Chapter 20: The School Bully 20

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Xining had finally figured out the pattern behind this Black-Hearted Lotus. It wasn’t that she was mercifully letting the little rascal off the hook; either the rascal lived nearby and had come over to cause trouble, or even the rascal was being kept as a backup. Catching one was good, but having many backups was even better. Fortunately, there were only four school heartthrobs in the story; if there had been seven or eight, the Black-Hearted Lotus could have used tears and the heroine’s halo to crown them all as “brothers.”

In reality, An Xiyan wasn’t very bright, and her poor grades made that obvious. The principal had already instructed the teachers to give her extra attention, telling her that with more effort, her grades wouldn’t be like this.

The reason was that she was busy. Every day she had to deal with the four school heartthrobs chatting endlessly like little magical fairies, all while shedding tears—a skillful, exhausting act. Where was the time to memorize English vocabulary? She was so busy working odd jobs that she had no time left. It seemed that beyond the school, she also had to manage one troublesome “bro.”

Now, one by one, the heroine’s halo was being worn away by reality, revealing her dark core no matter how much she tried to hide it.

Xining lounged leisurely in the corner of the classroom, watching An Xiyan sitting in front of her, lost in thought. She wondered what was on her mind—graduation was near, yet she wasn’t studying.

Bad news travels fast. The whole school knew that An Xiyan’s troublesome old flame had come looking for her at the school gate. The gossip had even reached parents, and some had already called the principal, demanding that An Xiyan be transferred to another school to avoid corrupting the school’s atmosphere.

The principal had lost patience with An Xiyan. Rumors about her father’s death circulated wildly: some said he had been involved in insurance fraud, others claimed a quarrel between An Xiyan and her father distracted him at work leading to a fatal car accident.

Though these stories might have been spread without malice, combined with An Xiyan’s behavior, the principal—who had experienced hardships himself—felt a growing distance from her.

Therefore, the principal was no longer willing to sponsor An Xiyan’s university education.

If it were someone else, they would have buckled down to study, knowing most students here went abroad for further education, with only a few taking the national college entrance exam. Given An Xiyan’s current situation, the principal would never spend millions sending her abroad.

She had to pass the exam herself; if luck was on her side, she might get into a second-tier college or at least a local junior college, earning a university diploma. Even if she didn’t succeed, at least the principal would see she was trying. Not like now, sitting around with a sour face, as if the whole world owed her and was bullying her.

Even if it was late to cram now, she could work a part-time job at night and start preparing. After graduation, she could directly become a full-time employee.

But An Xiyan was still fixated on how to win back the four heartthrobs. As long as one returned to the way he was, it would be easy for her to become an assistant or clerk after graduation. Why bother struggling to find a job when she had no skills?

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But now, the four heartthrobs all avoided her. Even if stopped, they would claim to be busy. They were growing increasingly annoyed with a girl who cried at the slightest provocation and kept talking about misunderstandings.

They were about to graduate and enter university for further studies, or perhaps start their own companies or inherit family businesses. With only two or three months left, they had no reason to get involved with a girl with a bad reputation. Moreover, she had a troublesome “bro” outside, someone whose intentions were unclear and might even show up with a knife.

Xining waited for the task to end. Since it was her first time, she didn’t know when that would be.

Sometimes she tried reaching out to the one who had thrown her into this world with two curt sentences, but there was no reply, no sign at all.

So all she could do was wait, watching An Xiyan like a spectator. She’d sit dazed in her seat, then desperately seek chances to intercept the heartthrobs, her large misty eyes asking if there was some misunderstanding.

As expected, after a while even Wang Zilong grew impatient and turned away without saying a word, leaving An Xiyan crying alone.

Thus, An Xiyan grew more and more haggard, but no one cared. She became more self-pitying and sorrowful, shedding tears. What she got in return were the contemptuous gazes of others and whispered rumors about her past. Former fans mocked her for doing anything to become the wife of a wealthy family.

An Xiyan’s sensitive ears caught these words, wounding her fragile heart further. The sadness accumulated day by day, she cried almost every day, and even teachers stopped trying to comfort her—if she cried during class, so be it, as long as she didn’t make noise.

The final exams were over, and graduation was just a week away. No one worried about her grades; the diploma would surely be issued, followed by studying abroad for a polish before returning.

Just waiting for the diploma, Xining felt her mission should be complete.

Suddenly, a voice rang out: “Hey, the mission isn’t finished yet. Only one week left!”

“Who?” Xining jolted, looking around, but no one was there.

“Did you hear me? Your mission isn’t finished!” the voice said impatiently.

It must be the one who had thrown her into this task!

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“No need to speak, just think about it,” the voice instructed.

Xining glanced around; none of her classmates noticed what was happening. Apparently, no one heard the conversation between her and the voice.

Annoyed, Xining thought, “What’s not finished? Isn’t it that she’s not expelled and I’ve bullied An Xiyan? What haven’t I done?”

The voice snorted coldly: “Have you bullied An Xiyan?”

“How not bullied? Now that her mask is off, everyone sees her true nature. She cries for real every day, tears streaming—isn’t that bullying?” Xining couldn’t understand.

The voice replied, “What she wants is real bullying: insults, a beating. Especially a slap in the face—smack, smack!”

Get lost! Xining rolled her eyes. Real slaps in the face? Sounds like her host was really wronged before.

Though the voice sounded pleasant, it was cold: “One week—finish it quickly.”

“Hey, hey~” Before Xining could ask more, the voice vanished, ignoring her calls.

Fine, complete the mission. Real bullying!

But seeing An Xiyan so thin she seemed about to be blown away by the wind, Xining suddenly found it hard to act. She was gentle, nonviolent, wasn’t she?

Then just insulting her—it was only a week until graduation, exams were over, and a few harsh words wouldn’t get her expelled.