Li Tingshen loosened his grip.

Ye Qingqiu pursed her lips and endured the pain. She retracted her hand and stepped out of the door.

Ye Lixun sat on the judging panel. When she saw her, although she was a little apologetic, she said confidently, “Don’t be afraid. I’ve hired the most professional team to protect you.”

Ye Qingqiu nodded. “How are Grandpa and Dad?”

“Don’t worry.”

Then, she was brought to the defendant’s seat.

Li Tingshen walked slowly to the plaintiff’s seat and sat down.

The two of them looked up and saw each other’s faces.

The two people who used to sleep in the same bed were now standing in court.

She leaned against the handcuffs and stood in the middle of the court. She was locked in the control panel while Li Tingshen sat in the plaintiff’s seat.

These two positions made Ye Qingqiu feel sad and ridiculous.

She had always known how shameless she was in the past. She had tried her best to pester him. She had done so much and sacrificed so much. Until now…

She was as shameless as she was back then.

What did it mean?

What a joke.

Court started.

The judge’s hammer fell, striking Ye Qingqiu’s heart.

The plaintiff wanted to sue Ye Qingqiu for intentional assault.

Ye Qingqiu clenched her fists tightly, her body trembling.

This was a term that was only heard in television dramas and law classes. She did not expect that she would stand in court one day and be accused.

As the plaintiff, Li Tingshen naturally hired a team of lawyers.

The client took out all his information.

Including what happened in the ward.

The first half of the statement was basically the same as what Ye Qingqiu had recorded. Ye Qingqiu had also admitted it.

“Miss Ye, how was Madam Lian’s mood back then?”

She recalled everything that had happened in the ward. She closed her eyes and said, “She’s a lunatic.”

“So, Miss Ye, you knew that Madam Lian had mental problems, but you still said those words to provoke her, right?”

“Is it illegal for me to bicker with her?”

Ye Qingqiu’s team protested, “The plaintiff’s words are suspected of intentional seduction. The lunatic that Miss Ye mentioned is different from Madam Lian’s mental illness. In fact, she doesn’t know that Madam Lian has a mental illness.”

Ye Qingqiu was stunned for a moment before she looked at Li Tingshen. A trace of doubt flashed across her eyes, but it was fleeting.

“Yes, I don’t know. The lunatic I’m talking about is her original unconventional remark, and the way she stabbed herself with a knife… If this isn’t a lunatic, what is?”

The judge decided that the objection was valid.

*

At the hospital.

Lian Lili woke up and stared at the ceiling in a daze.

In the end, she closed her eyes because of the discomfort.

In less than a minute, the door to the ICU opened and two nurses came over to sterilize the room.

“Did you see the news online? Mr Li has sued the eldest daughter of the Ye family. The court session is today.”

“I saw it. Aren’t the two of them getting married soon? And isn’t that Mr Li this patient’s son? His mother almost lost her life. Even if she’s already married, she can’t be forgiven so easily.”

“How ruthless. A night as husband and wife will last forever. Miss Ye’s father is still in the intensive care unit and is in danger at any time. Why must he do this now…”

“It’s indeed tragic…”

The two of them didn’t dare to say much and left a few minutes later.

Lian Lili opened her eyes again and stood up from the bed.

Her face was pale as she staggered out of the ICU. She had only taken a few steps when blood seeped out of her chest, staining her clothes and pants red.

The alarm suddenly sounded and she was stopped by the doctors and nurses.

“Let go of me…”

“Where is Ye Jianyun’s ward…”

“I’m going to find him…”

“Sword cloud… Sword cloud…”

*

The plaintiff’s lawyer tried his best to find clues to convict Ye Qingqiu, but they were all refuted by Ye Qingqiu.

Although there was no result, Ye Qingqiu could feel it…

Li Tingshen really wanted to convict her.

She looked at the expressionless man in silence and suddenly sneered.

He didn’t believe her.

He didn’t believe what she had done either.

He wanted to send her to the Bureau of Justice for the theft of the program.

He wanted to seek justice for her severely injured mother. Then, he would sue her.

She felt that there was nothing in this world that hurt her more than this.

But she was too naive.

When the plaintiff put away the document, he stood up and said respectfully to the judge, “Please help us to publicize our witness.”

Witness…

Ye Qingqiu’s cold eyes suddenly froze.

‘A witness?’

