"What?" Xue Jiao froze, momentarily wondering if she'd misheard.
A post? Li Wei?
Lin Zhihua knew about it?
How did Li Wei get involved with Lin Zhihua again?
"Jiao Jiao, I know about what happened at school. This matter is quite troublesome if not handled properly. Rumors can be deadly—some people believe there's no smoke without fire, regardless of the truth." His voice was calm but laced with concern over the phone.
Xue Jiao wasn't foolish; she knew Lin Zhihua was just worried about her.
She sighed softly, her tone turning resigned. "I know. Those photos are really from my past. I was young and reckless, and I should face the consequences of my mistakes. I'll clear my name of the false accusations, but as for the rest... let them talk."
Lin Zhihua was slightly surprised. Few girls her age could remain so composed.
"Doesn't it bother you?"
Xue Jiao shook her head, then remembered he couldn't see her. "People will say what they want—I can't control that. We live for ourselves, not others. No matter how well I do, someone will always dislike me. At most, they can gossip, but they can't take anything from me. My grades, my achievements, my progress—they're all mine."
Obsessing over others won't make you better, and those who constantly worry about others' opinions rarely live freely.
There was a brief pause on the other end, followed by a soft chuckle.
That's how life is, but few in society truly live by that principle.
Otherwise, why would his own parents pressure him to marry and have children?
Wasn't it also because they feared idle gossip?
The Lin parents had lived most of their lives, yet they understood less than this young girl.
Lin Zhihua didn’t care what people said behind his back, but he wouldn’t tolerate disrespect to his face.
Those who dared reach out in front of him would lose their hands; those who spoke out of turn would lose their voices.
Xue Jiao might not mind the gossip, but he wouldn’t let his girl suffer unjustly.
"You're right, but some people must be uprooted completely. Even if Li Wei's issue is resolved, the snake behind her is still lurking. We need to dig it out and clear your name thoroughly, so no one will pay attention to you again."
Xue Jiao froze once more. She had suspected that Li Wei's deep hatred might stem from someone else.
Besides... even if Li Wei clarified things, some would still fixate on her. Once rumors spread, she’d inevitably be affected.
"But if Li Wei explains, my past..."
A light chuckle came through the phone. "People love drama and gossip, no matter their age. The perfect solution for your situation is to give them a bigger spectacle to focus on."
"What spectacle?" Xue Jiao asked, puzzled.
"The stepsister paid someone to corrupt her own sister, lured her into a nightclub to ruin her, and when that failed, took fake photos to slander her." Lin Zhihua's voice was indifferent.
Xue Jiao: "..."
So Gu Shiyun was behind Li Wei!
She had never imagined a teenage girl could be so malicious!
Xue Jiao took a deep breath.
—
Early the next morning, Cheng Mingze looked pale with dark circles under his eyes. As they walked to school, he finally spoke softly—
(Note: The translation maintains consistency with the glossary, accurately reflecting character names and pronouns while preserving the tone and nuances of the original text.)"I'm sorry... that post still hasn't been deleted..."
He had spent the entire night trying, even asking for help from industry experts, but to no avail.
The person he contacted worked until dawn before messaging him—whoever was controlling that post was undoubtedly a top-tier expert in the field.
What kind of person had Xue Jiao offended? Who could be so powerful as to prevent the post from being deleted?
"No, brother, it's actually good that the post isn't deleted."
"Hmm?" Cheng Mingze was taken aback.
Xue Jiao recalled what Lin Zhihua had told her yesterday. Leaning her head against the window, she softly repeated his words: "The post has been up for so long that everyone who needed to see it already has, and those who should know already do. If we delete it now without explanation, even if we clarify later, some people still won't believe it. Others who didn't see it might hear fragments and jump to conclusions. It's better to leave it up, let the situation escalate further. When everyone's paying attention, our clarification will have greater impact—clearing my name completely."
Cheng Mingze frowned. "Wouldn't it be better if fewer people knew about it?"
His approach was indeed a good way to handle rumors—minimizing the fallout as much as possible.
But... Cheng Mingze didn't know they still had a trump card to play.
Naturally, the more people who knew, the greater the eventual impact would be.
