Chapter 8

In the end, it was Yun Duo who was afraid Jiang Muti might get into a fight with the people around her, so she forcibly dragged her away.

Jiang Muti thought she was worrying too much. “Don’t worry, if they dare touch a single finger of mine, I’ll tell the organizing committee that Zhou Lu incited the loss. That guy will never be able to participate in a competition again.”

Yun Duo twitched her mouth. “I can’t believe you can talk about slandering someone so casually.”

She then reached up to touch Jiang Muti’s forehead and said seriously, “Actually, there’s no need to act like this for a guy. Someone like Qiao Yuqi, being kind to everyone, doesn’t that just show his inherent coldness?”

“I know you’re upset because you were rejected, but you can’t go around offending people indiscriminately. Do you really think it’s worth it for someone like him?”

It was clear that Yun Duo thought she was acting out after being hurt by a breakup and that her personality was rebounding in a sharp, and indiscriminate manner.

Jiang Muti also understood that her personality was very different from the original owner’s, and the people around her would always find ways to explain things to themselves.

Although soul-switching wasn’t a new trope in novels, no one would think to apply it to real life.

Even if she underwent a mental evaluation, the result would probably be diagnosed as a personality disorder. Big changes in temperament weren’t that rare in real life.

Moreover, she had memories. To be honest, if memories were a major part of the soul’s composition, she wouldn’t dare say that she was still the same Jiang Muti from her previous life.

But these unsolvable questions were things she would have to think through on her own.

As for Yun Duo’s words, she laughed it off. “Well, it wasn’t me who started the trouble. I can’t always be the one to back down, can I?”

“Besides, you saw the way that troublemaker strutted around, just a few words and so many people were willing to act as pawns for him—how convenient for him.”

“And it’s not fair for him to enjoy all the benefits while avoiding the risks. If this escalates, he deserves the blame.”

Yun Duo felt something was off, but she had always been good with people around her and had never really been involved in these kinds of issues, so she was somewhat slow to catch on.

In the end, she gave up trying to figure it out. She thought it might actually be a good thing—better than the way she used to be, soft on everyone.

If something really happened, she could always count on the young master from her family to smooth things over. For minor conflicts, there was no need to worry too much.

The two of them had reached an initial agreement, but someone wasn’t happy with this line of thinking.

Yun Duo had been focused on dragging Jiang Muti away and wasn’t paying much attention to her surroundings. As a result, they ended up in the corridor outside the players’ changing rooms. During the game, this place had been guarded to prevent unauthorized people from entering.

But now that the game was over, there was no one guarding the area.

Li Xi, who had been leaning against the corner wall waiting for Zhou Lu and the others to come out, happened to overhear their conversation.

Unable to resist, she stepped out and walked in front of Jiang Muti. She spoke up, “I didn’t want to come out, and I didn’t intentionally eavesdrop on your conversation.”

“But you’re really too full of yourself. I admit Zhou Lu can be a bit willful and has a bad temper, but you’ve provoked him time and again. Now you’re kicking him while he’s down. Don’t you think you’re being unreasonable compared to the trouble he’s caused you?”

Yun Duo felt a little awkward at first when someone came out, especially when it was Li Xi, who was somewhat related to the topic.

But after hearing what Li Xi said, she instantly became upset. “If you’re going to criticize us, at least wait until we’ve finished what we’re doing! Even if what we said wasn’t pleasant, can it compare to Zhou Lu’s rampant behavior?”

Jiang Muti immediately felt that this girl was protective of others, which was to her liking, but she still lacked the skills for arguing. The key issue wasn’t being so direct.

Sure enough, Li Xi sneered after hearing her words. “Wait for you to finish? Forget about personal disputes for now, but today’s competition was about the school’s collective honor. Do you know how serious it is for students to be scheming behind the backs of those who worked hard in the front? Are you joking? Do you really think the hard work of someone for so long counts for nothing? Is it really worth it to maliciously destroy someone for your petty grievances?”

Yun Duo was a bit flustered by the questioning. After all, she was a good girl who didn’t judge others with ill intent and respected the efforts of others.

In contrast, Jiang Muti could be called a morally bankrupt, selfish person, and she had her own standards, never believing she was in the wrong.

She raised an eyebrow. Li Xi, the female lead, was different from many of the overused, soft and helpless female protagonists.

She was stubborn and proud. Although somewhat pretentious, she was still worthy of the title of an inspiring female protagonist. Her personality was diligent and positive. When facing difficulties or conflicts with others, she didn’t solely rely on the male lead to solve things.

Objectively speaking, if Jiang Muti were reading this from the pages of a book, she would actually appreciate this type of character. But this kind of admiration was superficial and didn’t hold up when their positions were different.

She sneered. “So—double standards are just your obvious right, huh?”

Jiang Muti took a step forward, closing the distance between her and Li Xi. This small step, though seemingly insignificant, made Li Xi feel an awkward sense of pressure.

For some reason, her firm accusations suddenly felt unstable.

