As soon as Song Mei finished saying "little beast", Ye Ling swung her prepared hand at her. She had long anticipated that no good words would come out of Song Mei’s mouth, so she wasn’t going to engage in verbal sparring with her. Her hand, hidden under her sleeve, was secretly gathering strength. She feared that her preparation would be in vain, but Song Mei didn’t disappoint her. With that slap, how could Ye Ling not use all her strength?
Ye Qian screamed from the side, covering her mouth, clearly shocked by Ye Ling. Not only did Ye Ling’s slap cause Song Mei to stagger back a few steps and fall to the ground, but Ye Ling also quickly mounted Song Mei, grabbing her hair with one hand and slapping her face with the other. Song Mei initially protected her face, but after being slapped senseless, she started fighting back desperately, blindly scratching upwards with her eyes closed. Several scratches landed on Ye Ling’s face, drawing blood. The pain increased Ye Ling’s force, and the two of them rolled around at the entrance of the courtyard. When the guards hurried over to pull them apart, both of them looked like lunatics with disheveled hair. Song Mei kept lunging at Ye Ling, even catching the guard’s face with a flailing hand.
At this time, it was lunchtime, and many people had stopped to shop for groceries. Some were trying to mediate the situation, while others rushed to inform the Song and Ye families. Ye Qian was hugged and consoled, even though she had stopped crying, her eyes were still swollen and red.
The Ye family was close by, so Bai Xue was the first to arrive. As soon as she squeezed through the crowd, she moved to slap Ye Ling, but before her palm could land, Ye Ling raised her hand and firmly grabbed it, "Try hitting me again for no reason and see what happens?"
With a forceful flick, she threw Bai Xue aside.
The crowd was stunned.
Ye Ling pointed at Song Mei, who was still shouting, "Let me tell you, from now on, when you see me, stay away. Otherwise, I’ll hit you every time I see you. Don’t believe me? Let’s try." ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ꜰʀᴏᴍ noᴠelfire.net
"You dare," Song Mei shrieked.
Bai Xue also cried loudly, "Oh, how did I give birth to such a troublemaker? Always stirring up trouble. If I had known you were here to cause problems, it would’ve been better to strangle you at birth."
As Bai Xue cursed, Zhao Guodong and Zhang Linong pushed through the crowd. Bai Xue sat on the ground, hitting her legs and crying. People around them tried to mediate, and some suggested Ye Ling apologize to her mother, but Ye Ling pressed her lips together, refusing to utter a single word.
"Song Mei, did you start this again?" Zhao Guodong glared at Song Mei, looking ready to confront her, but was held back by the adults nearby.
"Things have escalated, so everyone should calm down."
"Right, you’re in high school. You need to learn how to manage issues."
The crowd buzzed with advice, but Zhao Guodong ignored them, warning Song Mei, "Just you wait."
"What can you do? I want to see what you’ll do." Wang Danhong squeezed through the crowd, heartbroken at the sight of her beaten daughter, pulling her into an embrace and furiously looking at Zhao Guodong, "Did you hit her?"
"I did." Before Zhao Guodong could reply, Ye Ling cut in, fearlessly meeting Wang Danhong’s gaze, "Ask Song Mei why I hit her. She was sowing discord between me and my mother, saying my mom called me a little beast. What kind of mother would insult her own daughter like that? She was causing trouble. Was I wrong to hit her?"
Bai Xue was crying. Upon hearing Ye Ling’s words, her body stiffened, and her younger daughter held her hand tightly, signaling her not to speak. Despite knowing that it was wise not to provoke the Song family, her heart grew heavier, and her sobs intensified.
Ye Ling pointed again, "Look, my mom couldn’t hold back her sadness after hearing this, crying because someone was trying to come between us, because of their malicious words. Shouldn’t I have hit her?"
These words made Bai Xue roll her eyes in anger, nearly fainting.
Facing the gazes from all around, Wang Danhong’s face flushed with anger and shame. She turned to her daughter, "Xiao Mei, did you really say that?"
"What? Last time Song Mei accused me of seducing boys in the compound, your aunt got someone to falsely testify. This time, are you going to get my own sister to testify falsely against me? I’m not someone who causes trouble for no reason. If she hadn’t said those things, would I have hit her?" Ye Ling sneered at Ye Qian on the ground, "Last time, my cousin helped with the false testimony. If my own sister stands up to provide false testimony this time, it wouldn’t be impossible. I’m just curious what conditions Auntie would use this time."
"Shut up." Wang Danhong had never been spoken to before, "If Xiao Mei really said those things, I wouldn’t blame you for hitting her. But if not, I can’t let my daughter suffer a grievance."
After speaking to Ye Ling, she turned back to her daughter in her arms, "Tell me, what really happened?"
"I didn’t lie. Aunt Bai told you directly that Ye Ling was a little beast. She said she felt ashamed of having such a daughter. I was telling the truth, what’s wrong with that?"
With a ’slap’, Wang Danhong’s palm interrupted Song Mei’s words halfway. Song Mei covered her face, looking at her mother in disbelief. Although Wang Danhong’s eyes showed momentary affection, she sternly spoke, "You’re being ridiculous. Why would Aunt Bai say such things about her child in front of outsiders? I don’t remember any of that happening. If you lie again in the future, I’ll deal with you. Now, go home."
In her heart, Wang Danhong was infuriated with the Ye family. She wasn’t covering up for Bai Xue out of goodwill; if Bai Xue’s actions were confirmed as true, it wouldn’t reflect well on her either. After weighing her options, she had to say it was her daughter lying, to minimize the situation’s impact.
"Are you really my mom?" Song Mei cried as she ran off, holding her face.
Wang Danhong stayed to apologize to Ye Ling, "I spoiled Xiao Mei. You’re right, there’s no way your mom said those things. This was Xiao Mei’s fault. Auntie apologizes to you. Don’t hold it against her."
Ye Ling pulled her hair back, revealing the scratches on her face. Wang Danhong’s eyes flickered, seeing that her own daughter hadn’t gotten off lightly either. Considering this was also her family’s fault, her anger subsided a bit.
"Auntie, there’s no need to apologize. She provoked, and I retaliated. It evens out. No need for you to apologize to me," Ye Ling tidied her hair, looking at her mother on the ground, "You didn’t ask anything and just hit me. Do you really hate me that much?"
With those words, Ye Ling didn’t look back. She pushed through the crowd and walked out of the compound. (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, please visit Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendations, monthly votes, and your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com for reading.)