Chapter 28: A Sudden Intervention and Shifting Dynamics

Lin Qing suddenly spoke, surprising everyone.

Especially when Li Weiqiang turned his head to look at Lin Qing, seeing such a scrawny, undersized figure dare to stop him.

Instantly, his expression grew even more sullen. His eyes fixed on Lin Qing, and a smile, more mocking than angry, curved his lips upward.

‘Damn it.’

He had just cowered during his confrontation with Zhou Lin, earning him the scorn of others.

It was this undersized figure who had caused his initial conflict with Zhou Lin.

Now, ironically, this same person had voluntarily stepped forward.

‘Zhou Lin’s obvious tension suggested he had a good relationship with this shrimp.’

In that case, he needed a thorough beating to truly vent his pent-up rage.

While Li Weiqiang was contemplating how to deal with Lin Qing, Zhou Lin watched Lin Qing volunteer for trouble and couldn’t help but shake his head. ‘He’s courting death, and no one can stop him.’

Zhou Lin had no intention of interfering in the matter between Lin Qing and Li Weiqiang. This time, he would simply be a spectator.

‘With his scrawny physique, Lin Qing actually wanted to stand up for someone else? He truly didn’t know the meaning of death!’

The bullies in this school weren’t all as benevolent as him; rather, they were vicious individuals.

On the sports field, besides the students watching the spectacle, there were others with different intentions.

Wang Fanran, having quickly changed into his sportswear, hid in a corner. Once he was sure he wouldn’t be beaten further, his fear subsided.

Just as now, when he heard Lin Qing shout for a stop, Wang Fanran’s heart began to thump wildly.

It wasn’t out of worry.

It was excitement.

Compared to Zhou Lin and Wang Jian, Wang Fanran harbored more hatred for Lin Qing, his deskmate.

Although Lin Qing had never laid a hand on him, perhaps that was precisely the reason.

‘He preyed on the weak and feared the strong.’

Zhou Lin was a bully in the class, whom Wang Fanran dared not oppose. Yet, Lin Qing was merely an isolated transfer student.

He was like a rootless duckweed, drifting with the wind, utterly without foundation.

Such a person should have been at the bottom of the class hierarchy, a convenient target for bullying.

Wang Fanran believed himself superior to Lin Qing, occupying a higher rung on the food chain, filled with a sense of superiority.

Yet now, he was the one suffering, while Lin Qing merely stood by and watched.

‘How infuriating!’

‘So, hurry up and fight!’

‘Go, Li Weiqiang!’

‘You absolutely must beat Lin Qing half to death.’

‘Only by witnessing Lin Qing’s miserable state would his own heart find balance.’

‘He couldn’t be the only one getting beaten!’

Wang Fanran watched Li Weiqiang with eager anticipation, almost clenching his fists and shouting encouragement.

He wished he could fast-forward to the moment Lin Qing was thrashed.

“What do you think you are, telling me to stop? I won’t, and what can you do about it?”

However, as everyone harbored their own thoughts, Li Weiqiang spoke mockingly, immediately and deliberately raising his foot again.

He intended to continue brutally beating Li Dong right in front of Lin Qing.

He wanted to see just how this undersized figure planned to stop him!

‘Did he truly believe his weak, ineffective words would allow him to play the hero and rescue someone from peril?’

‘Ha ha, stop dreaming.’

‘Weaklings don’t deserve to dream!’

With this thought, Li Weiqiang curled his lips into a disdainful sneer. Intent on provoking Lin Qing, his foot, as it aimed for Li Dong, seemed to move in slow motion.

It was filled with utter mockery.

Even so, Li Dong, sprawled on the ground, made no attempt to dodge.

He was like a puppet that had lost its strings.

Completely at the mercy of others.

“Oh, young man, you’re quite courageous, aren’t you?”

However, Li Weiqiang’s foot never landed; it was intercepted mid-air.

His ankle was seized, throwing his entire body off balance, and he nearly tumbled to the ground.

