Chapter 24: Chapter 24

“Yeah, a society governed by law.”

“So don’t worry, Tongzi. Your host here would never stoop to murder for money.” An Ning smiled sweetly.

Please, with that kind of guarantee, it only made Tongzi more uneasy.

Although she had gone from a soft and comfortable sandalwood canopy bed to a hard and creaky little broken bed, it was a relief that the original body had long since gotten used to it.

In any case, An Ning slept soundly that night. The only one restless was the little dog inside her spiritual sea, who, subconsciously worried about his host’s virtue, barely closed his eyes.

It wasn’t until early the next morning, when Tongzi saw Lu Huaimin at the breakfast table looking pale but otherwise unharmed, that he finally let out a sigh of relief.

Sure enough, his host was just all talk on the surface—a genuinely good university student deep down!

With this in mind, the system conveniently forgot how in her previous life this “good host” had quietly ruined her former scumbag father.

Jiang Yuhua, busy serving rice beside them, also wore an unpleasant expression but dared not say much.

Lu Huaimin was nearing forty, with slender eyes, a high nose bridge, and neatly dressed in a gray-blue Zhongshan suit, looking quite refined. Because of years spent in an office, his build was not tall or strong. But no one in the family dared to cross this ill-omened man.

An Ning wasn’t surprised by this. She quietly chewed on the freshly steamed cornmeal bun in her hand as if nothing was wrong.

From the original body’s memories, it was clear that although Jiang Yuhua managed the household day-to-day, when trouble arose, this stepmother was nothing at all.

In this family, the one who truly ruled was always Lu Huaimin alone.

No wonder Jiang Yuhua depended entirely on men for work and lacked confidence!

That was why the original body hated her so much!

Looking at this whole family, An Ning couldn’t help but think: someone born in the countryside with no backing, managing to reach a director position at this age—could he be an idiot?

Did this man really not see through the tricks of the woman beside him?

Maybe not, An Ning thought. He probably just thought his daughter wasn’t worth fighting with Jiang Yuhua over.

Perhaps he even thought the original body useless for getting ruined over such a minor issue—not worth the trouble.

Forcing down the thin porridge in her bowl, An Ning silently stood, imitating the original body’s behavior. She picked up her schoolbag and prepared to leave. Before stepping out the door, she saw Lu Huaimin sternly advising his younger son, Lu Xu:

“These days, the schools are chaotic. Don’t get involved in the mess. If things go wrong, run home early or come to the factory to find me...”

He sounded like a good father, but in fact, girls like An Ning had to be even more careful in such a turbulent time.

Looking at Lu Qing’s equally grim face nearby, An Ning’s eyes flickered involuntarily.

“System, can you check if the younger brother Lu Xu and that scumbag father have any blood relation?”

“Huh? But when Lu Xu was born, wasn’t Lu Qing’s father still around?”

“Host, why do you want to check this?”

Despite the words, used to her host’s style, the system answered honestly: “I can check, but you need hair or blood samples from both people. Without any testing equipment purchased, each check costs three points.”

“Forget it then! It’s not important anyway!”

Hearing the price, An Ning decisively waved her hand, rejecting the system’s offer without hesitation.

Come on, her maximum points per mission were only 100; spending 3 out of 100 just once? No way!

Besides, she was only curious just now. After all, someone as cunning and selfish as Lu Huaimin wouldn’t care so much about a son who wasn’t his own.

She simply didn’t believe it.

But whether true or not wouldn’t affect her plans later, so she didn’t dwell on it. Thinking of the younger father’s expression this morning, An Ning couldn’t help but smirk.

She detoured to the nearby state-run store and bought three piping-hot big meat buns. Taking advantage of putting down her bag, she tossed two into her spatial storage, then slowly shouldered her bag and headed to school.

Jiang Yuhua put on a good face as a stepmother, at least for now she still had some petty cash on hand.

As for the black market, she wouldn’t go unless absolutely necessary.

No kidding, the big meat buns at this time were really honest—large and packed with filling. Along the way, they did a great job soothing An Ning’s stomach, which had been wronged ever since she arrived.

The original body’s high school was City No.1 High School, different from Lu Qing’s No.3 High School. It could be said it was currently the best high school in Kun City. Unfortunately, the original body was unlucky. Shortly after entering, the movement came, and the university was canceled.

Sitting in her seat, looking at her neat notes with elegant handwriting, An Ning couldn’t help but feel pity for the original girl.

In such a suffocating environment, the original body still managed these grades—what perseverance.

Even at night, with such resilience, this girl was at least a university candidate, not someone doomed to bury her head day after day in the fields, doing exhausting farm work with no hope of a future.

But since the original body was so capable, it made things easier for An Ning.

After running through the class situation in her mind, An Ning quickly formed a plan.

Lu Huaimin was partly right—universities were unstable now, and even City No.1 High School was no exception.

An Ning hadn’t come early today, but even now, only a sparse few students were in class. Of course, this might be because graduation was near, and everyone was either letting loose or busy job hunting.

After all, there was no college entrance exam this year. Under these circumstances, the school dared not withhold diplomas.

The teacher who came to class was clearly not surprised by this situation. Looking down at the nearly empty seats, her expression didn’t change. She picked up the textbook and started reading as usual.

But today, An Ning wasn’t listening attentively as before. Instead, she kept her head down, calculating something nonstop on scrap paper.

As one of the few obedient students still studying seriously, it wasn’t surprising that An Ning’s unusual behavior quickly caught the teacher’s attention.

Knowing this student was usually shy, Ye Jingshu waited until class ended before approaching.

“Student Lu An Ning...”

The young female teacher was about to say something when she was drawn to the formula An Ning was writing.

Ye Jingshu instinctively held her breath.

Watching as one equation after another was solved, the originally quiet teacher almost couldn’t hold back a scream.

An Ning seemed completely unaware, lost in her own world, occasionally furrowing her brows to think for a moment, until finally the last step of the equation was solved in an unprecedented way.

Only then did the girl look enlightened, a glow appearing even on her usually pale and sullen face beneath thick bangs.

Unfortunately, Ye Jingshu had no time for anything else. This was the last class of the day. Seeing An Ning preparing to pack up and leave, Ye Jingshu hurriedly called out:

“Student Lu An Ning, please wait!”