"Brother, don't worry. I already have a solution. You mentioned you could help borrow the broadcast station—can we get it for after school this afternoon?" Xue Jiao looked at Cheng Mingze.
He frowned but, seeing her determination, nodded reluctantly.
"Be careful not to get hurt."
Xue Jiao smiled and nodded, her resolve unwavering.
She disliked trouble but wasn't cowardly. Now that she had a way to end this completely, there was no reason to let it go.
Didn't Gu Shiyun want to make a big scene? Didn't she want the whole school to know through the forum?
She'd get her wish.
——
When Xue Jiao arrived at the classroom, Yi Tianyu was already there, looking equally exhausted from a sleepless night.
The moment he saw her, he anxiously said, "What do we do? Li Wei is really missing! Her parents seem to know something but won't say a word! I'll leave early this afternoon—I refuse to believe I can't get answers!"
Xue Jiao shook her head. "Li Wei is with my friend. Don't worry about this—we already have a solution. Focus on your basketball practice and prepare well for the tournament after the break."
Yi Tianyu looked stunned—
"You already have a solution?"
Xue Jiao nodded, appearing completely at ease, as if this wasn't a lie at all.
A real solution?
Then Yi Tianyu's expression shifted. "With your friend? Which friend? I didn't know about this."
"A mentor-like friend." Thinking of Lin Zhihua, Xue Jiao smiled slightly. "The one who made that study outline for you during finals."
Lin Zhihua... had truly helped her so much.
A mentor!
Yi Tianyu relaxed, naturally assuming this was some elderly teacher-type figure.
"We'll have to thank them properly!"
"Mm!"
Friday morning. Although their classmates generally had a good impression of Xue Jiao, she was currently at the center of a storm.
The girls avoided talking to her for fear of being ostracized; the boys avoided her to prevent new rumors.
As a result, no one in class dared speak to her.Students from other classes were even more exaggerated. Some girls from regular classes with poor grades gathered together, pointing fingers and whispering.
But most students didn't point fingers—they just kept discussing the matter among themselves. They weren't biased; they were simply stating the facts as they saw them, debating whether it was true or false...
Yet the mere act of discussing it was hurtful.
No one likes to walk around hearing people spread "scandalous rumors" about them.
Yi Tianyu was furious. Just a few days ago, he had been annoyed by the endless love letters Xue Jiao received—now, not a single one remained!
What infuriated him most was that there was even a letter insulting Xue Jiao!
If the letter had been insulting him, Yi Tianyu would have turned the world upside down to find the sender.
But it was directed at Xue Jiao.
Afraid she would be upset if she knew, he could only secretly destroy the letter.
In his heart, however, he cursed the sender’s ancestors eighteen generations over and over again.
——
"How does she still have the nerve to come to school?"
"Damn, if I were her, I’d transfer immediately!"
"This is so embarrassing."
"How can someone like her still be on our school’s honor roll? Just thinking about it makes me cringe!"
"When is she leaving?"
"Could it just be a rumor?"
"Nonsense! If it were a rumor, why hasn’t she come out to defend herself?"
"Exactly! If someone slandered me, I’d have clarified it by now!"
...
A group of girls whispered nearby, and one of them turned to the silent Gu Shiyun—
"Shiyun, you never used to say anything bad about Gu Xue Jiao, but now look—she’s really shaming the Gu family!"
Gu Shiyun didn’t respond. After a moment, she sighed. "She’s just a girl… how could she do something like this…"
"See? Even our kind-hearted Shiyun can’t stand her anymore!"
Gu Shiyun lowered her head slightly, hiding the smile at the corner of her lips.
Gu Xue Jiao, did you really think changing yourself would stop people from despising you?
As long as I’m here, you’ll live your life being hated!
——
At noon, Xue Jiao took her meal card and went to the cafeteria.
Just as she got her food, two girls carrying trays bumped into her, spilling soup all over her.
"Oops! Seeing something so disgusting made my bowl slip!"
"Yueyue, are you okay? Stay away from people like her—who knows what else—"
"What the hell are you doing?!" someone interrupted, rushing over.
It was almost May, and the weather was warm. Xue Jiao wasn’t wearing thick clothes, so the hot soup had soaked right through.
