Chapter 135: Known Throughout the Entire School

"Hey, did you hear? I heard Wang Yuqing and Xiao Lin broke up." A girl was whispering to her best friend.

"Yeah, I heard. Apparently, Xiao Lin found a mistress and dumped Wang Yuqing."

"Is that for real?" The girl looked shocked.

"Hey, buddy, did you hear? Our goddess Wang Yuqing dumped Xiao Lin! Haha, this is such a good thing!" A boy slapped his friend on the shoulder, looking delighted.

"Good riddance. Excellent! I’ve always said, how could Xiao Lin ever be good enough for Wang Yuqing? Tsk tsk, she is so elegant, so beautiful." The boy looked lost in a fantasy.

...

The news of Xiao Lin and Wang Yuqing’s breakup spread throughout the entire school in less than fifteen minutes. The reason it traveled so quickly was that both were celebrities at Chuangxian High School. Wang Yuqing had captured the hearts of every male student with her stunning beauty, gentle and kind nature, ethereal temperament, and academic grades that even top students worshipped. Xiao Lin, on the other hand, had risen to prominence later. Initially, he was known for his abysmal grades and his reputation for violent fighting. However, after Wang Yuqing arrived, Xiao Lin’s grades shocked everyone time and again, and he successfully won the goddess's heart with a unique confession at the New Year’s Eve gala. But on the second day back from winter break, they announced their breakup. Such major news quickly became the hottest topic among teachers and students alike.

Many boys excitedly thanked the heavens, grateful that Xiao Lin had returned Wang Yuqing to them, giving them another chance to pursue the goddess. The teachers, however, were full of regret. In the last final exams, this couple had taken first and second place, and the teachers had high hopes for them. To have them break up so suddenly—and allegedly because Xiao Lin cheated—left the faculty baffled.

At this moment, Xiao Lin was looking heavily at Ma Yunrou, who was lying in a hospital bed. Xu Tong had already taken Tan Linlin to the school infirmary. Ma Yunrou, however, had been terrified by that kick from Tan Linlin and was afraid that if she went to the school infirmary, Tan Linlin would hit her again. She refused to go, so Xiao Lin had no choice but to take her to the nearest hospital.

Ma Yunrou was currently eating a banana with great satisfaction. In truth, she had been fine since arriving at the hospital; after all, Tan Linlin’s kick hadn't been that heavy, just enough to make her chest feel tight for a moment. But she insisted on being hospitalized and wouldn't let Xiao Lin leave, demanding he stay to keep her company and buy her a pile of food to "recover her strength."

"Xiao Lin, you're so good at fighting. Why didn't you hit back when that boy hit you earlier?" Ma Yunrou asked, taking a bite of the banana, completely oblivious. For her, although the outcome had a few hitches—she hadn't expected to get hit herself—her goal had been achieved. After this scene, it was impossible for Xiao Lin and Wang Yuqing to sit together anymore. She could explain herself to Uncle Xiang, and her path to wealth was secured. Ma Yunrou was thrilled, but she remained unaware of the immense pain she had caused Xiao Lin and Wang Yuqing.

Hearing her question, Xiao Lin raised his head and said five words: "He is my brother." After saying this, his heart twisted with pain. He didn't know how Tan Linlin was doing now. He deeply regretted pushing her back then. Tan Linlin had struck Ma Yunrou for two reasons: first, she couldn't stand Ma Yunrou speaking that way about Wang Yuqing; and second, she wanted to protect Xiao Lin and Wang Yuqing. If she hadn't stepped in to stop it, the situation would have spiraled out of control.

Ding-dong. His phone vibrated. Xiao Lin pulled it out and looked. It was a text from Wang Tao.

"Tan Linlin is fine; she’s back in the classroom. Wang Yuqing has switched seats and moved next to Kang Yan. The homeroom teacher looks furious; you better have an excuse ready when you get back." With these few lines, Wang Tao explained the situation. He didn't mention Xu Tong, who was likely still angry.

Seeing the text and realizing Wang Yuqing had already moved, Xiao Lin couldn't help but rub his face in frustration.

"Whose message is it? Let me see." Ma Yunrou reached out for his phone.

"What exactly are you doing? Is this mess enough for you? Why did you come to school without telling me? Why did you say those things about Yuqing?" Xiao Lin stood up and shouted at her. He had been suppressing a fire in his heart, but Ma Yunrou's grab for his phone made him lose his composure.

Seeing him shout, Ma Yunrou pouted and teared up. "I was just scared! Wuwu, I was afraid I’d lose you again... wuwu, I gave my first time to you..." She knew that crying was the best way to handle Xiao Lin, and she intentionally brought up giving him her virginity.

