When Ji Shu woke up, the afternoon sunlight filtered through the window panes of the infirmary, spilling across the bed through the curtains swaying in the breeze.
Her blanket was warm.
It had been a long time since she’d slept this peacefully.
Slowly, she opened her eyes.
…What time is it now?
Startled, Ji Shu sat up abruptly. Her arm, supporting her weight on the bed, twinged with a spasm of pain. She gasped, lifted her head, and glanced at the wall clock in the infirmary.
2:20 PM.
“….”
Forget it, she’d clearly missed her afternoon elective classes.
Ji Shu pulled back the covers, preparing to get up. At the sound, the white privacy curtain was drawn aside, and the school doctor sitting at the desk looked at her. “You’re awake?”
The school doctor was a woman in her forties, wearing glasses and a low ponytail, her expression gentle. “You were badly hurt. Do you really want to go to class? Stay here and rest for now. I’ll give you some medicine before the end of the day so you can take it home.”
Only then did Ji Shu lower her head, noticing the many wounds and bandages on her body. The smell of iodine and disinfectant seemed to have seeped into her pores.
“I need to get my things,” Ji Shu said, her phone was still in the classroom.
“Your backpack, right?” The doctor smiled and, in the next moment, had it in front of Ji Shu. “Someone brought it while you were unconscious this afternoon. Check if everything is there.”
Ji Shu was slightly surprised.
She took the backpack, flipping it open while asking, “Thank you… Who brought it?”
The doctor said, “A boy I don’t know.”
Ji Shu responded with a soft “oh.” That probably wasn’t Xie Zhoulin.
As a chief and president of the student council, one of the top figures at Flandre, no one would fail to recognize Xie Zhoulin.
Before she passed out that afternoon, she thought she had seen Xie Zhoulin’s face, but her consciousness was so blurred that she wasn’t sure who had actually carried her to the infirmary. She had only relaxed after hearing her rank, losing the strength to support herself and collapsing.
Now, looking back, it seemed that she must have been carried over by someone else.
Fainting in front of the whole class wasn’t exactly dignified, but the way she ended up lying there must have given those students a pretty big scare.
Maybe they’d lay low for a while.
The school doctor stood nearby, giving her advice: “When you came this morning, you had quite a fever. Combined with the injuries from PE class, that’s why you fainted. Even though the high fever has subsided, you’re still running a low-grade fever. To avoid aggravating your wounds and risking infection, it’s best to take a few days off, rest at home, and only return once your temperature is completely normal.”
Ji Shu could only nod gratefully. “Then please help me write a few leave notes.”
The doctor handed her a pre-written note for the afternoon classes, then went back to the desk to write the notes for the following days.
Ji Shu reached for her phone. Unfortunately, it had died. She plugged it in, waited a few minutes, and finally powered it on.
She quickly opened her email and sent absence notices to her afternoon teachers, attaching the doctor’s note. As she refreshed, a few unread emails from last semester’s final evaluations also appeared.
Ji Shu opened the final grade report.
Last semester, the original student had already begun suffering from bullying. Her mental state was precarious, and her grades teetered on the edge of passing. Aside from a few main subjects with B’s, most electives had C- at best due to poor attendance, and the majority were D+.
The silver lining: she had still barely passed everything, avoiding make-up exams and retakes.
When the doctor finished writing and stamping the leave notes, she saw Ji Shu sitting on the bed, opening her Mac and typing away.
Flandre’s school culture was competitive and rigorous. The first-semester SAT for third-year students was a crucial exam that could determine whether they received offers from their desired universities. So even while sick, it wasn’t uncommon for students to continue studying.
After gently putting down the doctor’s note, Ji Shu drew back the privacy curtain.
The afternoon sunlight was just right, and the quiet, uninterrupted environment was perfect for her to organize her current situation.
Even if she decided to pursue the third path, that didn’t mean she could abandon the others. If she wanted to apply to study abroad in her senior year, like the original student’s brother, Ji Cun, she had to start preparing now.
Most countries’ school applications rely heavily on SAT scores, which account for 70% of the total. The GPA from the first five semesters of high school contributes 20%, and the remaining 10% comes from the applicant’s personal statement and recommendation letters. In other words, even with the original student’s poor grades, there was still a chance to escape this place.
