NOVEL NEXT Chapter 408: You're Called Yu Li?
The square was already crowded with people by now.
Jiang Xi and Limu were surrounded by children, with other caregivers and players forming the outermost circle.
When Aunt Lin arrived, she saw drawing boards scattered across the lawn, though the papers themselves were nowhere to be found.
Her expression darkened almost imperceptibly as her gaze swept over Jiang Xi's face.
"You're called Jiang Xi? What exactly happened here?"
Sensing the woman's anger, Jiang Xi shrunk her neck slightly and glanced at Hou Liang before answering softly, "I didn't do anything. I just wanted to look at their drawings. I had just walked over when they suddenly got excited..."
Aunt Lin immediately spoke sternly, "When assigning tasks earlier, I specifically mentioned the precautions, which included maintaining quiet and not disturbing the children. I told you to stay outside. Why did you go in? How could you mess up such a simple task?"
The scolding came like a tidal wave, and Jiang Xi's face turned pale as she unconsciously clenched her fists.
In real life, she had always been the model student praised by teachers and admired by classmates. Everyone said she was reliable and steady, and she had never made mistakes before.
Why was this happening?
She bit her lip and lowered her head to apologize softly, "I'm sorry, I just..."
Out of the corner of her eye, she suddenly caught sight of Yu Li standing at the very edge of the crowd, and her words of apology stuck in her throat.
Jiang Xi froze for a moment before realizing others had gathered around without her noticing. The humiliation grew even more intense, her fingertips digging into her palms.
Making mistakes was bad enough, but to be seen by them—especially Yu Li...
Limu, standing nearby, suddenly spoke calmly, "I don't think this is entirely Jiang Xi's fault. The children were drawing her, and not just one or two. If you wanted us to serve as models, you should have told us from the start."
Aunt Lin sneered, "I thought you were going to say something meaningful. Who knew you'd be so concerned about your portrait rights? If that's the case, why even volunteer? You have no patience for the children at all."
The situation seemed to be spiraling out of control.
Hou Liang frowned at this and quickly spoke up in their defense, "Aunt Lin, I think there's a misunderstanding. They already know they were wrong. Weren't they just trying to stop the children from eating the paper?"
The woman ignored his words and instead gave him a cold glance. "Then let me ask you—who caused the children to eat the paper in the first place?"
"Uh..."
As they argued, Hao Lan, standing nearby, curled his lips and scanned the crowd for Yu Li.
At that moment, a woman's amused voice suddenly cut through the air.
"Making a mistake is making a mistake. Trying to justify it is pointless."
The words immediately drew most people's attention.
Yu Li stood among the crowd, propping her chin lazily, a faint smile on her lips. Her tone was indifferent. "Mistakes deserve punishment. In my opinion, they should be made to do all the remaining work as penalty."
Aunt Lin's gaze lingered on her briefly before shifting away as if nothing had happened. "Have you finished your tasks?"
Yu Li smiled slightly at her. "Of course not."
In fact, she and Huang Ya hadn't done any of it.
"..."
The woman said meaningfully, "You sure know how to arrange benefits for yourself."
Her tone wasn't exactly gentle, but it wasn't mocking either.
Jiang Xi's eyes darkened, her lips pressed tightly together.
Why was Aunt Lin so much more lenient with Yu Li?
She raised her head, her voice slightly hoarse. "I'm willing to accept the punishment."
Since the person involved was willing, Aunt Lin didn't say anything more, merely giving Jiang Xi a brief glance. "Then it's settled."
As the crowd dispersed, Yu Li's gaze met Jiang Xi's from across the lawn.
The woman curved her eyes in a smile, lips parting slightly as she silently mouthed two words.
—"Thank you."
Jiang Xi instantly clenched her fists, her expression turning ugly.
Hou Liang walked up to her and comforted her, "It's not all bad. This gives us more time to search for clues outside. I found a place that seems suspicious. Let's discuss it with Uncle Yuan and see what to do."
There was nothing else they could do.
Though resentful, Jiang Xi could only nod in agreement.
Limu stared at Yu Li's retreating figure, lost in thought.
Jiang Xi noticed her gaze and asked, "What are you looking at?"
"Yu Li," Limu replied calmly. "Xing Yuan mentioned you have issues with her and want to deal with her. Is that true?"
The question caught both of them off guard.
After a moment of thought, Jiang Xi suddenly countered, "Don't you think she's hostile toward us?"
Limu blinked slowly.
Hostility?
She didn't sense any such emotion. On the contrary, every time she locked eyes with Yu Li, the woman always looked back at her with a relaxed smile, as if eagerly anticipating her next move.
But this was Xing Yuan's order.
So Limu answered, "Yes, I sense hostility."
Because sensing hostility justified acting against Yu Li.
Xin Hao, watching this scene through the live feed, felt his eyelids twitch. Sure enough, in the next moment, several team members suddenly requested to leave the group.
Then came a few more withdrawal requests.
The constant pings nearly drowned out the voices of the players on screen.
His gaze froze. This was only natural—no one wanted to oppose Limu. And now that Yu Li had become Limu's publicly declared enemy, X would inevitably be dragged into it.
No one would question the words of the top-ranked player. Once spoken, everything Yu Li did would be maliciously twisted.
Remembering what the woman had told him not long ago, he let out an almost inaudible sigh.
Whatever. None of this mattered anyway.
Wasn't this exactly the effect Yu Li wanted?
......
As the crowd dispersed, Huang Ya was still basking in the joy of not having to work when she suddenly heard a familiar voice call out from behind.
"Huang Ya!!"
She turned, her eyes brightening. "Hao Lan! What are you doing here? Yu Li-jie was just about to go look for you!"
But seeing him alone, she couldn't help but feel puzzled.
"Why are you by yourself? Where's Brother Bai?"
Hao Lan ran up to them, panting slightly.
"I came to tell you about that—Brother Bai went to a house—"
*Smack.*
Before he could finish, Yu Li suddenly pressed a firm hand on his shoulder.
Her grip wasn't strong, but it carried a clear warning.
Hao Lan froze mid-sentence, instinctively swallowing his words.
The next second, an elderly woman's voice sounded from behind.
"You're called Yu Li? Come with me."
Turning around, they saw Aunt Lin standing not far away.
Her eyes narrowed slightly as she studied Yu Li's face. "There's something I'd like to discuss with you."
Yu Li raised her hand, casually brushing off invisible dust from Hao Lan's shoulder before slowly lifting her gaze to meet the woman's. A faint smile played on her lips.
"Of course, Aunt Lin."