"I’ve done nothing wrong, so I have nothing to fear. How could I fall for their tricks? I’d like to see what kind of evidence they can produce." Chen Feng’s eyes narrowed as he spoke, furious. "Slandering my mom like this... I’m going to make them answer for it!"

Lin Nian: "..."

She was about to lose her mind.

The more this dragged on, the worse it would be for Chen Feng.

’Chen Feng might have done nothing wrong, but he has no idea that his mother is another story!’

’It wasn’t just that she was crooked—Li Xiaomei would go on to do many, many more terrible things in the future.’

Lin Nian was frantic, but she couldn’t talk Chen Feng down. As a result, she couldn’t focus on her studies at all the entire day.

Chen Feng was even worse off. The mere thought of someone slandering his mother made him see red. He had always believed that his mother, Li Xiaomei, had had a difficult life and was the best mother in the world. He would absolutely not tolerate anyone insulting her!

In stark contrast to the other two, Qin Jiao and Shen Yi were full of motivation. They were both diligently working through practice problems, actively preparing for the next monthly exam.

Only when Shen Yi got tired from studying would he rub the bridge of his nose and sneak a glance at the girl beside him.

’He realized that ever since he’d decided to get along with Qin Jiao, things between them truly weren’t as hostile as they had been in his past life.’

’It seemed his approach was working. To all appearances, the two of them were now good friends.’

’But in Shen Yi’s eyes, that was far from enough. He was impatient, but he forced himself to remain calm on the outside.’

’He couldn’t be reckless. Otherwise, he would scare Qin Jiao away.’

The day passed in a flash. The sun set behind West Mountain, and the bright moonlight slowly blanketed the entire campus.

When the moon was bright and the stars were sparse, it was time for the evening self-study session to end.

Sun Guotao, holding a large tea mug, said with a smile, "Everyone’s been studying hard lately, which is great, but don’t overdo it. You can’t let yourselves get too wound up. Relax when you need to relax. Boys, go play some basketball. Girls, go jump rope or something."

Many people believed that for high school seniors, grades were the most important thing. But Sun Guotao felt that the more stressful things became, the more crucial it was to pay attention to his students’ mental well-being.

He remembered a student who had consistently ranked in the school’s top ten. He’d put too much pressure on himself and choked during the college entrance exams. When the final results were posted, he had dropped to over a hundredth place. The student had a complete breakdown, and in the end, his family had no choice but to take him to a psychologist.

Sun Guotao spoke to the students earnestly. "The college entrance exams are important, no doubt, but they are absolutely not the only path your lives will take. I just hope every one of you can approach them with a level head."

He had always thought highly of the top student in his class, Chen Feng, but Sun Guotao noticed the boy had been distracted during the entire self-study session, lost in thought.

Likewise, a few other students in the class didn’t seem to be in good spirits, which was why Sun Guotao had said what he did.

"We know, sir."

Hearing his students’ response, Sun Guotao nodded with a smile and left, tea mug in hand.

The students started packing up and filed out of the classroom. Boarders headed back to their dorms, while day students made for the school gates.

With a grim expression, Chen Feng walked over to Qin Jiao and Shen Yi. "Let’s go," he said. "Time to see this ’evidence’ you were talking about."

Trailing behind him was Lin Nian, her expression absolutely miserable.

"Alright." Qin Jiao and Shen Yi exchanged a look. The two of them strode out, went to the bike shed to get their bicycles, and wheeled them out of the school. Then, Qin Jiao noticed Lin Nian sitting on the rack of Chen Feng’s bike.

The corners of her mouth lifted into a smirk.

’Looks like Lin Nian really doesn’t trust Chen Feng to go alone.’