Ji Shu pulled up a spreadsheet and tallied the original student’s final grades so far.
To avoid dragging down her application, she would need at least an A- in every subject for every semester moving forward.
That was no simple task.
Especially—
Ji Shu picked up her pitiful, ink-soaked math notebook and sighed.
She started reorganizing all of Math I’s material from scratch on her Mac.
Flandre valued traditional handwritten notes, and although digital note-taking apps had become highly advanced, most students still preferred pen and paper. Ji Shu, however, liked digital notes better. Uploading everything to the cloud gave her a strange sense of security, they would always be there, never lost or destroyed.
The process of organizing her studies was tiring, but at least the foundation from her previous life was there.
Ji Shu put on her headphones and, as time passed, enjoyed this rare, peaceful afternoon, one that might never come again.
That calm, however, was broken by a message.
Sister Ying: 【Xiao Shu, are you at school?】
Ji Shu froze. She opened Line and saw several more messages following immediately.
Sister Ying: 【Come home quickly】
Sister Ying: 【Your dad is back.】
Ji Nanlin. He was back, and looking for her? Why now?
Was it because of that day she hit Lu Mingxi?
Ji Shu took off her headphones, packed her bag, and pulled back the privacy curtain.
The school doctor looked surprised. “You’re going home already? Not going to rest a little longer?”
Ji Shu: “No, I don’t want my family to worry.”
The doctor hummed, taking out the prescribed medicine and handing it to her. “Remember to follow the instructions.”
Ji Shu: “Thank you.”
She looked at the woman, opened her mouth to speak, and then paused. “Oh, right…”
The doctor patiently waited: “Yes?”
“…Never mind. It’s nothing.” Ji Shu shook her head.
She had originally wanted to ask if Flandre had a psychologist who could prescribe psychiatric medication. But on second thought, any school psychologist would only serve to issue a risk assessment for the student, something that might even go on her permanent record and affect her study abroad applications.
Better not.
The doctor smiled but didn’t press. “If you feel unwell, come see me again. But really, take care of yourself, hopefully we won’t need to meet again.”
When Ji Shu left school, the driver was already waiting across the street.
She climbed into the car silently, clutching her phone, and when she arrived home, she saw He Ying standing at the doorway, her expression anxious.
Ji Shu tugged down the sleeves of her long-sleeved uniform and walked over slowly. “Sister Ying.”
Ji Shu had changed into her replacement pants at school, and thankfully no one had noticed her little trick.
“Xiao Shu,” He Ying called urgently as she walked over, “your dad is on the second floor. Go up first.”
Ji Shu responded with a nod, handed her bag to the housekeeper, and headed toward the stairs. Behind her, He Ying called again.
“Xiao Shu… don’t make your dad angry.” He Ying forced a smile, her eyes flickering briefly, hesitating as if she wanted to say more.
Ji Shu didn’t respond this time. She had already steeled herself the moment she opened the door on the second floor, but even so, she was startled when a book flew past her cheek as it was thrown across the room.
She paused for a moment, standing at the doorway, and rubbed her cheek with the back of her hand.
A sharp, burning pain quickly spread.
“What are you standing there for? Hurry up and pick up the books!” Ji Nanlin stood at his desk, his voice tightly controlled with anger.
Ji Shu still didn’t say a word.
She seemed to be thinking, remaining motionless for several seconds before slowly bending down, picking up the books from the floor, walking over, and placing them neatly on the desk.
Ji Nanlin had been exhausted from weeks of running around, and now, having received bad news, his temper was on edge. Yet seeing Ji Shu obey so obediently, her face emotionless, he couldn’t help but let out an exasperated laugh.
“I’ve told you so many times, you have to be careful what you say and do at school! Do you think our family background can compete with those people at your school whose wealth has spanned over ten generations?”
He sat down, raising his voice. “Do you know how much business I lost today because of those balls of yours?!”
“…”
Ji Shu replied calmly, “That was just a normal test.”
“I know it was a test,” Ji Nanlin raised his tone, “and tests have winners and losers, that’s fine. But you need to know where and to whom you should lose.”
