Chapter 96

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Protagonist:

Lin Xiyu

"Who are you people? Talking nonsense. My niece is pure and innocent—when did she ever seduce someone's husband?"

Uncle had also grown angry; the ordinarily gentle old softie was roused to fury by the malicious slander.

He and his female cousin rushed over one after the other and gave a hard shove, pushing one of them to the ground.

Lin Xiyu panicked for only a second; the moment the five charged, her body's instinctive reaction made her subconsciously raise her arms to protect her face.

Sure enough, the next second, her arms were scratched by sharp nails, burning with pain.

The women looking for trouble had a clear objective: to disfigure her.

"What kind of thing is your husband, that he deserves to be seduced by me?"

Lin Xiyu flew into a rage, tripped one of the women underfoot, then immediately grabbed another woman's wrist and threw her over her shoulder.

His female cousin and Uncle dealt with two of them for her; the last one, she had no time to react, was grabbed by her upper garment and yanked hard.

"Rip."

Her sleeve was torn, revealing her snow-white shoulder.

"Slap."

Lin Xiyu, furious and desperate, swung a slap, landing a resounding slap across that woman's face.

"She hit someone, the mistress hit someone......"

The woman was a shrew; hit once and she went wild, flopping to the ground and rolling about, making a scene.

"That's exactly who I'm hitting."

His female cousin roared as she pounced, pinning her to the ground and beating her mercilessly.

Lin Xiyu covered for her female cousin, kicking the other woman who had just climbed up from the ground and sending her flying.

——

"What happened?"

"What's going on?"

"Why did they start fighting?"

Inside the sporting goods store, the three who had been keeping watch on the commotion outside heard the strange uproar and turned pale in unison.

Guben was the first to rush out of the store, forcefully pushing through the crowded throng.

"Make way, make way."

Wang Fan followed close behind, furious to the extreme: "All of you, get the fuck out of my way!"

"What are you looking at? What's there to see?"

Liu Ye roared as well, shoving aside those blocking his path in dissatisfaction.

Too many busybodies, the crowd was packed; by the time the three forced their way in, the fight had basically ended.

The five troublemaking women all lay on the ground in a sorry state, disheveled, with bruised and swollen faces.

Lin Xiyu's arm was injured, several clear scratches left on her snow-white skin.

His female cousin was remarkably fierce, fighting two against one without suffering any injury herself.

Uncle was embarrassed to hit women; while shielding his niece, a woman slashed his neck once, breaking the skin and drawing blood, making him the most seriously injured of the three uncle-and-nieces.

——

"Call the police, arrest them all."

Wang Fan's face was iron-green: "A bunch of shrews, daring to cause trouble on my turf—are you tired of living?"

Guben's eyes were cold and sharp: "This matter must be investigated thoroughly; I'd like to see who's pulling strings behind the scenes."

"Open your dog eyes wide and watch closely......."

Liu Ye also felt he had lost face, and viciously kicked the woman who claimed to have hooked up with his husband, mercilessly mocking: "Her boyfriend is right here—what is your husband? In front of my brothers, you're nothing......"

"That's right, I'm Xiyu's boyfriend."

Guben took the opportunity to pull Lin Xiyu into his arms, vindicating her with actual action.

The wind shifted in an instant; the scene erupted in an uproar, with someone excitedly whistling.

Those who had originally harbored doubts and believed the mistress rumor also showed relieved smiles.

——

Police sirens drew near from afar; amid the rowdy cheers of the melon-eating crowd who had watched a good show for free, all five women were taken to the police station for interrogation.

As expected, they had been instigated by someone to maliciously slander her.

Their purpose went without saying: to ruin Lin Xiyu's reputation and bring her utter disgrace.

As for the mastermind, when the handling officers heard a certain lady's name, they were greatly startled.

Guben did not make things difficult for him; knowing the truth, he led people out of the police station.

However, the matter was not over.

Not long afterward, when that lady's husband was exposed for bribery and jumped to his suicide, causing a public uproar, in the siheyuan at Wangfu Pool West Street, such a conversation took place.

"Xiao Bin, tell Grandfather the truth—what's the story with the Dragon Bed? Did you do this?"

"I only had someone spread the word that it was a Dragon Bed once slept on by a Ming Dynasty emperor, possessing inexplicable metaphysical secrets; whoever owned it would have smooth officialdom and rise straight to the clouds. If he hadn't been greedy, hadn't wanted to keep the Dragon Bed for himself, he wouldn't have met this end."

