Chapter 147: Vying to Seize

Sun Yanni, upon seeing that person, suddenly changed her tone: "No, no one ordered me to do this; everything I did was my own doing. I was blinded by greed, which led me to spread rumors and frame Su Ruo. I truly realize I was wrong. Please, don't expel me."

Upon hearing Sun Yanni's tearful plea, everyone present was moved, except Su Ruo, whose face remained icy.

Su Ruo hadn't expected that Sun Yanni would rather accept punishment herself than implicate Feng Xiran; this could only mean that Sun Yanni had some ulterior motive, or she held some major leverage over Feng Xiran.

But regardless of the reason, it no longer matters; Su Ruo merely felt some regret that such a good opportunity to tear off Feng Xiran's mask had failed.

However, she wasn't in a hurry; she would take her time, believing that the Fox Tail would eventually reveal itself.

The school ultimately decided on a major demerit and a one-year suspension for Sun Yanni; the reason they didn't expel her was also out of concern that, if she dropped out and became desperate, she might do something else that would harm the school's reputation.

As for whether Sun Yanni will be able to return to school after a year, that remains unknown; after all, no one knows what will happen during that year.

Upon hearing the school's disciplinary decision, Sun Yanni's face instantly turned pale, and her sorrow quickly turned to anger.

She glared at Su Ruo maliciously: "Are you satisfied now? Seeing me punished and suspended makes you happy!"

"Do you have any idea how many hardships I endured to earn this chance to attend university?"

"In order to study and write, during the summer I was covered in mosquito bites."

"In winter, my hands would almost freeze and crack."

"For years I studied by lamplight, straining my eyes to the point of near blindness, just to obtain this opportunity."

"Why won't you let me go? Why must you destroy me before you're satisfied?"

Sun Yanni's impassioned accusation was met with Su Ruo's cold stare: "It was never I who ruined you, Sun Yanni; it was yourself."

"You say getting into university was hard for you, but who here had it easy? Who among us hasn't endured arduous study to finally have the chance to stand here?"

"If the paddle doesn't hit your own back, you don't feel the pain; you know how rare and important this university opportunity is for you."

"But when you plotted against me, did you ever consider that this opportunity is just as rare and important to me?"

"You're only being suspended for a year, and you can't bear it, but if your scheme succeeded, I could be expelled outright by the school, carrying a lifelong stain of animal abuse that would follow me wherever I go, inviting constant criticism."

"You committed such vicious acts against me, yet you still expect me to forgive you—on what basis? Just because I'm richer and stronger than you?"

"In this world, the weak are not automatically right; I will never forgive anyone who tries to harm me."

"Your failure is due to my good luck, which happened to let me prove myself, but that doesn't conceal the malice in your heart."

"You want to put me to death, yet you also expect me to be magnanimous and let you off—on what grounds? Just because I'm kinder than you?"

"If kindness only brings bullying, then I'd rather be a vicious person, repaying every grudge, and never allow myself to be wronged."

Su Ruo's words shocked everyone present, for in this day and age, people pursue and praise a kind heart and selfless dedication.

This is the prevailing value of today's society, and Su Ruo's idea is, admittedly, somewhat deviant from the orthodox path.

But Su Ruo stood there, letting everyone size her up, yet remained unmoved.

Su Ruo knew her remarks would invite considerable criticism, yet she faced it fearlessly; having been reborn, she pursues everything according to her heart and will never wrong herself.

Sun Yanni was also stunned by Su Ruo's words; in her mind, even if Su Ruo were to demand more from her, shouldn't she at least pretend to maintain a good reputation?

She never expected Su Ruo to simply voice her inner thoughts so openly, giving her no face at all.

In this silent atmosphere, Yan Jiu was the first to clap, breaking the stillness.

He said: "Good, as expected of my disciple Yan Jiu, you should have such spirit and courage—what's the point of empty reputation, can it fill your stomach?"

"Rest assured, as long as I, your teacher, am alive for a day, I will never let you be bullied."

"In life, we have only a few tens of thousands of days in a hurry; what matters most is living freely."

"\"Master, \" Su Ruo looked at Yan Jiu, her eyes slightly red; she dared to speak such words, not expecting to be understood, but it felt wonderful to have someone protecting her."

The others present also had varied expressions; some school leaders' faces showed looks that were hard to put into words.

In the whole school, only this teacher-disciple pair could utter such heterodox words.

Yet they couldn't deny that Yan Jiu indeed had the capital to be arrogant.

Just then, three voices spoke up together: "Su, junior niece, you're right."

"Our school is fortunate to have a student like Su Ruo, who is kind-hearted, courageous, and bold."

"What Su, junior niece, said is correct: repaying resentment with virtue—how then do we repay virtue? If doing good deeds leads to being framed, who would dare to do good in the future?"

Turning toward the sound, everyone saw: Professor Deng of Orthopedics, Professor Huang of Internal Medicine, and Professor Cui of Surgery—the three most senior professors—all standing up to support Su Ruo.

Su Ruo was somewhat surprised that these people would speak up for her, since she didn't even know them.

Yan Jiu, however, let out a cold snort; although they were praising his disciple, he was not pleased at all.

Having worked together for years, Yan Jiu knew these old foxes too well; when he himself was in trouble, they wouldn't even bother to watch a joke, yet now they eagerly offered help—purely self-serving, either treachery or theft.

And Yan Jiu's guess was spot on: these three were idle today, originally just coming over to watch the spectacle.

If it were an ordinary student, they wouldn't have noticed at all—but who made Su Ruo Yan Jiu's disciple!

Yan Jiu's temperament is foul and obstinate; moreover, the few of them at the school always despise each other, never seeing eye to eye, so upon hearing that Su Ruo had an incident, they deliberately came to look, just to find an opportunity to mock Yan Jiu.

Who would have thought that this glance would actually give them a surprise, letting them discover that Su Ruo was a treasure.

Just watching Su Ruo treat animals—the precision of her incisions, her control and judgment of the condition, and her smooth, clean movements—

Without twenty years of experience, one could absolutely not achieve this effect.

The professors looked at Su Ruo, then thought of their own unpromising disciples, and instantly felt jealousy so intense it made them want to vomit blood.

They finally understood why Yan Jiu had taken Su Ruo as his disciple and even given her Jishi Hall.

If they could also obtain a disciple like Su Ruo, they would be willing to give her everything they had.

Su Ruo is only in her early teens, yet she has already reached this level; her future achievements will undoubtedly be limitless.

Now, as they looked at Su Ruo, their eyes involuntarily sparkled, as if they were gazing upon a rare treasure.

After discussing, they decided that such a promising seedling absolutely could not be monopolized by Yan Jiu alone.

Thus, at this moment they could no longer restrain themselves; their inner excitement surged, and they were eager to start vying for her.