Chapter 27: Xiang Yu knew that there would be no peaceful resolution today.

Xiang Fuqiang had a bit more sense than his wife. He hurriedly grabbed Li Meilan’s arm and said, "Wait, let me ask her again."

Li Meilan finally stopped, though she still hurled a few vicious curses to vent her anger.

Xiang Yu watched her parents—a match made in hell—with cold eyes. One was hot-tempered, impulsive, greedy, and favored sons over daughters. The other had a modicum of intelligence and a softer disposition, yet was just as greedy and prejudiced. She saw right through them.

Xiang Fuqiang pointed a stern finger at Xiang Yu. "Tell me clearly about the time you met your classmate. Which classmate was it?" He figured he could surely find a loophole in her story.

Xiang Yu, determined to keep Zhang Xiaoyan’s family out of this, spoke calmly and steadily, recounting the lie she had prepared. "We met on the main street. It wasn't just my classmate; there were several elderly people from their village walking with us. We lied and said we were asking for information for someone else, and we bought each of them two apples. Only then did they start talking, one after another."

Her version was completely different from Ye Nuanxin’s. With so many people involved, it would be difficult to verify. Now, it was just a matter of whether they chose to believe Ye Nuanxin or their own daughter.

Xiang Fuqiang squinted at Xiang Yu. He decided that Ye Nuanxin’s motives didn't matter; for the sake of the 260,000 yuan, it was worth believing her for now, beating Xiang Yu, and trying to scare the truth out of her. He turned to Li Meilan and gave her a signal.

Xiang Yu caught the look immediately and sensed the danger, bracing herself.

Li Meilan realized what was happening, raised a stick, and charged at Xiang Yu with a howl, "I’ll beat the lies out of you, you little liar!"

Xiang Yu darted into her room and bolted the door. Li Meilan, now even more furious, ignored everything else and began pounding on the door with the stick.

Xiang Yu knew that things could not be resolved peacefully today; appealing to reason or family affection was utterly useless. Her parents were determined to break her resolve to force through Xiang Di’s marriage. The lure of the 260,000 yuan had stripped them of their humanity, making them willing to sacrifice both daughters.

After a quick calculation, Xiang Yu stuffed her books and a change of clothes into her backpack, opened the window, and climbed out. Once outside, she ran toward the town.

Ye Nuanxin had been secretly monitoring the Xiang household. Though she was too far away to know the details, she was the first to notice Xiang Yu running off. However, no one followed her.

Ye Nuanxin slipped over to take a look and found Li Meilan still banging on the old wooden door and cursing, while Xiang Fuqiang stood by, threatening Xiang Yu. Ye Nuanxin rolled her eyes. These idiots couldn't even handle Xiang Yu; the girl had already escaped, yet they were still there, half-heartedly hitting the door, unwilling to put any real effort into breaking it. It was a flimsy wooden door, yet they couldn't even bring themselves to use enough force. It was infuriating.

"Uncle Xiang, what are you doing? How did Xiang Yu manage to run off with her backpack?" Ye Nuanxin asked, feigning ignorance.

The couple turned with dark expressions, ran to the back window, and saw that she was indeed gone.

She had run away again.

Xiang Fuqiang and his wife were fuming, gasping for air. It felt as though two pigs ready for the market had suddenly vanished, and a mountain of cash was waving goodbye to them. Overcome with rage and anxiety, Li Meilan collapsed to the ground.

Xiang Fuqiang was startled and rushed to help her up. Ye Nuanxin, not caring whether they lived or died, goaded them, "Xiang Yu is running on foot. If you rent a motorcycle, you can definitely catch her."

Li Meilan felt a spark of clarity return. Supporting herself on Xiang Fuqiang, she stood up. "Go, call a motorcycle, and take me with you to chase her."

Xiang Fuqiang was still worried about her. "Why don't I go alone? You should stay home."

Li Meilan waved a chubby hand. "No, I’m going to catch that wretched girl myself."