After Transmigrating into a Redemption Novel as the Evil Stepmother - Chapter 2

Unlike Ji Shuangci’s cautious nature, Zhou An’an was a “troublemaker” through and through. Her biological mother died from complications during her birth, and her father had spoiled her into lawlessness since childhood.

In the original plot, she eventually committed a grave mistake and ended up in jail.

Some sparks must be snuffed out at the source!

Ming Jiayue was not one for gentle procrastination. After recovering her senses, she walked straight toward Zhou An’an.

Zhou An’an had spent a lot of money to have someone paint this “ghost makeup” on her. Her friends said it made their skin crawl just looking at it. Seeing Ming Jiayue stand still for a moment, she assumed she was terrified and immediately began reporting to her group chat.

An Who Never Yields: “Hahahahaha, that woman is so scared she can’t move. She thinks she can mess with me? I’ll scare her to death!”

Ji Xing Has No PP: “Wanna see, wanna see! Got a pic? This is too exciting!”

Livestock: “@An Who Never Yields, Miss Zhou, I heard that bitch has congenital heart disease. Why don’t you secretly swap her meds one day? Do it a few times and I bet she’ll drop dead of fright!”

…

However, before Zhou An’an could reply, a hand as beautiful as white porcelain entered her field of vision and unceremoniously snatched her phone away.

Zhou An’an looked up. Ming Jiayue was right in front of her, looking at her with a half-smile.

Ming Jiayue had removed her makeup. The corners of her eyes tilted up lazily, and she was wearing a slim-fit silk nightgown. Her skin was so perfect you couldn’t see a single pore, and her waist was very slender…

When she wasn’t being overbearing, she was actually quite beautiful.

Zhou An’an stared at her for a few seconds before belatedly letting out a startled shriek. Two seconds later, she barked out in embarrassment and anger:

“You vixen, get away from me! Being this close makes me feel like you stink!”

As she spoke, Zhou An’an reached out to push her.

Ming Jiayue sidestepped the shove. Seeing Zhou An’an’s stubborn attitude, she gave a cold laugh. Without a word, she cleanly and decisively grabbed Zhou An’an’s wrist and led her into the first-floor study, brooking no resistance.

Ming Jiayue scanned the room; an ebony ferule (ruler) hung quietly on one wall.

Watching Ming Jiayue close the door, lock it, and then go to grab the ruler, Zhou An’an suddenly felt a chill in her heart. Today’s Ming Jiayue felt very strange.

But Zhou An’an kept her bravado up, tilting her head back mockingly.

“What, you think you’re going to hit me? Do you even know who you are?”

“I’m telling you, if you dare hit me, I’ll have Dad kick you out!”

Ming Jiayue ignored her, testing the weight of the ruler. Her usually calm eyes briefly flashed with a sharp, intimidating authority.

The study was large. By the time she was pressed onto the desk and felt a sharp pain on her bottom, Zhou An’an hadn’t even realized what was happening.

She screamed a few times, her eyelids twitching rapidly as she watched the shadows flickering on the floor.

“Aaaaah! It hurts, hurts, hurts!”

“Ming Jiayue, are you crazy?! You dare hit me?!”

As it turned out, Ming Jiayue not only dared to hit her but hit her quite hard.

Zhou An’an had been pampered since she was a child. Aside from Ming Jiayue, no one ever hit her, let alone spoke harshly to her. Her friends all worshipped her, terrified that she might trip or find something displeasing.

This was her first time being beaten. She twisted like a caterpillar but couldn’t break free at all.

And she was being spanked by Ming Jiayue!

It hurt! It hurt so much!

It was humiliating! So humiliating!

Her bottom felt like it was going to explode. Zhou An’an’s tears wouldn’t stop. At first, she was still cursing Ming Jiayue, but eventually, the pain became unbearable, and she finally changed her tune.

“I won’t tell my dad! Stop hitting me~”

“Wuu-wuu, it hurts, hurts, hurts~”

“I won’t scare you anymore, okay?”

“…”

Zhou An’an was two years younger than Ji Shuangci—just sixteen this year—and her mind wasn’t fully mature yet. Seeing her crying with snot and tears everywhere, Ming Jiayue decided it was enough and let go.

With her bottom burning, Zhou An’an lay awkwardly curled on her side on the sofa, large beads of sweat rolling off her forehead.

She was still indignant in her heart, but it simply hurt too much. She didn’t know a ruler could hurt this badly. Ming Jiayue looked so slender, yet she was surprisingly strong.

