Today, Lu Xing faced the first major setback in his eighteen years of uninterrupted success.
This left him withdrawn all morning.
How long would his title as "Brother Xing" hold up?
Meanwhile, Wu Hao and Zhao Feifei were having a blast playing games with Ji Chuxing in the back row.
Ji Chuxing hadn't initially wanted to hang out with these immature brats, but hey, if playing a game could earn her some cash, why turn it down?
If you can earn it, why not take it?
So, using Wu Hao's mediocre account, she carried Zhao Feifei and several other boys' subpar accounts. Eventually, she decided to register her own gaming account and started from scratch.
It felt perfect—this was exactly the kind of life she enjoyed.
Even Zhou Sixue went out of his way to bring her a drink.
At lunchtime, the group gathered in the cafeteria. Wu Hao, with his booming voice, was still animatedly recounting their gaming exploits when they overheard murmurs around them.
"The guys from next door are going too far again. They're causing trouble at our school, and now someone's been seriously injured."
"I heard it's someone from the Qihang class. What bad luck! Why did they pick on the Qihang class?"
"Damn it! Those vocational school thugs are back!"
Wu Hao's temper flared instantly. "Damn it! Those bastards never learn. How dare they hurt someone on our turf? Do they think Brother Xing is just decoration?"
Lu Xing, who had been silently eating, shot him a glance.
Wu Hao scratched the back of his head and chuckled awkwardly. "Don't worry, Brother Xing. I'll gather the crew and settle this!"
Ji Chuxing looked at them, momentarily speechless.
Seeing her confusion, Zhao Feifei chimed in, "Ignore them, God Ji. Their hands are just itching for a fight."
Ji Chuxing nodded. She didn't plan to get involved, but recalling the morning's events, she couldn't help but ask, "What's the deal between you and those guys next door?"
Zhao Feifei explained, "God Ji, it's more than just a grudge. You have no idea how much trouble those scumbags have caused. They've harassed girls here countless times, including classmates of ours. Brother Xing caught them once and gave them a beating. They stayed quiet for a while, but now they're back at it?"
Wu Hao sneered, "Even though they targeted the Qihang class, it indirectly avenges you, boss. But if anyone's settling scores, it should be us. How dare they cross the line and cause trouble on our territory?"
Lu Xing, silent until now, clenched his fists so tightly they cracked audibly. "It must be Zheng Kuan. I'm going to find him!"
Ji Chuxing asked casually, "Zheng Kuan? Brother Kuan?"
Wu Hao froze, and Zhao Feifei stood up abruptly. "God Ji, did they give you trouble?"
The group looked ready to storm someone's lair.
Ji Chuxing calmly sipped her red bean soup. "Oh, it's probably not him. I beat him up this morning."
He's probably still bedridden.
Wu Hao's chopsticks clattered to the floor.
Then, he gave Lu Xing a sympathetic look.
Brother Xing really isn't what he used to be. Every time he fought Zheng Kuan before, he'd come back bruised and battered. Now, God Ji looks completely unscathed.
⚹
What began as mere whispers in the cafeteria soon escalated into something bigger. Although Lu Xing planned to confront the troublemakers, by the afternoon, a post exploded on the Nan Cheng No. 1 High School forum.
The campus forum was a hotspot for gossip. Despite the prevalence of platforms like Weibo, the forum remained a lively hub for rumors. At that moment, the top trending post had a straightforward title: Exposed: The Truth Behind the Injured Qihang Class Student! All Because of Her! This Person Should Be Kicked Out of Nan Cheng No. 1 High School!
The Qihang class was already special, and the injury of one of its students drew significant attention from both students and parents alike. The post, highlighted in bold red and pinned to the top of the homepage, quickly racked up 20,000 views and over a thousand comments.
Inside the post, a few photos were attached.
From the morning, in an alleyway.
Ji Chuxing and Zheng Kuan stood locked in a tense standoff.
The photographer had captured Ji Chuxing's face clearly. The scene spoke volumes.
The anonymous poster provided a summary of the incident:
"I didn't want to expose this, but it involves the Qihang class, and I can't stay silent. Those thugs from next door aren't causing trouble without reason. The photos from this morning show it's due to a personal grudge that brought those lunatics here, resulting in the Qihang class getting caught in the crossfire. Oh, and by the way, this girl is Ji Chuxing, formerly of the Qihang class. She transferred out after some conflict with the class. Who knows what her intentions are? Honestly, I don't understand why Nan Cheng High School tolerates someone like her."
The post quickly laid out the supposed reason behind the Qihang class student's injury. Comments flooded in almost instantly.
There was no shortage of insults.
"I knew it! The Qihang class is the best in Nan Cheng No. 1 High School. There's no way they'd provoke the people next door. It's all Ji Chuxing's fault!"
"If it weren't for her, the Qihang class wouldn't have been targeted. This time it's the Qihang class, who knows who's next? She's a disaster waiting to happen at Nan Cheng High School!"
"She's shameless! Who knows what she's done with those vocational school thugs? I demand she be kicked out of Nan Cheng No. 1 High School!"
"Exactly! She doesn't deserve to be here!"
"Ji Chuxing, get out of Nan Cheng No. 1 High School!"
When Zhao Feifei saw the post on his phone, he couldn't help but curse.
"Damn it! This is ridiculous!"
"Haozi, stop playing games. Get on the forum and defend God Ji!"
The group abandoned their game and immediately opened the school forum. "Daring to insult our boss? They're asking for trouble!"
While they were fighting for Ji Chuxing online, she was busy assembling a computer.
The parts she had bought from the underground casino yesterday.
She wasn't satisfied with pre-assembled computers—they weren't what she needed. So, she decided to try her luck at the underground casino.
Although she couldn't find exactly what she wanted, the current setup worked well enough.
After assembling it, she powered it on. A solitary gray icon labeled in English sat quietly in the top-right corner of the screen, against a backdrop of vast stars.
Ji Chuxing paused for a moment, then her fingers flew across the keyboard.
In that corner, she was alone. Had anyone been there, they would have been astonished to see that her small screen wasn't displaying a website but was instead filled with lines of code.