Dating Myself - Chapter 33

The situation online grew larger and larger, with even television media reporting on it. In particular, the Lindong Provincial News Channel provided multiple follow-up reports. Under public pressure, the Weicheng Second Foreign Language School’s (Weicheng Erwai’s) “pending class” system was reluctantly announced as abolished.

In just over a month, the principal’s hair had turned gray with worry. He no longer dared to think about becoming a provincially supported school; keeping his job would be a miracle. Even though Weicheng Erwai was a private institution, it could not evade the jurisdiction of the Education Bureau. A school must be student-centered; acting otherwise would inevitably lead to trouble.

The principal was not the only one whose hair was turning gray. Jian Xiangwei and Wen Qiaoyun had not slept a single peaceful night since the incidents began. This was especially true for Wen Qiaoyun. After Jian Xiangwei bribed Wu Shutao, Qi Liran, and the others, he entrusted the follow-up to Wen Qiaoyun and focused on company matters himself.

The Jian family was currently at a critical stage of development. They lacked nothing but money. They had taken out every possible loan and still had a significant shortfall. To successfully go public and expand the company, Jian Xiangwei was secretly engaging in illegal fundraising on the side.

Facts proved his decision was astute. Although illegal, he truly managed to get the company listed smoothly. Its market value soared all the way up. Later, to facilitate further expansion, he moved the entire family to Beijing and bought an office building there, completely shedding the label of a Weicheng landlord and securing a place in the Huaxia business community.

Jian Xiangwei only cared about company affairs. When Wen Qiaoyun mentioned to him that An Mu might know about their illegal fundraising, Jian Xiangwei didn’t take it seriously. After all, this required evidence, and those who chose to invest in his company naturally hoped the company would develop well so they could receive more dividends. They wouldn’t be foolish enough to let An Mu catch them red-handed.

Furthermore, An Mu had only made a verbal threat. If she had evidence, she would have acted long ago; why would she risk alerting them?

Wen Qiaoyun thought this made sense, and the matter was dropped. However, the two of them became more cautious than ever, daring not to be negligent in the slightest.

But some things cannot be avoided just by being careful. For instance, the case of hiring for assault, which they had thought was completely settled—they had clearly paid off everyone involved, yet a few days later, Jian Yihu was still taken away by the police.

Jian Xiangwei was not at home, and Wen Qiaoyun was stunned. She wasn’t afraid of other matters, but the moment her precious daughter was involved, her hands and feet turned ice cold. She followed all the way to the police station but was stopped outside the interrogation room, pacing anxiously.

It was precisely because they thought they were in the clear that they hadn’t rehearsed their story beforehand. The police only questioned Jian Yihu for just over an hour before she gave herself away. Less than two hours later, she was a wreck, nearly collapsing from the counter-questions.

After interrogating Jian Yihu, she was taken away and temporarily detained. Wen Qiaoyun was anxiously waiting for Jian Xiangwei to contact Wu Shutao’s family, but she never expected that the police wanted to interrogate her as well!

“What does this have to do with me? Why do you need to question me?”

The female police officer said kindly, “Don’t be nervous. This is just routine questioning, as you are the suspect’s mother.”

Wen Qiaoyun didn’t think much of it. However, as soon as she entered the interrogation room and hadn’t even sat down properly, the female police officer played a recording. All the color drained from Wen Qiaoyun’s face.

[This is the fifty thousand yuan prepayment. When this matter is completely over, I’ll give you the remaining one hundred and fifty thousand. With this money, your son won’t have to worry about starting a small business or anything when he gets out of prison.]

The female police officer, who had smiled kindly outside the interrogation room, was now solemn and completely devoid of a smile.

“Please explain what this recording is about.”

The voices in the recording were Jian Xiangwei’s, with Wen Qiaoyun’s occasional brief agreements interspersed.

Wen Qiaoyun clenched her jaw, cold sweat pouring out. What could she say now? She could only force herself to play dumb.

“I don’t know. I never said such a thing!”

The female police officer didn’t bother to argue with her.

