After Becoming a Cannon-Fodder Lackey, I Swore to Protect the Young Lady to the Death - Chapter 12

“Hello. We’re friends of Su Momo,” Lu Jiaoyue said, offering a practiced, graceful smile as she introduced them.

“Momo? How… how has she been lately?” Shen Nanshu asked. His initial surprise was quickly overtaken by an edge of anxiety.

“Uh, honestly? Not great,” Li Gangjiao replied. Recalling the later chapters of the original plot, she figured honesty was the best policy.

Upon hearing this, Shen Nanshu tried to haul himself upright. However, the sharp pull on his fractured bones sent a jolt of agony through him, forcing him to hunch over and gasp for breath.

“There are things I can’t say openly right now. I’m going to arrange for you to be transferred to a different hospital; I hope you’ll cooperate. Momo needs you,” Lu Jiaoyue said. She immediately deduced that he hadn’t heard from Su Momo in quite some time, and his visceral reaction confirmed her suspicions.

This Shen Nanshu cared for Su Momo deeply perhaps more than anyone knew.

Under normal circumstances, Shen Nanshu would never have placed his trust in two strange girls so easily, but his overwhelming concern for Momo had clouded his usual caution.

Li Gangjiao and Lu Jiaoyue found a hotel near the hospital to settle in for the night. Exhausted from a full day of traveling, Li Gangjiao didn’t even bother changing her clothes before collapsing onto the bed and falling into a deep sleep.

Lu Jiaoyue, however, finished her evening routine and immediately got to work on her phone, reaching out to her contacts.

[Lu Jiaoyue: Father, regarding Gu Yan, what is your current plan of action?]

She believed her father possessed the basic judgment to understand the threat Gu Yan posed to the Lu family.

[Lu Ming: You aren’t a child anymore, and Gu Yan is roughly your age. Honestly, I’d like to see how you would handle this.]

Lu Jiaoyue was the only daughter of the Lu family. Beyond being his beloved child, she was the sole heir to the Lu empire. He wanted to use this crisis as a litmus test for her capabilities.

Lu Jiaoyue understood the subtext: her father had completely abandoned the idea of an alliance with the Gu family and was giving her the green light to prove her worth. Satisfied, she ended the conversation.

For the duration of this “test,” the Lu family’s resources and personnel would be at her beck and call.

******

The next morning, Lu Jiaoyue roused Li Gangjiao. As they took a taxi back to the hospital, Li Gangjiao was still caught in a cycle of endless yawning.

The Lu family specialized in luxury goods, not healthcare, but Lu Ming had a close relationship with the director of a top-tier hospital in City A. Lu Jiaoyue intended to move Shen Nanshu there. As for Su Momo’s parents, she decided to place two bodyguards in the shadows to watch over them. If both parents were to disappear at once, it would likely alert Gu Yan, and for now, the madman was unlikely to target them directly.

Knock, knock, knock…

It was Saturday, and the ward was busy with visiting families. The hum of conversation in the hallway muffled the sound of Li Gangjiao’s persistent yawning.

I’m so exhausted, she thought. If I’d known I’d be this tired, I wouldn’t have stayed up so late counting my savings!

“I sent those documents to you last night. How much were you able to get through?”

Lu Jiaoyue was dressed in a long brown trench coat over a white turtleneck dress. Her slightly wavy hair was tied back casually, giving her an air of calm maturity.

Li Gangjiao hovered in the background, her mind wandering. Documents? Like, study materials? God, why can’t the school just explode…

“I read them,” Shen Nanshu replied. His slender fingers trembled slightly as he gripped the papers, his brow furrowed in a silent struggle.

Late last night, Lu Jiaoyue had added him on WeChat and sent over a file outlining the bullying Su Momo had faced this semester, along with a detailed profile on Gu Yan.

Gu Yan’s treatment of Su Momo was akin to training a dog; he would turn a blind eye as her classmates marginalized her, only to swoop in like a savior at the last moment to “solve” the problem. Unfortunately for him, Su Momo wasn’t a dog. She was smart—she had kept recordings and medical reports of her injuries, effectively robbing Gu Yan of his “heroic rescue” moment.

There was also a file regarding the car accident. While there was no direct evidence, the blurry footage of Gu Yan’s subordinate meeting with the perpetrator in a cafe was a message Lu Jiaoyue knew Shen Nanshu would understand perfectly.

“I want to see Momo myself,” Shen Nanshu said, his face pale. He gripped the side of his wheelchair with white-knuckled intensity.

“You can,” Lu Jiaoyue replied. Seeing that she had successfully swayed him, she relaxed, and her smile became more genuine. “But you’ll have to come with us to City A.”

“Fine. But… what about my mother?” he asked.

Persuading someone to leave their home, even temporarily, was a difficult task—especially since his mother’s livelihood was tied to this city.

“Don’t worry about that. I’ll ensure you receive an invitation from one of City A’s top elite high schools. As for tuition and living expenses, they will be fully waived under a poverty-relief scholarship.”

Li Gangjiao: Wait, why does this routine sound so familiar? Isn’t this exactly how the male lead lured Su Momo away in the first place?

“Take some time to think it over,” Lu Jiaoyue added. “As soon as you and your mother agree, we can begin the enrollment process.”

“Alright. Let me call her,” Shen Nanshu said, his eyes drifting toward his sketchbook.

Lu Jiaoyue nodded and led Li Gangjiao out of the room.

“What if his mom says no?” Li Gangjiao asked, sounding concerned. Shen Nanshu had a good life here; most parents wouldn’t agree to a sudden transfer.

“An elite academy in City A is a chasm that most commoners here could never cross, no matter how hard they study. You said this was a novel; you of all people should know how much more prosperous City A is compared to this place,” Lu Jiaoyue said, squeezing Li Gangjiao’s hand.

“True,” Li Gangjiao replied, remembering the novel’s descriptions. In the early chapters, Su Momo was ridiculed as a “country bumpkin,” a “commoner from the lower districts,” and a “sewer rat.”

A sewer rat… Long ago, someone had called Li Gangjiao the exact same thing.

“What’s wrong?” Lu Jiaoyue leaned in close, searching Li Gangjiao’s face with concern. The other girl had suddenly gone quiet and looked quite despondent.

“Nothing. I just remembered some unpleasant things,” Li Gangjiao said with a quick, dismissive smile. She had flashed back to her days of underground fighting in the gambling dens.

“If they’re unpleasant, then don’t think about them.” Lu Jiaoyue pulled Li Gangjiao toward her and wrapped her in a tight embrace.

“Mhm. Jiao Jiao, you’re the best.” Li Gangjiao took the opportunity to wrap her arms around Lu Jiaoyue’s waist, a satisfied smirk hidden where the other girl couldn’t see.

Jiao Jiao’s waist is so soft! Aaah!

However, at that very moment, Li Gangjiao’s stomach staged a loud, rhythmic protest.

“Uh…” Even with her thick skin, Li Gangjiao felt the sting of total social death.

“Hungry? Let’s go eat,” Lu Jiaoyue said with a laugh, gesturing toward the elevator.

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