Yi Tianyu draped his jacket over her, while Xi Junyang looked anxious. "What happened? Jiao Jiao, are you okay?"
Xue Jiao shook her head.
Yi Tianyu clenched his teeth, veins bulging on his forehead, his fists tightening with a loud crack.
"You’re asking for death!"
His expression was terrifying, and the two girls were so scared their legs went weak.
Xue Jiao suddenly reached out and grabbed his hand. Yi Tianyu froze, turning to look at her.
She just shook her head and said softly, "We’re about to clarify things. Don’t cause any more trouble now."
She was worried that if Yi Tianyu actually hit them, it would affect him. School rules were strict at this time—words were one thing, but physical altercations, especially involving injuries and parents making a scene, would escalate quickly.
And especially hitting two girls...
Yi Tianyu had a competition coming up. She couldn’t let him ruin his future for her sake.When his fingers slightly loosened, Xue Jiao walked up to the two girls and stared straight at their school badges.
"Liu Yueyue, Class 10, Grade 11. Shen Tong, Class 10, Grade 11."
She read the names aloud once, then said nothing more, as if merely committing them to memory.
Then, picking up her tray, she turned to Yi Tianyu and Xi Junyang. "Let's hurry and get our food."
Yi Tianyu gave the two girls a cold glance before forcing a strained smile at Xue Jiao.
"Alright, let's eat together."
He should have been guarding Xue Jiao all along!
If he had been there, how could she have faced such a thing?
"Yi Tianyu! Just keep protecting her! Everyone knows you two have something going on!"
"Slosh—" A bowl of soup splashed onto Liu Yueyue's face.
It was Xue Jiao who threw it, returning the favor.
"Ahhh!!!" Liu Yueyue shrieked.
Xue Jiao said coldly, "If you don’t know how to speak properly, then you don’t need a mouth."
For some reason, Liu Yueyue felt Xue Jiao’s gaze... was even more terrifying than Yi Tianyu’s fist earlier...
Xue Jiao turned to Yi Tianyu and Xi Junyang, even managing a small smile. "Let’s go. We can grab another serving together."
The three of them sat down with their trays.
Xi Junyang couldn’t help but exclaim, "Jiao Jiao, you were so cool just now!!"
Yi Tianyu, seemingly lost in thought, blushed slightly at the ears. Since he was sitting right across from Xue Jiao, he quickly raised his hands to cover them.
His heart pounded wildly.
This bookworm...
How could she be so captivating?!
After finishing her meal, Xue Jiao felt her phone—which she had deliberately brought today—vibrate.
She quickly pulled it out. Sure enough, it was a message from Lin Zhihua.
[Sorry for the delay in posting. Just as I was about to send it, I realized I was being too lenient, so I made some revisions.]
For some reason, Xue Jiao felt... Lin Zhihua’s tone seemed furious?
——
Ten minutes after the post went up, Xue Jiao had just arrived in the classroom.
A male student suddenly stood up, cursed, and shouted, "Holy shit! This is beyond shameless!!"
"What? What happened?" others asked curiously.
The boy glanced at Xue Jiao, his eyes filled with... pity, then waved a few people over to huddle under the desk and read together.
Yi Tianyu also took out his phone and tugged at Xue Jiao.
"Here, let’s see what the clarification post looks like!"
Xue Jiao hadn’t read it yet either, so she leaned in.
The title was striking and attention-grabbing.
Shocking! The Truth Behind the Gu Xue Jiao Incident—Just How Vicious Can the Daughter of a Mistress Be?
The title stunned many. What did Gu Xue Jiao’s situation have to do with a mistress?
The author of this post was undoubtedly skilled. Upon clicking, the first thing readers saw was—
Shocked? Gu Xue Jiao and Gu Shiyun are biological sisters!
Instantly, those who saw it blurted out: "Holy crap! Sisters?!"
Both were well-known figures in the school—how could they be sisters?
Eagerly, everyone scrolled down.
The post presented ample evidence, starting with photos of Gu Xue Jiao with Gu Jingxu and Li Sitong. Anyone could see they were a family of three.
OP: Shocked? There’s more!