“This is just the audio version of the video. The actual evidence file has already been submitted to the evidence repository. Analysis shows no post-production editing. It contains clear footage of you and Jian Xiangwei, which you will see on the day of the trial.”

Wen Qiaoyun slumped in the interrogation chair.

The female police officer continued the procedure: “You have the right to remain silent, but…”

Wen Qiaoyun could no longer hear the words that followed. She was a Vice President, after all. If she couldn’t figure out what was happening now, she would have wasted all those years as an executive.

They had been tricked—by that An Mu!

What successful bribery? It was all a trap!

If it was a trap with Wu Shutao, then it was highly likely that Qi Liran and Lu Yuexin had also feigned surrender, pretending to be bribed.

It was over.

This time, it was truly and utterly over.

Not only Jian Yihu was finished; she and Jian Xiangwei might also be facing a lawsuit!

Unfortunately, Wen Qiaoyun realized it too late. Everything was within An Mu’s control. She had long anticipated what Wen Qiaoyun and the others would do, so how could she not have deployed a plan in advance?

In fact, An Mu had clearly explained to Wu Shutao’s family that merely testifying against Jian Yihu was not enough to significantly reduce his sentence. However… it would be different if he demonstrated major meritorious service.

—My son is in prison. How can he render meritorious service?

This was the exact question Wu Shutao’s father had asked.

An Mu’s answer at the time was: “You don’t have to do anything. Meritorious service will find you, and what’s more, we are not just looking for a reduced sentence; we are looking for… parole.”

Parole would allow him to go home, have more personal freedom, and even start his own business, not delaying his life.

Given Wu Shutao’s current situation, there was nothing better than parole.

An Mu even specifically educated them about the crime of obstructing testimony. Once convicted of this crime, the sentence could range from less than three years to as much as seven years. Superficially, she was informing the Jian family of the consequences of bribing them, but in reality, she was also reminding them that if they accepted the Jian family’s bribe, they would be guilty of the same crime.

As for whether this concurrent crime could actually be established and what the determining standards were, An Mu did not elaborate, nor did they need to know.

Jian Xiangwei was indeed convicted of obstructing testimony. In order to preserve at least one person to manage the company, Jian Xiangwei took all the responsibility upon himself.

The couple had been too clever for their own good. Originally, there was no solid evidence for Jian Yihu’s claims of slanderous bullying and hiring for assault. Their attempt to quickly resolve the trouble instead solidified Jian Yihu’s guilt. Coupled with the evidence collectively provided by Qi Liran and Lu Yuexin, the verdict in Jian Yihu’s hiring for assault case was finally handed down before the New Year.

Since Jian Yihu was over 14 years old but under 18 years old, she received leniency and was sentenced to only two years of control.

Control required restricting the convicted person’s freedom to a certain extent and required them to periodically perform community service, but it did not prevent them from attending school.

However, Jian Yihu had already been expelled. Given her current situation, what school would dare to accept her?

In fact, the problem was no longer whether a school would accept her, but whether she was willing to go.

Jian Yihu’s persona, which she had carefully cultivated for more than three years, had completely collapsed. The internet was flooded with abuse aimed at her and her parents. She stayed home, refusing to go out for anything. She felt that the whole world was laughing at her. She was resentful, distraught, and miserable. She wished she could tear An Mu and Jian Yixi to shreds! She refused to go out and be ridiculed!

With Jian Xiangwei imprisoned, the company was significantly affected. Wen Qiaoyun was overwhelmed managing everything alone, yet Jian Yihu wouldn’t settle down. She refused the school her mother managed to contact, even threatening suicide.

Wen Qiaoyun was utterly exhausted and could only let her do as she pleased.

The chaos within the Jian family did not affect Jian Yixi at the moment. The school had abolished the “pending class” system, and the original policy of arranging classes based on term grades was also abandoned, retaining only the selection system for the Elite Class.

