Chen Monk’s arrival was, without a doubt, earth-shattering.
There had always been a huge rift between the Sports Students and the Cultural Students of Ye City, as if they were people from two completely different worlds.
The Cultural Students looked down on the Sports Students, seeing them as muscle-brained idiots, and the Sports Students looked down on the Cultural Students, thinking they were nothing but bookish fools.
But undeniably, the two groups had never had much interaction, and that’s just how it was supposed to be…
Xu Qing trembled as he looked out the door at Chen Monk, uncertain as to why this person had suddenly come looking for him.
Judging by his tone, it was as if Xu Qing had offended him somehow?
But he hadn’t offended anyone recently, had he? At most, he’d just lost face that one evening and said a few bad things about Bai Wanqing.
Little Bai didn’t seem to have anyone watching her back, either.
Yet, now this guy was blocking the doorway, calling him out by name.
Xu Qing was afraid that if he didn’t go out, it would make him look cowardly.
His pride couldn’t take the embarrassment of backing down in front of his classmates—his reputation was everything!
As for bullying Little Bai, that was a different matter altogether.
He wasn’t the one feeling aggrieved, so how could that be the same?
In the end, Xu Qing still walked out of the classroom anxiously.
Once outside, he realized it wasn’t just Chen Monk waiting for him—there were two or three others from the school Sports Team as well.
Judging by their demeanor, it didn’t look like they planned to get involved; they seemed to be accompanying Chen Monk more than anything.
Trying to sound calm, but with a fawning expression, Xu Qing said,
“Classmate, what do you want with me?”
Chen Monk glanced at Xu Qing, his eyes full of mocking disdain.
“So you’re Xu Qing?”
He suddenly grabbed Xu Qing by the collar, easily lifting him up.
Chen Monk had always been wild by nature—brash and unruly, like Lu Zhishen from Water Margin, never one to follow the rules.
Xu Qing’s face turned red as he struggled to pull at his collar, but he couldn’t break free.
He could feel several chilling gazes boring into his back—those were his classmates.
When he spread rumors about Bai Wanqing before, those gazes were full of focused respect, but now, they sent shivers down his spine.
The thought that Little Bai might be watching his disgrace from behind made Xu Qing even more agitated and uncomfortable.
People were complicated—Xu Qing’s failed pursuit of love had turned to resentment, and seeing Bai Wanqing bullied gave him a secret satisfaction, but he still didn’t want her to witness his humiliation.
“Classmate, if you… if you keep this up, I’ll tell the teacher.”
Xu Qing said, his face dark.
“Oh? Tell the teacher? I’m so scared!”
At these words, Chen Monk’s eyes became even more contemptuous.
“Go ahead, report me. At worst I’ll get punished, but I’m on the Sports Team—no need to care what they think.”
“You… you can’t bully people like this. I haven’t done anything to you… Let’s talk this out…”
Seeing that reporting to the teacher had no effect, Xu Qing was so scared his legs turned to jelly.
“‘Reason’—that’s the kind of word people like this always keep on the tip of their tongue. Even when they’ve done something completely unreasonable, as long as they speak first, it’s as if all the reason is on their side. Can’t fool everyone, but somehow, they manage to fool themselves.”
“Haven’t bullied anyone? Well, you pissed someone off.”
Chen Monk sneered.
“Who told you to offend Lu Liang? Why else would he name you specifically to get dealt with?”
“Lu Liang…”
Hearing that familiar name, Xu Qing shuddered from head to toe, cold sweat breaking out all over.
It was him!
It was that guy who was with Little Bai the other night!
But—but wasn’t he just some random punk? Why did he have connections even inside the school?
Or… could it be that this “punk” wasn’t so ordinary after all?
He was wrong! So wrong!
If he’d known this would happen, he would never have badmouthed that guy!
Right now, Xu Qing felt nothing but endless regret—but it was too late.
After a long while, just as the students in class were getting curious about what was going on outside, Chen Monk and his buddies finished whispering among themselves and then shouted loudly:
“Chuya! You and those two gossipy flunkies of yours, get your asses out here too!”
Inside the classroom, Chuya’s face turned pale.
The moment Chen Monk mentioned Lu Liang’s name outside, she already knew something was wrong.
Lu Liang—wasn’t that the name of the punk from last night? Chuya had thought Lu Liang wasn’t much, just someone who could scare people outside of school at most.
Damn… Why does he have people he knows inside the school too?
Stepping out of the classroom and seeing Xu Qing squatting in the corner, face ashen like a corpse, Chuya broke out in a cold sweat herself.
She tried her best to act calm, not wanting to look weak.
With Bai Wanqing, Chuya could afford to make a scene, since Bai Wanqing was thin-skinned—no matter how wronged she was, at most she’d just stamp her feet and never argue back.
But Chen Monk was different.
Even at Ye City High School, Chen Monk was the type who feared neither heaven nor earth.
Faced with Chen Monk, Chuya didn’t dare throw a tantrum.