Sure enough, hearing her mention that "first time" and seeing her tears, Xiao Lin swallowed his anger.

"Let it go this time, but don't let it happen again. Don't come to our school anymore; I’ll come visit you at your school often," Xiao Lin said slowly.

"Mm, I know." Ma Yunrou wiped away her fake tears and went back to her banana. As for the look of agony on Xiao Lin’s face, she didn't see it, and even if she had, she wouldn't have cared.

In the classroom of Class 1, the homeroom teacher, Mr. Yan, was explaining the periodicity of functions with a grim face. He already knew about Wang Yuqing and Xiao Lin. Honestly, since seeing their grades, he had basically condoned their relationship, hoping they would bring glory to his class during the college entrance exams. But after praising Xiao Lin yesterday, the boy had pulled this stunt today. The dean of students had just come to ask him what was going on. Earlier, he had seen Wang Yuqing move to sit with Kang Yan, Xiao Lin’s seat was empty, Tan Linlin had a bandage on her head, and Xu Tong...

Wang Yuqing hadn't heard a word of the lesson. She stared blankly at her book with tear tracks on her face. When Xiao Lin had carried Ma Yunrou out, she had started moving her desk alone. But she wasn't moving an empty desk; it was full of books, and she couldn't budge it. Several boys nearby wanted to help, but Wang Yuqing bit her lip and refused. Finally, Kang Yan walked over, hugged her, and patted her back gently.

"It will be okay, Yuqing. It will be okay." Kang Yan comforted her while signaling the boys to move Wang Yuqing’s desk to her spot.

Ma Yunrou’s words had pierced her heart. Perhaps she really shouldn't have intruded into their lives. For Wang Yuqing, Xiao Lin’s happiness was more important than anything. If she was the one who had disrupted his life, then she should be the one to withdraw. Perhaps she never should have transferred here in the first place. Her mind was a chaotic mess of swirling thoughts.

The class ended quickly. Mr. Yan threw his chalk down hard and said gloomily, "Class dismissed." Then he told the monitor, Liu Xiaoming, "When Xiao Lin returns, tell him to come to my office immediately."

"Kang Yan, keep an eye on Wang Yuqing and report to me if anything happens." Before leaving, Mr. Yan saw Wang Yuqing’s heartbroken expression and gave Kang Yan a final instruction. He knew it wasn't the right time to talk to Wang Yuqing, and as for Xiao Lin, the brat was nowhere to be found. He walked back to his office in a rage.

Once Mr. Yan left, whispers erupted in the classroom about what had happened earlier. Suddenly, Tan Linlin jumped onto a desk and roared, "Shut up about it!" The room went silent instantly; even the monitor, Liu Xiaoming, shrank back. After shouting, Tan Linlin sat down, breathing heavily, while Xu Tong whispered words of comfort beside her.

Her shout snapped Wang Yuqing out of her trance. Seeing the bandage on Tan Linlin’s head, she stood up shakily and walked over. With a tearful voice, she asked, "Linlin, are you okay?"

"I'm fine, just a small injury." Tan Linlin waved it off carelessly, causing Xu Tong to frown deeply.

"Xiao Lin... he... he didn't mean it," Wang Yuqing said.

Hearing this, Tan Linlin’s anger flared up again. Trembling, she said to Wang Yuqing, "Yuqing, that jerk treated you like this, why are you still speaking up for him? If it were me, I would have slapped him to death already!" Tan Linlin didn't hate Xiao Lin for pushing her; in fact, she considered him a friend, which was why she had defended him when Ma Yunrou was causing a scene. But what angered her was that Xiao Lin would break up with Wang Yuqing and then carry Ma Yunrou out. Didn't he know how much he was hurting her?

"I..." Wang Yuqing’s lips trembled, a lump formed in her throat, and tears threatened to fall again.

"Yuqing, Yuqing, it's okay, it's okay. It’s just a man! I’ll find you another one, I guarantee he’ll be more handsome than Xiao Lin." Seeing she was about to cry, Tan Linlin quickly changed her tone. But her words were wrong; no boy could replace Xiao Lin in Wang Yuqing’s heart. As soon as she finished, Wang Yuqing’s tears began to flow, and Tan Linlin scrambled to comfort her.

"Yuqing? Yuqing?" A frantic voice came from the doorway. Everyone turned to see Gao Zheng standing there.

P.S.
Wang Yuqing said tearfully: "Dear readers, please subscribe!"