Chapter 19
Lin Hu sprawled out on the sofa, his phone screen displaying a defeat message, clearly indicating he had just finished an intense game.
Before I could even catch my breath, an unfamiliar number called.
"Hello?" His tone was tinged with annoyance at being disturbed.
"Hello, I'm Lin Li's teacher, my surname is Jiang. Would it be convenient for you to come to the school now?" A gentle male voice came from the other end of the phone.
Lin Hu frowned and scoffed, "What? You're not lying, are you? Your tricks are too old. Let Lin Li answer the phone."
The phone was on speakerphone, and Lin Li, who was standing next to her, could hear it clearly. She quickly said, "Teacher Jiang, let me handle this."
He took the phone and brought it close to the microphone: "Hello, brother, it's me, Lin Li."
"Do you think I'm a fool?" Lin Hu's voice was filled with undisguised sarcasm. "My brother's voice isn't like that at all."
The phone call ended abruptly as soon as he finished speaking.
Teacher Jiang Shui looked at Lin Li with suspicion: "Are you sure... this is your brother's phone?"
Lin Li was taken aback at first, then suddenly realized—that's right, his voice had recently changed and his voice was completely different. They hadn't seen each other for so long, so they definitely wouldn't be able to tell. He quickly dialed the video call again.
The call was answered very quickly this time, and Lin Hu's furious face filled the screen: "Still calling? Believe me or not, I'll trace it through the internet cable..."
"Brother! Look at me!" Lin Li pointed the camera at herself.
"Huh? Lin Li?" Lin Hu's anger was instantly replaced by confusion. "What's wrong with your throat?"
Seeing that her brother finally recognized her, Lin Li immediately turned off the speakerphone, covered the microphone, walked to a corner, and whispered a few words, with the name "Wang Ming" being particularly clear.
"Anyway, brother, please come to the school as soon as possible," he said with a hint of pleading.
"Wait." Lin Hu's face darkened, and he hung up the phone decisively. He sat up and opened a chat window with the contact name "Zhou Qing (Commercial Street)". A phone number was quickly pushed to him from the other end.
"Hey, this is Lin Hu."
"Ah, Brother Tiger! You want to talk about our brother, right?" The person on the other end immediately became respectful.
...
"Okay, Tiger, I'll be right back at Yancheng Middle School to wait for you!"
Inside the sports office.
Lin Li sat on the bench, occasionally taking a sip of water from Tong Yao's cup.
Cheng Yu stood at the other end, head down, occasionally glancing up to glare at him fiercely.
Teacher Jiang Shui sat behind his desk, his fingertips rapidly tapping on his phone screen, probably communicating with the homeroom teacher, Teacher Liu.
At that moment, a series of heavy and disordered footsteps approached from afar.
Lin Li watched as the water in the cup rippled due to the vibration.
"An earthquake?"
The next second, the once spacious doorway of the office was almost completely blocked by two unusually burly figures. You'd think it was the middle of the night.
"Dad! Mom!"
Cheng Yu, who had been keeping her head down, felt like she had found a savior and rushed towards the door with a sob in her voice. The large couple squeezed in with difficulty.
Lin Li immediately hugged his water glass tightly, then felt it wasn't enough and quietly moved his chair back. He knew Cheng Yu was a little chubby, but he hadn't expected her parents... to be so enormous.
With difficulty, Mr. Cheng bent down, cupped his daughter's visibly swollen cheek, and demanded angrily, "Who hit her?!"
Cheng Yu immediately cried even louder and pointed at Lin Li without hesitation.
Jiang Shui immediately stood up and blocked Lin Li's path, speaking in a relatively restrained tone:
“Parent, let’s talk this out. Your daughter was in the wrong first, she…”
Cheng's father swung his thick arm, intending to push Jiang Shui aside. He placed his hand on Jiang Shui's shoulder and tried to force it, but found that the man's lower body was extremely stable and he didn't budge. He was stunned for a moment, his face twitching, and then questioned, "Teacher Jiang, are you trying to favor your student?"
Jiang Shui said without changing his expression, "We should be reasonable. Whoever is right, I will naturally side with them."
"Reason?" Seemingly convinced that Jiang Shui was right, Cheng's father crossed his arms and looked at Jiang Shui with disdain, saying:
"Then I'll see what makes sense."
Jiang Shui then recounted how Cheng Yu had paid people to beat up Lin Li.
Upon hearing this, Mr. Cheng reacted as if he had heard the biggest joke in the world. Pointing at Lin Li, he said to Jiang Shui, "So those people didn't even lift a finger? It was just my daughter and this kid fighting one-on-one? What right does he have? How much strength can a girl like my daughter have? What's wrong with him taking a couple of hits?"
Cheng's mother, who was standing nearby, also spoke up. She nudged her husband, looked Lin Li up and down with her small eyes, and said in a somewhat subtle tone, "Hey, honey, look, this young man is really handsome... Don't scare him."
Only then did Cheng's father take a closer look at Lin Li. Although the boy was wearing an ordinary school uniform and his face looked a little pale, he had handsome features and a tall and straight posture.
He glanced at his daughter, who was crying uncontrollably, and seemed to suddenly realize something, his tone becoming strange:
"Ahem... As the old saying goes, 'Spare the rod and spoil the child,' right?"
Lin Li felt extremely uncomfortable under the couple's appraising gaze, and upon hearing their words, her anger flared up instantly, and she immediately retorted:
"Love you my ass!"
"Hiss—you're asking for it, aren't you!" Enraged, Cheng's father pushed away his wife, who was still trying to persuade him, and made a move to go around the river to grab Lin Li.
