Yu He tilted her head slightly, and the ashtray zipped past her ear, hitting the floor with a "thud" and shattering into pieces.
Cheng Lizhu shivered in fright and shot Yu He a worried glance. Seeing that she was unharmed, she then pleaded with Ye Jianming, "Jianming, calm down. Let's talk properly. Don't hit He He."
"Get out of the way! If I don't teach her a lesson today, she won't know I'm her father!"
Ye Jianming kicked Cheng Lizhu aside and grabbed the leather belt he had prepared earlier, cracking it onto the carpet in front of Yu He's feet. "Kneel!"
Yu He glanced at Cheng Lizhu, who had been kicked aside and hit the edge of the coffee table, and frowned slightly.
"Dad, please calm down." Ye Zisu stepped forward to placate Ye Jianming, then turned to Yu He, as if advising her earnestly, "Yu He, just kneel down and admit your mistake to Dad. I believe you didn't intentionally skip the exam. Explain it to Dad properly, and he will forgive you."
"Who said I skipped the exam?" Yu He retorted. Her tone was cold, and her clear eyes swept across Ye Jianming's face before landing on Ye Zisu. Ye Zisu felt inexplicably guilty under the oppressive aura of arrogance emanating from Yu He. However, she thought, she's just a wild girl from a remote village, what's there to be afraid of? She must be faking it.
"You didn't skip the exam, so why did you hang up the phone? Why did you turn off your phone? And we couldn't find you all afternoon?!" Ye Jianming, thinking of Yu He hanging up on him that morning, was so angry he raised the whip and swung it towards Yu He.
Just as Yu He was about to raise her hand to catch the belt, a figure suddenly lunged forward and blocked the whip for her. Cheng Lizhu took the hit from the leather belt, her delicate eyebrows creased in pain, but she didn't cry out. She asked with concern, "He He, are you alright?"
Yu He steadied the unsteady Cheng Lizhu, and something deep inside her was touched. Ever since her adoptive mother passed away, she had sealed her heart and treated the world with indifference. And in this world, besides her grandmother, no one had ever protected her like this… "Jianming, don't hit He He. If you want to hit someone, hit me." Cheng Lizhu shielded Yu He behind her and pleaded with Ye Jianming.
Ye Jianming hadn't expected Cheng Lizhu to take the belt for Yu He, and for a moment, he regretted swinging it. But he thought, if he didn't teach Yu He a lesson today, he, as the head of the family, would have no status in this household. "Get out of the way! Or I'll hit you too!" he cursed fiercely.
Ye Zisu also hadn't expected Cheng Lizhu to protect Yu He so fiercely, and she felt a pang of jealousy. Although Cheng Lizhu had a humble position in the Ye family, she was still Mrs. Ye. She hated seeing anyone in the Ye family treat Yu He well, because all of this originally belonged to her! "Yu He, at this point, stop lying," Ye Zisu said with a seemingly good-intentioned persuasion. "Teacher Miller contacted Dad because he couldn't find you at the exam venue. Now the school forum is buzzing about this, and the public opinion is strong. It's not good for the Ye family's reputation. Just explain the situation truthfully so Dad can think about how to handle this."
Ye Zisu appeared to be pleading earnestly, but her words kept reminding Ye Jianming: The news of Yu He skipping the exam had spread like wildfire on the Kaiwei Academy forum. Everyone was cursing the Ye family and Yu He. As expected, tomorrow the entire city of Bei would know that Yu He, the adopted daughter of the Ye family, had skipped her exam. Ye Jianming was extremely vain and couldn't stand anyone embarrassing the Ye family. "I think you're deliberately trying to embarrass the Ye family!" Ye Jianming raised the belt again.
Seeing this, Cheng Lizhu wanted to protect Yu He, but Yu He stopped her. Yu He raised her left hand and caught the swinging belt. "When the results are announced tomorrow, the public opinion will naturally disappear."
"You say that so easily! Why did you skip the exam in the first place?!" Ye Jianming reprimanded fiercely. "Tomorrow morning, you will come with me to Kaiwei and apologize properly to the administration!" Yu He: "…" How many times did he want her to say she didn't skip the exam?!
Ye Jianming turned to Ye Zisu, his tone gentle, "Zisu, find Young Master Gu and ask him to put in a good word, ask the Kaiwei publicity department to delete these posts!" Gu Ze was Ye Zisu's fiancé. His mother was a branch member of the Qin family, the head of the four great families. Therefore, the Gu family held considerable sway in Bei City. If Gu Ze intervened, the academy's publicity department wouldn't dare to refuse. "Okay, Dad." Ye Zisu appeared obedient, but inwardly she was smiling cunningly. As long as Yu He's reputation was completely ruined by tomorrow, she would never have a good life in Bei City. And the Ye family, considering their reputation, would never legitimize her as the true daughter!
The next morning. Ye Jianming, led by Ye Zisu, arrived first at the Dean's office. Dean Luo and Miller were already waiting inside. "Dad, this is Dean Luo, and this is Teacher Miller. They are my homeroom teachers this semester," Ye Zisu introduced. "Dean Luo, I've heard so much about you." Ye Jianming approached them with a familiar smile and shook hands. "Hello." Dean Luo also shook his hand enthusiastically. "You are Zisu's parent, which means you are Yu He's guardian?" Ye Jianming understood. Gu Ze had arranged this. He took a large red envelope from his suit pants and placed it in Dean Luo's hand. "Dean Luo, I'm truly sorry. My adopted daughter is unthinking and has caused unnecessary trouble for your esteemed school. Please forgive us."
Dean Luo, holding the red envelope, immediately understood what was going on. Many parents would give teachers red envelopes hoping for preferential treatment for their children. However, Kaiwei Academy had explicit rules against accepting bribes. Moreover, this was a student the Dean himself was paying special attention to. "Sir, bribery is illegal," Dean Luo said sternly, pushing the red envelope back. Ye Jianming hadn't expected him to refuse. The red envelope fell to the floor with a "thud," and judging by the sound, it was quite thick.
This sound drew everyone's attention. Ye Jianming's face burned with embarrassment. He cared most about his reputation. At this moment, it felt as if someone had slapped him hard across the face, burning hot. He looked at Ye Zisu, his eyes filled with blame and anger. Didn't they say Gu Ze had arranged everything? Ye Zisu was startled by his gaze. Why wasn't things going as planned?
"What a lively gathering." At this moment, Yu He's voice, arriving fashionably late, came from the office doorway. "Student Yu He, you're here. Please have a seat and have some tea." Dean Luo greeted Yu He with a welcoming smile. "Student Yu He, I've already handled your enrollment procedures. Shall I take you to Class One?" Miller also obsequiously stepped forward with a smile and asked. Yu He glanced coldly at Miller. His smile was clearly fawning, completely different from his aggressive demeanor yesterday. She couldn't help but chuckle inwardly.
Dean Luo and Miller's fawning attitudes stunned Ye Jianming and Ye Zisu. What? The enrollment procedures were already done? Didn't Yu He skip the exam? How could she get into Class One?! "Dean, have you made a mistake?!" Ye Jianming asked in shock.