Mei Mengzhen couldn’t help but laugh when she heard those rumors. Indeed, the characters in the events may have changed, but the things that happened were just as they had in her previous life.
Liang Xiao had been furious these past few days, but she couldn’t bring herself to talk to Mei Mengzhen about such matters, so she had been sulking alone.
But even without discussing it, Mengzhen managed to get the gist of the situation and was quite irritated. How could people distort the facts so much?
Seeing Mengzhen’s composed demeanor, Liang Xiao grew even more baffled, "Why aren’t you angry at all? This matter is completely misrepresented, but these people just won’t listen to our explanations. It’s infuriating."
"What’s there to be angry about? There’s no point. People’s mouths are their own, if they want to talk, let them," she said calmly, trying to consider a strategy to deal with the situation, but definitely not planning to just let it go.
Compared to the school gossip, Bi Xiaoyu was more concerned about Mengzhen’s tongue, "Is your tongue okay?"
"It’s fine. The healing ability of the tongue is much stronger than I anticipated. Otherwise, I couldn’t talk this much."
Relieved to hear that Mengzhen was alright, Bi Xiaoyu then returned to her studies, immersing herself and ignoring the outside world.
Mengzhen said to Liang Xiao, "You should learn from her. Good grades don’t come without reason. Stop listening to nonsense and get back to studying. With your grades, do you even want to attend the same university as me?"
Speaking of university, Liang Xiao asked, "Zhenzhen, are you really planning to apply to Jiangcheng University? Isn’t that a bit too ambitious for you?"
She wanted to say that Mengzhen’s grades were far from adequate, but recalling Mengzhen’s recent improvement, and considering it was only November, there was still time for more effort. After all, what if?
Mengzhen might be able to work hard, but it was very difficult for Liang Xiao. Her family’s circumstances laid bare, with endless chores and Liang Qianjin causing trouble now and then, she simply couldn’t settle down to study.
Mengzhen did want to invite Liang Xiao to study together at her house, but she feared Liang Xiao wouldn’t agree. After all, if Liang Xiao were to stay out late, she might not even be able to get back into her own house when she returned.
"But haven’t you made progress as well? Like you said, there’s still plenty of time. Anything could happen, there might be a miracle."
Mengzhen’s words were sincere; in fact, the situation wasn’t impossible to solve. Liang Xiao had also drunk Spiritual Spring Water, albeit not much, but it had improved her memory. Mengzhen didn’t dare make it too obvious, so she only dared to give it to her occasionally.
Subsequently, a snort of disdain came from behind. Without even asking, she knew it must be Chen Junjie. Despite hurting Mengzhen, he wasn’t the least bit embarrassed and still sat behind her, attentively attending his classes. Now, hearing such unrealistic talk, he couldn’t hold back, "Even if you’ve made great progress, you’re still far from reaching the level needed for Jiangcheng University. In our class, maybe Bi Xiaoyu has a slight chance. You’re still 20 places behind in our class rank, and even further behind when it comes to the whole school’s ranking—let alone nationwide. Who gave you such big ambitions to think about Jiangcheng University?"
"I’ve got to set a small goal for myself anyway, right? What if it comes true? Since it’s a goal, it must be set high. Otherwise, if I achieve it in no time, do I even need to keep trying?" Mengzhen argued as if it was the most natural thing in the world.
"Setting goals doesn’t mean you can daydream. This is utterly unrealistic," Chen Junjie retorted.
Mengzhen coolly responded, "Whether it’s realistic or not is none of your business. I’m the one applying, not you. What’s this now? Should I discuss which university I want to apply to with you, and if you don’t agree, should I just stop attending school? Mind your own business and keep out of other people’s affairs."
"Who wants to meddle with you?" Chen Junjie replied with exaggerated exasperation.
"If you don’t want to meddle, then keep your mouth shut. You think you don’t have to be responsible for what you say? So you’re free to criticize someone else’s life goals?" Mengzhen raised her voice, more angry than when her tongue had been injured. Studying was something she was earnestly working on, and she felt there was a significant chance of achieving her goal. Yet, this person insisted on pouring cold water on her efforts—what was his problem?
The pair had some old grievances, and now their argument escalated, their voices growing louder and soon attracting the attention of their classmates.
Because of the rumors from the past three days, the class didn’t have much of a good impression of either Chen Junjie or Mengzhen. So when the two started arguing, most classmates simply watched with detached amusement.
But with many people in the class, there were bound to be a few who liked to stir things up, and they asked a couple of questions, mostly just wanting to see a bigger spectacle, "What’s going on? Why are you two fighting again?"
"When have I ever fought with him? This is clearly our first argument. What do you mean by ’again’?" Mengzhen pointed out the phrasing rather perplexed.
This question left not only the student who asked puzzled but also everyone else present. Indeed, the two didn’t usually interact much, and this really was their first fight. Why would anyone use ’again’? Particularly since no one had noticed anything amiss before.
"So what are you guys arguing about?"
Liang Xiao explained, "It’s about discussing which university to apply for. Zhenzhen wants to set a high goal to keep striving for, saying what if she achieves it. But Chen Junjie dumped a bucket of cold water on the idea, thinking Zhenzhen won’t make it."
The issue of university applications is a sensitive one for their senior year students. Hearing this, people began to think Chen Junjie was being unreasonable.
However, someone asked, "Then Mengzhen, which school are you planning to apply for?"
"Jiangcheng University." As soon as Mengzhen said this, everyone around couldn’t help but laugh. Not only did Chen Junjie think it impossible, but everyone else also thought Mengzhen had no chance.
It was Bi Xiaoyu who looked at everyone with an expression of disbelief, "What are you laughing at? Given Mengzhen’s progress this time, as long as she doesn’t regress, she might well make it to Jiangcheng University by the time of the exams." She glanced at Mengzhen and added, "Don’t worry, if you have questions you can’t solve, I’ll help you. I also want to apply to Jiangcheng University. Who knows, we might even become alumni."
Of course, Mengzhen knew that Bi Xiaoyu intended to apply to Jiangcheng University—after all, she had attended the university in her previous life, "Thank you, Xiaoyu. Even though I may not get in, I will definitely try to learn as much as I can."
Mengzhen’s earnest and motivated demeanor left different impressions in everyone’s minds.
Some people scoffed, thinking she was putting on an act of hard work for show.
Others felt inspired. Why not put in extra effort with the limited time left?