"And that letter—did you write it? Don't try to pull the wool over Grandfather's eyes. Your left-handed writing, others may not have seen it, but wouldn't your Sixth Uncle have seen it? If he hadn't told me about this, I wouldn't dare believe this matter had anything to do with you."

"I admit it; I sent the letter to Sixth Uncle. Sixth Uncle hates these things most of all. Knowing someone had consumed their conscience and accepted a Dragon Bed worth 100,000, how could he remain indifferent and let them run amok?"

"Xiao Bin, you're only eighteen and already have such scheming. Grandfather has been wondering if I was wrong, if I shouldn't have raised you that way from childhood. Your IQ is terrifying to think about; used in the right place, your future is limitless, but once you step onto the wrong path..."

"I won't join the military, nor enter politics, and I have no intention of harming the world. As for some people, if they insist on being blind and provoking me, I'm no soft persimmon to be manipulated at will."

"Sigh, forget it. This matter ends here. That person is already dead; his wife and daughter are nothing but ignorant women. Your mother will arrange for them to go abroad, which can be seen as fulfilling years of old affection."

"Going abroad is fine too. As long as they don't come provoke Xiyu again, I don't mind letting them off."

"If you don't want to enter politics, then forget it. Grandfather has come to terms with it too. You can't force everything. From now on, just live as you wish."

"Thank you, Grandfather. I will. I won't let you regret the decision you've made now."

"Good. With those words, Grandfather is at ease..."

—

Lin Xiyu did not know that Guben had used Grandmother's antique bed to set a trap to avenge himself.

The series continued filming as usual. With Zhang Xiaoqian going abroad and no longer having worries, the atmosphere in the program group was unprecedentedly harmonious.

She also lived a fulfilling life. After filming during the day, she went to the night market in the evening to earn some extra money. Her little days were incredibly comfortable.

Time flew by. In the blink of an eye, it was the end of the month, and the college entrance exam results were announced. Some families rejoiced, others worried.

On the day the results were announced, Lin Xiyu received a phone call from her class teacher personally.

The full score for this year's SD Province college entrance exam was 660 points. She scored 583 points, plus 20 points for being a martyr's child, totaling 603 points.

The class teacher was very happy and told her that she had a great chance of getting into her first choice, East China Normal University.

The whole family heard the good news and were all very happy for her.

On the day she returned to school to get her report card, the Pump Spring Program Crew also came to No. 1 High School with her to conduct on-site interviews.

—

At the entrance of No. 1 High School, a festive large red banner was hung, with gold-outlined large characters written on it: Warmly celebrating our school's Class of '93 graduate Guben, who, with the excellent score of 652 points, won the title of Provincial Top Scholar.

"Guben is the Provincial Top Scholar!!!"

"652, so awesome."

"Pity. His grades are so good, why didn't he apply to Peking University and Tsinghua University."

"Fudan University is also great. If I could get into Fudan University, my family's ancestral grave would be smoking green smoke."

"That's you. Guben is different. What kind of background does his family have? I've always thought he would go to Tsinghua University and become a high official like his grandfather."

"What connection is there between being an official and going to Tsinghua University?"

"You're silly. Didn't you see on TV dramas? Nowadays Tsinghua University is the former Whampoa Military Academy. The appointment and promotion of cadres definitely puts Tsinghua University at number one."

"Maybe he doesn't want to be an official and wants to go into business to make big money."

"What's the use of going into business? Even if you make millions as a nouveau riche, in front of officials, you're still like a grandson. In this day and age, having power means having money..."

"Not necessarily. There are still many upright officials. Throughout Chinese history, there has never been a lack of honest officials famous for generations."

"That's history. Was Liu Luoguo really an honest official? Have you been to ancient times? Did you witness it with your own eyes? History is hearsay. Whether this person even existed is uncertain."

"You talk as if you really understand. You just watched a TV drama, memorized a few lines, and think you're something special, spouting nonsense here..."

"I don't know if Liu Luoguo was an honest official. I only know that if you become an official, you probably won't be a good one."

"Exactly. Maybe you'll end up like Zhang Xiaoqian's father, with improper thoughts and a bad ending."

"You little brat, asking for a beating. Dare to compare me with him."

"I said it, so what? What can you do to me?"

"Alright, stop talking. The people from the television station are here."

"Everyone shut your mouths. Don't let people laugh at us."

At the school gate, many graduates wearing school uniforms and preparing to take commemorative photos had gathered, chatting happily in a cacophony of voices.

"What are you students talking about? Are you interested in talking to the audience friends in front of the television about your grand ambitions?"

Li Yan's eyes lit up, and she smiled as she held the microphone and squeezed in.

"We're not talking, we're not talking..."

