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n159 The Arrival of Her Parents

nLiu Xie never thought the truth would be so different from what he had heard. He looked at Jiang Xue through squinted eyes. She had been the one who called him, saying Liu Cheng was being bullied in school.

nJiang Xue told him that Shen Xi had provoked and bullied Liu Cheng. She did not mention anything about his daughter badmouthing Shen Xi, nor why she would say such insulting things to her classmate.

nStill, Liu Cheng had told the truth. Shen Xi was not the daughter of the Jiang family anymore and had returned to her poverty-stricken family. How could she afford the school’s tuition fees of 800,000 yuan a year?

nHis daughter aside, Liu Xie also found it quite curious and believed Shen Xi’s family must have acquired the money through less than clandestine channels. If one employs underhanded means to attain wealth, one must also be prepared for others to comment on it.

nRegardless, Liu Cheng was his daughter and no child of the Liu family would ever be bullied if he had anything to say about it.

nHaving found his resolve, Liu Xie’s demeanour sharpened. “So what? My daughter is simply telling the truth. Even if you were to bring her to court, it’d be useless!” He countered.

n“Why would it be useless? No daughter of the Shen family will have her reputation trampled on without reprisal.” A deep voice echoed from down the hall and through the open door. Shen Xi instinctively turned around at the sound of that familiar voice. Standing at the door were her parents, Shen Yan and Lu Shan. When Lu Shan caught sight of Shen Xi, she rushed toward her with reddened eyes.

n“Mom, Dad, why have you come?” She asked. Shen Xi was surprised to see them. She had not called her parents because she did not want to trouble them.

nEven if she were expelled, Shen Xi was confident she could enrol in almost any other school without issue.

nLu Shan hugged her daughter as she cried, “Xixi, why didn’t you say anything? You should have told us the moment you were being bullied in school! If it weren’t for your friend Zhao Yuan, I wouldn’t have known at all… There’s no reason you need to handle everything yourself. You can rely on us, you know? How can we be at ease if people treat you terribly, but you won’t tell us?”

nZhao Yuan rubbed her head sheepishly. She had not wanted to intrude, but she thought Shen Xi’s parents needed to know what was happening. Zhao Yuan did not think Shen Xi’s parents would punish her for involving them in something this important.

nHence, as she was thinking of some way to help Shen Xi, Zhao Yuan went to their form teacher and asked if she could call Shen Xi’s parents. The rest was history.

nShen Xi’s parents arrived not long after she had called them.

nWhile Lu Shan scolded Shen Xi through her tears, Jiang Xue stood in a corner with her eyes averted, cursing in silent disgust. Lu Shan had not changed, and the waterworks were as abundant as ever. The mere blubbering sight of her was an eyesore to Jiang Xue.

nShen Xi comforted her mother, doing her best to quell her tears. It was not good to be too emotional in public, or others would take advantage of that moment of weakness for their gain.

nLiu Xie eyed Shen Xi’s parents with disdain. Shen Yan and his wife had their trousers rolled up to their knees, mud clinging to their feet. They looked like they had rushed over from a farm. “It’s only normal for a girl of low birth to be bullied. It is inevitable. If you don’t want your child to be bullied, you must have power,” he said.

nLiu Xie puffed up his chest as he spoke, looking like a proud peacock.

n“Principal Li, why don’t we have the children step out for a bit while we adults handle this matter?” Shen Yan proposed, his tone cool yet controlled.

nLi Hai nodded. Indeed, it was appropriate for such a large group to remain in the principal’s office.

nShen Xi, Zhao Yuan and Guan Lei exited the principal’s office with Jiang Xue and Su Ni soon after. The rest of the students who had stepped forward to testify returned to their respective classes.

nWhile they waited outside, Guan received a test message from Xue Li, saying that Zheng Huai was heading to the school in search of him.

nGuan Lei frowned. Why was Zheng Huai so hard to shake off? He was worse than a stubborn plaster! If Shen Xi met Zheng Huai, she would definitely ask about his condition.

nAlthough he had told Shen Xi about his nightmares and insomnia, he worried that Shen Xi would listen to Zheng Huai and treat him as if he were mentally ill. It was best if he took his leave before Zheng Huai appeared.

nFrom how Shen Xi’s father handled the situation, he would not likely allow her to suffer; even if that was not enough, he could always throw his support behind Shen Xi. Guan Lei doubted the Liu family would cause problems for Shen Xi if he did.

n“Shen Xi, I still have something I need to do. Please excuse me. Update me as soon as there’s progress,” Guan Lei said.

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