Zhou Nanye was quietly working on his problems, waiting for Mianmian to come to school, and reminiscing about the sweet birthday they had celebrated the night before.

Little did he know, he would suddenly be punched by Ming Yao.

“It’s you! You stole my Mianmian! Mianmian should be mine!”

“Yesterday was supposed to be my birthday, but she went to celebrate yours instead! You scheming, two-faced pretty boy! You deliberately seduced Mianmian!”

“Give Mianmian back to me—!”

Caught off guard, Zhou Nanye was knocked off his chair and onto the floor, his desk and chair toppling over in the chaos.

But when he finally processed what was happening and heard Ming Yao’s words, anger flared in his eyes.

As Ming Yao grabbed him by the collar, ready to throw another punch, Zhou Nanye retaliated with a punch of his own.

Despite his stutter and the injuries on his face, he remained composed and fired back,

“M-Mianmian isn’t anyone’s… property. She d-doesn’t belong to you…”

“And… it’s you who didn’t cherish Mianmian…”

“You… you kept hurting Mianmian, taking her kindness for granted… S-so you don’t deserve Mianmian…”

“From now on, I… I’ll protect Mianmian… You… you need to stop shamelessly clinging to her!”

Hearing this, Ming Yao’s anger boiled over. “Shut up!”

“If you hadn’t shown up, Mianmian would still like me! And I would’ve realized how great she is and become her boyfriend!”

But in reality, even if the original Mianmian had remained devoted, Ming Yao would never have gotten together with her.

Furious, Ming Yao and Zhou Nanye began to brawl, and Zhou Nanye’s anger was equally ignited.

He had long disliked Ming Yao for constantly pestering Mianmian. Where was this concern when it actually mattered?

For over a decade, Ming Yao hadn’t appreciated Mianmian, and now that he’d lost her, he suddenly regretted it. If Mianmian had continued to like him, would he have truly cherished her?

Zhou Nanye was no weaker than Ming Yao in terms of strength. While he was a shy and timid puppy around Mianmian, he had been in fights since he was a child.

He wasn’t good with words and was shy when it came to emotions, but he was skilled at taking direct action.

For a while, the two were evenly matched, and the classmates panicked, shouting, “Quick, pull them apart! Go get a teacher!”

When Jiang Mianmian arrived at the classroom, she saw Zhou Nanye with his handsome face covered in injuries, looking pitiful.

“M-Mianmian…” Zhou Nanye called out to her.

“Xiao Nanye, who did this to you!?”

As Jiang Mianmian asked this, she noticed Ming Yao standing nearby, his face also badly beaten.

Several teachers were present as well, and one of them spoke sternly, “Zhou Nanye and Ming Yao got into a fight. This is utterly irresponsible. Do they have no respect for the rules?”

Seeing Ming Yao also injured, Jiang Mianmian guessed that Ming Yao must have started the trouble.

Furious, she asked, “Ming Yao, did you hit Xiao Nanye?”

Jiang Mianmian knew Zhou Nanye wasn’t the type to pick fights, and since the incident happened near her and Zhou Nanye’s seats, it was clear Ming Yao had come looking for trouble.

Ming Yao sneered, “Hmph, Jiang Mianmian, you always defend that stuttering idiot. Can’t you see I’m beaten up too?”

“Shut up.” Hearing Ming Yao call Zhou Nanye a “stuttering idiot,” Jiang Mianmian couldn’t help but snap back.

Then, with a serious expression, she turned to the teachers. “Teachers, you can check the surveillance footage. Even though I didn’t see what happened, I know Xiao Nanye well. Ming Yao must have started it.”

Ming Yao, though furious, couldn’t argue because it was the truth.

However, the teachers hesitated. While they could guess that the arrogant Ming Yao had likely started the fight, they were still wary because Ming Yao was the son of a school shareholder.

One of the teachers, trying to curry favor with Ming Yao, even said, “Even if Ming Yao started it, Zhou Nanye shouldn’t have fought back.”

“As a top student who transferred here, he should set a good example for all students. He should have reported this to a teacher instead of fighting. This has created a very bad atmosphere in the class. He should be expelled!”

Zhou Nanye’s lip was bleeding slightly, but the physical pain didn’t bother him. Seeing Mianmian made all his discomfort vanish.

But when he heard the word “expelled,” his heart clenched tightly, and he felt unbearable anguish.

Looking at Mianmian, Zhou Nanye’s heart ached.

He didn’t want to leave Mianmian…