The group of students who had been chatting animatedly, with saliva flying just moments before, all got scared when they saw the camera and scattered like birds and beasts.

"Hey hey hey, don't run..."

Li Yan reached out and grabbed a male student. Just as she was about to ask a question, she saw his ears turn red, and he forcefully broke free from her hand.

"Hey, one by one, they run faster than rabbits."

The Cameraman found it amusing and laughed while teasing: "Your charm is gone. These pure high school boys don't fall for your tricks..."

"Get lost."

Li Yan glared at him unhappily.

"Sister Yan, the students in our class are all waiting to accept your interview."

Lin Xiyu was also wearing a summer school uniform, with her hair tied in a ponytail, and a youthful aura came over her.

"When we climbed Taishan, I already told them. Sister Yan said everyone has a chance to make a cameo in the documentary. They were all very happy and have been waiting for this day."

"Xiyu is the best. Unlike some people who only know how to make me angry."

Li Yan relented, affectionately linked arms with her, and entered the school together with her.

"Hehe."

The Cameraman chuckled, shouldered the camera, and followed behind them, trotting along.

—

In a corner of the campus, Wu Meng looked at her report card and felt very depressed.

"Mengmeng, what's wrong? Did you cry?"

Lin Xiyu heard the faint sound of crying, her heart trembled, she let go of Li Yan's arm and ran over to her.

"Hateful."

Wu Meng sobbed as she complained: "Public Security University only requires 530 points for boys, but 580 for girls. It makes me so angry. So unfair."

"How many points did you get?"

Lin Xiyu glanced at the report card in her hand, her eyes darkening.

543 points!

That's quite different from Wu Meng's usual grades. Was she under too much pressure and didn't perform well?

Wu Meng was extremely depressed: "Last year's admission cutoff for girls at Public Security University was 581. I can't get in."

"Not necessarily..."

Lin Xiyu comforted her in a low voice: "Admission isn't just about grades; they also look at rankings. Maybe fewer girls applied this year, so there's still hope."

"I'm over thirty points short. No hope."

Wu Meng sadly shed tears: "The Class Teacher already told me to be prepared to go to university in Suzhou."

"Suzhou University is also good, and it's close to Shanghai."

Lin Xiyu persuaded her earnestly: "It's just one hour by train. We can still see each other often in the future."

"Qu Peng got into Public Security University."

Wu Meng's eyes showed despair: "He's going to school in Beijing. We'll be south and north, so far apart. It'll be hard to even meet once. Before long, he'll completely forget me."

"You're still thinking about Qu Peng?"

Lin Xiyu deliberately changed the subject to ease her anxiety: "Actually, I think Li Liang is better than him. He takes good care of you. Guben also said he's your true match."

"What true match?"

Wu Meng was indeed stunned silly, hiccupping through her tears.

"What Guben said..."

Lin Xiyu smiled teasingly: "I don't know why he suddenly said something like that, all mysterious. But Li Liang did take good care of you while climbing the mountain, blocking the wind for you for half the night."

"Stop it."

Thinking of herself drooling on his thigh, Wu Meng's ears turned red, and she shamefully covered her face.

"Li Liang applied to the Army Academy."

Lin Xiyu was happy for her friend: "He's studying in Nanjing, which is relatively close to Suzhou."

"Didn't he want to be an honor guard soldier?"

Wu Meng wasn't infected by her mood; instead, she felt even more depressed: "The Three Armed Forces Honor Guard is in Beijing. He'll end up going to Beijing sooner or later."

"Uh."

Lin Xiyu was embarrassed, having forgotten that.

"Waa waa waa..."

Seeing Lin Xiyu had nothing to say, Wu Meng cried again.

"Li Liang, come here for a moment."

Lin Xiyu rubbed her brow, suffering from a headache, when she suddenly saw a figure pass before her eyes.

She was delighted and grabbed the person: "There's a little crybaby here. I'm handing her to you. Comfort her for me."

Li Liang met Wu Meng's red, crying eyes, and his spine stiffened.

Who could tell him he just wanted to go to the toilet?

How did it come to this?!

—

"Did you see Guben?"

Lin Xiyu pushed the person toward Li Liang, looked around, didn't see Guben's figure, and looked at the teaching building in surprise, just seeing Wang Fan and Qu Peng come out of the corridor.

"He's in the Principal's office."

Wang Fan pointed to an open window on the third floor and smiled teasingly: "The teacher from Tsinghua's admissions office is here, poaching people."

"The conditions offered are really tempting."

Qu Peng also smiled and said: "Guben might fall for it and be snatched away by Tsinghua University."