When you treat others with extreme malice, perhaps, a ghost is silently watching behind you.
***
With a splash, icy water poured over Tong Xiaosong’s slender body, chilling him to the bone. Drenched and curled up on the cold tiled floor, he held onto himself tightly.
Surrounded by three young men, they wore malicious smiles.
Laughter echoed in the public restroom as Tong Xiaosong struggled to open his eyes, sealed shut by water. Vaguely, he saw the restroom door being pushed open.
He met the eyes of several onlookers, filled with a mixture of curiosity, panic, and a hint of fear.
Beyond the door, there was more than one person, yet their eyes clearly conveyed that they were merely curious and didn’t want to cause trouble.
It seemed that his gaze was too intense; the sliver of light from the door quietly closed again.
“Hey hey, don’t act like we bullied you, okay?” Zhu Fan wore a disdainful expression. “Pretending to be a victim for everyone to see? As if we’re the bad guys.”
Zhao Shanyi sneered, “It was just a joke, and a bucket of water paralyzed you?”
Cui Jian, not pleased, kicked the person curled up on the ground. “Get up! Do you still want to go back to the dorm tonight?”
Tong Xiaosong, with a pale face, clenched his cold hands and slowly climbed up from the floor soaked with chilly water. His cheap T-shirt and casual pants were already drenched, tightly wrapped around his malnourished figure.
The door banged open, and an enthusiastic young man rushed in, sternly saying, “What are you guys doing!”
The three turned around, their faces displaying exaggerated smiles.
Zhu Fan said, “Seriously? You’re going to interfere with our little joke too?
“Just a joke?” The young man glared at them. “The temperature is only a few degrees today, and you’re throwing cold water on people for fun?”
“We’re from the same dormitory; what’s wrong with having some fun!” Zhao Shanyi retorted impatiently, then glanced at Tong Xiaosong, who kept his head down. With a cold snort, he said, “Don’t believe us? Ask him if we were just joking.”
Tong Xiaosong heard his own voice weakly and calmly saying, “Yeah, we were just joking.”
The young man looked at Tong Xiaosong in disbelief, shouting, “What are you afraid of! If they bully you, I’ll report to the teacher for you!”
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
Tong Xiaosong replied lifelessly, “They didn’t bully…”
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When only Tong Xiaosong and the young man were left in the restroom, the young man stared at Tong Xiaosong for a while, filled with resentment. He said with a touch of anger, “I tried to help you, but you didn’t dare to resist. No wonder no one is willing to help you. You deserve it!”
Having said that, he left in a huff.
Tong Xiaosong stood numbly in place, the coldness seeping from the inside out, as if his entire body had lost its warmth.
***
Tong Xiaosong doesn’t refrain from resisting because he doesn’t want to; it’s because he dares not. He is a child who comes from the deep mountains.
Children from the deep mountains have no way out.
Most end up like his father, born in the deep mountains, forever asleep within its depths.
But he is different. It’s not that he is resigned to mediocrity, but he has a selfless sister who sacrificed for him.
While taking care of their insane mother, his sister struggled and worked tirelessly to send him to high school. She hoped he could use education to pave a way out, to escape the man-eating deep mountains.
He is unlike other children; they have the confidence to resist, the capital to be willful, and the privilege to be extravagant.
But he doesn’t.
His opportunity to study here is gained by stepping on his sister’s sacrifice. He must excel in his studies to not let his sister’s efforts go in vain.
He refrains from doing anything that could cause trouble for his sister.
Actually, the first year of high school went relatively smoothly.
Because the school was far from home, he stayed in the student dormitory.
After being reassigned to a new dormitory in his second year, his nightmare began.
His three new roommates, like sensitive vultures, detected the perpetual stench of darkness on him and eagerly tore into him, excited and frenzied.
He vividly remembered the consequences of his last resistance. After the three were criticized and disciplined by the school leaders, the dormitory remained unchanged.
