Pretending To Be Affectionate [Transmigration] - Chapter 21

Perhaps because she had gotten caught in the rain, Ling Yu drank the ginger tea prepared by the kitchen housekeeper, then went upstairs and took a hot shower.

She had originally intended to sleep early that night, but her phone kept vibrating with incoming messages.

Professor Wu sent her a long string of reminders. In summary, although she had completed all her coursework, she still needed to submit both her internship report and graduation thesis before graduating.

Less than half a year remained until graduation.

Her classmates had already submitted two drafts of their theses, while Ling Yu had yet to submit even one.

Professor Wu expressed considerable concern about whether she could graduate successfully. Although his wording was tactful, he had clearly given Ling Yu a final submission deadline.

After being interrupted by this matter, Ling Yu no longer dared to sleep.

She had spent the past several months so thoroughly occupied with Gu Qing that she had completely forgotten she was a fourth-year university student.

She had not written a single word of her graduation thesis.

Ling Yu immediately sprang out of bed, went downstairs to make herself a cup of coffee, then opened her laptop and began furiously working on her paper.

As a top-tier author, Ling Yu had once maintained the popularity of her novels consistently above average. That had changed only after she began running out of inspiration and readers repeatedly questioned why the quality of her writing never improved.

Therefore, something like a thesis genuinely posed little difficulty for her.

What required several months from other people might take Ling Yu only one night.

Her ten fingers flew rapidly across the keyboard. The glow from the screen reflected across her exceedingly fair face, making her appear extraordinarily focused.

Two hours later, Ling Yu typed the final word and closed her laptop.

Her phone rang again.

This time, the call came from an unfamiliar number.

Ling Yu glanced at it and casually declined.

Unexpectedly, the person called again three seconds later.

“Xiao-mei, it’s Li Juan.”

Ling Yu lowered her lashes and glanced at her watch.

She raised an eyebrow and asked without revealing anything, “It’s already two in the morning. Why are you still awake? Are you working overtime?”

Li Juan denied it three times in succession.

A concealed anxiety seemed to linger in her voice.

“Did something happen, Juan-jie?” Ling Yu asked.

“It isn’t anything serious. I simply couldn’t sleep tonight, and I’ve been feeling restless. I’m sorry for calling so late, Xiao-mei. I genuinely don’t have many trustworthy friends left in Yuncheng.”

Li Juan sounded dispirited, as though she had gathered a great deal of courage to make this call.

“If this is inconvenient for you…”

“It’s convenient.”

Ling Yu narrowed her eyes and interrupted.

“I happen to be rushing to finish my graduation thesis tonight, so I’m still awake. Go ahead.”

“Ah, thank you, Xiao-mei.”

Li Juan laughed bitterly.

“You’re my aunt’s stepdaughter, and you gave me so much money, so I can certainly trust you. I wasn’t actually short of money before. Auntie must have told you that I recently encountered some trouble…”

Ling Yu keenly caught the hint that something was wrong.

“Did that trouble find you tonight?”

Li Juan smiled bitterly and gave an affirmative hum.

“Have you heard about Jiang Wei’s case? That’s what caused my trouble.”

Ling Yu did not interrupt. She merely murmured in acknowledgment, indicating for Li Juan to continue.

“Xiao-mei, I intend to appear in court tomorrow as a witness for that bastard Jiang Wei.”

Grief filled Li Juan’s voice. She seemed to have been crying, leaving her words hoarse.

“I’m useless. My best friend’s body has barely grown cold, yet I lacked the courage to clear her name. Now I even have to…”

Li Juan abruptly stopped speaking.

Ling Yu was not particularly surprised that matters had developed this far.

The night she saw Gu Qing deliberately approaching Li Juan, she understood that something else would inevitably follow.

Even though she had anticipated it, she still felt somewhat disappointed in Gu Qing.

Ling Yu was not someone who meddled in other people’s affairs. She did not demand that Gu Qing reveal the truth behind every case.

But at the very least, Gu Qing could not knowingly violate the law and force Li Juan to give false testimony.

Ling Yu raised her eyelids and tugged at the corners of her lips.

“Did she force you?”

Li Juan sounded confused.

“She?”

“Gu Qing. Did she force you to testify?”

The other end of the call remained silent for a long time.

The emotion in Ling Yu’s eyes gradually faded.

“No.”

Li Juan answered decisively.

“It wasn’t her. It was my own decision…I have reasons why I must go.”

Ling Yu did not entirely believe her because of the recording pen.

However, Li Juan spoke again in the next second.

“Xiao-mei, you probably know that my confession was rejected today. It turns out I was imagining everything. Gu Qing doesn’t like me.”

Ling Yu gave a faint response and comforted her.

“It’s good that you cut your losses in time.”

