Chapter 224

Words : 1225 Updated : Oct 15th, 2025

The deal with the Ji Family was something he secured through connections. Years ago, he had lent money to a buddy—who could’ve guessed that the poor kid back then would later join the Ji Family? It was through this relationship, combined with relentless flattery and the fact that he’d helped the guy in the past, that he managed to land such a big contract. But the moment the other party heard he’d offended Ji Tingzhou, they cut ties with him without hesitation. Li Zhiqiang had some understanding of the legendary head of the Ji Family. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, Mr. Ji.” “That was all the lawyer we hired before—I genuinely wanted to resolve this matter peacefully and amicably.” “Who could’ve guessed he’d go behind my back like that?” Without hesitation, Li Zhiqiang shifted all the blame onto the lawyer. As for the lawyer... Their relationship had always been purely transactional. After flying into a rage and beating Li Yuan, the lawyer fled immediately, confident that Li Zhiqiang would be too busy dealing with the fallout from provoking the Ji Family to sue him. “Quick, Li Yuan, apologize to your classmate right now!” He forced Li Yuan down, even knowing exactly who the creditor was, making him face Shen Qingtang’s direction. “You brought this on yourself with your filthy mouth—getting beaten up by Miss Ji was just teaching you a lesson! Now speak!” With a sharp squeeze of his hand, he made Li Yuan’s nose run and tears spill over. Humiliated beyond belief, Li Yuan was crushed to see his father—who had always smoothed things over for him—now groveling before someone else. The blow to his pride shattered his usual defiance. Though still resentful, he obediently apologized to Shen Qingtang under his father’s pressure. “I’m sorry...” “Say it properly!” Li Yuan gritted his teeth. “I’m sorry, Shen Qingtang! I shouldn’t have made crude jokes or taken your things! It’s all my fault!” Once he finished, he raised his head indignantly to gauge Shen Qingtang’s reaction. But aside from the two classmates he recognized, he saw someone else— Meeting Li Yuan’s gaze, Lu Jinghuai smiled at him. To outsiders, it might have looked polite, but to Li Yuan, it was no different from the grin of a demon. The pain in his hastily bandaged, fractured wrist flared sharply. His eyes widened with effort, making his swollen face appear even more grotesque. “You—” His drawn-out tone couldn’t hide his shock and terror. Ji Nian found it odd. Did he know Lu Jinghuai? But how was that possible? Lu Jinghuai kept smiling, his gaze fixed on Li Yuan. The initially stunned Li Yuan bit down hard on his lip until he tasted blood, then lowered his eyes. He didn’t dare say it... How could he admit that he’d gone back to school with a knife, intending to teach Ji Nian and Shen Qingtang a lesson, only to have his wrist snapped? Seeing Li Yuan fall silent again, Ji Nian was puzzled but didn’t press further. Instead, she turned to Shen Qingtang. “Do you accept his apology?” Shen Qingtang didn’t respond. Panicking, Li Zhiqiang interjected, “Miss Shen, he truly knows he was wrong. He’ll never do it again.” “Never again?” As if amused by the phrase, Ji Tingzhou let out a derisive snort. The sound, though quiet, made Li Zhiqiang want to drop to his knees. “No, no—there won’t be a next time! Li Yuan is transferring schools tomorrow. He’ll never appear before Miss Ji or Miss Shen again, I swear!” Li Yuan, lost in his own thoughts, was trembling with fear, his head bowed so low it was as if he’d do whatever his father demanded. In the end, Shen Qingtang never accepted the apology. Ji Nian found the whole affair tedious and dismissed them. But as she’d told Zuo Yi from the start—aside from the apology, Li Yuan would never trouble Shen Qingtang again. [The only oddity was Li Yuan’s reaction earlier. He seemed to recognize the young royal heir.] [Did he go to Country O?] But someone like Li Yuan would never have crossed paths with Lu Jinghuai, who had always stayed within the Lu Family to recuperate. And judging by his reaction, he was terrified. Had he offended the young royal heir before? Mulling over these questions, Ji Nian glanced up and noticed Shen Qingtang seemed lost in thought as well. Assuming she was still dwelling on the incident, Ji Nian patted her shoulder. “It’s fine if you don’t forgive him. You’re the victim—you have every right to refuse. No one will blame you.” Shen Qingtang’s expression was unreadable. Knowing her gentle nature, Ji Nian gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. Hearing Ji Nian’s words, Shen Qingtang looked up, her usual smile returning as she leaned in to nuzzle Ji Nian’s shoulder. “Okay.” Watching the two girls interact, Ji Tingzhou—who had done little more than sit silently and speak a few words—shifted his gaze to Lu Jinghuai, who had also remained quiet. He’d noticed Li Yuan’s hesitation earlier, but now he realized something far more pressing—Lu Zhi’s son couldn’t seem to take his eyes off his daughter. “Weren’t we going to eat?” “Why isn’t dinner ready yet?” Ji Nian blinked. It was only 4:30 PM—the sun hadn’t even set. Why the sudden urgency? Assuming Ji Tingzhou was just hungry, she didn’t question it. But then he added, “This is Lu Jinghuai’s first time at the Ji Family.” “Zhiliao, show him around.” They could eat once they returned. Ji Nian wanted to say she could take him herself, but Ji Tingzhou’s sharp glare shut her down. Lu Jinghuai, sensing Ji Tingzhou’s intent, didn’t argue. Obediently, he nodded. “Thank you for your trouble.” He gave Zhiliao a polite nod, though inwardly, he thought: [Was I really that obvious?] After finally seeing her again, it was impossible not to look. Before leaving, as if struck by a sudden thought, Lu Jinghuai turned back to Ji Nian and brought up Li Yuan. “I’ve seen that person before.” The others wore varying degrees of confusion. How could Lu Jinghuai have any connection to Li Yuan? “When Ji Nian was taking me away, he was hiding in an alley, watching.” “I went over to ask why he was staring, but he seemed startled—he dropped his knife and even fell.” That explained Li Yuan’s wrist injury. Lu Jinghuai blinked innocently, his silver-gray eyes tinged with sorrow. “So... he was planning something bad.” Hearing about the knife, the adults’ expressions darkened. Shen Qingtang instinctively grabbed Ji Nian’s hand. Ji Tingzhou’s eyes turned stormy—his displeasure was unmistakable. “Zhiliao.” “Understood.” Without needing further instruction, Zhiliao knew exactly what Ji Tingzhou wanted. Ji Nian thought, [He’s really angry—he didn’t even call Wei Yang, he went straight to Zhiliao.] At the same time, she marveled at Li Yuan’s audacity. Spoiled rotten, he’d lost all sense of childish innocence if he’d resort to something like this. She wasn’t particularly fazed, though. Given how easily Lu Jinghuai had scared him off, he’d never have gotten past Wei Yang anyway. Then it dawned on her. “So when you said you had something to take care of earlier... it was because of this?”

Chapter 224

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