The exams were only half a month away. An Mu was struggling a bit with her studies. After all, she had lost twelve years of knowledge; she no longer remembered it, having given most of it back to her teachers. After studying for a full semester, she was just barely keeping up with the curriculum. In contrast, Jian Yixi was thriving, making An Mu suspect she might be kicked out of the Elite Class.

In truth, being kicked out wasn’t a huge deal; she was confident she could test back in next semester. However, if she was, she wouldn’t be in the same class as Jian Yixi.

Not being in the same class meant she couldn’t keep an eye on Jian Yixi at all times, and she couldn’t confirm whether that incident would change due to Jian Yihu’s expulsion.

Thinking of that incident, An Mu couldn’t help but tighten her grip on her pen.

If there were any profound memories from her past life, that incident was definitely one of the most prominent, second only to the deaths of her adoptive parents and Maomao.

To this day, she was still unsure whether that incident was an accident or deliberate.

If it was deliberate, the culprit was most likely Jian Yihu. Now that Jian Yihu had been expelled, the incident might not happen.

But what if it was just a pure accident?

Worst of all, that incident had been such a massive blow to her that she was very distraught during that period and even took a long leave of absence, leading her to forget the exact date it occurred.

Even if she remembered the date clearly, it wouldn’t matter, as so many things had already changed in this life. Whether this incident would happen again, when it would happen, or even where it would happen, were all unknowns.

The only thing she could do was remind Jian Yixi to be careful and try her best to stay with her.

But if they couldn’t be assigned to the same class, then…

Her deskmate, Qi Siying, called her name three times before An Mu glanced at her indifferently.

“Is something wrong?”

That cold glance chilled Qi Siying to the bone.

After she had previously warned An Mu not to provoke Jian Yihu, only to have egg on her own face, Qi Siying had been keeping her distance from An Mu.

First, she was afraid of offending An Mu and ending up like Jian Yihu. Second, having fallen out with An Mu before, she couldn’t bring herself to approach her voluntarily. Third, she disliked An Mu’s cold demeanor, wondering if she really thought she was a Highland Flower.

Normally, Qi Siying would never speak a single word more than necessary to An Mu. If it weren’t for the exam today, how could she have initiated a conversation? She had lowered herself this much—what was with that look?!

The more Qi Siying thought about it, the angrier she got. Her tone, which wasn’t great to begin with, became much worse now.

“The test is about to start. Aren’t you going to run through the steps with me first? Are you going to be responsible if we mess up the test?”

The final exam for the Chemistry Lab class was assigned by deskmate pair—two people per group—with no option to choose.

An Mu withdrew her gaze, her tone aloof.

“I will apply to the teacher to test alone.”

The experiment could certainly be done by one person, but if two people divided the tasks, they could complete it calmly without being flustered. Moreover, with a group test, even if one person didn’t perform perfectly, the teacher would usually use discretion to pass them, generally not giving low scores.

But a solo test was different. An operational error was an error. There was no group member to pull up your score, and even if the teacher wanted to give you a high grade, it would be difficult.

No one was willing to test alone. Even in genuinely special circumstances, they would try every means to team up with someone from another class who was also without a partner.

Hearing An Mu’s casual remark, Qi Siying couldn’t help but scoff: “Fine! Go tell the teacher now. I’ll watch you go. Whoever doesn’t go is a dog!”

An Mu glanced at her as if she were an idiot.

“The test starts in eight minutes.”

“So what?!”

“Nothing. I just think you are pitifully stupid.”

“You’re the one who’s stupid!”

An Mu ignored her, got up, gathered her things, and headed toward the lab, sitting down in one of the back rows of chairs.

There were only so many lab benches, so the tests couldn’t happen simultaneously. They were divided into batches, and the experiment was determined by drawing lots. Students waiting sat here.

Shortly after An Mu sat down, the students came in in twos and threes. Qi Siying also arrived, glared at her, and sat far away.

The Chemistry teacher entered and had just announced the start of the drawing of lots when An Mu raised her hand and stood up.

“Teacher Li, I request to withdraw from the group and test individually.”

The Chemistry teacher paused and asked, “Who are you paired with?”

