Chapter Five: Confrontation-Após ter sua máscara de oxigênio retirada, renasci e não serei mais um saco de sangue, viverei só para mim(O som da flauta é suave e prolongado.)

Ye Nanxin’s face turned pale. "Teacher, this has nothing to do with me. I have to run on the track in a moment, so I won’t be going."

Xiang Yu sneered. "You were the one who brought up the love letters on my desk, and you were the one who claimed I was leading boys on to get gifts. You opened your mouth and stirred up this entire storm; if you refuse to confront this, it is nothing but defamation and slander. That would mean you are the one orchestrating all of this behind the scenes."

The homeroom teacher, Mr. Zhang, had not expected Xiang Yu to speak this way. He sensed there might be more to the situation than met the eye. Suppressing his anger, he said sternly, "Xiang Yu, Ye Nanxin, and Li Qiang will all come. Any other boys who feel they were deceived and wish to pursue this matter should come as well."

Two other boys, their faces filled with resentment, followed them. Even if it meant losing face or being scolded, they wanted justice. They refused to let Xiang Yu treat them like fools.

Xiang Yu suppressed her fury, her delicate, fair face taut as she followed them to the office. This was her first day after being reborn, and Ye Nanxin had already gifted her such a massive "present"—it made her see exactly how wicked Ye Nanxin truly was. She was rotten to the core. To be only sixteen and already using a friend’s beauty to secretly solicit benefits for herself! In her past life, she had been completely oblivious to it.

Trailing at the back, Ye Nanxin was filled with anxiety and hatred; she wanted nothing more than to kill Xiang Yu. She had only intended to ruin her reputation slightly to frighten her, yet Xiang Yu was being relentless, determined to destroy her in return. All the past kindness she had shown her was nothing but hypocrisy. This heartless, ungrateful wretch—a brainless idiot who was useless aside from her face—had caught her completely off guard today. *Just wait,* she thought. *If I can’t have a good life, I won’t let Xiang Yu have one either!*

Once they reached the office, Mr. Zhang asked with a cold, stern expression, "Who will speak first?"

***

Neither Ye Nanxin nor the three boys spoke. Ye Nanxin was terrified of a backlash, while the boys were embarrassed to admit they had written the love letters.

Xiang Yu lifted her eyelids slightly, scanning the group with a cold gaze. Her voice was slow and firm. "Mr. Zhang, it is true that I often receive love letters, but I have never kept a single gift from any boy. Any small items I couldn't return in person were thrown away, and I have never replied to any of them."

Vain as she might have been, at fifteen or sixteen, her self-esteem was still high. She cared deeply about her image and was incapable of leading boys on.

Mr. Zhang did not refute her. His gaze swept over Xiang Yu’s face; she was indeed beautiful and refined, so it was only natural for her to receive such letters.

Ye Nanxin’s face turned pale once more, her palms sweating.

Once someone broke the silence, the school bully, Li Qiang, lost his restraint. He sneered, staring at Xiang Yu with murderous intent. "You didn't write back, that's true, because every time you sent someone to relay messages, saying we should be 'just friends' for now and talk again after graduation. I sent you fifty yuan three times, a notebook with a lock, a teddy bear, and an MP3 player that cost over a hundred."

Mr. Zhang’s expression hardened. Li Qiang was being so specific that the gifts were, in all likelihood, real. These items were worth two months' worth of living expenses for an average student in their class—it was not a trivial sum. He looked at Xiang Yu with cold eyes. He could tolerate a student with poor grades, but he could never tolerate someone so calculating and morally bankrupt.

Xiang Yu’s expression was grim. She truly hadn't realized that Ye Nanxin had been acting so boldly in her name. No wonder she always had so many nice things, claiming they were bought by her family.

The other two boys spoke up indignantly. One, his face covered in acne, said, "I sent money seven or eight times, anywhere from twenty to fifty yuan each time, plus all kinds of snacks." The other, who was as thin as a bamboo pole, added, "I also sent money several times, ranging from twenty to fifty, and I gave her snacks, bracelets, and necklaces."

***

Mr. Zhang’s eyes blazed with fire. Adding it all up, the amount exceeded a thousand yuan. The nature of this was far from minor. He held back his temper, waiting for Xiang Yu’s explanation.

Xiang Yu felt rage surging within her. If this were her past life, she would have cried out of pure grievance, stammering as she tried to clear her name. Whether she succeeded would have depended entirely on whether the teacher believed her and whether he was willing to put in the effort to investigate. But in all likelihood, a teacher wouldn't waste that much energy on a crying, troublesome, and confused underachiever. She hadn't exactly cultivated trust or a good impression with the teachers, either.

That was why, in her past life, she had been foolish enough to let Ye Nanxin play her like a puppet, never knowing the truth until the very end—and only then because Ye Nanxin wanted to torment her soul, unable to bear seeing her die in peace.

*This is truly bullying me too far!*

Xiang Yu let out a long breath, calmed her emotions, and looked at the boys. "Li Qiang, to whom did you hand over this money, and who delivered these messages to you?"

Her calm, steady demeanor made her seem like an experienced adult, not at all like a naive sixteen-year-old girl.

A sense of foreboding rose in Li Qiang and the others; they all turned to look at Ye Nanxin.

Ye Nanxin gripped her hands tightly, desperately suppressing her shaking. With a voice full of sobs, she cried, "Why are you all looking at me? Yes, I helped you pass things along, but I wasn't the only one! Besides, just because she says she didn't receive them, does that mean she didn't? I saw her take them with my own eyes!"

Her look of extreme grievance made Xiang Yu appear cold and heartless, as if she were the one bullying and humiliating her.