After Becoming the Abused Heroine in a Campus Story - Chapter 43: They Only Cared About So-Called Face

Chapter 43: They Only Cared About So-Called Face

Xu Yueming feared getting scolded, so he didn’t dare look much and hurriedly read his own book.

Zhou Yining hadn’t brought her schoolbag, so the books under her desk were very limited. She could only casually grab one to pretend, but fortunately, she finished her homework quickly, so she kept it at school. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have been able to submit her homework that morning.

When the first class ended, Zhou Yining took her cup and stood up to get water outside. The boys in the class started discussing again.

“Sister Zhou is getting prettier and prettier, and her vibe has changed too,” one boy said.

“Yeah, especially after changing into nice clothes, she looks even better,” another added.

“But she got filmed in that kind of video by Lin Shaohui and them. Such a good girl, what a pity,” someone remarked.

“Damn, speaking of the video, has anyone seen it? Got any links?” a boy asked.

“Are you crazy? Lin Shaohui and them just got locked up, and you want to join them?” another retorted.

“Tch, just kidding, okay? Besides, don’t you want to see it?” the boy shot back.

Yu Yang’s seat was right next to them. Hearing this, Yu Yang slammed her water cup heavily on the desk, startling the boys.

“What are you doing? You scared the hell out of me!” the boy who wanted to see the video clutched his chest and glared at Yu Yang.

Yu Yang glared back. She stood up and scolded, “Cheng Fei, you guys are really disgusting. Sister Zhou already feels bad enough about that incident, and you’re still joking about the video. You boys are truly gross.”

Yu Yang’s voice was loud. Cheng Fei and his friends’ faces turned red instantly. Seeing everyone in the class looking at him, Cheng Fei defended himself desperately, “I was just saying it casually. I didn’t really want to see it, not really!”

“Yeah, we just said something stupid. Besides, the people who filmed the video got caught, and the video’s long gone,” another boy added.

Many in the class still stared at the boys, especially the girls. Since Zhou Yining arrived, some girls often asked her questions, and she always explained patiently when she had time. So, Zhou Yining was quite popular in the class. The girls started mocking Cheng Fei and his friends one by one.

“I’ve finally seen a real-life creep. Turns out they’re right here in our class. Girls, better watch out,” one girl said.

“Exactly. Some people have foul mouths and rotten hearts. Cheng Fei, if I remember right, Sister Zhou helped you with questions before, right? And this is how you repay her? You’re disgusting,” another girl added.

“Yeah, joking about someone’s pain is just filthy,” another chimed in.

“Today, I’ve truly seen what a real creep looks like. Eye-opening,” a girl remarked.

“Hey, don’t paint us all with the same brush. Most of us guys are normal. It’s just these few who aren’t,” a boy defended.

“Yeah, from today, you guys are kicked out of the guy club,” another boy said.

“Exactly, we guys don’t have people like you,” another added.

“And we girls definitely don’t have people like that,” a girl stated.

The class buzzed with chatter, but everyone was united, mocking and ridiculing Cheng Fei and his friends. The boys returned to their seats, faces buried in their books, too ashamed to lift their heads.

Zhou Yining witnessed the whole thing. When she came back with water, Yu Yang was arguing with the boys, and more people joined in. Zhou Yining initially wanted to confront them herself, but it seemed she didn’t need to anymore.

Her lips curved slightly. She found the girls in her class quite cute. Of course, some of the boys were normal too. Yes, she was biased—girls just got more favor from her!

Zhou Yining walked back into the class as if nothing happened. Some girls wanted to comfort her but didn’t know how to start.

Zhou Yining didn’t care much. School was like a small society. Everything that happened in school was a reflection of the real world.

Society’s malice toward women was blatant. She could imagine if her video got posted online, would there be more people sympathizing with her and seeking justice for her? Or would there be more people thinking flies don’t buzz around uncracked eggs, wanting video links?

Never underestimate others’ malice, especially men’s. Their malice toward women was often undisguised.

Soon, the bell for class rang. Cheng Fei and his friends finally felt alive again. Being called creeps by the whole class wasn’t fun. He wouldn’t dare run his mouth again.

After the second class, students went to the field for morning exercises as usual. But since it was Monday, all students had to line up for the flag-raising ceremony.

Zhou Yining wasn’t wearing her school uniform pants. She swapped places with Yu Yang, who stood in the inner row, so it wasn’t noticeable from the outside.

The teacher from the academic affairs office began hosting the flag-raising ceremony. Just as they prepared to raise the flag, Zhou Yining heard the surrounding voices grow noisy.