Jiang Muti spoke, “You admit Zhou Lu has a bad temper? So with a simple admission, everyone should tolerate, be forgiving, or take a step back, right? Who gave you the right to demand that everyone tolerate him according to your standards? Hey! Is it really such a righteous request for the whole world to just accommodate him?”

“Oh, right, you’re not his mom, you’re his girlfriend. That’s a pretty broad standard of tolerance.”

“You don’t have to be so harsh and twist my words,” Li Xi quickly retorted.

But Jiang Muti raised her hand to stop her. “Don’t rush to deny it. In your eyes, the trouble Zhou Lu caused me doesn’t affect me, but the malice I have towards him is tangible, right? That’s what you meant by your words, right?”

“But you’ve got it wrong. The reason I’m not affected is because of myself—my family, money, and ability to handle things. That’s what allows me to stand here. It has nothing to do with Zhou Lu. If it were anyone else, I doubt they’d even dare to show up to class today.”

“Even though I don’t care about those small tricks, I wouldn’t call it a small matter. Haven’t you seen similar news on the internet? There are students who were treated like this and can’t escape the shadows for the rest of their lives. You’re being so generous with other people’s troubles, aren’t you great at being forgiving?”

Now, a big burden was placed on Li Xi’s shoulders. Her face changed, and she was about to explain herself.

But Jiang Muti continued her attack. “You can argue that Zhou Lu didn’t personally do these things, or that he didn’t explicitly instruct others to do so. Don’t think that by pushing the dirty work onto others and hiding behind the scenes with your boyfriend, you’re really clean, okay?”

“When your boyfriend does something stupid and you turn a blind eye, but when others show him a bit of malice, you jump to defend him, well, of course, given your position, that’s understandable. You want to stand by him without any logic, I actually admire your consistency.”

“But now, you want to act innocent, to say that things should be clearly defined, you want to take the good things and stand on the moral high ground. Don’t you think that’s shameless?”

Li Xi was now truly flustered, her face flushing red and then pale, both angry and embarrassed, yet unable to find a strong counterargument.

She wasn’t a bad person at heart. She actually thought Zhou Lu’s actions were inappropriate, but after helping this girl out before and being mocked in return, she didn’t want to get involved.

But she didn’t expect things to develop this way. It wasn’t just the harshness of Jiang Muti’s words—it was more than that.

The key point is that she was completely open about her actions. She openly displayed her malice and sharpness without relying on any moral high ground, straightforwardly returning a slap for every slap she received.

She didn’t care about others’ opinions or evaluations, so trying to reason with her was nothing but a joke—there was simply no way to approach it.

Li Xi had never experienced such humiliation in her life. She had always considered herself proud and, while not perfect, had always felt that her interactions with others were above reproach.

Now, however, she felt so embarrassed that she didn’t know where to hide.

However, in a novel, the male lead’s role is, at least partially, to descend from the heavens and save the female lead from difficult situations.

This was no exception. At this moment, Zhou Lu happened to appear—neither too early nor too late—and overheard Jiang Muti’s last sentence.

He was already upset from losing the competition, and seeing his girlfriend being bullied was the last straw.

Normally, he wasn’t such a detailed person, but for some reason, in the blink of an eye, he connected all the logic of the situation and it seemed irrefutable.

He stormed up to Jiang Muti, his face full of anger, and his intimidating aura only grew stronger.

Zhou Lu sneered, “I didn’t expect you, fatty, to look so stupid, but your eyes are pretty sharp. What’s this? Because Qiao Yuqi turned you down, you can’t do anything to him, so you’re picking on my girlfriend instead?”

“Let me tell you,” he said, pulling Li Xi to his side, “She’s my girlfriend, has nothing to do with that guy. There was nothing between them before, and there never will be. Don’t drag them together and talk filth, or I won’t let you off.”

This was the first time Jiang Muti admired someone’s unconventional thought process. It was truly the mindset of a male lead—something ordinary people like her couldn’t keep up with.

Indeed, this was a romance novel, where every conflict with the female lead inevitably tied back to the relationship.

She waved her hand. “In this case, I must clear up Qiao Yuqi’s name. Who said I was targeting your girlfriend because of him?”

Upon hearing this, Zhou Lu’s face showed an expression of ‘I knew it.’ She defended him so much, and now she had the nerve to argue?

But Jiang Muti continued, “Could it be that I genuinely dislike you, so it’s natural that I also find the people around you annoying?”

Zhou Lu was momentarily taken aback, his face darkened. He took a step forward, looking as if he was about to punch someone.

Just as he was about to speak, a voice came from the other side of the hallway near the locker rooms.

“You lost the competition and now you want to take it out on a girl? That’s really pathetic, Zhou Lu!”

Everyone turned to see Yun Cheng and their school’s team walking out of the locker room, one by one.

The leader, casually standing there, had a relaxed posture, but his demeanor was composed and elegant. His eyes, deeper than those of his peers, were watching the scene with a smile that was neither a smile nor not.

Zhou Lu immediately lost interest in arguing with the “fatty.” His frustration and unwillingness reached their peak.

“Tsk! Ji Feishi.”