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n79 Jiang Xue’s Sarcasm

nShen Xi’s look promised retribution should anything happen to her parents, causing Jiang Xue to backpedal in retreat. Jiang Xue could not even meet Shen Xi’s gaze without feeling intimidated and backed into her bed, crumpling in a heap of trembling limbs.

nJiang Xue could not understand why Shen Xi would evoke such fear in her. It was almost as if a demon faced her, not some poor waif. Her mind latched onto Shen Xi’s status to ground her. Why should she, a noble young lady, be afraid of a poverty-stricken girl with no power or influence?

nMustering her courage, Jiang Xue forced herself to hold her head high, loudly substantiating her stance, “Shen Xi, I’m saying this for your own good. You know very well how poor your family is. Don’t be such an ingrate. You may have cheated me of 170,000 yuan, but that still means you had to come up with the other 600,000 yuan. If not for selling yourself to some rich old man, how else would you have raised that sum?”

nJiang Xue was well aware of the Shen family’s situation; after all, she had been their daughter for 18 years. Even if the whole family sold themselves to prostitution, they would not have been able to raise 600,000 so quickly. Other than Shen Xi, who had passable looks, who else among the Shen family could have secured the necessary funds? Jiang Xue could not think of any other explanation.

nAlthough the rumour mill suggested that the Shen couple had sold their home to make the difference, Jiang Xue knew that was impossible. Shen Yan and Lu Shan did not own the house they stayed in; they merely rented it. How could they sell something that was not theirs?

nNeither did she think the Shen couple had sold their kidneys. In her mind, Shen Yan and Lu Shan were not a couple who would do something like that out of love for their child. Otherwise, they would not have stopped working and allowed her to lead a life of misery for so long. Even suggesting that they would do so for Shen Xi was an insult she could not accept.

nJiang Xue was truly pitiful in Shen Xi’s eyes. Only someone with an impure heart would constantly think the worst of those around them.

nJiang Xue was one such person. She viewed the world through petty lenses, thinking everyone behaved and saw things the same way she did. Unsurprisingly, she would jump to conclusions if she used herself as a template to judge others.

nShen Xi was not such a person.

nRunning her hands on the bed frame, she asked, “Do you think the Shen family is so poor? Did you know? They planned to send you abroad to further your studies after graduating high school.”

nIt was like she had heard the biggest joke in the world. “Haha! That’s funny. Do they think I’m dumb? I’m not going to fall for empty words like those. Don’t tell me you actually believe them, Shen Xi? You can’t be that naïve. Dreams and wishful thinking are just that; they aren’t real.”

nShen Xi offered Jiang Xue the barest hint of a smile. “I’m sorry to disappoint you. But I believe them.”

nShen Xi’s open declaration of her faith rendered Jiang Xue speechless. “No wonder you’re related to them. Only a fool would believe those two bags of hot air. I should know; I’ve seen it for myself.”

n“Don’t get your hopes up, Shen Xi. Even though you managed to scrounge enough to get into a good high school, you’ve soiled your name, and not a soul in the country will let you forget it for the rest of your life. You will never be able to turn over a new leaf!”

n“Then we’ll just have to wait and see who’ll end up rolling in the mud,” Shen Xi quipped, her head tilting a fraction.

nShen Xi was truly laughable. She was either wholly ignorant of her circumstances or was so busy building sandcastles in the air that she could not accept the reality of her situation. For someone like Shen Xi to talk big and compare herself to her… Jiang Xue did not know where Shen Xi found the courage. It was embarrassing.

nMeanwhile, Zhao Yuan and Su Ni, who had gone to complain to their form teacher, returned with curses traded between them. Their form teacher had gone home at lunch.

nThe Su and Zhao families shared roughly the same standing, so they had always treated each other amicably, neither taking the initiative to provoke the other.

nSu Ni, upon learning of Shen Xi’s financial situation, wanted to put the girl in her place but faced stiff opposition from Zhao Yuan, who was Shen Xi’s good friend. It was not a secret that the two were close; everyone in the class knew.

nHow else was Zhao Yuan supposed to react when her best friend was bullied right under her nose?

nWhen she saw that Zhao Yuan and Su Xi had returned, a smile immediately bloomed, and Jiang Xue returned to her default persona as the elegant and well-mannered Miss Jiang.

nOne dormitory, four people, two camps, with neither side seeing eye to eye.

nSu Ni and Jiang Xue formed a united front against Shen Xi. Their mutual enemy served to draw them closer to each other.

nIn the afternoon, their form teacher, Sun Ling, gave Shen Xi an entry form for the National Physics Competition.

nJiang Xue craned her neck to see the document, a strangled croak leaping out of her throat, “Teacher, aren’t you being a little biased by giving Shen Xi an entry form but no one else?

nSun Ling and the other students looked at Jiang Xue in surprise.

nThis physics competition was in its semi-finals, so only those who passed the preliminary competitions could participate. Aside from Shen Xi, no one else had passed the earlier rounds; hence, she was the only one invited to participate in the semi-finals.

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