Under the suppression of physical force, Zhou An’an finally surrendered, albeit shamefully.

Her lips moved several times, and only after seeing Ming Jiayue put the ruler down did she say through gritted teeth:

“By what right do you hit me? Are you trying to kill me?”

Ming Jiayue spared her a nonchalant glance.

“By what right?”

“Because I am your mother.”

The housekeeper, Auntie Li, was waiting at the door. When Ming Jiayue opened it, the family doctor had already arrived and was leaning lazily against the frame. Ming Jiayue glanced back inside.

“Check her over.”

Ming Jiayue’s expression was indifferent and her tone calm. Her cheeks were flushed from the recent exertion, making her look bright and dignified up close.

“My mother?”

Zhou An’an was stunned. She opened her mouth to argue, closed it, opened it again, then closed it once more. She was lost for words.

Her bottom hurt, but her usually thick-skinned, lawless heart felt as though it had been pierced by Ming Jiayue’s words. For a moment, it felt sour and aching.

She had a mother, but her mother died because of her birth.

Auntie Li, the housekeeper, wore her hair in a neat bun and was dressed in a traditional cloth jacket. She walked with a very steady gait.

One look and you could tell she was trained in martial arts.

She was one of the people left behind by the original host’s father.

Auntie Li said nothing; she simply had someone bring a basin of water so Ming Jiayue could wash her hands.

Zhou An’an was angry, aggrieved, and sad. However, she was outnumbered and powerless. The security and servants in the villa didn’t listen to her. Tonight she had been beaten—it was painful and embarrassing. Seeing Ming Jiayue looking so unbothered, as if nothing had happened, the emotions bottled up inside Zhou An’an grew heavier and heavier.

But she couldn’t wail in front of Ming Jiayue; that would be too humiliating.

Zhou An’an tried her best to endure it, her eyes red and her face turning crimson from the effort.

Until suddenly:

“Hic!“

Then, as if a dam had broken, the suppressed sobbing was followed by a loud, unstoppable crying hiccup.

“Hic-hic-hic-hic-hic!“

She sounded like a chirping bird. The family doctor couldn’t hold it back and let out a laugh.

The atmosphere instantly became subtle and awkward.

Seeing her looking so pitiful and knowing she was feeling conflicted, Ming Jiayue went straight upstairs to her room.

Just as she reached the stairs, she heard a earth-shattering wail of misery come from the study downstairs.

“Hahahahaha.”

A smile touched Ming Jiayue’s eyes as she chatted with the system.

“This ‘parenting’ task is actually more fun than I thought.”

System: Yes, yes, yes. After bullying this one, you hit that one. Of course it’s fun.

Ignoring the system’s sarcasm, Ming Jiayue finished washing up, took her sleeping pills, and dove into the soft, large bed.

Under the influence of the medication, Ming Jiayue slept deeply until 3:00 AM, when she was suddenly jolted awake by a piercing alarm from the system.

“Beep! Beep! Beep! Danger detected for the protagonists. Host, please stop it immediately!!!”

Ming Jiayue: ???

Flipping out of bed, Ming Jiayue looked at the surveillance footage provided by the system. In the dead of night, Zhou An’an had secretly driven a car out of the garage. The catch was that she was a minor, didn’t have a license, and was stumbling her way onto the road.

Frowning, Ming Jiayue didn’t hesitate. She quickly changed her clothes and hurriedly drove another car out to follow.

At the same time, she contacted the housekeeper to call the police and arrange for bodyguards to catch up.

Zhou An’an’s final location was at a suburban cemetery. The system mentioned that a group of drug traffickers were currently there.

When Ming Jiayue arrived, the cemetery was pitch black. As far as the eye could see, there were endless rows of tombstones. Both Zhou An’an and Ji Shuangci were there. Zhou An’an was kneeling, leaning against a tombstone like a lost kitten, sobbing pitifully.

“Mom, wuu-wuu-wuu-wuu…”

“When will you come see me in my dreams? An’an misses you so much.”

Ji Shuangci was beside her, at a loss as she tried to comfort her. She came from an unhappy family but had a mother who loved her very much.

She could empathize with Zhou An’an’s grief.

Zhou An’an had a strong sense of self-esteem; she hadn’t told the “rich kids” she usually hung out with. After thinking it over, she had called her tutor.

Ji Shuangci was always patient and gentle with Zhou An’an, like an older sister. Zhou An’an trusted her deeply.

Fearing an accident, Ming Jiayue walked over quickly and called out to them softly.

