Chapter Thirty-Nine: The Truth Revealed (Part Two)

The Legend of My Rebirth

"Xiao Qiang, how wonderful! Only today did I, Su Xin, realize that my deskmate is such an incredible person. I really misjudged you, I must be a fool to have been friends with a scoundrel like you!" Su Xin’s face was flushed with anger; from her expression, it seemed she truly wished she could devour me alive.

"Shameless? What exactly do you want to say?" Although I had no idea what Xia Jianren had said to Su Xin, I knew for certain it could not have been the truth. After a brief moment of thought, I furrowed my brow and spoke coldly, "What did Xia Jianren tell you to make you so furious?"

"Hmph! What, are you afraid now that your real face has been exposed? Let me tell you, Xiao Qiang, from today onward, we are no longer friends! I’ll tell the class teacher, and I never want to be your deskmate again!" As Su Xin spoke, tears as big as beans rolled down her lovely face, making her appear pitifully fragile.

"I have no idea what you're talking about! If you don't want to be my deskmate, fine. If you don't want to be my friend, that's alright too. But you must make yourself clear—you can't insult my character!" I had long anticipated this outcome: not being friends, not sharing a desk. Since Su Xin didn’t love me, there was no reason for me to continue suffering. But to be called a scoundrel, a wretch—how could I accept such words?

"Character? Ha... You’re still talking to me about character?" Su Xin laughed in anger, and her smile stabbed painfully at my heart. She wiped away her tears, took a deep breath, and with eyes full of hurt, said, "I never thought you’d be like the other boys, approaching me just because I’m pretty, just because I’m beautiful, only wanting to pursue me for the sake of showing off. I naively believed you genuinely wanted to be my friend, truly wanted to be with me..." At this point, her face flushed red, then turned to fury. "What do you think I am? Do you think I’m an object you can toss aside at will? You—you were afraid of Xia Jianren, and so you handed me to him? Because you were scared, you deliberately ignored me, distanced yourself from me? And what angers me most is that you said you were just playing with me? What kind of man are you, if not shameless?"

"Me? You think I would say such things?" Finally, I understood what had happened; rage consumed me, and I turned to glare fiercely at Xia Jianren in the distance, cursing him, "Bastard! Xia Jianren, you vile man, I told you I’d make you regret it. Just wait, just wait!!" Furious, I roared like a madman. In both my past and present life, I had never hated a man so much, never so desperately wanted to kill someone. I was wild with rage, eyes bloodshot, and I was about to charge at Xia Jianren, when Zhang Li frantically grabbed my arm, making me yell at him, "You wretch, you truly are vile. I’ll make you suffer, suffer terribly!"

My angry shouts drew the attention of everyone eating on the floor; they all turned to look at me and the stunned Xia Jianren. My wrathful voice, murderous gaze, made Xia Jianren tremble. He stared at me coldly, and perhaps afraid he couldn’t take me in a fight, he gritted his teeth and walked down the stairs under everyone’s gaze, disappearing.

"You... what are you doing, calm down..." Su Xin never expected her words would drive me to such madness. She was genuinely frightened, faced with a man whose expression was full of murderous intent. All her complaints and anger vanished, and feeling the disapproving stares of others, she gestured to Zhang Li, hoping he’d drag me away.

But when Zhang Li tried to pull me, I pushed him aside. With bloodshot eyes, I grabbed Su Xin’s hand and laughed bitterly, "So, this is how you see me. The words of others can sway you so easily. I have nothing more to say and won’t defend myself. If you believe what Xia Jianren said is true, then think whatever you wish! We don’t need to be friends anymore. Even if you don’t tell the class teacher, I’ll ask to change seats myself. Sorry, Miss Su, for making you sad, for troubling you! A shameless man like me isn’t fit to reason with you, but what about you? Were you ever sincere toward me? Don’t you think you’ve done something wrong?"

"Me? What did I do wrong?" Su Xin was stunned by my words, puzzled, "What do you mean I did something wrong?"

"Hmph, saying it now is meaningless, only making things more awkward. Fine, from today, you are you and I am me. Thank you for all your help these days; I, Xiao, am deeply grateful!" I cast a cold glance at Su Xin, too weary to explain further. What’s the use, really? What's done is done, and pursuing it only brings more sorrow. I had no reason to blame Su Xin, but Xia Jianren—I truly hated him. Just wait, his days will not be easy; I will not tolerate being insulted, especially in front of the woman I love most!

"Xiao Qiang, explain yourself before I leave. You said I was at fault—what did I do wrong?" Curiosity is often a woman’s nature, and my half-finished words had caught Su Xin’s attention. She forgot all her feminine restraint and demanded, "If you don’t make it clear today, I won’t go!"

I looked at Su Xin, pain filling my heart, and laughed bitterly, "Alright, since you want to know, I’ll tell you!" Today, I had nothing left to lose. If she wanted everything said, so be it. I straightened up, my tone icy, "Su Xin, I admit you are outstanding, beautiful, and from the moment I saw you, I liked you."

As soon as I spoke, Su Xin’s face turned crimson; perhaps because Zhang Li and Wang Lili were nearby, she felt so embarrassed she dropped her gaze.

"But I, Xiao Qiang, swear to heaven: the girl I love, I will never give up, never let her be hurt. That Friday after school, I was beaten badly—really badly. If not for a kind soul, perhaps I would have ended up in the hospital, just as Xia Jianren claimed. It’s simple: Xia Jianren wanted me to leave the girl I love, the girl I always wanted to protect. Alas, you underestimated me, Xiao Qiang. If I truly wanted to leave you, would Xia Jianren have needed to beat me? If I had said those things, would he still need to hit me? When you questioned me with those words, I was truly heartbroken, because I realized that in the heart of the girl I love, I am seen as such a person..." My face grew pale as I spoke, and I smiled bitterly, "I was so foolish, truly foolish. Even though I was beaten like a dog, it didn’t hurt at all, because to protect the girl in my heart, any pain or hardship is worthwhile, even happiness."

At this, Zhang Li patted my shoulder, his eyes filled with admiration and sympathy. Meanwhile, Su Xin's face, once shy, now transformed fully into guilt and shame. She finally realized how right I was, and that what Xia Jianren said had made no sense. Yet she had, without distinguishing truth from lies, slapped me. How could she not feel remorse?

ps: A friend’s book is recommended—King of Kings. Link on the page.