“Holy crap, someone’s on the roof of the teaching building?” a student exclaimed.

“Look, there’s a girl sitting on the edge of the top floor. Oh my God, is she going to jump?” another said.

“Where? Where?” someone asked.

“Over there, on the top floor of the opposite building,” a student pointed.

Zhou Yining followed their direction and saw a girl sitting on the edge of the teaching building’s roof. It looked like a gust of wind could blow her down.

The crowd went wild. The teacher on the platform forgot about the ceremony and shouted, “Each class, line up and return to the teaching building now.”

But the students wouldn’t listen. Everyone was curious about what was happening with the girl on the roof.

The school staff were scared to death. They called the police and 119 for rescue.

Meanwhile, several teachers rushed to the roof to persuade the student.

Some students recognized the girl on the roof, and discussions spread through the crowd.

“Isn’t that Shi Qian from Class 2?” someone asked.

“Yeah, yeah, it’s Shi Qian. She asked for leave before exercises, saying she wasn’t feeling well. How’d she end up on the roof?” another said.

“What’s going on?” a student wondered.

“No idea. Didn’t hear anything about Class 2. Wasn’t it Zhou Yining from Class 19 who had the issue?” someone asked.

“Zhou Yining’s fine. I saw her this morning on the way to school. She looked great,” another replied.

The students were confused. Teachers, under school leaders’ orders, tried to hush things up and started dispersing the students on the field.

The PE teacher shouted through a megaphone, “All students, return to class in order. Class teachers, urge your students to go back. Any class that doesn’t follow rules will lose points.”

Murmurs spread among the students.

“They’re covering it up again before we even know what’s going on,” one said.

“Yeah, we don’t even know why that student wants to jump, and they’re threatening points,” another added.

“Let them deduct points. If we all stay, what can they do?” someone suggested.

“Exactly, nobody leave. Nobody leave,” another agreed.

Some obedient classes left in order, but more stayed to watch, especially the second-year students. Many lingered.

Zhou Yining’s gaze fixed on the girl sitting on the eighth-floor rooftop, her brow slightly furrowed. Wasn’t the Lin Shaohui incident over? The students thought she was the one filmed. What was Shi Qian doing?

The field was chaotic, with groups watching the drama and others worried for Shi Qian. The scene was a mess.

Ten minutes later, police cars, fire trucks, and ambulances arrived at the school. Firefighters laid out a safety airbag and quickly inflated it.

The airbag was large and thick, but it could only handle falls from about five stories. Higher than that, even landing on the airbag could cause serious injury.

Zhou Yining ran to the teaching building. She took the elevator to the eighth floor to see if she could help.

When she arrived, she found Li Yuting and Tan Yue there too.

Li Yuting was relatively calm. Tan Yue, seeing Zhou Yining, cried immediately, “What do we do? What do we do? The teachers set up a cordon and won’t let us go persuade her.”

Zhou Yining’s brow furrowed. She quickly explained to the academic affairs teacher, “Teacher, we’re Shi Qian’s friends. We know why she wants to take her life. Please let us go talk to her.”

“Get out, get out! Which class are you from, causing trouble here? Isn’t this chaotic enough? Go downstairs now,” the male teacher from the academic affairs office snapped, clearly angry at students coming up.

He told other younger teachers, “Stop the elevator. No one comes up. Also, have you contacted Shi Qian’s parents? Hurry up. If something happens, the school’s in big trouble.”

“Yes, yes, we’ll handle it,” a teacher replied.

“Oh, and take these three girls downstairs. I don’t want to see them again. Get them out,” he added.

Zhou Yining didn’t want to leave but had no choice. Several young male teachers escorted them down.

Tan Yue was nearly crying herself sick, muttering, “Nobody even knew about this. Why’s she doing this? Why can’t she let it go?”

Zhou Yining saw she couldn’t get to the rooftop and hurried back to the field. Fortunately, Shi Qian hadn’t moved. She still sat on the edge of the teaching building.

Shi Qian’s legs dangled outside, swinging back and forth, making onlookers’ hearts race, as if she’d fall any second.

Class 2’s homeroom teacher rushed over. She grabbed a megaphone and pleaded, “Shi Qian, calm down, please calm down. We can solve anything slowly. Don’t act impulsively. If you want to tell me something or have me pass on a message, just tell me.”

On the rooftop, a firefighter approached to give Shi Qian a megaphone. Fearing he’d upset her, he moved carefully. Shi Qian saw him and reached out, signaling she wanted the megaphone.

The firefighter handed it over cautiously, careful not to provoke her.

Shi Qian took the megaphone and shouted down, “Are my parents here?”

