Chapter 236: Evil Will Be Repaid

After this plan failed, Hao Manru's temperament became even more violent and moody.

No matter how Hao's mother tried to console her, it was useless; seeing her daughter growing increasingly deranged and recalling her daughter's long-overdue menstruation, she could only turn to Song Jingyu again.

Hao's mother wanted to see if there was still room for reconciliation; as long as Song Jingyu was willing to be with her daughter, even if she had to kneel, it wouldn't matter.

Hao's mother had already resolved to set aside her dignity, but she was told that Song Jingyu had been dispatched elsewhere to assist, and he would not return until the rescue operation ended.

Song Jingyu's action completely cut off all of Hao's mother's hopes.

She never expected Song Jingyu to be so ruthless, giving them no chance at all; what could her daughter possibly lack compared to Su Ruo, making her unworthy of him, Song Jingyu!

Hao's mother hated Song Jingyu and Su Ruo to the core, but now was clearly not the time to pursue that.

Since she knew there was no hope with Song Jingyu, for Hao's mother the most important thing was to get her daughter away as quickly as possible; her daughter's condition was so poor that she feared that over time people would notice something amiss and damage her daughter's reputation.

Moreover, the thing in her daughter's belly also needed to be dealt with promptly, whether by persuading her to marry or by aborting it; it could not be delayed too long.

But given her daughter's current state, how to persuade her to leave with her was a dilemma for Hao's mother.

As Hao's mother had anticipated, the moment she told her daughter they should leave, Hao Manru's emotions exploded; she shook her head desperately and said:

"I won't leave; I've been waiting here for Brother Jingyu to promise to marry me, and I'd rather die than go."

Seeing her daughter's deranged state, Hao's mother, whose patience had reached its limit after days of endurance, slapped her daughter's face hard.

"Calm down; Song Jingyu has already left, and he won't return until the rescue ends. What good does waiting here do, or do you want everyone to see you lose your mind?"

Hao Manru stared at her angry mother, speechless from shock; she also knew that now the only person she could rely on was her mother, and if even her mother abandoned her, she would truly be finished.

When Hao's mother saw her daughter finally calm down, she embraced her to console her: "Rest assured, since I promised you I would have Song Jingyu marry you, I will certainly not go back on my word."

"But Song Jingyu is now in hiding; staying here is pointless. Listen to me and go home with me first, and we'll think of something else."

Hao Manru let her mother hold her, her facial expression showing no flicker; she didn't know whether to believe her mother's words, but this time she did not hysterically resist, allowing her mother to take her away.

But on the way back, Hao Manru happened to encounter Song Jingyu alone; the moment she saw him, her emotions surged, and she frantically slapped the car window, shouting for it to stop.

The driver, seeing this, quickly stopped the car; Hao Manru immediately got out and ran up to Song Jingyu to confront him.

"Why are you avoiding me? Why have I done all this for you, when I like you so much, yet you refuse to marry me—what's so good about that Su Ruo?"

Song Jingyu never imagined that, even after hiding here, he would still run into Hao Manru; he had not come to confront her because he wanted to preserve both their dignity, but now it seemed unnecessary.

Song Jingyu said coldly: "I don't like you; no matter what you do, I will never like you, and your actions only disgust me."

"Since you asked, I can tell you plainly: in my heart, you don't even measure up to a single hair of Su Ruo, because you simply aren't worthy of being compared to her."

Hao's mother never expected Song Jingyu to say such a thing, utterly devaluing her daughter; she immediately shouted angrily: "Song Jingyu!"

Song Jingyu merely glanced at her lightly and then looked away; in his heart, from the moment Hao's mother helped Hao Manru drug him, he had lost all respect for her.

After the shock, Hao Manru's emotions spiraled out of control: "Song Jingyu, I like you so much, yet you treat me like this—I will definitely make you regret it!"

Hao's mother immediately noticed the madness in her daughter's eyes and clung to her desperately, trying to prevent her from doing something foolish.

But Hao Manru shoved her away and jumped straight off the bridge; Hao's mother was terrified and rushed to the bridge's edge to look.

Fortunately, the bridge is only two meters deep; below is a pond, and Hao Manru is currently thrashing desperately in the water, with no immediate danger to her life.

Only then did Hao's mother breathe a sigh of relief; she pounded Song Jingyu beside her and said: "What are you still standing here for? Hurry down and pull Manru out—I tell you, if anything happens to my daughter, I won't let you off the hook."

After the fright, Hao's mother couldn't stop feeling relieved; fortunately, although her daughter was mad, she still had a bit of sense.

If Song Jingyu went down to rescue her, he would have physical contact with her, damaging the girl's family's chaste reputation, and then he would have no choice but to marry her even if he didn't want to.

So, seeing Song Jingyu still standing there unmoving, Hao's mother grew increasingly anxious and urged him to go down and rescue her:

"You're a soldier—how could you just stand by and let someone die? If Manru comes to harm because of you, can your conscience bear it?"

But Song Jingyu stared at Hao Manru thrashing in the river, his brows furrowed; after what happened last time, he was full of suspicion toward this mother and daughter, and he would not do anything that harmed his own interests or fell into their trap.

But one thing Hao's mother said was true: he really couldn't stand by and let someone die; even knowing that Hao Manru was doing this on purpose, he couldn't just watch her die.

So, seeing Hao Manru's struggles grow weaker, Song Jingyu grabbed the nearby driver who was gawking and kicked him into the river.

Hao Manru's consciousness was already blurred; she felt someone jump into the river and immediately reached out, clutching the person's neck with all her strength, her survival instinct preventing her from relaxing at all.

The driver never imagined that, merely a bystander eating melon seeds, he would end up in this situation; caught off guard, he almost was strangled to death by Hao Manru, he struggled, gulping several mouthfuls of water before regaining his balance.

The driver was also sharp; he could easily guess the mother and daughter's intentions, and he knew he had ruined their plan.

But in this situation, he couldn't just leave Hao Manru in the river and swim away himself!

Moreover, Hao Manru clung to him so tightly that even if he wanted to shake her off he couldn't; with no alternative, the driver could only drag Hao Manru, desperately swimming toward the shore.