Chapter 21 I'll tolerate your ancestors
The auditorium fell silent instantly as everyone turned to look at Lu Jinlan, Xiang Ruzhen, and Yan Wuxin.
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Jin Yihuai and her subordinates walked off the stage aggressively and headed straight for the back of the group.
Jin Yihuai: "You three, step forward!"
Lu Jinlan glared at him, defiantly asking, "What's wrong with us?"
Jin Yihuai glared at her fiercely, "This is none of your business, those three next to you."
Only then did everyone realize that they were talking about Ling Zhaoren, Chu Yishu, and Yan Yu. The three of them probably hadn't expected that they were coming for them, so they had no choice but to accept their bad luck and leave the line.
Jin Yihuai, holding a pointer, tapped his palm repeatedly, reprimanding, "This is the first student council disciplinary meeting. Is this a place for you to gossip? To be so unruly and disrespectful in front of your seniors is unacceptable. Today, I'll use you as an example to show those self-important freshmen what happens when they disrespect their seniors. Push-ups, two hundred."
"What?" Chu Yishu could hardly believe her ears. "Two hundred push-ups? Senior, is it really that bad?"
Jin Yihuai's face darkened. "Holding back on your offer and refusing to comply will result in a heavier punishment: three hundred push-ups."
Ling Zhaoren was so angry that he laughed. "You only entered school a year earlier than us. Even if you are the newly appointed student council president, you should at least consider who you are targeting. Let me tell you, my surname is Ling."
Jin Yihuai feigned surprise: "Surname Ling? Which family is the Ling family from?"
Ling Zhaoren said smugly, "The one you fear the most."
Jin Yihuai burst into laughter, making Ling Zhaoren a little uneasy. "What are you laughing at?"
“Junior sister, I laugh at your naivety. Do you think I’m afraid of your Dingbei Marquis’s mansion? I know your Ling family is powerful, with Ling Yan and Zhao Chu. The emperor’s surname is Zhao, and the Zhao family can only rank third, but so what? Don’t you know that I, Jin Yihuai, have no reason to be afraid of you?”
After a long silence, Yan Yu spoke thoughtfully, "Senior, you are the daughter of Censor Jin, aren't you?"
Jin Yihuai snorted coldly, "You're quite knowledgeable."
The Hua Kingdom implemented a system of three supreme officials and six ministries. Apart from the emperor, the civil and military officials were all respected by the three ministers: the prime minister, the grand commander, and the censor.
Chancellor Yan Weijin was in charge of all administrative affairs, while Ling Zhichong, the younger sister of Marquis Dingbei Ling Zhijing, served as Grand Commandant, overseeing all military and political affairs. Jin Yihuai's mother was Jin Yunning, the Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate, responsible for supervising all officials, investigating and impeaching them, and maintaining discipline.
With the three of them evenly matched, Jin Yihuai certainly had nothing to fear from Ling Zhaoren.
She held the pointer across Ling Zhaoren's neck. "This isn't the Dingbei Marquis's residence. I'm in charge of the rules here. Even if you're the Emperor's daughter, you can't escape this punishment today."
Ling Zhaoren had never been treated like this since birth. She gritted her teeth, her hands clenched into fists at her sides.
Jin Yihuai turned around, and she really wanted to punch her unexpectedly, but Yan Yu quickly whispered, "Don't be impulsive. The student supervisor forbids private fights. Besides, there are more than forty student council members here tonight. The other side has more people and is more powerful. We won't have the upper hand. A wise woman doesn't fight a losing battle. Accept the punishment."
Ling Zhaoren angrily released his fist, and the three of them resignedly supported themselves on the ground and began to do push-ups.
Just then, seven or eight freshmen arrived. As soon as they entered, Jin Yihuai shouted at them, "Those who are late, do five hundred push-ups!"
As she spoke, she stepped over the heads of the three people. The latecomers, seeing this scene, dared not resist and obediently accepted their punishment.
In the sweltering summer heat, the atmosphere inside the auditorium was colder than in the dead of winter.
