Chapter 8

Jiang Jianchun returned home to find her mother-in-law angry, saying, “Director Liao’s mother came by again, asking when your sister will go back to work. What’s going on with your family? If she’s going, let her go; if not, just refuse. Why keep dragging it out like this?”

Jiang Jianchun explained, “Jiang Ruan is working as a nanny for a disabled person, and she won’t last long there. We’re just keeping her options open. When she’s done there, she can work as a live-in nanny for the Director’s family for a couple of years, then get married and become a stepmother. No one will gossip then.”

Her mother-in-law scoffed, “Who sends their own sister off to be a stepmother? It’s disgraceful to even talk about.”

Her husband, holding their son, came over and said, “I’ve told you before, don’t get involved in your family’s affairs. But you’re not only involved, you’re getting mixed up with your boss’s family. If things go south, you won’t be welcome at your own family’s house or your workplace. You’ll be an outcast.”

Jiang Jianchun fumed, “Jiang Ruan is a fool. If we don’t find her a husband while she’s still young and pretty, who’s going to take care of her when she gets old? You know how much she eats!”

“It’s not your place to worry about it. She has her parents and brothers for that,” her husband retorted.

“I don’t want to talk to you anymore.”

“Dinner’s almost ready. Where are you going?”

“I’m going to visit my boss.”

Director Liao’s mother and his twin sons weren’t home when Jiang Jianchun arrived. She was pulled into a back room by the disgusting man, his hands wandering as he reeked of something foul, making her want to vomit.

“I’m here to talk business,” she said.

“This is business right now,” he replied.

“Your mother and the boys will be back soon.”

“No, I gave them money to eat out. They won’t be back for at least an hour. We’ve got time.”

The wretched man didn’t last even three minutes, and once dressed, Jiang Jianchun angrily asked, “What about my sister? Have you thought about it?”

“Your sister’s an idiot. You want me to marry an idiot? How would that make me look?”

The man kissed her cheek and whispered, “Why don’t you divorce your husband and marry me? You can bring your son too; I’ll treat him like my own. You can quit your job, take care of me and my mom, and look after the kids. It’ll be much better than working.”

What nonsense! Taking care of kids and his whole family was much harder than any job. Endless cooking, cleaning, and still being criticized for doing nothing but asking for money. She would never quit her job.

Nor would she divorce her husband—his family treated her well. She was only being blackmailed by this scum because of a mistake she’d made in her youth.

“My sister is much prettier than me,” Jiang Jianchun said. “Your mother likes her, and the twins adore her. I’m not getting a divorce. Think about it. Where will you find anyone prettier than her?”

The man grinned slyly, “I’ve known her since she was born. If we got married, it’d feel weird. I wouldn’t be able to sleep with her. You, though—you’re the one I want. I don’t care about looks.”

Disgusted, Jiang Jianchun pushed him away. Fortunately, once he was satisfied, he didn’t bother her anymore. The whole ordeal took less than ten minutes, so the neighbors wouldn’t suspect anything. As she left, she even greeted the neighbors, saying she had come to discuss her sister’s job.

When she got home, her husband sniffed the air and frowned. “What’s that smell on you? It’s disgusting. Go wash up before you make the baby sick.”

Furious inside, Jiang Jianchun didn’t even bother heating water. She scrubbed herself with cold water until her skin nearly tore. That disgusting man—she had to get rid of him somehow. The cold shower left her sick, and later that night, she developed a fever. A trip to the hospital revealed an unexpected surprise—she was pregnant.

Her in-laws were thrilled, but Jiang Jianchun was troubled. She wasn’t sure who the father was.

…

After dinner, the little nanny insisted on giving Qin Yan a bath and massaging his legs. Every time she massaged his legs, he would fall asleep, dreaming that he could feel them again. When he woke up and touched his numb legs, even though he knew it was just a dream, he couldn’t help but feel disappointed.

His mother came home, talking on the phone with his father, complaining angrily about how he hadn’t returned since Qin Yan’s accident. His father worked on classified research and hadn’t been home for over a year. He wanted to come back, but his job wouldn’t allow it. Some of his colleagues hadn’t returned home in five years.

Qin Yan couldn’t recall the exact reason his parents divorced in his previous life, but his paralysis was a major factor. His mother always blamed his father for being irresponsible.

But what did that have to do with his father?

After hanging up the phone, his mother’s mood improved. She smiled and shared some good news, “Your father is coming back for a visit.”

In his previous life, his father hadn’t returned at this time. Why was he coming back early this time?

Qin Yan remained silent. That damned protagonist—she had prevented her mother’s accidental death, engineered his parents’ divorce, and was eager to rebuild her family. Of course, she wanted his father to come back, to hasten his parents’ divorce.

Seeing her son’s gloomy expression, Miao Shufang felt heartbroken. Qin Yan had never had a good relationship with his father. She said, “If you don’t want to see him, I’ll tell him not to come.”

“Fine. Tell him not to come.”

As long as his father didn’t return, let’s see how the protagonist planned to tear his family apart.

…

The next morning, Jiang Ruan came to pick up Qin Yan for school, carrying a basket of potatoes from the restaurant on her back.

She could finish peeling all the potatoes before the fourth period started and then deliver them to Aunt Miao’s restaurant to earn five cents.

Qin Yan, seeing the heavy basket, asked, “Isn’t that tiring?”

“Not at all! It’s not heavy. Brother, I can carry you, so how could this basket of potatoes be heavy?”

Qin Yan was silent. “Has your mother or sister been bothering you?”