She could only try to invoke someone she knew, hoping to get him to back off:
“You, you know Huan Shaolin, right? He’s the Campus Bully, my idol… If you do anything to me, and he finds out, he definitely won’t let you go!”
Huan Shaolin, the Campus Bully of Ye City High School, was rumored to have a gangster brother outside school, using that reputation to gather a group of underlings on campus.
He got along with Chuya, but his eyes had never lingered on her.
Someone like Chuya—poor temperament, ordinary looks—couldn’t possibly be his type.
Instead, he was interested in someone gentle and elegant, the one nicknamed the High Mountain Flower: that silly Bai.
That was also why Chuya harbored so much hostility toward Bai Wanqing.
Of course, Chen Monk knew who Huan Shaolin was, but he’d always looked down on show-offs like that, so he shot right back without the slightest fear:
“Huan Shaolin? What’s he, a scallion? You think I’m afraid of him? If you’re so tough, go call him over right now!”
Seeing her idol didn’t even faze the other party, Chuya was at a loss for what to do.
She didn’t realize that so-called “Campus Bully” only intimidated those who had never seen the world, and anyone with a bit of social experience knew: a Campus Bully is only a bully inside school—outside, he’s nothing at all!
In the end, none of the other students in class knew exactly what Chen Monk and his crew did to Xu Qing and Chuya.
All they saw was that when the group came back into the classroom, they looked utterly dazed and lost, like stray dogs.
Once back inside, neither of them went straight to their seats.
Xu Qing, under the eyes of everyone, bowed to Bai Wanqing and said,
“I’m sorry, Little Bai. I did something really awful. Please forgive me.”
Chuya gritted her teeth and bowed her head as well:
“I’m sorry, Bai Wanqing. I shouldn’t have spread rumors about you, please don’t be mad at me.”
Outside the classroom, Chen Monk and his gang watched Xu Qing like hawks, seemingly supervising whether he apologized to Bai Wanqing or not.
From the earlier conversations, Bai Wanqing had heard a certain familiar name. Her delicate body trembled involuntarily.
Was it Xiao Liang who did this?
She squeezed her hands slightly—a sign of nerves—and answered blankly,
“It’s… it’s fine.”
Hearing Bai Wanqing forgive them, Xu Qing and Chuya both let out a long sigh of relief, then looked nervously out the window.
At the door, Chen Monk and the others glared fiercely at the two of them before finally choosing to let them off.
Of course, Chen Monk could have announced in the classroom that Bai Wanqing was under their protection, but that would’ve been a bit too much.
You have to know when to push and when to hold back—Chen Monk was clearly not as rough as he looked.
Last night, after hearing Lu Liang’s request and his deeds from Lu Ansheng, Chen Monk thought that if this guy was worth dealing with, maybe following him would lead to bigger things in the future.
He only knew that Lu Liang was capable, but had no idea what kind of person he was, so he didn’t go all out.
He just threatened Xu Qing and Chuya a bit, testing the waters—enough to fulfill Lu Liang’s request, but not going so far that he’d be trapped himself.
The rest would depend on Lu Liang’s attitude.
As a Sports Student, he was nowhere near Xu Qing and Chuya when it came to academics, but when it came to dealing with people, ten of them together couldn’t compare to one Chen Monk.
After Chen Monk and his group left, the classroom fell silent for a moment.
It took a while for the students to recover and go back to their own business.
It was as if nothing had ever happened.
But in the silence, something seemed to have quietly changed.
For instance, where Xu Qing and Chuya used to sit, there used to be a crowd of people—directly or indirectly taking part in a bullying frenzy.
Now, it was as if none of them had ever been there—they all disappeared…
Meanwhile, by Bai Wanqing’s side, a few classmates who’d barely spoken to her suddenly came over with their textbooks, asking if she could help them with questions…
After all, people are just animals, and society values hierarchy.
In class, there are levels too—the bullied at the bottom of this little society, anyone could trample them at will.
But if, one day, these people found out that those at the bottom weren’t as weak as they appeared, their attitude would be completely different.
Sunlight scattered the clouds, shining through the window, casting its glow on Bai Wanqing’s beautiful face, giving it a porcelain-like charm.
A warmth began to bloom in her chest, quietly spreading to her limbs, slowly filling the void in her heart.
In Bai Wanqing’s peach blossom eyes, a faint figure lingered, and her thoughts drifted back to the scene from the previous night.
She saw a cocky, roguishly handsome boy singing at her door, making a racket.
She remembered the mischievous, teasing smile he wore when he bullied people.
She remembered his broad back, facing her, listening quietly as she poured out her heart—offering her an unmatched sense of security.
Her thoughts finally settled on the words Lu Liang had said to her:
Silly Bai, just keep moving forward. Don’t look back… I’ll be holding your hand—you won’t fall!
By the time she snapped back to reality, Bai Wanqing suddenly realized.
That figure—she didn’t know when it had happened—had already taken root, solid and unshakable, in her little world.