Chapter 93
Forget me.
The junior high and senior high sections are directly connected by the corridor of the administration building. Usually, people don't walk through the administration building; they usually go around it from downstairs. But today, she walked straight through. She was walking very fast, and as she passed a meeting room, she vaguely heard Gao Qiang's voice.
She hadn't paid much attention at first, but just as she was about to walk over, she suddenly and keenly heard two keywords: Xu Shen.
"The matter has been decided. You just need to inform Xu Shen's parents."
Zhan Xinyue stopped in her tracks and listened silently for a while, gradually understanding why Wang Zhiyi had been hesitant to speak all afternoon.
In the conference room, a group of school leaders were discussing yesterday's case. The evidence in this case was initially insufficient; the other party's actions were considered an attempted crime without causing substantial harm, and given that the perpetrator was a minor, it was highly likely the case would be dropped. To prevent the matter from spreading and damaging the school's reputation, the school had been contacting Wang Zhiyi since last night, urging her to reach a settlement with the other party and request the case be dropped.
Before Wang Zhiyi could even give an answer, the other party's parents started making a scene. Apparently, their family has considerable influence, and they're not only insisting that Wang Zhiyi and their son's relationship is a romantic dispute, but they're also suing Xu Shen for intentional assault. Rumor has it that Xu Shen beat them quite badly, resulting in minor injuries.
"Doesn't that Wang Zhiyi have any sense of the bigger picture? Who gave her permission to call the police? Why didn't she report to the school leaders immediately? What was she doing making decisions on her own?" Gao Qiang slammed his fist on the table. "Find someone to talk to her again and tell her to consider the school's reputation more and not be so selfish. If this gets out, will the school be able to enroll students next year? Besides, she's an unmarried young woman. Will making a scene like this do her any good?"
As Zhan Xinyue leaned against the wall, she suddenly felt a wave of nausea rising from her stomach to her throat.
She still remembered the scene from her past life where she saw Wang Zhiyi standing in front of Gao Qiang, tears streaming down her face, after he resigned. At that time, with red eyes, she asked him, word by word, "Why? I didn't do anything wrong."
Zhan Xinyue had always thought that her pain stemmed solely from the unbearable burden of rumors and gossip. Now she realized that this school, which valued reputation above all else, was cannibalistic. It ruthlessly crushed Wang Zhiyi's pain, leaving her to swallow all the hurt she suffered alone with her tears.
"Also, once that senior student comes out, we need to arrange for him to return to school immediately. Rumors are already circulating, and his return is crucial to proving them unfounded. As for what happened that day, just say it was a fight between two students. Oh, and wasn't Zhan Xinyue there too? She and Xu Shen had a falling out before, so just say it was a romantic dispute. Go down and talk to her, make sure we agree on the story and prevent her from spreading rumors. As for Xu Shen, expel him."
“But he was doing a good deed this time too…” Old Fang said hesitantly.
"But what but? It's not that we're being heartless, it's that the other parent is refusing to let Xu Shen go, and they're going to sue him for intentional assault. He beat them quite badly, it constitutes minor injury, and we can't keep a student who will leave a criminal record like that. Besides, he already has disciplinary records, right? This kind of student is like a time bomb, always causing trouble, so it's better to deal with him as soon as possible. Okay, that's settled then, meeting adjourned."
The sound of chairs being pulled out came from inside the conference room, and Zhan Xinyue immediately strode into the dark stairwell.
I slipped out of the side door of the administration building. It was quiet outside, and the classrooms on both sides were brightly lit with classes in progress. The nausea I'd felt earlier intensified.
Zhan Xinyue stood downstairs for a while in the wind. It was still drizzling outside. The cold wind cleared her head a bit, and she realized that the junior high students had one less evening class than them, so school was already over.
Soft music was playing from the building over there, and there weren't many people left.
Zhan Xinyue didn't even know which class Shi Qiyue was in, but she still went to wander around the building on a whim. She didn't have high hopes, but unexpectedly, she actually ran into Shi Qiyue.
