actually, it doesn't really have anything to do with Song Yu. I... I misunderstood him... I should apologize to Song Yu here for taking up so much of his time..."
She raised her hand as though wiping tears from the corner of her eye. Her gaze shifted to Song Yu, and she said shakily, "I was just too anxious earlier. After all, you're classmates, and you'll be spending three years together. Wang Ci is still in the hospital, so I spoke without thinking and said some things I shouldn't have."
"I hope... I hope you won't take it to heart, Song Yu."
Song Yu tugged at the corner of his mouth, not bothering to respond. He had treated Ou Yilian's words as hot air all along, anyway.
Wen Yuan tapped the desk. "I only want to know what happened today."
Ou Yilian stood helplessly in place, her face pale.
Beside her, Wang Ci's mother, who had been splashed with water and slapped twice, looked utterly bedraggled. Her initial arrogance had vanished. She trembled with anger, but gritted her teeth and said nothing.
Wen Yuan glanced at her, brushed back her long hair, and stepped forward. Addressing the dean of students, who had been practically invisible the entire time, she said politely, "Hello, sir. I'm Song Yu's aunt. I hope you can tell me what happened this afternoon. Thank you."
Watching things develop to this point, the dean sighed faintly inwardly. He had only received a report of students gathering to fight in the Book Mountain Building. He hadn't expected it to lead to something like this.
Taking off his glasses and wiping them, he struggled for a long while before stiffening his neck and muttering, "Neither Song Yu nor Xie Sui was at fault here. As for Wang Ci... he brought it on himself."
Wang Ci's mother couldn't bear it. She jerked her head up and snarled through gritted teeth, "My son is lying in the hospital, and you're telling me he brought it on himself?!"
The dean's hand trembled slightly around his glasses.
His concern for his students ultimately overcame his fear of offending the Wang Family.
He sighed. "There are text messages and video. Wang Ci threatened Xie Sui with his grandmother and lured him to an abandoned classroom, bringing people along to bully him. Xie Sui injured Wang Ci and escaped, and Song Yu took him to the infirmary. That's how this whole thing started."
Wen Yuan gave a cold laugh and turned to Wang Ci's mother, whose face was pale and eyes venomous. "The Wang Family really does produce some extraordinary specimens. One only just went into custody, and now another is about to follow?"
Wang Ci's mother had always felt envy, jealousy, and fear toward Wen Yuan. But when her own son was involved, she refused to back down. She gritted her teeth. "Get this straight. My son is the one in the hospital!"
She pointed at Song Yu and Xie Sui.
"They-they're perfectly fine!"
Wen Yuan ignored her. Walking over to Song Yu in her heels, her entire demeanor softened at once. She smiled. "Yuyu, do you and your friend still have that evidence?"
Song Yu turned to look at Xie Sui.
Xie Sui took out his phone quite naturally.
She watched the video to the end without expression.
Holding back her anger, Wen Yuan took a deep breath and turned to Wang Ci's mother. "Just watch. Wang Ci is a minor, but even if he doesn't go to prison, I'll have him sent to a detention center."
"Scum like him shouldn't be in a place as pure as a school."
At that moment, Wang Ci's mother panicked completely.
After Wang Beidan had been arrested for taking drugs, the Wang Family had been lying low, behaving themselves and not daring to cause trouble. With her son attracting the Meng Family's attention at this critical moment, she recalled the things Wang Ci had done under her indulgence.
Regret and terror crept into her heart.
He was her only biological son, her sole future support in the Wang Family.
"No! This was just children fooling around! Wen Yuan! Enough! Stop harping on it!"
Wen Yuan smiled. "Weren't you the one refusing to let it go? You insisted on keeping Yuyu here and calling his guardian. Well, his guardian is here. Satisfied?"
Satisfied?
Every word was a knife piercing her heart.
It was as though she had plunged into an ice cellar.
Extreme regret showed in Wang Ci's mother's eyes. Rage overwhelmed her, and her eyes turned red. Thinking of everything that had happened today, she turned and slapped Ou Yilian across the face.
Her eyes bloodshot, she roared, "It was you! It was you-if you weren't too incompetent to control your students, would my son have ended up like this?"
Smack!
"Stupid, vicious, and blind! It's all your fault!"
Ou Yilian was stunned by the blows.
She could never have imagined things would turn out this way.
She stared blankly at Song Yu, her mind empty, even her teeth chattering.
