The Frail, Alluring O Always Wants Me to Mark Her (GL) - Chapter 21: 021

Zhu Lexing hadn’t recovered from her daze when Zhu Lin already rushed onto the stage, pulling her and checking her up and down: “You’re not hurt, are you? Come on, let’s go to the hospital now—”

Jiang Yue showed an expression of concern, but her gaze drifted toward the side stage on the other side.

A group of school leaders accompanied them. Just as Zhu Lin opened his mouth, someone chimed in: “Mr. Zhu, we’ve already sent someone to check the surveillance footage. We will certainly find out which part of the process was at fault…”

“Check? And then at the end, say it was an accident?” Zhu Lin was very familiar with this kind of rhetoric, and he angrily rebuked, “This matter won’t end this simply—”

Seeing that his emotions were getting more and more agitated, so much so that ten people couldn’t hold him back, Zhu Lexing finally came to her senses and said, “It wasn’t an accident.”

Zhu Lin stopped mid-sentence.

Zhu Lexing looked up at Lin Qingxing, who was behind him. The man also looked concerned, seemingly not expecting her to suddenly look at him: “Lexing, what is it?”

“I saw Lin Yang,” Zhu Lexing said calmly. “Just a few seconds before the light fell.”

Lin Qingxing’s expression instantly turned extremely ugly: “Lexing, what do you mean by that?”

The school had cooperative relationships with both the Zhu and Lin families, so the school leaders naturally knew Lin Yang, but what did Lin Yang have to do with the chandelier?

Despite the confusion, the director of studies was the first to react—

No matter what Lin Yang’s role was in this matter, as long as Zhu Lexing clung to the idea that she was involved, the school’s responsibility would be greatly reduced.

He immediately said, “What happened here? What does student Lin have to do with this?”

Only after repeating the question twice did Lin Qingxing’s face turn cold: “Lexing, what are you implying? Xiaoyang has been at home all day today, she didn’t come to school. How could she be in the auditorium?”

Zhu Lin also frowned and said, “Lexing, maybe you misread it.”

Zhu Lexing recalled Lin Yang’s face at that moment, and the innocent gesture she made with a smile, a chill ran down her spine.

If her position had been a little further from Yan Mian.

If that light had really fallen.

What would happen to Yan Mian now?

Zhu Lexing dared not imagine the consequences, and she also put on a cold face and said, “Whether I was mistaken or not, I know myself. Uncle Lin, instead of asking if I was mistaken, why don’t you go and ask the people in the Lin family?”

Lin Qingxing said coldly, “I know Xiaoyang and Yan Mian had a small conflict, but that’s between them. You are spreading rumors.”

Zhu Lexing sneered, “Whether it’s a rumor or not, wouldn’t you know if you ask Lin Yang to come here?”

Lin Qingxing looked at one of the leaders, and the middle-aged man with a receding hairline hurriedly said, “Student Zhu just said she saw student Lin, but now why are you asking her to come here?”

“I don’t want to talk any more nonsense with you.” Zhu Lexing looked at Jiang Yue, “Call the police.”

Jiang Yue’s face was not good the whole time, and she started to zone out after hearing Lin Yang’s name.

Suddenly called upon, she subconsciously glanced at Zhu Lin: “Lexing, isn’t calling the police like this too rash, after all…”

If it were just a school issue, Jiang Yue wouldn’t hesitate. But the matter involved the Lin family, and Zhu Lin had a good relationship with them.

Jiang Yue instinctively chose the side that could offer her protection.

Zhu Lexing was almost amused by anger.

She pointed to the floor, which was largely smashed by the sudden fall, with the light tubes poking into the steel pipes: “If it weren’t for me, it would have been Yan Mian who was smashed.”

Only then did Jiang Yue take out her phone.

On the side stage.

The cold wind blew across her face, and Yan Mian finally felt much more awake.

The soft touch on her lips was still there. She subconsciously touched it, then withdrew her hand. A few seconds later, as if remembering something, she looked towards the direction of the stage.

Under the curtain’s cover, the chandelier was vague, only a silhouette.