Fortunately, years of athletic training allowed him to quickly regain his balance. After stabilizing himself, he immediately delivered a fierce kick.

‘Today is truly strange.’

‘Why are they all so eager to meddle in other people’s business?’

‘If they’re so idle, why don’t they just go die?!’

“Heh heh, still kicking like a mule, are we?”

Yet, the foot Li Weiqiang intended to kick with remained firmly in someone’s grasp.

He couldn’t move it an inch.

The other party’s grip was incredibly strong. Just being held by the ankle caused Li Weiqiang intense pain.

Since his Achilles tendon was targeted, the pain was naturally unbearable.

“You goddamn…”

Then, Li Weiqiang cursed as he looked up, his words abruptly trailing off.

The sight of the other person’s smiling face left Li Weiqiang dumbfounded.

“Teacher Wu, you can’t treat students like this, can you? Be careful, or I’ll report you to the principal.”

Observing the new physical education teacher, Wu Gang, Li Weiqiang’s arrogance completely vanished.

Compared to the previous PE teacher, the new one’s methods of physical punishment were far more severe.

No one wanted to experience them firsthand.

After seeing Li Weiqiang settle down, Wu Gang released his foot.

After quickly letting go, Wu Gang brought his hand to his nose, sniffing it. He immediately pulled a disgusted face, as if a terrible odor clung to it.

Li Weiqiang’s expression also shifted, a feeling of public humiliation making him clench his fists tightly. He longed to punch this bastard teacher directly.

However, he recalled that Wu Gang had been parachuted into the school, directly displacing the former teacher.

Even the principal treated him with utmost respect, daring not to put on any airs.

Rumor had it that Wu Gang possessed formidable backing.

He was no ordinary man.

‘I can’t be impulsive.’

‘Otherwise, if I angered Wu Gang, I would definitely face dire consequences.’

“Go ahead and report me, I’m not afraid anyway. In fact, I’d rather look forward to it!”

Wu Gang paid no mind to Li Weiqiang’s utterly powerless threat. He picked his ear with his pinky finger, then turned his head to look at the student still sprawled on the ground, his nose bleeding profusely.

Wu Gang couldn’t help but sigh inwardly. ‘School bullying is something that simply cannot be eradicated!’

He himself had experienced bullying during his school days.

However, with the advancement of society, bullying had only grown more severe.

“Is the student alright? Someone, help me take him to the infirmary.”

Wu Gang didn’t leave Li Dong lying there. Instead, he casually raised a hand and beckoned, wanting someone to quickly take Li Dong to get his injuries checked.

Yet, as Wu Gang beckoned, the student he had initially chosen hadn’t even lifted their foot when they were suddenly shoved.

They were directly pushed aside by the other person’s plump backside, staring dumbfounded at the one who had rushed forward.

‘Someone actually fought to do an errand like this?’

‘And wasn’t that Wang Fanran!’

‘When did he become so diligent!’

Seeing a student so eager to help, Wu Gang didn’t pay much attention to the incident. Instead, he redirected his gaze to Li Weiqiang.

“Alright, what just happened wasn’t an accidental kick during a game, was it? Li Weiqiang, school is a place for learning, not for you to hit people indiscriminately… And this student here, you must have been frightened!”

As Wu Gang spoke, his tone shifted, and he immediately looked in Lin Qing’s direction.

His eyes held a hint of mischievous amusement, yet his expression remained utterly serious.

This sight left Lin Qing somewhat bewildered. He couldn’t fathom how his fellow patient from the same hospital room was now here.

And had even become his physical education teacher!

‘Could it be…’

‘Su Yao!’

After Lin Qing quickly grasped the key detail, he immediately began searching for Su Yao.

“Teacher, Li Dong tried to hit me just now. I was merely acting in self-defense! If you don’t believe me, you can ask Li Dong.”

However, as Lin Qing searched for Su Yao, Li Weiqiang began to argue deceptively.

His words twisted black into white, delivered with a casual ease.

His eyes were filled with triumph, seemingly certain that he would face no repercussions.