Suddenly, another set of photos appeared—this time of Gu Shiyun with the same three people.OP: That's right, Gu Xue Jiao is the daughter of the first wife, while Gu Shiyun is... well, the daughter of the other woman. Both are biological daughters. Gu Xue Jiao's parents divorced when she was ten, and Gu Shiyun is only a few months younger than her. Hahaha, to put it bluntly, it's the classic case of a phoenix man marrying a wealthy woman's daughter, then the mistress sneaking in and giving birth to Gu Shiyun, finally moving into the household when Gu Xue Jiao was ten!
The onlookers were stunned, completely shocked.
Gu Shiyun is the daughter of a mistress? An illegitimate child?
How has this never come to light before?!
OP: Shocked? Surprised? There's even more to be shocked about!
Next came more screenshots, all of conversations between Gu Shiyun and Li Wei. In the earlier years, Gu Shiyun kept talking about how "wealthy" and "generous" her "sister" was. Li Wei got the idea and started probing for Gu Xue Jiao's preferences, then deliberately befriended her.
As they grew older, one day, Gu Shiyun told Li Wei to "corrupt" Gu Xue Jiao, promising payment in return.
The subsequent chat logs showed Li Wei reporting back on how she was "corrupting" Xue Jiao—getting her ears pierced, skipping classes. For every misdeed, Gu Shiyun praised her and paid up.
For example, one conversation went like this:
Li Wei: That girl Xue Jiao seems outgoing, but she's actually a coward. Her mom scolded her, and she actually hugged me and cried, asking if what she was doing was wrong.
Gu Shiyun: What did you say?
Li Wei: Of course I told her she was fine, that her mom had a new family now and didn’t want her anymore. That idiot believes whatever anyone tells her. I tried to take her to a nightclub, but she refused! Said nightclubs were bad.
Gu Shiyun: If you can trick her into going to a nightclub and get someone to... I'll give you 100,000!
Li Wei: Really?! Don’t worry, she’s pretty enough—I’ll hand her over to my "big brother" for a free night!
Another screenshot, dated a week later.
Li Wei: Damn it! I went through hell to get her to the hotel, but even drunk, she still ran away!
Gu Shiyun: What? It didn’t work?! Whatever... next time, it has to work!
Li Wei: No way. She called me yesterday yelling at me. It took forever to calm her down, but she said she’d never go to a nightclub again, and now she barely trusts me...
Li Wei: ??? Hello? Even though it didn’t work, I got some photos that make it look like something happened.
Gu Shiyun: What photos?
The post zoomed in on the image—it was the same photo from yesterday’s post.
OP: Heh, surprised? That’s where the earlier photos in yesterday’s post came from.
OP: Don’t worry, we’ve got even more surprises.
OP: As the saying goes, like mother, like daughter. If the daughter is like this, just imagine the mother.
OP: Wu Wanjun, Gu Shiyun’s mother, has spent years playing the role of a kind stepmother, constantly showering the first wife’s daughter with gifts. Hmm... I was almost moved, until I found out what those "gifts" were...
OP: The latest smartphone loaded with shopping, video, and gaming apps; flashy clothes; taking her out shopping and skipping school... oh, and even bringing her to a casino. Yeah, great job—give her the award for Best Stepmother in China!
OP: Still not shocked? Don’t worry, there’s more!
Immediately after, the OP posted more screenshots.
Gu Shiyun: Last time. Post these on Qizhong High’s forum, and I’ll give you 50,000. After this, I won’t contact you again.
Li Wei: Deal.Poster: Alright, I know you'll have doubts, so I've got an old video of Gu Shiyun and Li Wei here. Back then, Gu Shiyun was still young—probably born with a black heart but not yet cunning enough—so she interacted with Li Wei privately. Look at how these days she only stabs people in the back, never showing her face directly.
I’ve uploaded the video. Since it’s old, the audio isn’t clear, but technicians have processed the sound separately—it’s linked below.
This evidence is pretty comprehensive!
Poster: Okay, I’ve wrapped up my summary. Originally, I just wanted to dig into how the "goddess" transformed from a "delinquent girl" into a "goddess," but I ended up uncovering something way more interesting! After summarizing, all I can say is—genes are powerful!
