Jiang Yue sat beside Yan Mian, taking her hand gently. “Mianmian, look—since you weren’t hurt anyway, why not just let this go?”
A ripple finally stirred in Yan Mian’s calm gaze.
She turned her face slowly toward Jiang Yue. “Mommy?”
Jiang Yue frowned. “I know you’re probably scared. But the Lin Family has business ties with your Uncle Zhu. If our relations sour…”
“Our?”
Yan Mian echoed the word.
If last time she could twist Jiang Yue’s intentions, convincing herself it was all her overactive imagination, what was this?
Who did “our” include besides Jiang Yue and Zhu Lin?
Did it have anything to do with her?
In the wordless standoff, Lin Song emerged from the room in his coat.
A no-smoking sign was posted on the wall, but he lit up anyway, oblivious to anyone else. With the window cracked just a sliver, he stood not far from the two women, exhaling a plume of smoke.
Someone clutching a phone snapped irritably, “Can’t you see? No smoking here.”
Lin Song glanced at him. “Is that so? I didn’t notice.”
He casually pulled his leather wallet from his bag, extracted a few bills, and set them on the bench. “Smoke craving hit me. Sorry about that.”
That man looked at him as if he were a lunatic, his gaze lingering on the money for a few seconds before he walked straight away.
Lin Song’s eyes shifted back to Yan Mian.
“Name your price,” Lin Song said calmly, his gaze brimming with amusement. “How much will it take for you to sign the settlement agreement?”
Though Lin Yang harbored deep hostility toward Yan Mian, at least when she set out to target her, Yan Mian still existed in her eyes.
Compared to her, Lin Song’s methods were far colder, more mature, and brutally direct.
In just a few short words, he crushed every shred of Yan Mian’s pride.
Jiang Yue rose hurriedly. “Mr. Lin, is there still room for discussion on this matter?”
“Discuss what?” Lin Song replied. “Little Yang has already apologized, and Uncle Zhu didn’t refuse. Oh, the only one who’s not thrilled is Lexing.”
“Kids don’t know any better,” he added with a laugh. “You understand, don’t you?”
Jiang Yue responded quickly. “I do, but…”
“Ms. Jiang, you can propose a compensation plan too.” Lin Song handed her the settlement agreement and exhaled a plume of smoke. “As long as it’s within my limits, money or whatever else—you name it, and it’s yours.”
Yan Mian slowly turned her gaze to the settlement agreement in Jiang Yue’s hand.
She hoped Jiang Yue would tear it to pieces without a second thought.
But Jiang Yue merely smiled and said, “Yes.”
Yan Mian felt a deep chill.
“If things aren’t going well at the Zhu Family, feel free to contact me anytime.” Lin Song offered a business card, his eyes gleaming with that same amusement. “Don’t reject it out of hand, Miss Yan. There are plenty of paths in life—you won’t know how smooth one is until you’ve tried it.”
His words dripped with insinuation.
Yan Mian stared at the card and lifted her hand, but someone snatched it from the air first—
And tore it to shreds without hesitation.
The smile faded from Lin Song’s face. He stared silently at Zhu Lexing.
Zhu Lexing met his gaze coldly. “Your contact info is a quick search away. No need to hand her your card, right?”
Lin Song fell silent. Zhu Lexing fought the impulse to fling the scraps in his face. Then she spotted the settlement agreement in Jiang Yue’s hand—and the stunned look on Yan Mian’s face.
“…You signed it?” she asked, frowning.
Thinking Zhu Lexing had softened and wanted to press Yan Mian, Jiang Yue said hastily, “Sign it now—”
“Did I ask you?” After the night they’d had, Zhu Lexing’s patience was utterly spent. Steamed Bun Dad and Cowardly Mom—what kind of hellish opening was this?
The fearless heiress who bowed to no one under heaven?
Now the Lin Family was rubbing her face in the dirt, and she was still acting like this.
Completely useless!
“Don’t sign it,” Zhu Lexing said coldly. “The investigation isn’t even done. Why sign a settlement agreement? Let the process play out.”
Lin Song spoke at last. “Lexing, is that any way to talk to your elders? A little disrespectful, don’t you think?”
Zhu Lexing turned to him. The man wasn’t particularly tall, but a ruthless edge glinted in his eyes.
She echoed his cold laugh. “What I say or do is none of your business.”
Lin Song’s expression darkened.
If Zhu Lin insisted on waiting until “Zhu Lexing” was in real trouble before coughing up cash and effort, she didn’t mind playing the part of the lightning rod.
She still had the System, after all.
Unreliable as it was, at least it wouldn’t let her die by someone else’s hand.
She held back from provoking him further… only because of Yan Mian.
Yan Mian finally stood.
She avoided Jiang Yue’s gaze entirely. “I’m tired. I’m heading back.”
She started to leave, Zhu Lexing right behind her, but Lin Song called out suddenly. “Miss Yan.”
“If you need anything, contact me anytime.” He smiled. “Some roads look daunting until you take that first step—then you see just how easy they can be.”
Zhu Lexing’s fists clenched tight.
What the hell was this? Flirting with Yan Mian right in front of her, trying to lure her down the wrong path?
What kind of psycho was he!
The more Zhu Lexing thought about it, the angrier she got—the more she itched to deck him. She held out for several seconds before grabbing Yan Mian’s hand and storming out.
