She whirled around to glare at Xu Xuan. “Xuanxuan, you do want to trade places with me, right? Hurry up and tell Yao Tang!”
Xu Xuan raised her head and glanced at her grandmother, who immediately nodded.
Xu Xuan was silent for a moment before finally looking atYao Tang. “That’s right, I’ll take all the punishment onYao Ran’s behalf. This is all my fault. I shouldn’t have risked her safety in the first place.”
Qin Jing’s eyes widened after hearing that, and her nostrils flared in anger and disbelief.
She wished she could rush up to Xu Xuanand knock some sense into her.
How could she willingly submit herself to danger when she hadn’t done anything wrong?
Any sensible person would have rejected such an unreasonable request, but Xu Xuanwas like a piece of driftwood. She just went with the flow, no matter how treacherous the waters became.
Qin Jing couldn’t understand the logic behind it all.
And given everything else that had happened, she couldn’t figure out what Grandma Xuwas trying to do, either. They knew that she loved her granddaughter very much, but when it came toYao Ran, it was almost as if no one else mattered.
They might as well tell Qin JingthatYao RanwasGrandma Xu’s real granddaughter or something.
What were the odds that some melodramatic switch happened in real life?
“You know what, Grandma Xu? If I didn’t know any better, I would have been convinced thatYao Ranis your granddaughter instead ofXu Xuan. Aren’t you going overboard with your biases?”
Qin Jing couldn’t help the sarcastic tone that came with her words.
Just then, Xu Xuanstepped in front ofGrandma Xu. Despite everything, she couldn’t allowQin Jingto speak to her grandmother this way.
“What?” Qin Jingscoffed. “Why are you acting so tense all of a sudden? Do you honestly think I would attack an old lady?”
“My grandmother is innocent,” Xu Xuansaid in a firm voice. “Don’t treat her with disrespect.”
Qin Jing barked out a mocking laugh. “Ah, I can’t be bothered with you anymore. You can do whatever you want, I don’t care!”
Behind Xu Xuan,Grandma Xuwore a complicated expression. Even so, she refrained from speaking.
Yao Ran was pleased with this development, and her mood gradually improved again.
Xu Xuan had already declared that she would be taking her place. It was as good as being absolved of any involvement in the entire mess. EvenUncle Tianhad insisted thatYao Ranhad nothing to do with his plans.
Even if the police arrived there and then, she would appear to be just another ordinary high school student who got dragged into the fight.
She was confident that Yao Tangwouldn’t do anything to hurt an elder likeGrandma Xu. If they dared to do so, they would certainly incite public outrage.
And as luck would have it, the old lady was determined to protect Yao Ranat all costs.
Yao Tang leaned back against the wall and crossed her arms over her chest. “Do you expect me to agree just because she said that she would take your place?” she drawled.
Her gaze landed on Xu Xuanfirst, thenYao Ran.
Xu Xuan felt her heart skip a beat. She opened her mouth to speak, only to realize that she had no idea what to say.
Yao Ran, on the other hand, gritted her teeth and glared at Yao Tang. She didn’t think the latter would remain stubborn in the face ofGrandma Xu.
Xu Xuan had already volunteered for the punishment!
Shouldn’t Yao Tangtake this into account, too?
Or was she really going to discard Xu Xuan’s words?
“Is cousin so resolute in persecuting me?”
“So what if I am?” Yao Tangretorted almost instantly.
No sooner had she said this than she began to approach Yao Ran. All eyes fixed on them then, andYao Rancouldn’t help but quake atYao Tang’s forbidding presence.
For a brief second, she pictured Yao Tangas an executioner, coming to chop off her head.
Perhaps it was because she had managed to subdue Uncle Tianwithout much effort, or perhaps it was because of the previous tennis match. Either way, those incidents had left a lasting impression onYao Ran.
She berated herself for thinking that she could use Uncle Tianto finally defeatYao Tang.
As it turned out, it was Yao Ranwho ended up being atYao Tang’s mercy yet again.
“You…” Yao Ranscrambled back, her eyes flashing with panic. “What are you planning to do?”
She herself didn’t understand the oppressive fear that besieged her.
Yao Tang was just a country bumpkin from a mountain village. How could she wield such an intimidating aura?
Grandma Xu andUncle Tianbristled at the sight ofYao Ranbeing cornered. The old lady moved toward the poor girl.
However, she had barely taken a few steps when Nie Yunblocked her.
Uncle Tian tried crawling over as well, but the effort made him spit out another mouthful of blood. Even the slightest movement was already too much for his body.
Yao Tang stopped in front ofYao Ranand sat on her heels. She reached out her hand.
Yao Ran proceeded to scream bloody murder, cowering and curling into herself in fear.