The Beloved One Is Always Coveted - Chapter 17

Chapter 17

◎She Killed Someone, and the Weapon is Here◎

“Yu Li, you must know what I want with you.”

The class president’s voice trailed off, sounding charming and cute. Even in front of Yu Li, she maintained her usual image, but there was no kindness in her eyes.

Yu Li honestly shook her head. She wasn’t a savvy person when it came to social dynamics. Even if she knew the class president needed a way to save face, she wouldn’t provide it.

It had nothing to do with her.

If she were tactful, she should have let out a timid and fearful shriek when the chair fell, shrinking in her seat and trembling.

But wouldn’t that just achieve the class president’s goal?

That transfer student from the lower class, who is like a mouse seeing a cat when she sees me. She was nearly scared to death just by accidentally bumping a chair. Poor thing.

That’s definitely what she’d say, using the voice of an innocent to spread Yu Li’s embarrassment, broadcasting to everyone that the transfer student was someone who could be casually bullied. Wasn’t that the intention?

“You! Stop acting stupid! I’ve investigated your relationship with the Tang family and know everything! You’re nothing but a nanny’s daughter!”

The class president was, at the end of the day, a pampered young lady. Her family was in the materials business. She had an older sister, ten years her senior, who had already taken over the family enterprise. Her family had no demands on her, but the young lady was ambitious, trying to compete with her sister in everything. Yet, she wasn’t bright and failed to measure up in every aspect; even the position of class president was simply because no one else volunteered.

Now, seeing Yu Li’s attitude, her initial plan was forced to change. She resorted to bluster, not even pretending to be a pitiful white flower, and raised her voice high and sharp to intimidate Yu Li.

But so what? Yu Li slightly raised her chin, closed her workbook, and responded coldly to the class president: “So?”

So what if she’s a nanny’s daughter? Doesn’t a nanny’s daughter deserve a mother’s love?

The class president hadn’t expected Yu Li to fight back like this. She thought Yu Li would be timid and cowardly, always feeling inferior because of her background.

She grew even angrier, believing Yu Li was looking down on her. Panicked, she spoke without thinking: “So you deserved to be abandoned when you were born!”

The moment the words left her mouth, both girls looked up simultaneously, freezing as their eyes met.

She saw the eyes beneath the thick bangs but couldn’t make out the emotion within.

She felt something seize her mind. All her anger seemed to be doused by a bucket of ice water. Reason slowly returned. She remembered her sister, the genius sister who was born ten years before her and had stolen all her opportunities.

If it were my sister, would she have said that?

Attacking someone with their own suffering…

“I’m… I’m sorry…”

“You’re right.”

Both their voices rang out and stopped together. The class president’s eyes darted around as she retreated, almost tripping over her feet. She finally reached the classroom door and let out a small scream, but the person outside immediately put a finger to their lips, signaling silence. She quickly clapped a hand over her mouth and hurried away.

Inside the classroom, Yu Li packed her bag. In fact, the class president’s attack didn’t bother her much, as it no longer had a great impact on her.

Being abandoned was an event from a long time ago. Yu Rong had never hidden it from her. She even gave Yu Li the choice, when she was older, to seek out her birth mother.

Yu Li, of course, refused. Yu Rong had always been her mother, and that would never change.

As she put on her backpack and walked out of the classroom, she was unexpectedly pulled back by a hand. Her body, along with her backpack, collided into the person’s arms.

“You’re coming back with me today.”

A cold voice descended from above. It was Tang Xi.

She had heard everything from the classroom doorway without making a sound.

Yu Li, covering her head, backed out of the embrace, craning her neck to look at her. She was unusually agitated: “It’s only Friday today.”

They had agreed yesterday that she would go back on Saturday.

But Miss Xi would never adhere to small promises. It’s just time. What’s the big deal about moving it up? It’s not like she’ll die.

She smiled, casually and lightly pulling on Yu Li’s backpack. Her eyes were icy deep down. “I changed my mind.”

Yu Li could never gauge Tang Xi’s mood. Her lips might be smiling now, but who knew how wicked her thoughts were? If she went back today, wouldn’t it signal that her boundaries could be repeatedly encroached upon and retreated?

“You said clearly yesterday that it would be Saturday.” She emphasized the promise, hoping Miss Xi would keep her word.

“Hmm, so what?” Tang Xi threw her words back at her. So what if I said it yesterday? It’s still my decision, isn’t it?

“Jiejie, you need to understand me. I love changing my mind. You’ll have to get used to it. There will be many more times like this in the future.”

Tang Xi’s voice was syrupy sweet, honey laced with poison. What could Yu Li do, no matter how angry she was? She still had to meekly follow Tang Xi home.

They didn’t even go back to retrieve the luggage she had packed last night. They drove straight into the Half-Mountain Manor.

She didn’t even know what she was expected to do. Tang Xi, who got out of the car first, grabbed her wrist and dragged her out. Before she could even put on her backpack, she was pulled all the way into a dark room.

The moment her body entered the room, the grip on her hand loosened. She was flung onto the hard floor. The door immediately closed.

The light that had rushed in was torn away. Then came hurried footsteps, and the curtains were violently yanked open.

