Jian Yiling extended her hand and gently pushed Jian Yuncheng's chest. The motion was minimal, yet the refusal was unmistakable.
Jian Yuncheng frowned, but he had no choice but to let Jian Yiling go.
As soon as Jian Yiling's feet touched the ground, she said to Jian Yuncheng, "I'm going to bed now."
She then tidied up the items on the desk, packed them all into her backpack, and turned to head back to her room.
Jian Yiling's retreat resembled a small creature fleeing from a predator, with Jian Yuncheng cast as the relentless hunter.
Jian Yuncheng couldn't help but wonder if he had been too harsh on her. After all, she was just a fifteen-year-old girl…
But then he thought to himself that he shouldn't entertain such thoughts.
Jian Yiling had indeed made mistakes. He felt pity for her, but who would show sympathy for Yunzhu, whose hand and future had been ruined?
Compared to the suffering Yunzhu had endured, Jian Yiling's fatigue over the past two days was trivial.
Thinking of Yunzhu, Jian Yuncheng's frown deepened.
After Yunzhu's medical records were sent over, they had yet to receive a satisfactory response.
With this in mind, Jian Yuncheng set aside Jian Yiling's matters and returned to his own room, intending to reach out to his contacts for assistance in connecting with a specialist in that field.
###
The next morning, when Jian Yuncheng accompanied Jian Yiling to school, his expression was as cold as ever.
The two of them remained silent throughout the journey, with Jian Yuncheng focused on driving while Jian Yiling absorbed in her phone.
Shortly after Jian Yiling arrived at her classroom, Qiu Yizhen appeared again, accompanied by her usual two lackeys.
Yesterday, due to Jian Yiling, Qiu Yizhen had come dangerously close to losing her temper.
Ultimately, she used her father's influence to have the relevant surveillance footage deleted by the supervising teacher.
Seeing Jian Yiling again now, Qiu Yizhen was brimming with smug satisfaction.
"Jian Yiling, you really know how to be cunning! You tried to use the surveillance to get me in trouble? Look at me now—have I been disciplined? Can you even touch me?" Qiu Yizhen had specifically come to mock Jian Yiling.
"The school's surveillance footage is stored for three months, and the absence of footage from the past seven days is problematic," Jian Yiling looked up, her gaze fixed on Qiu Yizhen.
Her eyes were sharp, as if they could see straight through someone.
Not only did her gaze pierce through, but Jian Yiling's words also carried a chilling weight.
Her confident tone and composed demeanor made it seem as though she had witnessed everything firsthand.
And, in reality, she had indeed made such observations, causing a fleeting moment of panic for Qiu Yizhen.
However, this panic was only momentary, and Qiu Yizhen soon regained her composure.
"So what if there's a gap in the footage? There are countless reasons for footage to go missing. How can you say I had it deleted? Besides, you still can't prove that I damaged your books!"
Qiu Yizhen's attitude was arrogant, her face a mask of triumph.
Her two lackeys behind her also laughed in agreement.
"Jian Yiling, you think you can outplay our Qiu Jie? In Shenghua, no one can match our Qiu Jie's prowess!"
"Jian Yiling has always been oblivious, hasn't she? Look at her now! Ever since we found out she pushed her brother down the stairs, she's been playing the innocent victim, acting all pitiful and harmless. It's nauseating to watch! I don't know who she's trying to fool! Does she really think anyone would believe her?"
Their mockery made the other students in Class 8 feel uncomfortable.
Qiu Yizhen was indeed bold, taking advantage of her father's position as the chairman of Shenghua High School to act with impunity, deleting footage as she pleased.
Yet, no one dared to speak up. On one hand, they feared Qiu Yizhen. On the other, the students of Class 8 saw no difference between her and Jian Yiling; both were unsavory characters.
Their quarrels were merely a case of dogs biting dogs, and no one was foolish enough to get involved and attract trouble.
Seeing Jian Yiling's silence, Qiu Yizhen felt a twisted satisfaction, reveling in the sense of having humiliated her opponent.
Qiu Yizhen continued to deride Jian Yiling, "Oh, and the surveillance footage from today is still available! You can go tell the director of education that I came to taunt you, standing less than ten centimeters away and mocking you! Let him check the footage for verification! Of course, that is, if our school's surveillance had sound!"
