Saving the Pitiful Villain (GL) - Chapter 28

Jiang Shangxue’s neck and shoulders were slightly tense. Her body swayed slightly, looking a little unstable.

She felt a faint, wrenching pain in her stomach. Coupled with the lack of rest over the past few days, her emotions flared up, making her head feel dizzy.

Moving two steps forward, Jiang Shangxue held onto the edge of the bed and sat down.

The sandalwood ruler in her hand grazed the back of the bed, making a faint scratching sound.

Yun Wu shivered.

She buried her head under the quilt, completely still. Her muffled sobs ceased.

After several minutes passed without any further movement from her, Jiang Shangxue raised her hand, intending to pull her up.

Unexpectedly, the moment her hand touched Yun Wu’s shoulder, Yun Wu waved it away, then quickly rolled further into the quilt.

She didn’t spare Jiang Shangxue a single glance.

Her hand suspended in the air, Jiang Shangxue looked at the figure curled up in the bedding. Yun Wu was completely covered by the quilt, only a section of her soft, long hair exposed, curled into a small arc on the pink pillowcase.

Was she feeling wronged?

Jiang Shangxue sat quietly for a few minutes, her eyes unreadable. Then, she got up, turned off the light, and closed the door.

Silence returned to the room. The tightly curled ball on the bed slowly unwound, and soft, quiet sniffling began.

Yun Wu fumbled and sat up, but the moment her backside touched the bed, the pain was unbearable.

She was forced to remain in a half-kneeling, half-prone position. She reached up and touched her eyes. They were damp and warm, lingering with traces of tears.

The burning, throbbing pain on her backside made her dare not touch it.

The feeling of shame aligned with her heartbeat, pulsing violently.

Jiang Shangxue’s voice, laced with anger, still seemed to echo in her ears. Yun Wu closed her eyes, her thoughts scattered wildly.

She hadn’t expected Jiang Shangxue to hit her, let alone spank her backside.

Her hand landed on the quilt, slowly tightening. Suddenly, a cold, rectangular object slipped into Yun Wu’s hand.

It was the sandalwood ruler. Jiang Shangxue had left it behind.

Yun Wu’s whole body stiffened. The touch of the ruler on her hip instantly became clear. The next second, she threw the ruler far away.

It landed on the carpet with a soft, dull thud.

Yun Wu woke up early the next day. She searched her wardrobe and found a pair of high-waisted cigarette pants. They were looser than her school pants and wouldn’t rub against her injuries.

She stood by the doorknob for a while before opening the door.

Auntie Chen, holding a plate of dumplings, had just stepped out of the kitchen.

“Wu Wu, Madam was just about to ask me to call you for breakfast.”

Yun Wu flinched instinctively, stunned for a moment. Then, belatedly, she looked toward the dining table.

Jiang Shangxue was looking at her, her eyes cold.

Quickly retracting her gaze, Yun Wu walked into the washroom.

The inexplicable guilt and shame surged in Yun Wu’s heart again.

She looked at her reflection in the mirror. The dark circles under her eyes were obvious, and her hair was messy. Her complexion was poor, looking pale.

She soaked the towel in cold water, lightly applied it to her eyes, and then rubbed her cheeks hard. She only walked out after making her complexion look slightly better.

Jiang Shangxue had already finished half of her porridge.

Yun Wu secretly glanced at her. Her face was tense. She was reading the newspaper, and her eyes showed weariness. She seemed unwilling to speak or engage with anyone.

Her long, thick eyelashes lowered. Yun Wu walked over, her lips tightly pressed. She noticed a soft, plush cushion had been placed on her chair.

None of the other chairs had one.

Yun Wu’s breathing hitched. The intense shame seemed to morph into a sharp blade, stripping her bare layer by layer in front of Jiang Shangxue.

Yet, Jiang Shangxue was reading the newspaper and wasn’t looking at her at all.

Yun Wu carefully sat down, moving her lips, wanting to speak but holding back.

This breakfast felt like a long ordeal. By the time Yun Wu finished her milk, her forehead was covered in a thin layer of sweat.

