Chapter 128: The Midnight Crying

"Master Hou, do not take it to heart. A great man knows how to bend and stretch!" Master Huang said, gloating.

Hou Tianlu glared at him viciously, too furious to speak. Because of this incident, the afternoon competition was called off. Hou Tianlu had no intention of continuing; he knew all too well that his students were no match for those from Haixing Academy—least of all, none could compare to Lin Yanbei.

*How could that brat be so capable when he has only been in school for such a short time? Is he a prodigy?*

Master Ge and Master Huang did not say much more, leaving with their students and Lin Sangqian. Once inside the carriage, Master Ge could not help but burst into laughter.

"Hahaha... So the man surnamed Hou finally got what was coming to him! Satisfying, truly satisfying!" Master Ge said gleefully. "Miss Lin, it is fortunate that I agreed to let you come along; otherwise, who knows what would have happened!"

Lin Yanbei rubbed his nose, feeling a bit embarrassed. He had not even noticed when Lin Xiong planted the ink on him—it was truly inexcusable that his younger sister had to worry on his behalf. He vowed to be much more cautious in the future.

Lin Sangqian felt equally relieved. If only she had a smartphone, she would have filmed Hou Tianlu kneeling and plastered the footage all over town. Moreover, after today's events, Lin Xiong would no longer be able to stay at Ruwen Academy, and Lin Shumei’s life would certainly not be easy from here on out.

But this was not over yet. She had not yet taught the primary culprit, Lin Shumei, a proper lesson. To let her off so easily? That was simply not the style of Lin Sangqian.

Back in his quarters, Hou Tianlu saw Lin Shumei following him and, overcome with rage, slapped her hard across the face.

"It is all your fault! If you hadn't insisted that I vent your frustrations, would I have ended up in such a miserable state today?"

Lin Shumei clutched her face, grievance in her voice. "How can you blame me? You arranged the entire plan! And it was that boy, Lin Xiong, who failed to do what you told him—why don't you hit him instead?"

"Hit him? There is no need for that," Hou Tianlu said coldly. "I will have him thrown out of Ruwen Academy immediately."

"W-what? You are really going to expel him?" Lin Shumei’s expression shifted. "If you kick him out, where can he go?"

Regardless, Lin Xiong was her biological brother, and more importantly, he was still obedient. If she lost him, who would she use to do her bidding in the future?

"That is not my concern!" Hou Tianlu retorted. "He hasn't paid his fees; he should have been expelled long ago. I kept him on for a while only for your sake—I have already done more than enough!"

"B-but..."

"If you say another word, you can get out with him!"

At this, Lin Shumei shut her mouth in terror. She could not afford to be expelled alongside Lin Xiong; that would mean total ruin. She still had a little money left; at worst, she would have to rent a small room for him.

"This whole thing today is truly suspicious, though," Hou Tianlu said, his face dark. "The ink that was supposed to be on Lin Yanbei—how did it end up on Lin Xiong? Tell me, could it be that your brother wanted to keep it for himself and didn't follow my instructions at all?"

"Impossible!" Lin Shumei said hurriedly. "He didn't even know how valuable that ink was, and besides, he wouldn't dare!"

Hou Tianlu thought about it and found her reasoning sound.

"Then, could it be that Lin Sangqian was behind it?" Hou Tianlu clenched his fists. "Since she managed to sneak in, she couldn't have just stood by and done nothing!"

"I told you to be careful of that wretched girl," Lin Shumei said, looking defeated. "As expected, we fell into her trap again." Her rear, which had been beaten previously, was still throbbing with pain.

"Hmph, she is just a little girl. Just wait—one day, I will surely teach her a lesson! And those people at Haixing Academy, they all deserve to be dealt with!"

Hou Tianlu could only satisfy himself with empty threats. Although neither Master Ge nor Master Huang told anyone what happened at Ruwen Academy, children could not keep secrets. When they went home for the holidays, they told their parents everything.

As a result, it quickly spread throughout the town that Ruwen Academy had not only suffered a miserable defeat in the competition against Haixing, but had also falsely accused a Haixing student of theft, only for the truth to reveal that the Ruwen student had done it himself.

For a time, Hou Tianlu and Ruwen Academy became the laughingstock of the town. Several parents wanted to withdraw their children from the school, and Hou Tianlu had to pull the "Scholar of the Third Rank" card to intimidate them into silence, though the matter was far from settled. Haixing Academy, however, became the beneficiary; children enrolling in school recently all chose Haixing, leaving Ruwen completely ignored. Hou Tianlu could only curse in his room, occasionally taking his frustration out on Lin Shumei. She suffered miserably, but had nowhere else to go.

...

In the dead of night, Liao Shuxia groggily got up to use the restroom. She had forgotten to bring the chamber pot into the room before bed, and since the night was mild, she headed to the outhouse outside.

After finishing, she stepped out, yawned, and was about to return to bed when she suddenly heard the sound of a woman crying. The sobs were mournful and eerie, chilling to the bone in the middle of the night.

Liao Shuxia was instantly wide awake. She looked around, but saw nothing, yet the crying remained crystal clear. Though she was a sharp-tongued woman who feared no living soul, she was terrified of the supernatural.

Shivering, she bolted into Lin Sangqian and Zhao Lan'er's room and, without a word, scrambled into bed and dove under Lin Sangqian’s covers.

"Hmm?" Lin Sangqian was sleeping soundly and suddenly felt someone climb in. Thinking it was Zhao Lan'er, she muttered, "It's hot, Lan'er, get back under your own quilt."

"Little Dog, it's me," Liao Shuxia said, trembling.

"Mom?" Lin Sangqian rubbed her eyes, confused. "Why are you in our room?"

"I... I'm scared..." Her husband was not home at such a time! *Wuu wuu wuu.*

"What is there to be afraid of? Just go to sleep." Fortunately, the bed was large enough for three. Liao Shuxia wanted to say more, but Lin Sangqian had already turned over and fallen back asleep.

When they woke up the next morning, Liao Shuxia pulled Lin Sangqian and Zhao Lan'er aside and recounted exactly what had happened. She tried to mimic the crying, but could not get it quite right. Zhao Lan'er was frightened as well and leaned closer to Lin Sangqian. "Could it be... that kind of thing?"

"How is that possible?" Lin Sangqian said, torn between laughter and tears. She was a staunch materialist! Even if this world they had transmigrated into was different from their previous one, she did not believe in ghosts.

"Mom, are you sure you didn't hear wrong?"

"I am certain!" Liao Shuxia insisted.

Lin Sangqian rubbed her chin. In the dead of night, who could possibly be crying out there?