Chapter 64: Acknowledging Oneself
Class F.
Xia Chenge’s appearance caused the atmosphere in the classroom to freeze for a moment.
Everyone watched her nervously, their faces full of wariness, as if truly worried that Xia Chenge might go mad if her condition worsened.
Xia Chenge calmly walked to her seat and sat down, taking out her books, ignoring the probing gazes around her.
After a few minutes, the atmosphere in the classroom slowly began to ease again.
Li Yu walked over and stood by the edge of Xia Chenge’s adjacent desk, cautiously asking, “Chenge, are you alright?”
Xia Chenge looked up, and Li Yu instinctively took a step back.
Seeing this, Xia Chenge slightly curved her lips: “I’m fine, and you all won’t be harmed either.”
Upon hearing this, Li Yu’s face flushed, and she whispered, “We just found those revelations a bit scary, but we still don’t believe you’re that kind of person.”
“Since you don’t believe it, why come to verify?” Xia Chenge retorted. She didn’t mean anything else; people are always afraid of things that have been exaggerated to be terrifying.
“No, no, that’s not what I meant, I meant…” Li Yu anxiously tried to explain.
Xia Chenge interrupted her, saying calmly, “As long as you don’t cross my bottom line, I will always be the safest person for you.”
Everyone’s expressions changed slightly, all understanding Xia Chenge’s warning.
They lowered their heads, not daring to make a sound.
Rumors about Xia Chenge had been spread extremely exaggeratedly in Haicheng. These pampered young ladies and young masters valued their lives more than anyone and were even more fearful.
“Then why don’t you come out and explain? Letting others smear you to such a terrifying extent.” someone asked bravely.
“Yes, if it continues like this, it won’t do you any good. It’s better to seize the opportunity now while there’s still room for recovery and fix it quickly, otherwise, the public will definitely judge you, and it will be hard for you to make a turnaround.”
“You can ask Young Master Ling to step forward. Is there anyone more convincing than him?”
…
Perhaps seeing Xia Chenge as usual, everyone’s courage returned, and they offered Xia Chenge suggestions one after another.
Xia Chenge was somewhat surprised. She had expected these classmates to fall into the trap and mock her severely like before, but unexpectedly, after their fear, they were speaking up for her?
“I don’t care what others think of me; I only need to do my best. Others are not that important,” Xia Chenge said solemnly. “I never take others’ opinions to heart. In this world, who isn’t talked about?”
“But what they’re saying is too outrageous. If you don’t clarify, those unscrupulous media will only intensify their attacks on you, making your reputation even worse.”
“The truth is not important to them; they only care about headlines and popularity.”
“Xia Chenge, although I don’t like you, I still hope you can think about yourself in this matter. Otherwise, you’ll be ruined by these rumors!”
Xia Chenge smiled faintly: “But what if I really am the kind of person they say I am? What would you do then?”
Everyone fell silent.
Xia Chenge continued: “I appreciate your good intentions, but I don’t like others interfering in my affairs, even with good intentions. Before you show me pity, think about whether you treated me the same way in the past.”
“I’m not someone who nitpicks, but I remember everyone who has hurt me.”
If it weren’t for Ling Hanmu, would they be so kind?
If they had been even slightly friendly to the original owner, the original owner wouldn’t have died!
The original owner wasn’t killed by them, but they indirectly caused the original owner’s death!
Because of Xia Chenge’s words, Class F fell into an eerie silence again. Everyone lowered their heads, as if frozen in fear.
Xia Chenge said nothing more. She lowered her head and focused her attention on her book.
“Chenge, we did wrong in the past, and I don’t want to use our young age to seek your forgiveness. But I sincerely apologize, hoping you’ll feel a little better,” Li Yu said, taking a deep breath and looking at Xia Chenge seriously.
Xia Chenge looked up, meeting Li Yu’s eyes.
Li Yu was very sincere and did not flinch from Xia Chenge’s sharp gaze. Although she felt a strange fear from Xia Chenge’s stare, she bravely met it.
Because Xia Chenge was the first girl in Class F to dare to challenge other major classes and successfully counterattack! She had never admired a girl so much before; Xia Chenge was the first.
“Between people, it’s either getting along or not. I just do myself. As for whether you can become friends or just remain classmates, it depends on whether our values align,” Xia Chenge said calmly.
“Perhaps one day, I will also discover admirable qualities in you.”
Li Yu opened her mouth but found herself speechless.
Xia Chenge smiled: “Class monitor, you are also the first to dare to issue a challenge to them!”
Li Yu was stunned.
Xia Chenge said: “To be recognized by others, you must first recognize yourself. Don’t make hasty judgments about yourself based on others’ opinions. Human will is the most powerful force in the world; there is nothing that will cannot change!”
Everyone was taken aback.
“Chenge, can we be friends?” Li Yu asked bravely.
Xia Chenge looked at her: “What do you think?”
Li Yu dejectedly lowered her head: “I understand.”
Then, she slowly walked back to her seat.
Xia Chenge did not respond. Too many people wanted to be her friend, but not everyone could be her friend!
Because of Xia Chenge’s words, Class F remained very quiet for the entire afternoon.
Finally, when school was over, Xia Chenge didn’t rush home.
In her limited memories, the apocalypse was only about fighting zombies, with no other athletic hobbies. Therefore, she had always been interested in passionate sports like ball games.
Before, due to the many affairs of the Xia family, she hadn’t had much time to understand and participate.
Now, it was precisely because Xia Minglan and the others made their move that she had become much more at leisure.
On the basketball court, students in twos and threes were chasing and sweating. Every successful shot made the girls in the audience seats cheer.
Xia Chenge watched with interest from the sidelines and quickly grasped the rules of basketball.
The girls in the audience seats, upon noticing her, all looked disdainful and turned away, clearly not wanting Xia Chenge near them.
Xia Chenge had no interest in sitting in the audience seats. When the boys stopped to rest, she walked over.
Seeing this, those girls had expressions of “How can she be so shameless?” and simultaneously began to drive her away:
“Xia Chenge, what do you want?”
“You’re not welcome here, get lost!”
“Have some shame, okay? Don’t go around flirting with boys just because you see them.”
…
The boys also frowned and stepped back upon seeing Xia Chenge, clearly not liking her approach.
“Can I join your game?” Xia Chenge walked up to the tallest boy and asked, gazing at him intently.
