Chapter 37.3

After lunch, the afternoon classes at school began.

The pressure for the senior students was intense, and during class time, they rarely went out to play, instead choosing to review at their desks. Except for Wen Yue and Li Nianqiu, who would hold hands and walk around the playground to stretch their legs.

As soon as Wen Yue stepped outside, the previously quiet classroom buzzed with excitement.

“I saw Wen Yue walking with a guy when I got home for lunch! Could that man be her marriage partner? It was a bit far away, so I couldn’t see what he looked like clearly, but the man was very tall. “

“Wen Yue really got married? No way! I don’t believe it! It must be fake! How old is she? How can she be married?”

“People in the countryside tend to marry young. I have a cousin who got married at sixteen… now she has two kids already.”

“Getting married doesn’t mean you can’t get divorced. I heard Wen Yue’s husband is a lazy, good-for-nothing punk. Who would like a guy like that? Wen Yue definitely doesn’t like him. She must have been forced to marry him.”

Wen Xiaoyu didn’t expect the news of Wen Yue’s marriage would create such a stir. Wen Yue was quite popular among her classmates. She was bright and kind, unlike Li Nianqiu, who sometimes came off as cold and distant. Wen Yue always smiled, radiating warmth.

No matter who asked her a question, she would answer carefully and patiently, never showing any annoyance. It was no wonder everyone, both boys and girls, liked her. Who would reject a good student who was also so gentle?

Consumed by jealousy, Wen Xiaoyu decided to spread the rumor about Wen Yue being married.

“Xiaoyu, you and Wen Yue are both from Hongshan Village. Do you know what her husband is like?” a girl sitting next to her whispered. “What’s he like? Why did Wen Yue marry him?”

Wen Xiaoyu’s eyes flickered. “…I can’t really say.”

“Why not?” the girl asked, puzzled.

Wen Xiaoyu replied, “Wen Yue’s husband was originally her cousin’s betrothed.”

The girl widened her eyes in shock. “What do you mean?”

Wen Xiaoyu blinked. “Just what it says.”

“You mean Wen Yue stole her cousin’s man?”

Wen Xiaoyu turned to flip through her textbook. “I never said that.”

She was only stating facts. Zhou Yao was indeed her cousin’s betrothed, but what others thought was none of her concern. Even if Wen Yue found out, it wouldn’t be her fault.

A smirk crept onto Wen Xiaoyu’s lips. She hadn’t said anything wrong. She merely omitted some details.

The girl seemed stunned by the revelation, sitting in her seat for a few seconds before excitedly rushing off to tell her friend. The rumor quickly spread throughout the class.

Everyone’s feelings were mixed.

Some felt that Wen Yue wasn’t that kind of person, while others thought they had misjudged her, never realizing she could be like that.

When Wen Yue returned from her walk just before the bell rang, she noticed her classmates were looking at her with even stranger expressions than before.

Wen Yue sat back at her desk, glancing around the classroom. Her classmates quickly averted their eyes whenever they met her gaze, whispering to their deskmates, their behavior feeling off.

She usually brushed off such things, so after chatting with Li Nianqiu for a bit, she decided to forget about it.

That evening, Zhou Yao was waiting at the school gate as usual.

Wen Yue walked alongside him, laughing and chatting. Zhou Yao noticed someone nearby sneaking glances at them and furrowed his brow, turning to take a look. His expression turned cold. The streetlights cast a dim glow, and with the moon hiding behind clouds, the group didn’t clearly see Zhou Yao’s features—only that he looked quite intimidating.

“Is anyone bothering you at school?” Zhou Yao asked as he withdrew his gaze.

Wen Yue blinked in confusion. “Huh? No, why do you ask all of a sudden?”

Zhou Yao raised an eyebrow. “Just concerned about you.”

Wen Yue smiled brightly. “Don’t worry! No one would bully me.”

“Good. If anyone does, you have to tell me right away.”

Wen Yue nodded, assuring him, “I know.”

What Wen Yue didn’t realize was that the rumors about her were spiraling out of control.

The story had morphed from her getting married to her stealing her cousin’s fiancé, and then into her being someone who enjoyed taking other people’s partners, tarnishing her reputation even further.

“nianqiu, have you noticed that my classmates have been looking at me strangely these past few days?” Wen Yue asked Li Nianqiu quietly after lunch, finding her while she was giving a tutoring session on the playground.

Li Nianqiu nodded. “Yeah, they’ve been looking at me funny too. They’re probably gossiping about us?”

Wen Yue widened her eyes, her expression innocent. “What’s there to gossip about?”

“Maybe they’re discussing why our grades are so good?” Li Nianqiu suggested.

Wen Yue blinked again. “That’s possible.”

During exams, both she and Li Nianqiu were either tied for first place or Wen Yue was just a point or two behind. They had never fallen out of the top two, leaving third place far behind. It was no surprise that they were teachers’ favorites and seen as good prospects for university.

Wen Yue shrugged off the rumors.

“Are Zhou Yao and the others back from Shencheng?” Li Nianqiu asked.

Wen Yue nodded enthusiastically. “Yeah, they are back!”

“I’ll visit your small courtyard this Sunday afternoon,” Li Nianqiu said. “I’m curious about what Shencheng is like.”

Wen Yue smiled, “Sounds great!”

“Ding—”

The school bell rang, and they both got up to return to class.

