After Transmigrating into a Redemption Novel as the Evil Stepmother - Chapter 4

A threat or a clumsy reminder?

Ming Jiayue thought for a moment, recalling the settings of the original plot. Although Ji Shuangci had a strong personality and usually appeared quiet and cold, she had inevitably grown up with deep-seated insecurities. For instance, she was timid when dealing with strangers, disliked communicating with classmates, subconsciously avoided eye contact, and deliberately tried to minimize her presence.

Specifically, she suffered from a certain degree of social anxiety.

It wasn’t very noticeable in casual interaction, but once you spent enough time with her or spoke extensively, you’d realize her answers sometimes drifted off-topic, revealing a very erratic train of thought.

Raising kids takes time.

Finally, suppressing the awkwardness in her heart, Ming Jiayue replied with a simple: “Mhm.”

Ji Shuangci hadn’t gotten off the subway yet. She sat pressed against one side, her eyes locked onto her phone screen. For some reason, her hands were sweating from nerves.

Seeing the notification “The other party is typing,” Ji Shuangci unconsciously held her breath.

A single “Mhm.”

By the time she exited the station, no second message had arrived.

The sun broke through the clouds, tinting the city’s silhouette in pale gold. The wind carried the fragrance of jacarandas, and in the distance were the flows of people, traffic, honking horns, and chattering voices.

Ji Shuangci felt a surge of pleasant surprise, yet also a touch of disappointment. She stopped her pace and stood still in the bustling crowd for three seconds, then took a deep breath, suppressing that obscure, inexplicable feeling in her heart.

Ming Jiayue’s breakfast was simple: a small dish of nuts and a glass of milk.

Zhou An’an left after finishing breakfast with her. She had already taken several days off school and had to return today. Zhou An’an couldn’t hide her feelings at all; before leaving, she still felt the need to voice an awkward threat:

“Don’t forget to apply your medicine. If it starts hurting later, I’m not taking responsibility.”

The medicine applied last night had helped her swollen “peach eyes” subside significantly, but they were still as large as eggs. Even with sunglasses, she couldn’t hide the awkwardness, pride, and absurdity on her face.

Ming Jiayue took a document handed over by her secretary, a trace of a smile in her eyes. “Alright.”

Not being met with a sarcastic retort made Zhou An’an momentarily uncomfortable. She gave a heavy “Hmph” before walking out.

Secretary Li Ling watched their somewhat affectionate interaction, her mouth hanging open in a perfect “O” shape. Was she seeing things? Or had she eaten mushrooms this morning and started hallucinating?

In the past, every time President Ming and Miss Zhou met, it ended in chaos. They were always at each other’s throats without any regard for appearances. It was always a mess.

What on earth had happened?

Or was her memory failing her?

Stunned for a full half-minute, Li Ling finally snapped out of it and carefully opened another box in her hand.

“President Ming, Mr. Zhang asked me to tell you that he is on a business trip abroad and is very worried about you, but he truly cannot return. He sent a gift and asks for your understanding.”

The Light of Peace diamond, 126.76 carats, was a piece of jewelry Zhang Ze had won at a Sotheby’s auction in June.

The original host already had quite a collection, so this diamond was a commonplace item to her. She and the “Tool Man” husband No. 6, Zhang Ze, had exchanged many such gifts. Ming Jiayue spared it a glance and directly told Li Ling to put it in the safe to gather dust.

The police arrived shortly after. Considering Ming Jiayue’s social status and injuries, they had previously notified her that they would come to the ward for a statement once she was awake.

The Mingzhu Group was involved in many industries and was massive in scale. Although the elder Mr. Ming had left behind a complete professional management system, Ming Jiayue was the true person in power. If she didn’t want the family fortune drained by others, she couldn’t afford to slack off.

Even though she had just woken up, the secretary had already brought a pile of documents.

When the two officers came in to take the statement, Ming Jiayue had just put down her laptop. “Good morning, you two.”

The officers were veterans—one female, Liu Jiao, and one male, Zhou Zhengyi. Hearing Ming Jiayue take the initiative to greet them, they were a bit flattered. Following that was a routine session of questions and answers.

It went much more smoothly than expected.

The two officers took a moment to exchange glances, both breathing a sigh of relief. Dealing with this tycoon they often saw on TV and in financial magazines, it was impossible not to feel mental pressure—especially since rumors claimed she had a terrible temper.

Seeing her today, it was clear that rumors weren’t to be trusted. While she wasn’t exactly “down-to-earth,” her state as she sat there was very peaceful, calm, and detached.

By the end of the process, it felt comfortable to talk to her. She even hummed a bit of humor when asked about the injuries on one of the suspects:

“Because they weren’t being reasonable, and I happen to know a bit of martial arts, I had to reluctantly teach them some logic.”

After the statement was finished, the officers took their leave. Zhou Zhengyi and Ming Jiayue exchanged one last look as the door closed.

On the way back, Liu Jiao seemed very excited and couldn’t help but gossip.

“Hey, Old Zhou, Ming Jiayue has such a good background and her own ability and EQ. Why would she marry Zhang Ze, who is fifteen years older, and become someone’s stepmother?”

“Is it possible that even daughters of rich families are prone to being lovesick fools?”

Zhou Zhengyi remained silent. After getting into the car, he kept replaying that last eye contact with Ming Jiayue.

At that moment, she had stopped smiling. The light fell sideways across her face, creating a clear line between light and shadow. Her eye, hidden in the shadow, looked exactly like a wolf’s—sharp and incisive. It felt as if if he looked for a moment longer, everything in his head would be dug out completely.

Upon further reflection, it seemed the entire interrogation had followed her rhythm. Zhou Zhengyi felt a slight chill on his back. After a pause, he shook his head firmly.

