After Biting the Female Lead, the Vicious Female Supporting Character Turned Alpha [Transmigration] - Chapter 20: 020

What were Jiang Xuenian and Shi Qingfan doing?

They were collaboratively demonstrating that Jiang Xuenian could write in the exact same handwriting as Shi Qingfan.

After writing on the board, Jiang Xuenian and Shi Qingfan stood to the side.

Jiang Xuenian whispered to Shi Qingfan, “Why aren’t you surprised at all?”

Shi Qingfan’s light brown eyes shimmered faintly. “I just guessed.”

She hadn’t expected Jiang Xuenian to remember this all along, to continue practicing her handwriting even after losing her memory, trying to prove that the note was written by her impersonating Shi Qingfan.

Jiang Xuenian curled her red lips. “How’s the surprise I prepared for you?”

Shi Qingfan glanced at Jiang Xuenian, her ink-black eyes meeting Jiang Xuenian’s starlit ones. She quickly lowered her gaze, her fingertips, hanging at her side, unconsciously scratching the fabric of her clothes.

“Very good.”

Unexpectedly good.

What Gong Linglang said seemed to be true; Jiang Xuenian really seemed to like her…

After Jiang Xuenian and Shi Qingfan moved aside, Tan Ying said, “Class, what did you notice about these four board writings?”

Yin Yan immediately raised his hand and loudly exclaimed, “Teacher Tan, I found it! Jiang Xuenian’s handwriting is exactly the same as Shi Qingfan’s!”

Others nodded in agreement. “It’s so magical, truly identical. It’s hard for me to find any difference.”

Gong Linglang sat bolt upright, arms crossed, thinking to herself: See? Jiang Xuenian has indeed started to clear her name. Now is the final step of her scheme; she wants to be Shi Qingfan’s redeemer, and there’s no better way than to clear Shi Qingfan’s suspicions!

A mocking smile hung on Gong Linglang’s lips. Did Jiang Xuenian think she was very smart? She had already told Shi Qingfan about Jiang Xuenian’s scheme last night. Today, no matter what she did, Shi Qingfan wouldn’t fall for it again.

After the students below the podium had observed the board writings performed in public by the two, Tan Ying took out the note that “Jiang Xuenian” had used to frame Shi Qingfan last time and put it on the projector. “This note was, at the time, used as evidence that Shi Qingfan had assisted Gong Linglang in cheating because the handwriting on it was Shi Qingfan’s.”

“Last night, Jiang Xuenian came to me and told me that this note was actually written by her imitating Shi Qingfan’s handwriting. When I heard her, I naturally didn’t believe it, after all, even handwriting experts couldn’t identify it. However, she took out a piece of paper and, lowering her head, wrote exactly the same handwriting as on that note, not a single difference.”

“The truth is very clear now. The note that was used as evidence back then was indeed written by Jiang Xuenian imitating Shi Qingfan. Jiang Xuenian never voluntarily presented this note as evidence and has always been dedicated to clearing Shi Qingfan’s name. Even after losing her memory, after seeing the truth in her diary, she still didn’t give up. Every day, she would set aside time to practice Shi Qingfan’s handwriting, just to prove that the note was not written by Shi Qingfan, but by her.”

“As for why Jiang Xuenian reported Shi Qingfan for assisting Gong Linglang in cheating before her memory loss, Jiang Xuenian no longer remembers. I think it might be that she saw it wrong or misunderstood something.”

“Student Jiang Xuenian has made mistakes in the past, but her nature is not bad, and she is willing to correct her mistakes. I believe she will certainly not do anything drastic again in the future.”

“After an urgent discussion with the school leaders, the school decided to reinstate Shi Qingfan’s eligibility for scholarship selection and outstanding student awards. Shi Qingfan has forgiven Jiang Xuenian, and I hope all of you students can also let go of past grievances. From now on, Class Three will still be a loving family.”

The podium fell silent for a moment, and everyone simultaneously looked at Shi Qingfan.

Shi Qingfan said, “I have always trusted my intuition. Jiang Xuenian is someone worth befriending.”

After speaking, she looked at Jiang Xuenian. Jiang Xuenian’s lips curved, and a small mole on the tip of her nose made her smile look exceptionally beautiful.

“Clap clap clap clap clap clap—” Yin Yan stood up and clapped forcefully. “Jiang Xuenian, well done! To great is human, to forgive divine. I believe in you too!”

After spending time together, the others no longer disliked Jiang Xuenian as much as before.

With someone leading the way, they immediately followed suit and clapped.

