Chapter 274: The Coldness in Her Eyes

While helping serve the food, Lu Yichen asked, “What time is your train? I’ll take you to the station.”

Luo Qiao casually replied, “There’s no need for that. The station isn’t far, and you know I can handle myself.”

Lu Yichen glanced at Luo Qiao and said no more. He continued, “I’ll prepare the ribs and start cooking them when you leave. When you return, they’ll be ready to eat. I’ll also marinate the meat so it should be fine by the time you come back in a few days.”

After dinner, Lu Yichen told Luo Qiao and Shitou to rest while he cleaned up the dishes in the kitchen. He cooked the ribs to remove the blood and set them aside, ready to be stewed when Luo Qiao left.

As the time approached, Lu Yichen called Luo Qiao. She started cooking the meat, placed a piece of split tree root in the stove, and tidied up the area before locking the door and leaving.

Upon arriving at the classroom, Luo Qiao heard her name being mentioned and noticed that everyone was looking at her strangely.

Eventually, her deskmate, Xiao Ya, told her that rumors were circulating at school saying she was an orphan and questioning how she could afford to go to school. Some also claimed to have seen her with a man and a child.

Luo Qiao scoffed, “This person really has some skill to dig up details about my background. I wonder if they found out that they might soon be embarrassed themselves.”

Xiao Ya was surprised by Luo Qiao’s reaction and said urgently, “What’s the point of being so calm now? You need to think about how to handle this situation.”

Luo Qiao replied, “I need to attend class first. The period is about to start.”

As footsteps approached, the homeroom teacher walked in and said, “Hello, class. The class representative will distribute the assignments.”

The homeroom teacher, Teacher Ge, noticed some students whispering and asked, “What are you talking about?”

The student looked at Luo Qiao and said, “It’s nothing much. It’s just that some people are spreading rumors that Luo Qiao’s money for school is not clean. They say she’s an orphan but still has money to go to school, and that she’s been seen getting close to a man with a child.”

The teacher immediately frowned and asked the speaking student, “Who did you hear this from? This is nonsense.”

Yan Jiajia then said, “If she’s done something wrong, she shouldn’t be afraid of people talking. The teacher shouldn’t protect her just because she’s a good student.”

Some classmates who had been in middle school with Yan Jiajia began to support her: “Yes, Teacher Ge, we don’t want to be in the same classroom with someone like this.”

Luo Qiao stood up and asked, “So, are you saying that these rumors are being spread by you?”

The girl who spoke earlier was named Jin Ye and was quick-tempered: “Don’t accuse us falsely. Besides, ^[1]“Where there’s smoke, there’s fire” is an expression that means if there are signs or rumors of something happening, there is likely some truth to it, even if the full details … Continue readingwhere there’s smoke, there’s fire. If you haven’t done anything wrong, how could these rumors spread? You should be blaming yourself for giving people a reason to talk.”

Luo Qiao smiled and said, “You’re really something. Do you have any evidence that I’m using someone else’s money for school?”

Jin Ye replied, “Jiajia said you’re an orphan, so where did you get the money for school?”

Luo Qiao responded, “That’s a good question, but I want to remind you that without an investigation, you have no right to speak. Don’t be used as a pawn without realizing it.”

Luo Qiao turned to Teacher Ge at the podium and said, “Teacher, it would be better if you addressed this issue.”

Teacher Ge said, “Luo Qiao is the top scorer in this year’s high school entrance exam in our city. The reason it wasn’t widely publicized is that it was Luo Qiao’s request. Our city’s No. 1 high school waived all her tuition and miscellaneous fees.

Furthermore, Luo Qiao received awards from the city, county, and town before the school year started. I won’t disclose the amount, but I will find out who’s spreading these rumors.”

Jin Ye was stunned. The class knew that Luo Qiao was the top scorer, but Jin Ye didn’t know about the awards, so she was confused about Luo Qiao’s statement and looked towards Yan Jiajia.

Luo Qiao didn’t say anything further. She didn’t want her personal issues to disrupt the class, so she said, “Teacher Ge, let’s start the class. We can investigate this matter further later.”

No one noticed the coldness in Luo Qiao’s eyes.