Chapter 4: You Are Being Used as a Pawn by Teacher Sheng

The commotion was so great that it gave Su Xingmian a fright.

"Sister Yin, drive safely, drive safely! Don't be impulsive!"

"Mianmian, you must stay far away from Teacher Sheng in the future. I suspect he wants to use you as a shield!"

Su Xingmian:????

Where was she even supposed to start with that?

"You've just entered the industry and don't understand some of the rules yet; this is a common tactic. To hide a romance, they exaggerate their relationship with someone else to protect the one who is actually involved with him."

Su Xingmian was a bit dizzy from being led in circles, but she understood the logic.

"Sister Yin, I think..."

"Sheng Yuheng is a prestigious Movie King; it's one thing for him to do such things, but he actually set his sights on you! You're just an unknown little actress; can you withstand a wave of his fans slaughtering you? He's treating you like cannon fodder! Shameless! Malicious!"

Liang Yin was filled with righteous indignation, completely immersed in her own emotions.

Women at this time were not to be trifled with; they were completely unreasonable, so Su Xingmian obediently shut her mouth.

"Don't worry, your sister won't just stand by. Next time he does something similar, I'll block it for you. By the way, Mianmian, what were you going to say just now?"

"It's nothing, Sister Yin. You're so domineering! You focus on charging into battle, and I'll hold the knife to escort you!"

Su Xingmian patted her chest in agreement.

They chatted and laughed all the way back to the city. Liang Yin dropped Su Xingmian off at the entrance of her residential complex and left.

However, just as she reached the entrance of her own villa, before she even had a chance to open the door, a familiar voice drifted into her ears.

"Xingmian, you're finally back. You've been gone for so many days; where on earth have you been, child?"

Su Xingmian turned her head and saw Su Hong, who had brought her whole family along.

Only, they didn't look very well this time. Su Hong's eyes were swollen from crying, and both Li Yi and his son were bruised and battered.

Su Xingmian suppressed the impatience in her heart and stood at the door with her keys put away.

She wanted to see what kind of scheme this family of three was cooking up this time.

"Xingmian, your cousin borrowed from loan sharks and owes a lot of money. We've mortgaged the house, but we still can't pay it off.

Your aunt used to treat you well, so just show me some pity and give that money to your aunt to deal with this emergency, alright?

If we weren't at our wits' end, how could your aunt bear to fight you for the compensation money?"

Su Hong wailed with tears and snot streaming down her face. Behind her, the father and son stood there timidly holding luggage, unsure if they were terrified by the debt collectors or if the shadow Su Xingmian had left on them was too deep.

In short, they didn't say a single word.

"If that's the case, then what did Li Yi mean when he shamelessly said he wanted to marry me? Is that also because Aunt can't bear to let me go? Because she pities me?" Su Xingmian sneered.

"It's because we're afraid that you'll be all alone and helpless and get cheated. Those 'pretty boy' types nowadays have quite the skill; they have plenty of tricks to cheat people out of their money and their lives. Your aunt is only acting out of kindness, fearing you'll fall for it, which is why she thought it best to just marry you to your cousin."

These words made Su Xingmian laugh out of sheer anger.

"Then according to Aunt's logic, what is Li Yi? No bride price, and he even wants to use my money to pay off loan sharks. At least those 'pretty boys' have sweet mouths and good looks; what about him? He's ugly and doesn't even realize it—a toad dreaming of eating swan meat."

Su Xingmian's inner universe exploded, and she directly belittled Li Yi to nothingness, nearly pointing at his nose to curse him.

"You can't say it like that. Your cousin is, at least, someone you know the background of..."

"Stop! Of course I know! This cousin of mine liked lifting girls' skirts when he was a kid; when he got a bit older, if he saw a pretty girl, he'd write her love letters, and if she didn't respond, he'd bring a gang of thugs to block her door...

Do I need to go into detail about every single one of these incidents? It's precisely because I know that I have to stay far, far away."

Su Xingmian crossed her arms, speaking without any politeness.

If Li Yi had even a shred of humanity, she wouldn't have ignored him given they were relatives.

But he was a scumbag; once you got involved, it was a bottomless pit.

Even if he promised never to borrow again, how much credibility did his words actually have?

"You're trying to force our family of three to die!"

Seeing that this path wouldn't work, Su Hong cried out in a shrill voice.

At this hour, there were many people walking in the residential complex. Furthermore, this was a mid-level villa area where houses were built adjacent to one another.

Her voice was sharp and piercing, causing many people to stop and watch, and neighbors living nearby also began opening their windows.

Who would refuse free entertainment?

This was exactly the effect Su Hong wanted. Seeing that she had an audience, she directly plopped down onto the ground. If Su Xingmian hadn't dodged quickly, she would have been clinging to her legs.

"Xingmian, please help your aunt! Although your aunt and your cousin have made mistakes, we are all family; even if bones are broken, the tendons are still connected. If you see us in such distress and refuse to help, our family of three will be forced to jump into the river tonight!"

Su Hong said with tears and blood, and the father and son following her footsteps quickly knelt down as well. If they had even a bit of self-respect, they probably would have kowtowed to Su Xingmian right in front of everyone.

The onlookers didn't know what was going on, and Su Hong spoke vaguely, only mentioning that Su Xingmian refused to help in a time of death without mentioning any details.

Therefore, in terms of public opinion, Su Xingmian immediately fell into a disadvantage, and even some well-meaning older ladies came over to join in the persuasion.

"Young lady, this is all family, and she is your elder. There's no need to make things so embarrassing. If you can help, just give her a hand."

"Thank you, Auntie. My niece wasn't like this before. It might be because she's been mixing with some questionable men lately, and that's why...

It's also my fault as an aunt; I haven't had much authority in front of the child, so I couldn't manage her."

As Su Hong spoke, she made a show of wiping the tears from the corners of her eyes.

Su Xingmian was truly speechless.

Times were changing rapidly, and everything was moving toward sophistication, so how had this method of spreading rumors about a woman's character survived to this day?

This cheap aunt sounded like she was saying she had simply been brainwashed, but in reality, wasn't she just telling everyone that her niece had a messy private life?

Wonderful. Since she wanted to act, she would act right on her head. If she didn't let her face the consequences of her own actions, her surname wouldn't be Su.

While thinking this, Su Xingmian lowered her head.

When she looked up again, her beautiful eyes were already brimming with tears, and even the rims of her eyes were red.

"Aunt, I am just a recent graduate. The debt my cousin owes is high-interest loans that compound; it's easily millions. How can you expect a young girl who has just entered society to pay that back?

And besides, Aunt, your words are a bit too harsh. What do you mean 'questionable men'? How long has it been since my parents passed away? Just how heartless would I have to be to go out and indulge in debauchery during this time?"

A beauty in tears naturally evokes pity, especially since this child had just lost her parents. The elderly onlookers' hearts began to waver.

"The inheritance your parents left you is enough to pay back your cousin's debt. Xingmian, please be kind and give it to your aunt."

(End of Chapter)