Chapter 127: Where Are You? (1)

After reading the text message, Qiao Xi did not reply; she simply placed her phone on the table.

Just as she was about to pull her hand back, she paused, staring at the device. After a long moment, she picked it up and typed: "Midnight, same place."

She then pulled up Gu Heng’s number and sent the message. She did not put the phone down immediately, keeping her eyes fixed on it. Soon, a reply came from Gu Heng, consisting of a single, simple character: "Okay."

***

A new week had begun, and students were filing into the school. Xu Jia’er arrived early, naturally with an ulterior motive. The drama had only just begun, and she had no intention of letting it end; the more chaotic it became, the better.

"When Qiao Xi shows up later, you know what to do," she said to Zhou Ruidan, who stood beside her.

Zhou Ruidan, still nursing a grudge from their last encounter, remained filled with resentment toward Qiao Xi. Now that she had a chance to retaliate, she was practically brimming with excitement.

"Don't worry, I know exactly what to do. I’ll make sure to incite the other students until Qiao Xi becomes the enemy of the entire school."

"Don't mess this up," Xu Jia’er cautioned, not entirely confident in her. "My cousin has gone abroad with my uncle and will be back in a few days. We must drive Qiao Xi out of school during this time; it won’t be as easy once he returns. Do you understand?"

"I understand, I'll get it done," Zhou Ruidan promised.

However, the result was that she and several other students waited until the bell rang without seeing a shadow of Qiao Xi. Could they have blinked and missed her entering the school?

"Where were your eyes? How could you not see Qiao Xi walk by?" she snapped, venting her frustration on the others.

Class 2-3.

The bell had already rung, and although the students had dutifully returned to their seats, the classroom was far from quiet.

"Qiao Xi didn't come to class today."

"Maybe she's just late?"

"Qiu Qiu isn't here either. Is it really such a coincidence that they’re both late?"

"I think she’s feeling guilty and is too afraid to show her face. Die Yan is still in the hospital, after all—how could she have the nerve to come?"

"Don't say that; Qiao Xi might not have done it on purpose."

"Intentional or not, it’s a fact that she pushed Die Yan down the stairs. She can't escape that responsibility."

...

"That’s enough! The teacher is coming, keep it down," Gu Panxi called out. As the class monitor, her words still carried some weight.

Soon, the teacher entered the classroom, and a second later, Ji Niansheng burst in as well.

"Ji Niansheng, you're late again," the teacher said, visibly annoyed.

However, the boy clearly hadn't noticed, his attention caught by the sight of Qiao Xi’s empty desk. "She’s not really not coming back, is she?" he muttered to himself. Although he had overheard Qiao Xi and Leng Xinmeng talking the night before, Qiao Xi hadn't been explicit. He had no idea what her plans were—could her final decision have been to quit school?

Being ignored while the student muttered to himself caused the teacher’s face to darken. "Student Ji! Did you not hear me speaking?"

"Ah." Ji Niansheng finally snapped back to reality. As he turned, he was met with the teacher’s grim expression. Just as he was about to say something to appease him, the teacher’s cold voice cut him off.

"Go stand in the back! This is completely outrageous—do you have any sense of what it means to be a student?"

"Of course I’m a student. If I weren't, would you like me to be the teacher instead?"

"You!" The teacher’s face turned blue with rage, though he eventually held his tongue. "You, go stand in the hallway!"

"Fine, I'll go," Ji Niansheng grumbled, "obediently" walking out of the classroom.