The sudden crash earlier was like an illusion. But Yan Mian knew it wasn’t a dream.

Was it an accident?

But the stage had been used for performances so many times, and the chandelier had never shown any sign of shaking. Why did it suddenly fall only at the end?

Man-made?

…Who would hate her that much?

The chandelier was not heavy, but if it fell directly onto her head… no one could guarantee what kind of injury she would sustain.

As her reason slowly returned, Yan Mian realized that what Zhu Lexing had done earlier was to save her.

This answer left Yan Mian in a daze for a long time.

Outside the curtain, the sounds of argument faintly came from the stage, and footsteps also sounded in the hallway, extremely panicked. At the corner, as soon as Li Nian saw Yan Mian, her eyes turned red: “Mianmian!”

Behind her was a dignified middle-aged woman.

Before Yan Mian could speak, the woman said, “Student Zhu has already called the police. Student Yan, please rest for a while, and we’ll go to the police station together later to give a statement.”

“…”

Called the police?

Yan Mian looked at the stage in surprise.

Under the leaders’ dispersal, all the students in the audience had been evacuated from the auditorium. The stage was empty, with only the chandelier that had smashed a hole in the floor, revealing the steel bars beneath the stage.

At the police station.

The lights were bright, and it was already nearly nine o’clock.

In front of the police, Zhu Lexing explained the whole story. Everyone was taking notes, but their faces showed incredulity, clearly not believing that a high school sophomore would deliberately tamper with things at the school celebration to make a chandelier fall and injure a classmate.

Zhu Lin tried to dissuade her, but Zhu Lexing didn’t listen at all, insisting on her idea. She glanced at the ashen-faced Lin Qingxing: “Uncle Lin, haven’t you called Lin Yang yet to get things straight?”

Lin Qingxing frowned.

On the way here, he had already called home and learned that Lin Yang had indeed sneaked out at seven, but she had returned home ten minutes ago.

If he told the truth, Lin Yang’s probability of involvement would instantly increase. Even if it had nothing to do with her, she would be labeled in the future.

How could someone from the Lin family be entangled with such negative news?

In any case, Zhu Lexing was just a young girl, so Lin Qingxing adamantly denied it: “Lexing, it’s best to have some evidence before you speak. Xiaoyang hasn’t arrived yet. Your baseless accusations are truly unfair to Xiaoyang and your friendship.”

Zhu Lexing sneered.

Friendship? Who has friendship with Lin Yang?

Just because of jealousy, she wanted a chandelier to smash down and injure… or even kill someone. Does she think this is a musical? Where you can smash whatever you want.

During the argument, the door was pushed open, and Lin Yang walked in.

She was wearing pajamas, looking casual as if she had just been dragged out of bed.

But her expression was not as calm as her attire. Biting her lip, she was clearly a little reluctant. When she saw Zhu Lexing, she opened her mouth slightly even more.

Lin Yang had never expected Zhu Lexing to escalate the situation this much.

In her impression… Zhu Lexing was impolite to Yan Mian, even bordering on disgust. Before arranging for someone to tamper with the light, she had confirmed that even if the chandelier fell, it wouldn’t cause a serious injury.

She just wanted Yan Mian to suffer a little.

Why call the police station?

Lin Yang was a little flustered, her exposure was obvious. The note-taking police officer realized something and was about to speak when a male voice chuckled and said, “Thank you for your trouble this time too.”

The next second, a man with a dignified appearance walked in. He was clearly of high status, and the others spoke to him with a hint of respect.

Until he spoke: “They’re all students, it’s normal to have some squabbles. Making such a big fuss isn’t good for anyone. Just apologize to each other and go home.”

Someone was stunned and said, “A light fell during the performance…”

What does that have to do with squabbling?

Zhu Lexing instantly remembered what Zhu Lin had said this morning… that Lin Yang should apologize to Yan Mian.

She looked at the man in the suit behind the newcomer.

The man had an ordinary appearance but exuded an air of gloom. Without an introduction, Lin Qingxing already called out, “Xiao Song.”