“I refused to accept it at first. I demanded to know why she had treated me so well and shown concern for me every day if she didn’t want me to misunderstand. Guess what she said.”

Ling Yu’s hand paused while closing the curtains.

“Hmm?”

Li Juan laughed bitterly.

“She said she works late every night. By the time she’s free to call, it’s already the middle of the night. Her only purpose was to confirm that I was still alive.”

Ling Yu clicked her tongue.

“What a vicious mouth.”

“I never would’ve believed those words before. But Xiao-mei, I finally realized tonight what kind of trouble I’ve provoked.”

Weariness entered Li Juan’s voice.

Seemingly recalling something, she sobbed and tipped her head back, audibly gulping down some liquor.

As the alcohol took effect, her words acquired a drawn-out, piercing tone.

“Insignificant people like us…have long since learned to treat loneliness as a belief and failure as the normal state of our lives. But only today did I realize that accepting an ordinary life isn’t enough.”

“We also need to accept the crushing defeat of that ordinary life.”

Ling Yu frowned.

“If someone is threatening you, expose them. Justice may arrive late, but that doesn’t mean it won’t arrive.”

Ling Yu had never tried to control other people’s choices, so she did not continue persuading Li Juan.

She merely told her that this world never offered only a single path.

Choose correctly, and the road ahead would be bright.

Choose incorrectly, and it would become rugged and treacherous.

Li Juan remained silent even longer this time.

Growing impatient, Ling Yu carried her phone to the window for some air.

The villa at the Xu family’s old residence had stood for many years.

Several years earlier, Old Master Xu had sent Ling Yu’s eldest uncle to renovate the facilities surrounding the villa for the elderly matriarch.

Wall lamps had been installed outside the wrought-iron gate. Farther down the road, the municipal authorities had specifically added directional signs and streetlights.

Ling Yu’s bedroom was on the third floor.

Looking outside, she unexpectedly noticed a shadowy figure beneath one of the streetlights.

The person was too far away for Ling Yu to see her face. She could only vaguely make out a cigarette between the woman’s fingers.

Smoke curled from her mouth and spiraled upward.

She leaned against a silver Porsche with her back toward Ling Yu, concealing her features.

The night sky was pitch-black.

Ling Yu did not know when the rain had stopped.

The temperature had dropped late at night. In the short time Ling Yu stood outside, both her hands had already turned red from the cold.

She glanced at the smoking woman again.

This time, the woman moved. She removed the cigarette from her lips, still keeping her back toward Ling Yu, and entered the car.

Ling Yu assumed she was merely a passing driver whose nicotine cravings had struck, prompting her to stop beside the utility pole for a cigarette.

The Xu family’s old residence was located in a villa district at the end of Xishan’s winding mountain road. The route twisted endlessly around the mountain and was extremely long.

Drivers passing through could easily become involved in an accident if they lost focus.

At night, a cigarette could help relieve fatigue.

Drivers stopping to smoke here were not uncommon.

Ling Yu withdrew her gaze.

The Porsche started in the distance. Exhaust poured from the rear as the vehicle swiftly disappeared.

Ling Yu shrugged.

It was far too cold outside, so she turned and went back inside.

On the phone, Li Juan appeared to have become even more intoxicated. Her lips trembled, and she muttered incoherently for a long time before speaking in broken fragments.

“I…I need money… Money is wonderful… Just consider me someone without morals.”

“Boo-hoo… Shushu, I’m sorry. I’m sorry…”

On the day of the hearing, Ling Yu ordinarily would not have had the right to attend.

However, she had helped print and organize the case materials the previous night.

Sister Wang worried that if Gu Qing’s team suddenly needed a document, she would not know where it had been placed and would struggle to explain the situation. Thus, she pleaded with Cai Dong, who would attend the hearing, to bring Ling Yu along.

Early that morning, Ling Yu accompanied Kaihe Law Firm’s criminal-law team to the courthouse.

Sitting aboard the firm’s bus, she surveyed the passengers before tugging at Sister Wang’s sleeve.

“Sister, why isn’t Attorney Gu with us?”

Sister Wang shook her head.

“She probably went to the courthouse ahead of us.”

After pausing, she patted Ling Yu’s shoulder and explained, “Don’t worry. Attorney Gu has always been extremely disciplined. The people above attach tremendous importance to this case, so there’s no possibility she would be absent.”

Ling Yu murmured in acknowledgment, then asked, “The evidence in this case is conclusive. Can Attorney Gu genuinely overturn the situation?”

Sister Wang immediately became displeased.

She pulled a long face.

“Xiao Ling, you haven’t been at our firm long enough to witness her abilities personally. Attorney Gu has never lost a single case she handled. She was born for this profession. Her ability to adapt is practically unrivaled within the industry.”

