novelraw Chapter 540: Dust Settles
Chapter 540: Dust Settles
A school announcement published on the official website?
Ji You had a suspicion, she put down her meal tray, opened her Light Computer, entered the school’s official website, and after reading, blinked slightly in surprise. She hadn’t expected the school to act so swiftly.
The content of the announcement mainly concerned the punishment of Xu Siyu from Class 130 of the Material Department. It detailed Xu Siyu’s misconduct and the results of her punishment. The most severe penalties for Xu Siyu were twofold; one was the school’s direct announcement of her expulsion. The other was Lanyue Star court’s verdict that Xu Siyu must compensate Ji You for physical, emotional, psychological, and actual damages, totaling a sum of 2 million credit points in compensation.
Chu Jiaojiao laughed boisterously, slapping the table without any concern for her image, "That’s great! The real plagiarist got expelled. Absolutely satisfying! Congratulations, Ji You!"
Shen Changqing turned to Ji You and said softly, "Congratulations."
Yue Qiyuan also said, "Congratulations."
Yue Qiguang cursed Xu Siyu, saying she got what she deserved, and added, "Congratulations."
Sheng Qingyan glanced at Ji You, and with a twist of his mouth said, "Poor dead, congratulations... To celebrate reclaiming your innocence, maybe you should loosen your grip on that braised pork a little bit..."
Ji You: "..."
Still guarding her meal tray, Ji You shot back with a sidelong glance, "You expect me not to steal my meat? I’d have to be haunted to believe you."
Sheng Qingyan, with a look of disdain, retorted, "Those measly bits of meat in your bowl, I wouldn’t even bother with them."
Saying so, he picked up a juicy, meaty rib from his own plate, stuffed it into his mouth, and clicked his tongue as a gesture of disdain towards Ji You.
Ji You chuckled and said, "Thanks, guys. Times are tough right now, so bear with me. Treating everyone to a meal will have to wait till next time! Next time!"
Everyone: "Stingy!"
Ji You: "You get used to being thrifty."
Everyone: "..."
The group finished their meal and was about to leave when they suddenly ran into Wu Xing, Huang Chao, and others. It seemed that these few people had intentionally sought them out, and as soon as they saw Ji You, they headed straight for her.
Ji You didn’t have a deep impression of these two, only knowing they were Xu Siyu’s mindless fans and bootlickers. Seeing them, she acted as if she hadn’t, turned her head, and walked away.
But who would have known—
Wu Xing suddenly said, "Ji You! Si Yu might have made a mistake, but can’t you be a bit more forgiving? Why did you have to hurt her so badly? Is your heart black?"
Ji You paused mid-step.
Seeing Ji You stop, Wu Xing’s voice grew louder, "Mercy to those who are mercy-worthy. You forced Si Yu to drop out, you’ve completely ruined her! How can you be so cruel?"
Ji You’s icy gaze fixed on the foolishly thick-skinned Wu Xing, her voice cold, "Do you even know what you’re talking about?"
Wu Xing glared at Ji You fiercely, grinding his teeth, "Of course I know what I’m saying."
Ji You shook her head, "No! You don’t realize you’re talking nonsense."
Wu Xing flushed with humiliation and anger, "I may not be as articulate or as malicious as you, but I only hope you can show some leniency and spare Si Yu."
Ji You looked at him, then at the crowd behind Wu Xing, feeling incredulous inside. She had no idea what kind of delusion Xu Siyu had fed these people; Xu Siyu herself had admitted her guilt, yet these people were blindly defending her.
Around them, due to Wu Xing and the others’ antics, more and more onlookers were gathering.
Ji You looked around and after a deep sigh, raised her voice, "Senior Wu Xing, I hope you understand a few things. First, Xu Siyu admitted to plagiarizing my work, which can’t be faked. Second, when she plagiarized and slandered me, putting me in trouble, did she ever consider me? Did she ask if I was willing? Third, all the punishments she’s now facing are consequences of her own actions! Fourth, as an adult, I feel your brain development is incomplete, lacking in morals and legal knowledge. You should improve your cognition, rather than spouting nonsense in front of me."
