Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Back in his dorm, Li Zexuan took out a book from his shelf. He opened it but couldnât focus. He was thinking about what Lu Wenqian had said.
Li Zexuan had never tried to find out about Xie Wanyuâs family. He didnât care about how problematic her family might have been. He was only worried that if word got out, she might be bullied by her classmates.
Sun Mingtao already knew about the news. He returned to his room from the basketball court. His head was lowered. Lu Wenqian had released the outrageous news. Sun Mingtao couldnât decide whether he should tell Li Zexuan about it.
At Chenxin, Assistant Qin was working overtime. Secretary Han rushed to him. âQin, look at this! The young master is trending on Twitter again.â
Assistant Qin didnât seem surprised at all. He didnât even raise his head from his laptop. âSo? The young master returned to the school today. Is it because of Ms. Linâs birthday? Everyone is praising the bossâ family. Let it be.â âNo, no. Itâs about the young master and a female student from his batch.â
âA girl?â Assistant Qin was not bothered. Li Zexuan was a celebrity, so he always ended up trending on Twitter when he was seen with a girl.
In the past, Li Zexuan was photographed watching a sports match with a girl from his school. It had blown up into a scandal. Li Yanchen hadnât even bothered to look at the news, let alone spend money to take the news down. Besides, Assistant Qin thought Li Zexuan was at that age when young people discovered romance. So, he didnât think it was a big deal.
âDonât bother about it,â said Assistant Qin.
Han showed him the comments under the post.
[Does Yun Xi High School let anyone enter the school premises? How can such a person be allowed to study in the same batch as Xuanxuan? What did she do to make Xuanxuan stay in the library with her?]
[Xuanxuan, youâve disappointed us! There are so many innocent girls out there. How can you like such a despicable person?] n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om
[That girl is a straight-A student. Maybe they are just discussing homework.
They are classmates, after all. I donât believe Xuanxuan is that blind.]
[Even if itâs just homework they are discussing, he has lowered his standards. I have been a fan of Xuanxuan for five years now. I am so disappointed in him.]
Assistant Qin jumped up from his chair. âA criminalâs daughter⦠and
Xuanxuan? Let me see.â
He looked at the post in the school forum. âYoung master is in school right now. He doesnât have a phone. He is probably unaware of this. I will call the boss and ask him if he wants to take down the news.â
On the small island in the middle of the lake, Lin Wan and Li Yanchen were on the balcony of the new villa. He had his arms around Lin Wanâs waist.
The children had all returned to their respective schools. Lin Wan decided to take a break from her livestreaming. They finally had the whole night to themselves.
The cold breeze from the lake blew her hair around her face. Li Yanchen subconsciously reached out to run a finger through her hair. His hands moved to caress her face. Just when they were getting into the mood, the phone rang.
Li Yanchen retracted his hand unwillingly and walked into the room to get his phone. When he saw that it was Assistant Qin who called, his frustration turned to anger.
âDo you know what time it is? Whatever it is, canât we talk tomorrow?â berated Li Yanchen.
âBoss, I am sorry. This canât wait. Young master is on Twitter again.â
âSo what? Itâs not the first time Li Zexuan has trended on Twitter. Are you just looking for trouble, Assistant Qin?â
âNo, sir. The person he is involved in a scandal this time is the daughter of a criminal, apparently,â said Assistant Qin hurriedly.
âWhat?! Have you investigated the matter?â asked Li Yanchen. All traces of impatience were gone from his voice.
âNot yet⦠There was a post on the school forum. It is very detailed. It doesnât seem fabricated. Should I have it taken down?â Assistant Qin had called Li Yanchen urgently. He still needed to look into the matter to find out the whole truth.
âI will take a look first. You try to find out if the news is credible.â
âAlright,â said Assistant Qin.
Lin Wan vaguely heard the conversation from the balcony. She checked her phone and saw the news about Li Zexuan.
[The relationship between the celebrity and the criminalâs daughter isnât as simple as it looks.]
Yun Xi High Schoolâs forum was blowing up with a petition from parents to expel Xie Wanyu immediately. Many comments berated the school.
[How did Xie Wanyu manage to enter a school as prestigious as Yun Xi High School with a history of such frequent school transfers?]
[Our teachers always say that good character is the most important thing a person can have. If that is the case, why is Yun Xi High School letting a person with such a problematic past into the school?]
[The criminalâs daughter must have some tricks up her sleeve. Otherwise, how did she manage to catch the eye of a celebrity in high school?]
[Look at how close they are in this photo. Xuanxuan, if you are in danger, blink twice.]
[Her mother was a corrupt lawyer. Her father is a criminal who beat somebody up. Xuanxuan, please be careful.]
Lin Wan was trembling. The last time she had felt such helpless anger was when she found out that the original owner of her body was bullied badly in high school.
âWanwan, why are you shaking?â Li Yanchen held her.
âHow can they judge a child based on the actions of her parents?â Lin Wan asked in a trembling voice.
âI know you are talking about the girl who was found with Xuanxuan in the library,â said Li Yanchen. âHe doesnât have a phone. Xuanxuan must be unaware of this. Tomorrow morning, we will visit his school. I know my son. He always makes the right decision. He wonât be friends with somebody just like that. If he is friends with her, it must mean he doesnât judge her for what her parents might have done. I respect his decision. Children should never be judged like that.â
âIt is also possible that people have twisted her family background to sound this bad,â said Lin Wan softly.
âI have asked Assistant Qin to investigate the matter.â Li Yanchen wasnât someone who was swayed by biased public opinion.
âWhat if they just search the internet and take this information to be true?â asked Lin Wan. âThe parents⦠they are pressuring the school to expel herâ¦â
Lin Wan knew the truth about Xie Wanyu and her family. Nobody was as good and decent as her.
âWhat about you?â asked Lin Wan. âWill you choose to be as prejudiced toward her as the other parents just because you think her parents might not be good people?â
Li Yanchen hesitated for a moment. âI think the other parents are just panicking. From a parentâs perspective, they wouldnât want their children to be with others who they think might turn out to be a bad influence.â
âIf I tell you that everything on the internet is fake and Xie Wanyuâs family is innocent, would you believe me?â Lin Wan recalled that in the original novel, Xie Wanyu struggled so much that she eventually decides to drop out of high school and becomes depressed.
Lin Wan knew the truth. She wanted to help the poor child.
âI will always believe you.â Li Yanchen held her face in his hands.
He knew that Lin Wan was not from this world. There was a phenomenon that he had experienced which couldnât be explained by science. He was certain that Lin Wan knew something more about this. So, he decided to listen to her.
âWhat do you want me to do?â he asked.
âI can tell you with absolute certainty that Xie Wanyu and her family are innocent. I remember you told me that you are the largest shareholder in Xuanxuanâs school. All the parents are petitioning to have Xie Wanyu kicked out of school. Can you protect her?â Lin Wan pleaded with him. âPleaseâ¦â
This was the first time Lin Wan had asked Li Yanchen to use his power to protect somebody..