Gong Linglang stared at Jiang Xuenian’s smiling face and half-heartedly clapped twice.

Laugh now, Qingfan already knows your intentions. Laugh to your heart’s content while you still can.

The bell for the end of class rang, and the class meeting concluded smoothly.

As soon as Tan Ying left the classroom, a group of people surrounded Jiang Xuenian, asking questions all at once.

“Jiang Xuenian, why did you frame the class monitor in the first place? Was it a prank?”

Jiang Xuenian helplessly spread her hands. “I really don’t remember after losing my memory.”

“Don’t you have a diary? Wasn’t it written in your diary?”

“The reason wasn’t written in the diary, and I accidentally spilled something on it when I left it on the table, and all the writing disappeared. I didn’t even have a chance to reread it to confirm.”

“Aren’t you blessed with photographic memory? You must remember what you read the first time.”

“Oh, right, Jiang Xuenian has photographic memory. Ahhh, I’m so envious. Is this compensation for losing her memory?”

Jiang Xuenian was torn between laughter and tears by everyone’s wild theories. “I don’t know where the photographic memory came from. I don’t remember anything from before.”

While Jiang Xuenian was enjoying herself, Gong Linglang sat down next to Shi Qingfan and found her staring blankly at Jiang Xuenian’s side.

Gong Linglang felt a pang of sympathy.

Jiang Xuenian was truly shameless. Everything was her fault, and even if she proved Shi Qingfan’s innocence, there was no need for a crowd of people to praise her. Shi Qingfan must be feeling so sad watching this.

“Qingfan, believe me, Jiang Xuenian won’t be able to keep up the act for long. When she reveals her true colors, I’ll make sure she changes classes, and the students in Class Three won’t bother with her anymore.”

Shi Qingfan was jolted back to reality by the buzzing sound in her ears. She saw Gong Linglang sitting next to her and asked in confusion, “Linglang, why did you come over?”

Gong Linglang looked at Shi Qingfan with concern and said, “Everyone is gathered around Jiang Xuenian. If I didn’t come over to be with you, you’d definitely feel terrible.”

“Terrible? I don’t feel terrible at all.” Not only was Shi Qingfan not upset, she was quite happy.

Gong Linglang thought Shi Qingfan was putting on a brave face.

Her childhood friend had always preferred to bear her pain alone; no one could be more resilient than her.

This made Gong Linglang determined to completely crush Jiang Xuenian’s scheme.

At this moment, Jiang Xuenian suddenly turned her head to look at Shi Qingfan. Seeing that Shi Qingfan was also looking at her, Jiang Xuenian couldn’t help but smile and form a large heart with her arms above her head.

Gong Linglang was about to say that Jiang Xuenian was shameless when Shi Qingfan’s icy, snow-like face suddenly thawed with a spring breeze, and a gentle smile spread from the corners of her eyes.

She, she smiled?

Gong Linglang stared blankly at Shi Qingfan.

It’s okay to smile, but why are you smiling at Jiang Xuenian???

Gong Linglang snapped back to reality and rolled her eyes at Jiang Xuenian. She wanted to pull Shi Qingfan’s arm to make her turn away from Jiang Xuenian, but remembered that Shi Qingfan didn’t like being touched, so she quickly stopped and could only try to persuade her with words.

“Qingfan, didn’t I tell you yesterday that everything was Jiang Xuenian’s scheme? She’s doing all this just to get you. Don’t be fooled by her seemingly innocent smile!”

“Linglang, you misunderstand Jiang Xuenian too deeply,” Shi Qingfan said seriously, turning back to her.

Gong Linglang was her best friend since childhood, and Jiang Xuenian was someone who liked her, and she also… had a good impression of Jiang Xuenian. Shi Qingfan didn’t want any misunderstandings between them.

Gong Linglang sighed deeply. “I thought you listened to what I said yesterday and wouldn’t be fooled by her today. Forget it, until Jiang Xuenian reveals her true colors, whatever I say to you is useless. Just wait, I’ll definitely make Jiang Xuenian show her true face in front of you.”

After hearing Gong Linglang, Shi Qingfan wondered how she could make Gong Linglang believe that this *was* Jiang Xuenian’s true face.

Gong Linglang’s efforts were in vain, and that evening she complained to her two childhood friends in the dorm.

Gong Linglang: Qingfan seems to be under Jiang Xuenian’s spell; she won’t listen to anything I say. I’m really out of options, Tangtang, please come quickly T_T.

Tang Xiuran: I’m coming, I’m coming! I’ll be there in a week! Don’t worry, I’ll fight alongside you then and expose Jiang Xuenian’s true colors to Qingfan!

