Turns Out I’m the Villain They’re Supposed to Redeem? [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 12

That night, after Li Xuzhi went to the study, she had been waiting downstairs.

Sure enough, within less than ten minutes, a loud bang came from inside.

Her heart sank. Without even bothering to politely see off Mrs. Qi, who was visiting, Mrs. Li anxiously rushed upstairs.

But standing outside the study door, she suppressed her inner fear and only dared to push the door open after knocking and receiving her husband’s permission.

Scattered on the floor were several thick medical books, the ones Mr. Li most frequently read.

Mrs. Li, who often came to the study to tidy up for him, recognized them at a glance.

At the desk, Li Xuzhi stood with her back to her, her figure frail and silent.

“Call the family doctor to treat her wound.”

After leaving these words, Mr. Li glanced at his wife, then strode out of the study with a grim expression.

“Xiao Xu…”

Hearing that her daughter was injured, Mrs. Li hurried forward.

One side of her forehead was mangled and bloody, the crimson blood dripping down her pale face.

Soon, a small pool of blood had gathered on the floor.

“Xiao Xu…”

Seeing her daughter in such a state, Mrs. Li couldn’t hold back her sobs. Taking her by the wrist, she tried to lead Li Xuzhi away from the room.

Following quietly behind her mother, Li Xuzhi’s lips slowly curled into a weak, pale smile.

At least, she had succeeded.

By retreating to advance, she had gotten her father to agree, for the time being, not to force her into any more blind dates.

The price was that Li Xuzhi would obediently follow his arrangements and start working at the hospital.

It was a humiliating negotiation, she would still be under the family’s control.

But Li Xuzhi was already satisfied.

She wasn’t overly greedy; she only needed at least some part of her life to be her own to decide.

…

That very night, Li Xuzhi developed a high fever. The wound had become infected, and although she was on an IV, the fever kept recurring.

She drifted in and out of consciousness, barely lucid for any significant amount of time.

The wound had been inflicted when her father, in a fit of rage, had thrown a book at her. He hadn’t held back, the thick corner of the book had left a deep gash on Li Xuzhi’s forehead.

Only afterward did he realize that Li Xuzhi had been playing mind games with him.

Originally, both working at the hospital and marrying the Qi family’s son were non-negotiable for Li Xuzhi.

But she had suddenly and uncharacteristically taken a firm stance, threatening to die rather than comply with either demand.

Enraged, Mr. Li, who was usually impervious to both soft and hard tactics, challenged her to go ahead and die if she dared.

Who would have thought that this daughter of his would actually dare to press a pen to the artery in her neck?

In desperation, Mr. Li grabbed the nearest book and hurled it at her to stop her.

Blood streaming down her face, Li Xuzhi threw the pen to the ground and, even in that state, didn’t forget to negotiate with him.

If he didn’t want a dead daughter, then he had to agree to her demands.

Mr. Li was so furious he nearly passed out. After a long moment, he gritted his teeth and agreed only to temporarily stop forcing her into the marriage alliance with the Qi family.

As for the hospital, Li Xuzhi had to go.

Thus, both sides compromised.

But now, Mr. Li began to sense something amiss. Even without this incident, getting Li Xuzhi into the hospital was inevitable sooner or later.

Whether she agreed or not, if Mr. Li grew impatient, he would directly contact the school principal and have him find an excuse to fire Li Xuzhi.

Unwilling to step into the operating room? Even easier to handle.

The patient lay in the operating room. He didn’t believe that someone as soft-hearted and kind as Li Xuzhi would stand by and watch a patient die right before her eyes due to lack of treatment.

He knew his daughter all too well.

Yet, to his surprise, the usually quiet and gentle Li Xuzhi had managed to outmaneuver him right under his nose last night.

Mr. Li was so angry he laughed.

…

Waking up groggily, Li Xuzhi didn’t respond to her mother’s words. Instead, she closed her eyes again, exhausted.

