Ying Ying’s eyes sparkled mysteriously. “Someone in our class went to ask Liu Ruyan and her group during break—they said it themselves.”
He Ying:
For real?
“Did they say in their own words that Shangguan Mingyu hit them?”
“Not exactly.” Ying Ying took out her phone, scrolled through her messages, and openly told He Ying that besides the class group chat, their class also had a private small group.
She finally found the source of the information and, looking at the messages on her phone, said to He Ying, “Their exact words were that they were afraid of Shangguan Mingyu and wouldn’t dare lay a hand on Xia Shuyue anymore.”
He Ying instantly understood what Liu Ruyan and her group meant.
They were using the rumor mill to tell her that they wouldn’t bully Xia Shuyue anymore and would keep their mouths shut about what happened that morning.
They also knew He Ying wouldn’t like her name being mentioned alongside theirs in others’ conversations.
He Ying felt this was only natural.
How could anyone foolish enough to get into Hongru Academy?
Especially those like Liu Ruyan, whose families were neither too high nor too low in status—they were the most socially adept in the entire Hongru Academy. Why would they risk expulsion by casually bullying a Special Admission Student unless there were greater benefits that outweighed the risk of being expelled?
All the developments He Ying had seen before entering this world were solely from Xia Shuyue’s perspective, inevitably colored by Xia Shuyue’s own subjective assumptions.
If this world were still the brainless F4 World of the past, then what you saw would be what you got—no conspiracies or schemes.
But this world had been corrected. Behind every seemingly unreasonable event, there was bound to be a reasonable explanation.
He Ying had previously pondered this question: why was Xia Shuyue bullied?
She had temporarily believed the information from Xia Shuyue’s perspective: those people bullied her out of jealousy for being close to F4.
But judging from today’s events, given Liu Ruyan and her group’s personalities, if bullying Xia Shuyue were merely out of personal spite, they should have shown a good attitude of repentance after Shangguan Mingyu intervened, just as they did today, to beg for his forgiveness.
In terms of family background alone, Shangguan Mingyu far surpassed theirs. They had no reason to defy him for personal reasons.
Unless someone with a family background similar to or even better than Shangguan Mingyu’s was backing Liu Ruyan from behind the scenes.
But currently, the only person at Hongru Academy with a family background superior to Shangguan Mingyu and the other F4 members was He Ying. There were eight or nine other top-tier wealthy families, but they were only roughly on par with F4.
Since He Ying herself had not instructed Liu Ruyan and her group to bully Xia Shuyue, the answer was actually quite clear.
The instigator was someone from F4, and likely more than one.
When Xia Shuyue first arrived at Hongru Academy, her mind was filled with the desire to absorb the knowledge she needed at this top-tier school and achieve her goals as soon as possible.
She wouldn’t actively make enemies, nor would she try to ingratiate herself with the young masters and ladies who were from a completely different world. She just wanted to study.
So when Shangguan Mingyu confessed his feelings to her, she thought it was a prish. Besides, she truly had no time and couldn’t afford to be distracted, so she carefully worded her refusal.
After Xia Shuyue refused, things quickly spiraled out of control. She began to face inexplicable school bullying—forced graffiti scrawled on her body, textbooks that mysteriously vanished, being locked in the bathroom during breaks, and so on.
Every time Xia Shuyue was bullied, Shangguan Mingyu would appear like a savior, swiftly coming to her rescue.
At first, it was only Shangguan Mingyu. Later, after Chi Jingsheng recognized Xia Shuyue as the person who had saved him on the first day of school, the number of protectors grew to two.
Among the shrewd students of Hongru Academy, no one dared to openly bully someone under the protection of both Shangguan Mingyu and Chi Jingsheng—unless He Ying was behind it.
The situation became clear: why did everything ultimately become He Ying’s fault? It was because Xia Shuyue, worn down by the torment, finally gave in, and the mastermind behind it all, having won the beauty’s heart, needed someone to take the blame for all his past wrongdoings.
He Ying became the scapegoat.
From Xia Shuyue’s perspective, this was a sweet campus romance where a resilient, innocent heroine, oppressed by the villainous female rival He Ying, eventually found happiness with F4, and together they defeated the ultimate villainess.
But from He Ying’s outsider viewpoint, this was a story where everyone except the mastermind ended in tragedy.
From Xia Shuyue’s angle, He Ying couldn’t identify the mastermind—she saw everyone as villains.
A seven-year-long scheme had made the sole heir of the He family a stepping stone for their love story. Thinking of her own fate, He Ying’s eyes gradually darkened.
She wasn’t used to foreign food and was deeply concerned about safety abroad. If someone had to go overseas, He Ying certainly didn’t want it to be her.
“Ying Ying, do you think if Shangguan Mingyu really did this, he would try to silence people?”
Ying Ying, hearing He Ying’s words, suddenly understood: “Wow, He Ying, you’re so smart! No wonder you’re the young miss!”
He Ying: “…”
“If it wasn’t Shangguan Mingyu, why would Liu Ruyan and the others say it was him?” Ying Ying wondered aloud, snuggling closer to He Ying like a kitten.
“To curry favor.”
After the incident that morning, Liu Ruyan no longer dared to bully Xia Shuyue under He Ying’s name. However, within the school, only He Ying’s status allowed them to bully Xia Shuyue—even knowing she was “under Shangguan Mingyu’s protection”—without fear of retaliation from Shangguan Mingyu.
Without He Ying as a shield, they didn’t dare to act again, nor could they reveal the real reason. Instead, they decided to do Shangguan Mingyu a favor, making it seem to the uninformed public that he had saved Xia Shuyue once more, thereby pressuring her morally to repay him.
In a way, this was also a form of bullying—forcing moral obligations on her.
He Ying spoke sparingly, never laying everything out explicitly. Yet, even the usually naive Ying Ying understood perfectly.
In families like theirs, social niceties and the art of language were as natural as breathing.
“I get it! They were actually trying to help.” As Ying Ying spoke, she began sending messages in a small group chat, seemingly to inform the others. “Let’s hope Xia Shuyue doesn’t agree too quickly, or it won’t be as fun.”
“Is it fun?” He Ying repeated Ying Ying’s words.
“It is fun. The academy is too strict. Besides eating some sweets every day, my only little hobby is reading gossip.” Ying Ying spoke innocently, not thinking there was anything wrong with what she said.
After sending the message, she leaned closer to He Ying again: “Big… He Ying, can I be in your group later?”
He Ying thought for a moment. Ying Ying was very obedient to her, wouldn’t boss others around or cause trouble, so she agreed.
The class bell rang, and her mind was now solely focused on how to study fiercely.
Xia Shuyue failed to enter the classroom right before the deadline. Being three minutes late without a valid reason, she was punished by the lab teacher to stand for 20 minutes.
He Ying could feel Xia Shuyue’s gaze occasionally falling on her, but she remained completely unmoved, firmly choosing the thirteen trillion.
This is Hongru Academy.
This is He Ying.