Chapter 136: Plan of Action (1)
They eventually arrived at a room unfamiliar to him. The space was filled with an array of personal belongings, each item speaking of its occupant's life and preferences. Yasushi's eyes roamed over the cluttered desk, the neatly arranged bookshelves, and the various trinkets scattered about.
"Is this your personal room?" Yasushi asked, puzzled. The setting was a far cry from the usual monitoring rooms he was accustomed to, designed for surveillance and gathering intelligence.
"Sort of," Anfeng replied, a hint of amusement in her voice. "This is my personal office. As the current head maid of the Yang family, I'm afforded certain privileges. Yinhaie didn't have much use for it when she was in this position, but she did utilize it when Lady Jingliu or Master Liang Yang needed something."
With a practiced grace, Anfeng settled into a chair, her posture relaxed yet authoritative. Yasushi moved to stand behind her, casting a sidelong glance at the computer monitor in front of them. As Anfeng began her work, her fingers danced over the keyboard with precision, inputting commands and data with a speed that made her look like a character straight out of a tech thriller.
Anfeng navigated to a folder on her computer and pulled up a collection of images and videos. She selected one, and the screen flickered to life. The footage displayed Zihan and her group in the act of tormenting students — an all-too-familiar scene for Yasushi, who had already suspected their involvement.
"This footage is from the past, right? They did claim they wanted to change and started apologizing to everyone they wronged," Yasushi said, his eyes fixed on the screen.
Anfeng's voice carried a hint of disdain as she responded, "Yes, but even if they've started feeling remorse, it doesn't undo their actions. To me, they remain nothing more than troublemakers."
Yasushi kept his focus on the screen, despite the unsettling content. He couldn't help but question how they had obtained these videos but chose not to voice his thoughts. The footage was disturbing — Zihan and her group were seen forcing their victims' heads into toilet water and pressing their faces against animal excrement.
The video ended, and another clip began almost immediately. This new footage showed a student, helpless and stripped bare, crawling on all fours across the school grounds. His eyes were covered with a blindfold, rendering him unable to see the taunting faces of his tormentors. Despite the harshness of the scene, no one stepped in to help him. The teachers present in the footage looked on with apparent worry but did nothing to intervene.
Following the video, a series of photos appeared on the screen. The images were strikingly similar in content, featuring Zihan and her group. They were seen posing and laughing as they taunted their victims, their expressions a mix of mockery and satisfaction. Yasushi's stomach churned as he absorbed the sight.
While he had heard of severe bullying in some Asian countries, this level of cruelty was shocking. His experiences with bullying in the United Kingdom had typically resulted in fights that led to either avoidance or reconciliation. This, however, was an entirely different and more grotesque level of violence and humiliation.
"When was the last time they engaged in this sort of behavior?" Yasushi's voice was low and edged with tension.
Anfeng, recognizing the gravity of Yasushi's distress, responded, "We're uncertain about the exact timing, but their reputation for cruelty is well-known in the area. I'll need to investigate further."
"Please do. Let me know by tomorrow since our plans are currently on hold, and I wanted to gather information from Yinhaie about them," Yasushi said, his tone leaving no room for argument. Anfeng nodded in acknowledgment.
Before Anfeng could add anything else, Yasushi exited the room abruptly. She sighed softly and turned her attention back to her monitor. As she scanned the screen, her gaze fell on the floor, where she noticed unexpected bloodstains. Concerned, she pulled up the live feed from her camera, also positioned in her room, and saw Yasushi clenching his fist so tightly that blood trickled down his hand.
"Is it really possible to cause such injury from just seeing something like this? I understand extreme cases of distress, but this…" she mused aloud, her voice filled with incredulity. After closing the footage, she set about cleaning the blood stains, her mind still preoccupied with Yasushi's reaction.
+-+
"Haa…I'm not sure how you managed this, but it's something you really shouldn't have done, Yasushi," Yunxue admonished softly as she cleaned the small cut on his hand.
As Yasushi walked back to his shared room with Jingliu, he encountered Yunxue, along with a few other maids and butlers. Yunxue had noticed his injury and had taken it upon herself to tend to it.
"Emotions can get the best of us, you know? Haha…" Yasushi attempted to downplay the situation with a forced chuckle, but Yunxue's gaze remained stern and unyielding.
"Please don't try to justify it," she said firmly, her tone brooking no argument. "Whatever caused you to hurt yourself doesn't excuse the act. You need to take care of yourself."
