Chapter 12: Memorable Moment Two

But the matter did not end there. On the contrary, it escalated. The rumors about him on the confession wall became more and more outrageous.

Someone broke the news that despite Rong Xiu’s aloof and unapproachable manner at school, he was actually a kept man of a wealthy businessman. The evidence was the luxury cars that came to pick him up from school every weekend, as well as the expensive brand-name clothes he wore.

This explosive post brought up the incident of him rejecting Chen Jing again. Those who had originally felt that Chen Jing had been wronged wantonly slandered him under this unverified rumor.

Unable to bear it any longer, he finally clarified on the confession wall, and the reckless vilification finally quieted down. Rong Xiu also thought the matter had come to an end.

But it was far from over. Whether in class or walking around campus, there were people pointing at him behind his back and whispering. But when he turned around, these people scattered like cockroaches exposed to light, not daring to look him in the eye.

At this point, Rong Xiu had become synonymous with being “promiscuous” and “improper”. His clarification seemed more like anger from embarrassment, further confirming the contents of the previous explosive post.

The real outburst came a month later when he was alone by the school lake.

His domineering father had cut off all his living expenses because he chose Imperial Capital University, his elder sister was not close to him, and his mother was too busy with work. Rong Xiu’s impression of her was not as deep as that of the servants at home.

The sudden turn of events, the overwhelming slander and exclusion left him at a loss.

It was April, the sun was setting in the west, and the petals of the pear blossom trees on both sides of the lake were drifting faintly. He reached out to pick up a fallen pear blossom from the ground. The pure white petals were stained with a hazy dusk. Rong Xiu’s eyes dimmed slightly as he looked at the pear blossom on his fingertips, thinking of Fan Xia, the only one who had spoken up for him that day.

There was a rustle of grass and wood behind him. Rong Xiu turned to look.

It was a delicate-featured and childish-looking youth, a junior from the calligraphy club and one of the people who had slandered him the most at the beginning.

“What are you doing here?” Rong Xiu stood up, his aloof temperament not obscured by his blurred figure in the quiet night.

“How dare you ask me!” The other person gritted their teeth, their beautiful eyes filled with hatred and disgust. “It’s all because of you that Senior Sister Jing is being ridiculed. Rong Xiu, you’re disgusting. A man like you doesn’t deserve to be at Imperial Capital University. Do your parents know you’re doing that kind of business outside? They must not know, otherwise they’d beat you to death–”

“Slap–” A loud slap came.

The other person widened their eyes, disbelievingly covering their burning, stinging face. “You dare hit me? You, a prostitute, dare hit me!”

Rong Xiu casually unbuttoned his shirt cuffs and rolled them up to his elbows. In the hazy night, his wrists were whiter than pear blossoms, but the lines were firm. Without waiting for the other person to continue, Rong Xiu directly grabbed their hair and dragged them into the water.

Considering the large number of students at the school, the water level in this lake was at most waist-deep and couldn’t drown anyone.

Knowing this, Rong Xiu didn’t hesitate to grab the other person’s hair, ignoring their screams, and pressed their head into the lake water. The ear-piercing, unpleasant curses instantly turned into comic gurgles, and their hands kept slapping the water surface, stirring up layers of water, soaking his clothes. Water droplets dripped from Rong Xiu’s messy hair one by one.

His lips curved in a smile, cold and seductive in the night. The true nature that had been restrained by family etiquette for many years was finally released.

Finally, when the other person’s struggle gradually weakened, Rong Xiu let go. The other person weakly and miserably lay on the rocks by the lakeside. Even though their eyes were defiant, they didn’t dare to insult him again out of fear of this Rong Xiu.

“You like Chen Jing.” Rong Xiu walked through the water to the other person, his tone a statement rather than a question.

“……” The other person didn’t say anything. Silence was the best answer.

The night breeze fluttered, lifting his wet bangs. Rong Xiu casually brushed them back, his thin lips curling, no longer hiding the contempt in his heart. “Go back and tell Chen Jing to stop harassing me. She’s not worthy.”

“You–” The other person gritted their teeth and stubbornly said, “You’d better do as you say, don’t lead Senior Sister Jing on again.”

As they spoke, the other person took advantage of the night and quickly climbed ashore, suddenly exclaiming, “Fan Xia, you–”

Rong Xiu turned around in panic and saw Fan Xia walking out from under the pear blossom tree, her long hair draped softly over her chest, her gentle eyes as clear as water, rippling with a moist glow.

“You saw everything?” Rong Xiu tightly clenched his fingers, coldness slowly creeping up from his fingertips.

Fan Xia approached, the smile in the corners of her eyes deepening slightly. “Don’t be afraid, senior. I won’t report it to the school.”

Rong Xiu lowered his head. He wasn’t worried about that, but rather that Fan Xia had seen him violently dragging that junior into the lake. Would she think he was a brute?

“Come up, the water is cold.” Fan Xia stood on the shore and reached out her hand to him.

Rong Xiu’s eyes widened in surprise. He hurriedly pulled his sleeves down to his elbows, covering his exposed forearms, his eyelashes trembling as he placed his hand in her palm.

Her palm was very warm and soft, like soaking in a warm hot spring. The heat slowly spread from his fingertips to his whole body. Rong Xiu inexplicably blushed, his ears turning so red that they couldn’t be seen.