Yu Li instinctively squinted. Outside the window was a vast stretch of roses, red enough to drip blood.

Tang Xi stood by the window, looking down at her.

She saw them again: those dead eyes, nearly empty, imprisoning a beast bound by chains.

The beast was watching her.

Tang Xi parted her lips and kicked something on the floor towards her. The force was well-controlled. A straight red line was drawn, and the object stopped just in front of her.

Yu Li trembled and frowned, sucking in a breath when she clearly saw what it was.

It was a knife, a blade the length of a palm, stained with blood. The strong, metallic stench filled her nostrils. Her throat choked up. She couldn’t possibly tell herself it was animal blood.

Looking back at Tang Xi, even her clothes seemed to be splattered with blood, dripping onto the floor in the late afternoon sun, one drop at a time, slowly forming a small puddle, a red that was starting to turn black.

Even she was not spared. The scent of blood seeped into her pores. Something screamed and tried to escape, jumping and twitching before her eyes.

How could it be so horrific? The person was still the same person, bathed in sunlight with a backdrop of large, beautiful red roses. How vibrant! A casual photo posted online would instantly draw crazy admiration.

But… The blood-stained knife, upon closer inspection, even had fragments of flesh on it. Just throwing it in front of her was enough to make her heart pound out of her chest.

“Are you scared?”

Tang Xi spoke softly, her eyes fixed on her, like a predator locking onto its prey. Yet, her eyes were deep and unwavering. She leaned against the window, waiting for her answer. It was terrifying.

“What are you going to do?”

She spoke cautiously, her intuition screaming that something, something very bad, was about to happen.

What was Tang Xi going to do to her? Would she use that knife, too? Would the blade, still carrying the flesh of the last “lucky person,” be plunged into her heart?

Tang Xi raised a hand to cover half her face. Her lips curled into a wide arc. The exposed half of her face smiled eerily and wantonly.

“I asked you, are you scared?”

She repeated the question. Her voice was light as dust, but she was determined to drag Yu Li down with her.

Scared? Of course, Yu Li was scared. She was just an ordinary city girl, who had never experienced life-or-death situations. She hadn’t even encountered a genuinely deranged person in her life. What she had experienced was child’s play compared to that knife.

But if she said she was scared, what would happen?

She didn’t dare to think, didn’t dare to say, and didn’t dare to look at the knife. Her gaze flickered to other places, trying to gloss over the moment.

The sky was growing dark now. Large patches of sunset glow painted the sky, bathing the roses outside the window in a layer of fractured gold.

Yu Li slowly tried to move backward, but in the blink of an eye, she was caught by the waist and lifted up.

Tang Xi was dissatisfied with her silence. She hated silence the most. Because she had just killed someone, her taut nerves hadn’t relaxed. She had only taken a shower before rushing to school to bring Yu Li back.

It wasn’t that she liked her so much; she saw Yu Li as a toy to alleviate her boredom, a new one that had to serve its purpose.

Even a dog in the Tang family had to have a purpose. Since Yu Li owed the Tang family a favor, she was naturally half a Tang family member. She had to keep her company.

This time, she forcibly hugged her waist and backed her up against a cabinet by the window. The more Yu Li struggled, the tighter her grip became, until there was no space left between them. Yu Li slowly stopped struggling, and Tang Xi finally loosened her hands, letting her pant helplessly. Tears were nearly forced out of her, her eyes watering, but she held them back.

“I killed someone.”

Tang Xi slightly lifted her chin. The beast struggled to escape its cage, but the prey was right at the edge, only one swipe away from being pulled in.

“Guess who it was?” Her tone was light and teasing, instantly striking a chord in Yu Li.

She pretended not to know. She didn’t dare to guess.

If she knew the truth, she would never be okay. Every time Tang Xi made a move afterward, she would think of her. One day, Tang Xi would silence her, too.

“Miss Xi, it’s getting late. I want to go home.”

She tried to escape, heart pounding, softening her voice to beg Tang Xi to let her go. It was getting dark, and she still had to go home to do her homework.

Yu Li was a year older than Tang Xi, but it seemed they no longer belonged to the same world. It was a true rift. Yu Li had to rush back to do homework and practice problems, while Tang Xi had kidnapped her because she had just committed murder.

“Do you know why my mom wanted you to come here?”

Tang Xi wasn’t so kind as to let her go. As dusk fell, her eyes lit up, filled with malicious curiosity.

Miss Xi couldn’t keep a secret. Only a few days had passed, and she had already told the person involved. If the Family Head of the Tang family found out, she would surely be dealt with by family rules.

Yu Li shook her head. She had always been curious about this question, but now, she didn’t want to know at all.

The secrets of a powerful family were not something an ordinary person could bear. She would just accept her situation. As for the underlying intentions, it was better to play dumb.

Just muddle through this year. It would pass quickly. Everything would be fine once she went to college in Donglin City.

As for Tang Nianyi, Yu Li recalled the scene in the rain. The Family Head, holding an umbrella, paused because of mud splattered on her suit trousers.

At that moment, she had felt a sense of relief. Tang Nianyi might have intentions regarding her, but she would definitely not get entangled in messiness like this.

There was an invisible barrier between them. Yu Li saw it, and Tang Nianyi saw it too.

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