With that, she methodically cleaned and bandaged his wound. Yasushi managed a weary smile and responded, "Alright, alright. I'll keep your advice in mind and try to be more careful."
"Mhm," Yunxue acknowledged as she finished bandaging his hand. Yasushi offered his thanks before heading back to his room with Jingliu.
When Yasushi arrived at their shared quarters, Jingliu's gaze immediately fell on the bandage wrapped around his hand. "What happened to your hand?" she asked, concern lacing her voice.
"It's… nothing. Don't worry about it," Yasushi replied dismissively, but Jingliu's unwavering look made it clear that she wasn't buying his explanation. With a resigned sigh, Yasushi began recounting the events to her.
As he detailed the footage and the impact it had on him, Jingliu let out a deep sigh of her own. "That's why I kept quiet about it back then. I knew what they were capable of, and it seemed too abrupt for them to change so drastically. I thought they might be putting on an act just to unsettle me."
Yasushi sat down next to her, his expression darkening. "And maybe they only pretended to reform to mess with us during the haunted house," he said, his frown deepening as he considered the implications.
"I guess my instincts were off this time," Yasushi said, glancing at the bandage on his hand. "They didn't fail me much in the past, but maybe age is catching up with me."
Jingliu looked at him with a hint of bewilderment. "You're only seventeen, soon to be eighteen. Stop acting like you're ancient." She gave him a gentle nudge on the shoulder, causing a faint smile to appear on Yasushi's face.
"So, what's the plan for tomorrow, considering you extended our tour of the haunted house by an extra day?" Jingliu inquired, her tone curious.
Yasushi took a moment to think before responding. "I've asked Anfeng and possibly Yinhaie to dig into their past and see what they've been up to lately. We should have some information by tomorrow. I'm also planning to have some of the other staff keep an eye on them to uncover their real intentions. After that, I want to turn the tables and give them a taste of their own medicine. A little shock therapy might be just what they need."
Jingliu exhaled slowly, her gaze distant. "So, that's the direction things are headed from now on, huh?"
Without much thought, Yasushi replied, "Yeah, and that's how we'll handle our children's future partners as well. I want a thorough background check on them, ensuring that they and their families are upstanding."
Jingliu's eyes widened, and a silence fell between them as Yasushi realized the weight of his words. She stared at him, her expression a mix of surprise and embarrassment. Her cheeks flushed a deep red, and she lowered her head, struggling to find her voice. "D-don't you think that's a bit excessive?"
Yasushi was momentarily at a loss for words. He had expected a variety of questions, but this one left him caught off guard. After a few seconds of trying to find the right response, he finally managed to stammer, "N-no…?"
A quiet moment settled between them before Jingliu's laughter broke the silence. Yasushi's chuckles joined hers, and soon they were both sprawled across their bed, their laughter echoing through the room for several minutes. The tension that had lingered between them began to dissipate.
"You're already talking about kids?" Jingliu teased, resting a hand on his chest. "Isn't it a bit early for that?"
"I was speaking about the long term. It's not harmful to consider what-if scenarios, especially given the nature of our families," Yasushi responded, his tone light but earnest. Jingliu nodded in agreement.
"You're right. Given the prominence of our families and their influence, their areas of work and potential impacts on the world over the coming years could be substantial. Our family names will certainly gain recognition, and who knows what kind of people might try to involve themselves in our lives," she said, her voice thoughtful.
"Still," Jingliu began, rolling onto Yasushi's stomach and gazing down at him with a gentle smile and a hint of pink on her cheeks, "we've talked about this before. Children… hypothetically speaking, how many would you like?"
Yasushi took a moment to consider her question before responding. "Maybe two? Ideally, a girl and a boy. A bit of sibling rivalry might be good for them, and they'd have each other for companionship. I want them to be friends."
Jingliu's eyes softened as she listened to his reasoning. She found herself in agreement, her thoughts mirroring his. Having spent much of her childhood alone, she understood the value of having siblings. Her past experiences, especially the strained relationship with her grandparents, had made her wary of many things, including relationships. Yet, as she listened to Yasushi, she felt her perspective shift. She was beginning to embrace the idea of family and connections in a new light.
The young couple drifted into lighter, more relaxed conversation as the evening progressed. They spoke about mundane topics and shared light-hearted anecdotes, gradually shaking off the earlier heaviness.
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
Haruki_Murakami
Haruki_Murakami "Zhongguo chengxian, renren you" - Chinese proverb
"In a prosperous country, everyone has something."
Meaning: In a thriving society, everyone benefits.
Weekly Power Status
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Ranking 
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