Lin Song, Lin Yang’s older brother.

In the silence, the man’s questioning continued: “A light fell during the performance, you should be asking the school. Why are you here?”

“It’s this student who suspects.”

“Everything needs evidence. What evidence is suspicion? Where is the surveillance footage?”

“…The surveillance is broken.”

It didn’t break earlier or later, but at this exact moment—any discerning person knew something was wrong.

But the man was simply blind and deaf, stubbornly carrying on the act: “If it’s broken, go fix it. If you can’t fix it, find other evidence. Why make things difficult for students?”

Lin Song seized the opportunity and said in a timely manner, “Uncle Zhu, I know Xiaoyang’s personality is not very good, and she has done many disrespectful things to Miss Yan. Since we’re here today, let Xiaoyang apologize to her publicly and sign a formal settlement agreement, and this matter will be over.”

“After all,” he said pointedly, “Lexing is fine, and Miss Yan wasn’t hurt either.”

If Zhu Lin was hesitant before, after hearing the last sentence, he was silent for a few seconds and said, “This is also good. Lexing, look—”

“Look at what?” Zhu Lexing sneered. “Whatever they say goes, why don’t you believe me? Do you think I’m lying?”

When in doubt, act unreasonably.

Lin Song smiled and said, “It seems Lexing still has a lot of dissatisfaction, and Uncle Zhu still needs to work on her. I’ll go out for a smoke first, excuse me.”

As soon as he left, Lin Qingxing started to play nice again. Even Lin Yang was finally sensible enough to bow to Zhu Lin, claiming that she shouldn’t have had a conflict with Yan Mian.

Everything was presented as merely a high school student dispute, an impulse that led them to the police station.

After calming down, the natural course of action was mutual apology and settlement, then returning home.

Zhu Lin said, “Well, Lexing, your brother Lin Song is not wrong. You are fine, and Xiaomian is also fine. You are all acquaintances, so making such a big fuss—”

Zhu Lexing understood. This was truly a world of villains.

She no longer placed any hope in Zhu Lin, nor did she meet Lin Song’s gaze again. The viciousness she felt from him was far heavier than what she sensed from the others.

She hadn’t forgotten the Omega named Shi Ruofeng.

She had previously been confused. Lin Yang’s personality seemed stern, but in the original work, she was extremely devoted to the original host and wouldn’t have intimate relationships with others. How could she have organized such a messy gathering?

Now it seemed…

Lin Song was behind the scheme.

After a few seconds of silence, Zhu Lexing suddenly got up: “Where is Yan Mian? If this settlement agreement is to be signed, shouldn’t she be the one to sign it? The light was going to fall and smash her.”

Outside the door.

Yan Mian sat on a long bench.

As the “victim” of this farce, she was wrapped in a coat, extremely quiet.

Under the harsh white light, her shadow was long and lonely.

Jiang Yue sat next to Yan Mian, took her hand, and whispered, “Mianmian, look, since you weren’t hurt anyway, this matter… let’s just let it go.”

Yan Mian’s calm gaze finally showed a ripple.

She slowly turned her face and looked at Jiang Yue: “Mom?”

“…” Jiang Yue frowned, “I know you must be scared. But the Lin family has a partnership with your Uncle Zhu. It’s not good for our relationship to sour…”

“Our?”

Yan Mian repeated the word.

If last time she could forcibly twist Jiang Yue’s intention and believe that everything was her overthinking. Then, what was this time?

“Our” referred to Jiang Yue and Zhu Lin… and who else?

Did it have the slightest thing to do with her?

In the silent standoff, Lin Song walked out wearing a coat.

A “No Smoking” sign was posted on the wall, but he lit a cigarette as if no one was around. The window was only open a crack, and he stood quietly not far from the two, exhaling smoke.

Someone holding a phone said impatiently, “Can’t you see? No smoking here.”

Lin Song glanced at him: “Oh really? I didn’t notice.”

He casually took out his wallet from his bag, pulled out a few bills, and placed them on the chair: “My addiction kicked in, sorry.”

