Chapter 33: The Top Student of First High Is About to Be Replaced

Among the ten students wearing the uniforms of Fancheng No. 1 High School, eight bore visible injuries. Opposite them lay a group of defeated street thugs, especially the blond-haired one, whose face was battered and swollen, a sight of utter misery.

“Hey… cough, cough, who called the police?” Yu Wenqiang wondered if he’d walked onto the wrong scene.

Yao Panpan timidly raised her hand. “Uncle, I did.”

Yu Wenqiang glanced at the unharmed young girl, then let his gaze settle on another beautiful student. Years of experience told him she was a formidable character.

“Did you do this?” Yu Wenqiang asked Shen Qing directly.

“No, no, Officer, our injuries have nothing to do with her,” Wang Minghui struggled on the ground for a bit, unable to stand.

“Doesn’t matter. All of you, back to the station.” Yu Wenqiang looked Wang Minghui over, guessing the truth behind the incident. It was the first time he’d seen thugs beaten so badly yet too frightened to utter a word.

With nearly thirty people involved, there wasn’t enough room in the police cars, so Wang Minghui even paid for a taxi to get there himself.

**

None of the students dared inform their parents about the fight, so Yu Wenqiang summoned their class teacher instead.

When Xie Mingming received the call from the police station, he was distracted for the rest of his class, hurrying to the station as soon as he finished, not even putting down his lesson plans.

“How did you all get hurt like this?” Xie Mingming stormed in, torn between anger and worry.

The eight students from his class bore wounds of varying severity, especially Nie Huan, whose arm was in a cast. Only Shen Qing and Yao Panpan were unscathed.

“Is there any justice left? Assaulting people in broad daylight, I’m going to confront them!” Xie Mingming rolled his lesson plan into a stick and marched out, so furious that the policewoman at the door couldn’t stop him.

“Oh no, Old Xie!” Yao Panpan hurried after him to pull him back.

“You’re bullying—” As Xie Mingming burst into the next room, over a dozen toughs looked up at him in unison. Each bore swollen faces and miserable expressions; one was sobbing, clutching his plastered arm, confessing his guilt before a male officer.

From the looks of it, his students hadn’t suffered much after all...

“Hello, can I help you?” Yu Wenqiang, busy taking statements, looked at the middle-aged man who’d barged in.

“No, sorry for the disturbance.” Xie Mingming smiled awkwardly, thoughtfully closing the door behind him.

“Old Xie, you didn’t go in there to start another fight, did you?” Yao Panpan ran up.

Xie Mingming smoothed his clothes. “Of course not. Nie Huan and the others did this? If there’s trouble, we should call the police, not resort to reckless violence!”

Yao Panpan tugged at his sleeve, signaling him to lower his voice. “No, it was Qing who did it.”

“Qing? Which Qing—you mean Shen Qing?” Xie Mingming froze.

Yao Panpan nodded.

“Give me a moment… Why didn’t you tell me earlier?”

Yao Panpan looked aggrieved. “You rushed in so fast, even the police couldn’t stop you.”

“All right, let’s head back first. Shen Qing doesn’t need to take responsibility, does she?” Xie Mingming was a bit worried, seeing how badly those thugs had been beaten.

“No, the ringleader Wang Minghui admitted fault himself and didn’t drag us into it.”

“Good, I’ll sign the papers and we’ll leave.”

*

By the time Xie Mingming led his students out of the station, it was midday. He paid for their lunch out of his own pocket before returning to school.

There were plenty of cars parked outside, and some people carried cameras.

“Old Xie, why are there so many paparazzi at our school today?” the chubby student asked, curious.

Xie Mingming glanced over. “Oh, the singer from Class One is back at school today, so they’re here to film her.”

“Yu Min’er is back? I thought she’d quit school after becoming famous,” the chubby student said, a bit surprised.

“Hey, Qing, do you know Yu Min’er, our school’s pop star?” He changed his tone, no longer daring to call Shen Qing by her full name.

“I do. Is she really famous?” Shen Qing turned to him.

The chubby student smiled. “Not exactly—her family’s well-off, she’s good-looking, has some online popularity, and was signed by a big entertainment company.”

“Oh.”

Yao Panpan edged closer, flattering Shen Qing. “If you ask me, Qing and Huan would be even more popular if they debuted.”

The other boys quickly agreed, even Chu Yu nodded.

Xie Mingming glanced at Shen Qing and Nie Huan, both expressionless. Was the school’s top student about to be replaced?