Tang Xiuran and Jiang Feichen’s descriptions of Jiang Xuenian all came from Gong Linglang. Gong Linglang’s views on Jiang Xuenian were biased, naturally leading the two of them to also have a bad impression of Jiang Xuenian.

Knowing that she couldn’t persuade Shi Qingfan, Gong Linglang stopped making futile efforts that week and watched as Shi Qingfan and Jiang Xuenian grew closer and closer.

A week later, Jiang Xuenian, Shi Qingfan, and Meng Baichun, led by Xu Jie, went to Bin City Library to participate in the city-wide league.

There are five ordinary schools in Bin City: St. Lyceum Academy, Raymond Academy, Mingxin Military Affiliated School, Bin City First Academy, and Bin City Second Academy.

The city-wide league lasts for three days and is a team event. Only if the combined scores of the three participants are high enough can they advance.

Day one is five into three, day two is three into two, and the last day sees two schools compete for the championship.

The participants in the competition are all elites from their respective schools, most of whom have been looked up to since childhood, making them inevitably proud.

These chosen few adopt an arrogant “you’re not good enough” attitude towards everyone, but they show some restraint when they see Shi Qingfan.

No other reason, they were completely and powerlessly defeated by Shi Qingfan every year they participated in the city-wide league.

Shi Qingfan’s intelligence was exceptional, a god-like existence that even the chosen few looked up to.

The event organizers prepared five-star hotels around Bin City Library for the participating students. These students, regardless of their future gender differentiation, would be elites of the alliance.

Xu Jie led the three students to the designated hotel to drop off their luggage, then went to the library to report.

The official competition was set to begin the next morning.

The event organizers arranged special buses to transport them between the hotel and the library. Jiang Xuenian and her three companions left the hotel and boarded the bus, finding four people already seated inside.

Two boys, one girl, plus a female teacher.

Xu Jie immediately went over to greet the female teacher, and Jiang Xuenian and the other two found seats.

Listening to Xu Jie and the female teacher’s conversation, they were from Mingxin Military Affiliated School.

There were three seats in a row; Meng Baichun sat on the inside, Shi Qingfan in the middle, and Jiang Xuenian next to the aisle.

The three from Mingxin Military Affiliated School sat on the other side, separated by a narrow aisle.

Soon after they boarded, the bus started moving.

The hotel was about a twenty-minute drive from Bin City Library. On the way, Jiang Xuenian was bored and spaced out when she suddenly heard the people from Mingxin Military Affiliated School next to her whispering.

Their voices were low and muffled, but Jiang Xuenian had sharp ears and good hearing, and they were only across the aisle from her. She could hear them clearly from her seat.

Qiao Feixiang: “Is St. Lyceum out of people? Why is only Shi Qingfan so impressive? The other two I’ve never even seen; they’re definitely dead weight.”

Bai Yeyu: “I’ve heard of Meng Baichun; her liberal arts are pretty good. The city-wide league used to lean towards science, so she probably didn’t have a chance to come. That ‘Jiang Xuenian’ person is really unheard of.”

Dai Hongbo: “I know! Before coming, after I received the list, I asked my relative at St. Lyceum Academy to look her up for me. Guess what? Jiang Xuenian’s academic performance is super bad, but it’s said that her family background is exceptionally good, and she got into the top three because she received the answers in advance.”

Qiao Feixiang: “No way, for the sake of school honor, are St. Lyceum’s school leaders that bold?”

Dai Hongbo: “Absolutely true! There’s a student named Luo Yue in their school whose grades are very good and stable, but she was eliminated in the city-wide league semi-finals because Jiang Xuenian scored one point higher than her. It’s really pitiful.”

Jiang Xuenian: “…”

Is it really okay to badmouth someone right in front of them?

And how did the Luo Yue incident spread to other schools?

Dai Hongbo: “I also heard that this Jiang Xuenian has a bad relationship with Shi Qingfan. She once framed Shi Qingfan, and it was successful, costing Shi Qingfan this semester’s scholarship and outstanding student award.”

Bai Yeyu: “Wow, what a truly brave person, daring to offend Shi Qingfan. She must be tired of living.”

Dai Hongbo: “I also heard…”

“Excuse me, classmate, rumors are unreliable. If you want to know anything, just ask me directly, and I’ll tell you what I can,” Jiang Xuenian said, turning her head with a smile.

“…”

“…”

“…”

After a moment of silence, Dai Hongbo, who was next to the aisle, proudly lifted his chin and asked, “Then tell us, what exactly happened?”