“Impossible.”

Someone with eyes like that could never be a simple character.

Ming Jiayue didn’t care at all what the officers thought. She was still an injured patient, but her work hadn’t stopped. Besides group affairs, she had to guard against the male leads of the original plot.

Without the system, many things became troublesome. Fortunately, the original host was wealthy. Ming Jiayue immediately had Li Ling find private detectives to start monitoring the male leads’ movements and report back at any time.

Li Ling found it strange, but it was none of her business. Whatever the boss said, she did. Follow orders and get it done.

Ji Shuangci was sensitive. Growing up in isolation made her exceptionally wary of her surroundings.

This day, after evening self-study ended, Ji Shuangci planned to go to the hospital to accompany her mother as usual, but she soon sensed someone was following her. She turned back into the school.

She repeated this tactic for three days. It wasn’t until Friday after school, as Ji Shuangci walked out of the school gates and crossed the road, that she saw the person she never wanted to see again in her life.

Ji Kong, Ji Shuangci’s biological father.

He suddenly lunged out from nowhere and rushed in front of Ji Shuangci, covered in filth and reeking of a foul stench.

He firmly gripped Ji Shuangci’s wrist, his mouth wide open to reveal a row of yellow teeth.

“My good daughter, I heard you moved your mom to a better hospital. You must have struck it rich. How can you ignore your father? Give me some money to spend.”

“Not much, just twenty thousand will do.”

Ji Shuangci was very mature. Whether it was isolation, exclusion, or slander, it rarely stirred great emotion in her.

Over time, relatives, neighbors, and classmates all felt she was cold-hearted and not worth associating with.

Gradually, she began to walk alone.

But seeing this man, Ji Shuangci’s eyes instantly turned red, though no tears fell. Her lips trembled as she tried her best to ask calmly:

“Ji Kong, why aren’t you dead? Why aren’t you dead yet?”

“I beg you, go and die already!”

It was after-school hours, and the school gates were crowded. Ji Shuangci consistently ranked first on the high school talent list, so many people knew her. Many students and parents stopped to watch the spectacle.

“Shuangshuang, I’m your father! How can you disown me? How can you tell me to die! All your education has gone to the dogs!”

Seeing the growing crowd, Ji Kong immediately changed his face, speaking with tears and snot about how difficult it had been to raise Ji Shuangci.

His bloated body was like a towering wall blocking Ji Shuangci. The shadow shrouded her thin frame, as if cutting off all paths to survival.

Ji Shuangci was beautiful and had good grades, but she had no friends at school. There were plenty of people who talked behind her back out of jealousy.

In the past, it was always behind her back, so she didn’t care, pretending she knew nothing.

With the scene Ji’s father was making today, nasty discussions immediately broke out in the crowd. Malice fermented like a poisonous snake, continuously devouring her will.

“That’s her dad? Why is he dressed like a beggar?”

“Tsk tsk tsk, so her family is this poor. What’s the use of having good grades? She usually acts so arrogant.”

“I told you, she’s a total green tea bitch, only acting pure in front of boys.”

“Maybe she’s been selling herself for a long time. Looking at her dad, her mom probably isn’t anything good either.”

“…”

Suffocation submerged her like a tide. Ji Shuangci stood alone in the center of the crowd. The attacking discussions wove into an invisible net, tightly binding her heart. The pain was overwhelming.

Every breath hurt. The fig leaf she had carefully hidden was torn away just like that. All her ugliness was exposed to the public, and her remaining self-esteem was crushed without mercy.

Shame, suffocation, anger…

It was as if she had been stripped naked and thrown into a crowd, with everyone discussing, mocking, and belittling her…

“Why… why…”

Ji Shuangci struggled desperately to push the man away. Ji Kong suddenly slapped her across the face, violently knocking her to the ground.

Ji Kong’s face was full of smugness, without a hint of hesitation or pity. Instead, he immediately crouched down, whispering threats and incessantly demanding money.

“Money, give me money.”

“Shuangshuang, if you don’t give me money, you and your mom better watch out. See if I don’t beat you both to death.”

Ji Kong grinned hideously, like a demon’s whisper.

Ji Shuangci wanted to flee but found she couldn’t move a single step. The nightmare sealed deep in her memory suddenly became vividly clear.

A pitch-black night, a man in a rage, bowls shattered on the floor, her mother with a bleeding head, herself lying on the ground dying after being whipped by a belt until she lost control of her bladder…

Such nightmares had been repeated in reality countless times. Ji Shuangci had tried to resist, but time and again, what awaited her was a more hysterical beating.

She had been beaten until one eye was temporarily blind, beaten until her bones broke, beaten until her body was covered in scars…

Why did he have to appear just when everything was about to get better? Hatred, fear, pain, anger—these long-suppressed negative emotions were now like surging waves, constantly crashing inside Ji Shuangci’s body.

Her hands and feet were ice cold, her senses numbed by pain. Ji Shuangci suddenly looked up, a lifeless smile appearing on her bloodless cheeks.

Fate was like an endless cliff; she fought with her life, yet it never gave her room to breathe.

Ji Shuangci stared straight at Ji Kong, every word squeezed out as if with her last bit of strength.

“Then… let’s go to hell together.”

Ji Shuangci was very wary; she always kept a pair of sharp scissors on her when going to and from school. The moment she touched the scissors, a suicidal determination burst forth in her dark eyes.

And at the very moment she gripped the scissors, a hand gripped hers first.

The coldness was invaded by warmth, so beautiful it felt like a hallucination before death.

Ji Shuangci looked up dully and saw a person standing in front of her.

Her unfocused pupils slowly centered on one point. All the noise around her disappeared with the sound of the wind. Ji Shuangci only heard her say:

“Don’t be afraid. I’m here.”