In the new semester, Shi Jing aimed for the top high school in the city and studied even harder.
She spent too much time studying at her desk. Her classmates, who had already felt a sense of crisis because of her improved grades, now seemed to have entered a cycle of comparison, studying harder and harder, and the atmosphere of the whole class was completely renewed.
Mr. Li, a current ninth-grade homeroom teacher, is truly happy to see this situation.
Shi Jing didn't hide from Rong Yu that he wanted to take the entrance exam for the city's top high school, aiming to become the city's top student. After learning about Shi Jing's goal, Rong Yu wasn't surprised; on the contrary, he greatly admired and thought highly of him.
To help Shi Jing achieve her goals, Rong Yu even took time out of her spare time from studying and working to find suitable study materials and workbooks for her. Since she didn't have time to send them back, she mailed them all back to her, which greatly benefited Shi Jing and Qi Shuang.
Jing was very grateful to this. She had known Rong Yu for a long time and knew very well how busy and difficult it was for him to work hard and save money.
Because of these workbooks, some classmates started trying to borrow books from Shi Jing. After discovering that Shi Jing was very generous in sharing, the classmates became closer.
Overall, Shi Jing's plan to get into the city's No. 1 High School had a positive impact on his classmates.
The only one unwilling to accept this arrangement was probably Ms. Yan.
After learning of Shi Jing's goal, Ms. Yan put aside her wedding plans and her boyfriend in her busy schedule and went home to find Shi Jing.
Her opening remarks were full of accusations, almost entirely shifting the blame for Shi Jing's plan onto Shi Hai. The former couple, after their divorce, were completely at odds with each other.
“Xiaojing, tell your mother honestly, did your father say something that made you want to apply to the No. 1 High School in the city?”
"No, Mom, this is my own idea."
Ms. Yan, however, did not believe it: "Don't try to cover for your father. That vixen must have said something. Now that he has a son, he doesn't plan to care about his daughter anymore? He's being too outrageous!"
Shi Jing had a headache; this matter really had nothing to do with Shi Hai.
“Mom, listen to me.” Shi Jing grabbed Ms. Yan’s shoulders to calm her down. “It’s not that Dad said anything. He doesn’t object to me continuing to attend a private high school. It’s just that I don’t want to.”
Once Ms. Yan calmed down and stopped blaming Shi Hai, Shi Jing continued, "Mom, I think my grades are pretty good right now. I want to try to get into a good high school through my own efforts and go to a university that I like."
Ms. Yan waited until she finished speaking before confirming, "Is everything you said true? You're not helping your dad fool me?"
"No. Mom, it concerns my studies. How could I possibly help Dad lie to you? Do I seem like that kind of person?"
Only after hearing this did Ms. Yan finally believe it. Shi Jingdi's personality wasn't exactly pleasant; if Shi Hai had really wronged her, she would have been the first to make a scene.
Thinking of this, Ms. Yan stopped talking about Shi Hai and said, "Since it was your own idea, I won't say anything. You should work hard and try to get into a good high school. If it really doesn't work out, you can continue to attend a private high school."
“Okay.” Shi Jing didn’t say much to Ms. Yan about his grades and his goal of becoming the top student in the city, and readily agreed.
With the matter settled, Ms. Yan returned to her elusive, unpredictable state, much to Shi Jing's relief.
After setting the same goal, Qi Shuang has been working much harder and spending more time with Shi Jing. On the contrary, Qi Yan has become the most relaxed of the three.
At noon, the two would usually go to the cafeteria for lunch together, then take a walk and study together afterward, and then go to class together in the afternoon.
After lunch that day, Shi Jing and Qi Shuang took a walk together on campus.
Yesterday, Rongyu gave her a few questions, which she found quite interesting. She was taking a walk while thinking about how to solve them.
As they were walking, someone suddenly appeared in front of them.
Shi Jing was disturbed and subconsciously looked over. She recognized the person; they had met before but weren't close.
"Xiao Xue? Is there something you want to do by stopping us?" Shi Jing asked, somewhat puzzled.
This person used to follow Lin Lu around and act arrogantly, but she's seen him much less in the past six months. She doesn't know why he suddenly stopped her.
"Shi Jing, I heard you have a nice set of workbooks. Can I use them?" Xiao Xue didn't beat around the bush and made her request right away.
Shi Jing was not happy to hear this. If the other party had been polite, she might have been able to put aside her prejudice and reluctantly lend it to her. But what was with this matter-of-fact and bossy attitude? She didn't owe her anything.
"No." Shi Jing didn't bother with small talk and refused directly.
"How can you be so stingy? Giving you a set of books is a favor." Xiao Xue's voice suddenly rose.
"No need."