Shi Qiyue was painting a wall poster outside the classroom all by herself. Everyone in the classroom had left, and even the lights were off. She was the only one squatting on the ground, painting with great concentration.
Zhan Xinyue watched her silently for a while. She seemed to have a talent for this. She could see that she was very talented by simply combining lines and colors.
As Shi Qiyue finished her stroke and bent down to wash her brush, her hand trembled violently when she caught sight of a shadow behind her. She took a large step back before she could see who it was and exclaimed, "Sister! How come you walk so quietly?"
Zhan Xinyue felt embarrassed: "Why are you still here all alone after everyone else has left?"
"Time to put up the bulletin board? It's so early, I don't want to go back to sleep." Shi Qiyue tossed the brush into the bucket. "Why did you come to see me, sister? Is something wrong?"
"I wanted to ask if you've been able to contact Shi Ziqian? You said he was bitten by a snake, and I wonder how he is."
"Not yet," Shi Qiyue said. "But if he's in the hospital, someone will contact his family. Since there's been no news, he should be fine. Let's wait a little longer; we'll know the situation when he gets back."
Zhan Xinyue was even more confused: "Why did he have to come back today?"
“Actually, I happened to see what happened on the playground yesterday, so when I called my brother, I told him.” Shi Qiyue took two steps to the side and leaned against the unpainted wall. “He was alone in his abandoned old house in his hometown at the time. I heard that he seemed to have been bitten by a snake. I advised him to hurry up, but he didn’t take it seriously. But after hearing about you, he immediately said he wanted to come back. The transportation there is not very convenient, and you have to transfer several times to get to the airport, but I guess he will definitely arrive before tonight.”
Zhan Xinyue subconsciously said, "Why? Nothing happened to me."
“I don’t know why you said that on the playground. Maybe there are things you don’t care about, but there are people who do.” Shi Qiyue said seriously, like a little adult. “Sister, my brother is very worried about you.”
Zhan Xinyue was completely speechless.
Looking at her expression, Shi Qiyue sighed softly, "Sigh, I don't understand what's going on between you two. But sister, you like my brother, right? You'll be happy with him."
She changed the subject so quickly that Zhan Xinyue didn't know what to say next, so she could only say, "You're still young, you don't need to worry about these things."
“I’m a serious older sister.” Shi Qiyue said with a serious expression. “You should be able to tell that my brother is a very slow-to-warm-up person. Once he’s set his mind on someone, he won’t easily change his mind.”
Zhan Xinyue looked at her; her eyes were exceptionally large against her pointed oval face. Perhaps because of her upbringing, although she seemed somewhat rebellious and unruly, she was actually a remarkably precocious little girl.
"The whole family there is incredibly stubborn. He went back this time to sweep his grandmother's grave. Ever since his grandfather passed away, his grandmother had lived alone in the old house where the two of them used to live for more than ten years, until she passed away. That place, tsk."
"His mother was pretty much the same kind of person. You can tell by looking at my brother's appearance. His mother was very beautiful, and there were so many suitors that one couldn't fit them all on the playground. My dad pursued her for several years before he finally won her over. Although I heard they always argued when they were together, their relationship was still quite good. After they divorced, his mother went to the United States alone, and I heard she is still single to this day."
"As for my brother, it's obvious that he's also a stubborn guy."
"Sister, I don't know why my brother likes you, but I guess you must be really, really good for him to like you. If you're willing to try accepting him, he'll definitely treat you very well."
After chatting with Shi Qiyue, Zhan Xinyue walked absentmindedly back from the junior high school section through the drizzle.
When she arrived at the high school building, she didn't rush upstairs; she just stood there lost in thought. After standing there for a long time, she finally moved and prepared to go upstairs. As she looked up, she saw Shi Ziqian's figure walking towards her in the distance.
Shi Qiyue was right; he really did show up before tonight.
Zhan Xinyue remained still, quietly waiting for him to approach.
Shi Ziqian was wearing a black hooded sweatshirt, without an umbrella, only pulling a small carry-on suitcase, carrying the chill of the autumn night. Whether it was because of the cold or lingering illness, his skin was paler than usual under the wide hood, and a few strands of hair, damp from the drizzle, hung down in front of his forehead, making his eyebrows and eyes appear even darker and more pure.