He showed no embarrassment at all about being caught.

Anyway, Jiang Xuenian and Shi Qingfan had a bad relationship, so Shi Qingfan definitely wouldn’t care. What did it matter if they offended Jiang Xuenian? Could Jiang Xuenian possibly have the same strength as Shi Qingfan to embarrass them in the competition?

Shi Qingfan and Meng Baichun, sitting further inside, could only hear a buzzing sound. They thought the Mingxin Military Affiliated School students were discussing tomorrow’s competition. When Jiang Xuenian suddenly spoke, they realized they must be discussing St. Lyceum.

Shi Qingfan sat up straight and turned her head to ask, “What happened?” Her voice was cool and indifferent, her light brown eyes containing cold ice and snow.

Dai Hongbo and the two other students felt a moment of guilt, but then they suddenly remembered that Jiang Xuenian had once framed Shi Qingfan, and their relationship was bad. Even if Shi Qingfan knew, she might not help Jiang Xuenian.

Dai Hongbo said, “We were just discussing some gossip we heard about Jiang Xuenian, nothing else…”

Qiao Feixiang: “Exactly, we didn’t say anything bad. The information all came from St. Lyceum, we were just gossiping privately.”

Bai Yeyu saw Shi Qingfan’s impending storm-like expression, and her female intuition told her that something was wrong. It was best not to say too much at this point.

Shi Qingfan said indifferently, “Jiang Xuenian represents St. Lyceum. We are all students of St. Lyceum. Insulting Jiang Xuenian is equivalent to insulting St. Lyceum, and insulting St. Lyceum is insulting my alma mater.”

Dai Hongbo and Qiao Feixiang from Mingxin Military Affiliated School clamped their lips shut, guiltily shifting their gaze and remaining silent.

Bai Yeyu covered her rapidly pounding chest and thought, “What a relief.”

Shi Qingfan’s retaliation never affected innocent bystanders. Since she hadn’t said anything just now, she probably wouldn’t be remembered.

Xu Jie and Mingxin Military Affiliated School’s team leader, Li Ye, sat further forward. At first, when she heard Jiang Xuenian’s voice, she thought they were having a friendly chat. When Shi Qingfan’s voice rang out, Li Ye’s heart sank: Shi Qingfan’s tone was so cold, there must be a problem.

It wasn’t her first time leading a team to the city-wide league. The first time she encountered Shi Qingfan, the students from Mingxin Military Affiliated School spoke carelessly and offended Shi Qingfan. Other schools that hadn’t provoked Shi Qingfan lost gracefully, but only her school was utterly defeated by Shi Qingfan in the competition, achieving the worst record in the history of the city-wide league. It was incredibly embarrassing.

Since then, the name “Shi Qingfan” was added to Mingxin Military Affiliated School’s list of key concerns.

This list wasn’t for students to surpass Shi Qingfan—that was simply impossible—but to remind participating students not to provoke Shi Qingfan.

“Bai Yeyu, what’s wrong with you all?” Li Ye turned around and asked.

Bai Yeyu, the only girl from Mingxin Military Affiliated School, hesitated but still didn’t speak.

Li Ye immediately knew this was a sign of guilt. Without thinking, they must have said or done something wrong and been caught by Shi Qingfan.

In front of anyone other than Shi Qingfan, they were always haughty, upholding the belief that “scholars disdain each other,” looking down on everyone. They were never as timid as they were now.

Li Ye quickly pleaded with Xu Jie, “These few students from our school are young and don’t know any better, Director Xu. I’ll make them apologize later. Please, you must try to persuade Shi Qingfan.”

Xu Jie said with difficulty, “You know Shi Qingfan’s temper; it’s hard for me to persuade her too.”

“How about we figure out what happened first? That way, we can think of a solution, right?”

Li Ye wanted to pound her own students into the ground. Just then, the bus stopped at a red light. She stood up, walked to the row in front of Dai Hongbo, sat down, turned around, and asked Dai Hongbo with a serious expression, “What did you say just now? Repeat it to me, Teacher.”

Dai Hongbo was the most interested in gossip, but now that he was asked, he couldn’t utter a single word.

Li Ye’s facial muscles twitched with anger. She asked Qiao Feixiang, “Qiao Feixiang, I’ll give you two choices: speak, or all three of you go straight back home. It’s not too late for me to choose other people to participate in the city-wide league.”

If these three who offended Shi Qingfan participated in the competition, Mingxin Military Affiliated School would definitely become this year’s laughing stock after the city-wide league.

