I Swear I Don’t Want to Be Everyone’s Favorite - Chapter 45.1

Jiang Lanhui had never imagined that Jiang Luoyue, whom she had always viewed as introverted and timid, would suddenly retaliate with such resolute determination.

As Jiang Luoyue spoke, the chaotic scene gradually fell into a moment of stunned silence. Even Li Jiang turned to look in their direction with a shocked expression, proving just how earth-shattering Jiang Luoyue’s words were in their eyes.

Staring at Jiang Lanhui’s contorted face, Jiang Luoyue retorted, “Did I hit a nerve? Are you feeling guilty?”

A ringing filled Jiang Lanhui’s ears, and by the time she regained her senses, her hand was already raised high. But before that slap could land crisply on Jiang Luoyue’s face, someone had already grabbed Jiang Luoyue’s wrist, effortlessly pulling the two apart.

Xiang Fan suppressed the urge to demand an explanation and instead turned to the director offstage. “What are you waiting for? Get them separated!”

Even with just a few words, it was enough for Xiang Fan to instantly piece together the image of a pair of parasites in her mind. Combined with the debt issues Li Jiang had repeatedly mentioned, their purpose for coming here was already glaringly obvious.

The best way to deal with such people was to fight fire with fire.

Ning Fuguang said, “If you don’t leave now, I’ll call the police.”

Jiang Lanhui instantly panicked, frantically trying to explain herself, but staff members were already approaching her.

Jiang Luoyue glanced at her tightly gripped wrist, where visible finger marks had already formed in just a few seconds due to the force. Noticing her gaze, Xiang Fan abruptly released her hand.

“Jiang Luoyue”

Before she could speak, Fu Yunqing interrupted her thoughts, her face full of distress. “I”

I didn’t mean to.

Fu Yunqing had no idea that the relatives she held dearest would be such a source of humiliation for Jiang Luoyue. From Jiang Lanhui’s words, it was clear that Jiang Luoyue had already distanced herself from them. It was because of her that these two had been given another chance to harass Jiang Luoyue.

Guilt overwhelmed Fu Yunqing, rendering her speechless. All she felt was fear and heartache.

But Jiang Luoyue seemed unbothered, offering her a smile and silently mouthing, “It’s okay.”

If it weren’t for Fu Yunqing, Jiang Luoyue might have taken much longer to resolve this matter. Delays often lead to complications. The fact that Jiang Lanhui and Li Jiang had rushed onto the show, weeping and wailing, actually worked in her favor.

Why should Fu Yunqing apologize? If anything, Jiang Luoyue should be the one thanking her.

Jiang Luoyue relaxed her brow, feeling as though a heavy weight had slowly lifted from her chest. Finally, she had the peace of mind to comfort Yu Jingtang, who stood beside her, breathing rapidly and looking even paler than she did. “It’s just a small matter. It’ll be resolved soon.”

Yu Jingtang grabbed her hand. Jiang Luoyue instinctively tried to pull away just moments ago, the warmth of Xiang Fan’s touch still lingered on her palm.

But Yu Jingtang held on tightly, as though only by doing so could she steady her breathing and remain calm.

A few seconds later, Yu Jingtang murmured in confusion, “I didn’t know.”

Jiang Luoyue chuckled softly. “I never told you anything about it. How could you have known, President Ning?”

She looked somewhat startled as Ning Fuguang walked away. After exchanging a few words with a formally dressed woman offstage, he turned back and glanced in their direction.

On his lit-up screen was the emergency call number.

Ning Fuguang was a man of his word. If he said he would call the police if they didn’t leave, he wouldn’t give them even a second to stall.

Seeing the smile on Jiang Luoyue’s face, the lingering gloom between her brows finally eased slightly. She curved her lips, offering a barely-there response.

Jiang Lanhui was still chattering incessantly. Since it was just meaningless drivel, the staff didn’t press too hard and continued to negotiate.

But Li Jiang, who had been singing and dancing just minutes earlier, reacted like a madman the moment someone touched him. Struggling violently, he shouted, “What are you doing? I’m Jiang Luoyue’s father! She wouldn’t dare treat me like this, you ”

Before he could finish, someone threw a fierce punch to his face. By the time everyone registered what had happened, the gaunt man was already sprawled on the ground, one side of his face swollen and red, utterly defenseless as he stared at the person who had attacked him.

Fu Yunshu’s smile remained intact. “If you can’t speak like a human, I happen to know a thing or two about martial arts.”

