I'm A Math Idiot, So What? - Chapter 48

So, we all marched to the police station together. Originally, we could have taken notes right there, but since the police station was right across from Da Ge Ge, the officer didn’t like the noise and asked us to go over there to have a break. This was my first time at a police station, and with no experience, I couldn’t help but feel a little uneasy.

Wang Ziqi whispered to me, “This won’t affect your graduate school recommendation, right?” She shouldn’t have mentioned it, as her words made me even more nervous, causing my nosebleed to worsen—it was like the Yellow River’s water descending from the heavens, rushing to the sea never to return. As I dealt with the cascading nosebleed, I thought about how my freshly acquired recommendation qualification hadn’t even had time to warm up.

Zhang Ziqin had no time to worry about Zhao Xiaoxiao anymore; she kept stuffing new tissue into my nostrils and boldly told the police, “Officer, that person is hitting people.” Zhao Xiaoxiao immediately retorted, “This was a misfire! You were going to hit me; I was just defending myself!” The three of us shouted in unison, “Who hit you? Which eye of yours saw us hitting you?!” The officer slammed the table, “What are you all shouting for!” and thus began the lengthy note-taking process. Once the notes were completed, the officer called me aside and said they had reviewed the surveillance footage and both sides were at fault.

If I were to get checked for injuries, it wouldn’t meet the criteria for detention, and he suggested I resolve it through compensation from Zhao Xiaoxiao. Zhang Ziqin, furious that night, insisted on consulting with a lawyer when she heard I was going to accept mediation. The officer responded, “If you want to bring a lawyer, you should also call your teacher to take you back.” Zhang Ziqin replied without hesitation, “If that’s the case, then let’s do it.” Wang Ziqi immediately leaned in to her ear, trying to help this woman who had just had a manic episode regain some reason.

After hearing the pros and cons, Zhang Ziqin quickly changed her tone, firmly agreeing, “We’ll mediate.” But this time, the officer remained strict and insisted we have our school teacher come over. Regardless of how many good words we offered, he wouldn’t agree. “Look at you, where’s your student demeanor?” I stood there with two wads of tissue in my nose, crouching down with Zhang Ziqin and Wang Ziqi, brainstorming for solutions.

“What if we have a classmate pretend to be our lawyer?” Wang Ziqi suggested. “They need to have credentials!” the officer called out from a distance, eyeing us. “I told my boss I was feeling dizzy and went out to see an eye doctor to take leave, so if this gets out, he’ll give my other eye a matching bruise.” After saying this, Zhang Ziqin weakly glanced at Wang Ziqi and added, “How about you ask your mom to smooth things out?” Wang Ziqi lowered her eyelids and pulled out her phone.

For all these years, Wang Ziqi had not taken any pocket money from her mom, just to make a point.Right now, going back like this would not only waste our previous efforts but might also give Auntie the chance to make a bunch of unreasonable demands. I squatted on the ground, drawing circles: “I actually know a professor at our school who should be able to help us out.”

“Your advisor?” Wang Ziqi asked.

“My advisor is away at a seminar these days. I’m talking about Professor Fang from The Beauty of Mathematics.”

“Oh! Your dad’s hometown friend!” After Wang Ziqi said that, she hesitated and looked at me, “Doesn’t that mean you risk notifying your dad? He won’t fly over to beat us up, right?”

Zhang Ziqin, who hadn’t cried before, was now shedding tears: “It’s all my fault!”

“Don’t blame yourself! If you’re going to blame someone, blame Zhao Xiaoxiao!” I said, “Besides, I have a way to avoid alarming my dad.” I took out my phone and checked Fang Congxin’s WeChat. The whole afternoon had passed, and he still hadn’t messaged me. He was probably quite angry after my unnecessary outburst.

He usually spoke so harshly, but he didn’t really mean it; why should I take it to heart? Of all days, I just had to vent today. Now, I’m asking him for help; it’s a bit embarrassing, right? He wasn’t wrong; I really was like that shy mimosa! I glanced at my two friends, who were eagerly watching me, and then looked at Su Xu, who was anxiously waiting at the police station entrance, and sighed inwardly. If I have to be shameless, then so be it. I found a quiet corner to make a call.

Fang Congxin picked up quickly: “Hello.”

“Hello.”

“Why haven’t you gotten home to do your homework yet? Don’t you have class tonight?” I heard that he didn’t seem mad at me, so I gathered my courage and said, “I’m singing at KTV with my friends.”

“Oh. Is anyone able to stand your singing?”

“……”

After a moment of silence, he said on the other end of the line, “Sorry, did my jokes make you uncomfortable again?”

I quickly shook my head, realizing he couldn’t see me, and repeatedly said, “No, no. It’s just that Aunt Flo has arrived, and I’m not feeling great; I just needed to unwind a bit.””But you believe me, I don’t have a glass heart when it comes to you or anyone else.”

“Oh.”

“In light of me cooking for you and my genuine nature, can you forgive me for my reckless words today?” Fang Congxin didn’t answer directly: “Can you guess what I had for lunch today?”

“What?”

“A packet of sauce.”

“Really?”

“It even had Sister Mei’s trademark on it.”

“Heh, that’s strange.”

“I had dinner at Sister Mei’s place. It cost 29 yuan; it filled me up.”

“That’s quite affordable.”

