Chapter 20: A Bold Guess

Chapter 20 A Bold Guess

"Right now I have a bold guess - I think Lin Jinrui isn't her parents' biological daughter."

Lu Yu nodded, gesturing for him to continue.

"That woman just now was her real mother. Her mother must have had twin girls back then, gave the girl to Lin Shun, and kept the boy herself. The boy is sick now, and she wanted to borrow money from Lin Shun."

Lu Yu said, "Yeah, but it wasn't borrowing - it was demanding."

Lu Yu paused for a moment, "Do you remember what Lin Shun said? 'Feeding you for free all these years, never even seen a son, and you still have the nerve to ask for money?'"

Cheng Miao was confused: "What son?"

Lu Yu lowered his voice, "There's a saying that if a family raises a child, the presence of a child's aura makes it easier for the woman of the house to get pregnant."

"So, Lin Jinrui was bought by them, just to have a baby?" Cheng Miao thought this was ridiculous - if you can't conceive, go see a doctor, not mess around with all this superstitious nonsense.

Cheng Miao sneered and sighed, "How can there be parents like this in the world? Your parents, Lin Jinrui's parents - what a bunch of weirdos."

"It's so complicated. So what exactly happened to Lin Jinrui?" Cheng Miao frowned, trying hard to think.

Lu Yu patted his head. By now the two had reached the school gate. "Alright, stop thinking. It's all just speculation. Take it slow - we still have time."

Cheng Miao nodded and walked into the campus. The school was a large compound, one small courtyard nested inside another. Passing through a slender flower corridor, through a round moon gate, in a small courtyard with a big locust tree, was the third-grade classroom.

The moment he entered the classroom, Cheng Miao was once again the spirited, high-spirited Discipline Commissioner.

Cheng Miao held his little notebook, standing proudly at the door. The moment the bell rang, he focused intently on everyone coming and going. When the bell stopped, he stuck his short leg out, blocking the doorway, and said with righteous indignation: "The bell has rung. Everyone still outside is late."

He swiftly scribbled down names with great solemnity, occasionally glancing back to warn the people in the classroom. Everyone was practicing their calligraphy in dead silence.

After recording the names and letting the dejected ones outside back in, Cheng Miao paced around the classroom a few times. This period was for calligraphy practice, and the homeroom teacher hadn't arrived yet. Other classes were noisy and rowdy. Cheng Miao stood at the podium looking at these obedient children, feeling quite satisfied inside.

He checked the time - the homeroom teacher wouldn't arrive for another ten-plus minutes. Plenty of time. He cleared his throat and said with a serious face: "Lin Jinrui, Lu Yu, you two come out. I need to understand some class situations."

Cheng Miao walked out first. Everyone in the class looked at the two curiously. Lin Jinrui was a bit uneasy, but Lu Yu was completely calm.

Cheng Miao's stern face relaxed the moment he saw them. He grinned and said, "Let's just chat out here. It's so boring inside."

Lin Jinrui looked shocked, staring at him in disbelief. "How can you...?"

Cheng Miao smiled brightly at her. "How can I do this? Well, look - I clearly can!"

Cheng Miao thought this was a good opportunity to teach the little girl a thing or two. He said seriously: "Lin Jinrui, do you think I can manage discipline well?"

Lin Jinrui quickly nodded: "Mm-hmm, you can. You're really good at it."

"Then why can't you?" Cheng Miao asked back.

"I... everyone doesn't like me, and they don't listen to me either." Lin Jinrui said dejectedly.

"Then do you think everyone likes me? Do you need them to like you to manage discipline? You're the one who disciplines them - what you need is their obedience, not their liking."

"But they don't listen to me either."

"Of course they won't listen to you. They listen to Teacher Li. What they're afraid of is Teacher Li. All you need to do is report them."

Lin Jinrui was half-understanding.

Cheng Miao continued: "Is Teacher Li good to you?"

Lin Jinrui nodded. "Very good."

"See, that's right. Teacher Li is good to you. You have to firmly believe that as long as you haven't done anything wrong, the teacher will always stand by your side. If someone has your back, what are you afraid of? If anyone doesn't comply, go report them." Cheng Miao said, nudging Lu Yu beside him. "Don't you think I'm right?"

Lu Yu nodded extremely reluctantly. Cheng Miao glanced back and noticed someone in the left side of the classroom secretly eating. He turned around swiftly. "You two keep chatting."

Lin Jinrui cautiously glanced at Lu Yu. She was a bit afraid of him, and also a bit embarrassed - she still hadn't solved that problem.

"Lin Jinrui, do you know why they don't like you?" Lu Yu suddenly said.

"I... I don't know. I'm too useless." Lin Jinrui mumbled.

"It's because you're too weak. Most people like to bully the weak. The weaker you are, the more they'll bully you. Remember, you don't need their liking. When you become strong enough that no one can bully you, their liking won't be worth a thing."

Lin Jinrui asked: "Then how do I become strong?"

"Don't care about what others think. Just do what you want to do." With that, Lu Yu returned to the classroom.

Lin Jinrui was confused by what she heard. She combined Cheng Miao's and Lu Yu's words together. The general meaning was: she didn't need others to like her, she had the teacher backing her up, as long as she believed she was right, she should just do it, and if anyone didn't comply, she should report them. By the time she became strong, there wouldn't even be anyone who didn't comply.

Lin Jinrui felt she had achieved enlightenment. She also returned to the classroom and secretly resolved that from now on, she would be like Cheng Miao.

But Cheng Miao could never have imagined that such a simple conversation would have such a huge impact on the future Lin Jinrui - that this soft, adorable little girl would eventually grow into an ice-cold beauty even colder than Lu Yu.

When school let out, the little kids swarmed out, fighting to be at the front of the line. Cheng Miao, as usual, strolled leisurely with Lu Yu at the very back.

Lin Jinrui deliberately dawdled, taking one slow step at a time, and fell in behind the two. Lu Yu turned to look at her, his cold gaze sweeping over her like a physical force. Lin Jinrui trembled slightly and stammered: "Can I walk with you?"

Cheng Miao turned around and looked at her, smiling brightly. "Of course! We're going the same way. From now on, we can all walk together."