1990s: Spring Water Family

Chapter 96 The Dragon Bed, Provincial Top Scholar
"Who are you people, spouting nonsense? My niece is innocent and pure. When did she ever seduce someone else's husband?"

My uncle got angry too. This usually mild-mannered and kind-hearted man was also provoked by the malicious slander.

He and his cousin rushed over one after the other, and with a forceful push, they knocked one of them to the ground.

Lin Xiyu panicked for only a second. In the instant the five people rushed over, her body's instinctive reaction made her subconsciously raise her arm to protect her face.

Sure enough, the next second, my arm was scratched by sharp nails, and it stung painfully.

The woman who was picking a fight had a very clear purpose: to disfigure her.

"What kind of person is your husband? Does he even deserve to be seduced by me?"

Lin Xiyu was furious. She tripped one of the women, then grabbed the other woman's wrist and threw her over her shoulder.

Her cousin and uncle took care of two people for her. When the last one was left, she didn't have time to react before the man grabbed her shirt and ripped it hard.

"Tear."

Her sleeve was torn, revealing her snow-white shoulders.

"Snapped."

Enraged, Lin Xiyu slapped the woman hard across the face.

"Someone's been assaulted! The mistress has assaulted someone!"

The woman was a shrew; when she was beaten one by one, she went completely mad, lying down on the ground and rolling around in a rage.

"It was you who hit."

My cousin roared and pounced on her, pinning her to the ground and beating her mercilessly.

Lin Xiyu covered for her cousin and kicked another woman, who had just gotten up from the ground, flying away.

-

"what happened?"

"What's the matter?"

Why did they start fighting?

Inside the sporting goods store, the three people who had been keeping an eye on the commotion outside all changed their expressions upon hearing the unusual noise.

Gu Bin was the first to rush out of the store, struggling to push through the crowded people.

"Give way, give way."

Wang Fan followed closely behind, furious: "Get the hell out of my way!"

"What are you looking at? Is there anything interesting to see?"

Liu Ye roared back, angrily pushing aside the person blocking his way.

There were too many onlookers, making it extremely crowded. By the time the three of them managed to squeeze through the crowd, the fight had basically ended.

The five women who had started the fight all collapsed to the ground, disheveled and bruised.

Lin Xiyu's arm was injured, leaving several clear scratch marks on her fair skin.

My cousin is incredibly brave; she took on two men single-handedly without sustaining any injuries.

The uncle was too embarrassed to hit a woman, so when he was shielding his niece, a woman slashed his neck, drawing blood. He was the most seriously injured of the three—uncle, niece, and uncle.

-

"Call the police and arrest them all."

Wang Fan's face turned ashen: "A bunch of shrewish women, daring to cause trouble on my turf, are they tired of living?"

Gu Bin's expression turned cold: "This matter must be thoroughly investigated. I want to see who is behind this."

"Open your dog eyes and look carefully."

Liu Ye also felt humiliated and angrily kicked the woman who claimed to have seduced his husband, mercilessly mocking, "Her boyfriend is right here. What is your husband? He's nothing in front of my brother."

"That's right, I am Xiyu's boyfriend."

Gu Bin took the opportunity to pull Lin Xiyu into his arms, using his actions to vindicate her.

The wind direction changed in an instant, causing an uproar at the scene, with some people excitedly whistling.

Those who had initially harbored doubts and mistakenly believed the rumors about a mistress now wore relieved smiles.

-

As the sirens grew louder, and amidst the jeers of the onlookers who had just witnessed a good show, all five women were taken to the police station for questioning.

As expected, they were acting under someone's instructions to maliciously slander others.

Their purpose is self-evident: to ruin Lin Xiyu's reputation and destroy her fame.

As for the mastermind behind the scenes, the police officers handling the case were quite shocked when they heard the name of a certain lady.

Gu Bin didn't make things difficult for him; once he learned the truth, he left the police station with his men.

However, this matter did not end there.

Not long after, when the woman's husband was exposed for accepting bribes and committed suicide by jumping off a building, causing a public uproar, the following conversation took place in a courtyard house on Wangfuchi West Street.

"Xiaobin, tell your grandfather the truth, what's the deal with the dragon bed? Did you do it?"

"I just had someone spread the word that it was a dragon bed that the emperor slept on during the Ming Dynasty, and that it had some mysterious mysteries that were hard to explain. Whoever owned it would have a smooth career and rise to the top. If he hadn't been greedy and hadn't wanted to take the dragon bed for himself, he wouldn't have ended up like this."

"Was that letter written by you? Don't try to fool your grandfather. No one else has seen your left-handed handwriting, but your sixth grandfather certainly has. If he hadn't told me about it, I wouldn't have believed that it was related to you."

