âDid you call the police?â Wu Hao sat up abruptly from the bed and demanded, âOn what grounds did you call the police? Iâm the one who got injured the most. The doctor said my leg and foot might take a year to recover. Itâs all because of that annoying woman. If it werenât for her, I wouldnât have been hurt so badly.â
Tan Rou remained calm as ever, crossing her legs and leaning back in her chair, quietly listening to Wu Haoâs complaints against Li Li. Once Wu Hao had finished, she then spoke.
â500,000, not a penny less.â Tan Rou said with a gentle smile, âYour relatives have already been taken away by the police. If you want them out earlier, hurry up and pay the compensation. After that, Iâll explain to the police that this was all a misunderstanding so that theyâll release your relatives sooner.â
Wu Hao looked towards the doorway and then called his dad, but nobody answered. So he tried calling his mom. She did answer, but she was crying as soon as she picked up the phone.
âSon, something terrible has happened. The police have taken your dad away,â Wu Haoâs mother said between sobs.
Wu Haoâs first reaction wasnât concern that his dad had been taken away by the police, but whether his dad and the others had taught Li Li a lesson.
Wu Haoâs mother cried even harder. âHow could you be so heartless? Your father has been taken away by the police, and all you care about is whether he did what you asked. It breaks my heart.â
Wu Hao said impatiently, âMom, can you stop crying? Every time you cry, it really annoys me. Besides, what else can you do apart from crying? Can you do something actually helpful?â
Wu Haoâs words enraged his mother. She scolded him, âYou heartless child, we regret having you!â
Wu Hao didnât want to listen anymore and hung up the phone.
Wu Haoâs cousin asked, âHao Hao, whatâs going on? Did something happen to Uncle and the others?â
Wu Hao glared at her without saying a word.
Tan Rou was short on time and couldnât keep waiting for Wu Hao to lose his temper, so she spoke up to remind him, âHow do you plan to pay the money? In installments or all at once?â
Anger surged in Wu Haoâs heart, and he grabbed a piece of fruit from nearby and hurled it at Tan Rou, âI wonât pay anything!â
Tan Rou didnât dodge. She sat there straight as a piece of cantaloupe hit her squarely.
Wu Hao was somewhat pleased, âNot bad, my aim is quite good, got it in one shot.â
Tan Rou brushed the cantaloupe off of herself and then said, âYou were the first one to act again, this time.â
Wu Hao replied, âYou could throw the cantaloupe back at me.â
Tan Rou stood up, picked up the cantaloupe from the floor, and walked over to Wu Haoâs bedside, saying, âThank you for offering me the cantaloupe, but I donât like it, so I might as well give it back to you.â
Before Wu Hao and his cousin could react, Tan Rou grabbed Wu Haoâs chin with one hand and started stuffing cantaloupe into his mouth with the other. Wu Hao tried to push Tan Rouâs hand away, but she didnât give him the chance, pressing on several of his pressure points until he couldnât move.
Seeing her brother being treated like this, Wu Haoâs cousin immediately came over to intervene, âLet go of him!â
Tan Rouâs eyes shifted, pushing away Wu Haoâs cousin, then continued to stuff fruit into Wu Haoâs mouth. Everyone else in the same room was stupefied, wondering what was happening. Wasnât there anyone to intervene?
The on-duty doctor had already seen the situation through the surveillance but didnât dare to intervene; after all, Tan Rou was the hospital directorâs business partnerâwho would risk offending her?
As for Wu Hao, one could only say he brought this upon himself. If he hadnât gone looking for trouble with others, how could they have come to deal with him like this?
âCough, cough, cough.â The time had come, and the police entered the room. Upon entering, they saw Tan Rou feeding Wu Hao fruit, and he didnât seem to want to eat it. The officer couldnât directly stop Tan Rou but instead coughed twice as a reminder.
Tan Rou stopped and said with a smile, âOfficer, this student here asked me to feed him fruit. He promised that if I did, heâd never bother my friend again. For my friendâs sake, I had to do this.â
Wu Hao couldnât speak, but his cousin could, âDonât listen to her nonsense, sheâs the one insisting on stuffing fruit into my brotherâs mouth!â