Qiao Feixiang finally realized the seriousness of the situation. Cold sweat trickled down his forehead as he said, “We, we just chatted about some gossip about Jiang Xuenian, nothing else…”

Li Ye breathed a slight sigh of relief upon hearing that it had nothing to do with Shi Qingfan.

Xu Jie, sitting in the front, raised an eyebrow in surprise.

This was even worse than directly offending Shi Qingfan.

Xu Jie had taught Jiang Xuenian and Shi Qingfan for a week and had a pretty good understanding of their personalities.

Jiang Xuenian truly had a good temper, was easy to talk to, and treated people with sincerity. When there were disputes, she liked to reason, and her sweet words were like honey.

Xu Jie once heard Jiang Xuenian praise Shi Qingfan, and thankfully Shi Qingfan had good composure; if she had heard Jiang Xuenian’s sincere rainbow compliments, she probably would have been so happy she wouldn’t know which way was up.

Shi Qingfan possessed stunning beauty and often appeared very cold. She was even colder towards people she disliked, but towards people she liked, her coldness was just a thin outer layer; inside, she was as warm as Jiang Xuenian.

Two warm souls meeting, both equally outstanding, naturally became friends.

Shi Qingfan cared about Jiang Xuenian more than expected; Jiang Xuenian was one of the few people Shi Qingfan included in her protective circle.

Xu Jie turned around and sat properly, deciding to pretend she saw nothing and knew nothing.

If they offended Shi Qingfan, she could still try to mediate, but offending Jiang Xuenian… Mingxin Military Affiliated School, good luck in the city-wide league!

Li Ye, believing she had found the root of the problem, immediately told Dai Hongbo, Qiao Feixiang, and Bai Yeyu, “Discussing others’ affairs face to face, where is your upbringing? Apologize to student Jiang Xuenian at once!”

Dai Hongbo respected no one but Shi Qingfan, but he still had to give Li Ye some face.

“Sorry.” His attitude was extremely flippant.

Qiao Feixiang lowered his head and quickly mumbled, “Sorry.”

Bai Yeyu was more sensitive and had been paying attention to Shi Qingfan’s expression. She noticed that Shi Qingfan frowned with dissatisfaction when Dai Hongbo and Qiao Feixiang apologized. Her heart tightened, and she immediately corrected her attitude, seriously apologizing to Jiang Xuenian, “Classmate Jiang Xuenian, I’m sorry. I now fully realize my mistake, and I deeply regret that my words and actions caused you harm.” She then promised to actively correct herself in the future and never speak ill of others again.

Jiang Xuenian hadn’t spoken when Dai Hongbo and Qiao Feixiang apologized, but after Bai Yeyu apologized, Jiang Xuenian said, “It’s alright.”

Li Ye breathed a sigh of relief, thinking the matter was resolved. She returned to her seat, wiped the sweat from her forehead, and said to Xu Jie, “Director Xu, your school’s Shi Qingfan has a very strong presence. Even when she’s just sitting there not speaking, I break out in a sweat. How do you cultivate that? Can you share some tips with me?” She chuckled and joked with Xu Jie.

Xu Jie said, “Shi Qingfan is a natural talent; it has little to do with our St. Lyceum. Let me tell you, Director Li, a student as exceptionally outstanding as Shi Qingfan will be excellent wherever she goes. Her environment can’t affect her, and nothing can affect her.”

Li Ye had been in school for so many years and had seen thousands of students. Although none were as outstanding as Shi Qingfan, most were like Shi Qingfan, naturally excellent and unaffected by external factors, so she nodded in agreement.

About ten minutes later, the bus arrived at Bin City Library.

The students from both schools registered separately, then took the bus back to the hotel to rest and prepare for tomorrow’s official competition.

The next day, fifteen students from the five ordinary schools took the bus to Bin City Library, entered the third floor, and sat down at their respective spots. The team leaders stood by, observing the competition.

On the first day of the competition, five became three, meaning two schools and six students would be sent home directly.

The competition used a point system. After the five ordinary schools competed against each other, the top three schools by points automatically advanced.

Before the competition, the order of each school’s competition was determined by drawing lots.

The five academies would definitely compete against students from the other four schools once, but competing against strong schools first could undermine confidence, while competing against weaker schools could boost confidence, which greatly impacted subsequent matches.

For the first match, no one wanted to face St. Lyceum, with Shi Qingfan in their ranks.

Jiang Xuenian represented St. Lyceum in drawing lots. “Number two.”

Dai Hongbo of Mingxin Military Affiliated School held the same “Number two” lot, his hand trembling, almost dropping the lot.