The person looked at him like he was crazy, his gaze paused on the money, and after a few seconds, he walked straight away.

Lin Song’s gaze fell back on Yan Mian.

“Name your price,” Lin Song’s tone was calm, but his gaze was full of amusement. “How much money for you to sign the settlement agreement?”

Although Lin Yang had deep hostility towards Yan Mian, at least “Yan Mian” existed in her eyes when she wanted to target her.

Compared to her, Lin Song’s way of doing things was colder, more mature, and more direct.

In just a few words, he shattered all of Yan Mian’s self-esteem.

Jiang Yue hurriedly stood up and said, “Mr. Lin, is there still room for discussion on this matter?”

“Discuss what?” Lin Song said. “Xiaoyang has already apologized, and Uncle Zhu hasn’t refused. Oh, the only one who’s a little unwilling is Lexing.”

“But she’s just a child, she doesn’t know any better.” He smiled, “You understand, right?”

Jiang Yue quickly said, “I know, but…”

“Ms. Jiang can also propose a compensation plan.” Lin Song handed the settlement agreement to Jiang Yue, exhaling a puff of smoke. “As long as it’s within my tolerance, money or anything else can be given to you.”

Yan Mian slowly looked at the settlement agreement in Jiang Yue’s hand.

She hoped Jiang Yue would tear it up without hesitation.

But Jiang Yue just smiled and said “Yes.”

Yan Mian felt very cold.

“If life in the Zhu family is not good, you can contact me anytime.” Lin Song handed over a business card, his gaze full of amusement. “Don’t rush to refuse. Miss Yan, there are many paths, and if you don’t explore them, you won’t know which one is the easiest.”

His words were full of innuendo.

Yan Mian stared at the business card and raised her hand, but the card was snatched by someone in the air—

And then, without hesitation, it was torn into pieces.

Lin Song’s smile disappeared, and he silently watched Zhu Lexing.

Zhu Lexing stared at him coldly: “Your contact information is easy to find, you don’t need to give her a business card, do you?”

Lin Song said no more. Zhu Lexing suppressed the urge to throw the pieces of paper in his face. She saw the settlement agreement in Jiang Yue’s hand and the stunned Yan Mian.

“…You signed it?” She frowned.

Jiang Yue thought Zhu Lexing had softened and wanted to urge Yan Mian, so she hurriedly said, “Sign it right away—”

“Did I ask you?” After a whole night, Zhu Lexing’s patience was completely exhausted. A cowardly dad, a spineless mom—what kind of hellish start was this?

She was supposed to be a fearless rich young lady, wasn’t she?

Now, they’re being chased and stomped on by the Lin family, and they’re still acting like this.

Useless!

“Don’t sign it,” Zhu Lexing said coldly. “Haven’t they finished the investigation yet? Why sign a settlement agreement? Let this matter continue through the proper channels.”

Lin Song finally spoke: “Lexing, isn’t that being too impolite when speaking to an elder?”

Zhu Lexing turned her face to look at him. The man was not tall, but his eyes showed a hint of viciousness.

Zhu Lexing mimicked his cold sneer: “Whatever I say or do, is it any of your business?”

Lin Song’s face darkened.

If Zhu Lin would only be willing to pay or exert effort when “Zhu Lexing” was hurt, Zhu Lexing didn’t mind being a target.

She still had the system, after all.

The system might be unreliable, but at least it wouldn’t let her die at the hands of others.

The reason she hadn’t provoked him further… was still because she was worried about Yan Mian.

Yan Mian finally got up.

She no longer looked at Jiang Yue, only saying, “I’m a bit tired. I’m going back first.”

She walked straight away. Zhu Lexing followed behind her, but Lin Song suddenly spoke: “Miss Yan.”

“If you need anything, contact me anytime,” Lin Song said with a smile. “There are some paths that you will never know how easy they are until you’ve taken them.”

Zhu Lexing’s fist clenched.

What was this? Flirting with Yan Mian in front of her, trying to lead her astray?

What kind of psycho!

