Saving the Pitiful Villain (GL) - Chapter 17

The repeated commotion beside her startled Ye Mei. She hastily pulled out tissues and handed them to Yun Wu.

The moment her other hand touched Yun Wu’s back, it was violently pushed away by a sudden force.

“Don’t touch me. And don’t meddle in my business anymore. I said, we are even.”

Yun Wu’s expression was flat, but her eyes were red-rimmed.

Ye Mei instantly fell silent. Yun Wu usually showed no emotion, but this time, Ye Mei clearly felt the cold hostility emanating from her.

She was suppressing anger.

Ye Mei realized she had said the wrong thing.

The Yun family provided enough money, yet Yun Wu still ended up an orphan. The greater possibility was that she was abandoned by her biological mother.

Thinking of what she had just said, Ye Mei opened her mouth to apologize, but the words caught in her throat out of stubbornness.

In her struggle, Ye Mei quickly managed to say to Yun Wu, “I’m sorry.”

The voice was very small, but they were close.

Yun Wu heard it clearly but didn’t respond.

Facing scorn and ridicule about her parents, Yun Wu always told herself not to listen, not to think. Having lived two lives, she tried her best to accept the fact that she was a child abandoned by her parents, a child whose birth was unwanted.

Her eyes ached, but Yun Wu still didn’t shed a tear.

But this was her limit. She couldn’t maintain the basic calm required to accept Ye Mei’s apology.

Besides, Ye Mei was fundamentally not wrong.

As for Fang Wenli, thinking of the miniature camera installed yesterday, Yun Wu’s eyes darkened. She would personally deal with Fang Wenli, but not now.

For the rest of the afternoon, neither Yun Wu nor Ye Mei spoke.

When the dismissal bell rang, Yun Wu packed her things and walked out of the school gate alone.

The sky was gray and drizzling, carrying a coolness in the air. The buzz-cuts, seeing Ye Mei’s unpleasant expression, also kept quiet. The group silently followed Yun Wu.

Mu Ye Book Bar was at the end of the right street outside the school gate. It was elegantly decorated, spacious, and very quiet.

Yun Wu walked toward the book bar. She needed to quickly sort out the knowledge framework for the Liberal Arts comprehensive subjects.

“Wu Wu,” someone called out behind her.

The voice was familiar. Yun Wu stopped in surprise and turned around.

It was Jiang Shangxue. A light jacket was draped over her arm, a black umbrella was in her left hand, and another in her right.

She walked gracefully through the crowd, the early summer wind lifting the hem of her coat, her steps steady.

Before long, Jiang Shangxue reached Yun Wu.

She had been waiting at the school gate since five o’clock.

When the dismissal bell rang at five-thirty, the crowd scattered at the gate. Jiang Shangxue struggled for a while to find Yun Wu.

But she was already walking far away, and in the opposite direction from the East Villa community.

Jiang Shangxue didn’t have time to think. She hurried after her.

When she got home today, Auntie Chen had mentioned that Yun Wu was still wearing her summer school uniform and didn’t even have an umbrella for the rain.

Even fine rain, if endured for too long, could cause illness.

Jiang Shangxue lightly frowned, looking at the fine raindrops clinging to Yun Wu’s hair. She first touched Yun Wu’s hand—it was ice-cold. Then, she pushed both umbrellas into Yun Wu’s hands and unceremoniously draped the jacket she brought over Yun Wu’s shoulders.

“The weather is turning cold. You must remember to put on more clothes, and remember to bring an umbrella when it rains.”

Her voice was slow and gentle, like a spring breeze melting a glacier. The fine rain happened to catch the light on her eyelashes, refracting a soft glow.

Even under the gray sky, the person in front of her looked warm and bright.

Yun Wu gazed blankly at Jiang Shangxue buttoning her jacket, noticing her slender, fair wrist.

Holding her breath for a while, Yun Wu finally reached out her hand to stop her. “Thank you, Auntie Jiang. I can do it myself.”

“Alright,” Jiang Shangxue lowered her gaze, glancing at Yun Wu’s hair, which was separating into small damp strands. She then pulled a small handkerchief from her pocket.

Waiting for Yun Wu to finish buttoning the jacket, Jiang Shangxue handed over the handkerchief, smiling faintly. “Wipe your hair.”

The light in Yun Wu’s eyes flickered. She couldn’t articulate the feeling in her heart.

Jiang Shangxue maintained this peaceful, soft demeanor, without any sharp edges.

When she met the concern in Jiang Shangxue’s eyes, the indescribable sense of melancholy in Yun Wu’s heart grew heavier instantly.

How can she act so convincingly? Flawless.

“Wu Wu,” her hand was suspended in the air. Yun Wu stared blankly, still not taking it. Jiang Shangxue called her name again.

