Chapter 160: Someone Who Only Aims for the Mouth

Inside the office.

Yang Mei looked at the two girls standing in front of her and felt her head ache.

One was first in class, seventh in the grade—a well-rounded student known even by the principal for her dancing skills.

The other was second in class, eighteenth in the grade—winner of a provincial first prize in the Math Olympiad and set to compete in the national contest this September.

And yet—

These two students were now caught up in a fight.

Even if they weren’t the main culprits, they had still been present that night.

Now that the school was thoroughly investigating, their names had immediately surfaced and reached her.

As the long-time acting head teacher, Yang Mei knew all too well—many girls begin their downward spiral from getting involved in strange incidents like this.

“Jiang Ning!”

“I used to think you only messed around with trivial stuff.”

“But I was wrong.”

“You’re even more reckless when it comes to serious matters!”

All Jiang Ning could do in the face of this scolding was lower her head.

Hair down, eyes fixed on her shoes.

Hmm.

The surface looks a bit dirty.

She’d clean it later with an eraser.

Whose to use?

She didn’t want to use her own. Zhu Hui needed hers for drawing. Sun Qian never used one…

Guess she’d use Luo Shanshan’s.

Serves her right for teasing her just now.

“Qi Wen!”

“You too!”

“You used to be such a quiet, well-behaved girl!”

“Why are you fooling around with Jiang Ning?!”

“Boys fighting is no place for girls!”

Qi Wen looked like she wanted to explain something.

But Jiang Ning tugged at her sleeve first, signaling her to stay silent.

Just listen.

Boss Yang Mei was clearly fuming—any explanation now would only make things worse.

Why bother?

But after a few harsh words to Qi Wen, Boss Yang Mei turned her fire back on Jiang Ning.

Jiang Ning was confused.

She muttered under her breath—

“Didn’t even end up fighting.”

“Why so serious…”

Just then, Boss Yang Mei let out a cold snort.

“True.”

“There was no fight that night.”

“But last night, both sides were attacked.”

“They’re both in the hospital now.”

Huh?!

Jiang Ning stood there, completely stunned.

——

Jiangzhou City People’s Hospital.

Located in the southern part of the old town.

“Crowded” defined the place.

Getting an appointment was notoriously difficult.

Seeing the long lines ahead, Jiang Ning pouted slightly.

Then she stepped aside, bypassed the queues, and walked up to the information desk.

“Nurse sis, excuse me—”

She stopped a nurse who was organizing some files.

The nurse looked impatient at first, but when she saw Jiang Ning, she paused in surprise.

“Yes?”

“Um, where’s the orthopedic inpatient department?”

“Third floor. Elevator, then right down the hallway.”

“Thank you, sister.”

Jiang Ning responded politely, then carried the fruit basket further in.

The elevator was easy to find.

Just follow the crowd.

Didn’t even need to read the signs.

The downside was the crowd itself—too many people waiting.

As a girl, she didn’t feel like squeezing into a packed elevator full of men.

So she decided to take the stairwell.

While climbing, she was thinking.

She’d already called Yao Yao before coming.

On the phone, Nuomici repeatedly swore she hadn’t sent anyone to attack that Young Master Luo.

If it were someone else, Jiang Ning might doubt it.

But with how well she knew Nuomici—

Honest, mild, timid—

She wouldn’t lie about this.

As for Hu Gugu secretly sending people?

Didn’t seem likely either.

She had a decent sense of the guy’s temper.

And Li Mingwei? That possibility was even slimmer.

His dad had just gotten a new appointment.

If Li Mingwei had dared pull something like this, he’d be the one in the hospital.

So—

Who swung the pipe?

Two minutes later—

Jiang Ning followed the signs to Room 315. Voices could still be heard inside.

Knock knock knock

She gently knocked and pushed the door open.

Inside was a hospital bed, with a round, mummy-wrapped figure lying on it, left hand and right leg suspended in midair.

Beside the bed sat a middle-aged woman with yellow-permed hair.