The more Zhu Lexing thought about it, the angrier she got, and the more she felt the urge to punch him. She suppressed it for a few seconds, grabbed Yan Mian’s hand, and walked out.

No one blocked the two of them after that.

Outside the police station, the night sky was filled with twinkling stars. When they reached the car, the cold wind brought Zhu Lexing back to her senses. Only then did she realize she was still holding Yan Mian’s hand, and she quickly let go.

“…You go back first,” Zhu Lexing said first. “I’ll handle this.”

Yan Mian didn’t open the car door immediately.

She was silent for a while, then raised her head, looked straight into Zhu Lexing’s face, and said seriously, “Thank you.”

Zhu Lexing’s actions were sudden and impulsive, but they restored her elusive dignity in the most direct way.

And on the stage.

If it weren’t for Zhu Lexing… Yan Mian dared not imagine her current situation.

Zhu Lexing never thought that a sincere thank you would be so moving.

What surprised her even more was that after a moment of silence, Yan Mian continued: “Last night, I didn’t do it on purpose. I’m not used to you being so close to me, at that time—”

Zhu Lexing: “…I know.”

She knew very well that it was Yan Mian’s subconscious reaction.

Yan Mian disliked Zhu Lexing.

But Yan Mian was now forcing herself to overcome that dislike and thank her.

Because she had helped her.

The scenes of her getting carried away on the stage flooded her mind, and for a moment, Zhu Lexing was the one who felt guilty.

She whispered, “It’s okay.”

One thanked, one accepted—this was the first truly normal conversation between the two of them.

Having said this, Yan Mian didn’t know how to continue the topic, and could only say, “Then… I’ll go back now.”

In fact, Yan Mian had many more things she wanted to say.

For example… she wanted to advise Zhu Lexing not to argue with Zhu Lin, but couldn’t find a standing ground.

How should she say it? Should she say, don’t argue for her sake?

That would be overestimating “Yan Mian’s” importance.

Having lived until today, what Yan Mian was most accustomed to was not seeing herself as too important.

In the end, she just managed to curve her lips slightly and got into the car.

As the car drove away, Zhu Lexing turned and went back.

Facing Zhu Lin’s renewed “persuasion to surrender,” Zhu Lexing said calmly, “There’s no way this matter can end just like that.”

But without evidence, and with Lin Song’s connections, even if Zhu Lexing forced Lin Yang to stay at the police station until midnight, the result was still the unremarkable “the investigation will continue.”

Any discerning person knew that further investigation would yield no results.

The school’s surveillance system was conveniently broken and could not be repaired. No one from the props crew would voluntarily admit fault, and everything would ultimately be dismissed as an “accident.”

After staying up all night, Lin Yang did not know what she was thinking. As she left the police station, she chased after Zhu Lexing, her tone considerably softer: “Lexing, I—”

Zhu Lexing did not spare her a glance.

Zhu Lexing turned and walked away. Lin Yang could not stop her at all and could only stare blankly at Zhu Lexing’s retreating back until Lin Song spoke from behind her: “Xiaoyang, when do you expect to differentiate?”

“…” Lin Yang didn’t understand the purpose of his question, only saying, “In the next few weeks.”

Lin Song said calmly, “Is that so? What a coincidence.”

“Shi Ruofeng is about to differentiate, too.”

Lin Yang didn’t understand his meaning at first, but then something clicked, and her eyes lit up.

After arriving at the Zhu family home, Zhu Lexing immediately went to sleep. She had a lot on her mind and woke up just before noon. After washing up, she sat at the table and began to think seriously.

It was only now that she finally realized that the system was just an ordinary AI with punishment but no rewards. It would provide a brief introduction when encountering a character, but aside from character introductions, it had very few functions.

In short, a good-for-nothing.

Zhu Lexing was also quite the good-for-nothing right now.

But there are levels even among good-for-nothings. After severely criticizing the system, Zhu Lexing began to consider who she could rely on.

The Zhu family had a large number of relatives, and casually asking any one of them for help would surely yield a response. But the original host was arrogant and didn’t have a good relationship with anyone. Rashly asking for help would likely cause the character deviation to skyrocket.

