Life went back to normal, or at least as normal as it was before the whole group chat incident happened. Like Pei Ling predicted, the rumors had died down more or less. Jun Yang sighed in relief thinking that the whole thing had finally blown over, not realizing that with a bit of kindling, it would burst into flames again.
It had become a habit of sorts for Jun Yang to check for Feng Qi's attendance the moment he entered the class. A curl of disappointment would lodge itself in the young man's heart when he saw the seat empty.
He wished that the young man would come to school more often, not only because Jun Yang wanted Feng Qi to treat his studies more seriously but also because if he came to school, then they would have more time to spend together.
…
The school bell chimed, signaling the end of a school day. Jun Yang packed his bag and prepared to leave. Bidding his fellow classmates farewell, he exited the class and soon reached the stairs at the front of the school.
As the young man descended the step, he heard someone call from behind him. "Jun Yang!" The familiar female voice said.
As Jun Yang turned around, his suspicion was confirmed. It was Pei Ling who called his name. It seemed like the girl had something to share with him so Jun Yang stood on the step and waited for her to catch up.
Pei Ling raced down the steps but somehow managed to maintain her young lady demeanor. She looked like a graceful butterfly fluttering down the steps.
When she joined Jun Yang, she walked close to the young man and said in an urgent whisper, "Jun Yang, I don't know whether you have noticed this or not, but I assure you the school is still talking. We have to put a lid on it before the rumor has the chance to snowball. By the way, my offer still stands."
From the context, Jun Yang knew Pei Ling was talking about the rumor from the pictures. He really did not realize his classmates were still talking about it, from his perspective, it appeared as if the thing had died down already. So when Pei Ling said that, the alarm in his head was triggered. If she was right, then he had to do something about it. However, before Jun Yang did that, the young man realized he needed to bring Pei Ling up to speed about the current situation, specifically about how Feng Qi's name had been cleared.
Before he could do that, another familiar voice called out, "Hey, Jun Yang, nice to catch you here."
Jun Yang turned and saw Feng Qi walk out from the same corner where he was waiting for him that fateful night. Feng Qi was dressed casually and he sauntered over to the duo. There was a certain gusto to his gait that suggested the young man was in a good mood.
Pei Ling walked around Jun Yang to stand between Feng Qi and Jun Yang. She pointed at Feng Qi and warned, "Stay away, haven't you done enough to hurt Jun Yang already?"
Feng Qi did stop moving but he had his brows raised at the girl who issued him the warning.
Before the conflict had the chance to escalate, Jun Yang pulled on Pei Ling's arm and stepped out from behind her, "It's okay, Pei Ling. I've already cleared this up with Feng Qi. He's innocent. He's not the one behind those pictures."
Pei Ling was not surprised by many things in life but that certainly shocked her. She did not expect Feng Qi to clear his name so soon. But that did not mean that she was going to make life easy for him.
"But, Jun Yang, are you sure about that? Remember all the evidence that you've seen? I know you're a kind person but do not let other people make ure of your kindness." Pei Ling uttered in the role of a concerned friend. It sounded like she was merely looking out for him.
"Thank you for your concern, Pei Ling but Feng Qi and I have studied this case closely together and I have reasons to believe his innocence," Jun Yang said in Feng Qi's defense.
"What reasons are these? I'll help you review them. After all, it's better to get a different perspective. It's better to be safe than sorry." Naturally, Pei Ling was not offering the help out of the kindness of her heart. She wanted to hear the reasoning because she wanted to see if she could undermine Feng Qi's persuasion.
Her plan was foiled by Feng Qi's interruption when he said, "Actually, Jun Yang, I came to find you today because I think I have some clues about the mastermind's real identity."
"Really?" Jun Yang was definitely was more interested in that. He told Pei Ling, "Pei Ling, I'll tell you all about it later but for now, let's hear what Feng Qi has to say. If we can discover the real identity of the culprit then things will be so much clearer." Without waiting for Pei Ling's to react, Jun Yang turned away from the girl to face Feng Qi.
Since Jun Yang was turned away from Pei Ling, he failed to notice the genuine trace of panic that flickered across the girl's eyes for that brief moment. However, Feng Qi who stood facing her, caught it clearly. And the young man smiled.
Jun Yang urged Feng Qi, "Well, who is it?"
Feng Qi went into a pause like he was in deep contemplation. He dragged the moment out to let his two audience members to stew in their feelings, one in curiosity and the other in consternation.
After enough time had passed, the young man finally announced…
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