Turns Out I’m the Villain They’re Supposed to Redeem? [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 29

She had always been slightly taller than Li Xuzhi, so when she held her in her arms, her chin could just rest against Li Xuzhi’s ear.

The frail, delicate figure in her embrace stirred an involuntary ache in Huo Yuwan’s heart. Patting her back soothingly, Huo Yuwan whispered softly, “Don’t believe a word she says. Dr. Li, you will always be the best in my heart.”

After more than twenty years of oppressive, controlling upbringing, the courage to resist was not something easily cultivated. In her youth, Li Xuzhi had tried, but each attempt only brought harsher physical torment.

With both psychological suffering and physical abuse, and even her own mother standing by indifferently, every step forward felt like an immense struggle for someone like Li Xuzhi.

Her fingers clutching tightly at the hem of Huo Yuwan’s clothes, Li Xuzhi rested her forehead against Huo Yuwan’s shoulder, her trembling lashes already wet with tears.

…

That very evening, a student posted a secretly recorded video to the campus confession wall. Once again, Qi Qiuyuan found herself at the center of campus gossip. She privately contacted the wall’s administrator to have the video removed, but with so many students eager to watch the drama unfold, clips of the incident, filmed from various angles, were quickly shared and discussed across Kaicheng University’s social platforms.

The rumors from last semester had already infuriated Qi Qiuyuan, and now she was embroiled in yet another campus scandal, this time, accused of harassing someone else’s girlfriend. She was practically driven mad with anger.

How could Li Xuzhi have become Huo Yuwan’s girlfriend? And how had she herself become labeled as sleazy and creepy?

Composing a sternly worded post, Qi Qiuyuan declared that she had merely been pursuing Li Xuzhi in a normal manner, emphasizing that their families were old friends and had known each other for years. She also asserted that Huo Yuwan was not Li Xuzhi’s girlfriend, while mocking Huo Yuwan for meddling in others’ affairs. She claimed that the only reason she hadn’t fought back when hit was because she had the decency not to engage with someone so unreasonable.

This post was quickly reshared across social media. When Huo Yuwan saw it, she scoffed and rolled her eyes, then immediately reposted Qi Qiuyuan’s statement with a direct, confrontational rebuttal.

She didn’t mention Li Xuzhi at all in her response, instead framing the issue as a personal conflict between herself and Qi Qiuyuan.

After all, as someone who had once won the Best Debater award in a national competition, Huo Yuwan was skilled at dismantling opponents’ arguments with logic and precision.

From Qi Qiuyuan’s brief post of less than a hundred words, Huo Yuwan managed to pick out ten logical flaws to counter. Her reply was calm yet piercing, far more sophisticated than Qi Qiuyuan’s emotionally charged accusations.

During a break in training, Qi Qiuyuan saw Huo Yuwan’s response being shared online and was instantly enraged all over again.

“How dare she say I’m uneducated? She’s the one who’s rude and unreasonable!”

Beside her, Chen Rong shook her head helplessly. The dispute between the two had blown up so much that not only were students talking about it, but even some teachers were privately enjoying the drama.

Li Yu, who had just finished her training, passed by indifferently. Hearing Qi Qiuyuan’s muttered outburst, she sneered, “Isn’t what that junior said true? If you were really in the right, why didn’t Dr. Li speak up for you? Isn’t it because you were guilty and in the wrong?”

“You!”

Being lectured by someone she looked down on, especially in front of Chen Rong, felt like a public slap in the face to Qi Qiuyuan. Her cheeks burned with humiliation.

Yet, restrained by the knowledge that Li Yu held leverage over her, she had no choice but to endure the frustration.

During this period, the provincial team’s coach came to select substitute members, and several of the school team’s most skilled athletes participated in the trials.

While preparing for the competition, Qi Qiuyuan happened to pass by the coach’s office and overheard Chen Rong telling the provincial coach that there was another exceptionally talented female student at the school. Her 5,000-meter record remained unbroken by any team member to this day. Unfortunately, that student had no interest in competitive sports and had withdrawn from the school team the previous semester.

Qi Qiuyuan immediately knew they were referring to Huo Yuwan. She already harbored resentment toward Huo, and now, even the sport she took the most pride in was overshadowed by Huo’s lingering influence. This fueled Qi Qiuyuan’s jealousy to a boiling point.

As a result, during the subsequent trials, not only did her emotions affect her performance, causing her to lose the chance to join the provincial team, but she also lost her composure upon witnessing Li Yu take first place. She abandoned the competition and stormed off.

While changing and showering in the locker room, Qi Qiuyuan, in a fit of rage, hurled her toiletries to the ground. Slipping and falling, she fractured her knee and had to be carried to the hospital. She even missed the opportunity to participate in the subsequent training camp in Australia.

…

Huo Yuwan had been closely following the school’s case. Because it involved government departments, the investigation was particularly stringent. The entire legal process lasted six months, concluding with administrative penalties for the implicated officials due to inadequate supervision, along with orders for corrective measures. The primary responsibility, however, fell on the construction contractor for the school, who was sentenced to ten years in prison for embezzling public funds.

Huo Yuwan’s expression was cold as she read the public notice online. She had reviewed the case materials repeatedly. Nearly ten school construction projects in the town had all been contracted to the same individual. He was undoubtedly guilty, but Huo Yuwan refused to believe he could have accomplished this alone.

