Chapter 10 : Plea

Bai Ruoxi came out of the South Garden and headed straight to the North Garden. Although Qiao Xuanshuo promised to save her mother, she couldn't just sit around and wait. She didn't have that patience. The steward of the North Garden told her that two servants had resigned and left. After obtaining the contact information and home address of the servants, Bai Ruoxi hurriedly left the Qiao family. Just as she walked out of the villa garden gate, a middle-aged couple walked towards her. Bai Ruoxi stopped in her tracks and looked at the familiar couple—her father and stepmother—with mixed emotions. Both of them had a heavy expression, and anger could be seen in their eyes. Without waiting for them to respond, Bai Ruoxi took the initiative to speak, "Dad, Mom, are you here to find me?" They didn't answer her. Bai Lihuawu remained silent, while Liu Yue went straight to the point and said, "The police notified us that Shan Shan didn't take drugs. I don't understand why they still detained her for 45 days. I heard that your third brother holds a high position. Go talk to him and ask him to release Shan Shan." The tone of this command was arrogant. They came to ask for her help, yet they still acted superior. Bai Ruoxi couldn't help but purse her lips and smile bitterly. 45 days of detention? If she guessed correctly, it should be for the crime of prostitution. 45 days was already lenient, yet they were still not satisfied? Before Bai Ruoxi could speak, Liu Yue impatiently pushed her shoulder. "Hey, can you hear me?" Bai Ruoxi stumbled back a step from the push, nearly falling. She frowned and looked at Liu Yue, saying calmly, "If you do something wrong, you should receive the appropriate punishment. 45 days is not long. It's good for her to reflect on her mistakes and be educated by the people inside." Liu Yue was infuriated and her anger burned. She pointed her finger, painted with crimson nail polish, at Bai Ruoxi's forehead and angrily scolded, "You're simply heartless. Shan Shan is your sister, after all. Are you even human? You're just..." Bai Ruoxi slapped away her hand, took a step back, and took a deep breath before coldly interrupting, "It's not something a human should do. If Bai Shan Shan did it, she..." Bai Ruoxi hesitated. If Bai Shan Shan sold herself for fame, this couple who doted on their youngest daughter probably wouldn't believe it. Bai Lihuawu angrily spoke, "Perhaps others don't know that General Qiao Xuanshuo, who is famous in the Xia Kingdom, is a descendant of the Qiao family, but I know that Qiao Xuanshuo is your nominal third brother. Is it so difficult for you to speak up? She is your sister, and she is suffering in prison. Has your conscience been eaten by dogs?" Being scolded by this couple, who treated her worse than pigs and dogs, and being threatened with severing their father-daughter relationship just for the sake of Bai Shan Shan, Bai Ruoxi found it laughable. Liu Yue berated, "What did Shan Shan do to deserve this? Are you so heartless?" Bai Lihuawu was also furious. "If you won't even help with this small favor, then our father-daughter relationship ends here." Bai Ruoxi was taken aback and looked at Bai Lihuawu. She had never received any fatherly love from him since she was young. Now, in order to help Bai Shan Shan, he threatened to sever their father-daughter relationship? It was ridiculous how highly they regarded her, Bai Ruoxi. In Qiao Xuanshuo's eyes, she was nothing more than dust. How could she easily help them unconditionally? Just then, the large iron gate slowly opened, and a military jeep drove out. Liu Yue immediately realized what was happening and grabbed Bai Ruoxi's arm, forcefully pulling her to intercept the vehicle. Liu Yue waved and bowed to the car, smiling and acting humble. At that moment, Ah Liang turned around and said to Qiao Xuanshuo in the back seat, "Young Master, Miss Ruoxi and a middle-aged woman are blocking the road." Qiao Xuanshuo furrowed his brows lightly and looked ahead. The car window had already been knocked on. He rolled down the window, revealing a heavily made-up, old, and tacky smiling face. "Young Master, hello, I am Ruoxi's stepmother. We can be considered relatives. I'm really sorry to bother you today. Ruoxi's sister was inexplicably taken away and will be detained for 45 days. Ruoxi is very worried about her sister and wants to ask for your help..." Liu Yue said a bunch of words trying to establish a connection with their relatives. Bai Ruoxi was forcibly dragged to the side, standing quietly as she looked at the cold man inside the car. Life was so unfair. It gave this man such a perfect and exquisite appearance, but why didn't it give him a warm heart? With him around, it felt like the whole world had entered an ice age. Liu Yue continued to blabber, "...Ruoxi is your nominal sister, and Shan Shan is Ruoxi's sister. According to the rules, Shan Shan can also be considered your sister. Please, for Ruoxi's sake, help us with this small favor. It's nothing to you." Liu Yue had said so much, but Qiao Xuanshuo remained as cold as an iceberg, his gaze still focused ahead. However, he didn't tell the driver to leave. Liu Yue finally realized that this man was waiting for Bai Ruoxi to speak. She became anxious and secretly pinched Bai Ruoxi's arm, whispering in a low voice, "Plead for Shan Shan." Bai Ruoxi furrowed her brows, feeling the pain from her arm. She bit her lip and stared at Liu Yue, a burning fire raging in her heart. But what could she do? Should she pinch back? When she had just moved back to the Bai family, her father had beaten her to near death for talking back to her. The pain from that incident was still vivid in her memory. Although she was reluctant to help Bai Shan Shan, she still spoke up, "Third Brother, please help Bai Shan Shan." Liu Yue immediately nodded, "Yes, please help our Shan Shan." Qiao Xuanshuo tilted his head, his sharp black eyes looking at Bai Ruoxi's beautiful face. Under Liu Yue's expectant gaze, his expression remained indifferent and he gave a cold command, "Ah Liang, inform them to check if Bai Shan Shan has any other offenses before. 45 days is too lenient. She should receive additional punishment." Liu Yue's face changed drastically, and even Bai Lihuawu, who was standing a meter away, was stunned. This unexpected turn of events caught them off guard and made it difficult for them to accept. Both of them were dumbfounded. "Yes." Ah Liang immediately took out his phone and made a call. Bai Ruoxi had already known that this man wouldn't help, but she didn't expect it to be worse than she imagined. Looking at Qiao Xuanshuo's perplexing eyes, Bai Ruoxi felt like she had fallen into a dark ice cave, with a chilling and bottomless coldness enveloping her. She could never figure out what this man was thinking and how much he hated her. Qiao Xuanshuo asked indifferently, "Is there anything else you need from me?" This question was simply ironic. What else could Bai Ruoxi dare to ask of him? Could she dare? Ask him to save her mother and push herself into an unknown hell? Even a small favor could turn into a disaster now. She forced out a bitter smile, lowered her gaze, and no longer looked into the man's unfathomable eyes. "No," she replied softly.