At least for now, the only person she seemed to be able to rely on was still Zhu…

Zhu Lexing’s thought suddenly paused.

What about “Zhu Lexing’s” mother?

She raised her hand and clicked on the comment section.

Overnight, the comment section was sensational, mainly divided into three views: #ZhuLexingActuallyActedLikeAnAlpha #IsTheLinFamilySick? #PoorYanMian.

Zhu Lexing scrolled for a long time before finding a comment that mentioned Zhu Lexing’s mother.

【0 (Affection 0): I miss Liu Su. She was the only normal one before the change, she was good to Yan Mian, and her personality was decisive and aggressive. If she were here, that person surnamed Lin would definitely not dare to be so arrogant. 1L: In version 1.0, Zhu Lin seemed like a perfect image, very gentle. I felt sorry for him being implicated by Zhu Lexing and thought Zhu Lexing was affecting the whole family… Now it seems, if he has always been this kind of personality, it’s perfectly normal for Liu Su to divorce him. Who would like such a spineless man? 2L: Lin Song is so disgusting. Is he giving Yan Mian a business card because he wants Yan Mian to follow him later? 3L: …Your speculation made me look at the story channel. Although the author is a psychopath, it has always been about women and women getting entangled. Isn’t it too funny to imagine a toxic relationship yourself?]

After extracting the personality description of “decisive and aggressive,” Zhu Lexing’s eyes lit up.

The matter had reached this point. Zhu Lexing no longer needed Zhu Lin’s “happy ending” style of help.

She needed someone who could truly make Lin Yang and the Lin family pay the price.

Liu Su was an excellent candidate.

When calling Liu Su’s phone, Zhu Lexing was recalling Liu Su from the original work.

She didn’t appear much, but every time she did, there was a dramatic clash with Zhu Lexing.

Two strong-willed people either take a step back and barely get along, or one side unilaterally tolerates and the other becomes aggressive, leading to intense arguments.

The original host and Liu Su belonged to the latter type.

But the call did not connect.

Liu Su was an actress, after all, and was busy with various film crews.

Zhu Lexing also knew that working on a set was busy and decided not to disturb her further, resolving to call again in the evening.

After roughly organizing her thoughts, Zhu Lexing prepared to go to school.

Who knew if Lin Yang would go to school and cause trouble for Yan Mian?

She was now so paranoid that she felt everyone was going to harm Yan Mian.

Upon arriving at school, Zhu Lexing saw Yan Mian sitting at her desk doing problems, completely unharmed. She had never felt so relieved. She let out a sigh of relief, ignored the shocked looks of the other classmates that had been cast her way since she walked in, and sat down next to Song Yingying.

Song Yingying was also doing her homework. Suddenly seeing her, she was startled, and then cautiously asked, “Why are you here?”

Zhu Lexing: “?”

She had only been absent for one morning, right? Why did her tone sound like she had suddenly come back to life?

Song Yingying said, “The incident yesterday was a big deal. Everyone thought you wouldn’t come for a few days.”

Zhu Lexing said, “How could that be?”

According to the logic of the system that liked to play dead, she had to be a positive energy host and strive to get into a good university!

Song Yingying didn’t know about Lin Yang’s involvement. Seeing that Zhu Lexing was acting as usual, she took out a few test papers from her desk: “Perfect timing… the midterm exam is in a couple of days. These are the papers the teacher handed out this morning. Remember to do them.”

Zhu Lexing casually said, “Mere papers… Wait.”

“What did you say?” Zhu Lexing’s face was full of question marks, and she repeated, “Midterm Exam?”

Song Yingying looked at her strangely: “Yes. The midterm exam is always after the annual school celebration.”

“…” Zhu Lexing was shocked: “Shouldn’t a day of whole-school fun like the school celebration be followed by a holiday?”

She thought today’s class was just a formality, and after it, she would have a holiday to mess around!

She didn’t expect this!

Song Yingying said, “Of course the holiday is after the exam.”