The homeroom teacher quickly reassured, “Soon, soon. They’ll be here in ten minutes, definitely.”

Shi Qian raised the megaphone. Its piercing sound rang out again, “Then I’ll wait ten more minutes.”

Her tone was unusually calm. Her legs, hanging outside, swung again, making everyone below anxious.

Zhou Yining pursed her lips, watching Shi Qian up there. Was this really just about Lin Shaohui and his group? Or was there another reason?

Nearby, Class 2’s homeroom teacher continued pleading, “Shi Qian, you’ve always been a good kid in my eyes. Let’s talk things out slowly. If you have conflicts with your parents, we can discuss calmly. I’m here, don’t be afraid. Come back to a safe spot, okay?”

Shi Qian set the megaphone beside her, not responding to the teacher’s words.

Firefighters stayed on the rooftop, but Shi Qian’s position was too precarious. One lean forward, and she’d fall. No one dared act rashly. The best option was to persuade her to stay put for rescue.

Ten minutes later, Shi Qian’s parents finally arrived at the field. Shi Qian’s father, Shi Wanlong, took the megaphone from the teacher. His face stern, he said, “Shi Qian, stop making a scene. Everyone’s watching. If you’re done, come down now.”

“Yeah, Qianqian, your dad and I are so busy, but we made time to come. What are you pulling?” Shi Qian’s mother didn’t understand what Shi Qian was doing either.

Shi Qian, sitting on the building’s edge, laughed. But as she laughed, tears filled her eyes.

Shi Qian grabbed the megaphone excitedly and shouted down, “Shi Wanlong, or should I call you Director Shi? What do you care about besides your face? Is your pride that valuable?”

“Shi Qian, don’t talk nonsense. All these classmates are here. Are you trying to embarrass me?” Shi Wanlong wore a white collared shirt and suit pants, looking sharp and competent.

Shi Qian cried harder, “You only care about your face, about yourself. I got filmed by Lin Shaohui, so what? It was his fault. Why do you blame me? Why say I’m shameless?”

Shi Qian took a breath and continued, “Yes, I made you lose face. So just pretend you don’t have a daughter.”

Shi Wanlong was a director at some unit in Nanchuan City, used to giving orders. Now, with his daughter causing such a scene, he felt utterly humiliated. His tone grew harsher, “Shi Qian, my patience has limits. I won’t mention the past, but come down now. Don’t think this will make me and your mom feel guilty.”

To Shi Wanlong, his daughter was just throwing a tantrum, defying him. He absolutely didn’t believe Shi Qian would jump.

Shi Qian’s mother felt the same. She was a teacher at No. 3 Middle School, with a respectable job. Less composed than Shi Wanlong, she pleaded nervously, “Qianqian, don’t scare Mom. If you’re mad at us, don’t joke with your life. Come up, don’t sit there.”

Shi Qian, crying, shook her head. Since returning from the police station, she hadn’t had a moment without pain. She still remembered her father’s disgusted look, as if she’d seduced those boys to film her.

“You’ve completely ruined my reputation,” her father had said.

“Do you know, at today’s meeting, a friend from the police station asked about your video? I’m a director. You got filmed in that kind of video. How can I face anyone?” he had raged.

“Flies don’t buzz around uncracked eggs. With so many girls at your school, why didn’t they film others? Why you? You know how you’ve been acting at school,” he had accused.

“Shameless, utterly shameless. You even had the nerve to report it to the police. That Zhou Yining is a shameless lunatic too. No wonder they filmed you few. You’re all the same!” he had shouted.

“You still dare talk back? I’ll beat you to death…” he had threatened.

Every malicious word came from her father’s mouth. Her mother stayed silent, never taking her side. Shi Qian still had wounds on her back from her father’s belt.

Shi Qian suddenly laughed loudly. She laughed at her father’s hypocrisy, only caring about his career. She laughed at her mother, always putting her father first. She laughed at herself, born into such a hypocritical family, only earning rare praise when she performed well. When she didn’t meet their expectations, they beat and scolded her. She lived in endless PUA.

Shi Qian suddenly felt exhausted, so exhausted. She remembered Zhou Yining’s words: live for yourself, others’ opinions don’t matter. But she was too tired, too tired to go on.

See, her parents only thought she was throwing a tantrum. Even with her legs dangling over the edge, they wouldn’t say a single kind word. No one cared about her. They only cared about so-called face.

Shi Qian placed the megaphone beside her. A long-lost smile appeared on her face, and she looked completely at ease. Her body slowly leaned forward, and she jumped from the eighth floor.