The sound of unlocking the door echoed, and Zheng Lanxin, busy in the kitchen, turned towards the entrance upon hearing it. She was surprised to see the siblings, Jian Yi and Chen Junsheng, who never came home together, entering one after another. However, she just assumed it to be a coincidence and invited them to wash up and come to dinner.
Jian Yi's family still lived in an old, rundown stairwell apartment, having sold their larger home in a newer district a year ago to pay for their father's cancer treatment. Unfortunately, even after spending hundreds of thousands, they only prolonged his life by two months before he passed away. On the day of her father's death, Jian Yi felt relief rather than sadness, both for herself and for her father, who had been tormented by his illness.
The house sale had brought in a million yuan. After deducting medical and funeral expenses, stepmother Zheng Lanxin still had about four hundred thousand in cash. In theory, this money, as well as the two-bedroom apartment they lived in, should have belonged to Jian Yi, but since Zheng Lanxin wasn't officially married to Jian Yi's father and Jian Yi was still a minor, Zheng held onto the money with the support of her relatives.
In her past life, Zheng Lanxin wasn't very kind to Jian Yi, who always acted obedient, waiting for the day she could take back what was hers. But no one expected a mysterious virus to infect all of humanity, transforming most people into mindless, violent creatures and causing flora and fauna to mutate into ferocious, bloodthirsty beings. The forty thousand yuan that Jian Yi had hoped to use for emergency supplies remained in Zheng's hands.
During dinner, Jian Yi suddenly put down her utensils, causing Zheng, who was serving her son, to notice. Junsheng glanced at his sister, whose rice bowl remained untouched, and quietly moved some of his meat into her bowl. "Sister, eat," he said.
In front of Zheng Lanxin, Jian Yi always played the role of the obedient and clever girl. She thanked Chen Junsheng with a gentle smile, a smile that completely captivated him. Even though he knew it wasn't her true self, he cherished these moments, wishing she was always at home so he could always see her gentle side.
But beneath Jian Yi's gentle exterior, different thoughts were brewing. Several methods of killing Zheng flashed through Jian Yi's mind. However, she needed to ensure that Junsheng wouldn't interfere.
Caught off guard by Jian Yi's sudden silence, Zheng asked, "Yiyi, do you have something to say? Is it about the new term's school uniform fees?"
Before Jian Yi could answer, Zheng continued, "Yiyi, I also want to pay it quickly, but... ever since your dad passed, there's only me left in this house. You know about my lumbar disc herniation. I can't do heavy work, so I can only work as a cashier in a supermarket..."
"My monthly salary is just over two thousand. We still need to eat and drink. My meager salary... Junsheng just paid his class fees, I really can't afford it right now. Can you ask the teacher to front you the money?"
"I promise, as soon as I get my salary next month, I'll pay the teacher back..."
"There won't be a next month," Jian Yi thought cynically, knowing the apocalypse was imminent. Aloud, she feigned a troubled expression and said, "No, Auntie, it's not about the school uniform fees. It's Junsheng, he got into trouble at school."
"What?" Zheng's expression changed drastically, and Junsheng, who had been hanging his head, suddenly looked up, a flash of panic in his dark eyes quickly replaced by a look of bewilderment.
"Yiyi, what trouble did Junsheng get into? Don't talk nonsense, Junsheng is the most obedient and well-behaved, always a top student. How could he cause trouble?" Zheng couldn't believe it but was visibly worried.
Jian Yi glanced at Chen Junsheng, seeing his poor attempt at concealing the truth, and couldn't help but laugh inwardly. She knew about this incident from her past life. Chen Junsheng had hidden it well, breaking the leg of a bully from another school without causing any commotion. He always had an innocent face, deserving an Oscar for his performance. In her past life, she had underestimated him, thinking he was only good for taking care of her daily needs. This time, she wouldn't overlook such a capable ally.
With Zheng and Junsheng's anxious eyes on her, Jian Yi, pretending to be reluctant to speak, said, "Auntie, Junsheng fought with someone and sent them to the hospital..."
Junsheng's hand, which was holding his chopsticks, tightened, his knuckles whitening. Jian Yi found his fragile appearance amusing. She paused deliberately before continuing under Junsheng's tense gaze, "But the person is not seriously injured. Their parents came to the school demanding medical expenses, causing a big scene. Our whole grade knows about it."
"They even said that if the money isn't brought to the hospital by this evening's self-study period, they'll call the police and report Junsheng. I didn't want to say anything at first, but Junsheng kept quiet. I was afraid he'd really get into trouble, so I decided to tell you..."
Zheng gasped, questioning her son about the truth of the matter. Junsheng, still in shock, didn't answer. Jian Yi's words were partly true, leaving him puzzled about her intentions.
Zheng, thinking her son had admitted to it, became furious and started to stand up to hit him, but she swayed unsteadily. Jian Yi quickly rushed to support her, advising her not to get too worked up.