Upon returning to the dormitory, he was brutally beaten by the three and hung outside the window all night, tied with a rope.
He nearly died that night. Later, he fell ill for a whole week, didn’t dare to buy medicine because any expense he incurred would add to the burden of bags of heavy potatoes, pressing down on his sister’s shoulders.
He didn’t even know how he managed to get through.
He once asked a teacher how he could change dormitories. The teacher, with a gaze filled with sympathy and pity, told him the only option was to rent a room outside.
He dared not even think about the money for renting a room because studying took up all his time, and he couldn’t earn extra money. Every expense would add a heavy burden to his sister.
So… he had to let it go.
***
With classes about to start, Tong Xiaosong dragged his stiff steps out of the restroom.
His legs felt like ice sculptures, numb and cold.
No one was in the dormitory. Tong Xiaosong dropped the curtain beside his bed, changed into clean clothes, and put on the cotton jacket his sister had personally made for him. Although the jacket didn’t provide any warmth, he wore it anyway.
A few minutes after the bell for class rang, Tong Xiaosong finally made it back to the classroom. He kept his head down, avoiding eye contact with anyone in the class.
The teacher looked at the isolated and pitiful Tong Xiaosong. “You… forget it, just take your seat.”
Tong Xiaosong walked quickly to his seat, and as he did, a leg swept across, causing him to stumble. The entire class erupted in laughter.
Without needing to look, he knew that Zhu Fan was the one who tripped him. Those fluorescent yellow sneakers were unique to Zhu Fan in the entire class.
Opening his textbook, he focused on the words as if they were steps leading to hope.
Soon, the class ended, but he remained immersed in taking notes at his desk.
A commotion erupted in the background.
Someone stood beside Tong Xiaosong, looking down at the person’s shoes. They were a pair of designer sneakers worth over ten thousand yuan.
The desk was tapped twice by a well-defined, large hand.
Looking up, a cool and handsome face appeared before him. The person was dressed in genuine luxury brands, and sharp eyes exuded an undeniable arrogance.
Tong Xiaosong’s eyes flashed with rejection and fear. He lowered his head again, avoiding eye contact.
Gu Xuan: “Heard you got cornered in the restroom? Why didn’t you come to me?”
Tong Xiaosong buried his head even lower.
Gu Xuan pulled a chair and sat next to Tong Xiaosong, chuckling twice. “Why are you so stubborn? Would rather be bullied by others than interact with me, huh?”
Tong Xiaosong’s voice, as soft as a mosquito, murmured, “No… not bullied.”
Gu Xuan narrowed his eyes, his face showing some annoyance. “Tong Xiaosong, I don’t care if guys or girls confess to me. I’m not interested in them, but I noticed you, and you treat me like some filthy thing, avoiding me? Do I disgust you that much?”
Tong Xiaosong’s semi-long, slightly curled hair concealed his eyes, and one could only see his pale face and lips turning blue from biting.
“I… I’m not, not… not gay…”
“Not gay?” Gu Xuan sneered. “Well done.”
Gu Xuan stood up, his long and handsome legs taking a confident step as he stylishly turned and left.
Just as Tong Xiaosong let out a breath, a hand suddenly reached over and forcefully pulled his hair.
“Ouch!”
Holding his sore scalp, he looked up and saw the back of the most beautiful girl in the class.
That girl liked Gu Xuan.
What a b**ch 🤬 he rejects you and then you bully him?
I haven’t read some good old extreme bullying in a while. Kind of refreshing after a long while of tropey stuff and fluff
….. MC is giving a realistic trope of woe is me but also hmmmm. not really likeable or makes me pay attention to him that much; his sister is more interesting, and the school violence is so realistic I think I had a flashback, but also so cliche. like the tripping thing… a bit overused.
You just sound like an asshole tbh, most people have empathy
🤣🤣
They can’t leave the poor boy alone huh. Karma’s gonna bite them in the ass soon 😡
I hope the bullying ends quickly. Sick and tired of this being “fun” . So over it.