Xiang Ruzhen frowned, just as she was about to step forward, but Yan Wuxin and Lu Jinlan held her back tightly from both sides.
Yan Wuxin growled, "What are you doing? You're standing up for Ling Zhaoren, but she won't appreciate it."
Xiang Ruzhen: "I don't care what she thinks at all. I'm just stating the facts, not the person. Bullying classmates is wrong."
Lu Jinlan: "I know you're a champion of justice, but didn't you just say to try to avoid conflict and to be patient?"
Yes, we can't fight anymore.
Xiang Ruzhen took a deep breath and nodded helplessly.
Lu Jinlan looked around. The student council members held their chins high, while the freshmen all had their heads down. The most arrogant and well-connected classmate in their grade was being trampled on and punished. Feeling a sense of shared fate, everyone was in a state of anxiety, confusion, and helplessness.
Bullying is a complex and difficult problem. It spreads across many groups, appearing almost everywhere in schools, the military, and workplaces. Perpetrators relentlessly oppress, administrators tacitly condone and tolerate it, bystanders remain fearful and silent, and victims are left only with helplessness and suffering.
She knew that solving this persistent problem required an effective solution. It needed support from all sides, perseverance, and courage. It required careful planning and a gradual approach. But when the situation presented itself, Lu Jinlan suddenly changed her mind: What the hell? Just do it!
Where there is oppression, there is resistance. Lu Jinlan said in a low voice, "Ruzhen is right, it is wrong to bully classmates."
Yan Wuxin glanced at her helplessly and said weakly, "Tell me what you're going to do this time. You know I'm slow to react and can't keep up with the pace."
Xiang Ruzhen said urgently, "Don't be impulsive, hold back for now, and we'll discuss this further when we get back."
Lu Jinlan held her breath and, when she heard on stage that the freshmen would help the seniors with their chores, she thought to herself: I'll endure it!
When she heard that freshmen had to help upperclassmen wash their clothes every two days, she started to calculate: "Ah, for a month I have to clean the classroom every day and wash their clothes every two days. Am I studying at a royal college or a home economics college? And I have to put up with all this?"
When she heard that freshmen were to perform a grand salute when they met senior students, she was shocked: Was he a crossbreed?
Where did they learn this? When they see the dean, supervisors, and teachers, they just bow their heads, clasp their hands, and slightly bend their waists. To bow ninety degrees to a senior student? Do they think they're some kind of deity enshrined in the academy? Are they crazy?
Lu Jinlan watched as the student council's henchmen were wielding pointers and striking the backs of the freshmen. "Bend down! Can't you bend over?"
The sounds of flesh being struck echoed throughout the room; it was a massive test of obedience, but some refused to comply.
When the pointer swung towards Lu Jinlan, she grabbed it.
Faced with Jin Yihuai's shocked and astonished expression, Lu Jinlan politely said, "I'll tolerate your ancestors!"
*Snap!* She snatched the pointer, broke it in two, and threw it at the lectern.
The two pointers, like two sharp arrows, pierced the wooden board with two loud thuds, eliciting gasps and an instant uproar from the audience.
Ling Zhaoren and the others were doing push-ups until they were almost numb when they saw this scene and immediately collapsed to the ground, dumbfounded.
The student council's henchmen were too busy to supervise their punishment and quickly sided with Jin Yihuai.
Xiang Ruzhen, Yan Wuxin, and Lu Jinlan stood back to back, instantly forming a defensive stance.
Lu Jinlan sneered, "The school supervisor strictly forbids fighting. Do you dare to lay a hand on me?"
Han Li whispered a reminder to Jin Yihuai: "Those three are quite strong. If they really fight, we'll get hurt too. If we fight in front of everyone, it'll be hard to explain to the dean and supervisor later."
Jin Yihuai gritted his teeth and looked at Lu Jinlan, "What do you want?"
Lu Jinlan: "I want to tell you that where there is oppression, there will be resistance."
