“Xiao Lu, do you perhaps not understand the situation over at Xiao Yuan’s unit?”
Wan Jiayin smiled as she looked at Lu Guangrong. “When they recruit soldiers there, they pick the elite from every company. Soldiers who are the best of the best are everywhere there.”
“Let alone Little Xu’s abilities, even after he gets out, I’m afraid it will be impossible for him to join the military.”
Lu Guangrong had thought it was a good idea to hand Lu Xu over to Yue Mingyuan’s care. That way, he could get closer to the Yue family. If Lu Xu caused any more trouble later, it wouldn’t be his responsibility anymore, but that of Yue Mingyuan, the team leader.
He also wanted to gauge Wan Jiayin’s opinion, thinking that if she agreed, Feng Wan wouldn’t be able to do much to Lu Xu.
But who would have thought Wan Jiayin would refuse outright and make it clear that Lu Xu should be sent away (to face consequences).
However, Lu Guangrong wasn’t willing to give up. “Sister Wan, I don’t have much contact with Mingyuan’s unit, so I really don’t understand it well.”
“Mingyuan is truly impressive. If only our Little Xu could be even one-fifth as capable as Mingyuan someday.”
“As for me, I’m not hoping for Little Xu to achieve great things anymore. I just want him to learn how to be a decent person in the future.”
“He might be close in age to Shuang Shuang, but in my eyes, he’s still a child. I imagine it’s the same in Sister and Sister Wan’s eyes, right?”
“Sister and Sister Wan have both been through storms and know the principle of letting someone off when you can. Especially with Little Xu, he deserves punishment, but the method can be flexible.”
“He just ran his mouth a few times, shouting nonsense. He didn’t actually do anything. Besides, we’re willing to compensate Xiao Ye’s younger brothers.”
Lu Guangrong steered the conversation towards Ye Zhiqiu. “Xiao Ye, look, how about we offer one thousand yuan as medical and nutritional fees for your two younger brothers?”
“I’ve asked around. Neither of your brothers was seriously injured.”
“Besides, Little Xu didn’t really do much; it was mostly those hooligans who threw the punches.”
Ye Zhiqiu had anticipated Lu Guangrong would try this approach: throwing money at the problem to make it go away.
Truth be told, if you looked closely at the situation, it would be difficult to actually pin anything serious on Lu Xu. The main goal was just to teach him a lesson.
She didn’t want to try to severely punish Lu Xu at the cost of sacrificing He Bin and Ye Jiawu’s well-being.
Because for Lu Xu to be sentenced, He Bin and Ye Jiawu would have to be seriously injured.
That would be a loss far outweighing the gain.
The purpose of setting up this situation was to ensure the Lu family wouldn’t dare to mess with Lu Shuangshuang again. Ye Zhiqiu also didn’t want Lu Shuangshuang to become bitter enemies with her own family.
Lu Shuangshuang’s situation was different from hers. Shen Daqiang and Wang Fengqin had caused her mother’s death, so she had to cut ties with them completely and make sure they faced the punishment they deserved to avenge her mother.
As for Lu Guangrong, he favored sons over daughters. Sun Lanzi wanted to use Lu Shuangshuang. And Lu Xu? He was simply a spoiled little brat.
But even though a compromise would eventually be reached, it couldn’t be now, and it couldn’t be this easy.
“Uncle Lu, it’s true that my two brothers aren’t seriously physically injured, but they’re still children. They were terrified.”
“Never mind them. I think even you, at your age and having been on the battlefield, would be scared if a dozen people surrounded you in the wilderness with all kinds of weapons, and someone said they were going to kill you.”
“You just said we should put ourselves in each other’s shoes. You care about Lu Xu, and I care deeply about my two brothers.”
“We can afford the medical and nutritional fees. But a wounded heart isn’t so easily healed. If they end up traumatized with long-term problems, their whole lives could be ruined.”
Ye Zhiqiu sighed. “Oh, I can’t even think about this. I still don’t know how I’m going to explain it to my second uncle.”
“Xiao Wu is the only son in my second uncle’s family. If something happens to him because of this, my second uncle definitely won’t let it slide easily.”
Lu Guangrong hadn’t expected Ye Zhiqiu to be so difficult either. He looked around the room, his gaze finally landing on Lu Shuangshuang.
The root of this whole matter was Lu Shuangshuang. He could see that Feng Wan was acting to defend her.
And it seemed Lu Shuangshuang also had a good relationship with that daughter-in-law of the Yue family.
So, if Lu Shuangshuang could just let this go, maybe the others would stop pursuing it?
But he couldn’t talk to her about it here. He could also see that this problem wasn’t going to be easy to solve.
“None of us wanted this to happen.”
Lu Guangrong stood up. “We failed to educate our son properly.”
“Sister, Sister Wan, I’ll go home now and reflect on my mistakes.”
Lu Guangrong pulled Sun Lanzi to leave, but she was reluctant.
“Old Lu, why are we leaving just like that? What about Little Xu?”
“What about him? Let him stay inside and wait for the firing squad!”
Lu Guangrong’s words terrified Sun Lanzi so much she collapsed on the floor, grabbing his arm tightly. “Old Lu, we only have this one son, Little Xu. No matter what, you can’t abandon him! If he really dies, I won’t be able to go on living.”
With that, Sun Lanzi started crying loudly.
Lu Guangrong scolded her harshly. “Stop your wailing! He’s not dead yet, is he?”
“Sister is right. This time, let him learn his lesson the hard way. Don’t do things you shouldn’t do, don’t say things you shouldn’t say.”
“If he wants to find death, fine, but don’t drag me down with him!”
Sun Lanzi had always been happy that Lu Guangrong had little affection for Lu Shuangshuang, and that his heart favored her and their son.
But his words now made her realize: he didn’t truly care about anyone but himself.
“Old Lu, what kind of talk is that? Do you actually want Little Xu to die? What good would Little Xu’s death do you? When you’re old and sick, who will take care of you? When you die, who will wear mourning clothes for you, who will smash the funeral basin, who will burn paper offerings at your grave?”
With each sentence, Sun Lanzi pushed at Lu Guangrong. Annoyed, he slapped her hard.
“Do you even know that the nonsense he spouted could ruin me!”
Lu Guangrong’s heart was still pounding uneasily. “If I’m ruined, what will you and he live on? Never mind when I’m old and sick—even now, I can see he’s unreliable!”
“That little beast! I talked to him about this last time, but a leopard can’t change its spots. Out of all the girls out there, why does he have to fixate on Shuang Shuang? Shuang Shuang is his sister!”
“If he dares to treat his sister like this, is he going to treat you like this someday, huh?”
“Or is he really not my flesh and blood?”
Lu Guangrong grabbed Sun Lanzi by the collar and lifted her up. “Let me tell you, if Lu Xu isn’t my son, I’ll shoot both of you!”
“Old Lu, you’ve lost your mind! How could Little Xu not be your son?”
“From the moment I got pregnant with Little Xu, I’ve been by your side. I was heavily pregnant, having to take care of your mother, look after Shuang Shuang, and cook and do laundry for you every single day.”
“Have you forgotten all that?”
“Besides, how is this all Little Xu’s fault? If Shuang Shuang hadn’t done something to provoke him, why would Little Xu treat her that way?”
