A couple of people surrounded Xie Qiao at the moment.
âYou lost the jade? How did you lose it!?â Xie Qiao did not hide it when someone asked. However, she did not say that it was stolen.
It would be embarrassing if the news of the jade being stolen from Xie Pinghuaiâs courtyard spread.
The outsiders would only make fun of them. They would not help to look for the jade.
âMy younger brother was rather reckless. He placed it somewhere casually and lost it,â Xie Qiao said calmly.
âThatâs too reckless. You can even make the dean your master with that piece of jadeâ¦â Those outsiders could not help but feel pain. They looked at Xie Qiao with sympathy.
Xie Qiao had put in a great effort to win that thing. She had even fainted for it. Now that she had lost it, she must be feeling terrible.
Since finding out that Xie Qiao was weak, their hostility had decreased significantly.
At that moment, someone could not help but comfort, âForget it since youâve already lost it. Itâs just a piece of jade. Your brother isnât exactly smart. Even if he got himself a master, I suppose thereâs nothing that will change. Donât be sad.â
Xie Qiaoâs eyelids twitched.
She felt humiliated.
âThatâs right. If Second Young Master Xie got himself a master, he might be even more spoiled in the future. I think itâs pretty great now. Thereâs no need to worry that he would show off the piece of jade whenever he goes,â someone else said.
âThat makes sense. Think about it. There are so many talented people in the academy. Many talented ones canât even get themselves a master even if they want to. If Xie Pinghuai, that good-for-nothing, got himself a master, I wonder how many people would be annoyed by thatâ¦â
Xie Qiao frowned.
These people did not seem to realize how inappropriate their words were. It proved how bad Xie Pinghuaiâs reputation was.
âI didnât say that Iâm upset,â Xie Qiao said calmly. There was a faint glint of coldness in her eyes.
The few of them were stunned.
âYou must be upset, right? Isnât it a no-brainer?â
âYou guys asked about the white jade, so I explained. Iâve never said how important it was to lose it. My family isnât that poor. It wasnât some rare treasure. Do you want me to cry over it? Also, Iâve received all of your kindness, but I donât like what you guys said. Xie Pinghuai is my brother. I can say that heâs terrible, but others canât.â Xie Qiao added, âPlease move. You are blocking the sunlight.â
What she said rendered everyone speechless.
When they had been speaking, they had never considered Xie Qiao and Xie Pinghuaiâs relationship as siblings.
They only thought that that kid was too mischievous. That was why they had said all that.
Never had they thought Xie Qiao would be angry now.
âYouâre taking our kindness for granted!â Xia Yayun scoffed. âThatâs what your brother is, and youâre worried about what people say about him? You said he lost the thing, but maybe he secretly pawned it! Who doesnât know that your brother is playful and addicted to gambling?â
Xie Qiao lifted her head, revealing her cold eyes.
Xia Yayun glared at her, unwilling to be outdone. âDid I say anything wrong? You wimp!â
A splash was heard. Xie Qiao picked up the ink that she had just ground and splashed it at her. âYour mouth is filthy. You should clean it.â
âAhhhâ¦â Xia Yayun screamed.
A blotch of black was added to her clean, white clothing. Her face was dripping with ink as well.
Xie Qiao smirked slightly and looked at her with extra warmth. âSee, youâre prettier now. Do you know why?
âBecause black can cover the disgusting and filthy person that you are. Youâre annoying and donât know when to quit. Youâre irritating.â
Everyone was looking at her.
So this wasâ¦
The weak body with few years to live that the imperial doctor had told them about? It did not look like it⦠Xie Qiao and Xia Yayun were standing rather far away from each other, but she had splashed the ink on Xia Yayunâs face, wasting not a single drop of ink!?