"Mother, what's wrong? Are you alright?" Shen Congxin asked worriedly, looking at Jiang Ling's pale face.

Afraid of scaring Shen Congxin, Jiang Ling changed her expression and said to Shen Congxin, "Congxin, you can eat here slowly, don't rush, I'm going out for a bit!"

Shen Congxin knew that her mother-in-law was a very busy person, so she didn't take the matter to heart. She nodded and quietly drank her porridge and ate her egg pancake.

As soon as she stepped out of her house, Jiang Ling's face was so dark it looked like it could be wrung out. If what Zhao Qianyu and Shen Congxin said was true, then how much injustice had her daughter suffered at Linghui Academy?

She walked toward the shampoo factory with a tense expression.

Jiang Yaojie happened to be inspecting the goods at that moment. When he saw Jiang Ling appear, he quickly waved to her, but Jiang Yaojie soon noticed that something was wrong with Jiang Ling.

"Mother, what's wrong? Why do you look so pale?" Jiang Yaojie quickly walked to Jiang Ling's side and asked.

Jiang Ling's claim about Jiang Suihe was still just hearsay. Without solid evidence, Jiang Ling couldn't make any rash statements. He glanced at Jiang Yaojie and said, "Prepare the car, we're going to Linghui Academy!"

Jiang Yaojie was puzzled when he heard this. Hadn't he just sent his sister back early that morning? Why was she going again now? Although he was confused, he didn't ask Jiang Ling for the reason. He just hurried home and hitched up the carriage.

With a flick of the whip, the carriage quickly arrived in Guangping County. Jiang Yaojie skillfully led Jiang Ling to the entrance of Linghui Academy.

Jiang Ling gently knocked on the door, which was quickly opened. A woman dressed in a light blue robe appeared to be a scholar, exuding an air of intellectual refinement.

"Excuse me, ma'am, who are you looking for?" The woman looked at Jiang Ling, whose clothes were rather shabby, without showing any disdain or contempt. Instead, she asked patiently.

Jiang Ling glanced at the woman but didn't make things difficult for her. "I'm Jiang Suihe's parent. Jiang Suihe left in a bit of a hurry this morning and left some things behind, so I've come to bring them over!"

The woman nodded and turned to Jiang Ling, saying, "Class is about to end, please come inside! You'll feel more at ease handing the things to her personally!"

Jiang Ling nodded and led Jiang Yaojie into Linghui Academy.

Linghui Academy is a hidden paradise.

A large courtyard appeared before Jiang Ling's eyes. Beyond the courtyard was a rockery and stream, followed by a pond covered with lotus leaves. After crossing a small blue bridge, there was a school where girls studied.

The sound of students reading aloud could be heard from time to time in the classroom.

"Jiang Suihe is in the Junior Class A. You can wait here for a while, sister. I have something to do, so I'll have to go now!" The woman politely helped Jiang Ling move a stool, explained the situation, and then left.

Jiang Ling stared intently at the classroom in front of her, momentarily lost in thought.

"Dong...dong...dong..." Three heavy bell rings signaled the end of a class.

Jiang Ling's thoughts were also interrupted by the sound. She quickly put away the chair and hid to the side with Jiang Yaojie.

"Mother, what...what's wrong? Didn't my sister finish school?" Jiang Yaojie was taken aback by Jiang Ling's actions and leaned closer to ask.

Jiang Ling gestured for Jiang Yaojie to be quiet, her eyes still fixed on the classroom where Jiang Suihe was.

"Mother... Sister..." Jiang Yaojie hadn't even finished saying the second "sister" when he clenched his fists in anger at the scene before him.

"You peasant, did you bring what I asked you to bring?" A sharp, piercing voice shattered the peaceful atmosphere.

The light purple silk, the full embroidery, and the bright pearl hairpins—no matter how these three elements are combined, it's clear that this dress exudes nobility. Wearing it can also give a basic indication of a person's status. And the girl who just spoke was wearing just such a magnificent dress.

The girl's haughty demeanor suggests she is extremely pampered; otherwise, she wouldn't exude such a spoiled and willful attitude in every gesture.

"I..." Jiang Suihe was clearly afraid of her, and her body trembled slightly when she was asked that question.

"What do you mean, 'what do you mean, 'what do you mean'? Where's the thing I asked you to bring? Don't tell me you didn't have it!" The girl shoved Jiang Suihe, who stumbled and almost fell to the ground.

Jiang Yaojie was furious at the sight. If Jiang Ling hadn't been holding him back and preventing him from acting rashly, Jiang Yaojie would have rushed to Jiang Suihe at the speed of light and slapped the girl in purple a few times.

Jiang Suihe looked terrified and uneasy. She took a few steps back, bit her lip hard, shook her head, and dared not say anything.

Jiang Suihe is good in every way, except that she is too sensible.

Linghui Academy has very strict rules, and causing trouble is strictly prohibited. If a teacher finds out, the most serious consequence is expulsion and never being hired again.

She knew that her ability to study at Linghui Academy was entirely due to her mother's hard work, so how could she easily ruin the extremely difficult path her mother had paved for her?

The annual tuition fee wasn't much for Jiang Ling, but Jiang Suihe had a plan in mind. She dared not slack off or cause trouble. She was afraid of being expelled and even more afraid that Jiang Ling would be disappointed.

After the results of the winter exam came out, Jiang Suihe stayed alone in her room for a long time to calm herself down. She secretly told herself that she must study hard and not let her mother down.

But after arriving here, the repeated bullying almost destroyed Jiang Suihe's path to education.

She didn't understand. She had been avoiding these people and trying her best to avoid arguing with them.

Why do they keep bullying me?

Jiang Suihe hadn't figured this out yet, and of course, the girl in purple didn't give Jiang Suihe that much time to think it through either.

When the girl in purple saw that Jiang Suihe had "disobeyed" her wishes, her anger immediately flared up. She reached out and grabbed Jiang Suihe's black hair, and walked towards a side path.

Jiang Suihe's hair was being pulled painfully, and she felt as if her scalp was about to be ripped off by the girl in purple. But she dared not resist and could only bite her lip tightly, not even daring to cry out loud, for fear of angering her again.

After an unknown amount of time, Jiang Suihe was kicked hard in the back, nearly falling to the ground. The sharp pain in her scalp made her gasp.

"Jiang Suihe, you're nothing but a country bumpkin. Have you grown too big for your britches? How dare you defy me?" The girl in purple looked down on Jiang Suihe like a queen, and slapped her hard across the face.

Jiang Suihe could only shake her head helplessly as tears streamed down her face and fell to the ground.

"Stop!" Jiang Ling and Jiang Yaojie darted out from the side, their eyes blazing with fury as they ran quickly toward Jiang Suihe.

“Mother…” Jiang Suihe did not expect Jiang Ling to appear at this time. A sense of powerlessness made her almost sway.

"Get out! Let go of me!" Jiang Yaojie shouted at the girl in purple.

The girl in purple was probably worldly-wise, as she showed no fear at all when she looked at the poorly dressed Jiang Ling and Jiang Yaojie.

She glanced at the two of them with amusement and said disdainfully, "You country bumpkins, do you know the consequences of obstructing this young lady?"