Su Yiling walked to the teacher's office with measured steps, her expression calm despite the storm brewing in her mind. Teacher Wang looked up from his desk as she approached, his eyebrows rising slightly at her unexpected appearance.
"I need to request leave for this afternoon," she said, placing a neatly written permission slip on his desk. "Family matter."
Teacher Wang studied the form, then glanced at her face. Su Yiling's academic record was impeccable, and she'd never caused any trouble. He signed the slip without question.
"Be careful on your way home," he said, handing it back to her.
Su Yiling nodded and walked out of the school gates, but she didn't head toward home. Instead, she made her way to the bus station, her schoolbag slung over one shoulder and her mind already working through the details of what she needed to accomplish.
She had wanted to be reactive by responding to Aunt Li's moves rather than making her own. But no, she is irritated and annoyed by that fly, Su Meilan, so she would strike first.
The bus to Qingshan District was crowded with afternoon commuters and elderly passengers heading to the rural outskirts. Su Yiling found a seat near the back and stared out the window as the city gradually gave way to smaller buildings and patches of farmland.
She knew exactly who she was looking for.
Song Wei. Li Ran's former personal assistant, now living quietly in Qingshan District with her teenage daughter, Song Qing. In her previous life, Su Yiling had only learned about Song Wei after it was too late, after the woman's suicide had made brief headlines but were quickly suppressed by Li Ran's media connections.
But Song Wei had information that could destroy Aunt Li's carefully constructed image. Information that Su Yiling intended to use.
The bus lurched to a stop at Qingshan Village, and Su Yiling stepped off into the humid afternoon air. The village was small, with narrow roads lined by modest concrete houses and small shops. She had memorized the address from news reports she'd found buried in internet archives during her late-night research sessions.
Building 7, Unit 3, Apartment 201.
Su Yiling was halfway down a quiet street when she heard voices ahead - loud, aggressive, distinctly male.
"Come on, don't be like this. We're just trying to be friendly."
"Yeah, friendly. Your mom owes money, right? Maybe we can work something out."
Su Yiling quickened her pace and turned the corner to see three young men surrounding a girl about her own age. The girl had her back pressed against a concrete wall, her school bag clutched tightly against her chest.
Song Qing.
Even though she'd only seen old photos, Su Yiling recognized her immediately. The same delicate features, the same frightened expression she'd worn in every media interview after her mother's death.
"I told you, my mother doesn't owe anything to anyone," Song Qing said, her voice shaky but defiant.
"That's not what we heard," one of the men replied, stepping closer. He was older than the others, maybe in his mid-twenties, with the kind of predatory smile that made Su Yiling's hands curl into fists. "Word is your mom has been borrowing money."
"Maybe her debt can be paid by you, what do you think?" another one sneered, reaching out to touch Song Qing's hair.
Su Yiling had seen enough.
"Excuse me," she called out, her voice cutting through the afternoon air like ice.
The three men turned toward her, their expressions shifting from predatory amusement to irritation at the interruption.
"This doesn't concern you, little girl," the leader said dismissively. "Keep walking."
Su Yiling continued walking, but not away from them. Toward them.
"Actually," she said, her tone conversational, "I think it does concern me."
She stopped just outside their circle, close enough to act but far enough to assess the situation. All three men were bigger than her, but they had the soft look of petty thugs who relied more on intimidation than actual fighting.
"Song Qing," she said, looking directly at the frightened girl. "Your mother is Song Wei, right? Li Ran's former assistant?"
Song Qing's eyes widened with surprise and confusion. "How do you know my mother?"
"Because," Su Yiling said, never taking her eyes off the men, "I have some business with her."
The leader laughed harshly. "Business? What kind of business could a high school student have with-"
He never finished the sentence.
Su Yiling moved faster than any of them expected, her hand shooting out to grab the leader's wrist in a grip that made him gasp in pain. Years of martial arts training from her previous life hadn't disappeared with her rebirth.
