"Lin Jinran..." Su Qinian suddenly called out to her. His voice was extremely soft and gentle, as if he was afraid of startling her, with the tail - end of the sound trailing off softly.
Lin Jinran's breath hitched. One of her hands hanging at her waist tightened into a fist. Her body felt like a deflated balloon, drained of all strength, and she could only stand there stubbornly supported by her willpower.
She slowly opened her eyes. A sliver of light leaked in, blinding her. The hand that was stiff at her waist slowly lifted to block the harsh light.
It took a while for her eyes to adjust to the brightness in the room.
Zhang Qiaozhi's madness, Tang Xiangjia's worry, and Su Qinian's unreadable expression beside her were all exposed under the bright light.
The light was so bright that it scared her.
"Lin Jinran... Don't be afraid. You are you. I'll only choose you, and no one else, simply because you are you."
The young man's sonorous voice poured into her ears, firm and gentle, seeping into her lost heart.
Lin Jinran's eyelashes fluttered slightly, and her eyes suddenly welled up with tears. She took a deep breath, trying hard to calm her turbulent emotions.
Enduring all the uneasiness, she turned her head. Su Qinian's handsome and cold face loomed large in front of her. Under his slender and thick eyelashes, his extremely beautiful phoenix - eyes sparkled with an undying light.
Lin Jinran was slightly stunned and stared blankly at Su Qinian.
"It's okay, it's okay, it's okay..." Su Qinian hesitated for a moment with his hand hanging in mid - air, then gently patted her on the back, soothing her mood bit by bit like he was comforting a frightened child.
Seeing this, Zhang Qiaozhi's eyes almost spat fire: "Su Qinian, aren't you bothered at all? Aren't you bothered about..."
While Zhang Qiaozhi on one side was "heart - broken" as she accused Su Qinian of going astray, on the other side, Su Qinian's black eyes darkened slightly. He quickly turned off the live broadcast.
Previously, he hadn't fully reacted in time, allowing Zhang Qiaozhi's crazy words to be captured by the live - broadcast room. He had no idea what kind of impact it would have later.
"Zhang Qiaozhi, I know all the things you said. There's no need to repeat them over and over again." Su Qinian said coldly. The tender black eyes from before had lost all their warmth, like a snow - covered field, completely white.
What? Su Qinian had known all along?
When did he find out? How come she knew nothing about it?
Lin Jinran was shocked. She looked up at him in disbelief.
As if sensing the extreme shock of the girl beside him, Su Qinian gave her a reassuring smile. The coldness in his black eyes was replaced by warmth.
"Lin Tingnian sent me a text message about it some time ago. But I knew it was your privacy. Since you never told me, I should act like I never knew."
"Lin Jinran, I'm sorry I never told you."
He apologized. There was a tinge of guilt in his star - filled eyes. Su Qinian pursed his lips and looked at her cautiously.
Lin Jinran was in a daze and didn't say a word for a long time.
Afraid that she was really angry, Su Qinian quickly added: "I promise I've never told anyone else about this. Oh, right, I haven't deleted the text message Lin Tingnian sent me either. I, I can show it to you."
He lowered his head and opened his phone, going straight to the text messages.
Just as he opened the text messages, a warm hand grasped his wrist. Then, he heard Lin Jinran say, "It's okay, Su Qinian."
Lin Jinran smiled. She finally came back to life. Her eyes reflected his figure: "Thank you, Su Qinian."
So you knew everything, understood everything, but never said a word. You silently guarded me in the shadows, protecting my pitiful and sad self - esteem.
Thank you, Su Qinian.
Su Qinian smiled casually and patted the back of her head. He knew it was time to stop talking about this, as this wasn't the main event of the night.
"Lin Jinran, don't worry. You still have me. If anyone dares to bully you because of this, just tell me. I'll definitely protect you. I did say that you're under my protection, Qiao Songyue."
There had been a long silence on Tang Xiangjia's phone call. Then Qiao Songyue's bold voice came through, domineeringly declaring that Lin Jinran was under her protection.
Lin Jinran couldn't help but smile wider.
Su Qinian raised his eyebrows and glared at the phone, saying unhappily, "Qiao Songyue, I'm still here. How come Jinran has become yours?"
"Ah! You scoundrel! Don't think I still care about you. I only care about Lin Jinran!"
Lin Jinran burst out laughing. Tiny teardrops hung on her long eyelashes, and she casually wiped them away.
Here, there was Su Qinian and Qiao Songyue. They both wanted to protect her.
This feeling was so nice. A warm current spread from her heart, warming her whole body. She was no longer cold, no longer flustered, no longer afraid.
Zhang Qiaozhi never expected that after she said all those things, things would turn out like this. Instead of hating Lin Jinran, people began to feel sorry for her, care about her, and protect her. Their relationship became even closer.
She stared venomously at Lin Jinran, watching her standing behind Su Qinian, loved by everyone. The jealousy in her heart almost drove her crazy.
Because of her, Su Qinian had someone he truly liked.
Because of her, her grades dropped out of the top five in the grade.
And because of her, all her misdeeds were exposed in the live - broadcast room.
Was her life ruined?
Wannanshi No. 1 Middle School could no longer tolerate her.
Su Qinian keenly noticed that Zhang Qiaozhi's gaze was getting colder and colder. He quietly stepped in front of Lin Jinran and said calmly, "Zhang Qiaozhi, your behavior is not tolerated by others, but the things you've done don't really violate the criminal law."
"Morally, you're despicable. Your true face has been exposed by us. Zhang Qiaozhi, you'd better take care of yourself from now on."
Would she transfer schools or stay?
Su Qinian didn't know, and he didn't want to know either.
He stood in front of Lin Jinran, his gaze determined as he firmly chose the person behind him.
"Right, Zhang Qiaozhi. I've already washed off the slander you've thrown at me before. From now on, you won't be able to slander me with even a bit of dirt!"
Qiao Songyue let out a soft laugh, extremely pleased.
Those false accusations had been cleared.
She was still the upright self.
Zhang Qiaozhi slowly looked up. Her gaze fell behind Su Qinian. She gritted her teeth and stood there with a cold and distorted face.
Yes, she was stigmatized. All her secrets were exposed in the live - broadcast room. She could do nothing and couldn't redeem anything.
The glory of the past two years and more stopped right here.
Zhang Qiaozhi laughed mockingly, as if laughing at her own over - ambition. She stared intently at Lin Jinran, and each word came out from between her teeth.
"Lin Jinran, you've won. I admit defeat willingly."