All this time, Lu Ruan believed that Li Caiyi was the type that was easy to trample. She only dared to go against her because she had Meng Renshu behind her. That was why she wanted to teach that frail girl, raised like a precious flower inside the greenhouse, a bitter life lesson.

But her plan had somehow backfired on her at some point. Lu Ruan couldn't think of anything but the fact that she had screwed up badly.

"Lu Ruan, you conspired with someone to attempt to kill me. No matter how much you hate me, don't you think you have gone too far?"

"Wh-What?" Bewilderment flashed across Lu Ruan's eyes for a moment. "What are you talking about?"

"Don't play dumb with me. During our school trip, you secretly asked someone to push me off the cliff!"

The bewilderment on her face slowly changed into that of disbelief. Lu Ruan stood up in anger. "Li Caiyi, don't get too ahead of yourself. Yeah, I harassed you and did nasty things, but I'm not that low!"

"Lu Ruan, we have reached this far. And you won't get away unscathed. Just admit your wrongdoing!" Li Caiyi unknowingly raised her voice. A lot of emotions swirled inside her, and she didn't know how to hold them back.

"Ha." Lu Ruan snorted. "You can bark all you want, but I will never admit something I have never done."

Li Caiyi: "...."

Based on all the facts she had gathered, there should be no one but Lu Ruan who had a sinister idea about her. However, she didn't seem to lie when she said she knew nothing about her murder attempt.

"And this is all your fault from the beginning!" Lu Ruan shoved Li Caiyi by her shoulder, forcing her to be pushed back a few steps. "If it weren't for your devious acts, I wouldn't have to go this far!"

"What do you mean by that?"

"You said you are dating someone else, yet you kept fishing for attention from some other guys! Don't you feel ashamed at all? That's why I didn't do anything wrong by telling everyone exactly what kind of a person you are!"

Lu Ruan exploded. She screamed as she stomped her feet furiously to the ground. Her gaze on Li Caiyi was filled with hate.

"Why do you keep wrapping Senior Meng around your fingers while dating another guy? I can't accept it! I was the one who cared about him the most, yet he never paid attention to me. And you have the affection of such a person, but you treat it like nothing. How can you be so conceited?!"

"Argh! What are you doing?!" Li Caiyi shrieked when Lu Ruan began to pull her hair harshly. Her scalp felt like it would tear up, bringing tears out of her eyes.

"You are just good-for-nothing before! Don't think that you can change anything just by changing your appearance. Someone like you doesn't deserve Senior Meng's affection. I swear I'll expose you! I will tear your innocent mask and make him see the ugly person that you are."

Li Caiyi couldn't stand to hear it anymore. There was no way to speak reasonably with this crazy, obsessive girl!

Li Caiyi stomped on her feet with all her might, making her opponent yelp in pain. The hold on her hair loosened, so she used that moment to push Lu Ruan away from her.

Li Caiyi's hair was disheveled, with few strands of her hair left on Lu Ruan's grip, but at least she still had her scalp intact. She kept a safe distance from Lu Ruan and eyed her vigilantly.

"It seemed no amount of explanation could go through your thick and empty skull. If you don't have the brain to understand, then at least use your eyes to see properly. When did I ever try to curry favor with Brother Renshu?"

"If not, then how come he is so smitten with you? He knew you already had a boyfriend, so why would he insist on pursuing you?"

"Lu Ruan, you are delusional and crazy. I have nothing to speak with you anymore."

Lu Ruan rose to her feet again. Li Caiyi took a step back as she approached. Unlike before, she cast her gaze down, shadowing her face.

"It's really unfair. How can you achieve everything so easily? You were just a dull and dim-witted kid until a semester ago. Still, Senior Meng suddenly paid attention to you. You came from a wealthy family and were raised in a good family. Everyone praised your literacy talent, and you even got yourself a handsome boyfriend."

Lu Ruan looked extremely aggrieved and indignant, "You are just Li Caiyi. How can you be so well off?"

Her mumbling slightly tipped Li Caiyi off. She could sense that Lu Ruan's grudge against her ran deeper than simple jealousy because of her idol.

For Lu Ruan, who lived by looking down on other people, she must have thought that Li Caiyi tried to climb up her head, and it irked her.