Zhu Lexing looked at her accustomed expression and felt like the sky was falling.

How could there be such a pitiful transmigrator in this world!

The villain hadn’t been dealt with yet, and she was facing a sudden midterm exam.

One tearful moment was not enough to describe her feelings.

Zhu Lexing was very tearful.

The entire lunch break, Zhu Lexing was very glum and in low spirits. Song Yingying thought she wasn’t feeling well and quietly asked if she wanted some hot water. Zhu Lexing then said deeply, “I’m fine, I was just thinking about the meaning of life for a while.”

The reason was too profound. Song Yingying wanted to ask what conclusion she had reached but felt too awkward, so she could only reduce her presence and not disturb Zhu Lexing.

Song Yingying wasn’t the only one who mistakenly thought Zhu Lexing was upset.

Yan Mian put down her pen, raised her eyes, and looked at Zhu Lexing’s spot, only seeing the girl’s back.

She had noticed Zhu Lexing’s gaze as soon as she entered the classroom.

Yan Mian was a little surprised that Zhu Lexing would still come to school. In her eyes, Zhu Lexing was never interested in studying. Her surprise reached its peak, especially after seeing Song Yingying take out test papers and Zhu Lexing actually reading the questions over and over again.

She remembered what happened last night.

Yan Mian pursed her lips.

After the break ended, Zhu Lexing got up without hesitation, deciding to go to the commissary for two cans of carbonated drinks to poison her mind.

She was about to call Song Yingying to go with her when the system suddenly spoke in her ear: [A time-limited task has been issued.]

Zhu Lexing paused, then sarcastically said: [Finally resurrected after watching the ad?]

The system was truly a model of leaving for many years and returning still a youth.

It had no crisis warnings whatsoever. After the host and the female lead almost got into danger, it played dead and said nothing, just being lazy all day. She would be better off doing the job!

The system heard the mockery but did not respond, only speaking to itself: [1. Obtain Yan Mian’s study notes within three days, reward 30 points; 2. Obtain the study notes of a student ranked in the top one hundred of any grade within three days, reward 5 points. (Can be stacked)]

Zhu Lexing: “…”

Get a notebook?

What kind of bizarre new task was this?

But compared to the last time, when she had to publicly make Yan Mian put on her school badge…

Zhu Lexing felt this one was much easier.

As long as she asked, Yan Mian would likely not refuse. However, Yan Mian also had to study. To avoid affecting her grades, Zhu Lexing decided to wait until the last day to ask her.

As for task 2… Zhu Lexing looked at Song Yingying.

“What was your overall rank in the last exam?”

When this was mentioned, Song Yingying looked a little disappointed: “I dropped many places.”

Zhu Lexing: “…Ah.”

She thought she had touched on Song Yingying’s sad topic and was about to stop talking, but Song Yingying said, “Only thirty-something places. Why?”

Zhu Lexing: “…Thirtieth place in the entire grade?”

Song Yingying nodded.

Zhu Lexing felt that an A-student was indeed an A-student. Their sad news sounded so humble-braggy in the ears of a C-student.

“Then… your study notes, could you—”

Song Yingying immediately pushed the notebook over. Zhu Lexing hurriedly said, “Any day next week is fine.”

Song Yingying just smiled and said it was nothing.

The two came out of the supermarket and bumped into Qiao Qiao. She tsked: “Others said you came to school, but I didn’t believe it… Why are you actually here?”

Song Yingying sensibly returned to the classroom. The two of them went to a secluded spot. Qiao Qiao whispered, “How did you resolve the matter yesterday? It had something to do with Lin Yang, right?”

“…You know?” Zhu Lexing looked serious.

With no surveillance footage and the props team refusing to admit anything, what was most lacking was a “witness.”

Qiao Qiao said, “I also heard it from others. I’ll go ask around again tonight.”

Zhu Lexing was a little disappointed but quickly cheered up: “If you get any clues… contact me anytime.”

Qiao Qiao nodded.

The incident last night was too impactful, even Qiao Qiao wasn’t in the mood to joke around much. However, Zhu Lexing remembered the system’s task and brought up the requirement.