If her mother truly cared for her, she should find a way to help her.

Not like this, always following her husband’s arrangements in everything.

Leaving Li Xuzhi to live her entire life under his shadow.

Her pale, weak face buried in the blanket, she spoke softly, “I want to be alone.”

Knowing her daughter must resent her, Mrs. Li had no other choice. After all, she had lived most of her life this way.

“Alright, rest well. I’ll go downstairs and make some porridge for you.”

After tidying the blanket around Li Xuzhi, Mrs. Li sighed and turned to leave.

As soon as the bedroom door closed, Huo Yuwan decisively pushed the balcony door open with her paw, then leaped gracefully onto Li Xuzhi’s bed.

The little white fox behind her was a step slower but also hopped up, crouching beside Li Xuzhi’s pillow.

The movement beside her roused Li Xuzhi, who had just closed her eyes. Frowning slightly, she opened them to see two white foxes, one large, one small, crouched in front of her, watching her intently.

Her eyes lighting up with surprise, she propped herself up on the bed and stroked the little cat’s head. “How did you get here?”

Feeling ignored, Huo Yuwan was displeased. She tapped Li Xuzhi’s wrist with her paw, signaling that there was another fox present.

Don’t play favorites, okay?

“Are you the little cat’s friend?”

She smiled gently, her fingertips softly stroking the large white fox’s chin.

Her tail swayed involuntarily behind her. Huo Yuwan didn’t want to admit how comfortable the touch felt.

With the two foxes nestled beside her, Li Xuzhi gradually shook off her drowsiness.

Picking up her phone from the bedside, she realized it had automatically shut down.

No wonder she didn’t receive the message I sent.

Huo Yuwan muttered to herself.

Her gaze lingered on the wound on Li Xuzhi’s forehead. After a moment’s thought, while Li Xuzhi was looking down at her phone, Huo Yuwan lightly jumped into her lap.

Thinking the fox just wanted to be close to her, Li Xuzhi smiled and naturally held her, one hand habitually stroking the fox’s back.

Blushing from the petting, Huo Yuwan bit her lip and let out a soft whimper. Then, she lifted a paw and slowly approached the wound on Li Xuzhi’s forehead.

An invisible silver light flew from the fox’s paw, guided gently to settle on Li Xuzhi’s injury.

“My Lady… that spiritual energy was meant for your transformation later…”

the fox spirit whispered in reminder.

“Then lend me a bit more.”

Huo Yuwan replied nonchalantly.

“…”

Once again cornered, the fox spirit had no choice but to transfer a bit more spiritual energy to Huo Yuwan.

It had already figured out that Huo Yuwan was more interested in this doctor than in completing their mission.

She’s not even the target of the mission, why bother caring so much?

The fox spirit grumbled inwardly.

Once the phone powered on, the flood of notifications clamored for attention.

Li Xuzhi didn’t bother with the others for now and first opened the chat window with Huo Yuwan.

Witnessing this scene firsthand, Huo Yuwan instinctively broke into a grin.

Then, a flicker of curiosity arose in her heart: so many people had sent messages, so why did Dr. Li reply to me first?

It must be because I sent the most messages.

Watching Li Xuzhi meticulously reply to each of her messages one by one, she came to this self-explaining realization.

Her backpack containing the phone was hidden in the flowerbed outside the residential complex. Huo Yuwan lay beside Li Xuzhi, tilting her head up to stare at the other woman’s beautiful brows and eyes, lost in thought.

Did Dr. Li get hurt because she was forced by her father again?

Huo Yuwan, who knew the storyline, felt a pang of heartache.

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door, followed by Qi Qiuyuan’s voice from outside.

“Sister Xuzhi, may I come in?”

After receiving a response, she pushed the door open and entered.

When she saw two foxes crouching on the bed, one on each side, Qi Qiuyuan’s expression momentarily froze, especially since one of them was silently baring its teeth at her, looking extremely fierce.

