The security guard could only help Ashley to the gatekeeper’s office to sit for a while, ensuring she was alright before letting her leave.

Ashley’s face was bruised and swollen, making it impossible for her to attend class.

She called to take a leave of absence and then went to the campus hospital with her bag.

After buying cotton swabs and iodine, Ashley applied the medication herself on a bench in the corridor.

“Ashley!”

John, having heard the news, ran over and saw Ashley applying medicine by herself, looking lonely.

“Are you okay? Where are you hurt? Is it serious?” He made a move to lift her clothes to check.

“I’m fine,” Ashley quickly grabbed his hand. “Just some superficial wounds, and the doctor checked; I am pretty good.”

John’s eyes reddened, filled with heartache as he looked at Ashley’s disheveled and battered appearance. “Who did that to you?”

“Jack,” Ashley said expressionlessly.

John was shocked, “...your dad?”

“Yes,” Ashley calmly put away the iodine and cotton swabs, as if telling someone else’s story. “He came to ask me for money.”

“Why—”

“He probably lost another bet, chased by creditors? They threatened to cut off his hands and feet, or take his kidney or liver if he didn’t repay.” Ashley’s lips curled into a smile, but her eyes remained cold.

Seeing her pretend to not care about this, John felt a pang of sadness.

He knew Ashley’s family situation was bad and that her father was no good.

But this was the first time she had mentioned it to him directly, especially while covered in bruises.

“How much does he want?”

“Two million,” Ashley thought for a moment. “Probably a continuous two million.”

Jack had a severe gambling addiction. Most of Ashley’s memories of her father involved gambling.

Occasionally, when he won, he’d bring home a small treat. But most of the time, he’d lose and come home cursing, kicking, and sometimes hitting her and her mother.

As she grew older and more beautiful, Jack saw her as a cash cow. If not for the protection of the Quinn Family, Ashley might have ended up dead in some old man’s bed.

John gritted his teeth, “Isn’t there any way to make him stop?”

Ashley laughed lightly, “Huh, if he’s dead, he won’t gamble.”

John was furious but helpless. Ashley comforted him instead, “Don’t be sad. I’ve already accepted it.”

John bought some ice for her to reduce the swelling. And the redness on Ashley’s face soon subsided, leaving only the wound at the corner of her mouth.

The bruises on her body would take longer to fade, so John handed her some medicinal oil, “Apply this yourself when you get home tonight.”

Ashley thanked him.

John wanted to take her home, but she refused.

In the end, he could only watch her get into a car and drive away. After she left, John took out his phone and made a call, “Paul, I need you to find someone for me.”

...

Ashley returned home to find Mrs Quinn walking in the courtyard.

She went over to greet her, “Mrs.”

Mrs Quinn saw the broken corner of her mouth and the dirt on her clothes, frowning, “Were you beaten?”

Ashley remained silent.

“Huh, you are so unlucky,” Mrs Quinn rolled her eyes, “Get lost!”

Ashley bit her lip and went to her room. Upon entering, she saw Melissa sitting on the bed with red-rimmed eyes.

Seeing her come in, Melissa immediately walked over with a look of concern, “Ashley, did he hit you?”

Ashley avoided her hand and walked to the wardrobe to change clothes. Seeing the bruises on her daughter’s body and the dirt-stained clothes on the floor, Melissa couldn’t hold back her tears, “How could he do this? How could he be so cruel...”

“Huh, what a piece of cake...” Ashley looked at Melissa with disappointment, “Hasn’t he beaten us enough since we were young? Mom, is this why you don’t want to leave him?”

Melissa was first stunned, then covered her mouth, crying quietly.

Jack’s beating reminded Ashley of the times when Melissa was beaten when she was younger.

Seeing the gray hair at her temples and the wrinkles at the corners of her eyes, Ashley’s heart softened a bit.

She blinked back her tears, “We can move out of Huai City and completely cut ties with him—”

“No,” Melissa shook her head repeatedly, “Ashley, we can’t leave the Quinn Family.”

“Why not? As long as we go somewhere he can’t find us, we can live well even without the Quinn Family’s protection,” Ashley looked at her, “I can earn money to support you.”

Melissa’s voice was hoarse, “Ashley, I’m doing this for you. We must stay with the Quinn Family. You must listen to me, we absolutely must not—”

“Why?” Ashley stared straight into Melissa’s eyes, “Why can’t we leave the Quinn Family? What good does staying here do for you? Will David marry you, or are you—”

“Pop—”

Ashley was slapped so hard that her head tilted to one side. Then, she licked the warm blood at the corner of her mouth and laughed.

Melissa hadn’t expected to hit her and stood there stunned, “Ashley, I—”

Ashley’s gaze grew darker, the pain in her wound intensifying, “That’s enough. I’m very tired. I don’t have time to listen to your explanations. Mom, please leave me alone for a while.”

Melissa’s mouth opened and closed a few times, but finally, she looked at Ashley anxiously and resolutely before leaving the room.

Ashley took a painkiller and, while waiting for it to take effect, threw her dirty clothes into the washing machine before going into the bathroom.

When Ashley came out of the bathroom, her phone was buzzing nonstop.

She walked over, towel-drying her hair, and unlocked her phone to find several unfamiliar text messages.

She opened them one by one.

“How shameless are you? Are you addicted to being a flirt? How dare you go after Robert!”

“What a whore! You are so disgusting!”

“Slut! Bitch! Get out of Huai University!”

Before Ashley could figure out what was going on, her phone went crazy with notifications.

The message icon kept increasing, and she watched as the unread count soared to 99+.

At first, Ashley thought someone had sent the messages by mistake. But as countless messages flooded in, even she knew something was wrong.

Ashley pursed her lips, took out a pin to remove the SIM card, and the messages finally stopped.

She opened a search engine and typed in her name, quickly pulling up numerous results.

“@Ashley Huai University. Slut! Pretending to be a campus belle but actually a bad bitch! Seducing Robert, deceiving classmates, and luring juniors! Shameful!”

“Slutty tramp, a porn star! Who knows that!”

“Who has her number? I heard it’s a hundred bucks a night? Look at that body [pic][pic][pic], anyone want to join?”

“Whoa, quite alluring, but I am afraid of being sick if I do sleep with her. How did someone like her get into Huai University? Mr. President, can you explain that?”

“Any videos? Ten bucks a clip!”

A premeditated wave of slander and defamatory information exploded online.