She stood up, wanting to leave quickly, but heard Jiang Shangxue speak unhurriedly.

“Wait a moment. I happen to be going to the company early. I’ll give you a ride to school.”

Her voice was calm and steady, carrying a barely perceptible pressure.

Yun Wu froze, then nodded almost imperceptibly, returning to her room to grab her backpack.

When she came out, Jiang Shangxue was already waiting for her by the door, having changed into her shoes.

Yun Wu walked over with her gaze lowered, feeling completely uncomfortable, barely maintaining her crumbling composure.

She walked close to her. Jiang Shangxue stood still.

She looked up and saw Jiang Shangxue holding a light blue handkerchief, seemingly about to wipe her sweat.

Yun Wu’s eyes flickered. She instinctively stepped back, dodging her, and looked away.

“Wipe it yourself,” seeing Yun Wu dodge her, Jiang Shangxue’s eyes moved slightly, but she said nothing more, handing the handkerchief over.

Yun Wu took it. Her hand brushed against Jiang Shangxue’s fingertips—smooth and cool.

This hour was the peak for commuting and school. The elevator had more people than usual.

Yun Wu stayed close to Jiang Shangxue, standing pressed against the right wall.

Every few floors, new people got in.

Parents taking their children to school, elderly people going out to buy groceries or exercise, and a few drunken young people.

They seemed to not have fully sobered up from their binge, stumbling in and mumbling, reeking of alcohol.

They bumped into several people. Others cursed at them.

Yun Wu stood in the front on the right side, slightly turning to avoid them. One of the drunken men looked at her impatiently.

“What are you hiding for? Don’t you have the sense to come and help me? I’ll give you extra for the night next time.”

Immediately, several pairs of ambiguous eyes focused on Yun Wu.

Curiosity, contempt, schadenfreude…

When people heard of scandalous events, they became excited. They rarely investigated the truth of the incident first, but quickly immersed themselves in heated discussion, treating it as a form of entertainment or filling their inner emptiness.

This was human nature.

In just a few seconds, Yun Wu felt ice-cold all over. The frivolous, vulgar expression and tone evoked foul memories.

Those memories were not distant.

“Why do others only bully you and not others? It must be because you’re a slut.”

“Wearing that pure, pitiful look every day, who are you trying to fool?”

“As expected of an orphan with no mother, no father, and no upbringing. Your parents probably thought you were bad luck.”

These memories were deeply rooted in Yun Wu’s heart. She used self-deception to maintain a false sense of peace.

Struggling to suppress the dryness in her throat, Yun Wu braced herself against the cold wall with one hand, forcing herself to break free and organize words to fight back.

But the next instant, an arm reached out from behind her, wrapped around her shoulder, and pulled her into an embrace.

Yun Wu was stunned. She hadn’t even clearly seen how Jiang Shangxue moved.

A shrill cry of pain echoed in the elevator.

The expressions of the people around them were a mix of shock and fear.

A well-dressed woman with a gentle smile had kicked the drunken man behind the knee, forcing him to half-kneel, her sharp high heel deeply digging in.

“That is a small lesson for your insolence. Should I call the police? I can do it for you.”

The elevator fell silent for a moment.

Her smile and tone were gentle as water, yet her actions were ruthless. The stark contrast created an intimidating presence.

The drunken man and his friend seemed to have sobered up quite a bit. When the elevator door opened on the next floor, they stumbled and scrambled out in a panic.

Others in the elevator slowly started talking. “Those alcoholics who cause trouble in public places are rude and annoying. They deserve a lesson.”

“Exactly, exactly. Is the girl next to you your child? She doesn’t look like it.”

Jiang Shangxue tightened her grip, nodding and smiling faintly. “Yes, my daughter. I’m taking her to school.”

“The little girl is very beautiful.”

Jiang Shangxue smiled lightly, saying nothing further.

She didn’t let go of the arm around Yun Wu’s shoulder until they reached the underground garage.

