Qin Jiao said coldly, "Lin Nian, I hope this is the first and last time I hear you say something like that! If I hear anyone at school saying it again, I’ll know it came from you. And every time I see you, I’ll hit you."

Lin Nian snorted. "Hit me? Qin Jiao, are you some kind of lunatic? Besides, it’s the truth. Shen Yi is a cold-blooded animal who’d watch someone die and do nothing. Did I say anyth—"

SLAP!

Qin Jiao had slapped her across the face.

’It’s not like I think Shen Yi is a good person, either,’ Qin Jiao admitted to herself. ’Especially in my last life. He was an awful person and an even worse husband.’

But that didn’t mean other people could use such a gloating tone to slander the trauma he’d suffered in his childhood.

Qin Jiao’s gaze was icy. "You expect a child who’s only a few years old to know how to save someone in that kind of situation? Lin Nian, you talk a big game about having such a strong moral compass, so let me ask you: what’s it like dating a mistress’s son? And what’s it like sucking up to that mistress so sweetly? Where did your so-called morals wander off to?"

This time, the color drained from Lin Nian’s face.

She looked panicked. As she turned her head, she happened to see the boys from their class who had been playing ball walking back in.

Chen Feng and Shen Yi were in the group.

’How could Qin Jiao possibly know about this?’ Lin Nian was stunned. She regretted it instantly; she shouldn’t have started an argument with Qin Jiao right now.

She turned and hurried over to Chen Feng’s side, trying to pull him outside. But he shook off her hand. The basketball he was holding fell to the floor, but he paid it no mind, instead striding quickly to stand before Qin Jiao.

He said coldly, "Qin Jiao, I know you and Xiao Nian don’t get along, but that’s no reason for you to insult other people!"

"Who did I insult?"

"You insulted my mother!"

Lin Nian immediately rushed over and grabbed Chen Feng’s arm. "Ah Feng, stop. There are too many people in the classroom. Let’s go outside, we can talk outside!"

"And just let her slander my mother like that?!" Chen Feng glared at Qin Jiao, his eyes turning red. "Qin Jiao, if you don’t apologize to my mother today, this isn’t over!"

Chen Feng was, in fact, absolutely furious.

His feelings for Qin Jiao were complicated. Before, he’d even had a vague crush on her. But after an unexpected turn of events led to him getting together with Lin Nian for good, Chen Feng had dutifully tucked away that bit of affection he had for Qin Jiao.

Later, when Qin Jiao began studying hard and her grades skyrocketed, Chen Feng found himself admiring her greatly.

But in this single moment, all of that admiration had vanished into thin air!

Because in Chen Feng’s heart, his mother, Li Xiaomei, had always been strong, beautiful, and perfect.

When he was a child, his father often beat her. Later, his mother resolutely divorced him and raised Chen Feng on her own, living a very difficult life.

Chen Feng secretly swore that one day, he would definitely give his mother a happy life.

Therefore, no one was allowed to slander his mother.

Absolutely no one!

More and more people were filing into the classroom, and Shen Yi had also returned. Although Qin Jiao wasn’t afraid of Chen Feng, she didn’t continue speaking.

There was only one reason: if this scar was torn open, she didn’t care what would happen to Chen Feng, but she worried that Shen Yi would read too much into it.

It had been hard enough getting Shen Yi to seem so much more normal in this life compared to the last one. Qin Jiao didn’t want him to be provoked in any way and revert to his old self.

"Lin Nian knows. Go ask her yourself. Bringing something like this out in the open won’t do anyone any good."

Chen Feng turned his head to look at Lin Nian. She bit her lip and said insistently, "Ah Feng, let’s go outside before we talk about this!"