What kind of lunatic аpolоgizes оn sоmeоne еlse’s bеhalf?
The question is, dоes Gu An’аn neеd it?
Leaving aside the fact that Gu An’an wаs framed fоr the thеft in the first plасе, aроlоgizing would bе tantamоunt tо аdmitting shе was the thief.
Thе smile that hаd bееn plаying on Gu An’аn’s lips instаntlу vаnishеd, her dаrk eyеs fixеd intently оn Gu Wanrou.
Gu Wаnrоu felt a suddеn раng оf alarm, inexрliсably sensing that this version оf Gu Аn’an was dangеrоusly fоrmidаble.
Вut such а рerfеct opportunity to pin the label of thief on Gu An’an while showcasing her own gentle magnanimity was one Gu Wanrou absolutely could not let slip away.
Wiping the corner of her eye, she walked up to Zhao Xi:
“I’m sorry, Zhao Xi. I’m apologizing on An’an’s behalf. Please forgive her, okay?”
“An’an just had a momentary lapse in judgment and did something like this. I promise it won’t happen again.”
“She didn’t do well academically back in the countryside, and it was so hard for her to get into our Nan Cheng No. 1 High School. If she gets expelled, what will become of her in the future?”
Being expelled from such a prestigious school as Nan Cheng No. 1 High School would mean the Gu family would have to transfer her to a school in another city.
Otherwise, as long as she stayed in Nan Cheng, questions about the reason for her expulsion were bound to arise, or peers would inevitably gossip among themselves.
Gu Wanrou’s lips curved into a faint smile. She wanted the label of “thief” to stick firmly to Gu An’an.
Gu An’an would never be able to shake it off in this lifetime.
Seeing Gu Wanrou putting on a show of apologizing in front of her, Zhao Xi couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow.
If the two of them hadn’t conspired to frame Gu An’an together, she might have been moved by this performance herself.
What a touching display of sisterly devotion. In that case, she didn’t mind playing the villain a little more to help things along.
Zhao Xi’s brow furrowed tightly, her chin slightly raised as she coldly refused:
“I don’t accept your apology.”
“The debt is owed by the one who committed the wrong. If Gu An’an did it, she should apologize herself.”
“What’s the matter? Brave enough to steal money but too cowardly to apologize?”
“If she won’t apologize, then get out of this school.”
Gu Wanrou couldn’t suppress the upward curve of her lips. Hastily, she reached out, her expression pleading as she looked at Zhao Xi:
“Zhao Xi, please, if An’an doesn’t want to apologize, just let it go.”
“I’ll apologize for her. Please, she really can’t leave the school. Otherwise, she’ll probably have to study in another city.”
“I already said, I only want Gu An’an to apologize to me.”
“Gu An’an, don’t think you can hide behind others like a coward. Come out and apologize right now, and I’ll act like this never happened.”
Zhao Xi once again looked provocatively at Gu An’an.
Hearing this, Gu An’an sneered mockingly, “Absolutely not.”
Gu Wanrou turned another pleading gaze toward Zhao Xi.
But this time, the surrounding classmates couldn’t stand it any longer and began to speak up in protest.
“Rourou, don’t bother with her. She stole something and still has the nerve to act so self-righteous.”
“Exactly! If she won’t apologize, we’ll get the homeroom teacher to make her leave the school.”
“Rourou, come over here. You don’t owe her anything. Look at her attitude—even after you apologized for her, does she show even a hint of gratitude? She’s utterly heartless.”
“That’s right, Rourou. Instead of apologizing for her, you should take better care of yourself. The mix-up at birth wasn’t something you wanted to happen. You were just a baby—what could you have done wrong?”
“On the contrary, since Gu An’an has done wrong, she should properly accept punishment. Don’t interfere with her.”
“But, but,” Gu Wanrou said tearfully, looking at Gu An’an, “she is still my sister after all.”
“How can I just stand by and watch her be expelled from school?”
“She brought this upon herself.”
The classmates standing beside Gu Wanrou now looked at her with sympathy and pity, and for a moment, their tone became more severe.
Upon hearing this, Gu Wanrou immediately wiped her eyes, appearing persuaded and unable to speak further.
At this moment, she stood facing Gu An’an, with all the classmates behind her.
Everyone glared angrily at Gu An’an. Apologize and stay? She was a thief, and the class wouldn’t let her off easily.
Not apologize? That was even better—the label of thief would still be stuck to her, with no chance of ever clearing her name.
Just then,
a classmate called out.
“The teacher is here.”
It turned out that when Zhao Xi took the money from Gu An’an’s locker, a classmate had gone to fetch the homeroom teacher.
Now that the teacher had arrived, the situation had completely moved beyond what they could handle themselves.
A group of people looked at Gu An’an with mocking gazes, as if waiting to see a spectacle.
Zhao Xi even looked at Gu An’an triumphantly and snorted coldly, “Gu An’an, just wait to be expelled.”
“I’ll return those words to you,” Gu An’an retorted.
She had the surveillance footage in hand, having already recorded the entire process of Zhao Xi placing the money in her locker.
Attempting to frame a classmate for theft and trying to have them expelled from school—Zhao Xi was the one who deserved greater condemnation.
The homeroom teacher, surnamed Huang and named Huang Ruoyun, walked in through the door. When she saw Gu An’an, she frowned almost imperceptibly:
“I heard someone stole the class funds. What’s going on now?”
“Class One absolutely cannot tolerate such disgraceful behavior. Whoever did it, step forward and get out of Class One.”
An eager classmate raised their hand to accuse:
“Teacher, it was Gu An’an who stole it. We just found the class funds in her locker.”
Upon hearing this, Huang Ruoyun immediately turned to look at Gu An’an, a flash of coldness in her eyes:
“Gu An’an, what do you have to say for yourself?”
“Class One has never had a student who steals. This is utterly humiliating.”
“Get out of Class One.”
Gu An’an curled her lips slightly and suddenly retorted:
“Teacher, why do you believe them as soon as they say it?”
“I say this is a setup, a scheme deliberately designed to drive me out of Class One.”
“Even if the classroom surveillance is broken, the hallway and playground cameras aren’t. They can clearly show that I went straight to the playground after class and never returned.”
“What right do you have to conclude I’m the thief? I don’t admit it.”
Zhao Xi had overlooked the surveillance outside the classroom and felt a momentary panic upon hearing this.
She immediately refuted:
“The class funds were found in your locker. What more is there to deny?”
“You’re just wasting everyone’s time now. Who knows how you stole it?”
“Everyone just witnessed the class funds being taken from your locker. If you didn’t steal it, did it magically fly into your locker?”
“Otherwise, why didn’t you dare let me search your locker earlier? It’s because you were afraid.”
Huang Ruoyun nodded in agreement upon hearing this. She had long disliked Gu An’an and would never have allowed her into Class One if not for the principal’s insistence.
Now that she finally had the chance, she couldn’t be bothered to investigate further—she just wanted to drive Gu An’an out of Class One.
“Enough. The evidence is clear now. What more do you have to say?”
“Pack your things and go to the academic affairs office to handle the withdrawal procedures yourself.”
As soon as the words fell, Gu An’an’s cold voice rang out.
“I have surveillance footage.”