“I admit that the letter was sent to my sixth grandfather. My sixth grandfather hates these kinds of things the most. Knowing that someone has accepted a dragon bed worth 10 yuan against their conscience, how could he remain indifferent and let them do whatever they want?”

"Xiaobin, you're only eighteen and you already have such a cunning mind. I'm wondering if I was wrong to raise you like that from such a young age. Your intelligence is terrifying to think about. If you use it in the right way, you'll have a bright future, but if you go astray..."

"I will not join the military or politics, and I have no intention of harming the world. As for some people who are blind to my own faults and provoke me, I am not a pushover and will not let them do whatever they want to me."

"Sigh, let's leave it at that. That man is dead. His wife and daughter were just ignorant women. Your mother will arrange for them to go abroad, which can be considered as making up for the many years of affection."

"Going abroad is fine, as long as they don't bother Xiyu again, I don't mind letting them off the hook."

"If you don't want to go into politics, that's fine. Grandpa has come to terms with it. You can't force things. From now on, just live your life according to your own wishes."

"Thank you, Grandpa. I will. I won't let you regret the decision you've made."

"Okay, I'm relieved to hear that."

-

Lin Xiyu was unaware that Gu Bin had used his grandmother's antique bed to set a trap and avenge himself.

Filming of the series continued as usual. With Zhang Xiaoqian abroad and free from worries, the atmosphere on the production team was more harmonious than ever before.

She lives a very fulfilling life, going to the night market to earn some extra money after filming. Her life couldn't be more comfortable.

Time flies, and the end of the month is here in the blink of an eye. The college entrance examination results have been released, bringing joy to some and sorrow to others.

On the day the results were announced, Lin Xiyu received a phone call from her homeroom teacher.

In this year's college entrance examination in SD province, the full score was 660 points. She scored 583 points, and with the 20-point bonus for children of martyrs, her total score was 603 points.

Her homeroom teacher was very happy and told her that she had a good chance of getting into her first choice, East China Normal University.

The whole family was overjoyed to hear the good news.

On the day she returned to school to pick up her report card, the "Spring Water Family" program crew accompanied her to the school for an on-site interview.

-

At the main gate of No. 1 Middle School, a festive red banner was hung, with large gold characters that read, "Warmly celebrate Gu Bin, a graduate of our school's Class of '93, who won the provincial top score of 652."

"Gu Bin is the top scorer in the province!!!"

"652, that's awesome."

"It's a pity that he didn't apply to Peking University or Tsinghua University when he had such good grades."

"Fudan University is great too. If I can get into Fudan, my family's ancestral graves will be emitting auspicious smoke."

“That’s you. Gu Bin is different. I always thought he would go to Tsinghua University and become a high-ranking official like his grandfather. What kind of family background does he have?

"What does becoming an official have to do with going to Tsinghua University?" "Are you stupid? Didn't you see in the TV series that Tsinghua University is the old Whampoa Military Academy? When it comes to the appointment and promotion of cadres, Tsinghua University is definitely number one."

"Perhaps they don't want to be officials; they want to go into business and make a lot of money."

"What's the point of going into business? Even if you make a few million, you're still like a grandson in front of officials. These days, power equals money."

"Not necessarily. There are still many upright officials. Throughout Chinese history, there has never been a shortage of honest officials who are famous for their integrity."

"That's history. Was Liu Luoguo really an honest official? Have you ever been to ancient times? Have you witnessed it with your own eyes? History is just hearsay. Whether this person even existed is still uncertain."

"You talk like you know everything. You just watched a TV series, memorized a few lines, and think you're something special, spouting nonsense here."

"I don't know if Liu Luoguo is an honest official, but I do know that if you become an official, you probably won't be a good one."

"That's right. Maybe he'll end up like Zhang Xiaoqian's father, with wicked intentions, and won't have a good ending."

"You little brat, you deserve a beating for comparing me to him."

"So what if I said it? What can you do to me?"

"Alright, that's enough, the TV station people are here."

"Shut up, everyone, don't let people laugh at you."

At the school gate, a group of graduates in school uniforms gathered, ready to take photos to commemorate the occasion, chatting happily.

"What are you students talking about? Would you be interested in sharing your grand ambitions with the viewers at home?"

Li Yan's eyes lit up, and she smiled as she squeezed in with the microphone in hand.

"I'm not talking anymore, I'm not talking anymore."

They were having a great time chatting, but the group of classmates who were just talking animatedly suddenly became timid when they saw the camera and scattered like birds and beasts.

"Hey, hey, don't run away!"

