Chapter 3

Xia Hou Zhongying and Zheng Xiuyan, though not broken any bones, were still seriously injured. They were now as limp as turnips, and it would be impossible for them to walk without a few days of rest. Naturally, they couldn't attend classes, so they could only call home and ask their families to come and pick them up.

It was not yet time for school to be over, and Huang Meiying still had to return to class and couldn't stay in the infirmary for long. After seeing that Zheng Xiuyan was fine, she comforted her a few times and then went back to the classroom.

The first to arrive at the school infirmary were Zheng Xiuyan's parents. Seeing their daughter in such a state, they were naturally heartbroken. Although Zheng Xiuyan's father did not say a single word blaming Xia Hou Zhongying, his sour expression clearly showed his dissatisfaction with Xia Hou Zhongying.

Zheng's mother, however, did not think so much. In her heart, her daughter had always been a good girl, and she naturally did not think it was her daughter's fault. Seeing the two bumps on Zheng Xiuyan's forehead and the swollen leg, she was so heartbroken that she almost shed tears. She naturally did not have a good face for Xia Hou Zhongying and scolded him with a look of anger.

Especially, Zheng Xiuyan kept making fun of Xia Hou Zhongying and telling many bad things about him, which made Zheng's mother instinctively believe her daughter and blame everything on Xia Hou Zhongying.

Xia Hou Zhongying had no place to appeal his grievances and was extremely depressed. However, he did not want to argue with the two women, as he could not argue with them anyway, and Zheng Xiuyan's parents were still elders. What a situation, Xia Hou Zhongying lamented in his heart, and could only remain silent, lowering his head and thinking about his own affairs, treating Zheng's mother's words as if they were just wind in his ears.

Seeing that Zheng's mother had not stopped scolding for a while, Zheng's father looked at Xia Hou Zhongying, who was silently bearing it, and seemed a bit uncomfortable, so he tried to persuade her a bit. Unexpectedly, he was also implicated, and Zheng's mother's targeted criticism turned into a sweeping attack, and he was also scolded.

Zheng Xiuyan's hatred for Xia Hou Zhongying was now at its peak, and she naturally enjoyed seeing him in such a miserable state. When her father tried to persuade her, she immediately took her mother's side, occasionally fanning the flames, making her mother's hatred even stronger.

As Zheng's mother kept scolding, the topic gradually drifted, and in the end, Zheng's father became the main target of her criticism. It seemed that this incident was just a pretext for her to vent all her long-standing dissatisfaction with her husband.

In this situation, Xia Hou Zhongying naturally hid on the side, not daring to show his face, and even cooperated by putting on a look of contempt for Zheng's father, aligning himself with Zheng's mother. Even though he did not understand most of what they were saying, he could guess the general idea from the parts he understood and their expressions.

Occasionally, he would help Zheng's mother with a few words, which made her impression of Xia Hou Zhongying turn 180 degrees, and she spoke to him much more kindly.

There is always a gain and a loss. Xia Hou Zhongying's shameless behavior naturally made Zheng's father hate him, cursing him as a slippery little rascal in his heart, but he did not want to argue with a child.

"Zhongying, just now I heard Xiuyan say that you are a delinquent at school. From what I see, your nature is not bad. You are still young, and there is still time to change. In the future, you must not go astray again." Due to Xia Hou Zhongying's support, Zheng's mother's impression of him improved, and she spoke to him much more kindly. Moreover, her daughter was not seriously injured and would be fine after a few days of rest. After scolding for a while, her anger naturally subsided. Seeing that the child's nature was not bad, she began to educate him.

Hearing this, Xia Hou Zhongying was quite depressed. Perhaps because he had lost his mother at a young age, he felt increasingly close to Zheng's mother as she advised him, and he could not help but vent to her.

"Auntie, those things are not my fault," Xia Hou Zhongying said dejectedly. "The fight was started by those older students. They wanted me to pay them protection money, and I naturally could not agree. So, the fight started. They couldn't beat me, and when the teacher came, he didn't even ask what happened and sided with those students, wanting to make me kneel on the playground. That was wrong, and I couldn't just obey, right?"

"Besides, making someone kneel is wrong. One should only kneel to heaven, earth, and parents. Apart from that, even a teacher cannot make me kneel." Thinking about how he had been given two major demerits for this incident, one for fighting and one for defying the teacher, Xia Hou Zhongying was still indignant.

Due to cultural differences, in South Korea, teachers are highly respected, and making students kneel as punishment is considered normal. In China, however, such punishment is almost non-existent, and teachers do not have the right to make students kneel.

Xia Hou Zhongying had just arrived in South Korea and was not familiar with the local customs, and even if he were familiar, he could not accept the Korean punishment system, having been educated in China.

Hearing Xia Hou Zhongying's explanation, Zheng's mother understood that it was due to cultural differences and could not say who was right or wrong. Although she still thought that defying a teacher was wrong, since it was not her child, she did not feel right to continue educating him. She changed the topic and asked, "How come your family hasn't come to see you? How will you go home later?"

