My girlfriend isn't as cute as me.

"Are you ok?"

Officer Li handed Lin Jiu a glass of water.

Lin Jiu nodded, took the water glass, but didn't drink it. Instead, he looked down at the water.

Compared to his previous boundless ambition, he now appears somewhat bewildered, an expression befitting his appearance and age.

"...I really want to say I'm fine, but I'm not feeling well right now, I feel terrible."

After Lin Jiu's tense nerves relaxed, he felt very tired and exhausted.

The adults treated Lin Jiu and Ning Yueyao like criminals, forcing them to stand as punishment and deliberately using passive-aggressive tactics to intimidate them. Later, they used sharp eyes and unyielding words to pressure him and force him to lower his head. These kinds of tricks are used everywhere—in schools, in workplaces, everywhere. Some people with weak mental fortitude will be crushed, and even the strongest person will feel a deep sense of powerlessness—a feeling of being pushed to the opposite side of the whole world.

Lin Jiu stood at the center of the storm, enduring the hostility of the crowd.

He didn't back down, but gritted his teeth and persevered, refusing to compromise.

Just like his past life, he gritted his teeth and persevered, never turning back even when he was battered and bruised.

When Lin Jiu finally unleashed all the anger that had been building up inside him, he felt not relief, but a deep sorrow.

Schools are a microcosm of society.

If even schools can be tainted by malicious people, how many dark places remain undiscovered? What's more, the people standing against Lin Jiu this time are teachers who should have stood up to stop this kind of thing... If it were anyone else, this matter would probably have been resolved silently, and no one would know that this had happened at the school.

Officer Li glanced at Lin Jiu. He sensed a familiar feeling from the other man's expression—like a young man fresh out of police academy, full of enthusiasm but met with a cold shower. No one could help him get through this; he had to pull himself together.

“…I’m sorry, Officer Li.”

Lin Jiu pursed her lips and apologized to Li Linchen.

Officer Li paused, looking surprised, and asked, "What's wrong?"

“It was an emergency, so I called you directly. I’ve been running around doing all this and that, and just now…” Lin Jiu is a very polite person. He had acted impulsively and was particularly rude to Officer Li, which was wrong of him.

"Don't worry about such trivial matters. I'm not a petty person."

Officer Li smiled; his upright and serious face gave off a reassuring feeling.

“Thanks to your reminder, we realized there was a mastermind behind Liu Hua, and we almost missed this important clue. My colleagues and I went through all the surveillance footage and successfully found the other party's identity information. We have now discovered a transaction chain. I can't tell you the specific details, but I want to tell you that your efforts have not been in vain.”

Officer Li said sternly, "Thanks to you, we now know that those people have shifted their target group to middle school students. We will thoroughly investigate the source of the psychotropic drugs used on those three students, and we will never allow such an incident to happen again. I also hope that next time you encounter something like this, you will do your best to protect your personal safety before contacting the police."

“We absolutely do not encourage citizens to put themselves in danger, of course, I am not blaming you…”

"I understand, I get it, thank you."

Lin Jiu nodded seriously.

Officer Li then stood up and patted him on the shoulder.

“Study hard, and if you have the opportunity in the future, you can consider coming to our Fukou Public Security Bureau. Even if you don’t become a police officer, it doesn’t matter, we are quite short of clerks here.”

"...No, I already have a more suitable job."

Lin Jiu thought for a moment. He didn't know if Officer Li was being polite or serious, but at least he had responded.

Lin Jiu turned his head and looked at Wang Yuting, who was sitting in the distance and occasionally glancing over. The bewildered expression on his face disappeared.

Instead, there is a sense of steadfastness.

Officer Li glanced at Wang Yuting, then at Lin Jiu.

Of course, he hadn't forgotten that this was the girl who had beaten Liu Hua to a pulp on Friday night. However, the girl had changed quite a bit. Just a change of clothes had completely transformed her aura, and he almost didn't recognize her.

Not only that, Lin Jiu's feelings towards Li Linchen also became very different.

In just two short days, Lin Jiu seemed to have transformed completely, like a butterfly emerging from its cocoon.

"you……"

Officer Li glanced at Lin Jiu's youthful face and was momentarily speechless.

Although he knew Lin Jiu was an adult, it was still hard for him to accept.

Lin Jiu seemed to understand what Officer Li was thinking, and he added, "We're legal now."

"...As long as it's within the bounds of the law, we've always advocated for freedom of love." Officer Li paused for a moment, then slowly reminded her, "However, you're still a student, so you must remember to prioritize your studies, understand?"

"Understood, thank you, Officer Li."

Lin Jiu nodded vigorously, and when he looked up, he saw Li Linchen reaching out his hand to him.

"As a police officer, I would like to say thank you on behalf of my colleagues, young comrade."

"You're welcome, it's what I should do."

Lin Jiu wiped her hands on her school trousers, then took the other person's hand.

Officer Li smiled and said, "Then I'll be going now. If you encounter any problems, you can contact me."

"Ok!"

Lin Jiu saw Li Linchen off, waving his hand, a feeling still lingering in his palm.

Lin Jiu slowly clenched her fist, keeping this burning passion in her heart. There's no need to be discouraged; even in the deepest darkness, someone will hold a torch to light up the streets and alleys.