Poster: To think that after being victimized like that in her early years, she still managed to awaken into the incredible person she is today—that’s legendary. But I’m still curious, what’s Gu Shiyun like at school? With scheming like this… she must be adored by everyone, right? No one dares speak ill of her, I bet. After all, anyone who crosses someone this ruthless probably has grass growing over their grave by now.
Poster: Lastly, if Gu Xue Jiao hadn’t risen up, she’d probably still be the "delinquent" everyone bashes, while Gu Shiyun remains flawless. I’m honestly shocked. After digging into this, I kept wondering—what did Gu Xue Jiao even do wrong? In the end, the only thing I could come up with was… being the first wife’s daughter. But is that a crime? Why did you all insult her, pour soup on her—what for? What did she ever do to deserve that?
Poster: Final, final note—here’s the real-name exposure from the last post. Come on, let’s see what these keyboard warriors, who talk trash online, are really like at school! No need to thank me—call me Lei Feng.
BANG! Yi Tianyu slammed his fist on the desk, making it shake as if it might collapse.
His eyes were red as he glared at the post, finally spitting out just one sentence—
"Damn their ancestors!"
It wasn’t just Yi Tianyu. Most of the guys reading the post were furious, their eyes bloodshot, while some of the girls were even crying.
What did she do wrong?
Nothing. She was immature, but did she ever harm anyone? Even her "bad" behavior was influenced by others!
It was still Friday noon—phones hadn’t been handed back yet—but the comments were flooding in fast.
"Holy shit!"
"...My worldview is shattered."
"I’m fucking crying, what kind of monster is this?!"
"No way, no way! If the evidence wasn’t right here, I’d never believe someone like this exists!"
"I used to think Gu Shiyun was nice? This is disgusting!"
...
Gu Shiyun’s case was different from Xue Jiao’s earlier scandal. That post about Xue Jiao’s "dark past" was just about behavior—something people could gossip about privately.
But Gu Shiyun’s actions were shocking—this was a matter of character and morality!
Class 2.
Gu Shiyun was trembling, her face deathly pale.
At that moment, her deskmate—a guy who had always admired her—picked up his desk and moved to the back of the room.
"I don’t dare sit next to someone like this."
No one dared to speak. They all stared at Gu Shiyun with horrified expressions.
To think she had the cunning to harm the first wife’s daughter years ago!
Her heart must’ve been rotten to the core long ago!
And yet, they’d spent every day with her and never noticed a thing?!
Before they could even process their shock, class had already started.As it happened, this class was taught by Li Ping.
He had just walked in when Chu Sheng stood up and said, "Teacher Li, I cannot allow myself to sit in the same classroom as someone whose morals have deteriorated to such an extent. It would feel like an insult to the school."
With that, Chu Sheng picked up his books and walked out, standing in the hallway.
Soon after, another person stood up, then another, until one by one, they all filed out the door.
"This class... will be self-study..." Li Ping said before quickly heading to the office.
He was completely unable to teach right now. Anyone who had seen that post wouldn't know what attitude to adopt when facing Gu Shiyun.
Li Ping knew today's afternoon classes couldn't proceed normally.
In all his years of teaching, he'd encountered morally corrupt individuals before, but seeing someone barely in their teens behave this way was still shocking.
Had he really thought Gu Shiyun was perfect before?
The truth was the staff room was in complete chaos too. The post was right there for everyone to see. After yesterday's post had fermented, today's new revelation had instantly made the whole school aware.
Lin Zhihua had been right—sometimes destruction precedes creation. Didn't Gu Shiyun want to make a big scene?
She was bound to reap what she sowed.
Class One wasn't having normal lessons either—it was all self-study.
Xue Jiao endured two full periods under the weight of her classmates' gazes—filled with worry, concern, guilt, and all manner of emotions.
The moment classes ended, she and Yi Tianyu rushed to the broadcasting room.
With the entire school gathered, what needed to be said had to be said now—there could be no delay!
Cheng Mingze stood at the broadcasting room door, eyes slightly red, his palms bearing bloody marks from how tightly he'd clenched them.
Unable to speak, he merely trembled as he handed the keys to Xue Jiao.
Soon, the voice of Gu Xue Jiao rang through Qizhong High's PA system:
"Hello everyone, this is Gu Xue Jiao."
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