Chapter 141: Slapping in the Face!

A flicker of shifting emotions crossed Gu Zhiran’s eyes, and she finally decided that if Huo Shuyue truly made such a proposal, she could agree to it.

There was only one point, however, on which she would never compromise: Gu Ci had to apologize to her.

With this thought, Gu Zhiran’s mind was made up, yet a lingering sense of discomfort still prickled at her heart.

Why… why was even Huo Shuyue taking Gu Ci’s side at a time like this, and moreover, willing to give up the precious study materials in her own hands just for her?

Gu Ci… just what about her made her worthy of this?

Huo Shuyue thought Gu Zhiran was rather foolish. “Can’t you see? These materials were given to me by Gu Ci. With access to materials like these, why on earth would she ever bother to steal your three measly test papers?”

Compared to the crates upon crates of study materials Gu Ci possessed, mentioning three pitiful little test papers made Huo Shuyue feel embarrassed on Gu Zhiran’s behalf.

Hearing words that completely contradicted everything she had imagined, Gu Zhiran was so infuriated she almost laughed aloud.

So… so this was the shameless scheme Huo Shuyue was playing!

“Classmate Huo Shuyue, while I have no wish to bring up Gu Ci’s background, no matter what, she can never change where she came from. Do tell me, how could someone who just arrived from some tiny backwater place possibly get her hands on Mianzhong’s study materials? Even if you want to help Gu Ci save face and cover this up, you don’t need to spin such an absurd tale, do you?”

Gu Ci said calmly, “Take out your materials and let her have a look.”

She, the tycoon of study materials, had no desire to listen to her blabbering.

“I’ve had enough of holding back. Gu Zhiran, you might not realize this—” Listening to Gu Zhiran’s relentless sneers regarding Gu Ci’s origins, Xiao Yang had long since reached his breaking point. The moment he heard Gu Ci’s words, he hurled a thick textbook straight at Gu Zhiran, then let out a cold laugh. “As it turns out, this matter is actually just this absurd!”

Gu Ci’s remark and Xiao Yang’s action acted like a spark dropped into a powder keg. The students of Class 12 instantly pulled stacks of books out from beneath their desks and slammed them down onto their desktops in unison, producing a dull, heavy thud that seemed to echo directly in everyone’s chest!

Gu Zhiran felt as though the very floor shook three times over from the coordinated force of Class 12’s actions…

Yet by then, she had no spare capacity to care about such things. Her gaze was fixed entirely on the books piled across every single desk, stretching out before her eyes into an unbroken sea of pure Mianzhong study materials!

“Gu Zhiran, I’m telling you right now—all of these materials were provided to us by Gu Ci. We wouldn’t deign to give your three test papers a second glance!”

Gu Zhiran remained trapped in a daze of shock, barely able to process the words spoken to her.

Even if Gu Zhiran had overestimated the influence and power wielded by the families of these aristocratic scions in Class 12, she had never imagined they could possibly acquire such a vast mountain of study materials in so short a span of time!

After all, in Gu Zhiran’s eyes, these privileged youths had only resolved to start studying seriously a couple of days ago at most, which meant the materials must have been gathered entirely within the past two days.

One could say this was simply an informational error born from Gu Zhiran’s utter refusal to believe that these materials had actually been brought by Gu Ci…

As for the claims made by the Class 12 students that these documents were all brought by Gu Ci, Gu Zhiran did not believe a single word.

Even if Gu Changfeng was secretly assisting Gu Ci behind the scenes, there was no way she could possibly secure this volume of materials…

Teacher He’s face also mottled into an unsightly shade of pale green and stark white.

He had never expected Class 12 to possess such an immense quantity of Mianzhong study materials. Once again, his judgment had proven entirely mistaken.

Putting aside the question of how they came to possess so many materials for the moment, the sheer existence of these documents meant that Gu Zhiran’s earlier accusation—that Gu Ci had deliberately gone to copy their class’s three test papers—fell completely apart.

Who, having come into possession of such a wealth of comprehensive study materials, would ever stoop to stealing three stray worksheets? Wasn’t that a complete joke?

“Gu Zhiran, could there be some misunderstanding here? The students of Class 12 have plenty of materials of their own; they have no need to—”

A persistent ringing filled Gu Zhiran’s mind, buzzing relentlessly.

That’s right—why on earth would Gu Ci go out of her way to steal her test paper after already acquiring such an abundance of resources?

If the people in Class 12 protected Gu Ci to that extent, they would undoubtedly share their study materials with her as well, but… why, out of everything, had it been that exact test paper?

Gu Zhiran was certain she hadn’t been mistaken; that worksheet was one she had personally completed in the past, and one particular question on it remained fresh in her memory.

Surely it was impossible that, out of the countless test papers circulating in Mianzhong, Gu Ci just happened to be holding the exact same worksheet, only for her to happen to catch sight of it?

No… no! There was definitely something fundamentally wrong with this picture!

The more she thought about it, the more Gu Zhiran felt herself backing into a dead end, trapped in a maze with seemingly no way out.

Meanwhile, Teacher He, acutely embarrassed, offered an awkward apology to Jin Jiejiao, grabbed Gu Zhiran by the arm, and practically fled the scene.

This farcical episode left Jin Jiejiao massaging her temples with a headache. She quickly instructed the rest of the class to quiet down and resume studying their materials.

However, after the disruption caused by Gu Zhiran, half the class period had already slipped away.

Every single minute was precious to the students of Class 12 now, and in their hearts, they utterly despised Gu Zhiran for wasting their time.

Yet just as the bell rang to signal the end of the class, Gu Zhiran once again swayed into view at the doorway, her frail posture trembling delicately.

“Cousin… I need a word with you. Could you step outside for a moment?”

Xiao Yang gripped his pen so tightly that he nearly snapped it in half right then and there…

Was there simply no end to this woman’s antics?

With a cold gaze, Gu Ci stood up from her seat and walked out into the corridor. “What is it?”

Gu Zhiran walked straight toward a secluded corner before instantly dropping her act, her expression twisting into one of venomous hatred. “Gu Ci, you did this on purpose, didn’t you? You knew I’d come to the classroom looking for you, so you deliberately left that test paper lying out in the open, just waiting for me to jump to conclusions and make a fool of myself, right?”

Somehow, Gu Ci must have found out that their class possessed Mianzhong worksheets, so she had stolen them to have them copied, all for the malicious purpose of humiliating her in front of the students of Class 12!

A scheme that relied seven parts on calculation and three parts on coincidence—that was the absolute pinnacle of cunning.

A cold, mocking sneer surfaced in Gu Zhiran’s eyes as she spoke in a soft whisper, “I truly underestimated you before!”

Even as she said the words, a mixture of biting jealousy and bitter resentment surged through Gu Zhiran’s chest.

By what right did Gu Ci manage to waltz into Class 12 precisely when these spoiled young masters decided to turn over a new leaf, thereby falling effortlessly into possession of the very study materials she had dreamed of obtaining day and night, yet could never reach?

If she were the one studying these materials, her academic ranking would undoubtedly… climb even higher, wouldn’t it?

As for Gu Ci, shouldn’t she be spending this time quietly recovering from her injuries instead?