The funeral of grandma ended quickly.
The entire house was engulfed in a deathly silence.
The lawsuit, however, began.
In court, Gu Shiting said he was willing to go to prison, leaving the Gu family’s lawyer in a very passive position.
On the Sheng family’s side, they refused to accept any compensation, making it even more impossible to sign any letter of understanding.
After the court session, Mrs. Gu was extremely anxious.
In her desperation, she found Sheng Tang.
"... It’s all Ting’s fault, he deserves to die! But Tangtang, you know his condition, if he goes to prison, I really fear for his life.
We dare not expect anything extravagant; we are willing to pay five million, just hoping your parents would sign a letter of understanding. No matter what the request, we will do our best." Mrs. Gu said.
Sheng Tang remained silent.
These past few days, she was on the brink of emotional exhaustion.
The most terrifying thing was, she might be homeless again. Since returning from the hospital, her mother wouldn’t look at her or speak to her.
Because it was she who brought Gu Shiting back, it was she who attracted him. Otherwise, grandma wouldn’t have died.
When Gu Shiting’s situation was resolved, her mother might kick her out of the Sheng family. After all, she was already nineteen, and the Sheng family had fulfilled their obligation to her.
"Auntie, this is really unfair to us." Sheng Tang’s voice was hoarse, "My parents would never agree."
Mrs. Gu held her hand tightly.
"Tangtang, your grandma loved Ting the most. If she were here, she wouldn’t want Ting to go to prison. Auntie is very selfish; I’m begging you!"
Sheng Tang suddenly burst into tears.
Mrs. Gu was right, the person most likely to forgive Gu Shiting in this family was grandma.
Grandma loved him so much!
"Don’t cry!" Mrs. Gu hugged her and also shed tears, "Tangtang, don’t cry."
She coaxed Sheng Tang for a long while.
When Sheng Tang had calmed down, she continued, "Tangtang, Ting didn’t do it on purpose, he was having an episode at the time."
If it really came down to a lawsuit, the Gu family had many ways to absolve Gu Shiting of guilt.
However, Mrs. Gu did not want to use these against the Sheng family. The relationship between Gu Shiting and Sheng Tang need not end like this; Mrs. Gu was also reluctant to part with this daughter-in-law.
Mrs. Gu did not want to take things to the extreme.
She didn’t even want to harm the Sheng family, not one bit.
She needed to put up a stance, otherwise if Ting lost Tangtang, he wouldn’t be able to continue living.
"... This was an accident, Tangtang." Mrs. Gu continued, "Can you think of a way?"
Sheng Tang said, "I will think about it."
The day after she met with Mrs. Gu, the film school started its semester.
Sheng Tang had no heart to attend the registration.
Her mother took a long leave of absence, not going to work, lying at home all day.
Because, she would always shed tears without any reason.
Sheng Sidong, however, remembered this matter.
"Tangtang, go register and pay the tuition." Sheng Sidong said, "You were admitted to the film school, grandma was so happy, don’t let her be disappointed."
Tearfully, Sheng Tang nodded.
"Dad..."
"Go on, do you have enough money in your card?" Sheng Sidong asked again, "I will transfer fifty thousand to you later."
With that said, he was about to return to his room to turn on the computer.
Sheng Tang held on to him.
"I still have money, enough for the tuition."
In a daze, she took the subway to the film school. Her eyes were swollen, making her look especially haggard.
She registered for her classes and paid for her accommodation.
She realized her mother might soon kick her out of the house, and by then she would live in the dormitory.
Dejectedly, she completed the enrollment procedures and found her class advisor.
The new class advisor had a good impression of this girl who ranked first in both the interview and the cultural subject exams, as she was one of the examiners herself.
Sheng Tang explained her family situation, "Teacher, I would like to request a ten-day leave."
After the semester began, there would be military training.
Hearing this, and seeing her red and swollen eyes, the teacher quickly agreed, "Alright, just write a leave request here."