The Bullying at School

“Young Master.”

Shi Ji’s drifting thoughts were pulled back. He lifted his eyelids and stared at the rear of the taxi ahead.

“Should we keep following?” The driver looked through the rearview mirror at the man in the back seat. He couldn’t see the man’s full expression, but he could feel the gloomy aura lingering around him.

“Keep following.”

“But…” The driver wanted to say more.

Shi Ji took a breath. “I told you to follow, so follow. Why so much chatter?”

His tone was extremely flat, but his eyes behind his glasses were exceptionally sharp. The driver accidentally met Shi Ji’s gaze and shuddered, quickly looking away. “Yes… yes, sir.”

Silence returned to the car. The sound of wheels crushing withered leaves was faint; the wild wind outside was firmly blocked by the windows.

Shi Ji’s gaze remained fixed on the taxi in front. The two cars maintained a distance that was neither too close nor too far—not close enough for the person in front to notice, but not far enough for Shi Ji to lose them.

He pursed his lips, rubbing the residual glue on his fingers. His raven-feather lashes slightly obscured his charcoal-black pupils.

He wondered if Li Chen had found the photograph he had secretly tucked into his pocket.

The moment he thought of the boy’s tears, Shi Ji felt a wave of intense guilt.

He was following Li Chen today for two reasons: first, the original plot contained a segment where Li Chen is bullied upon starting school and the first male lead steps in to help; second, Shi Ji wanted to find an opportunity to apologize.

Shi Ji felt that if he didn’t say “I’m sorry” to Li Chen soon, he was going to suffocate. He just didn’t know how to say those words while staying within the original owner’s persona.

After an unknown amount of time, the black car slowly stopped at the school gates. Li Chen had arrived a bit earlier; by the time Shi Ji got out of the car, the boy was already dragging his suitcase into the school.

Shi Ji hurriedly opened the car door, wanting to give chase, only to have a figure suddenly flash before him. He focused his gaze and saw a middle-aged man in a suit—slightly balding with a protruding potbelly—blocking his path.

“Mr. Shi! What brings you here?” The man’s face broke into a smile so wide his eyes disappeared the moment he saw Shi Ji. He trotted forward on short legs and grabbed Shi Ji’s hands with an fawning expression.

Shi Ji was busy looking for Li Chen. Seeing the boy getting further away, he knit his brows. His gaze shifted to the man in front of him. “Let go.”

Perhaps his expression was truly terrifying; the man swallowed hard and quickly released Shi Ji’s hands. A few beads of sweat appeared on his forehead, and his lips parted and closed as if he wanted to speak but hesitated.

Li Chen’s figure finally vanished. Shi Ji let out a helpless sigh.

His attention finally returned to the man before him.

Shi Ji looked him up and down. The man’s clothes were clearly expensive, a flashy gold watch sat on his wrist, and the nameplate on his left chest clearly read “Principal.”

Shi Ji remembered now: Li Chen’s school was founded and funded entirely by the original owner. No wonder this man was acting so sycophantic.

In the original text, because the original owner disliked Li Chen, the principal and teachers of this school followed suit. They placed numerous obstacles in Li Chen’s path, constantly suppressing him at every turn.

Consequently, Shi Ji automatically labeled this principal as a “stumbling block on the road of the plot.” Even the look he gave the man turned cold.

“I can’t just come for a visit?” Shi Ji spoke with a frozen face. He had tied back the slightly long hair at his nape today, revealing the faint bite mark on his neck.

The principal’s eyes caught a glimpse of Shi Ji’s slender neck before he laughed it off. “What are you saying? Mr. Shi is welcome anytime. The teachers and students of our school always welcome you.”

His words were so fake they made Shi Ji sneer. If he hadn’t read the original plot—where this “wall-sitter” immediately turned against the original owner after Li Chen’s revenge and seized the school for himself—he might have believed him.

Shi Ji took a handkerchief offered by his driver, wiped the hand the principal had touched, and then tossed the handkerchief into the man’s arms. “Then I’ll trouble the Principal to lead the way.”

The principal caught the handkerchief steadily and stuffed it into his pocket. He bowed slightly to Shi Ji and extended a hand. “Mr. Shi, this way.”

Shi Ji ignored him and strode into the school. He turned his head to scan the campus; it was indeed much more luxurious than a typical school, equipped with every facility imaginable and a library claimed to be the largest in the world. At first glance, one would think it was an elite academy for the nobility.

When they entered, the students were gathered on the field for the opening ceremony. Various teachers stood on the podium holding scripts, reciting tedious and forced speeches.

The principal invited Shi Ji to watch from the sidelines, pointing at a few students in the front row. “Mr. Shi, look. Those are our top-performing students.”

Shi Ji looked where he pointed. Those students stood with heads held high; even under the direct sun, they responded to the teacher’s every word with passionate, high-spirited energy. He wondered if someone had tipped them off about his presence, as they occasionally stole glances at him and straightened their backs even further.

They looked like the type of students who loved to suck up to teachers.

Shi Ji arched an eyebrow.

“…Their goal is to get into the universities in H City. Their scores are just a little bit short, so the parents and teachers are anxious, but their grades really are quite good.” The principal watched Shi Ji’s expression and continued cautiously, “Mr. Shi, you see…”

“If they can’t make the cut, they shouldn’t bother,” Shi Ji interrupted ruthlessly. He kept his chin tilted up, completely ignoring the students the principal was pointing out, his eyes urgently searching for Li Chen.

“Yes, yes, Mr. Shi is right. If they can’t make it, they shouldn’t force it…” The principal swallowed. Being snapped at by Shi Ji turned his complexion sour, but since Shi Ji was someone he couldn’t afford to provoke, he forced himself to swallow his anger.

