The next day.
Lu Xuexi was discharged from the hospital. Yao Lin made a special trip with Jiang Ying and Jiang Han to bring her home.
Jiang Su didn't go.
Not only did he refuse to pick her up, but he didn't even plan to reply to her messages. To avoid being stuck at home waiting for Lu Xuexi to return, Jiang Su decided to cling to Jiang Xuxu instead.
"Can't you just take me with you when you go out? I'll just follow you. I promise I won't cause any trouble!"
"No," Jiang Xuxu refused without a hint of mercy.
Hearing this, Jiang Su nearly stiffened his neck in indignation. "Why? I already call you 'Big Sister' now!"
"You can stop if you want."
Jiang Su felt aggrieved, but he didn't give up. "I'm technically your biggest client, aren't I? Shouldn't you take your big client out for a stroll?"
He had spent nearly seven hundred thousand on her, after all. At the rate she used to makethirty thousand per jobit would take her forever to earn seven hundred thousand. Compared to that, Jiang Su felt he definitely qualified as a VIP.
Jiang Xuxu spared him a glance. Without saying a word, she pulled out her phone and showed him Song Yongming's transfer record.
[Song Yongming has transferred 3,000,000 RMB to you.]
She scrolled again and showed him the record from Jiang Yucheng.
[Jiang Yucheng has transferred 10,000,000 RMB to you.]
At this moment, silence spoke louder than words.
Jiang Su: "..."
What the hell was this? Was Jiang Xuxu's line of work really this profitable?
"Wait, Uncle's transfer doesn't count! A father transferring money to his daughter is just pocket money!"
Jiang Xuxu scrolled back to a previous transfer of ten million and explained, "The one before was pocket money. This second ten million is my fee."
Jiang Su: "..."
He was starting to feel a little jealous. He had originally thought this cousin of his was penniless and didn't even have five million in pocket money. It turned out he was the clown all along! His own father had never transferred ten million to him in one go!
Ultimately, Jiang Su insisted that to compensate for his wounded soul, Jiang Xuxu had to take him out today.
Jiang Xuxu hadn't expected that having a younger brother would be this annoying. If she had known... Forget it.
In the end, she brought Jiang Su along.
The driver took them directly to the residential building where Lin Ruirui lived. The moment Jiang Su stepped out of the car and saw the dilapidated building, his expression shifted.
"Why did you bring me to a demolition zone?"
He assumed the place was a run-down neighborhood scheduled for tearing down. After all, the environment here was even worse than the apartment Jiang Xuxu had previously rented for herself. Jiang Su had never been to such a broken place in his entire life.
As they entered the stairwell, he was even more stunned. "There's no elevator? There are actually buildings in Haishi without elevators?"
Jiang Xuxu couldn't help but glance at him, commanding with a deadpan face, "You can turn around and get lost right now."
Jiang Su immediately covered his mouth. "Fine, I'll stop talking."
When they finally climbed to the top floor and he saw Lin Ruirui's small one-bedroom apartment, Jiang Su's understanding of poverty was once again refreshed. He was about to speak, but the moment he caught Jiang Xuxu's cold gaze, he instantly shut his mouth.
The Lin family rarely had guests, and the only place to sit in the living room was a bed. However, Jiang Su's upbringing wouldn't allow him to sit on a host's bed without permission, so he pulled over a plastic stool and sat down obediently.
He was tall, and his long legs looked extremely cramped on the small stool. Jiang Xuxu noticed that despite his initial shock, he hadn't shown any disdain after entering the home. She glanced at him twice; perhaps this kid was salvageable after all.
Mother Lin, however, could tell at a glance that Jiang Su was no ordinary person. His entire outfit looked incredibly expensive. She stood there somewhat awkwardly, looking worried.
"Little Master, you came all this way today... is there something else wrong with Ruirui?"
"Her body is fine. I just have something for her."
As Jiang Xuxu spoke, she left Jiang Su outside and entered the bedroom to talk to Lin Ruirui.
Lin Ruirui had been in a vegetative state for over a year. Even though she was awake, her body was recovering slowly. Lying in bed, she watched as Jiang Xuxu pulled a familiar small paper lantern from her backpack.
Watching the paper lantern rise from Xuxu's palm, Lin Ruirui felt a surge of anxiety, wondering if something was wrong with her lost soul. But then, a familiar voice suddenly drifted out from the small paper lantern.
"Lin Ruirui, I'm... I'm sorry. I... I know I was wrong..."
Lin Ruirui's body trembled instinctively. Her hands clenched tightly around her blanket.
Mother Lin didn't recognize the voice at first, but as she kept listening, her eyes turned red, and her voice filled with rage. "Is... is this the person who did this to my Ruirui?! She ruined my daughter's life! Does she really think a flimsy apology like this will earn our forgiveness?!"
Lin Ruirui's lips were pale, but she bit down on them hard, clearly unwilling to accept the apology either. Moreover, knowing Guan Ruirui's personality, she didn't believe the girl was being sincere.
Seeing this, Jiang Xuxu explained Guan Ruirui's recent situation and how she had mistakenly believed Lin Ruirui's ghost was seeking revenge.
"I made her record this for two reasons," Xuxu explained. "First, you deserve an apology. Second, with this recording, you can completely clear your name from the slander on the internet a year ago and let everyone know the truth."
At the mention of the internet, Lin Ruirui's face turned even whiter. She clearly remembered the overwhelming insults and accusations from a year ago. She had finally managed to escape those verbal attacks...
If she posted Guan Ruirui's recording online, she might obtain innocence and understanding, but everything from a year ago would surely be dug up again. There would still be people questioning her, shaming her...
Mother Lin also thought of the past. She was even more worried that if history repeated itself, Ruirui might break down again, leaving her vulnerable to having another soul fragment stolen.
Both mother and daughter showed immediate resistance. Jiang Xuxu wasn't surprised. After all, they had fought hard for the peace they now enjoyed.
This was exactly why Jiang Xuxu had left the choice in Lin Ruirui's hands.
"You can choose to live a quiet life from now on, or you can choose to use this to defend your reputation. I'm giving this recording to you simply to give you a second option."
Without the recording, Lin Ruirui would have to live with those doubts and shames, but since the internet has a short memory, she could still start over. That was her only path. But the recording provided a second path. She didn't have to take it, but she deserved the right to choose. Jiang Xuxu wouldn't self-righteously make that choice for her. She wasn't the victim; she had no right to decide.
Jiang Xuxu placed the paper lantern in Lin Ruirui's palm and didn't offer any more advice. Lin Ruirui stared at the lantern, her lips still tightly pressed together, clearly caught in a deep internal struggle.
Outside, Jiang Su couldn't hear what was happening inside. He boredly scanned the small space, which was barely ten square meters yet stuffed with various items. Just as he was marveling at the clutter, an urgent knock sounded at the door.
Jiang Su instinctively looked toward the bedroom, but everything was quiet inside, and they didn't seem to have heard. As the knocking became more persistent and frantic, Jiang Su simply walked over and pulled the door open.
"Coming, coming! Stop knocking!"
The door opened to reveal a young man of about eighteen or nineteen. There were dark circles under his eyes, and his entire being radiated a gloomy aura. When he saw Jiang Su, his eyes turned red, looking as if he wanted to tear someone apart.
He gritted his teeth and spat out each word individually. "Who. Are. You?"
Jiang Su's young master temper flared up. He lifted his chin and threw the question back. "And who are you?"
The boy stared at him intensely, his voice raspy and cold as he uttered two words:
"Qin Hao."
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