As she spoke, Qiu Yizhen and her lackeys burst into laughter.
The school's surveillance had no audio, only capturing footage of Qiu Yizhen speaking and laughing in front of Jian Yiling. Such footage could easily be explained away as casual conversation.
Thus, Qiu Yizhen laughed boldly in front of Jian Yiling, knowing that as long as she didn't resort to physical confrontation, Jian Yiling could only suffer in silence.
Jian Yiling's face remained calm, devoid of the agitation Qiu Yizhen had anticipated.
"You can't just use your father's position as a school board member to act recklessly," Jian Yiling said in a measured tone.
She was simply stating a well-known fact.
"What? Are you envious? So what if my dad is a board member? If you're dissatisfied, keep it to yourself!" Qiu Yizhen's smile was radiant, her eyes filled with scorn for Jian Yiling. "Let me also tell you that I, Qiu Yizhen, can not only delete surveillance footage but also drive you, this piece of dirt, out of Shenghua High School!"
"That's right!" one of Qiu Yizhen's lackeys chimed in. "Jian Yiling, take a good look in the mirror and understand your situation. You're nothing but a street rat. You'd better go home quickly. Shenghua High School has no place for someone like you, who harms even your own brother!"
Qiu Yizhen was determined to prevent Jian Yiling from returning to school.
As a fan of Jian Yunzhu, she might not be able to contribute in other ways, but she could at least ensure that Jian Yiling's presence was absent from Shenghua High School before Jian Yunzhu's return.
Jian Yiling remained composed, her expression serene and her gaze indifferent.
Hu Jiaojiao, standing beside her, found the situation uncomfortable and wondered how Jian Yiling could remain so unfazed.
As it neared the time for the morning reading session, Qiu Yizhen issued her final warning, "Leave Shenghua High School, or prepare for a life of unrest! I'm only warning you now. Once my patience wears thin, you'll be in for a real ordeal!"
In school, Qiu Yizhen's ability to trouble Jian Yiling was limited. While she could employ various tactics against other students, Jian Yiling's background presented a unique challenge.
If Qiu Yizhen stirred up trouble at school and alerted the Jian family, even Qiu Yizhen's father might struggle to handle the consequences.
Yet if Jian Yiling continued to be a thorn in her side, Qiu Yizhen might resort to even more severe measures. Although she could not act openly within the school, she knew many formidable figures outside, who were far more ruthless in dealing with troublesome individuals than she was.
Spectator: "Master Sheng, someone's looking to sic troublemakers on your Jian Yiling. Should we braise them or steam them?"
Qiu Yizhen finally left the classroom of Class Eight, Grade One, with her two followers in tow. As soon as she departed, a collective sigh of relief swept through the class.
While she was there, everyone had held their breath, fearful of inadvertently offending her.
At that moment, Jian Yiling picked up a black, cube-shaped object from the desk. She extracted a memory card from it and inserted it into the laptop she had brought.
Huo Jiaojiao's eyes widened in astonishment.
Then, Jian Yiling's laptop screen displayed the footage of Qiu Yizhen and her two companions from earlier.
"You… you recorded it?" Huo Jiaojiao asked, incredulity etched on her face.
"The school's surveillance isn't very reliable," Jian Yiling explained. Knowing that Qiu Yizhen was the daughter of a board member, she had anticipated that the school's surveillance wouldn't pose a threat to her. Therefore, recording it herself was more dependable, especially since her equipment also captured audio.
As she answered Huo Jiaojiao, Jian Yiling quickly typed on the keyboard, performing basic editing and audio removal on the video. The audio removal primarily focused on eliminating the mention of "Jian Yiling" as she did not want her name to appear in the video.
Huo Jiaojiao blinked in surprise, realizing that while the school's video surveillance might be ineffective, Jian Yiling had exhibited remarkable foresight.
Once edited, Jian Yiling uploaded the video and paid several prominent social media influencers to share it.
By afternoon, the video had been shared by several major influencers on Weibo. Even before school let out, the video had already made it to the trending list.
Due to the pixelation, the identities of the arrogant school bully claiming to be the board member's daughter remained unknown to the public, but this did not prevent people from expressing their opinions.
[How audacious can one be? Using their status as the board member's daughter to act so brazenly!]