Feeling the other party’s hand tighten, enveloping his hand in it, pulling him ashore, his heartbeat inexplicably accelerated. He hurriedly let go of her hand and lowered his head, his eyes filled with her simple and elegant white skirt, the black pattern on the hem swaying like the night.

“People should have an edge. You taught me that.” Rong Xiu said with his head lowered.

Fan Xia was slightly stunned for a moment, then the corners of her lips quirked up with a faint smile. “So you heard me that day, senior.”

“Mm.” Rong Xiu glanced at her quickly, the faint smile at the corners of her lips like a catalyst poured into his heart, his heartbeat violently accelerating, pounding his chest until it hurt.

“I just happened to pass by the lakeside earlier and overheard your conversation. What he said was indeed too much. Senior couldn’t help but hit him, which is understandable. After all, some words hurt more than knives.” Fan Xia said.

She had no idea that her seemingly casual words had rescued the mentally tense Rong Xiu from his torment.

It was good that she didn’t blame him.

A subtle joy that even he himself couldn’t explain clearly sprouted in his heart. A ray of light appeared in the sky of ten thousand miles of dark clouds, saving him from the sea of suffering.

“It’s just…” Fan Xia suddenly changed the subject, and Rong Xiu’s heart that had just settled down instantly stopped.

Fan Xia continued, “It’s just that doing this only treats the symptoms, not the root cause. If he spreads what happened tonight, it will substantiate those rumors, and they will only escalate their actions against you.”

“Then what should I do? I didn’t offend any of them, but now anyone can insult me and trample on me, all because of a rumor.”

Although the Rong family’s strict upbringing had made him develop an aloof temperament, looking down on everyone, no one dared to spread rumors about him behind his back due to the Rong family’s status. He had never suffered such humiliation before.

“I’ve also reported it to the school before, but the counselor just told me not to take it too seriously and that it would be fine when things blew over. In a word, they just told me to endure it.” Rong Xiu clenched his hands into fists. The spring night breeze was chilly, sweeping over his soaked body, freezing him. “But I don’t want to endure it. It’s clearly not my fault, so why should everyone trample on me?”

“Call the police.” Fan Xia’s calm voice gave Rong Xiu an unexpected idea.

“Call the police? For such a small matter as spreading rumors on the confession wall, can the police handle it?” Rong Xiu had thought of many methods, but had never thought of this one.

Everyone, including the teachers, had been persuading him to make a big deal out of a small one and to let it go.

“This is not a small matter. Maybe for them, it’s just a small thing to move their fingers on the keyboard, but when it falls on you, it’s a huge deal. Rumor-spreaders should pay the price.” The hazy moonlight enveloped Fan Xia, and her whole body exuded an untouchable aura. She looked at him gently, with a softness that had an unshakable strength, making people look up to her and be captivated by her.

Rong Xiu chose to call the police, and the matter quickly alerted the school.

In the usual attitude of muddling through, they all persuaded him not to stir up trouble.

But whenever Rong Xiu thought of Fan Xia that day, when everyone was against him, only Fan Xia stood in his position and shared his worries, he was unwilling to give in even a little.

He was sharp and determined to find out who started the rumors.

The police quickly found the rumor-spreader, who turned out to be Chen Jing, whom he had previously rejected.

Because of being publicly rejected by him, she started fabricating his scandals with the mentality of destroying what she couldn’t get, shocking the whole school.

But those who had previously advised him to settle the matter peacefully, including the school counselor, not only didn’t speak up for him, but instead all persuaded him not to be too aggressive and not to ruin Chen Jing’s bright future.

The more Rong Xiu thought about it, the more absurd he found it. He exposed Chen Jing’s actions and demanded a public apology from her.

In order to keep her academic status, Chen Jing had no choice but to apologize sarcastically on the confession wall. The junior from the calligraphy club who had previously targeted him also quit the club out of shame.

Everything seemed to have finally settled down, but only Rong Xiu himself knew that something had quietly changed.

He began to pay secret attention to Fan Xia, whom he had never cared about before. He would secretly watch her practice calligraphy in the corner, watch her posture when holding the brush, watch her smooth and clear skin under the sunlight, and watch her politely refuse one love letter after another handed to her. His world seemed to be left with only Fan Xia. Her every move and every smile seemed to be engraved in his bones.

Until Wen Lan Sheng’s arrival, he seemed to appear out of nowhere, but suddenly occupied the position of Fan Xia’s boyfriend.

Rong Xiu watched gloomily as Wen Lan Sheng affectionately hugged Fan Xia, his passionate heart suddenly falling into an icy abyss, as cold as death.

“You’re Senior Rong Xiu, right? I’ve heard Xia Xia mention you before.” Wen Lan Sheng deliberately avoided Fan Xia and found him, his extremely uncomfortable gaze sizing him up and down, his face wearing a harmless sunny smile, but without a hint of warmth, instead appearing sarcastic.

“Do you have something to say?” Rong Xiu’s eyes were slightly cold, containing an invisible jealousy.

“Nothing much. Today is the third anniversary of my relationship with Xia Xia, and I wanted to invite you to join us.” Wen Lan Sheng enthusiastically grabbed his hand.

“No need.” Rong Xiu quickly shook off his hand, the painful jealousy in his heart and the instinctive guilty conscience in front of the official boyfriend made him leave directly without lingering too long.