Chapter 154: Defiance

Chapter 154: Defiance

Lu Hanchuan said nonchalantly, "I'll have someone send them back to their hometown."

As easy as packing up some stuff.

Ye Xiaoxiao: "These are Li Meiru's parents. She should be the one to make the call."

Lu Hanchuan: "But they already know where your dorm is, and they just had a nasty run-in with you. I don't want them to cause trouble as soon as I leave. It's better to resolve this sooner rather than later."

While they were talking, Tang Xiuxiu had already brought Li Meiru back with her.

The moment Li Dazhuang saw Li Meiru, he stood up and slapped her before she could even speak.

Tang Xiuxiu pulled Li Meiru back: "How dare you hit her!"

Li Dazhuang: "I’ll kill you, you ungrateful brat."

Li Meiru looked stubbornly at Li Dazhuang, "What kind of parents are you, anyway? How dare you lecture me about filial piety?"

Li Dazhuang: "You’ve picked up a smart mouth since you started school, huh? I think you should quit school and just go home and get married."

Li Meiru: "Dream on! I’d rather die than go back with you."

Fang Meihua came over to pull at Li Meiru.

"Meiru, you can’t talk like that. You have to think about the family. We’re so poor we can hardly scrape by. Someone in the city has set up a marriage for you, and as long as you marry, they'll give us a thousand yuan as a dowry.

With that money, our family can live comfortably!

You can’t just think about yourself; you have to think about the family."

Li Meiru knew her parents coming to see her was not a good thing, but she didn't expect them to be so shameless as to try to sell her.

"If you want to get married, go ahead and do it yourselves. I don’t trust you to find me a decent match. I still want to study."

Li Dazhuang: "Study what? You’re so tight-fisted about sending money home. I think marrying is better than studying."

Li Dazhuang's words had attracted the attention of many students.

This was Jinghua University, where most of the female students were sharp and forward-thinking.

Hearing this, some students refuted.

"Uncle, what you said is wrong. Is a woman’s only destiny to get married?

We’re living in a new age. Great people have said that women can hold up half the sky. How can you belittle your own daughter like this?"

"That's right. She's already been admitted to university, and you won't let her study, insisting she go back and marry. It’s like throwing away the big picture for something trivial."

The voices of persuasion from the crowd did not convince Li Dazhuang.

He glared fiercely at the others, "This is my family matter. Get the hell out of here."

The dorm auntie was disturbed by the commotion outside and stood at the door shouting.

"What are you doing? Are you causing trouble?"

"This is a school. If you have any conflicts, handle it outside."

Li Meiru hung her head in shame, feeling completely hopeless about her unreasonable parents.

Ye Xiaoxiao, witnessing the scene, immediately changed her mind on the spot.

"Hey... find a way to send these two away, preferably never to return to Beijing."

Not for Li Meiru’s sake, but to ensure her own campus life remained peaceful.

If this couple came to cause trouble every day, she couldn't imagine how chaotic her university life would become.

Lu Hanchuan: "Should we just eliminate them?"

Even though she knew he was joking, Ye Xiaoxiao still found the idea a little unsettling.

"Comrade Lu, keep your thoughts on the straight and narrow."

Lu Hanchuan: "I accept the criticism. Leave this to me; I’ll make sure they’re gone for good."

With Lu Hanchuan's assurance, Ye Xiaoxiao felt relieved.

For now, they could only rely on the dorm auntie's tough approach to drive Li Dazhuang and his wife out of the school.

Li Dazhuang glared at Li Meiru and demanded, "Come home with me."

Li Meiru: "I won’t go back! You already drove my little sister to her death; now you want to kill me too!"

Humiliated by the stares and whispers around him, Li Dazhuang raised his hand to strike Li Meiru again.

"Stop talking crazy!"

"No fighting or causing trouble on school grounds!"

The dorm auntie grabbed a broom from the doorway and flung it, hitting Li Dazhuang squarely on the head.

"Ouch!"

Li Dazhuang clutched his head, feeling the lump that had already formed.

"Now, both of you leave the school immediately, or I’ll call the police and have you thrown in jail for a few days. Don’t think you can just take her away. She’s a student at Jinghua University, and we’re responsible for her safety."

The dorm auntie's righteous speech fired everyone up.

Li Dazhuang could only seethe helplessly.

"I’ll give you a few days to think it over. If you dare to run away, you’re dead."

After threatening Li Meiru, Li Dazhuang marched off, fuming.

Fang Meihua looked at Li Meiru uneasily.

"Meiru, please listen to your father. I’m begging you as your mother."

Li Meiru turned her face away, refusing to look at her mother’s weary face.

Her mother had endured a lifetime of oppression from her father, but instead of rebelling, she passed the pain onto her daughter.

This time, she didn’t want to compromise any longer.

When Li Meiru didn’t react, Fang Meihua’s face shifted through a range of emotions. In the end, she could only follow Li Dazhuang and leave together.

Ye Xiaoxiao looked at Lu Hanchuan.

"Can you really send these two away?"

She figured they’d come back for round two.

Lu Hanchuan: "Have I ever not kept my word?"

Ye Xiaoxiao smiled, "Of course you haven’t. I know you’re the best and super trustworthy."

It was a half-hearted compliment, clearly just lip service.

But Lu Hanchuan ate it up, "You know it. Heading back to the dorm?"

Ye Xiaoxiao saw that Tang Xiuxiu had already taken Li Meiru back.

She wasn’t great at comforting people, and going back now would just make Li Meiru feel worse.

"I’ll take a walk and come back once Li Meiru’s had time to settle."

"Didn’t know our Xiao Xiao had such a soft side."

Ye Xiaoxiao: "Li Meiru’s had it rough too. Even though what she did with the complaint letter wasn’t great, she’s had a string of bad luck..."

Ye Xiaoxiao paused and looked at Lu Hanchuan, "But the complaint letter hit you harder. I’m not asking you to forgive her."

Lu Hanchuan: "As long as she stays in line, I’ll let it go."

He was sure she wouldn’t dare mess with Xiao Xiao again, especially after he’d personally ‘set her straight.’

Ye Xiaoxiao took Lu Hanchuan's hand and walked towards the campus gate.

"You’re such a sweet boyfriend. As a reward, I’ll treat you to dinner."

Lu Hanchuan: "..."

You’re just hungry, aren’t you?

In the end, Lu Hanchuan took Ye Xiaoxiao to a restaurant a good distance from campus.

The place had a great vibe, and the food was delicious.

...

After Ye Xiaoxiao and Lu Hanchuan parted ways, she returned to the dorm. By then, everyone was back in the dorm.

Tang Xiuxiu likely hadn’t mentioned Li Meiru’s parents’ visit, so the dorm vibe was still chill.

Li Meiru was lying on her bed, and the others didn’t find it strange. After all, Li Meiru was working part-time every day, so it was normal for her to rest when she was tired.

Xia Li was distributing some local specialties she had brought from home to everyone.