He watched Shi Ji’s face from a lowered stance. The man beside him always looked arrogant and unreachable, but suddenly, the principal saw Shi Ji’s eyes light up.

Found him.

Shi Ji stared at a figure hidden in the crowd.

Li Chen was quite thin, but he wasn’t short. He had been placed at the very back. Initially, he was blocked by a tall male classmate, but when that boy knelt down to tie his shoelace, Shi Ji caught sight of him.

He saw Li Chen with his head half-lowered, hands resting properly at his sides. His lashes were cast down and his thin lips were pursed; he appeared to be lost in a daze.

The male classmate beside him finished tying his shoe and stood up, completely obscuring Li Chen once again.

The thought that popped into Shi Ji’s head at that moment was: I need to feed Li Chen more and make him a bit chubbier.

‘Is this some kind of raising sim game?’

Shi Ji was amused by his own thought.

“What is Mr. Shi looking at?” the principal asked suddenly, breaking Shi Ji’s train of thought.

The curve of Shi Ji’s lips vanished instantly.

“What about Li Chen?” he asked.

The principal was stunned. “Li Chen… what?”

“His grades.”

The principal blinked, thinking for a good while before answering. “Oh—Li Chen. That boy’s grades are actually quite good, but his personality… he’s a bit of a loner.”

He chose his words carefully. “Did Mr. Shi come here today specifically for Li Chen?”

Shi Ji retracted his gaze and turned to look at the principal.

Seeing Shi Ji remain silent, the principal took it as a confirmation. “Mr. Shi is truly a good older brother. It’s Li Chen’s blessing to have an older brother like you.”

“A blessing?” Shi Ji spoke, his eyes shifting with an unreadable emotion. “What kind of blessing?”

Faced with the sudden question, the principal couldn’t answer. His brows knit together, and sweat poured down his forehead.

“Uh… well…” He stammered, even pulling out Shi Ji’s handkerchief to wipe away the cold sweat.

“Actually, no,” Shi Ji changed the subject.

The principal was stunned again. “Ah?”

Shi Ji let out a cold laugh. He crossed his arms over his chest and arched an eyebrow at the principal. “I received a report that there is bullying happening in this school.”

He emphasized the word “bullying” with deliberate weight.

“Bu… Bullying?” The principal’s brain seemed to be the size of a walnut, as it took him a long time to digest Shi Ji’s short sentence. Then he finally reacted, explaining hurriedly, “That can’t be! Who would dare to bully anyone? Mr. Shi, you know how much importance I place on campus violence. Such a problem could never occur here!”

He patted his chest, vowing to Shi Ji, but as luck would have it, the ceremony ended just then. As Li Chen was walking forward, he was knocked down by a student who suddenly rushed up from behind. This scene was witnessed perfectly by both Shi Ji and the principal.

The principal’s words hung in the air, his mouth half-open, unable to swallow them back for a long time.

“This… this…” More sweat broke out on the principal. He swallowed hard. “It was an accident.”

He forced a smile that looked more like a grimace. “Mr. Shi, you saw it yourself. In such a crowded situation, bumps and knocks are perfectly normal.”

Shi Ji took a deep breath as he heard this. He watched Li Chen silently pick himself up from the ground, pat the dust off his clothes, and walk toward the teaching building with a calm expression.

His reaction was too strange.

Shi Ji couldn’t help but frown.

It was as if he were used to it.

How many times had Li Chen experienced things like this to be so accustomed to it?

But can one ever truly get “used” to such things?

Shi Ji’s hands clenched into fists inside his pockets.

Fearing he would see something else, the principal hurriedly pulled Shi Ji to tour the teaching buildings.

“Mr. Shi, the students are about to start their classes. Our school’s study atmosphere is famously good; you should experience it yourself.”

Shi Ji couldn’t be bothered to expose him.

However, before Shi Ji could even head upstairs, he witnessed another scene—

Several students were huddled around the entrance to the restroom. A large puddle of water sat on the grey-black floor, extending in a long stream until it reached Shi Ji’s feet.

Those students were laughing, some even pulling out their phones to take pictures. The person they were surrounding was reaching out, trying desperately to stop them. In the back-and-forth shoving, Shi Ji saw Li Chen, who had been soaked like a drowned rat.

Dark hair clung to his smooth forehead. Li Chen’s eyes revealed panic and resentment. He grabbed one person’s hand to snatch the phone, but the sound of camera shutters “clicking” echoed from another side.

His damp clothes clung tightly to his skin, the water-soaked fabric exceptionally heavy. Li Chen breathed raggedly, the rims of his eyes turning red.

Shi Ji froze in place. The nails of his clenched fists dug deep into his palms, and his arms hidden in his sleeves trembled violently. He instinctively wanted to walk over, but after taking a single step, he had to stop.

He couldn’t interrupt the plot development again.

He needed to wait… just a little longer, and the first male lead would appear.

The endless laughter grated on his ears. In their eyes, Li Chen was like a clown they could trample at will. They mocked his dullness and innocence, mimicked his current pathetic state, and teased him about his incomplete second gender.

Shi Ji gritted his teeth.

Beside him, the principal saw that Shi Ji was so angry his face was turning red, and he frantically searched for an excuse.

Suddenly, just at the moment Shi Ji was about to lose control, a figure bolted past. The person was incredibly fast, appearing as a blurred shadow as they ran past Shi Ji.

He pushed through the crowd, stood in front of Li Chen, and barked out in a stern, expressionless voice:

“—Is this how you people bully others?!”