'She really takes me as someone below her. Lu Ruan, you have never changed.'

Lu Ruan didn't harass her this badly in her previous life because Li Caiyi had never dared to go against her. So when she finally did, Lu Ruan threw all her hate onto her. She was using Li Caiyi as an outlet to project the injustices she felt.

How laughable. Someone like Lu Ruan, who lived freely without any care for other people, was jealous of her life, which she finally achieved by dying once. She didn't even know how much Li Caiyi had suffered.

Who was the conceited one here?

"Lu Ruan, I don't know what makes you think like that, but you are not qualified to question me or anyone for the miserable state you put yourself into. If you have time to blame someone else and play the hero of justice, I suggest you do it with someone else because I won't humor you anymore."

Li Caiyi didn't want to stay there any longer. So she turned back and was about to leave when she suddenly felt a chill on her back.

"SHUT UP! I WON'T FORGIVE YOU FOR MOCKING ME!!"

As she turned her body to see Lu Ruan, she instinctively knew it was already too late to do anything. Lu Ruan raised her hand with a rock in her grip. Her glare looked like she was ready to end her life right there and then.

Li Caiyi's whole body stiffened as Lu Ruan finally brought her hand down.

She shut her eyes tightly, bracing herself for the inevitable impact. But the pain she expected never came.

Li Caiyi slowly opened her eyes and found Dai Zhiqiang standing firmly before her. His hand gripped Lu Ruan's wrist, preventing her from harming her. His broad back was all Li Caiyi could see, like it was telling her everything was safe now.

The shaking of her hands immediately stopped as a sense of relief washed over her. Everything happened so suddenly, and for a moment, Li Caiyi could almost see her life flash before her.

The sight of Lu Ruan's scary visage and the rock being brought down upon her way almost made her leg give up on her.

historical

Thankfully, Dai Zhiqiang's presence soothed her nerves. His timing couldn't be more perfect.

"Aagghh!! Let go of my hand! You are going to break my wrist!!"

Lu Ruan's shrill scream pulled her out of her daze. The girl was struggling with a painful look on her face. Dai Zhiqiang only stared at her with no sympathy, as if he was just stepping on an ant.

"Li Caiyi, tell your boyfriend to stop holding my wrist. It hurts!" Lu Ruan glared at her, but it only made Dai Zhiqiang's face darken even more.

He flung her wrist sideways with so much force that it sent Lu Ruan flying. Li Caiyi covered her mouth in shock.

Dai Zhiqiang had his stare fixed on Lu Ruan, but something was frightening about how she looked at her.

Lu Ruan could also feel his intense murderous aura because her face turned as white as a sheet. Her eyes shook wildly, and it was filled with pure terror.

"H-Help.." She stuttered in fear.

"I have been quiet and listening, but you couldn't seem to understand human language." Dai Zhiqiang's voice felt like it could even freeze the desert with how chilling it was.

Then, he approached Lu Ruan, who seemed to freeze in her place. Then, he suddenly reached out to grab her by the neck. Both girls gasped in shock at his cruel action.

"You are a wild dog who tried to harm my precious person. An animal like you should naturally be treated like an animal, don't you agree?" Dai Zhiqiang smiled, but that smile didn't reach his eyes.

The panicked Lu Ruan kicked her feet around, flailing like a fish in his hand. She looked so miserable that even Li Caiyi felt pity for her.

Dai Zhiqiang could be scary at times, but he never behaved in an extreme way like this. Frankly, this was her first time seeing her act radically like this. He wasn't talking to her, yet she shuddered, feeling the menace coming out of him.

Lu Ruan didn't feel this frightened even when Meng Renshu threatened her. Looking at Dai Zhiqiang's cold eyes, she instinctively knew that he wouldn't hesitate to kill her if she made more mistakes.

Her throat hurt from how hard he clenched on it. And he left some space for her to breathe, although she still had to try hard for it. In a way, this was more like slow torture, making Dai Zhiqiang look even more terrifying.

'Monster. He is definitely a monster. How could Li Caiyi like a monster like him?'

Lu Ruan involuntarily shifted her gaze to Li Caiyi, who stood with an appalled look on her face, silently pleading for help.

Li Caiyi took a deep breath before shouting sternly.

"Dai Zhiqiang, stop this at once!"