Her face was filled with a mix of blame and concern.

Hearing the sound from the door, they both looked over.

When they saw a pretty young girl carrying a fruit basket walk in, Hu Gugu’s mom—Ms. Lin Fang—was momentarily stunned.

She looked at her son, then at the girl again, a curious expression creeping across her face.

“Auntie, hello. I’m Jiang Ning, a good friend of Hu Gugu and Yao Yao.”

“I heard Hu Gugu got hurt, so I came to visit.”

Jiang Ning?

The name made Lin Fang pause.

It sounded familiar.

Then the next second—

Something clicked in her mind.

Her gaze became oddly meaningful.

“Good friend, huh?”

“Sit, sit.”

“Would you like something to drink? Auntie can get it for you.”

“No, no need.” Jiang Ning was always uneasy with overly polite adults. She quickly put down the fruit basket and waved her hands.

“I just came to visit for a bit. I still have class this afternoon.”

“I see, then Auntie will just pop into the restroom for a moment.” With that, Hu Gugu’s mom left the room without hesitation.

Seeing this—

Jiang Ning pulled two bananas from the basket, peeled one, and handed it to Hu Gugu.

He took it with his right hand, thanked her, and then grinned at the banana.

“Service from Heroine Jiang.”

“I’m a little flattered.”

“Cut the nonsense. Tell me what happened last night.” Jiang Ning peeled her own banana and sat in the seat the middle-aged woman had just left.

Upon hearing that—

Hu Gugu dropped his smile.

His face turned grim.

Then he recounted everything that happened the night before.

It started off okay—

But when Jiang Ning heard that the attackers were wielding steel pipes and aiming directly for the shins—

Her expression darkened too.

“How many of them?”

“At least four or five. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be like this.”

Jiang Ning didn’t respond to that.

She just asked another question directly.

“And the other side… was that you?”

“How could it be! My guys wouldn’t just aim for the mouth.”

Huh?

The mouth?

Jiang Ning’s expression turned strange.

Honestly—

Neither Boss Yang Mei nor Yao Yao had told her what condition Young Master Luo was in.

So when she heard what Hu Gugu just said, she couldn’t help but ask:

“That guy… what happened to him?”

“Had a sack thrown over his head by someone, got punched in the mouth over a dozen times, lost eight teeth…”

“They say when he was found, his face looked no different from a pig’s head.”

One person?

Over a dozen punches to the mouth?

A figure suddenly flashed through Jiang Ning’s mind.

She frowned.

Half an hour later.

When Jiang Ning came out of the hospital, it was already 1:20 in the afternoon.

Although she had class at two, she didn’t head straight back to school.

Instead, after riding her bike out of the shed, she parked it by the curb.

Then she took out her phone and dialed a number.

Not long after, the call connected.

A calm voice came from the other end.

“Queen? What do you want?”

“Where are you right now?”

Right after Jiang Ning asked, she noticed an unusual silence on the other end.

But behind that silence, she faintly heard the sound of a bus stop announcement.

She frowned.

“You’re at the station?”

“Planning to run?”

“I…” Before the voice on the other end could explain, Jiang Ning cut in again:

“Was it you last night?”

“Do you even understand the consequences of what you did?”

“I do,” the voice on the phone replied calmly.

“That’s why I’m leaving Jiangzhou now.”

“I won’t drag you into this.”

???

Jiang Ning laughed in exasperation at the absurdity.

“You think you helped me get revenge and then running off means I won’t get dragged into it?”

“Li Yang, have your fists been your only working part all these years, and not your brain?”

“You beat someone up and run—who the hell wouldn’t be able to track you down?”

“I…” The voice had barely spoken when Jiang Ning interrupted again.

“Don’t give me that ‘I’ crap.”

“Get your ass back here!”

“Go to school if you need to go to school! Throw punches if you need to throw punches!”

“I’ll handle the rest!”

“This whole thing…”

“Even Meng Qing causes me less worry than you do!”

(End of chapter)