The fine, silken rain reflected the light from the distant streetlights behind him, creating a backdrop that blended seamlessly with his image.
It seems even the raindrops have a special fondness for this kind of person.
"You're back." Zhan Xinyue looked at him as he stopped in front of her and said softly.
"Yes, I'm back," Shi Ziqian said.
It was a strange conversation, just a simple question and answer, yet everything seemed to be understood without being said.
Zhan Xinyue was slightly dazed. She didn't know when it had started, but she and Shi Ziqian had developed such a tacit understanding.
Shi Ziqian pulled his hat down, revealing his handsome features beneath his black hair. He had lost some weight, making his jawline even more defined and beautiful, as well as the glimpse of his collarbone peeking out from under his hoodie.
Perhaps because he had been traveling all day, there was a slight weariness on his face, but his gaze was gentle.
Zhan Xinyue glanced at the bandage on his collarbone, and when she looked at his eyes, which were fixed intently on her, she was surprised to find that a part of her heart that had been so resolute was now making a slight sound of collapse.
This is a very dangerous sign.
"Were you scared?" Shi Ziqian asked softly, noticing her absent-minded expression.
Zhan Xinyue slowly shook her head.
Shi Ziqian did bring up yesterday's incident, but he didn't ask her why she did it. He simply said, "Don't worry, I'll handle that."
"What are you going to do?" Zhan Xinyue asked.
“I will try to minimize the impact, whether it’s on you or Wang Zhiyi. As for that person, I guess those school leaders will try to suppress the matter and will definitely try to protect him, but there’s no such thing as a free lunch.” Shi Ziqian pursed his lips slightly. “He will pay the price he deserves.”
Zhan Xinyue smiled and said, "Oh, right, your dad is a school board member."
Looking at her smile, Shi Ziqian felt as if his hanging emotions had finally settled, and he smiled faintly in return.
Zhan Xinyue continued, "Shi Ziqian, there's something I'd like to ask you."
“Okay, go ahead and say it,” he said.
Zhan Xinyue looked into his eyes: "Could you talk to your dad and ask him not to fire Xu Shen?"
Shi Ziqian seemed not to realize what he had just heard, and the expression on his face slowly froze.
He stared at Zhan Xinyue for a few seconds, then finally let out a long sigh. "I don't want to."
Shi Ziqian's tone was much calmer. "I can do anything for you, except for anything related to him."
Zhan Xinyue silently lowered her eyes, expressing her perseverance without making a sound.
Looking at her expression, Shi Ziqian said in a low voice, "How could you let me help him..."
He paused, then spoke again in a lower voice, almost pleading, "Is this the only one that won't do? Can we get another one?"
After hanging her head for a long time, Zhan Xinyue looked up at him again and said, word by word, "Shi Ziqian, I helped you find Panpan a few days ago."
"So, just consider it repaying the favor I did for helping you find Panpan, okay?"
After he finished speaking, the air fell completely silent.
Shi Ziqian did not move for a long time.
After a while, he stiffly turned his face slightly away.
He didn't say a word, but Zhan Xinyue could clearly see his eyes gradually reddening, and his tall, thin body trembling almost imperceptibly in the night.
Zhan Xinyue didn't quite remember how she left that night; she only remembered the cold wind and rain that gave her a terrible headache. And when she saw Shi Ziqian's glistening tears, she turned away, and for some reason, her own eyes reddened.
He was so good; he deserved someone whose heart was completely devoted to him. But her heart was already weary and riddled with wounds, unable to reciprocate everything he gave her, nor capable of giving him the purest love he deserved.
Therefore, the best solution is—
Zhan Xinyue turned and left, never looking back, only silently uttering a few words with her lips.
Shi Ziqian, forget about me.
When she saw Pang Yun and Zhan Wei picking her up from school again, she felt as if she could no longer contain her emotions.
With red eyes, Zhan Xinyue said to them:
"Mom and Dad, I've really made up my mind. Please transfer me to another school."
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