Zhu Yaya's swollen left cheek had gone down a bit; it wasn't as terrifying as it was at first.
The nurse, who had supposedly gone to eat, also returned. She gave Zhu Yaya some ointment to promote blood circulation and reduce bruising, along with a few instructions.
Zhu Yaya and Yan Heng left the infirmary.
As she left, Zhu Yaya caught her reflection in the infirmary's glass window. Her hair was messy, her face was dirty, and one side of her face was still swollen. She looked like such a mess!
So ugly!
Zhu Yaya glanced at the handsome Yan Heng beside her and silently smoothed out her hair.
"What's wrong?" Yan Heng noticed her little movement.
"Nothing," Zhu Yaya shook her head.
They were on their way to Class One of the tenth grade.
Zhu Yaya recalled how she had just stood there crying when that middle-aged woman slapped her. She had truly been spoiled rotten by Zhu Jianjun and Zhao Jing. If this had happened before she transmigrated into this book, she would have just slapped the woman right back without shedding a single tear.
Feeling a bit down, she asked Yan Heng, "Am I not strong enough? All I did just now was cry."
Yan Heng patted her head. "I'm here. So, you don't need to be strong. You can just be a little crybaby."
Zhu Yaya's heart fluttered, but she didn't show it on her face. She just gave a soft hmph, "You're the crybaby!"
The old Zhu Yaya had to be strong because she knew that no one else would protect her from malicious harm. She could only pretend to be tough. No girl was born indestructible. But now, she had parents who loved her and a boy who protected her. Whenever she was hurt, they would recklessly stand in front of her to block all the malice.
When they reached Class One, Xu Baoying looked at Zhu Yaya's slightly less swollen face and breathed a sigh of relief. "You should go to the homeroom teacher's office! Your dad seems to be here."
"Okay," Zhu Yaya nodded.
The bell for the fourth period had just rung. Zhu Yaya looked up at Yan Heng. He had already missed the third period to accompany her to the infirmary.
"Yan Heng, you should go back to your class first," Zhu Yaya said after a moment of hesitation.
"Do I need to?" Yan Heng's simple rhetorical question successfully shut down Zhu Yaya's persuasion.
That seemed true; Yan Heng never really paid attention in class anyway.
Defeated, Zhu Yaya had no choice but to let him continue escorting her to the teacher's office.
The office was usually quiet during class time, but right now, it was filled with the shouts and curses of that middle-aged woman.
Zhu Yaya knocked on the door. After hearing Chang Wen say a tired "Come in," she pushed the door open and entered. Yan Heng walked in first, stepping in front of Zhu Yaya to carefully shield her.
Zhu Yaya felt a wave of warmth in her heart.
Zhu Jianjun was indeed there. His face was ashen with anger as he stood opposite the middle-aged woman. Since transmigrating into the book, Zhu Yaya had never seen him like this. Chen Zicheng was standing next to his mother with his head bowed. Hearing the door open, he jerked his head up, but upon seeing Zhu Yaya, he awkwardly averted his gaze.
When Zhu Jianjun saw the injury on Zhu Yaya's face, the fury in his eyes intensified. Suppressing his anger for a moment, he walked over to Zhu Yaya and looked at her swollen left cheek with deep heartache. "Yaya, does it still hurt?"
"Just a little bit," Zhu Yaya comforted him. "Don't worry, Dad, I'm fine."
"How can you be fine? Your mother and I have never laid a finger on you. Yet now, someone has beaten our precious daughter like this." Zhu Jianjun's expression grew even darker.
"Tch! She's nothing but a money-losing burden anyway!" Chen Zicheng's mother scoffed, her eyes full of disdain.