Seeing her take action, Fu Yunqing immediately followed, speeding toward the scene in her electric wheelchair. The wheels glided like ice skates as she flew to Fu Yunshu’s side.

She nearly overshot, but Fu Yunshu grabbed the handlebar just in time, preventing her from crashing into a tree.

“Get lost!” After slamming on the brakes, Fu Yunqing used her good leg to kick the curled-up figure on the ground several times, as if venting all the anger she had just endured. “Who do you think you are, saying things like that? What kind of trash are you?”

“Hey! Hey!” The director, terrified of being caught in the crossfire, covered his head and cautiously reminded them, “Fighting will get the livestream shut down!”

“Yeah, yeah,” Luo Qing chimed in, stepping closer to the two. “You should consider the director’s position. Running a show isn’t easy.”

“Miss Luo!”

The director was moved to tears, about to express his gratitude, when he saw Luo Qing kick Li Jiang’s shin as if she were punting a stone. His grateful tone turned into a shriek.

With too many injuries to count, Li Jiang curled up like a worm, trying to minimize the pain while continuously begging for mercy.

Jiang Lanhui was in disbelief that these people would resort to violence right in front of the cameras.

Weren’t they celebrities? Didn’t they care about their reputations? Weren’t they afraid of being blacklisted?!

This was a possibility Jiang Lanhui had never imagined. The scene before her made her blood boil and her entire body tremble.

When the woman who had struck first glanced her way, Jiang Lanhui was completely speechless. Before stepping on stage, she had overheard the woman’s conversation with the director. The director had addressed her respectfully as “President Fu,” and from their exchange, Jiang Lanhui knew this was someone she could never afford to cross.

What would happen if she provoked such a person? Jiang Lanhui didn’t dare imagine it. In that moment, she abandoned all thoughts of causing trouble and, trembling, said to Jiang Luoyue, “Luoyue, can you ask your friends to stop? He’s your father, after all.”

Jiang Luoyue smiled and asked, “So you’re not going to hit me anymore?”

Jiang Lanhui swallowed hard, realizing that the only person she could rely on now was Jiang Luoyue, whom she had nearly slapped just minutes earlier.

Furious and terrified, she tried to justify herself, “I never intended to hit you. I’m your mother, how could I lay a hand on you? There must be some sort of.”

Jiang Luoyue finished her sentence: “Misunderstanding?”

Before Jiang Lanhui could nod, Fu Yunqing interjected impatiently, “What misunderstanding? What misunderstanding could there be? Jiang Luoyue, do you even know how to argue? If not, let me handle it.”

Fu Yunshu shot her a sidelong glance. “Kick softer. We don’t want you ending up in jail for love before they even get locked up.”

Reluctantly, Fu Yunqing finally stopped.

Watching Li Jiang, bruised and battered as he begged for mercy, and the trembling Jiang Lanhui before her, Jiang Luoyue remained silent for a few seconds before suddenly speaking: “Before we determine whether this is a misunderstanding, tell me, what did Zhou Ruonian say to you?”

Jiang Lanhui froze in place, never expecting Jiang Luoyue to suddenly mention Zhou Ruonian. She stammered, unable to form a coherent response.

Xiang Fan crossed her arms. This was the second time she had heard the name Zhou Ruonian, and each time, it left her unsettled and more confused about what had happened to Jiang Luoyue.

Jiang Luoyue asked, “How much money did they give you to stir up trouble here?”

The Li family was foolish and incompetent, but Jiang Lanhui was shrewd enough. She knew very well that compared to directly destroying Jiang Luoyue, it was far more profitable to threaten her over the long term.

Based on Jiang Luoyue’s understanding of her, even if Jiang Lanhui wanted to risk everything, she would contact Jiang Luoyue before taking any extreme actions. Only after hearing a direct refusal from Jiang Luoyue would Jiang Lanhui become enraged and orchestrate such a farce.

Once Jiang Lanhui resolved to cause trouble, anywhere could become her stage. The reason she had remained silent for two months was simply because she was afraid that before she could bring Jiang Luoyue down, her and the Li family’s parasitic behavior would be exposed to the public. Such despicable acts of exploitation meant that if Jiang Luoyue dared to confront her openly, any public backlash Jiang Lanhui stirred up would only rebound onto herself.

This was also why, despite causing a scene at the live broadcast for so long, Jiang Lanhui dared not explicitly state her purpose, only hinting at Jiang Luoyue’s lack of filial piety.

Aside from Jiang Lianyan, Jiang Luoyue could think of no one else who could make Jiang Lanhui take such a risk.