A Paranoid Alpha Childhood Friend is Acting Spoiled Again - Chapter 12

Tang Mo and Nuo Fanxi attended the most prestigious public primary school in City B. The student body comprised children from all social strata. The Tang family had always maintained a low profile and rarely publicized Tang Mo’s status as the heiress to the Tang fortune. However, based on her surname and the fact that she was chauffeured by a butler, many parents were able to discern the truth. They, in turn, instructed their children to make frequent contact with her.

Among them was a girl named Fang Xiaoyu. Tested as a young Beta, she was precocious and shrewd. Ever since the teacher rearranged the seating and placed her next to Tang Mo, she had been following Tang Mo around like a shadow, currying favor daily. Whether it was buying snacks for Tang Mo, offering to do her homework, or giving her favorite toys, anime stickers, and the latest electronics that most kids craved—she did it all. If anyone tried to compete with her for Tang Mo’s attention, Fang Xiaoyu would grow angry; in private, she would even threaten classmates to stay away.

Fang Xiaoyu’s behavior made it nearly impossible for Nuo Fanxi to spend time alone with Tang Mo. They didn’t sit together during class, and during recess, she was shoved aside by Fang Xiaoyu and her little group of followers. Throughout the entire day, the only time Nuo Fanxi could be with Tang Mo was when they went to the restroom. The rest of the time, she was squeezed out.

This left Nuo Fanxi incredibly angry. She eventually realized that Fang Xiaoyu was doing this on purpose—deliberately blocking her from playing with Tang Mo to secure a spot for herself.

Although Tang Mo was annoyed and had told Fang Xiaoyu clearly that she hated this behavior, Fang Xiaoyu had been raised on a different kind of “education” by her parents. Even if Tang Mo ignored her existence, Fang Xiaoyu stuck to her like glue, impossible to shake off.

Eventually, Nuo Fanxi reached her limit.

Nuo Fanxi had been inseparable from Tang Mo since birth. She couldn’t stand Fang Xiaoyu’s tactics. Seizing a moment of free time when the teacher wasn’t around, she cornered Fang Xiaoyu.

“Xixi…” Tang Mo murmured behind her.

Nuo Fanxi shielded Tang Mo, blocking Fang Xiaoyu’s line of sight. “Don’t think I don’t know what you’re trying to do, Xiaoyu. You don’t actually want to be Momo’s friend. I’m warning you: stop trying your tricks on Momo, or I won’t be nice to you!”

Fang Xiaoyu’s family was quite wealthy and well-known. She was used to being a bully to other students, believing her status made her superior. She didn’t care about anyone in the class. Furthermore, her family had researched everyone’s backgrounds and knew that in Class 2 of Grade 1, only Tang Mo’s family was wealthier than hers. This made her even more arrogant, and she looked down on Nuo Fanxi with utter contempt.

“What ‘tricks’ could I possibly have? I just want to be her friend. Is being a friend wrong? Who said I can’t be friends with Momo? You?” Fang Xiaoyu took two smug steps forward, standing directly in front of Nuo Fanxi. With a look of disdain, she said, “Nuo Fanxi, this is school, not kindergarten. Momo and everyone else are classmates; it’s perfectly normal for me to be friends with her. If you ask me, Momo doesn’t even want to play with you. You’re the one clinging to her shamelessly. If you keep harassing her, I’ll tell Teacher Zhu. Teacher Zhu will call your name in front of the whole class and let everyone know you’re a bad kid!”

Primary school was different from kindergarten. In kindergarten, even if a child made a mistake, the teacher would usually talk to them privately, and only call the parents if they were repeatedly defiant. But in primary school, things changed.

Primary school was where “real” learning began. Teachers managed many classes and didn’t have much time for one-on-one discipline. This meant that if a child made a mistake, teachers often called them out by name in front of the entire class, sometimes using very harsh words.

Hearing that Fang Xiaoyu was going to snitch and have Teacher Zhu criticize Nuo Fanxi in public, Tang Mo grew anxious. She tugged on Nuo Fanxi’s sleeve and said worriedly, “Xixi, it’s okay. I just won’t talk to her from now on.”

“No!” Nuo Fanxi turned around, her expression resolute. “She’s doing this on purpose. If I don’t teach her a lesson now, she’ll keep pestering you forever!”

Although Nuo Fanxi was young and didn’t fully understand adult interests and power dynamics, she had seen many people flocking to Tang Mo—kids their age, older middle and high school students, and adults she didn’t know—all trying desperately to suck up to her. Nuo Fanxi could sense the fishy motives behind it.