"I have already notified my father," Xia Hou Zhongying said in a low voice, "but my father is quite busy and doesn't know when he will have time to come."

"What about your mother?"

"My mother passed away in a car accident when I was seven," Xia Hou Zhongying's expression darkened as he answered in a low voice.

Xia Hou Zhongying's words touched Zheng's mother's maternal heart. Seeing his sad expression, she felt a pang of pain and her remaining resentment over her daughter's injury disappeared, leaving only heartache. She could not help but have tears in her eyes.

"Poor child," Zheng's mother reached out and gently stroked Xia Hou Zhongying's head, her maternal instincts kicking in, and she said with heartache, "From now on, you can consider me your mother."

What was going on? Zheng's mother's words made the three of them look at each other in shock, speechless. The situation seemed to have exceeded their imagination, and even Xia Hou Zhongying was taken aback.

Zheng Xiuyan was the first to react. Although she was moved by the news of Xia Hou Zhongying's mother's death, it was not enough to offset her hatred for him. Seeing the situation getting out of control, and that the guy had already breached their internal stronghold and was about to become her brother or something, she was furious and immediately opposed, "No way."

"Move aside." Zheng's mother ignored Zheng Xiuyan's opposition and instead educated her, "Xiuyan, you need to change your temper. Today's incident was not Zhongying's fault. The situation arose because you were late and bumped into him first."

Zheng's mother had always wanted a son but only had two daughters. Now, with the opportunity to fulfill her dream of having a son, she did not care whether Xia Hou Zhongying agreed and took the initiative to recognize him as her son.

Zheng Xiuyan was on the verge of tears. What a situation, not only was her enemy about to become a family member, but her mother was also on his side.

At this moment, a middle-aged man walked in from the door. Seeing the situation in the room, he was initially stunned. Seeing the bumps on Xia Hou Zhongying and Zheng Xiuyan's heads, he could not help but laugh.

The man's laughter startled the four people in the room.

Although Zheng's father was a bit annoyed by Xia Hou Zhongying's slickness, he would not argue with a child. Moreover, after hearing Xia Hou Zhongying's background, he felt sympathy for him and knew that he was not the delinquent that Zheng Xiuyan described. His impression of Xia Hou Zhongying improved, and he did not say anything about Zheng's mother recognizing him as a son, seeming to be pleased with the situation.

Hearing the man's laughter and seeing the bumps on the two children's heads, Zheng's father could not help but smile slightly, his eyes filled with amusement.

Zheng Xiuyan, however, was full of anger, glaring fiercely at the man, and Xia Hou Zhongying was also quite depressed.

After laughing, the man looked at the expressions of the four people in the room, quickly reined in his laughter, and walked in, slapping Xia Hou Zhongying on the head, "What a disgrace, fighting with a girl and ending up in the hospital."

The man was Xia Hou Zhongying's father, Xia Hou Shang, who bore a strong resemblance to Xia Hou Zhongying, making it clear they were father and son.

Seeing Xia Hou Zhongying and Zheng Xiuyan's conditions, Xia Hou Shang immediately assumed they had fought and ended up in the hospital. Knowing that his son had practiced martial arts since childhood, although he was not a master, he could handle a dozen or so peers. He secretly marveled at how fierce this girl must be to match his son.

Xia Hou Zhongying was extremely depressed and was about to explain, but before he could open his mouth, Zheng's mother spoke first.

From the moment Xia Hou Shang laughed, Zheng's mother had a bad impression of him. When he walked in and slapped Xia Hou Zhongying on the head, she became even more angry, as this was her newly recognized son.

Zheng's mother, who believed in rational education, thought from the bottom of her heart that Xia Hou Zhongying's current state was the result of Xia Hou Shang's violent upbringing. She could not help but start scolding Xia Hou Shang.

From the way he raised his children to his lack of care, from domestic violence to psychological distortion, Xia Hou Shang was left speechless, unable to understand the situation.

If Zheng's mother was defending Zheng Xiuyan and criticizing his son, he could accept it, as he thought fighting with a girl was a disgrace. However, Zheng's mother's criticism was not like that. It seemed she was defending her son and criticizing him as a father, leaving him confused.

The others were also stunned by Zheng's mother's fierce criticism, speechless.

When he finally understood the situation, Xia Hou Shang felt a mix of frustration and amusement, repeatedly apologizing to Zheng's mother. Honestly, due to his busy work schedule, he rarely had time to be with Xia Hou Zhongying, and he had always felt guilty about it. Therefore, he sincerely accepted Zheng's mother's criticism and was grateful for her defense of his son.

To show his sincerity, Xia Hou Shang, in a generous manner, offered to pay all of Zheng Xiuyan's medical expenses and provide a substantial compensation for mental distress to the Zheng