Li Yan reached out and grabbed a boy, about to ask him a question, when she saw his ears turn red and he forcefully pulled his hand away from hers.

"Hey, they're all running away faster than rabbits."

The cameraman chuckled and teased, "Your charm isn't working. That innocent high school boy isn't buying it."

"Screw you."

Li Yan rolled her eyes at him, annoyed.

"Sister Yan, all my classmates are waiting to be interviewed by you."

Lin Xiyu was also wearing a summer school uniform, with her hair in a ponytail, exuding a youthful and vibrant aura.

“When we were climbing Mount Tai, I told them, as Sister Yan said, that everyone would have the opportunity to make a cameo appearance in the documentary. They were all very happy and had been waiting for this day for a long time.”

"Xi Yu is so much better, unlike some people who just know how to annoy me."

Li Yan was at ease, affectionately taking her arm and walking with her into the campus.

"hey-hey."

The cameraman chuckled, hoisted his camera onto his shoulder, and followed behind.

-

In a corner of the campus, Wu Meng looked at her report card, feeling very down.

"Mengmeng, what's wrong? Did you cry?"

Hearing the faint sobbing, Lin Xiyu's heart skipped a beat. She let go of Li Yan's arm and ran towards her.

"hateful."

Wu Meng choked up as she complained, "The male students at the Public Security University only need 530 points, but the female students need 580 points. It's infuriating! It's so unfair!"

"How many points did you get on the test?"

Lin Xiyu glanced at the report card in her hand, her eyes darkening.

543 points!
The difference between Wu Meng's and Wu Meng's usual grades is quite large. Is it because she was under too much pressure and did not perform well?

Wu Meng was extremely frustrated: "The admission score for female students at the Public Security University last year was 581, so I can't get in."

That's not necessarily true.

Lin Xiyu comforted her softly, "Admissions not only consider grades, but also rankings. Maybe there are fewer female applicants this year, so there's still a chance of getting in."

"I'm more than 30 points behind, there's no hope."

Wu Meng sadly shed tears: "My homeroom teacher has already told me to be mentally prepared for going to university in Suzhou."

"Soochow University is also very good, it's close to Shanghai."

Lin Xiyu tried her best to persuade her: "It only takes an hour by train, and we can see each other often in the future."

"Qu Peng has been admitted to the Public Security University."

Wu Meng's eyes showed despair: "He's going to study in Beijing. We'll be so far apart, one in the south and one in the north, that it'll be hard to even see each other. Before long, he'll completely forget about me."

"You're still thinking about Qu Peng?"

Lin Xiyu deliberately changed the subject to ease her anxiety: "Actually, I think Li Liang is better than him. He takes good care of you. Gu Bin also said that he is your true love."

"What is a destined partner?"

Wu Meng was stunned and hiccuped while crying.

"Gu Bin said it."

Lin Xiyu laughed jokingly: "I don't know why he suddenly did that, acting all mysterious. But Li Liang did take good care of you when you were climbing the mountain, shielding you from the wind for half the night."

"do not talk."

Wu Meng blushed and covered her face in embarrassment when she thought about how she had drooled while leaning against his thigh.

"Li Liang applied to the Army Academy."

Lin Xiyu was happy for her friend: "He studies in Nanjing, which is relatively close to Suzhou."

"Didn't he want to be a member of the honor guard?"

Wu Meng was not affected by her emotions; instead, she became even more depressed: "The Guard of Honor is in Beijing; he'll have to go to Beijing sooner or later."

"Uh."

Lin Xiyu was embarrassed; she had forgotten about that.

"嘤嘤嘤"

Seeing that she had nothing more to say, Wu Meng sadly shed tears again.

"Li Liang, come here for a second."

Lin Xiyu was rubbing her temples, feeling a headache coming on, when she suddenly saw a figure pass by.

She was secretly delighted and grabbed the person, saying, "There's a little crybaby here. I'm leaving her with you. Please comfort her for me."

Li Liang's spine stiffened when he met Wu Meng's red, tear-filled eyes.

Can anyone tell him that he just wanted to go to the toilet?

Why does this happen? !
-

Have you seen Gu Bin?

Lin Xiyu pushed the person towards Li Liang, looked around but didn't see Gu Bin. She looked at the teaching building with some surprise and just happened to see Wang Fan and Qu Peng walking out of the corridor.

"He's in the principal's office."

Wang Fan pointed to a window on the third floor that opened outwards and said with a joking smile, "The Tsinghua admissions office is here, trying to recruit people."

"The terms offered are really tempting."

Qu Peng also said with a smile, "Gu Bin might fall for Tsinghua University."

(End of this chapter)