Qi Siying was leaning over, mockingly giggling at the nearby girl about An Mu’s stupidity. Hearing her name, she quickly stood up. “It’s me, Teacher.”

“She wants to split up. Do you agree?”

“I agree! You can’t force a sweet result from a sour gourd, right, Teacher?”

“Alright, then the two of you will test individually. Take a seat.”

With the Chemistry teacher’s casual statement, Qi Siying was dumbfounded.

“Wh-what? What did you say, Teacher?”

“I said, sit down!”

The Chemistry teacher, being experienced, could obviously tell the two were having a conflict. He was here to proctor the exam, not mediate. Since she had agreed, she had no grounds to renege.

Qi Siying sat down in a daze. The girl who had just been listening to her mock An Mu couldn’t help but cover her mouth and laugh, raising her eyebrows at another girl, her derision even stronger than Qi Siying’s had been earlier.

Qi Siying’s face flushed hot and then pale. Only then did she realize what An Mu had meant when she called her stupid.

Lining up to draw lots, the slips of paper indicated the test order and the experiment. There were nine groups, eighteen people, in each round. An Mu was scheduled for the second major group.

While the people on the platform were testing, the students in the back of the lab were reviewing materials. The Chemistry teacher walked around supervising the exam.

The phone in An Mu’s pocket suddenly vibrated.

An Mu looked up, glanced at the Chemistry teacher, and slightly shielded her notebook as she pulled out her phone and opened it.

It was a message from Jian Yixi.

[Mengxi’s Writing: My father broke his leg and is hospitalized. I’m taking leave to go back to Shunyi. I definitely won’t be back tonight. Remember to lock the door.]

What?

Broke his leg?

Why didn’t she remember this happening in her past life? Or did it happen, but her adoptive parents didn’t tell her at the time?

But if they didn’t tell her in the past life out of fear of worrying her, why would they suddenly not be afraid this time?

Besides, Jian Yixi had only called her adoptive parents last night. They also knew the exams were coming soon. Given their personalities, they would absolutely not notify her at this time.

An Mu quickly messaged Jian Yixi back.

[Misty Rain Boat: Don’t go yet. Wait until after my exam.]

A reply came back quickly.

[Mengxi’s Writing: My mom was crying on the phone. I can’t wait. I have to rush back. I’ll talk to you later.]

Her adoptive mother was crying?

An Mu’s long eyelashes fluttered. She decisively tucked her phone away, bypassed her classmates, and walked to the Chemistry teacher’s side to whisper two sentences in his ear.

“I’m sorry, Teacher. Something urgent has happened at home. I need to leave immediately. I will ask the homeroom teacher for leave.”

The Chemistry teacher frowned. “Taking leave during an exam will result in a zero score.”

“I have to go even with a zero score.”

When Qi Siying saw her leave, her previously dejected face instantly lit up with excitement. As An Mu walked out the door, she could still hear Qi Siying’s low, mocking voice.

“Oh~ weren’t you acting so tough just now? Why are you running away?”

An Mu didn’t have time to deal with her. As she quickly exited the lab, she called Jian Yixi.

Jian Yixi was breathless on the other end of the phone.

“I… I just left school and was about to hail a taxi.”

“Wait for me. I’ll get permission to leave and be out right away.”

“I said, I’m coming with you to Shunyi.”

An Mu hung up the phone and hurried downstairs to the office. Outside the school gate, not far away, Jian Yixi stared blankly, covering the phone with her hand, slowly lowering it after a long pause.

An Mu… what did An Mu just say?

She said… she was going to accompany her back to Shunyi?

Why… why would she go back with her? It was her father who had the accident, not An Mu’s. Besides, wasn’t it almost time for final exams?

Wait! She remembered! The third period was the Chemistry lab assessment, wasn’t it? An Mu had also said to wait until after the exam.

Jian Yixi quickly checked the time on her phone. The third period had just started. Even if An Mu was in the first group, she couldn’t have finished the assessment.

An Mu… she… she skipped the exam?