Her mind was continuously blank. Yun Wu turned her head to look at the calm-faced Jiang Shangxue, a subtle fluctuation in her eyes.

She couldn’t help but call out, “Auntie Jiang.”

“Mhm.”

Jiang Shangxue only hummed in response, showing no inclination to say anything else.

Yun Wu opened her mouth but didn’t make a sound.

The drive from the East Villa community to East Villa High School took about five minutes. Jiang Shangxue parked the car about a hundred meters from the school gate.

Yun Wu grabbed her bag and got out of the car. She closed the door and stood by the roadside.

The car window was closed. She couldn’t see the person inside.

It felt as if her feet were nailed to the ground. Yun Wu stood rooted in place, staring motionlessly at the closed window.

Jiang Shangxue finished replying to Meng Meng’s message. She looked up and realized Yun Wu hadn’t left, standing blankly by the car.

The girl’s eyelids were drooping. Coupled with the lack of sleep for several nights, she looked miserable.

Separated by the car window, Jiang Shangxue sighed helplessly. Then, she pressed a button, composing her expression. “Hurry up and go to class.”

Her tone was normal, bordering on cold.

Yun Wu’s eyelids moved. She stared at Jiang Shangxue for a moment, then nodded, unsure what she was thinking.

It was still early, but by the time Yun Wu walked into the classroom, most people had arrived.

The atmosphere in the senior class was always exceptionally tense. Even Ye Mei had been working remarkably hard during this period, and the frequency of her side conversations during class had significantly decreased.

Yun Wu walked to her seat, sat down, took out the mathematics problems she had copied, and began attempting to solve them.

These were problems related to new directions in mathematical research that she had organized from the forum.

Ye Mei glanced over. The dense, incomprehensible formulas made her lose interest, and she let out an irritated “Tsk.”

They all have human brains. Why is hers so fundamentally incompatible with math?

The more she thought about it, the sadder she became. Ye Mei sullenly poked Yun Wu.

“What about that scientific guessing method you promised to give me last time?”

Yun Wu, who had been lost in thought, was pulled back to reality. She turned her head and stared intently at Ye Mei.

Being stared at for so long made Ye Mei’s scalp tingle. She forced herself to maintain her aggressive posture. “If you have it, you have it. If you don’t, you don’t. Why are you trying to intimidate me with your eyes?”

Yun Wu crumpled the draft paper in her hand. She suddenly said, “Ye Mei, does your mother hit you?”

“Huh?” Ye Mei rubbed her arms. She answered without thinking. “Of course, she hits me.”

Yun Wu asked again, “Then… does she spank your backside?”

“Cough, cough. Why are you asking such strange things today?” Ye Mei coughed unnaturally a few times, her eyes darting around, trying to avoid the topic.

But Yun Wu was persistent, her gaze fixed on her.

Ye Mei: “I surrender. I’ll tell you, but you can’t tell anyone else.”

Squeezing Yun Wu against the wall, Ye Mei leaned in close. “You wouldn’t believe it. My mom practices boxing. She doesn’t even need any tools. She uses her bare hands.”

She paused, then spoke with a hint of indignation, growing more animated. “Holy crap, you don’t know. My mom is a total tigress! She hits me if I eat too slowly, she hits me if I eat too fast, she hits me if I sit on the toilet for too long. My very breathing is a crime…”

“As for spanking my backside… hmm… my mom only spanks my backside when she pities me because it doesn’t hurt as much and doesn’t affect my image! I still have to go out and face people, right?”

Yun Wu listened, her expression softening slightly.

She had lived until she was twenty-three years old in her previous life, with no family and no friends. She was like an anomaly in the world, out of step with everyone.

Yun Wu didn’t know how a normal mother and daughter interacted. Listening to Ye Mei, it seemed she had overreacted.

Looking at the pensive Yun Wu, Ye Mei keenly sensed that she was acting strangely today. As if remembering something, a mischievous excitement suddenly flashed in her eyes. She leaned in and whispered.

“Did you get spanked? By whom? Was it Auntie Jiang?”