Just as the first lesson began in the afternoon, two uniformed police officers appeared at the classroom door. After the teacher left for half a minute and returned, he scanned the room before calling out, “Wen Yue, come out for a moment.”

Wen Yue was taken aback but stood up, walking outside with a puzzled expression.

“You must be Wen Yue?” the leading police officer, around thirty years old, looked her over with a smile. “Don’t be nervous. Is your man named Zhou Yao?”

Wen Yue furrowed her brow, feeling anxious. “Did something happen to him?”

“He got into a fight on the street and is at the police station,” the officer explained. “We need you to come with us for a bit.”

Wen Yue bit her lip. “Okay.”

She followed the police officers to the station, listening to them explain the situation as they walked. Zhou Yao, along with Ren Yeliang and Fang Shitao, had set up a stall on South Street when a conflict broke out, and their stall was destroyed.

Zhou Yao got into a brawl with the group responsible and was taken to the police station by the officers. It wasn’t too serious, but they needed family members to come and be educated on the matter, as well as to write a reflection.

The police station wasn’t far, and they arrived in about twenty minutes.

Upon entering, Wen Yue saw a crowd of people, and her eyes immediately found Zhou Yao. His height, almost six feet three, made him stand out even in a crowd. He had injuries on his face, his expression fierce and defiant, staring down at the floor and ignoring the officers lecturing them.

Ren Yeliang and Fang Shitao looked equally beaten, their expressions dull as if all their energy had been sapped.

None of the people there seemed to be unscathed.

Ren Yeliang’s eyes darted around until he spotted Wen Yue. He froze for a moment, then nudged Zhou Yao’s arm and whispered, “Brother, Sister-in-law is here!”

Zhou Yao’s gaze snapped to Wen Yue’s gentle eyes, and the fierceness in his expression softened slightly, replaced by a hint of guilt. After a few moments, a smile crept onto his lips, tinged with a hint of awkwardness.

Wen Yue ignored him, her expression serious.

After a while, the family members of the group Zhou Yao fought with were also called in, turning the police station into a chaotic scene, resembling a marketplace. Various sharp voices intertwined, almost overwhelming the eardrums.

The police officers finally managed to calm everyone down, and Wen Yue remained quietly standing by, not saying a word.

“Brother, I think Sister-in-law is angry,” Ren Yeliang whispered to Zhou Yao, sneaking glances at Wen Yue. Although her expression appeared normal, his keen instincts told him that she was quite upset!

Zhou Yao followed Wen Yue with his gaze, shooting Ren Yeliang a sidelong glance. He pulled his lips into a smirk, though the bloodied cut on the corner of his mouth was glaringly evident. “I can see that.”

He hadn’t wanted Wen Yue to know about this, but the police insisted on calling family members over, or they wouldn’t be allowed to leave. He couldn’t possibly call Grandma Fang over; at her age, hearing this would surely frighten her.

After the educational criticism ended, they made Zhou Yao and the others write a self-reflection, and then they let them go.

Wen Yue looked at Zhou Yao and the others, her gaze moving over the injuries on their faces as she frowned and asked, “So what’s your plan now? Are you just going to go home?”

Ren Yeliang touched his face where it hurt and exclaimed, “If we go back like this, Grandma will definitely ask. What are we going to say?”

Wen Yue replied, “That’s your problem. Did you plan out some excuses before getting into a fight?”

That tone…

Ren Yeliang glanced at Zhou Yao and signaled with his eyes: “Brother, it’s up to you now.”

Zhou Yao pretended not to see Ren Yeliang’s look and raised a hand to touch his nose, lowering his voice, “Are you going back to school?”

Wen Yue remained silent with a stiff face.

“Let’s go home first and just tell Grandma that we accidentally fell.” After saying this, Zhou Yao reached out to grab Wen Yue’s hand, but she dodged him, turning away and walking ahead without looking at the three of them.

Ren Yeliang leaned closer, “Brother, you need to coax sister-in-law when we get back.”

Fang Shitao silently nodded in agreement.

Zhou Yao responded, “…Did you need to tell me that?”

The three of them followed Wen Yue, each looking dejected, like dogs that had been harshly scolded by their owner.

When they arrived home, the courtyard was quiet. At this time, Grandma Fang should be taking her afternoon nap, which relieved Zhou Yao and the others a little. Ren Yeliang quietly went back to his room to get some medicinal alcohol, and he and Fang Shitao took turns applying it to each other’s wounds, wincing in pain but too afraid to make a sound for fear of waking Grandma, so they could only endure it.

Zhou Yao brought the medicinal alcohol back to the room and looked at Wen Yue, who was sitting in a chair reading. He touched his facial injury and raised an eyebrow as he walked over, “Yueyue, can you help me apply some medicine?”

“Do it yourself.” Wen Yue didn’t even lift her head, her eyes focused on the book in front of her, smiling as she said, “If you fought so fiercely, can’t you apply your own medicine?”

Zhou Yao pulled over a stool and sat down beside her, lowering his voice, “Don’t be angry. We were wrong, and I promise it won’t happen again.”

Wen Yue replied, “You don’t have to say that to me. You guys are tough enough to take on ten with three.”

Zhou Yao raised an eyebrow, “Well, sort of.”

Wen Yue looked up at him, her expression half-smiling, “Then should I praise you a little more?”