Ling Yu curved her lips, a sharp gleam flashing through her foxlike eyes.

She said meaningfully, “Then I must properly admire how Senior handles an unexpected incident.”

Sister Wang failed to understand the deeper meaning behind her words.

After chatting briefly, she turned and began discussing gossip with the younger employees sitting behind them.

008 asked:

[Host, what exactly did you do?]

[You’ll find out shortly.]

[Then you truly did something.]

Despair filled 008’s voice.

[Why do you insist on interfering with the female lead’s decisions? Ahhh!]

Ling Yu was not interfering.

She was pulling Gu Qing back.

In Ling Yu’s worldview, black and white were not always clearly distinguishable.

But she understood that a person could never lose their bottom line.

The evidence in this rape case was conclusive.

The dead young woman, Yan Shu, had been only nineteen.

Ling Yu had dealt with Jiang Wei before.

An entire wall within his dungeon had been covered with photographs of different female victims.

At the time, Ling Yu had naively believed that treating Jiang Wei as he treated others would be the best punishment.

She had never expected more women to continue becoming his victims.

Ling Yu watched the vehicles traveling along the elevated highway.

This was the twenty-first century, an era supposedly governed by peace and justice.

There were certain mistakes Gu Qing could not be allowed to make.

The hearing was scheduled for nine o’clock.

When the law firm’s bus arrived, Gu Qing and Li Jun were waiting outside the courthouse.

“Why is she here?”

Gu Qing frowned.

Li Jun followed her gaze and saw Ling Yu walking behind Sister Wang with a briefcase in her hand.

Her dark hair had been tied into a bun, with wispy bangs falling across her forehead.

She wore no makeup. Her skin possessed a porcelain sheen beneath the sunlight.

Dressed in business attire, she appeared gentle yet retained a trace of playful charm.

Li Jun could not resist looking at her twice.

Gu Qing suddenly turned and tossed the documents in her hands to him.

“Is she beautiful?”

Startled, Li Jun looked back toward Gu Qing, whose imposing presence was fully unleashed, her long curls draped over her shoulders.

He instinctively denied it.

“In my eyes, you’re the most beautiful.”

Gu Qing gave a faint hum.

“Did you eat fried dough sticks this morning?”

Li Jun instinctively shook his head.

Gu Qing looked at him from the corners of her eyes, allowing her gaze to roam across his lips.

The sudden, focused attention left Li Jun too shocked to speak.

Both surprised and delighted, his heart began pounding wildly.

Gu Qing took in his expression, disgust flashing through her eyes.

She handed him a tissue.

“Wipe it.”

Li Jun made a confused sound and scratched his head.

“?”

“Your lips.”

Gu Qing raised an eyebrow and said without changing her expression, “They’re covered in grease.”

Ling Yu approached just in time to hear the ordinarily disciplined and humorless Gu Qing making a dry joke.

Unfortunately, Gu Qing’s expression remained completely stern, making it difficult to recognize her sarcasm.

She mocked someone without the target realizing it.

Ling Yu could no longer tolerate the sight.

She stepped forward and handed Li Jun a business card.

“Director Li, I never expected someone so young to suffer from this sort of problem. I recommend visiting this beauty salon to have the excess oil removed.”

Sister Wang nearly burst out laughing.

When she turned and met Li Jun’s dark expression, she hurriedly seized Ling Yu’s arm and pulled her behind her.

“Director Li, Ling Yu is young and doesn’t fully understand workplace etiquette. She speaks very directly, but I’ll educate her properly. Please don’t take it to heart. If she offended you, I apologize on her behalf.”

With a dark face, Li Jun looked toward Ling Yu.

His gaze happened to fall into her pitch-black eyes.

What exactly could he possibly misunderstand?

He was about to accept the graceful escape Sister Wang had offered him when Gu Qing stepped forward, brushed past his shoulder, and walked directly into the courthouse.

As she passed him, she remarked with measured indifference:

“The hearing begins in five minutes and thirty seconds. Cause less trouble.”

Her implication was clear:

There was no time for idle conversation.

When it came to cases, Gu Qing possessed absolute authority within the team.

After her mild reprimand, everyone immediately fell silent. They simultaneously lowered their heads and followed behind her into the courthouse.

Ling Yu stared at the back of Gu Qing’s head and clicked her tongue.

[She didn’t even thank me. Does she genuinely believe I don’t hold grudges?]

008 was already exhausted from talking.

It pleaded weakly:

[Host, don’t provoke the female lead. Don’t oppose the female lead. Don’t cause trouble. I’m begging you.]

After repeating “don’t” three times and seeing that Ling Yu remained unmoved, it implored humbly:

[I only want to ship your pairing. I don’t want to watch you fight.]

Ling Yu curved her lips.

[Then keep dreaming.]