Bonus Chapter. Enjoy!
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Tang Wulin was stunned upon hearing this, but after carefully considering Huo Yuhao's analysis, he felt it made a lot of sense.
He looked at the Little Fatty's neat attire and then at the bustling crowd of teachers and students from various academies, and the impulsive urge in his heart immediately cooled down significantly.
"You're right..."
He scratched his head sheepishly, put away the dried fish in his hand, and wondered why his "compassion had overflowed" so easily just now.
They were standing among the ranks of Donghai Academy, and naturally, everyone around them was a teacher or student from Donghai Academy.
Not far away, a tall girl who looked about fourteen or fifteen years old was clearly moved by the Little Fatty's "pitiful appearance."
Tang Wulin and Huo Yuhao both knew this person. She was not only a student in the Advanced Department of Donghai Academy but also the only daughter of Mu Chen, the President of the Donghai Forging Association: Mu Xi.
Strictly speaking, she was also Tang Wulin and Huo Yuhao's Senior Sister.
Mu Xi showed a trace of kindness on her face, took out several pieces of exquisitely packaged cream biscuits from her Storage Spirit Tool, quickly walked up to the Little Fatty, and handed them over.
When the Little Fatty saw the biscuits, his eyes immediately lit up as if he had seen a savior.
After repeatedly thanking her, he couldn't wait to take them, tear open the packaging, and gobble them down, as if he were truly starving.
While eating, he mumbled indistinctly, saying things like, "Thank you, Big Sister," and "Big Sister is so kind."
The expression of gratitude squeezed onto his round face was slightly exaggerated, but it successfully made Mu Xi cover her mouth and chuckle, finding the Little Fatty endearing and quite cute.
Tang Wulin, who witnessed this scene from the side, felt that Huo Yuhao's earlier concerns were completely unnecessary—he had thought too badly of others. Nothing bad had happened!
However, just as this thought arose in Tang Wulin's mind, and before the smile had completely faded from Mu Xi's face... a clear yet distinctly displeased and forceful female voice suddenly rang out: "Xu Lizhi!"
Following the voice, a girl wearing the same green tracksuit as the Little Fatty and appearing to be about the same age walked over.
Her dazzling golden hair was tied back in a ponytail. Her features were delicate, but there was a hint of arrogance in her eyes and brows.
Without hesitation, she snatched the unfinished biscuit from Xu Lizhi's hand, glanced at it, and casually threw it onto the ground.
Then, frowning deeply, she scolded the still-dazed Little Fatty: "Xu Lizhi! How many times have I told you!"
"Don't randomly accept things from strangers when you're outside! And don't shove everything into your mouth!"
"Who knows if they added any 'bad stuff' in there!"
Seeing the golden-haired girl, Xu Lizhi immediately shrank his neck and lowered his head, like a mouse seeing a cat.
He even stopped chewing. With half a biscuit still in his mouth, he mumbled in a low, unclear voice, "Sister Xinglan, I... I was wrong."
However, Mu Xi, standing nearby, frowned tightly, and her expression instantly turned unpleasant.
As the only daughter of Eight-Star Saint Craftsman Mu Chen, and the apple of the eye of the President of the Donghai Forging Association, although she hadn't been spoiled into having an overbearing personality, she had grown up cherished by everyone. When had she ever suffered such humiliation and suspicion?
She had acted purely out of kindness, seeing the Little Fatty look pitiful, and shared the snacks she carried with her.
But the golden-haired girl who suddenly appeared not only showed no gratitude, snatched the biscuit, and threw it on the ground, but she also subtly implied that the food Mu Xi gave might have been tainted with bad things?!
This was no longer simple rudeness; it was practically a slander against her character!
The anger in Mu Xi's heart instantly flared up.
She immediately stepped forward, looked directly at Ye Xinglan, her pretty face slightly flushed with anger, and her voice rising as she demanded, "What do you mean by that?! Explain yourself clearly!"
Ye Xinglan merely glanced at her indifferently, her tone so flat it was almost cold: "Exactly what the words mean."
"You... you...!"
Angered by her demeanor, Mu Xi's chest heaved. She pointed at Ye Xinglan and couldn't utter a complete sentence for a long time.
She took several deep breaths, forcing down her rage before speaking again, her voice trembling slightly from indignation.
"I... I saw he was hungry and kindly gave him something to eat!"
"How is it that, coming from your mouth, it sounds like I did something shameful?!"
Ye Xinglan's delicate yet icy face remained utterly devoid of expression, as if everyone owed her millions of gold coin.
She didn't even bother to look at the red-faced Mu Xi again, only casting a cold side glance at Xu Lizhi, who was standing nearby wanting to speak but holding back, and let out a short, cold snort through her nose.
"No one begged you to give him food."
She paused, her gaze returning to Mu Xi's face, and enunciated every word: "It was simply you... being... nosy."
Because the distance was not far, the entire argument between Ye Xinglan and Mu Xi was heard by Tang Wulin, word for word.
He was somewhat dumbfounded at the moment, his face filled with disbelief.
He had completely failed to anticipate that a small act of kindness could actually cause such trouble and escalate into a confrontation full of hostility.
Tang Wulin couldn't help but glance at Huo Yuhao beside him. If Huo Yuhao hadn't stopped him in time, he would probably be the one being scolded so harshly by that golden-haired girl right now.
He also noticed that Huo Yuhao had a clear trace of surprise on his face at the moment.
Clearly, even someone as calm as Huo Yuhao hadn't expected things to develop this way.
The two exchanged a look, both understanding the other's meaning.
Regardless, Mu Xi was their Senior Sister, and they naturally couldn't stand by and watch her be bullied like this by an outsider.
The two then walked forward a few steps side-by-side, coming up next to Mu Xi.
Tang Wulin looked at Ye Xinglan and said in a relatively polite tone, "This is the venue for the Tianhai Alliance Grand Competition. Everyone around us is a teacher or competitor from various academies. We are all here for the competition; there are no bad people. How could anyone randomly add things to food?"
"Student, aren't you... being overly cautious?"
At this moment, Xu Lizhi, who had been shrinking his neck and daring not to speak loudly, cautiously raised his head and interjected softly, "Yeah, Sister Xinglan... I think this Big Sister is a very nice person."
"And with so many people here... surely, surely nothing bad would happen..."
Hearing this, Ye Xinglan raised her hand and gave Xu Lizhi a moderate tap on the head, producing a soft "dong" sound.
She then lectured him, "It's precisely because we are here that we must be even more careful."
"Who knows if any of these teachers and students are jealous of our talent and want to secretly sabotage us ahead of time?"
"On and off the competition grounds, caution is paramount. You must be wary of others! Do you understand?"
Tang Wulin, Huo Yuhao, and Mu Xi were all speechless upon hearing this, even finding it somewhat absurd.
Huo Yuhao couldn't help but speak up directly, his voice carrying a trace of undisguised sarcasm: "That's ridiculous! We don't even know who you are, let alone what 'amazing talent' you possess."
"What makes you so certain that others would be jealous of you, even resorting to despicable means to harm you?"
"Aren't you taking yourselves a little too seriously?"
Hearing Huo Yuhao's rebuttal, Ye Xinglan slightly raised her small, delicate chin, her gaze carrying an arrogance that was almost taken for granted.
She swept her gaze over the several people in front of her and asked, "You don't recognize us, but... surely you recognize the clothes we are wearing?"
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A/N:
5 Power Stones = 1 Extra Chapter
I hope all of you are enjoying this story so far. I would appreciate some Power Stones if you can spare any. Leave a review if you like the story. Thank you.