Chương 56: Rumors

After parting ways with Luo Bingli, Lin Che put away his phone, a gentle smile on his lips, and turned to walk towards the teaching building.

Sunlight filters through the leaves, creating dappled patterns of light. Walking along the campus paths, I can hear the lively sounds of students sweating and playing on the playground in the distance.

After passing through a grove of trees, the view suddenly opened up, and an open-air basketball court appeared before us.

Several boys in basketball jerseys were playing a lively three-on-three game. The "thump-thump" of the basketball hitting the ground, mixed with shouts and panting, was full of youthful energy.

"Hey! Lin Che!"

A cheerful voice came from the sidelines. Lin Che looked in the direction of the voice and saw his classmate Lu Mingyuan sitting on a bench by the sidelines, wiping his sweat with a towel.

"Lu Mingyuan," Lin Che replied with a smile.

"Come on over and play with me!" Lu Mingyuan stood up and waved to him, twirling a basketball in his hand.

Lin Che waved his hand, politely declining the invitation: "No, I just finished eating."

"Ugh, I'm tired too." Lu Mingyuan casually tossed the basketball into the basket on the sidelines, patted the empty seat next to him, and said, "Come sit down and chat?"

Lin Che did not refuse and walked over to sit down. The bench was warm from the sunlight and felt cozy to sit on.

"It's so hot, why aren't you in the classroom if you're not playing ball?" Lu Mingyuan handed over a bottle of water.

"Thank you." Lin Che took the water, unscrewed the cap, and took a sip.

"Just wandering around, getting familiar with the campus," he replied casually, his gaze sweeping over the lush trees in the distance.

"I just came from that corner over there."

Lu Mingyuan followed his gaze, his eyes flickering slightly: "That corner over there? Did you see Luo Bingli?"

Lin Che paused, his hand holding the water bottle pausing in surprise: "You know her too?"

"Who doesn't know her?" Lu Mingyuan smiled, but his tone carried a subtle complexity.

"She's a 'celebrity' at our school."

"A celebrity?" Lin Che frowned, sensing that there was something more to his words.

"Yeah, it's that kind of... not-so-good reputation." Lu Mingyuan lowered his voice, "He doesn't talk to people much, he's a loner, and he often skips classes or something."

Lin Che's heart tightened. These were indeed Luo Bingli's performances, but not enough to make her a "celebrity." There must be other reasons.

"And another thing," Lu Mingyuan continued, "she always stays in that corner of the school, feeding stray cats and taking exceptionally good care of them."

Lin Che listened in silence, a bad feeling rising in his heart. He thought of the hidden tenderness Luo Bingli showed when feeding the cat, the softness that she only opened up to small animals. What did this have to do with her becoming a "celebrity"?

"Feeding cats is fine, but the problem is, I heard she sent all of them to be spayed/neutered." Lu Mingyuan's tone was puzzled.

"Do you know how much this costs? She's only in middle school, and she doesn't look like she comes from a wealthy family. Where did she get the money?"

Lin Che's heart sank suddenly. An immense fear and anger instantly gripped him. Money? Sterilization? What Lu Mingyuan said instantly pieced together in his mind the most terrifying rumors.

"So," Lu Mingyuan glanced at Lin Che, and seeing that he didn't interrupt, he continued, "there are rumors at school... saying that she's out there hanging out with those rich older men..."

boom!

As if a thunderbolt had exploded in his mind, Lin Che instantly felt his hands and feet turn icy cold. An unprecedented, overwhelming rage surged in his chest like magma, causing him to clench his fists instinctively.

"Who spread it?" His voice was terrifyingly low, carrying an extreme, suppressed anger.

Lu Mingyuan seemed oblivious to Lin Che's reaction. He shrugged and continued, "Who knows? Rumors spread incredibly fast, like the wind; you can never catch the source."

"If it were that easy to find the people spreading rumors, there wouldn't be so many innocent people caught up in them."

He paused, his tone tinged with speculation: "But I heard she taught a group of thugs from outside the school a lesson, didn't she? Maybe it was revenge from those thugs; those kinds of people are capable of anything."

"You knew about this too?!" Lin Che looked up abruptly, shocked once again.

He had only heard about Luo Bingli teaching the thugs a lesson from Su Yuqing yesterday. How would she know about something that happened off-campus?

"Well, I don't have any other skills, but I'm very well-informed," Lu Mingyuan chuckled, his tone tinged with pride.

"I know everything that's going on at school. You can ask me anything in the future. To be honest, I didn't believe those rumors because I knew about Luo Bingli teaching those thugs a lesson."

Lin Che took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down. Although the anger in his heart was still burning, Lu Mingyuan's next words gave him a sense of relief.

At least, not everyone believes those malicious rumors.

"Thank you," he said sincerely.

"No need to thank me, we're just classmates." Lu Mingyuan waved his hand.

"But speaking of which, judging from your reaction just now, you and she seem to know each other quite well?"

He looked at Lin Che curiously, not understanding why someone who had only entered the school in high school would react so strongly to Luo Bingli's matter.

"She's my sister's friend," Lin Che replied calmly. He didn't want to explain any further, nor was he in the mood for further conversation.

"Your sister's friend?!" Lu Mingyuan was genuinely surprised this time, staring wide-eyed at Lin Che. Clearly, this answer was completely beyond his expectations.

Lin Che ignored Lu Mingyuan's surprise; he felt an unbearable irritation and anger.

He had to leave; he needed a quiet place to process this sudden, nauseating information.

"Sorry, I have something to do." He stood up without making any excuses or even considering whether it would arouse Lu Mingyuan's suspicion.

"Hey? Wait, Lin Che!" Lu Mingyuan tried to call out to him, but Lin Che had already quickly left the basketball court.

He walked quickly along the campus path, his mind flashing back to the image of Luo Bingli gently feeding the cat in that corner, intertwined with the filthy rumors from Lu Mingyuan's mouth, forming a distorted picture.

How dare those people?!

Those cowards who hide in the shadows and use the most vicious words to hurt a child have no idea how many scars this child carries, how she uses all her strength to live and to be kind.

Rumors are like a disease; they don't need evidence or logic. As long as someone is willing to believe them, they can spread wildly among the population.

Because people tend to believe what they want to believe, things that make them feel superior, curious, or excited.

They can't see the truth, or rather, they don't want to see the truth at all.

They only saw a girl who didn't fit in and whose behavior was "strange," and then used the most vicious malice to speculate, fabricate, and spread rumors.

Lin Che clenched his fists so tightly that his nails almost dug into his flesh. He had never felt so powerless, yet so angry.

That corner, Luo Bingli's little world, should have been a place where she could escape the hustle and bustle and find a moment of peace.

Now, even that little haven has been eroded by filthy rumors.

He remembered how Luo Bingli hesitated before reaching out and accepting the orange juice, how she promised to try to make more friends, and how she took the initiative to offer to exchange contact information.

Those were all difficult yet courageous steps she took towards the outside world.

Now, will those malicious rumors push her back into that lonely corner again? Will they make her raise all her thorns again, never daring to open her heart to anyone again?

No! Absolutely not!

Lin Che took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down. Anger wouldn't solve anything, and feeling powerless would only keep him stuck.

He had to do something; he had to protect her, to protect her precious gentleness and kindness hidden beneath the ice.

He didn't know how much harm those rumors would cause Luo Bingli, nor did he know what he could do, but no matter what, he would not sit idly by.

He wanted to protect that child in his own way.