When she turned her head and saw the person wrapped in gauze being pushed out of the wheelchair, her vision blurred and she felt dizzy.

She suddenly tightened her grip on the railing. The sound of the door opening and closing echoed in the courtroom. She turned her head abruptly to look at the man sitting at the plaintiff’s seat.

“You want her to be a witness?!”

The plaintiff’s lawyer said solemnly, “Miss Ye, according to our understanding of the situation, according to your statement, there were three of you in the room back then. Moreover, Miss Liang Xuer has always been conscious. When you and Madam Lian had an argument, she even stopped you.”

Ye Qingqiu stared at Li Tingshen and said, “Do you know who hates me the most in this world? Li Tingshen! You might as well kill me now!”

Li Tingshen’s calm eyes narrowed slightly as he looked at the railing opposite him. Every trace of blood in his eyes represented her hatred and anger towards him.

The judge hammered repeatedly and shouted, “Silence!”

Li Tingshen retracted his gaze calmly.

The judge continued, “Let the witness take the oath.”

Liang Xuer was pushed to the witness stand. After swearing the oath, she was instructed by the judge, “Please speak.”

If there was any false testimony, she would have to bear the legal responsibility and other consequences.

However, when she thought of the look in Lian Lili’s eyes when he called her name and the fact that she would never have a second chance, she gritted her teeth and said slowly,

“Aunt Lian’s words were indeed a little sharp back then, causing the defendant to be dissatisfied. On the contrary, she deliberately used words to provoke Aunt Lian. Aunt Lian was indeed angry and slashed the air with the fruit knife a few times, but she didn’t really hurt the defendant. On the contrary, the defendant was angry that Aunt Lian didn’t accept the relationship between her and Li Tingshen. In a fit of anger, she snatched the knife from Aunt Lian’s hand and stabbed Aunt Lian’s chest.”

Ye Lixun suddenly stood up. “Liangxu’er? You’d better tell me the truth!”

Liang Xuer’s clenched fingers trembled, but she pretended to be calm. “This is a court of law. I’ve just sworn an oath. Naturally, I won’t lie.”

Ye Qingqiu stared at Li Tingshen the entire time. After the judge ordered silence again, she said slowly, “Do you believe her?”

Li Tingshen pursed his lips and didn’t answer. At this moment, the door to the court was suddenly opened.

Xiao Chu held her phone, her face pale and ugly.

He walked to the jury stand and looked at Li Tingshen with a complicated expression. “President Li… something happened…”

Li Tingshen had never seen Xiao Chu look like that before. His heart tightened and he asked in a low voice, “What happened?”

Xiao Chu glanced at Ye Qingqiu, who was sitting at the defense table. She opened her mouth and hesitated for a moment before saying, “… Something happened at the hospital…”

Li Tingshen sat up from the plaintiff’s seat with a sinister expression. “I’m asking you what happened!”

At this moment, Ye Lixun’s phone started to vibrate.

It was a call from the hospital. She glanced at Xiao Chu in confusion before getting up and answering the call. However, before she could take two steps, she froze on the spot.

“What… what did you say?”

Someone beside the judge was saying something to him.

Xiao Chu’s silence and everyone’s actions made Li Tingshen’s eyebrows swell.

He pinched his eyebrows and turned to face the judge. “I propose to suspend this…”

However, the judge spoke before him regretfully, “There’s news from the hospital just now. Madam Lian Lili has been confirmed dead. I have the right to change the crime of intentional assault to intentional homicide.”

Li Tingshen’s hands tightened into fists.

Ye Qingqiu’s mind went blank and she subconsciously looked at Li Tingshen.

In that instant, she wasn’t thinking about the so-called intentional homicide that was about to be pinned on her. Instead, she was thinking about how sad he would be after suffering such a serious blow.

“What intentional murder?!!”

A sharp voice that Ye Lixun had never heard before suddenly sounded from the jury. Her eyes were red as she wanted to rush into the court, but she was stopped by two law enforcement officers.

“What murder? That woman killed my brother! She’s the real murderer! I want to sue her!”

“Boom—”

Ye Qingqiu’s gaze on Li Tingshen froze.

It was as if something had exploded in his head.

Li Tingshen’s eyes narrowed and his temples throbbed.

Even though he tried his best to remind himself to calm down, he couldn’t suppress the panic in his heart.