The more people acted like that, the more she hated them. She had her own friends to play with; why did they always have to try and steal Momo?

Nuo Fanxi understood part of it, yet didn’t quite understand the rest. This ambiguity made her feel a surge of anger, but she didn’t know who to vent it at or why she felt so particularly furious. She just wanted to be angry.

“Fang Xiaoyu, you can’t scare me! Teacher Zhu has her own judgment; she won’t believe you just because you say something.” Nuo Fanxi spread her arms wide, firmly shielding Tang Mo. “I’ll say it one last time: stop pestering Momo, or I won’t be polite!”

Fang Xiaoyu knew that Nuo Fanxi and Tang Mo were almost joined at the hip. If she struck first and Tang Mo saw it, the teacher would definitely punish her. Originally, she was going to have her followers handle it, but then she had a better idea.

“Nuo Fanxi, aren’t you being too much? You’re allowed to be friends with Momo, but we aren’t?” Fang Xiaoyu poked Nuo Fanxi’s shoulder with her finger. “Actually, you’re the one with the hidden motives! Oh, I get it. You just see that Momo’s family is rich, so you’re using her so your parents can suck up to her parents, right?”

As soon as Fang Xiaoyu finished, her followers chimed in, saying even nastier things. The worst was their rumors about Nuo Fanxi’s family and her parents.

Children are especially sensitive about such things—even more so than adults. Nuo Fanxi couldn’t stand hearing them talk about her family and parents like that. She reached out and shoved Fang Xiaoyu.

Nuo Fanxi was simply too angry to hold back, but she hadn’t used much force. However, Fang Xiaoyu was more cunning than the average child. She let herself fall to the ground and immediately began to wail, playing the victim.

Her followers played their parts perfectly. As soon as she hit the ground, two of them ran off to find a teacher.

Seeing Fang Xiaoyu like this, Nuo Fanxi actually felt a bit of panic—the kind of panic one feels after doing something “bad.” She quickly stepped forward to help her up.

But Fang Xiaoyu wouldn’t let a chance to punish Nuo Fanxi slip away. She slapped Nuo Fanxi’s hand away and cried even louder.

Tang Mo had been shielded behind Nuo Fanxi and couldn’t see exactly what happened. Seeing Fang Xiaoyu on the ground, she subconsciously assumed Nuo Fanxi had pushed her hard. She started to panic as well. “Xixi, the teacher is coming. what do we do?”

She was worried Nuo Fanxi would be scolded, and even more worried that the teacher would tell her Godmother Wanqing. If that happened, Nuo Fanxi would definitely get a beating at home. She didn’t want Xixi to be hit.

“It’s okay, Momo. She was the one being mean first. Even if Teacher Zhu comes, it’s her fault!” Nuo Fanxi squeezed Tang Mo’s worried hand. “Don’t worry, I’ll explain everything clearly to Teacher Zhu.”

Fang Xiaoyu was crying with snot and tears. By the time the PE teacher arrived, her voice was raspy from wailing. At first glance, it was hard not to feel sorry for her.

“What happened? What happened? You’re classmates; why are you fighting?”

One of the followers piped up convincingly, “Teacher Wang, Nuo Fanxi hit her first. She pushed Xiaoyu to the ground.”

Teacher Wang hadn’t been there and could only rely on the other students’ accounts. She had no idea these kids were Fang Xiaoyu’s lackeys. Seeing Fang Xiaoyu crying so pitifully, she believed them instantly.

“Nuo Fanxi, didn’t the teachers tell you? No matter what happens, you cannot lay a hand on your classmates. Are you ignoring even Teacher Zhu’s words?”

Nuo Fanxi felt a wave of injustice and immediately argued back: “But Teacher Wang, Fang Xiaoyu said really mean things first! That’s why I pushed her! And I didn’t use much strength; I just gave her a little nudge.”

Teachers generally dislike students who talk back, especially at such a young age. “So, that means the other students aren’t lying. You did push Xiaoyu, didn’t you?”

The fact was right there. Nuo Fanxi couldn’t deny it, so she lowered her head.

Tang Mo wanted to speak up for her, but Nuo Fanxi had pushed the girl. She didn’t know how to explain it away, so she just held Nuo Fanxi’s hand tightly.

Teacher Wang helped Fang Xiaoyu up. After checking for injuries and finding none, she still felt the incident was a serious breach of conduct for her class. “Nuo Fanxi, come with me to Teacher Zhu’s office.”

Tang Mo finally mustered up her courage. “T-Teacher Wang, can you please not take Xixi to Teacher Zhu? Can Xixi just apologize to her instead?”

“No!”