CHAPTER 217: 217

Xu Pinglin was thoroughly disgusted with the girl who kept filming, but he was also somewhat intimidated by the powerful device in her hand and genuinely didn’t dare to make any actions or expressions that might be misunderstood.

Now that her parents had left and she was still lingering, his displeasure intensified.

"Doctor Du, Director Li, let’s go to my office to talk," Xu Pinglin suggested.

"Alright, let’s chat in your office. I still have some questions I want to discuss with Xiao Du," Li Jianwei agreed. He had also noticed the girl still filming with her mobile phone and felt that if they didn’t leave soon, she might shove it right in Du Heng’s face.

He immediately stood up, walked ahead of Du Heng, and led him towards the exit. After a few steps, he turned back to the group of students and said, "All of you, return to the department and carefully reflect on Du’s treatment process today. Each of you must write a report on your thoughts and submit it to me tomorrow morning."

The students all looked dismayed.

How could they write a report after only hearing a snippet?

Instantly, their gazes shifted to the student who had initially asked the question.

Clearly, Li was preparing to discipline them; the severity would depend on when his anger subsided.

Today had been truly rather embarrassing.

Du Heng, Xu Pinglin, and Li Jianwei departed, with the girl following closely behind. Her mother’s problem had now become irrelevant.

As Du Heng and the others left, the number of viewers in her live broadcast room began to plummet.

Seeing the on-screen comments urging her to rush forward, stop Du Heng, and ask him their questions, the girl felt a surge of impulsiveness.

But just as she was about to act, Xu Pinglin slammed his office door shut with a BANG.

In an instant, the inside and outside of the office became two separate worlds, and she was stranded outside.

Du Heng didn’t stay long in the office. After discussing some important points about conducting consultations with Li Jianwei, he left.

「In the rented room, Du Xuejing was grumbling, not wanting to pack her things. She didn’t want to go home.」

For the two days after the college entrance examination, Du Heng had given her 1,000 yuan, and Wang Shuqiu had secretly given her another 500 yuan. She had truly let loose for those two days.

All the pent-up emotions from her three years of high school had been released.

She ate foods she had never tried before.

She did activities she had never done before.

At night, she and Wang Shuqiu would roam around, eating and exploring with wild abandon, thoroughly enjoying themselves.

Today, Du Xuejing’s mother had laid down the law: Du Xuejing had to be taken home, but she just didn’t want to go back.

"Little Uncle, can I not go home? I want to find a job and earn some pocket money during the summer vacation."

Du Heng sat on the sofa, looking amusedly at Du Xuejing, who, in just a short while, was already thinking about working. "It’s not that I won’t let you stay, but your mother insists you go back. There’s nothing I can do."

"But I want to work. I’ve already made plans with my classmates."

"Work? What work? Your dad bought over a dozen more sheep a few days ago, and there are also over a dozen newborn lambs. Go home and help your dad shepherd them. By the time school starts, the sheep you’ve herded will cover all your living expenses."

Du Heng had no intention of letting her work.

He had, in fact, already made plans for his niece to ensure she wouldn’t be too idle during the vacation.

She’d played a bit too wildly these past two days, so he decided to send her home first. He wanted her to stay at home with her mother for a few days to calm down and refocus.

Then, once her exam results were out, he’d carefully help her choose a college and a major.

After all that was settled, he’d enroll her in a driving school so she could get her driver’s license while she had the time.

As for shepherding, that was just a joke.

There was no way he’d make a grown girl like her spend her days herding sheep. Regardless of whether her parents—his big brother and sister-in-law—agreed, he himself definitely wouldn’t.

Du Xuejing reluctantly began to pack, but she decided to make one last attempt. "Little Uncle, can I stay for just a few more days? Little Aunt and I haven’t had enough fun yet."

"No. Your aunt Shuqiu’s younger brother is coming tomorrow, and we plan to let him stay in this house."

Du Xuejing leaped up, asking excitedly, "So where will Little Aunt and you live? Are you moving back to your family home?"

Du Heng smiled and nodded.

"Awesome!"

Now she was completely willing; at least someone would be there to play with her every day.

The two of them started packing. Although Du Xuejing had only stayed for five days, she had accumulated a lot of things—some she bought herself, others Wang Shuqiu had bought for her. They filled two big boxes.

Du Heng also packed the few items he had brought over the past few months, mostly just a few clothes, which didn’t even fill one box.

As for Wang Shuqiu’s belongings, they would leave them there for the time being.

After everything was packed, while waiting for Wang Shuqiu to return from work, the uncle and niece occupied themselves with their mobile phones, neither disturbing the other.

However, every few minutes, Du Heng would hear Du Xuejing crying.

Puzzled, he looked up and saw that the girl was indeed watching her phone with tears streaming down her face.

Du Heng chuckled. "You can’t be serious. A video made you cry?"

With tear-filled eyes, Du Xuejing looked up. "Little Uncle, Xiao Ying is gone."

Du Heng didn’t immediately understand. "Who’s gone? What do you mean, gone? Can’t she be found?"

"It’s Xiao Ying, the girl who fainted at the school entrance on the day of the college entrance examination, the one you treated. She jumped from her family’s apartment building—the 16th floor."

Du Heng was stunned by the unexpected news. He immediately wondered if it was because he hadn’t treated her properly that day, and it had affected her exam performance?

"What happened? Did she not do well on the exam?"

Du Xuejing shook her head. "One of our classmates lives across the hall from her family. She just posted it in our group chat. Apparently, Xiao Ying had been arguing with her mother every day since the exams ended."

Du Heng fell silent.

This is so sudden. Why couldn’t she see any other way out?

Even if they argued, it shouldn’t have led to this, right?

"Little Uncle, can I go see her?"

"No."

Du Heng rejected Du Xuejing’s request without a second thought.

"But she’s my classmate, and we were good friends, best friends."

"That’s not negotiable. You can’t go now. Wait until we have more information."

"What information?"

Du Heng didn’t know either, but he understood that now was definitely not the right time to visit.

As the two reached a stalemate, Wang Shuqiu returned from work.

When Du Xuejing saw Wang Shuqiu, she burst out wailing, threw herself into Wang Shuqiu’s arms, and cried inconsolably.

After hearing Du Heng’s account, Wang Shuqiu hugged Du Xuejing even tighter.

However, she felt the same way as Du Heng: it wasn’t appropriate to go now.

But while Du Heng had been firm in his refusal, she held Du Xuejing, gently comforting her and trying to reason with her.

「On their way back home, Du Xuejing’s mood remained low. She was also sulking at Du Heng, refusing to speak to him.」

Du Heng knew Du Xuejing was upset and wisely chose not to provoke her further.

「When they got home, Du Ping helped Du Heng carry their things inside. Finding a moment when no one else was around, he quietly asked, "So, is Xiao Wang moving in with you now?"」