“So, considering you’ve cooked for me and my genuine nature—”

“I was wrong! I promise from now on I’ll bathe, change, and burn incense for three hours to prepare a Michelin meal for you—but, I really have something urgent right now, can I ask you for a favor? Maybe extend a credit?”

“What favor?”

“Is Professor Fang home?”

“Yes.”

“Can you get him to come to the police station in District One with the school’s identification?”

“What’s going on?” Fang Congxin’s tone suddenly turned serious.

“I got beaten up. The police said they need a teacher to take me home. My advisor isn’t here, and I doubt any other teachers will come. Even if they do, they’d be worried it would affect my graduate school qualifications.”

“Lin Meng!” Fang Congxin’s shout felt like it was about to burst my eardrums.

I pouted, “If you don’t want to come, then just don’t; why yell at me?”

“How could you wait until now to mention something so serious! Just stay put and don’t be scared. I’ll be there in ten minutes. No, five minutes!” With that, he hung up the phone.

Five minutes later, Fang Congxin indeed rushed in with Professor Fang. It looked like Professor Fang had been pulled straight out of bed to be here. He still wore a deep blue silk pajama set and, upon seeing me, said very unprofessionally, “The first time I saw you, I thought you must be someone special. I didn’t expect to see your flair so soon.”

The three of us stood in a line, hesitantly saying, “Hello, Professor.”

Fang Congxin pushed past his dad and grabbed my face to examine it, “Where else did you get hit, besides your nose?”

I endured him squishing my face into a round shape, “Nowhere else.”

Fang Congxin patted my head, looking around and shouting, “Who hit you? Who was it?”

Professor Fang, visibly displeased, remarked, “Don’t act like a gang here. Officer, can you tell me who hit my student?”

The three of us instantly found our courage and pointed our fingers at Zhao Xiaoxiao in unison, “It was him!”

Professor Fang asked me, “Is he from our school?”

“Yes! From the Art Institute! But he’s already graduated.”

Professor Fang said, “Graduated? That’s even easier. Can’t you bring He Xiaoping?”

“Dad, he’s on his way.”

Wang Ziqi quietly asked me, “Who is He Xiaoping?”

“He’s his lawyer,” I replied.

“Then who is this handsome guy?” Zhang Ziqin chimed in, “He’s Lin Meng’s boyfriend, like I told you.”

Wang Ziqi’s eyes widened, “Wait, your boyfriend is Professor Fang’s son! Lin Meng, you’re doing well! Last time you said you were failing math, and now you’re on the fast track!”

“What? Failing math?” Zhang Ziqin asked, intrigued.

“Just—” I shot her a glance, “Is this really the time to discuss that?!”

Zhang Ziqin shot back, “If we’re not discussing this now, do you want us to talk about why Zhao Xiaoxiao chose that cross-eyed girl?!”

I said, “You can discuss whatever you want.””I’ll admit my loss for interrupting.” Not long after, the legendary He Xiaoping arrived at the police station. He Xiaoping was short and chubby, with small eyes that resembled a Maitreya Buddha. Upon arriving, he first scanned the room with an air of authority, then strode confidently over to us, stopping in front of Wang Ziqi and saying, “You must be Lin Meng? When are you going to repay the money you owe our company?” I weakly raised my hand, “That’s me. I’m Lin Meng.” He Xiaoping glanced at Wang Ziqi, then at me, and finally at Fang Congxin. “Oh, my bad. Little Chief Fang said it was a bit dark, a short person. I thought it was her!” What kind of second-rate school did this legal expert graduate from? Offending two people with just one sentence—is that reliable?

Soon enough, He Xiaoping proved his mouth was effective by helping Zhao Xiaoxiao owe me an outrageous amount for medical fees. As a result, a crowd even larger than before came marching out of the police station. Outside, the fearless Su Xu stopped Fang Congxin, whose face was darker than a pot bottom, and asked, “Are you Lin Meng’s boyfriend?” Fang Congxin gave him a look that seemed to say, “You should go back where you came from; I’m not in the mood to talk to you.”

“Thanks for coming to help her,” Fang Congxin said to me. “Your new pet?”

“I wouldn’t dare, I’m just a potted plant,” I responded humbly.

Wang Ziqi popped out, “What’s going on?”

Su Xu leaned in with concern, “Are you alright?” After receiving a positive answer, he pointed at Fang Congxin and said, “The boss asked me to wait here for her boyfriend to pay.” Then he turned to me and said, “Sister Lin Meng, you just said your boyfriend is rich, and he’ll come to pay soon.”

He Xiaoping interrupted, “Given how big this incident is, it’s fortunate we’re not holding your KTV responsible; do you still dare to ask for money—” Before he could finish, Fang Congxin pulled out several pink bills from his wallet and said, “Sorry, I just forgot earlier.” I quickly lunged forward to grab one back, “No need for that much.” The money lingered in my hand for 0.1 seconds before Wang Ziqi snatched it away, saying, “The waitstaff here depend on tips to survive. You let them wait outside for so long in this windy weather; don’t rich people tip a little?” Saying this, she shoved the money into Su Xu’s hand. Damn it, tossing a bundle of cotton into the air wouldn’t even fly far in this weather; where’s this wind coming from? There’s no humanity when it comes to the opposite sex. What happened to you paying for this?!