[This person is utterly outrageous and insufferably arrogant! How can one commit wrongdoing with such blatant justification!]
[Come on, which kind soul will help uncover this? Which school is this? Let's have a meeting with that impressive board member!]
[See, mastering the art of a fortunate birth is crucial. [Dog head] for survival]
The comments quickly numbered in the thousands and continued to rise.
The video was pixelated, so the online public couldn't identify the main characters. However, students and faculty of Shenghua High School immediately recognized them.
The figures were unmistakable: Qiu Yizhen, the notorious senior, and her two followers.
The situation soon caught the attention of the school authorities, and Qiu Liyao, Qiu Yizhen's father, was notified and pressured by other board members.
If the situation escalated and damaged the school's reputation, it would harm the interests of all the stakeholders.
Qiu Liyao promptly summoned his troublesome daughter to his office.
"What's the meaning of this? How could I, Qiu Liyao, have such a daughter? Instead of learning something good, you only learn to cause trouble! It's bad enough that you don't study, but now you use my status to bully others! Are you trying to ruin me?"
As soon as Qiu Yizhen entered the office, her father unleashed a barrage of reprimands.
Unaware of the video's circulation on Weibo, Qiu Yizhen was taken aback. "What's with your temper? Is your only response to berate me?"
Qiu Yizhen had a strained relationship with her father, with frequent arguments between them.
"What's this about? Look for yourself!" Qiu Liyao snatched his phone and nearly threw it at his daughter's head, before hurling it onto the desk.
Qiu Yizhen picked up the phone, opened the video, and her expression changed immediately.
This was footage from earlier in the day when she had tried to provoke Jian Yiling. Jian Yiling had recorded it!
Qiu Yizhen's face turned pale.
Seeing her reaction, Qiu Liyao's anger flared even more. "Now you're shocked? Truly the daughter of Qiu Liyao!"
Qiu Yizhen straightened her back and retorted, "When you had an affair and drove my mother away, and you never cared for me, did you ever consider me your daughter?"
"Did I never consider you my daughter? Who has been providing for you all these years? Who's allowed you to act so arrogantly at school? You owe it all to me!"
Qiu Yizhen fell silent, unable to retort.
Despite Qiu Liyao's lack of involvement in her daily life, he had provided generously in terms of finances and status. Without his protection, Qiu Yizhen would never have been able to act so tyrannically at school.
For instance, the video deletion issue from yesterday—the teacher in charge of the surveillance would not have helped so easily had he not known she was Qiu Liyao's daughter.
Qiu Liyao continued to berate her, "I'll have those comments removed from the internet. Before today ends, you must find and delete the original video! Otherwise, once your face hits the web, you'll be in for a world of trouble!"
The existing video was pixelated, so identifying Qiu Yizhen and Qiu Liyao was not yet possible. However, once the original video was released, it would be a matter of minutes before Shenghua High School was exposed.
Qiu Yizhen knew well who had uploaded the video. The filming angle could only be Jian Yiling's.
"I understand. I will handle it!"
"You better handle it! If you fail, don't bother coming back! I have an important meeting tonight. If this affects it, you'll lose your living expenses for the month!" Qiu Liyao warned without mercy.
Receiving the final ultimatum, Qiu Yizhen left the office, heading straight to Class Eight, Grade One.
By the time she arrived, it was just about dismissal. Jian Yiling was packing up to go home.
When Qiu Yizhen entered the classroom, every student stopped and watched her anxiously.
Qiu Yizhen approached Jian Yiling. "Jian Yiling! You little wretch! You dare to secretly record me! Are you looking for trouble?"
Jian Yiling, hearing the voice behind her, did not immediately turn around. Instead, she calmly finished packing her bag before facing Qiu Yizhen.
As she organized her belongings, the entire class held their breath.
Qiu Yizhen, consumed with rage, clenched her fists tightly, tempted to strike Jian Yiling and shatter her calm demeanor.
Realizing that the video storage device was likely in Jian Yiling's bag, Qiu Yizhen moved to seize it. Jian Yiling spoke up.
"The original video is stored in the cloud. Damaging anything I have will be futile."
Jian Yiling's voice remained calm, but the more Qiu Yizhen heard her soft, composed tone, the angrier she became.