Jiang Xinrou glanced around the classroom; Jiang Ran had just gone to the restroom and wasn't there.
She coughed lightly twice, then sighed heavily.
"Don't you find this very strange?" Jiang Xinrou raised her voice and shouted, "Before coming to our school, she studied in the countryside. The school she attended was very remote, with only one Chinese teacher and one math teacher. The teaching quality was even worse. How could she possibly be ranked first in the grade with such a foundation?"
After she said that, some of her classmates were somewhat skeptical.
"I think there's some truth to what she said..."
"I think so too. Jiang Ran is a really nice person, but... it's really too exaggerated for her to get first place in the grade. She comes from the countryside, how could she possibly outperform the people in the elite classes?"
"But the teacher has no reason to help her cheat, right?"
"Then how do you explain that she got first place in the grade? You're not saying she's just naturally gifted, are you?"
"There's definitely something fishy about this... Even if she's incredibly talented, she shouldn't be able to get into the top elite class, right?"
"Then tell me... how exactly did she get first place?"
Seeing that the time was right, Jiang Xinrou stepped forward and pretended to analyze rationally, saying, "Unless she is a genius, she must have made some kind of shady deal with the teacher?"
After saying that, she gave a look to her two followers.
Although her two lackeys had a conflict with her last time, they both came from poor families. She casually gave them some unwanted jewelry and cosmetics, and they obediently returned to become her lapdogs.
Chen Yuanyuan, who was following along, immediately understood and stood up angrily, saying, "I don't believe in any geniuses! She must have bribed the teachers and the school."
Gao Jiayi also looked indignant: "That's so unfair to the other students who study hard! If bribing the teacher is all it takes, then why do we all study so hard?"
"Exactly! Jiang Ran's behavior is a provocation to all the students who are working hard! We can't just let this go, otherwise what kind of fairness will there be in the future?"
With their encouragement, more and more people felt that Jiang Ran's exam results were abnormal.
After all, her previous school was so remote that it only had Chinese and math teachers. She had only transferred here for half a semester, so how could she have gotten first place in the grade?
Of course, some people are quite dismissive of this statement.
In their view, the school would never help Jiang Ran cheat. First, the Jiang family was not a powerful family that the school couldn't afford to offend. Second, what good would it do besides tarnishing the school's reputation? It would be too much of a loss.
Therefore, this matter is completely fabricated; it's just that some people are jealous and resentful, which is why they said these things.
When Jiang Ran returned to the classroom, she found that almost half of the students were staring at her, their eyes filled with anger, disdain, and contempt.
What's going on?
Jiang Ran was somewhat surprised to see Yang Mei, and her gaze swept over Jiang Xinrou, who was standing in the crowd with her arms crossed, glaring at her.
It's obvious without even guessing that Jiang Xinrou must have done something shady again.
Chen Yuanyuan, having received the hint, immediately stepped forward to block her path: "Jiang Ran, the teacher isn't here now, so just tell us honestly why you got first place!"
Jiang Ran was amused by her words, and just smiled at her without answering her question.
"Look! She's feeling guilty!"
"Jiang Ran, did you cheat to get first place?"
"Yeah, with such a poor foundation, how could you possibly get first place without cheating?"
Aren't you ashamed of what you've done?
At this moment, Jiang Xinrou stepped forward and gently patted Jiang Ran's shoulder, looking understanding: "Actually, it's not a big deal if your grades are bad, no one will laugh at you, but cheating is a matter of character."
As she spoke, she squeezed out another tear from the corner of her eye: "I know you didn't mean it. You just want to surpass me too much. You've always wanted to prove that you're better than me and more suitable to be the Jiang family's daughter, but... but you shouldn't use such a wrong method as cheating. If you just tell me, I will absolutely not compete with you."
Chen Yuanyuan immediately chimed in, "Xinrou, don't blame yourself. It's her own bad character that led her to cheat on the exam! What does it have to do with you!"
"Yeah, yeah, she cheated entirely because she was too vain."
Jiang Ran didn't rush to refute. Instead, she imitated Jiang Xinrou, biting her lower lip with a wronged expression, sniffing bitterly, and returning to her seat in a very dejected manner.
[Waaah... Why can't I get my sister's approval no matter what I do?]
Why does my sister see me as someone who cheats? I sleep at 3 AM and wake up at 5 AM every day, I'm practically working myself to the bone just to get good grades so my sister and everyone else can respect me more... But I've put in so much effort...
Why does she hate me so much? I know she thinks it's all because I came back that I stole her position as the Jiang family's heiress... If I could, I'd give that status back to her... Anyway, Dad prefers my sister, so I might as well not have come back.
But... I really want a real home, I love being with my family... I don't want to be that kind of wild child who had no one to love me and had to scavenge for scraps of vegetables to survive anymore...
I envy my older sister for having been loved by her parents since she was little, and for having so many classmates who like her, unlike me... everyone just thinks I'm an ugly and despicable person.
I feel so tired... I don't know how to go on living... how to face my classmates...
[Waaaaah... Everyone thinks I'm a bad person... My classmates must hate me and wish I were dead... If that's the case, what's the point of me living?]
......
The classroom suddenly became eerily quiet.
Those students who hadn't agreed with Jiang Xinrou earlier couldn't sit still any longer.
"You guys are really going too far! Are you only satisfied when you've driven someone to their death?"
"Exactly! Everything you're saying is just your speculation! What makes you think the school would cover for her cheating? I think you're just jealous and resentful because she got first place, so you're saying all this nonsense to slander her, right?"
Of those who had just echoed Jiang Xinrou, a large majority now felt that what they had said was too much.
I deserve to die! She sacrificed her sleep every day to achieve what she has today.
They actually misunderstood Jiang Ran like that, to the point that she even had suicidal thoughts!
If Jiang Ran really couldn't think straight, wouldn't he be carrying the weight of a life on his shoulders?
He'll feel guilty for the rest of his life!
A classmate stepped forward apologetically and walked to Jiang Ran's desk, whispering an apology: "Jiang Ran, I'm sorry. I misunderstood you just now. I apologize. Please don't overthink it."
"Yes, yes, everyone likes you a lot. We were just misled..."
As soon as she finished speaking, all the students' eyes fell on Jiang Xinrou.
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