She looked at the fearful and uneasy freshmen and said loudly, "Fellow students, we don't need to endure the oppression and humiliation of the student council. We are here to study and serve our country, to help the people and uphold justice, not to be bullied. The student council doesn't serve the students, yet it expects us to be its servants. Where is justice? We must not submit! We should resist! This kind of student council has no right to manage us. Let's go!"
The three of them turned around at the same time, and Yan Wuxin muttered to himself, "It seems a little awkward for just the three of us to walk out alone."
Lu Jinlan: "We will lead by example, uniting all forces that can be united."
As they passed the group of guys who were sweating profusely and lying on the ground watching the show, the three of them tacitly extended their hands.
Yan Yu, Chu Yishu, and Ling Zhaoren exchanged glances, responded in unison, grabbed their hands, stood up nimbly, wiped the sweat from their faces, and followed them.
Someone in the crowd muttered, "They're all from 106."
Upon hearing this, Sun Lewen grabbed Wu Qiongmeng and quickly followed. She understood that the two sides were now at odds. As roommates of room 106, there was no good outcome for them if they stayed. It was better to join the group and at least get a good night's sleep in the dormitory.
As soon as the eight people left, people became restless, and seven or eight more figures ran out of the queue and followed closely behind.
Seeing that they were about to leave the auditorium, Jin Yihuai hurriedly threatened, "Do you know what the consequences will be if you go with them? I won't let you off the hook."
Lu Jinlan stopped, turned slightly to the side, and raised her dark eyebrows. "Everyone, if you stay here, she won't treat you well. Staying here will only mean endless beatings and arduous labor. How can the matriarch, living between heaven and earth, remain subservient to others for long?"
These words not only stirred people's hearts but also filled Xiang Ruzhen with a surge of pride. She declared to the crowd, "Classmates, you can come with us without worry. I, Xiang Ruzhen, swear on my reputation as the top scholar in this year's imperial examination, there is no oppression here, no class distinctions, we will not beat or humiliate, we will only help each other. Staying here will only make you their slaves, come with us and become our sisters, what are you still hesitating for?"
Seeing that the two had given a long speech in succession, Yan Wuxin knew that if she didn't say anything, she would be left behind again. So she quickly shouted, "If you're a woman, you should have some backbone. You're being bullied and you don't even dare to leave. I think you're not even as good as men."
The three men used a chaotic combination of verbal incitement, belief appeal, stereotypes, and provocation to attract more than twenty new students to follow them.
Everyone walked out of the auditorium with great pride, while Jin Yihuai, in a disheveled state, ordered: "Quickly close the door!"
Lu Jinlan roughly counted and found that there were about forty people who had come out. Apart from the 106 group and the out-of-town gangs, the rest were all local students from Shenjing, and many of them had even fought on the day of the martial arts test.
Lu Jinlan said, "Let bygones be bygones. From now on, we are all in the same boat. We must unite and help each other, and not let anyone divide us. As long as we unite, no one can do anything to us."
Xiang Ruzhen nodded repeatedly, "Let's all get to know each other so we can look out for each other if anything happens. Try not to go out alone these next two days. If the student council gives you any trouble, have them come to 106 to find me."
Yan Yu said worriedly, "We've already fallen out with the student council, they definitely won't let this go. A purely defensive approach isn't a long-term solution. Do either of you have a good plan?"
Xiang Ruzhen answered honestly, "No, not at all."
"Ah?" The crowd exclaimed in alarm.
Xiang Ruzhen added, "But we'll deal with whatever comes our way, there's nothing to be afraid of."
Lu Jinlan smiled confidently, "Don't worry, everyone, I have a foolproof plan. Go back and rest well, and wait for good news tomorrow."
Everyone finally breathed a sigh of relief. As soon as the crowd left, Xiang Ruzhen and Yan Wuxin couldn't wait to hook their arms around Lu Jinlan's neck and whispered, "What perfect plan? Tell us quickly."
Lu Jinlan told the two of them the truth: "I haven't thought of it yet. I'll think about it when we get back."
A note from the author:
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Yan Wuxin: Ever since I met those two, I haven't had a single day of peace... (A sweet complaint from Yan Shaoniang)
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