Privately, Huo Yuwan investigated the contractor’s family background: Sun, of rural origin, nearly fifty years old, with a family of four, his wife, a son who had married less than two years prior, and a daughter-in-law. Their only assets were two three-bedroom apartments in a mid-range residential complex in the city. Since they couldn’t fully repay the embezzled funds, both properties were confiscated, forcing the family of four to return to their old home in the town.

According to the public verdict, the embezzled money had been squandered by Sun in overseas casinos.

During this time, Huo Yuwan visited the prison once. The man’s honest and simple appearance gave no hint that he had embezzled tens of millions in public funds. When she questioned him, Sun merely offered a bitter smile and remained silent.

On one occasion, while tailing Sun’s wife as she took her newborn grandchild to visit him in prison, Huo Yuwan assisted the elderly woman and the child, who had nearly slipped while rushing to catch a bus in the heavy snow.

Pretending to be another visitor returning from the prison, Huo Yuwan struck up a conversation, fabricating a story about her own wrongfully imprisoned father and her family’s ruin. As she spoke, she silently apologized to her actual father.

Perhaps moved by the situation, or because Huo Yuwan’s story struck a chord, the woman seemed momentarily dazed before quickly turning to gaze out the window, avoiding eye contact.

Huo Yuwan saw it clearly, at the corner of the woman’s eye was a tear, stirred by emotion and not yet wiped away.

That was a reaction born from shared suffering and empathy.

Not long after Mr. Sun was imprisoned, his son and daughter-in-law divorced, leaving behind a newborn child. The son, implicated and dismissed from his workplace, had no choice but to leave his hometown to find work elsewhere. The elderly woman was left alone to care for her young grandson.

Just before getting off the bus, perhaps seeing that Huo Yuwan was young and inexperienced, the woman lowered her voice and turned back, her face filled with hesitation and sorrow, advising her not to speak of these matters to others to avoid retaliation.

Watching the woman’s unsteady steps as she carried the child off the bus, Huo Yuwan finally became certain that there was a hidden truth behind this case.

Sometime later, she was summoned to Wen Jinyuan’s office.

That winter break, she had again stayed in Kaicheng for an internship at the law firm.

The office door closed, and Wen Jinyuan gestured for her to take a seat.

“I heard you’ve been frequently visiting the city prison lately?”

Huo Yuwan paused for a moment, then realized that given Wen Jinyuan’s connections, it was normal for her to have acquaintances at the prison.

“Yes, I suspect…”

“Stop. I don’t want to hear it.”

Before she could finish, Wen Jinyuan cut her off.

“With your current abilities, what do you think you can do, Huo Yuwan?”

Under her stern gaze, Huo Yuwan did not flinch but calmly met her eyes. “I can’t do much now, but I’m preparing for three years from now.”

“Three years from now? Passing the judicial exam?”

Wen Jinyuan seemed taken aback by her response, then sighed with a hint of helplessness. “Aren’t you being a bit naive? Even if you could join the procuratorate, a rookie prosecutor going up against…”

She left her words hanging, but Wen Jinyuan knew Huo Yuwan understood.

“It’s not just that, Professor. In three years, some people will retire, and I won’t be just a rookie anymore.”

She had initially considered joining the procuratorate, but after careful thought and thoroughly reviewing the information on those involved, Huo Yuwan changed her mind.

Seeing the determination and confidence in her eyes, Wen Jinyuan fell silent for a long moment before shaking her head and smiling wryly.

If any other student had dared to boast like this in front of her, Wen Jinyuan would have coldly laughed and shown them the door. But this was Huo Yuwan, who had grown at an astonishing pace in just a year. In such a short time, Wen Jinyuan could already foresee her limitless potential.

“Alright, if you still hold onto this idea three years from now, as your teacher, I won’t stand by and do nothing.”

What Huo Yuwan could uncover, Wen Jinyuan naturally could as well.

She had originally intended to stay out of it. As a lawyer, she had witnessed too many similar cases. While she wasn’t entirely numb to it, seeking justice was often a thankless task that could backfire.

But this was her prized student, and the person her niece, who might one day become family, held dear. Trusting in Huo Yuwan, Wen Jinyuan softened her tone and made a promise.

Huo Yuwan’s eyes lit up, and she replied with a smile, “Thank you, Professor.”

…

What Huo Yuwan didn’t mention was that she wasn’t just targeting the few protected officials but also the person hidden behind them.

What the university student Huo Yuwan couldn’t uncover, the young priestess of the fox clan could.

Only after uncovering the identity of the mysterious, unseen backer behind the scenes did Huo Yuwan finally make her ultimate decision.

To this day, she couldn’t recall the reason for the soul-splitting technique. Initially, she thought she had come here to complete the task assigned by the Grand Priest. But when Huo Yuqing’s academic journey progressed smoothly, she began meddling in affairs out of disdain for Qi Qiuyuan. Gradually, however, Huo Yuwan realized her purpose had shifted.

Once, she believed that toppling the so-called female lead required first targeting her backer. Now that she had found leverage against Qi Qiuyuan’s father and was working toward that goal, Huo Yuwan found herself lost in confusion.

Was she rushing into all of this out of a sense of justice, or was it to achieve something significant and free Li Xuzhi from his family’s control?

That day, during the conversation between Qi Qiuyuan and Li Xuzhi, she had actually overheard far more than others realized.