No one tried to stop them after that.
Outside the police station, the night sky glittered with stars. Reaching the car snapped Zhu Lexing out of it with a gust of cold wind; she realized she was still holding Yan Mian’s hand and let go in a hurry.
“…You head back first,” Zhu Lexing said. “I’ll take care of this.”
Yan Mian didn’t open the car door right away.
She paused in silence, then looked up, meeting Zhu Lexing’s eyes squarely. “Thank you,” she said earnestly.
Zhu Lexing’s impulsive actions had been abrupt, but they’d restored her fragile dignity in the most straightforward way possible.
And back on stage…
Without Zhu Lexing, Yan Mian shuddered to think where she’d be now.
Zhu Lexing had never imagined a simple, sincere thank-you could strike so deeply.
Even more unexpected was what came next. After another beat of silence, Yan Mian continued. “Last night, I didn’t mean it. I’m not used to you being that close. At the time—”
“…I know,” Zhu Lexing said.
She understood perfectly—it had been Yan Mian’s instinct.
Yan Mian disliked her.
Yet here she was, pushing that dislike aside to thank her.
Because she’d helped.
A rush of guilty memories from the stage—those improper fantasies—flashed through her mind, transforming in that instant into remorse toward Zhu Lexing herself.
“It’s fine,” she murmured.
A thank-you offered, a thank-you accepted. For the first time, they shared a real, normal exchange.
Yan Mian faltered, unsure how to keep the conversation going. “Then… I’ll be off.”
Truth be told, she had more to say.
Like urging Zhu Lexing not to fight with Zhu Lin—but what right did she have?
How could she even phrase it? “Don’t fight for my sake”?
That would presume far too much about her own worth.
Yan Mian had spent her life perfecting the art of not overvaluing herself.
In the end, she managed a faint smile, got into the car, and drove away.
Only then did Zhu Lexing turn and head back.
Facing Zhu Lin’s renewed attempts to “persuade” her to back down, Zhu Lexing replied calmly, “This matter isn’t going to end just like that.”
But without evidence—and with Lin Song’s connections—even if Zhu Lexing dragged Lin Yang to the police station and kept her there until the middle of the night, the result was still just a bland promise to “continue the investigation.”
Anyone with eyes could see that further probing wouldn’t yield anything.
The school’s surveillance cameras had conveniently malfunctioned and couldn’t be repaired. No one involved in moving the props would admit fault. In the end, it all boiled down to a mere “accident.”
After pulling an all-nighter, Lin Yang seemed lost in thought. As they left the station, she hurried after Zhu Lexing, her tone much softer. “Lexing, I—”
Zhu Lexing didn’t spare her a single glance.
She turned and walked away. Lin Yang couldn’t hold her back and could only stand there in a daze, watching Zhu Lexing’s retreating figure until Lin Song spoke up from behind her. “Little Yang, when do you expect to Differentiate?”
“…” Lin Yang didn’t understand the point of his question and simply answered, “In the next few weeks.”
Lin Song said calmly, “Is that so? What a coincidence.”
“Shi Ruofeng is Differentiating soon, too.”
Lin Yang didn’t catch his meaning at first, but then realization dawned, and her eyes lit up.
~~~
When she got home to the Zhu Family, Zhu Lexing collapsed into bed and slept. She had a lot on her mind and woke up around noon. After washing up, she sat at her desk and began pondering seriously.
Only now did she fully realize that the System was just a basic AI with penalties but no rewards. When it came to characters, it would give a token introduction, but beyond that, it had hardly any functions.
In short, it was useless.
And right now, Zhu Lexing felt pretty useless herself.
But there were degrees of uselessness. After thoroughly scorning the System, she started thinking about who she could actually rely on.
The Zhu Family had plenty of relatives. Asking any one of them for help would surely get a response. But the Original Host was proud and distant from everyone. Reaching out rashly would probably make her Character Setting Collapse Degree skyrocket.
For now, at least, the only person she seemed able to count on was…
Zhu Lexing’s train of thought suddenly halted.
What about the mother of “Zhu Lexing”?
She raised her hand and opened the Comment Section.
Overnight, it had exploded with activity, mainly divided into three camps: #Zhu Lexing Surprisingly Became an A#, #Does the Lin Family Have Issues?#, and #Heartache for Yan Mian.
Zhu Lexing scrolled for a long time before finding a comment mentioning Zhu Lexing’s mother.
【0 (Favorability 0): I’m missing Liu Su. She was the only normal one before the change. She was good to Yan Mian and had that decisive, arrogant personality. If she were around, that Lin woman wouldn’t dare act so brazen.
1L: In 1.0, Zhu Lin came across as this perfect, gentle guy. I even felt sorry for him getting dragged down by Zhu Lexing, thinking she was ruining the whole family… Now it looks like if he’d always been like this, Liu Su’s divorce from him was totally justified. Who’d want to be stuck with such a spineless loser?
2L: Lin Song is so gross. Leaving his card for Yan Mian—does he want her to follow him around or something?
3L: …Your guesses made me check the story channel. The author’s crazy, but it’s always been about women tangled up with women. Brainstorming something toxic like that is hilarious.】
Zhu Lexing latched onto the description of her “decisive and arrogant” personality, and her eyes brightened.
At this point, she no longer needed Zhu Lin’s “happy family reunion” style of help.
