Before her eyes, Li Sheng's bright and clear gaze shone with intelligence—black and white distinct, ethereal and pure. She smiled lightly, carefree and relaxed. The aura she exuded was no longer the same as before, no longer silent and weak. Instead, she was like a small beast licking its wounds in a corner—quiet, not fighting or arguing, yet still radiating a pride and nobility that was sharp and unyielding, impossible for anyone to ignore.
Jiang Chuchu widened her eyes, feeling a wave of unease. Was it her imagination? The Li Sheng in front of her seemed completely different! She actually resisted now, and her aura was strong—no longer the easy-to-manipulate girl she once was.
Jiang Chuchu quickly suppressed her doubts and pouted coquettishly at the two men beside her.
"Third Brother, Brother Qi Yu, look, Ah Li is really angry with me. You promised me you would apologize to her. Hurry up and say it, or I'll get angry."
After speaking, she gave Li Sheng a provocative glance, silently declaring:
"Look carefully—your own blood brother and your childhood sweetheart who has loved you for years, they're both on my side."
Li Sheng smiled lightly. Jiang Chuchu's words not only exposed her guilt, but also reminded her that even if these two men apologized, it was only for Jiang Chuchu's sake. Every seemingly kind sentence was meant to provoke.
If she were still the pitiful, ignored girl from before, she would have felt cold and hopeless again.
But now?
Li Sheng was the young lady of the Li family in the ancient capital. She was the female war god who had stood on the battlefield, unfazed before enemies.
These petty tricks no longer concerned her.
At this moment, Li Jinyang reluctantly stepped forward and looked down at Li Sheng.
"Xiao Wu, I'm apologizing to you for Chuchu's sake, but don't be too proud. Chuchu is the victim, she—"
Before he could finish, Li Sheng calmly interrupted him.
"Third brother."
Her voice was crisp and pleasant to the ear.
The single call made Li Jinyang pause. The previous Li Sheng had been silent, like a mute shadow. Hearing her call him now surprised him.
Li Sheng looked at him and said slowly, "Last night, after you rushed to send Jiang Chuchu to the hospital, the people at the banquet pushed me into the river. They held my head down and didn't let me surface."
"And then?" Li Jinyang frowned. "You pushed Chuchu down the stairs first. Otherwise, how could her friends do that to you?"
Hearing such an indifferent statement made the dull pain in her chest resurface. The terror of drowning flashed vividly in her memory.
Li Sheng asked quietly, "So you think I deserved it? That I deserved to suffer?"
Li Jinyang raised his chin, ready to answer—until he saw Li Sheng's bitter smile.
"But I can't swim."
Seven simple words struck him like lightning.
Li Sheng couldn't swim. Those people pushed her into the water and held her down. How was that different from murder?
Li Jinyang's pupils shrank, his expression freezing.
Just as the atmosphere thickened, Jiang Chuchu spoke softly, breaking the silence.
"Ah Li, it's my fault. If I hadn't fainted and made Third Brother rush me to the hospital, none of this would have happened. Luckily you're fine, otherwise I wouldn't be able to forgive myself."
Li Jinyang visibly relaxed and added confidently, "Exactly. Since you're fine now, it shows that Chuchu's friends knew how to hold back. They only taught you a small lesson, they didn't really hurt you…"
Didn't really hurt her?
Li Sheng sneered.
When the little girl was drowning, she had opened her frightened eyes and seen distorted faces smiling from above the water's surface—faces like demons reflected in a broken mirror.
Hell was empty; the demons walked the world.
Did anyone know what she was thinking when she finally stopped struggling, sinking into the cold depths?
She was thinking that the world was beautiful…
But she would never return to it again.
Which one of those executioners was innocent when a young life was nearly extinguished?
Suppressing the icy sharpness in her eyes, Li Sheng said clearly, "An eye for an eye. Even if I'm fine now, they're still guilty of attempted murder."
A charge that could put them behind bars for ten years or more.
Jiang Chuchu grabbed Li Sheng's hand and pleaded, "Ah Li, we're all friends. If you're angry, take it out on me. They only hurt you because they thought you pushed me. It was impulsive. But you're safe now—so forgive them, okay? Even if you want to blame someone… just blame me."
Li Sheng felt the familiar sting and numbness on the back of her hand. Last night, when she caught Jiang Chuchu and her fiancé together, Jiang Chuchu had cried pitifully while pinching her hand so hard she had to jerk away.
In doing so, Jiang Chuchu fell down the stairs—and everyone "saw" Li Sheng push her.
Li Sheng stared at Jiang Chuchu for two quiet seconds, then smiled faintly. She slowly raised her other hand.
Jiang Chuchu instinctively flinched, thinking Li Sheng would hit her. A triumphant glint flashed in her eyes—until Li Sheng simply placed a hand on her shoulder and smiled gently.
"How could I blame you? You're such an innocent little flower."
But with that light touch, a sharp pain shot through Jiang Chuchu's shoulder. Her body went numb—as if someone had struck an acupoint and pricked her with needles.
"Ah!"
Jiang Chuchu recoiled, furious, slapping Li Sheng's hand away.
"What did you do to me?!"
Li Jinyang and Qi Yu rushed forward immediately, accusing Li Sheng without hesitation.
"How can you be so vicious? Chuchu has been defending you even after you pushed her, and this is how you repay her?"
"Li Sheng, do you have no shame?"
One was her elder brother.
The other was her childhood sweetheart and fiancé.
Neither believed her.
No one believed her.
Li Sheng raised her hand, revealing a bright red handprint on her fair, jade-like skin.
Then she loo
ked up at them, her voice clear and ringing—
"She hit me. And I am the vicious one?"
"Are all of you blind?"