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She needed to do something to salvage the situation.

If she told Su Ni that the woman was not Shen Xi’s mother but hers, how would she explain why her mother would attend Shen Xi’s parent-teacher meeting?

Jiang Xue wanted to say that she and Shen Xi’s mother used to know each other. Coming from a poor family, Shen Xi despised her mother’s shabby, village woman appearance and mindset, so she begged Xia Chun to attend in her mother’s place. If she spun the narrative well, she might be able to create the image of Shen Xi as a vain woman who was so ashamed of her mother that she could barely acknowledge her.

However, Jiang Xue knew that if she said that, there was a real possibility Shen Xi would tell everyone about what happened at the hotel that day.

Trapped, Jiang Xue’s mood plummeted. She could only beat a hasty retreat, saying, “I need to speak with Liu Cheng in private; please excuse me.” She was out the door a second later, pulling Liu Cheng along.

Her father had chased those scoundrels out of Rongcheng, and any footage of the event should have been erased.

Moreover, her hymen had already mended. She was, for all intents and purposes, a virgin. What did she need to be afraid of?

Even if Shen Xi were to spread rumours, no one would believe her.

Arriving at this conclusion, Jiang Xue smiled. Shen Xi was only one person, and she had only one mouth. While no evidence was presented to the contrary, no one would take her word as gospel truth. Why did she need to be afraid of Shen Xi?

Having been dragged away so suddenly, Liu Cheng was confused. “Jiang Xue, what’s wrong? Why are you scared of Shen Xi? Do we need to be wary of her?”

By then, Jiang Xue had regained some measure of calm. “That’s not it. I just don’t want you to get into a conflict with someone like Shen Xi because of me,” she said.

“Shen Xi is a spiteful person. Now that she has nothing, it’s made her worse. if we were to argue with someone like her, not only would we be demeaning ourselves, but we’d also allow her to hurt us.” Jiang Xue became emotional as she continued, “I’m fine if she targets me, but I don’t know what I’d do if she hurt you because of me; I would never be able to live it down.”

Jiang Xue’s words moved Liu Cheng, and she pulled her new friend into a hug. “Jiang Xue, you’re so good to me. You always think of me. Don’t worry; I know what I’m doing. Besides, I don’t believe that Shen Xi can hurt me.”

“Okay, okay. I believe you,” Jiang Xue said.

Jiang Xue’s abrupt departure did not stop Su Ni from ferreting what information she could. Instead, it fanned her curiosity to new heights. “So... you rode on a tricycle to school today. Were those your parents earlier?” She opened conversationally, prodding Shen Xi for details.

The students around them perked their ears, eagerly awaiting Shen Xi’s answer.

A faint smile ghosted over Shen Xi’s lips. “Yes. My parents drove me to school this morning on our electric tricycle. You aren’t mistaken.”

Shen Xi’s answer instantly caused an uproar in the class. No one had expected that Shen Xi was a child from a poor family.

Liu Cheng’s words earlier quickly gained merit in the eyes of Shen Xi’s classmates. To send her to Zhuo Ying High School, her family must have pooled all their resources to pay her tuition fees.

Perhaps there was some truth behind Liu Cheng’s accusations. Could Shen Xi have forced her parents to sell their house and kidneys so she could go to Zhuo Ying High School? Had she sold her body to raise more money?

Gossip spread and Shen Xi became infamous overnight, the number one topic trending in Zhuo Ying High School’s rumour mill.

“So, is Shen Xi being kept as a mistress? Oh my god, isn’t that too disgusting?”

“As expected, girls from poor families are just not right in their thinking.”

“You think so? Maybe it’s just her. She does look slightly better than most, but that’s probably why her private life is so indecent.”

“She looks clean, but deep down, she is a filthy cuckold to honest men and nothing more than a prostitute.”

“That’s too cruel. To go to school, not only did she sell her body, but she also made her parents sell their houses and kidneys. I would strangle her to death if I had such a daughter.”

...

Liu Cheng listened to her work, feeling quite satisfied. She was the source of these new rumours and was proud of how it had all panned out. Jiang Xue was too nice for her own good. Even if she could tolerate Shen Xi’s wicked behaviour, Liu Cheng could not. She would not take the insult to her friend lying down.

Besides, it was not as if Shen Xi would know who had spread the rumour. There were so many students at Zhuo Ying High School, and to pin the blame on her without evidence would only be asking for trouble.