She thought Yun Wu must be feeling shy again. Why didn’t I notice Yun Wu was so easily embarrassed before?

At the same time, Jiang Shangxue sighed inwardly. She’s already seventeen, but it seems Yun Wu doesn’t know how to take care of herself at all—ignoring serious injuries, not adding clothes or bringing an umbrella when the weather changes. How did she manage to grow up safely?

Under Jiang Shangxue’s thoughtful gaze, Yun Wu abruptly snapped out of her daze, accepting the handkerchief with a slightly wooden expression. Her whole body gradually stiffened.

She clenched her hand tightly, and deep creases appeared where her fingertips pressed into the handkerchief.

Jiang Shangxue casually gathered Yun Wu under the umbrella. Seeing that Yun Wu was still a bit dazed, she casually pinched her cheek.

Despite being very thin, her cheek felt surprisingly soft to pinch.

“Where are you planning to go?”

“Mu Ye Book Bar.”

Yun Wu answered subconsciously. She looked up, saw Jiang Shangxue’s gaze fixed forward, and quickly reached up to rub the spot Jiang Shangxue had pinched.

It was scorching hot there.

Despite their current relationship being only landlady and tenant, Yun Wu looked at Jiang Shangxue’s calm expression and inexplicably felt the sensation of an elder catching her in the act of misbehavior.

After a moment of hesitation, Yun Wu explained, “There are free lectures by teachers there. I’m going to audit the class.”

“Let’s go. I also have something to attend to. We can go together.”

Jiang Shangxue nodded calmly. She held the umbrella in one hand and loosely placed the other arm around Yun Wu’s back, gently pulling her closer so she wouldn’t get wet from the rain.

Zhao Ji had called her personally at noon. Because of the Zhao Rongrong incident, he urgently requested a face-to-face meeting with Jiang Shangxue.

Taking advantage of the trip to bring Yun Wu clothes and an umbrella, Jiang Shangxue planned to handle this matter as well.

The way they walked side-by-side, leaning close, looked very intimate.

Like a genuinely harmonious mother and daughter.

She had two umbrellas, clearly.

Yun Wu lowered her eyes, staring at the unopened umbrella in her hand. The warmth emanating from Jiang Shangxue enveloped her. Yun Wu’s throat moved.

In the end, she kept silent.

Fortunately, Mu Ye Book Bar wasn’t far. As soon as they stopped at the entrance, Yun Wu quickly stepped away.

Jiang Shangxue stood by the steps, not noticing Yun Wu’s movement. She shook off the raindrops and hung the umbrella on the rack by the door.

Her long hair was pinned back, revealing Jiang Shangxue’s smooth, gentle profile. However, when she wasn’t smiling, she looked somewhat indifferent and cool.

Yun Wu’s fingers curled, and her body slightly relaxed. She opened the door first.

Jiang Shangxue happened to turn and glimpse her action. A slight smile curved her lips. It seems Yun Wu is starting to accept me.

“Go on in.”

“Okay.”

Yun Wu could feel that the moment Jiang Shangxue’s gaze fell upon her, the coolness instantly vanished.

Distracted for a moment, Yun Wu didn’t understand.

The interior of Mu Ye Book Bar was very spacious, divided into different areas by walls of books. The lecturer was clearly visible in the center.

Jiang Shangxue stopped, motioned for Yun Wu to go over, and then chose a semi-open partition in a corner to sit down.

She watched Yun Wu listen attentively from afar and smiled.

Zhao Ji arrived right on time. He was surprised that Jiang Shangxue had chosen to meet him in a small book bar.

Feeling slightly humiliated, but knowing he was there to plead, Zhao Ji cut straight to the chase.

“Miss Jiang, what terms will make you lenient? After all, Rongrong is my only daughter.”

“…”

Yun Wu was busy taking notes, her head down. Ye Mei also arrived, and her crew of multi-colored buzz-cuts surrounded Yun Wu.

When the lecturer took a break, Yun Wu stood up to use the restroom.

The restroom was out the door on the far right, across a corridor, and then turning right again. Yun Wu followed the signs.

She suddenly stopped at a corner.

“Mr. Zhao, if your daughter is a daughter, then is my daughter not a daughter?”

“She’s not even your biological child. Do you really treat her as your own?” The tone was highly sarcastic.

The female voice was Jiang Shangxue’s.

Yun Wu froze in place, slowly turning her head sideways. Another corridor branched off to the left of the corner. Jiang Shangxue was sitting right at the corridor’s exit.

She was stirring her coffee unhurriedly, a faint smile on her face, her tone betraying no sign of anger.

It was as if the question she had just asked was insignificant.

Yun Wu stood quietly in place. She didn’t know what she was waiting for. In the brief moment she waited for Jiang Shangxue’s reply, she held her breath, and the sudden thump-thump of her heartbeat fiercely pounded in her eardrums.