Just then, Meng Guang's rather loud voice came from outside the office. "Mom, what's going on? You're just picking someone up. What's taking so long?"
Behind him.
A group of people approached.
It was the principal and several school administrators, talking around a refined man in a suit and polished shoes.
They were all smiling, their mouths dry as they searched for conversation topics. The mayor's sudden arrival at the school, even if it wasn't an inspection arranged from above, had put them on alert. They had deliberately accompanied him, delivering a great deal of high-sounding talk about the school's work.
Meng Guang had made an impromptu detour. Dressed casually in a shirt and trousers, he strode into the office and came over like a big kid. "Isn't it time you gave my phone back? Look how old I am, and you're still doing this. Isn't it childish?"
Wen Yuan rolled her eyes.
Meng Guang said, "What exactly happened with Yuyu? Dad called the principal, but he didn't know either, so he simply came straight to school to check on you."
Wen Yuan sneered. "The Wang Family's handiwork."
Ou Yilian watched blankly as the group entered the office.
That man surrounded by school administrators.
...Song Yu's uncle.
She felt a chill spread up from the soles of her feet. Regret and despair drowned her like seawater. Her limbs turned cold, her head starved of oxygen.
Her voice was bewildered and trembling.
"The... mayor?"
She felt the world spin.
The only thought in her mind was.
It's over.
It's completely over.
Author's note: That more or less writes them out. From now on, study hard and fall in love properly. So sleepy... I'll stop here for now. I hope I can build up a chapter buffer over the Mid-Autumn Festival.
Thank you to the little angels who sent me support tickets or watered me with nutrient solution~
Thank you to the little angel who sent [deep-water torpedoes]: Left Lamp, 1;
Thank you to the little angels who sent [rocket launchers]: Lord Hua v5, 3; Miao Miao, 1;
Thank you to the little angels who sent [grenades]: Miao Miao, Candied Fruit Isn't Too Sweet, l Qin q Cuan Nine, 1 each;
Thank you to the little angels who sent [landmines]: Lotus Seeds Clear the Heart, 4; Young Master Tang, 2; Yuxin Shuli, Shen City, Su Qing_, Flute Lament and Clear Xiao, Swallow Before the Hall, Nana nei, Sicily Has No Savior, You Have His Incarnation's Bearing, Begone Bad Mercury!, Qiqi, muamua_ua, It's Jiang Ci, Scattered, 1 each;
Thank you to the little angels who watered me with [nutrient solution]:
Beautiful Heart Lake, 116 bottles; Miao Miao, 89 bottles; Bonds of Light and Shadow, 86 bottles; Flecks of Sunshine, 42 bottles; Zuo Zuo x, 26 bottles; ...ilead, 23 bottles; cc, A Bodyful of Beauty, chuya, Shrimp Fried Rice, Chen Ah Ah, 20 bottles each; Silly Chrysanthemum, Plump, 19 bottles each; Flying Persimmon, 18 bottles; Green Plum Wine, 16 bottles; Yo Ho Ho, Leaves Leaves Ah, Thousand Snows, Jia An, Wild Ferry, Our Family's Boy Is Growing Up, Come Quickly Lu Ang Flash Card Ahhh, Gu Yun's Playing the Flute Run!, Jiajia, Ink Cypress, Did You Sleep Early Today, Wu Shixun's Darling, Bread Must Be Sliced, 10 bottles each; Different Paths No Return, Please Let Me Pull Golden Crow, 9 bottles each; Floating Bridge Life, 7 bottles; Spring and Plants, Ibaraki, 6 bottles each; axhello, Cool Breeze Hibiscus Hedge, Faint Memories, hae, Myriad Flowers Valley Medical Student, Green Maple Oh Green Maple, Time and You Are Both Hard to Keep, 5 bottles each; Wasted Years, A Sugar Bunny, Little Fangirl, A Lemon That Doesn't Like Vinegar, 3 bottles each; Fallen Memories, Wei Ji Li Yu Shen Yi, 2 bottles each; Thousand Cities, Ge Lai, Little You, Lord Xiu (^3^)~, A Valley, Xinxin Cutie, Big Brother, Er Qing, muqing, The Lumbar Disc Selling Answers, Candy Held in Lu's Mouth, Dog, Little Tail Bunny, Candy-Loving Cat, Scorching Summer Still Cold (=^▽^=), Park Three Flowers' Poop Scooper, Mu Xue, aries, 1 bottle each;
Thank you so much for all your support. I'll keep working hard!