Forcing a gentle smile, she tried her best to ignore the fox’s presence and sat down in the chair by the bed.

“Uncle told me that Sister Xuzhi has changed your mind and decided to return to the hospital to work?”

Li Xuzhi nodded slightly in response, but Huo Yuwan’s reaction was much stronger.

She distinctly remembered that Dr. Li was resistant to returning to the hospital.

Could it be that Dr. Li’s father had pressured her relentlessly, even resorting to violence, forcing her to reluctantly compromise?

Seeing the fragility and exhaustion in Li Xuzhi’s expression, Huo Yuwan felt that her guess was almost certainly correct.

“Actually, I know that Sister Xuzhi’s heart isn’t in medicine. Being born into families like ours, there are always some hardships that can’t be spoken of to outsiders.”

At this point, Qi Qiuyuan lowered her gaze and gave a bitter smile.

“I have a solution that benefits both sides. If Sister Xuzhi is willing, perhaps we can both free ourselves from our families.”

Li Xuzhi remained silent upon hearing this, but Huo Yuwan stared unblinkingly at Qi Qiuyuan.

She was eager to hear what this person had to say.

“My coach helped me apply for a spot to train with international athletes in Australia for six months. Sister Xuzhi could come with me, as my girlfriend.”

Qi Qiuyuan spoke slowly.

She knew that the Li family had restricted Li Xuzhi so much that even her passport and other documents were withheld. Without her father’s permission, Li Xuzhi couldn’t go anywhere.

Huo Yuwan’s moist eyes widened abruptly, and upon hearing this, she nearly lunged forward to scratch Qi Qiuyuan.

This scumbag trying to two-time!

Li Xuzhi frowned slightly and shook her head. “I won’t go abroad. Besides, if you go overseas, what about your girlfriend?”

“We broke up.”

Qi Qiuyuan smiled bitterly.

Just moments ago, Huo Yuqing had called her again.

Thinking that Huo Yuqing had finally come around and was going to apologize on her sister’s behalf, after not contacting her for several days, Qi Qiuyuan answered the call.

But to her surprise, Huo Yuqing wanted to discuss applying for a postgraduate recommendation to the Foreign Affairs College.

Even though Qi Qiuyuan had warned her that if she wanted to apply to schools outside Kaicheng, they would break up.

Qi Qiuyuan coldly interrupted Huo Yuqing’s hopeful plans.

All that talk about meeting once every two weeks, about striving for their dreams together…

With Huo Yuqing’s background, coming from a small town, and still dreaming of becoming a translator at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs?

That was the most ridiculous joke Qi Qiuyuan had ever heard.

Too impatient to wait until graduation, Qi Qiuyuan broke up with her outright.

“So suddenly…?”

Upon hearing this, Li Xuzhi was somewhat surprised. Although she didn’t know who Qi Qiuyuan’s girlfriend was, she had heard him mention that they had been together for almost three years.

“She couldn’t handle a long-distance relationship with me.”

Lowering his gaze and responding softly, Qi Qiuyuan kept his head down, as if trying to hide his sorrow.

“So why not do her a favor? Use the excuse of accompanying me for training, Xuzhi, and come to Australia with me. Over there, you can pick up your paintbrush again.”

After a moment of silence, Qi Qiuyuan forced a relieved smile, his words dripping with seemingly noble intentions, all for Li Xuzhi’s benefit.

If they went to Australia together and spent every day in each other’s company, Qi Qiuyuan was confident he could win Li Xuzhi over.

Even if Li Xuzhi truly had feelings for someone else, so what? Since she didn’t dare confess to her family, that person was likely just an ordinary nobody.

Someone like that, just like Huo Yuqing, would never gain approval from their families.

On one side was the long-cherished freedom and passion she yearned for, and on the other, a love she knew was doomed from the start. Qi Qiuyuan believed Li Xuzhi would make the right choice.