“My older sister hasn’t been home these past few days,” Jiang Ruan replied, enjoying a brief respite from her sister’s nagging. “She’s sick and pregnant, so she doesn’t have the energy to come home and scold me.”

Qin Yan spent the entire class lying on his arm, watching the nanny peel potatoes. For almost an hour, she never stopped.

It was the homeroom teacher’s class, and Qin Yan’s refusal to sit with the classmate she had assigned, combined with him sleeping during her lesson, had angered her. She threw a piece of chalk at him, saying, “Qin Yan, if you’re only here to sleep, then go home. Don’t disturb the other students.”

The little nanny, still peeling potatoes, threw the half-peeled one at the teacher through the window and jumped up to defend Qin Yan. “You begged my brother to come to school. If it weren’t for you, he wouldn’t even be here. And now you’re yelling at him? You’re a bad teacher!”

Jiang Ruan had good aim. The potato she threw hit the homeroom teacher squarely on the forehead, and with considerable force. The teacher crouched down in pain.

Mu Xuehui hurried from her seat to check on the teacher, but inside she was gloating, thinking, That foolish little nanny is in serious trouble now.

…

The mischievous boys sitting at the back of the class burst into laughter. They were the typical “bad students” who often caused trouble. The homeroom teacher angrily scolded them and sent them out of the classroom to stand in the hallway as punishment. She then grabbed Jiang Ruan, determined to take her to the principal’s office.

At that moment, Jiang Ruan suddenly smelled smoke. People who had survived apocalyptic times often had heightened senses, especially skilled fighters who could detect the scent of mutant beasts or zombies from hundreds of meters away—a survival adaptation.

Jiang Ruan’s sense of smell was also sharp, even though she wasn’t particularly skilled otherwise. This heightened sense had always helped her escape danger.

What she smelled wasn’t just a casual cigarette; it was the distinct smell of a small fire. Something had caught fire in the woods behind the school.

…

The little nanny bolted from the classroom. The teacher instructed some students to push Qin Yan to the principal’s office. Pointing to her red, swollen forehead, she said, “Principal, Qin Yan is becoming more and more unruly. We can’t allow that nanny to accompany him to class anymore. If he doesn’t agree, then let him take a leave of absence. Our class can’t handle him anymore.”

Originally, Qin Yan was supposed to transfer to Teacher Qi’s third class, but Qian Meilan objected. She argued that since Qin Yan had always been a student in the first class, moving him to another class would be a blow to her reputation. In the end, the compromise was that Qin Yan stayed in the first class, with the nanny continuing to care for him during lessons.

Teacher Qi, siding with Qin Yan, remarked, “That nanny is a simpleton, Qian Meilan. You, on the other hand, are a reasonable adult. Why are you arguing with a fool? Isn’t that just making trouble for yourself? If you don’t want to teach Qin Yan, he’s welcome in my class.”

“I didn’t say I wouldn’t teach him,” Qian Meilan replied. “But I won’t tolerate him bringing a nanny to class. What does he think he is, some spoiled young master?”

Qin Yan retorted, “Did I spend your family’s money?”

Qian Meilan was livid. “Principal, Qin Yan is a lost cause. There’s no saving him.”

…

When Jiang Ruan returned to the school, the situation had already been resolved. She looked disheveled—her braids had come undone, her once-clean face was now dirty, and her clothes were torn by something.

Upon hearing the school’s decision—that she could only drop Qin Yan off in the morning and pick him up at the school gate in the evening—Jiang Ruan grew anxious and began to cry. “Brother, I’ll go apologize to the teacher.”

“There’s no need,” Qin Yan said firmly. He wasn’t the type to compromise, and he hadn’t wanted to attend school in the first place.

Still, Jiang Ruan ran to the principal’s office, tearfully promising that she would never hit anyone at school again. She pleaded with the principal to give her another chance.

“If I can’t be Brother Qin Yan’s nanny, my family will make me become a stepmother. I don’t want to be a stepmother.”

The principal sighed. Striking Teacher Qian had been a serious offense. If the school didn’t punish her, it would lose credibility, and the students would become uncontrollable. But this girl was truly pitiable. She was mentally challenged, and her home life wasn’t much better. What could they do for her?

Several teachers sympathized with her and spoke up on her behalf, hoping the principal would show leniency. Just as the principal was about to make a decision, Teacher Qian, standing her ground, argued, “Don’t use your personal problems to threaten others. Whether she becomes a stepmother or not is her family’s issue, not the school’s. It’s not our job to pity her.”

Another teacher countered, “Qian Meilan, you’re being too harsh. We can give her a different punishment, but don’t push the child to the brink. She’s mentally slow; she needs to be taught right from wrong.”

Qian Meilan shot back, “Harsh? I’m the one who got hit. You wouldn’t be so calm if it were you. No matter what, hitting someone requires a punishment. The students need to see that we don’t tolerate violence.”

Just as the principal was about to make a final decision, Teacher Hu suddenly arrived with several workers from the nearby lumber factory. The workers were looking for a girl—a student they wanted to thank.

“She saved six kids on her own!” one of the workers exclaimed. “Some kids were burning leaves and started a fire. We couldn’t even find all the missing children, and suddenly, we see this little girl charging into the fire. She pulled out four kids at once, and then went back into the thick of it to rescue two more who had been knocked unconscious by the smoke. These were the most mischievous, truant kids from our factory’s school, and she saved them all! Then she ran off, saying she needed to get back to Second High School. We couldn’t catch up with her! On behalf of the parents and our factory, we want to thank your school for raising such a brave and kind student. She must be injured. Please find her and get her to the hospital. We’ll cover all the medical expenses.”