"Dad! It's him! He bullied me!" Cheng Yu shrieked, adding fuel to the fire.
"Teacher Jiang, move aside!" Cheng's father growled.
Jiang Shui stood firm, like a wall blocking his way: "Mr. Cheng, you call me teacher, and I'm still here trying to reason with you. But today, if anyone dares to lay a finger on Lin Li, I, Jiang Shui, will write my name backwards!"
The atmosphere instantly became tense.
Looking at Jiang Shui's back as he stood in front of her, Lin Li felt a surge of warmth in her heart. She hadn't expected Teacher Jiang to be so kind; he had even considered puncturing her electric scooter's tires. She swore she would never have that thought again.
But what should we do now?
He glanced at Jiang Shui's phone, which was placed on a table a meter away, and wondered if it was too late to call the police.
Just as I was feeling annoyed, a familiar voice came from the doorway, carrying undisguised disdain.
"Where did this pig come from, blocking the door and killing me?"
The air fell silent the moment those words were spoken.
Excuse me, excuse me.
The speaker was polite, but his actions were anything but.
Lin Hu had somehow brought the security guard's riot fork with him.
He was pushing the woman inside him.
"Woo-le woo-le woo-le~" it kept shouting as it pushed.
Lin Hu is 1.87 meters tall and looks thin, but he is quite strong.
"Hey, hey, hey!" Cheng's mother could only watch in panic as she was pushed away.
The woman, who looked like she was halfway up a mountain, was pushed aside and couldn't resist at all.
Everyone present turned to look in the direction of the sound.
Lin Hu stood at the door, holding a riot fork. He was tall and had long legs, exuding an aura of "I'm not someone to mess with."
Lin Hu first scanned Lin Li to make sure he was alright before turning his gaze to the others.
Lin Li couldn't help but burst out with a "pfft," breaking the silence.
Seeing his wife being bullied, the man immediately reacted and roared at Lin Hu.
Are you treating my wife like a pig?
Lin Hu shook the riot fork on the ground.
"What do you mean 'be a pig'? You're clearly a pig, you're so fat."
Ignoring Cheng's father's livid face, he looked at Jiang Shui politely and said, "Hello, Teacher Jiang, I am Lin Li's older brother, Lin Hu."
Cheng's mother was furious at Lin Hu's words and tried to tear him apart when he wasn't paying attention.
Unexpectedly, Wang Ming rushed out of the door and blocked his way with a riot shield.
In response, Lin Hu simply glanced back at Wang Ming.
Wang Ming immediately understood and forcefully pushed the fat woman to the ground.
He tossed aside his riot shield, pulled out his phone, and showed the screen: "Hello teacher, I'm the one Cheng Yu contacted this time... the leader. These are chat logs and call recordings, which can prove that Cheng Yu contacted me first, wanting us to teach Lin Li a lesson."
With the evidence irrefutable, Cheng's parents, who had been so arrogant just moments before, deflated like punctured balloons. Cheng's father forced a smile and said, "What do you mean by hiring someone to fight… It's just kids fighting, you're making it sound so serious…"
Jiang Shui snorted coldly, took Wang Ming's phone, and began to save the evidence.
At this moment, the homeroom teacher, Ms. Liu Hongli, also arrived, panting.
After understanding the situation and reviewing the evidence, she looked at Cheng Yu's family with a weary yet stern expression: "The school leaders have spoken. Cheng Yu, go home with your parents first. Wait for further notice regarding your suspension!"
"Teacher Liu, the high school entrance exam is just around the corner..." Cheng's mother still wanted to plead for leniency.
Liu Hongli interrupted directly: "She just made Lin Li faint from anger not long ago, and you had to take her home to reflect on her actions for two days. How long has it been? And here she is again today!"
“I was grading papers at the neighboring school when I received the news and rushed over immediately. To be honest, if it weren’t for her past performance, I would have expelled her on the spot! Now, let’s talk to Lin Li’s parents about compensation.”
compensation?
Lin Li's eyes lit up slightly. He secretly tugged at Lin Hu's sleeve and held up five fingers. He thought that five thousand yuan was already a huge sum of money for him.
Lin Hu glanced at him without saying a word, then turned to Cheng's father and spoke in a calm but unquestionable tone: "Fifty thousand. Medical expenses, nutrition expenses, and emotional distress compensation. Otherwise, we'll continue making trouble and see if your daughter can even make it to the high school entrance exam."
Fifty thousand?! Lin Li gasped, almost choking on her own saliva.
"You're robbing me!" Cheng's father blurted out, his face trembling.
Lin Hu's eyes turned cold. He took a small step forward. Although he looked thin, his imposing manner made Cheng's father subconsciously take a half step back: "The kick your daughter gave my brother was a leg that could cut off his offspring. You don't have to pay me, but I'll let you hit me back. Of course, your daughter can also quit school."
Looking at Lin Hu, who had a fierce look in his eyes, then at Jiang Shui, who had no expression, and Teacher Liu, who had a businesslike expression, cold sweat broke out on Cheng's forehead.
He gritted his teeth: "Thirty-three thousand! Let's compromise! My daughter's face is still swollen!"
Lin Hu was about to speak when Lin Li quickly grabbed his arm and whispered urgently, "Brother, that's enough!"
He really didn't want to get entangled with this family anymore; just seeing them made him feel suffocated, and the 33,000 was also beyond his expectations.
Lin Hu glanced at his younger brother, and seeing his insistent look, he gave up, took out his phone, showed his QR code, and said decisively, "Okay, transfer the money."
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