Chapter 62 It Was Dead Silent
Yang Rong had been recuperating in City A. While she could speak, she still wasn’t strong enough to walk herself from one point to another. Meng Yangimmediately dropped off all of his things to accompany her all the way to the auditorium.
While they were at the front, Yao Tang and the others stood backstage at the Student Activity Center. They watched the scene through the school’s surveillance footage.
From there, she could see that Yang Rong was slowly stepping onto the stage. She shouldn’t have been here. Yao Tang’s face was as cold as ice. If looks could kill, the entire population would’ve plummeted into hell. Her fists were clenched to her sides, with her fingers buried deep into her skin. A little stronger, and she might even draw blood.
“Hello, everyone,” she announced. “My name is Yang Rong.”
All the parents in the front row frowned in dissatisfaction. “Why did the school send some girl up here? Is this another one of their tricks
that’s final!” one screamed, and the others nodded and echoed him in agreement. There was another woman who stood up, dressed in such formal attire. It was none other than Ruan Qing’s mother, Xu Hui. “We want that girl expelled, do you hear me?” she snapped. “Let her come out and apologize to us herself. If she really were a sensible child, she’d understand the complications of her decision.”
“But she hasn’t done anything wrong.” Yang Rong smiled. Unlike Yao Tang, there was no coldness in her eyes as she faced the crowd before her. “So why should she apologize? She hasn’t broken any of the school rules either, so why should the school expel her?” “You dare talk back to us?” Xu Hui sneered. “I don’t care how ‘reasonable’ you look, you still shouldn’t question the judgment of your elders. Besides, a bad apple would always be a rotten apple. Do you believe that this…monster can do any good in society?”
“Yao Tang isn’t a bad student; quite on the contrary, she’s a good, kind-hearted person.”
The girl’s eyes were as firm as they were calm, as if the fates themselves were bestowing their protection onto her.
Despite this, Xu Hui’s harsh features still hadn’t changed. “Don’t talk nonsense with me here – look at what she’s done! She shouldn’t have gone to this school in the first place. She should be locked up – that’s where she needs to be!”
Yang Rong gripped the cuffs of her sleeves. She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself. However, even she couldn’t hide her cool gaze. “Yao Tanghas always been incredibly strong for a girl her age. Yes, she had hit someone. Yes, he’s paralyzed from the waist down. But if she hadn’t done that – if she hadn’t… I would’ve died.”
What? The audience gasped audibly.
Yao Tang had paralyzed a man from the waist down to save this girl?
“What do you mean by this?” Xu Hui stared at the girl. “Are you trying to make up some story to gain our sympathy?” “I wish it was just a story.” Shaking her head, the young girl reached out and motioned to her stomach. “My bladder is artificial. Almost all of my anorectal organs are. I had to wear a stool bag until I was fourteen. It had taken numerous surgeries to get where I am today.”
Xu Hui widened her eyes in surprise.
Even the other parents were silent as they stared blankly at the young girl.
No one would be foolish enough to make up such a miserable story.
“I don’t know if anyone has heard the case a few years ago – of a girl who’s been abused by a middle-aged man.”
She took a deep breath, trying to steady her trembling lips. Pursing her lips, she continued, “That little girl was me. I was… on the verge of death, seeing my life flash before my eyes. It was Yao Tang who had saved me, and that middle-aged man – well, he’s the one who deserved to be in the mental care facility.”
Yang Rong’s face became paler and paler, and her shaking became more evident. Despite this, she still spoke, “That’s why Yao Tang had hit him. She was trying to save me. She was five years old, but she’s done something that no one had done before – helped me.”
There was dead silence backstage.
Even Cheng Yan was speechless. He had heard of this case before, remembering how shocked and furious he had been.
That asshole was mentally ill, so the sentence he had received wasn’t as severe. Everyone was outraged, protesting his death sentence.
It was because of this that more politicians had proposed the drafting of new regulations, that no one would be exempted from the law ever again. It was different now. Now, there was no trace of the case even if they had tried digging into the data themselves. It had all been deleted to protect Yang Rong’s reputation.
Yao Tang breathed heavily.
Yang Rong’s voice felt like hands dragging her back to her nightmare. She could still see the thin girl lying on the ground, with skin scarred and battered. She clenched her fists.
“Later, I was discharged and sent to school. You have no idea how many times I’ve been teased, beaten, harassed – it was Yao Tang who had hit them, those bullies. She protected me. If it hadn’t been for her, I’d…” Her eyes were already dark red from all the unshed tears. “I don’t know what I’d do without her.”