"The kind of business," she said quietly, "that doesn't involve three grown men threatening a teenage girl."
"You little-" the second man started forward, but Su Yiling's free hand was already reaching into her bag.
"I wouldn't," she said calmly, pulling out her phone. "I've already recorded the last two minutes of your conversation. I wonder how your families would feel about seeing it online."
The men exchanged uncertain glances. They were bullies, but they weren't stupid enough to assault someone who was clearly documenting everything.
Su Yiling released the leader's wrist and took a step back, positioning herself between the men and Song Qing.
"I suggest you leave now," she said. "And if I hear about you bothering this family again, those recordings won't stay private."
The leader rubbed his wrist, his face flushed with anger and embarrassment. "This isn't over."
"Yes," Su Yiling replied calmly, "it is."
She held up her phone again, making it clear she was still recording, and the men finally backed down. They left with muttered curses and backward glances, but they left.
Song Qing slumped against the wall, her whole body shaking with relief.
"Thank you," she whispered. "I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't..."
"They were just trying to scare you," Su Yiling said, though they both knew it could have been much worse. "Are you hurt?"
Song Qing shook her head, then looked at Su Yiling with curious eyes. "You said you know my mother? But I've never seen you before."
"I know of her," Su Yiling corrected. "And I think she might want to hear what I have to say."
Song Qing hesitated, clearly torn between gratitude and wariness. "What kind of business?"
Su Yiling studied the girl's face. Song Qing was younger than her, maybe sixteen, with the kind of innocence that came from being protected from the worst aspects of her mother's past. In her previous life, that innocence had been shattered when Song Wei's secrets finally came to light.
"The kind that might help your family," Su Yiling said carefully. "Is your mother home?"
Song Qing bit her lip, uncertainty written across her features. But Su Yiling had just saved her from a potentially dangerous situation, and gratitude won out over caution.
"She's at home," Song Qing said finally. "But she doesn't like talking to strangers."
"Tell her," Su Yiling said, shouldering her bag, "that someone wants to discuss Li Ran."
The change in Song Qing's expression was immediate and dramatic. Her face went pale, and her eyes widened with something that looked like fear.
"You know about...?"
"I know about a lot of things," Su Yiling replied gently. "Things that your mother might want to hear."
Song Qing stared at her for a long moment, as if trying to determine whether Su Yiling was friend or foe. Finally, she nodded.
"Follow me," she said quietly.
They walked through the narrow streets in silence, Song Qing glancing nervously at Su Yiling every few steps. The apartment building was old but well-maintained, with small gardens visible through the windows of ground-floor units.
Song Qing stopped in front of a door on the second floor and fumbled for her keys.
"Mom," she called out as she opened the door. "Someone's here to see you."
The apartment was small but clean, decorated with simple furniture and family photos. A woman emerged from the kitchen, wiping her hands on a dish towel. She was in her early forties, with prematurely gray hair and the kind of tired eyes that spoke of years of worry.
Song Wei stopped short when she saw Su Yiling, her expression immediately becoming guarded.
"Qing'er, who is this?"
"She helped me," Song Qing explained quickly. "Some men were bothering me, and she made them leave. She says she wants to talk to you about..." Song Qing's voice dropped to a whisper. "About Li Ran."
The dish towel slipped from Song Wei's hands and fell to the floor.
For a moment, the apartment was completely silent. Then Song Wei's face hardened into the kind of expression Su Yiling recognized from her own mirror - the look of someone who had been hurt too deeply to trust easily.
"I don't know what you want," Song Wei said coldly, "but we don't have anything to say about that woman."
"I think you do," Su Yiling replied calmly. "And I think you've been waiting years for someone to ask the right questions."
Song Wei's eyes narrowed. "Who are you?"
Su Yiling looked around the modest apartment, taking in the carefully maintained dignity of people living on the margins and the subtle signs of a family that had once been more prosperous.
"I'm someone who knows what Li Ran did to you," she said quietly. "And I'm someone who can make sure she pays for it."