Chapter 40: Something Happened to Su Yingying

"Do you hate me?"

"No, you've been tutoring me; I couldn't possibly hate you."

Jiang Changyuan's blunt words made Su Yingying's face flush slightly, but she had to be sure.

"Then you must look down on me?"

"How could that be? If there’s anyone I’d never look down on, it’s you!"

The heroine—the very foundation upon which a villain’s fate rests—Jiang Changyuan practically wanted to enshrine her like a Bodhisattva.

"Then... then why don't you want to perform the opera with me? Why did you ask Gu Qing to do it instead?"

"It’s just because you two are close. I thought you’d have better chemistry together than we would."

"We don't."

"What?"

Su Yingying fell silent, refusing to respond no matter how much Jiang Changyuan pressed her. She had already received the answer she wanted: Jiang Changyuan neither hated nor despised her. Recalling how gently he had wiped away her tears earlier, for the rest of the tutoring session, Su Yingying was as quiet and timid as a quail. It was too embarrassing—she had actually cried in front of him!

"Son!"

As the tutoring ended, Zhong Qing reached out and gently pinched Jiang Changyuan’s earlobe before giving it a firm twist.

"Ow, ow, Mom! Let’s talk, don't use force!"

"Tell me, did you bully Yingying?"

Even though Su Yingying had tried to hide it, the traces of her crying hadn't escaped Zhong Qing’s sharp eyes.

"Mom, listen to my sophis—my explanation. It’s actually all Dad's fault."

"Me?"

Jiang Zhengguo, who had been watching the scene unfold, was taken aback. Under his wife’s dangerous glare, he hurriedly swore he had absolutely never ordered his son to bully a female classmate. "If you want to frame your father, at least come up with a better reason. I wouldn't even bully your mother, let alone—cough, cough."

"You brat, tell me what’s going on! If you can’t explain it clearly today, I’ll tan your hide!"

Jiang Changyuan curled his lip. Was he actually their biological son, or was Su Yingying their real daughter? They were so biased it was practically a blur! He then gave a selective account of the school performance, though he embellished the part about giving up the lead role to the hero as a sudden desire to focus on his studies.

However, it was to no avail.

"Oh, that? I’m the one who had your father call the school."

"Mom just felt there was a gap between you and Yingying, and this was a perfect opportunity for you two to get more familiar."

Zhong Qing’s words made everything Jiang Changyuan was about to say swallow back down his throat. He had blamed his father; he had thought he could just act like a brat and force the role of Romeo onto Gu Qing, but he never expected the mastermind to be his own mother! She held the family’s purse strings, and if he wanted any more allowance in the future...

"Thanks, Mom! You’re so good to me!"

Jiang Changyuan returned to his bedroom, feeling like his life had lost all meaning as he threw himself onto his soft bed. What was he supposed to do? All his allies were defecting to the enemy!

"Today is the last day before the National Day holiday. I hope everyone will settle down and focus on their studies."

"Also, for the students participating in the duet, please practice more during the break."

Zhou Caiyi’s words were practically a direct order for Jiang Changyuan and Su Yingying to spend more time together over the seven-day holiday. After all, the other students were either performing solo or doing skits that could be practiced online.

"Young Master Jiang, where are we going to hang out during the break?"

"I heard they opened a ski resort in the suburbs of Beining. Should we go check it out?"

"There are several blockbusters coming out soon, should we go catch those?"

Listening to the buzzing of these flies, Jiang Changyuan cast a chilling gaze in their direction.

"Holiday? Hanging out?"

"In your dreams!"

"Everyone is going to attend remedial classes throughout the break. If anyone doesn't show up, just wait and see how I deal with you!"

Jiang Changyuan’s uncompromising tone immediately sent the chubby boy and the others into a chorus of wails. If he was going to suffer, they were going to suffer with him. Their laughter vanished, but Jiang Changyuan smiled.

Chen Xiang and Su Yingying, both needing money for different reasons, naturally didn't refuse. However, Su Yingying only came for one day; on the second day, she didn't show up.

"What’s going on? Has Su Yingying grown some guts? Does she dare skip our Young Master Jiang’s tutoring?"

"She's getting too big for her boots. We need to teach her a lesson so she knows who the real boss is!"

"Where does she live? I’ll go bring her here right now to apologize to Young Master Jiang."

Jiang Changyuan ate his breakfast in silence. Chen Xiang glanced up at him, then...

"Stop saying everyone has grown 'guts.' Do you just keep the word in your mouth because you’re naturally full of it?"

"You're fat and 'bloated,' so you won't even let others have a little metaphorical 'bloating'?"

"You..."

The last minion, who had suggested making Su Yingying apologize, shivered. Why was Chen, the top student, starting to have such a sharp tongue even outside of tutoring hours?

"Forget it, you look like a typo, I won't talk to you anymore."

Was that supposed to be 'not talking'?

A moment later, Jiang Changyuan finished his meal and elegantly wiped the corners of his mouth.

"Everyone who’s finished, come with me to find Su Yingying."

"To cause trouble?"

"Am I that kind of person?"

"Yes."

Chen Xiang’s words always made one feel like they were teetering on the edge of a heart attack.

Jiang Changyuan ground his teeth and took a deep breath.

"She must have run into some trouble. We’re all classmates; I have to go."

"Go ahead, but remember to bring me back a skewer of candied hawthorns."

"You’re coming too, and I’ll pay you extra!"

The mention of extra money made Chen Xiang swallow her refusal, and she happily agreed to go. Jiang Changyuan had his reasons: Su Yingying lived alone with her mother, and if there was some truly dire situation, a group of young men like them would just be standing there uselessly.

The Su family lived in the far east, almost outside of Beining, where only two shuttle buses ran daily. A dozen taxis pulled up to the dilapidated old apartment complex. The chubby boy squeezed out of the car.

"I’ve been squashed thin! Su Yingying lives here?"

"Yeah, Liangzi and I dropped her off a few times before. The last bus at night is at nine, and you have to wait until the next morning for the return trip."

"So if Su Yingying leaves school at six, doesn't she have to wait outside for three hours?"

Jiang Changyuan looked at the old complex, searching for something.

"Young Master Jiang, how did you know where Su Yingying lived?"

"I saw it in the files earlier."

That was, of course, a lie.

He didn't just know where she lived; he knew she spent those three hours after school working part-time. Sometimes, when she missed the last bus, she would take a different one to a stop ten kilometers away and walk the rest of the way home. The hardship was unimaginable to most, especially with a mother who needed constant care.

"How can you blame me? If Wang Hongfang hadn't been so greedy for quick money, would she have ended up like this?"

"You little slut, don't try to scam me! Your mother is in this state because she’s cursed by a jinx like you!"

By the time Jiang Changyuan and the others navigated the winding paths to the Su residence, the area in front of the chipped wooden door was packed with shouting people.

"What’s going on?"

The chubby boy frowned. Seeing Jiang Changyuan sprint forward, he followed, jogging into the crowd.

"Hey, hey, whose kid is this? Stop pushing!"

"Damn it, who stepped on my foot?"

"Look at those fierce-looking brats. Are they here to collect money from the Wang family?"

Pushing through the crowd, Jiang Changyuan immediately grasped the scene inside. Su Yingying’s mother, Wang Hongfang, was lying on the floor, her face flushed with an unnatural crimson, and her exposed knees were swollen like steamed buns. Standing before her, a woman was pointing at her nose, spewing insults.

"You money-sucking wretch! You cursed your father to death, and now you’re cursing your mother!"