“…Study notes? And they must be from the top one hundred in the grade?” Qiao Qiao had never heard of such a request. She looked at Zhu Lexing strangely for a few moments, then nodded, “Fine, got it. Wait for me, I’ll keep an eye out for you.”

Her expression was too earnest, looking like “I’m that reliable.”

Zhu Lexing nodded seriously, genuinely believing Qiao Qiao to be dependable.

The dismissal bell rang, and Qiao Qiao walked in naturally with her backpack. She saw Zhu Lexing writing diligently at a glance.

“…What are you doing?”

Song Yingying had gone to the office to hand in homework, so her seat was empty.

Zhu Lexing took a break to look at Qiao Qiao, who sat beside her. The girl looked at the problems she was working on. She knew all the words, but could only understand half of them when put together: “Why are you so serious? It’s just a midterm exam. Even if you don’t pass, your family won’t do anything to you, right?”

Zhu Lexing thought coldly: Do you think I want to do this!

Ever since she got Song Yingying’s study notes, Song Yingying had been supercharged. She dug out several blank test papers from her folder, genuinely indicating that if Zhu Lexing worked more problems with the notes, she could definitely improve her rank in the midterm.

Zhu Lexing couldn’t stand up to gentle persistence. Since Song Yingying was so sincere, she couldn’t hurt her feelings. Now, she could only save face by acting tough and coolly saying, “I told you already! I want to get into a good university!”

Qiao Qiao didn’t believe she was sincere but couldn’t find fault, so she pulled a notebook out of her bag and put it on Zhu Lexing’s desk: “Fine, I won’t delay your great endeavor.”

Zhu Lexing flipped through a couple of pages. The owner’s handwriting was elegant, and the notes were very clear, but the more she looked, the more familiar it became, until she compared it to Song Yingying’s handwriting on the notebook by her hand.

Identical.

Zhu Lexing: “…”

Why would Song Yingying keep two sets of notes?

Zhu Lexing’s expression immediately darkened. She jumped to a conclusion, assuming that Qiao Qiao was also one of those who enjoyed bullying others, just like the original Zhu Lexing.

This notebook must have been forced out of Song Yingying.

Qiao Qiao saw what she was thinking and clicked her tongue: “Do you think I’m that immoral? These are Song Yingying’s records from the first year of high school. You couldn’t even tell that it’s a different year’s content, and you still talk about getting into a university? Are you going to Beida Qingniao [A derogatory nickname for a vocational school]?.”

Qiao Qiao finished laughing and left, completely at ease.

Zhu Lexing decided to study late into the night.

At least she had to prove to Qiao Qiao that her grades were better than hers!

This scene was completely observed by Yan Mian.

After returning home, Zhu Lin still cooked a large table of food, trying to appease Zhu Lexing.

Jiang Yue did not appear at the dinner table at all, seemingly afraid that Zhu Lexing would find trouble with her again.

Zhu Lexing was not one to be won over by soft-soaping. After she finished eating, the matter was concluded.

Zhu Lin sighed and returned to his room.

Before going upstairs, Zhu Lexing remembered Liu Su and called her again. This time, the phone showed it was busy.

She had no choice but to push the call back to tomorrow evening.

While waiting, Zhu Lexing didn’t stay idle. She made a cup of hot milk and left it for Yan Mian.

As she set it down, she noticed a notebook left on the coffee table. The cover was printed with the school badge, clearly a school award.

Zhu Lexing guessed Yan Mian had forgotten it.

Yan Mian was always organized when tidying up, and she would surely come out to retrieve it once she noticed it was missing.

Without thinking too much, Zhu Lexing went upstairs.

The next day, as she was rushing to make it to the morning self-study session, Zhu Lexing noticed that the cup on the coffee table, where a full cup of cold milk was usually placed in the morning, was empty.

And right next to the cup was still the notebook with the school badge printed on it.

Zhu Lexing froze for a few seconds, then walked over and opened it.

The title page had only two words.

Yan Mian.