He turned to look at Xiao Chu, but Xiao Chu looked away with an ugly expression.

Ye Qingqiu slowly reacted and turned to look at Ye Lixun. Her lips twitched in disbelief as she revealed an ugly smile. Her tears fell first.

“Aunt… Aunt, what did you just say… Your brother is dead… Which brother?”

“How many brothers can I have? Qingqiu! It’s your father… Your father is dead…”

Ye Lixun closed her eyes and slumped onto the seat beside her.

Tears streamed down Ye Qingqiu’s face unconsciously, but she still shook her head in disbelief.

“No… I don’t believe it… My father has been saved. He’s in the ICU ward now and is being taken care of well…”

“It’s all because of that woman. She broke into your father’s ward and told him about you being sued…”

Ye Qingqiu, who had been shaking her head, paused for a moment before continuing to shake her head. Her face was pale.

“No… No… I don’t believe it… How could my father die…”

Ye Lixun collapsed on the chair. “That woman… died in front of your father’s bed… That woman wanted to drag your father along even if she died…”

“Ah—”

A sharp shout suddenly resounded throughout the court.

Everyone froze in shock.

Ye Qingqiu raised her hands and hugged her head tightly, screaming with all her might.

The court had never encountered such a situation before. Everyone in the court seemed to have frozen. For more than two minutes, no one dared to say a word.

An unprecedented fear suddenly surged in Li Tingshen’s heart. After a long while, he reacted and turned to look at the judge.

“I request that the trial be suspended.”

The judge snapped back to reality and looked at Ye Qingqiu’s condition. He coughed lightly and cleared his throat. “In that case…”

“There’s no need to pause…”

A hoarse voice sounded slowly.

Everyone looked at the owner of the voice—

Ye Qingqiu lowered her hand and straightened her body in an extremely slow motion. She raised her head and looked at the judge opposite her. Her gaze and voice were empty—

“I admit it.”

There was dead silence in the courtroom again.

After a while, Ye Qingqiu continued, “I killed someone. I admit that I’m a murderer. I admit it!”

“Qingqiu!”

Li Tingshen felt as if he had been smashed by a heavy hammer, and his heart seemed to be clenched tightly.

His handsome features suddenly distorted. He clenched his fists tightly and growled at the judge, “I want to withdraw the lawsuit!”

“I won’t accept the dismissal. I’m a murderer and the judge is here. Are they going to let a murderer like me go?”

Ye Qingqiu’s calm voice was like a ghost muttering, empty and hoarse.

Li Tingshen roared angrily, “Ye Qingqiu!”

Ye Qingqiu suddenly gave him a calm but ugly smile.

“Isn’t this what you want? I can’t leave.”

Looking at Li Tingshen’s twisted face, she forced a smile. “I’m not leaving, but I won’t stay by your side either.”

At that moment, Li Tingshen felt like all the nerves in his body were broken.

His voice was so hoarse that it sounded like it was coming out of his chest.

“Ye Qingqiu, you didn’t kill anyone. Don’t spout nonsense here…”

“I’m a murderer.”

If his father hadn’t had a heart attack in the beginning, he wouldn’t have died now.

If she hadn’t chosen to save Lian Lili and Liang Xuer, Brother Ye Ze wouldn’t have died.

Because of her stupidity, two of her closest relatives had died.

She was indeed a murderer.

She deserved to die.

She naturally had to atone for her sins.

To atone for the deaths of her father and Brother Ye Ze.

Did she hate Li Tingshen?

Hate.

So she used this method to take revenge on him.

Song Muchen said that a child who wouldn’t cry would have no candy to eat. The more considerate and sensible he was, the easier it was for him to become a background. Leaving a scar on his body was better than leaving no trace. The more pain he felt, the more likely he would win…

The more he hurt, the more she would win…

Seeing Li Tingshen’s shocked expression, Ye Qingqiu was even more certain that she had won.

Who asked him to love her…

“Li Tingshen, I’ll compensate you with the shares of the Ye Corporation. If you want to pursue the matter, you can continue to accuse me. Anyway, I’m a murderer, so I don’t care about a few more years.”

She paused and raised her chin, just like the arrogant Ye Qingqiu.

“Let’s do it today. There’s no grudge between us. After parting, we can go our separate ways. You can go your way and I’ll go to prison. We… will never meet again.”