He glared at his daughter, sneering a few times. “You weren’t even among the top students before. Do you think I don’t know what you were trying to show off this time? Don’t think about things you shouldn’t. I told you to make connections, not to chase after branches so high you could never reach them even if your life depended on it.”
“What is that look in your eyes!?”
Ji Shu didn’t speak. She stared heavily at the man in front of her, her so-called father.
For some reason, she suddenly felt ridiculous.
The original story had never detailed this cruel supporting character’s family background, even the family structure had only been briefly mentioned.
Today, Ji Shu finally understood why the original owner had been such a solitary and withdrawn person.
Her mother had died early, her elder brother was cold and indifferent, and her father was opportunistic.
This was a family that could drive anyone insane.
And yet she had been thinking she had to endure everything that happened at school, all for the sake of her family. Why couldn’t she leave?
Anger surged in her blood, and Ji Shu curled the index finger of her right hand. The anger dysregulation she carried over from her past life nearly made the veins on the back of her hand bulge with tension.
“If I want to leave Flandres, would you agree?”
Ji Shu tried to communicate.
Ji Nanlin’s eyes widened. “You’re not over it yet? I’ve told you before, don’t talk about childish nonsense like this. Do you know how much effort it took for me to get you into this school? Where else in the country could offer a better school than Flandres?”
He paused slightly, “Or are you trying to follow your brother’s example?”
Ji Shu remained silent.
Ji Nanlin, furious, stood up again, pointing a finger at her nose. “Don’t even think about it! I didn’t raise you all these years for you to grow wings like that brat and fly off abroad!”
“What are you glaring at?”
Ji Shu reached for the heavy redwood pen holder on the desk, her fingers clenching the edge so tightly they turned white. It was as if the next second she could pick it up and strike.
But then she suddenly froze.
Ji Nanlin didn’t notice her movement and kept talking incessantly.
“I know you’ve resented me ever since your mother passed, but I’ve worked so hard for this family all these years. He Ying has been with me even before I made it big. Now that the Ji family has finally established a footing in the capital, do you want to see it all destroyed? Especially since He Ying just found out today, she’s three months pregnant…”
…He Ying is pregnant?
Ji Shu’s hand faltered and released the pen holder. It wobbled, letting out a dull thud before settling upright on the desk.
Ji Nanlin, seeing her silent, turned to leave, even angrier. “Ji Shu, Ji Shu! You’re really audacious! I haven’t even finished speaking—”
The door slammed shut with a heavy bang.
Ji Shu left in a panic, almost as if fleeing.
She gasped several times, and in the corridor she ran into a worried He Ying.
“Xiao Shu, are you okay? It was really loud in there,” He Ying said cautiously, holding her gently. “Your face, is it scratched—?”
Ji Shu waved her off, avoiding He Ying’s gaze, lowered her head, and hurried back to her room, locking the door behind her.
She breathed heavily, curling herself into a ball and wrapping tightly in the blanket.
The chaotic emotions felt like they were burying her alive, her body was nearly immobile, and even breathing became a struggle.
It was as if she were sinking into a quagmire. She had no idea what to do.
After a long while…
A “ding” from her phone dragged her out of the mire.
The figure wrapped in the blanket finally moved. Ji Shu pulled the blanket aside and fished her phone out of her backpack.
It wasn’t Lu Mingxi.
In the chat window, Ji Cun, across another time zone, had replied to the message she accidentally sent and then retracted last night with a simple question mark.
Ji Shu exhaled, rubbed her forehead, and closed the chat.
Her interrupted mood calmed slightly, and she felt a bit better. Fatigue washed over her, so she buried her head again, hugging her knees, letting the unnamed emotions flow slowly through her.
Until sleep quietly swallowed her.
…
She woke again at five in the morning.
Her injuries throbbed faintly, waking her.
The sky outside was turning pale gray, and the first light of dawn filtered through the curtains, casting soft, shifting shadows on the floor.
The crisp sound of birdsong drifted clearly into her ears.
A new day.
A pinned chat window held one unread message.
【No leave permitted.】
“…”
Ji Shu, expressionless, got out of bed, packed her bag, and prepared to wash up, change her dressings, and go to school.
Facing a new day of unknown torment.