The entire field plunged into silence, even the air seemed to have frozen.
Ning Li was making a bold move.
The other boys and girls in the video jeered, agreeing to their friend’s suggestion.
Ning Li looked towards the camera and grinned.
“That’s it?”
She put her bag down as the group continued to mock her.
“Hey, little girl. What do you mean? Are you trying to challenge us? With that tiny body of yours? Do you really think that you are capable?”
Ning Li grinned into the camera.
“Oh, I’m not going to fight you guys.”
The screen then showed Ning Li grabbing her bag before moving to sit down on the side stairs.
Ning Li continued as she stood on stage, “I would like to clarify that when those people tried to start a fight, I refused. I then reasoned with them and made them realize their mistake.
Before I knew it, they said they wanted to kneel down and apologize to me. I didn’t stop them, so that was my fault.”
The entire field remained quiet.
The principal and the other teachers reacted bitterly.
Reasoned with them? Made them realize their mistakes?
If Ning Li had really reasoned with them, she would not have been the one counting 1 to 10.
Who would believe her? It was a blatant lie!
However, the video had clearly shown that Ning Li was not the one who had started the fight.
What would the school do about this now?
The screen then went black, seemingly marking the end of the video.
No one said a word even after the video had ended.
Ning Li’s bold move shocked everyone.
She was really audacious. How had things ended up like this?
She then turned to where her class was standing.
Sun Huihui felt as if someone was looking at her.
She froze, and when she looked up, she happened to lock eyes with Ning Li.
Her gaze was calm and cold and injected anxiety into Sun Huihui’s heart.
Sun Huihui’s heart pounded fiercely, a strong unpleasant feeling spreading from the bottom of her heart.
Then, a familiar voice came from the dark screen.
“What else can I do? What’s done is done! Should I trick Ning Li into going to the janitor’s room again? Why would she believe me?”
The frustrated voice from the screen sounded extra irritated in front of the quiet audience.
Sun Huihui’s eyes widened in shock—that was her voice!
The crowd gasped in shock.
“What’s going on? The video isn’t finished?”
“No way! This voice sounds different from the first one.”
“I think so, it sounds like another girl.”
The students from first class knew who the voice belonged to—Sun Huihui.
Everyone turned to her and saw her pale face.
“But you… You got locked up for a night and almost got punished by the school. Look at her now…”
Someone else was talking to Sun Huihui.
The girl who was talking to Sun Huihui was actually from the fourth class. Her face became as pale as paper when she heard her own voice.
The others around her stared at her suspiciously.
Those who were familiar with her had recognized her voice.
“She’s under the spotlight now! The first place in the city! Even the school looks at her differently now!”
“The girl with the good score is always right. The school is just going to cover it up for her. What can I do?”
“Oh right, Lil Xuan, I remember that you know some guys outside of school, right?”
The girl known as Lil Xuan was petrified when she heard her name from the screen.
Now, not only Sun Huihui, but even the other girl had been dragged into this.
The voices on the screen talked about finding someone from outside the school to ‘teach’ Ning Li a lesson. They discussed an elaborate plan, having made up their minds that they wanted Ning Li to pay.
The voice recording was only two minutes long, but it felt like an eternity to Sun Huihui and Lil Xuan.
Everyone finally realized that this whole thing had started because of Sun Huihui.
She had tried to lock Ning Li in the janitor’s room but had gotten locked inside instead.
She hated Ning Li for it, so she had found someone from outside the school to take revenge for her.
Ning Li had been a passive participant from start to finish. She had been forced to counterattack to protect herself.
It was clear that Sun Huihui was the culprit behind all this.
Ning Li put her phone away and looked at Sun Huihui.
“I would like to clarify that when Sun Huihui tried to lock me in the janitor’s room, I jumped out from the 2nd-floor window. Not only did I fail to fulfill her intention of locking me inside, but I also got angry and locked her inside instead.
I am willing to sincerely apologize to Sun Huihui because of that and I am willing to pay her medical and mental compensation.
Also, Sun Huihui got angry because of what I did to her and asked Xue Xuan to call her friends to ‘teach’ me a lesson. I did not appreciate that. Someone even took a video of me ‘teaching’ them a lesson, which has caused a problem for the teachers and the students.
I am sorry and I hereby promise that I will…”
She paused halfway and threw a sharp gaze at Sun Huihui.
“…Count faster.”
Sun Huihui wanted to dash up to the stage and snatch the microphone away from Ning Li. However, her limbs were cold and numb, and her mind had gone blank. Her whole world was spinning and she could not move a muscle.
There had never been another moment in her life where she had felt so ruined—she was done for.
“I would like to clarify that recently, I have brought a lot of trouble to everyone and the school. I wholeheartedly accept the punishment from the school and promise that I will correct my attitude.
Lastly, I have two more things to say.”
Ning Li grinned at Sun Huihui.
“I will still be the No.1 student and I will never learn to take a beating without fighting back. I ask for everyone to be more patient with me in the future. If you still can’t put up with me, I ask you to try harder.
That is all for my clarification. Ning Li from third-year first class, thank you.”
…
Back at the disciplinary office, Ning Li stood in front of Sun Quan, whose head was still hurting.
The man had not been able to calm down after the little farce that Ning Li had pulled on stage.
“You!”
He was pacing his office with his hands behind his back. He attempted to scold her a few times, but each time he choked on his words.
He did not even know where to begin.
He had taught many students before, but Ning Li was the first to make him feel so helpless.
Compared to him, Ning Li looked rather relaxed.
Geng Haifan looked around, rubbing his face in distress.
Sun Huihui and Xue Xuan were in the other office with their parents present.
Ning Li’s evidence was solid and it had been played in front of a crowd.
The school had to be strict in how they dealt with it.
Minor squabbles among classmates were almost inevitable but this was the second time that Sun Huihui had made a mistake.
The first time had been a serious matter, but the school had been lenient because it had been her first offense and she suffered for it.
Plus, the school had been careless the first time, so it had ended with both sides compromising.
This time, however, was different.
Reaching out to gangsters outside the school to bully one of her classmates was very serious. It was, to a certain extent, a crime.
Sun Quan’s head hurt from thinking about the troubles that this situation would be causing. Things would only snowball from this point onwards.
“Ning Li, what kind of clarification was that?”