"Has the police officer left?"

Wang Yuting cautiously watched the direction Officer Li left in, her movements furtive.

Lin Jiu couldn't help but laugh when he saw her like that.

"What are you laughing at!"

"Because you look like a thief."

"Hmph, then I'm the heart thief."

Wang Yuting stood with her hands on her hips smugly, then, as if she had just thought of something, added, "I'll only steal yours."

Lin Jiu blinked, and could tell what Wang Yuting was thinking from her expression.

She wanted Lin Jiu to relax and be happier.

"Have you had lunch?" Lin Jiu asked.

"Not yet." Wang Yuting then realized that she hadn't eaten yet.

"Come on, go home."

Lin Jiu stood up and dusted himself off.

"I'll cook you something delicious."

Chapter Fifty: The Little Girl?

"Teacher Huang."

Before going home with Wang Yuting, Lin Jiu went to see his homeroom teacher.

"W-what is it, Lin..."

The homeroom teacher gave an awkward yet polite smile, subconsciously shrugging her shoulders and resisting the urge to back away.

Fortunately, there were no other students around, otherwise her actions could easily be misunderstood, and people who didn't know the situation might think that Lin Jiu was bullying the teacher.

In reality, Ms. Huang is quite strict when dealing with other students. Even the boys who sit in the last row and never listen to the lesson will pretend to listen attentively when they see her.

When Lin Jiu wanted to ask for leave to visit her critically ill grandmother, her mother absolutely refused, insisting that Lin Jiu's guardian come to the school to request leave, no matter how Lin Jiu explained. Later, Lin Jiu amicably mentioned her relationship with the principal, and the two finally reached an agreement. The school would never disappoint its students; even final exams were lenient, as make-up exams were possible.

Lin Jiu only now realized that many things were not as simple as he had imagined.

"Teacher, I would like to ask for half a day off."

"What's wrong?"

"My hand hurts from hitting someone."

Lin Jiu stretched out her hands, which were red and a little swollen.

The homeroom teacher's lips twitched slightly. She recalled Lin Jiu's behavior just now and suddenly felt a pang of fear. She then realized that Lin Jiu hadn't been targeting her before; he treated everyone the same.

She took a deep breath, trying her best to keep her voice from trembling, and forced a smile.

"Lin, your hand is so badly injured right now, you should go see a doctor and get it checked out. I'll help you get sick leave, it won't affect your credits, you can come back to class after you've recovered."

"Thank you, teacher. Goodbye, teacher."

After receiving permission from the teacher, Lin Jiu returned to the classroom, picked up her backpack, and turned to leave.

The students were curious, but their relationship with Lin Jiu wasn't close enough for them to exchange pleasantries. If Lin Jiu hadn't changed so much today, no one would have paid any attention even if he had swaggered away.

After Lin Jiu walked out the door, Ning Yueyao returned to her class, picked up her schoolbag, and prepared to leave.

At that moment, everyone in the class looked at each other differently. During roll call at the end of morning PE class, these two were absent, and no one had seen the class monitor or Lin Jiu. Now, with lunch break over and class about to start, the two of them simultaneously picked up their backpacks and left.

"Yuan Fang, how do you see?"

"My lord, I suspect there's something fishy about this!"

"You're kidding me!"

The two boys were gossiping when Huang Minmin glared at them as soon as they finished speaking.

The two boys pursed their lips and said no more. Huang Minmin was definitely the most untouchable girl in the class. This wasn't just because of her size; back in her first year of high school, she got into a fight with a boy and beat him to a pulp. When the teacher came to mediate, she immediately faked crying—her acting was so good it could be a stage play. Later, after the teacher learned what had happened, she made the boy who started the fight and was beaten so badly he couldn't get up go home for three days to reflect on his actions and write a self-criticism.

This kind of person is not to be trifled with.

"Yaoyao, are you alright?"

Huang Minmin looked at her friend with concern.

"I'm fine." Ning Yueyao's complexion was still a bit pale. What happened today was too shocking for her; even now, she was having trouble breathing, and her heart was racing. While her father explained the situation to the police, she sat down to rest. Every time she closed her eyes, her mind was filled with Lin Jiu's image.

Ning Yueyao's initial interest in Lin Jiu stemmed from the fact that he never did his homework, yet the teachers all tacitly accepted it. This piqued her curiosity. She initially assumed it was due to his excellent grades that he earned the teachers' approval, but that wasn't the case; his grades were merely passing... but not just any ordinary passing grade.

Ning Yueyao slowly began to pay attention to this boy in her class. He was always very quiet. Sometimes he would listen attentively in class, and sometimes he would look out the window with a bored expression, but most of the time he would secretly sleep.

The boy sitting in front of Lin Jiu was very tall, and Lin Jiu, being small, was easily hidden from his view. However, this was just wishful thinking. Ning Yueyao was reading the text aloud on the podium, with a very wide field of vision. Whether it was a classmate secretly eating, a classmate pretending to read a book but actually playing on their phone, or Lin Jiu who didn't even try to hide it, curling up like a cat and sleeping, she could see everything clearly.

Today, Ning Yueyao witnessed a different side of Lin Jiu.

Confident, brave, clever, every word and action is full of power.

but……