Li Li straightened up immediately, met Ye Linchen's gaze, and raised her voice.
"I'm telling the truth! You stole Zihan's Walkman!"
She saw herself as a messenger of justice, seeking justice for Meng Zihan, and her face turned red.
"And the money for Zihan's tutoring was also used to buy new clothes," Li Li said, pointing to Ye Linchen's down jacket. "Look, this down jacket you're wearing is brand new!"
"Furthermore, you formed a study group with other classmates, and Zihan wanted to join. You scolded her for her poor grades, which drove her away. Isn't that bullying?"
Ye Linchen scoffed coldly.
“Li Li, you’re spreading rumors without knowing anything. Feng Linlin lent me the Walkman. I just got it and used it for a day before Meng Zihan took it away, saying she needed it.” She turned to look at Feng Linlin. “Linlin, is that what happened?”
"Yeah, do you want to see the invoice? I still have mine!" She glanced at Meng Zihan with disdain. "You're really shameless. Xiao Chen's things just became yours."
Meng Zihan bit her lip, tears welling in her eyes, and pleaded pitifully, "That's not true, I didn't..."
Ye Linchen interrupted her and looked at the other classmates.
"My mom kicked me out of the house just because I refused to give my Walkman to Meng Zihan. Now I live in a rented room, and everyone in my class knows that."
Ye Linchen questioned Li Li: "You're saying I stole Meng Zihan's tutoring money? Do you have any evidence? The money I used to buy clothes was the money I earned from my part-time job. What, does Meng Zihan think that because she lives in the Ye family, she's the master of the Ye family, and that I have to spend the money I earn on her?"
Mencius's voice trembled as he vehemently protested, "That's not it... I just... I'm upset because I can't get extra lessons..."
Ye Linchen turned around and stared into Meng Zihan's eyes: "Then tell me, why can't you get tutoring anymore?"
Meng Zihan lowered her head, tears streaming down her face. She wiped them away with the back of her hand and choked out, "Let it go, everyone, stop talking. It's my fault..."
Ye Linchen took a step forward, pressing aggressively: "No, this matter cannot be left like this."
She glanced at her classmates who were whispering among themselves, "Do you know what happened? After she was rejected by our study group, she actually instigated my mom to cause trouble at my rented apartment. She spread rumors that I was indecent with male classmates. If Feng Linlin and Lin Xiaojuan hadn't been there, my reputation would have been completely ruined."
She raised her voice and asked, "Meng Zihan, you should remember what happened yesterday clearly, right? Why are you pretending to have amnesia?"
Lin Xiaojuan particularly disliked Meng Zihan and said mercilessly, "It's because we don't want her to join. With her grades, she's at the bottom of every subject. How can she keep up with our group's pace?"
Feng Linlin also said, "If your grades are bad, just study hard and put in more effort. What's the point of doing these crooked tricks all day?"
Lin Xiaojuan also mocked, "Meng Zihan, if you don't put your mind on the right path, be careful you won't get 18 points in every subject."
"That's a good score, eighteen, we should give it to them," one of the boys said.
"Meng Zihan, you can open a shop and start a business now. You're going to make a fortune. What a great omen!" Someone immediately echoed from the side.
The students around him laughed.
"Meng Zihan, this really can't be considered that others are bullying you. You got your score of 18 points on your own."
"It was really terrible. I could score much higher even with my eyes closed," Lin Xiaojuan said again.
From the moment Lin Xiaojuan mocked Meng Zihan for her poor grades, Meng Zihan's face turned bright red, her mouth agape, but she couldn't say a word.
Seeing everyone talking about being "eighteen" all the time, she couldn't stand it anymore. She burst into tears and ran out of the classroom.
"Lin Xiaojuan, you've gone too far!" Gu Yifei's face flushed red as he loudly accused Lin Xiaojuan.
"Isn't it too much for her to spread rumors about Xiao Chen behind her back? I confronted her directly and honestly! If she's so capable, she should refute me. All she does is put on that pitiful act and scheme behind people's backs. She deserves to have bad grades!" Lin Xiaojuan retorted without backing down, and even glanced contemptuously at Meng Zihan's back. "She can only fool idiots like you!"
Gu Yifei was worried about Meng Zihan and had no interest in arguing with Lin Xiaojuan.
He glared at Ye Linchen fiercely: "Are you satisfied now?"
After saying that, he turned around and chased after Meng Zihan out of the classroom.
Li Li glared at Ye Linchen, threw down the words "selfish and greedy!", and ran out.
"What's wrong? Feeling guilty? Running away because you can't win the argument?"
Ye Linchen watched their retreating figures and shouted loudly.
She didn't care what these people thought of her, but it was impossible for them to spread rumors and bully her like they did in her previous life!
The more the three of them ran away, the louder the chatter became in the classroom.
"Ye Linchen, you're so cool!" A girl gave Ye Linchen a thumbs up with admiration.
“Exactly! There are so few people like you who talk things out face-to-face and don’t do anything underhanded behind people’s backs these days!” Another boy nodded in agreement.
"Ye Linchen, you're so brave! If I were in that situation, I wouldn't dare to stand up to you like that!" a rather introverted girl whispered.
"If everyone were like you, there wouldn't be so many rumors, conspiracies, and schemes."
"You're absolutely my idol! You're so awesome!"
Ye Linchen looked at the friendly and supportive gazes of his classmates and smiled slightly.
Indeed, even when faced with the same situation, different approaches can lead to drastically different results.
In her past life, she felt extremely wronged when she heard such rumors, but she dared not argue and could only hide in a corner and cry.
What she got in return was that those who bullied her became even more smug and intensified their slander and trouble-making.
In this life, she chose to bravely stand up, respond to the rumors head-on, and expose Meng Zihan's true colors, which instead made the rumor-mongers feel guilty and scared, and they fled in panic.
It seems that weakness only invites more bullying, while only by bravely resisting can one protect oneself and earn respect.
After this confrontation, those who want to spread rumors about her will have to think twice before speaking.
Ye Linchen nodded to everyone and turned back to his seat.
Feng Linlin and Lin Xiaojuan followed, both with excited expressions on their faces.
"Xiao Chen, I admire your courage and responsibility!"
Feng Linlin excitedly grabbed Ye Linchen's hand and squeezed it tightly.
"Fortunately, these rumors have just started circulating, and people don't believe them yet," Lin Xiaojuan said with lingering fear. "If we waited longer, given Meng Zihan's acting skills, many people might actually be fooled."
As she spoke, she even imitated Meng Zihan's crying and sobbing, which made Ye Linchen and Feng Linlin laugh.
Those who are fooled are just naive people, and Ye Linchen doesn't care about them.
Ye Linchen changed the subject and asked Feng Linlin and Lin Xiaojuan, "The first mock exam is coming up soon. How are your preparations going?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
