Chapter 126: Mu Jie

Because Mu Youyu and Yu Yu are friends, since they met, the Yu family has had no major incidents except today.

In front of her, Yu Yu always appears reluctant to express herself and speaks softly.

She never complained about family matters in front of her, and she had always thought Yu Yu's family life was very happy.

She checked the surveillance and guessed that the Yu family might treat her somewhat poorly, but she never expected that Yu Yu had been under family control since childhood.

Gu Xingnan pulled up several blurry screenshots: "Her secondary account is full of unpublished drawings and secretly written notes. She said that at age fifteen she secretly enrolled in an art interest class; after Yu Mother discovered it, she burned all her art supplies and made her kneel in the study all night."

Mu Youyu bit the candy in her mouth, couldn't help but be angry, and asked: "What about the green-haired senior?"

What the heck is the green-haired senior?

Jiang Liangjin let out a low "cough" upon hearing that nickname.

Yu Ci almost laughed out loud, but she held it in given the situation.

Gu Xingnan pulled up another chat record screenshot, his tone sinking a few degrees: "On August 31, Yu Yu scored third in the school placement exam, ten points behind second place; Yu Mother said it was a decline and made her kneel for two hours in the afternoon without letting her eat……"

"They also kicked her out of the house, saying it was punishment, confiscating her phone and pocket money; later she just stayed one night at a senior's house."

"……September 1, that is, the next day when she returned home, Yu Mother acted as if nothing had happened, but when she proposed to go to the Art Competition, her parents put her under house arrest; Yu Yu refused to eat, and she still hasn't eaten to this day, with no one in the family trying to persuade her."

"As of today, Yu Mother has agreed to let her participate in the Art Competition."

Jiang Liangjin, Mu Youyu, and Yu Ci all froze, their faces full of doubt.

She suddenly agreed?

Gu Xingnan explained: "The Yu family wants to use competition records to apply for a special recruitment slot at a top university for Yu Yu; the Art Competition carries enough weight, and Yu Mother thinks winning an award would bring glory to the family, so she reluctantly allowed her to participate, even arranging for her to receive two weeks of art training from a teacher today."

"The result is that this morning someone sent her late-return surveillance footage together to the Yu family; upon seeing that she was staying at the green-haired senior's house, Yu Mother later found out that the senior's family studies art, and since she originally looked down on non-academic circles, she rushed to the school to confront her."

Mu Youyu felt a chill run through her body, her fingertips trembling slightly.

Yu Yu is, after all, her close friend.

Jiang Liangjin sensed her unease, quietly moved half a step, stood beside her, and his warm palm lightly covered the back of her clenched hand.

A flicker of coldness crossed his eyes, his voice low: "I'll take care of it."

"Good."

Mu Youyu nodded, then immediately shook her head, saying cautiously: "Let's see what Xiao Yu says."

We need to ask her decision.

2:00 p. m.

The infirmary was very quiet.

Yu Yu lay on the bed, her complexion still pale, but with a bit more color than when she fainted, no longer the lifeless pallor.

After a long while, her eyelashes fluttered lightly as she slowly opened her eyes, her vision still somewhat blurred.

What came into view was Mu Youyu's worried profile.

"Xiao Yu, are you awake?" Mu Youyu immediately stepped forward and took her hand.

Yu Yu stared at her for a few seconds, her eye sockets reddening again, a choked sound spilling from her throat.

The next second she propped herself up on the hospital bed and sat up, throwing her arms around Mu Youyu's waist, burying her face in her shoulder like she had grabbed a lifeline and refused to let go.

Her sobs were suppressed yet bursting: "Mu Jie……"

The three who heard that address turned in unison toward the girl on the bed, their eyes full of doubt.

Mu Jie?

Do Youbao's friends over in A City all call her that?

But Liu Wanwan never called her that before.

Yu Ci raised an eyebrow, sizing up the girl; at first classmates called Mu Youyu "Yu Jie" because of her ties to Jiang Liangjin, him, and Gu Xingnan, and so they came up with a more fitting nickname.

Later they called her "Yu Jie" simply because she is the eldest daughter of the Mu Family.

Gu Xingnan was also somewhat surprised; in his impression, Mu Youyu had always kept a low profile at this school, and he had only heard the nickname "Yu Jie" in high school.

Jiang Liangjin remained as calm as ever, merely shifting his gaze slightly toward Mu Youyu.

Mu Youyu paid no attention to the three's reactions, simply returning the embrace: "It's okay, Xiao Yu, I'm here."

"Mu Jie……sorry……" Yu Yu burst into tears: "I really don't know where to go……I'm so tired……"

Her voice broke off intermittently, filled with extreme grievance, her shoulders shaking violently.

Mu Youyu gently patted her back, feeling as if her heart were blocked.

This was the first time Yu Yu had shown such vulnerability in front of her.

She hoped it would also be the last time—not just for her, but for anyone else.

"It's okay, it's okay," she soothed gently, "I'm here, so don't cry yet—take your time to speak."

Jiang Liangjin got up to pour them a cup of warm water, then led Yu Ci and Gu Xingnan out to the doorway tactfully, giving them space.

Yu Yu cried for a while before gradually calming down, she withdrew from the embrace, took the water cup and took a sip, her fingertips still trembling.

Under Mu Youyu's gaze, she finally managed to recount what had happened over the past few days, bit by bit.

She lowered her eyes: "A few days ago, I placed third, and they kicked me out of the house……"

First place Liu Wanwan, second her childhood friend Sheng Ling, third place herself.

That night, she had no money, wandering aimlessly down the street as it grew darker, not knowing where to go.

She didn't know where to go; if she called the police, regardless of whether the final result would be reconciliation or escalation, …

In the end she would have to return home, and thereafter she would face even more scorn at home.

The Yu family is an aristocratic clan, and afterwards this would spread among elite circles, with relatives and outsiders also talking about it.

All she could do was crouch alone on a row of streets, the only lit spot being the slanted entrance of a restaurant.

Just as she had been crouching for nearly two hours, she encountered an upperclassman.

"The senior is the top student in his senior year, recommended for admission to the Art Institute, a really nice person, and I have his contact information."

Yu Yu's face showed a hint of bewilderment, "He saw me crying alone by the roadside, came over and asked what was wrong. I really had nowhere to go, so I told him my family had kicked me out."

The senior stared for a moment, then furrowed his brow and said, "Xiao Yu, I live alone at my place; if you don't mind, you can stay at my house for the night."

At that time, she had nowhere else to go, so she could only nod in agreement.

The senior took her home, found her clean pajamas, went out to buy her fresh change of clothes and food; throughout, he was perfectly gentlemanly, with no overstep.

Later, when her parents found out, she ran away from school, having nothing on her but her phone.

The cards had all been confiscated already.

The several ten thousand yuan scholarship in her own card was also completely frozen.

Fortunately, she met an older sister who was traveling in A City; she blushed and borrowed money, the older sister being a rich second-generation with many bodyguards, who, upon hearing, asked her a few questions, and then kindly called a car for her.

Before leaving, she especially noted down her contact information, so she could reach her anytime if she encountered difficulties.

And the first person she thought of was Mu Youyu.

So, she took a car and all the way found this place.

Mu Youyu fell silent for a few seconds, then comforted: "Xiao Yu, this isn't your problem; you can stay at my place for a few days, don't think about anything, I'll handle the rest."

Yu Yu obediently replied: "Okay."