“An’an, Ji Shuangci, come home with me. It’s not safe here.”

Zhou An’an froze. Her eyes were swollen like peaches as she glared—or what she thought was a glare—at Ming Jiayue.

“What are you doing here? Don’t come near my mom! Get lost, I hate you!”

Zhou An’an was very emotional. As she spoke, she grabbed offerings and threw them at Ming Jiayue. Ming Jiayue didn’t know if the drug traffickers the system mentioned were nearby, so with two children present, she didn’t dare speak plainly.

Taking a deep breath, Ming Jiayue suppressed her temper and patiently urged them to go home again.

However, Zhou An’an refused to go. This time, when Ming Jiayue approached, she scratched, kicked, and bit. She bit Ming Jiayue’s shoulder, and the scent of blood immediately spread. Ming Jiayue hissed in pain but didn’t let go.

“Ji Shuangci, come to my side.”

Firmly grabbing Zhou An’an, Ming Jiayue led them back.

But as the saying goes, what you fear most will happen. Before they had walked ten meters, there was a rustling sound behind them, followed by a sinister male voice. It was grating, sounding like rusted iron rubbing against coarse stone.

“None of you are leaving.”

Ming Jiayue’s body stiffened. Zhou An’an’s crying stopped instantly. The three of them turned around to see several black muzzles and a group of ferocious-looking men.

Ming Jiayue was the first to recover. She immediately pushed Zhou An’an and Ji Shuangci behind her, blocking them with her body as much as possible, and gave a faint smile.

“Gentlemen, the child missed her mother in the middle of the night. We didn’t mean to disturb you. Please forgive us.”

“The ring on my hand is worth some money. If you don’t mind, please take it. We haven’t been here tonight, we saw nothing, and we know nothing.”

Zhou An’an was used to acting recklessly, but she had never seen a real gun. Thinking of the news stories she’d seen before, her face went pale.

Ji Shuangci looked calm on the surface, but her clenched fists betrayed her tension.

the group stared for half a minute without speaking. Ming Jiayue spoke again.

“If you’re worried, let the two children leave first. I will stay.”

The system said the housekeeper had arrived with people; they could intercept Zhou An’an and Ji Shuangci now.

The man in the lead gave a cold laugh. Another man with sharp, rat-like features chimed in.

“Brother Qing, who comes to a cemetery at this hour? There’s definitely something fishy. They’re probably police scouts. I say we just pop them to be safe.”

Ming Jiayue’s nerves were taut. Her face and tone remained calm, but cold sweat had already soaked through her clothes.

At this point, Zhou An’an and Ji Shuangci were truly terrified. Ming Jiayue inconspicuously squeezed their palms and whispered a reminder: “If shots are fired later, use your instincts and run toward the entrance. Auntie Li is outside.”

Ming Jiayue’s voice was very soft, gently brushing past Zhou An’an’s ear.

She had never spoken to Zhou An’an so gently before. Zhou An’an looked at her, her mind a mess and her heart filled with complex emotions. But right now, she had no time to dwell on it.

She only knew that Ming Jiayue had rushed out in the middle of the night to save her, hadn’t blamed her, and was now standing in front to protect her.

Ji Shuangci’s feelings were equally strange and conflicting. She had initially been full of gratitude to Ming Jiayue for allowing her to continue her studies, but when the woman asked her to be her lover, she felt disgusted.

But at this moment, she didn’t know how to describe her feelings. In this life-or-death moment of danger, her hand was being held firmly by Ming Jiayue’s warm hand.

Ming Jiayue was tall, but not strong; in fact, she looked a bit thin, as if a strong wind could blow her away. Yet, she stood in front of them without any hesitation.

Those were guns—things that killed people.

Ji Shuangci had been mature since childhood, used to taking care of herself and growing up with difficulty like a wild weed. She never troubled others unless absolutely necessary.

But now, looking at Ming Jiayue’s back, she felt something sour and swelling suddenly explode in her heart.

So, when the gun fired, when the person blocking them let out a muffled groan, and when the smell of blood filled the air, the first reaction of Zhou An’an and Ji Shuangci was not to run. Instead, they instinctively looked at Ming Jiayue’s condition with faces full of terror.

Ming Jiayue had been trying her best to negotiate, but the traffickers had clearly lost their patience.

Bang!

Ming Jiayue collapsed. She felt as though her entire left shoulder had been blown apart; the pain was beyond words.

In the seconds before her consciousness faded, Ming Jiayue used all her strength.

“System… save… save the target characters!”