"What are you so arrogant about, Shi Jing? Your dad doesn't want you anymore, you don't still think you're some rich heiress, do you?"
Qi Shuang couldn't stand it anymore after hearing this: "How can you talk like that? Shi Jing's father is still her father. Stop trying to stir up trouble."
"Tch." Xiao Xue scoffed. "Her father has remarried and had a son. What does the Shi family have to do with her? On the contrary, what about you? Your family went bankrupt, so you can just rot with Shi Jing."
Shi Jing found Xiao Xue's arrogant demeanor extremely unpleasant. This person was truly someone who snobbishly flattered the powerful and belittled the weak. She would never have dared to speak like this in front of Shi Jing and Qi Shuang before; even if she did, she would have used Lin Lu's name. Now, however, she was completely unrestrained.
Shi Jing patted the angry Qi Shuang and looked at Xiao Xue with utter contempt: "My dad remarried, but I'm still his daughter. No matter how down on my luck I am, I don't need to step on others to find a sense of existence. What right do you have to compare yourself to us?"
"you!"
Xiao Xue was furious. Just as she was about to speak, a voice came from not far away: "Oh, it's so lively over here."
Upon hearing this, Shi Jing looked over and saw that it was an old acquaintance. What incredible luck!
"Lin Lu," Shi Jing called out, wondering if she and Xiao Xue had come together.
Lin Lu ignored her and looked at Xiao Xue with a half-smile. Xiao Xue's face turned ugly under her gaze, and the atmosphere became somewhat strange.
After watching for a while, Lin Lu suddenly spoke up: "Isn't this Xiao Xue? She's still here?"
Shi Jing was also unsure what the two were up to, and looked at them with surprise.
“Lu… Sister Lu, what a coincidence…” Xiao Xue stammered.
Lin Lu's expression remained unpleasant. She stared at Xiao Xue with a cold smile: "Isn't it a coincidence? What, have you forgotten what I said?"
"No...no..."
Lin Lu ignored her and grabbed Xiao Xue's chin with one hand: "Didn't I tell you? You better behave yourself from now on and don't let me see you causing trouble again. What, are you ignoring my words?"
"No, no, I just..."
"Just what? Just because I'm too easy to talk to?"
"Sister Lu, I'm sorry, I... I just wanted to borrow some documents from Shi Jing... I didn't cause any trouble!"
Lin Lu merely glanced at Shi Jing, neither confirming nor denying whether she believed Xiao Xue's words. Shi Jing, on the other hand, was quite surprised by their interaction. Wasn't Xiao Xue Lin Lu's follower? Had they fallen out?
"I said..." Shi Jing tried to speak, but Lin Lu glared at her fiercely, "What are you saying!"
"Wait, what's going on?" Shi Jing and Qi Shuang looked at each other, completely bewildered.
"Just because I don't hold grudges against you for what happened in the past doesn't mean I'm really good-tempered." Lin Lu pinched Xiao Xue's chin, and Xiao Xue's face turned red, but she didn't dare to move.
"I'm sorry, I really won't do it again."
"I don't care if you're genuinely scared or just pretending. This is my last warning to you. Don't let me find you causing trouble at school again. Behave yourself!"
"I know, I know," Xiao Xue replied repeatedly.
Lin Lu then released her face: "Get lost."
Xiao Xue dared not say anything more and quickly ran away.
Shi Jing looked at Lin Lu and wondered, "Is this person really that powerful now? She scared Xiao Xue like this with just a few words?"
Seeing Xiao Xue run away, Lin Lu turned to Shi Jing with a look of disgust: "What's wrong with you? You've fallen so low that Xiao Xue is bullying you?"
"No, which eye of yours saw me being bullied?" Shi Jing rolled her eyes at Lin Lu, annoyed. "On the contrary, what's going on with you guys? Isn't Xiao Xue your follower?"
"Her?" Lin Lu sneered. "She lives off my family's resources and still dares to stab me in the back. I'm already being lenient by not kicking her out of school."
I see.
No wonder Lin Lu and Xiao Xue had a falling out. Xiao Xue was probably used to taking advantage of others, and she ended up getting herself into trouble.
"What's wrong with you? I heard you're aiming for the top high school in the city? What, your dad won't even pay your tuition?"
"No, where did these rumors come from?" Shi Jing said helplessly. "It's my own plan, it has nothing to do with my dad."
"That's fine then. Don't be silly and just hand over your things." Lin Lu said, ignoring Shi Jing. "Alright, I'm leaving. I'm busy!"
After saying that, she waved her hand and left with her entourage.
They came and went without explanation.
After the person left, Qi Shuang asked Shi Jing, "Your friend?"
"No, it's just that we had some conflicts in the past," she said honestly.
Qi Shuang was skeptical; these two seemed to have a pretty good relationship.
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