Having said that, Ji You didn’t even spare Wu Xing and the others a glance.
Wu Xing, Huang Chao, and the rest of them turned pale and red as they listened to Ji You’s words. Wu Xing even wanted to step forward to argue with Ji You but was held back by Huang Chao behind him. Because a crowd of students was watching them, talking amongst themselves.
Chu Jiaojiao clenched her fists, glared at Wu Xing and Huang Chao, and warned, "Dare to come over! I’ll beat you to a pulp."
Ji You turned her head and said, "Jiaojiao, come back quickly. We don’t talk to unreasonable people who don’t distinguish right from wrong."
Chu Jiaojiao hopped and skipped to catch up with Ji You, "Hey! Coming."
The group left, and along the way, no one stopped them again.
...
The slander and plagiarism issues with Xu Siyu were resolved.
In the following days, Ji You did not see Xu Siyu in school again. She heard that Xu Siyu had accepted the punishment and left the school the same night, but Siyu did not disclose where she went.
Ji You received 2 million in fines paid by Xu Siyu. After consulting with Xiao You, they decided to publicly donate the money for charity.
This money, how to put it?
It was compensation provided by Xu Siyu, which Ji You couldn’t just not accept, but once she did, she didn’t want to keep it. After a careful consideration, since it was essentially a compensation for Xiao You’s life, spending it didn’t sit well with her. Hence, after seeking Xiao You’s opinion, they decided to donate it to those who truly needed help.
Ji You herself could manufacture Soul Devices and had tens of millions of credit points on hand. Despite being in debt for 500 million, she firmly believed that as long as she was willing to strive hard, she would surely be able to pay off her debts sooner. Therefore, she did not need the 2 million compensation.
That settled it.
Back in the day, Xu Siyu’s plagiarism and slander of Xiao You’s work, along with imposing a severe financial punishment that left Xiao You almost with no chance to turn things around—if Ji You hadn’t decided to return to Lanyue Star Military Academy, if she hadn’t made up her mind to take on that challenge, this matter might have been buried forever.
But despite all Xu Siyu’s precautions, she didn’t anticipate Ji You’s willingness to shoulder a massive debt to reenter the Lanyue Star Military Academy, which meant this matter was also doomed not to be covered up...
Such is the unpredictability of life.
With this issue resolved, Ji You invested herself fully in training.
Finally—
Ji You was once again beaten black and blue by the small machine, but thankfully—her Physical Strength had broken through the barrier and upgraded to class C!
Ji You was ecstatic, hands on hips, and she laughed wildly: "Hahaha... I, Ji You, have finally made a breakthrough! Hahaha... Indeed, I am destined to be the ruler standing at the World’s Peak! Hahahaha..."
All students in the Combat Department: "..."
"Is she insane?"
"A class C nobody dares to call themselves a ruler?"
"Let’s all be a bit more tolerant. After all, for a waste of space like her to improve this much isn’t easy."
"True, it isn’t easy."
"Let’s all be more generous."
Ji You, still in high spirits, couldn’t take others pouring cold water on her. She put her hands on her hips and said: "I ask, among all of you present, who has improved faster than me? I’ve gone from class E to class C, a whole two grades! Who among you has leveled up faster? Anyone? Anyone?"
Mu Jianling put away her Light Computer, pointed at the nearby Strength Tester nonchalantly, and said, "Throw a punch, give it a try."
The Strength Tester mainly measured strength. Ji You still remembered the huge humiliation she suffered after her first test with it—it was so bad she couldn’t hold her head up high even to this day.
This time, she was determined to wash away the previous disgrace!
Ji You rubbed her fists with a sense of vengeance and smashed a hard punch!
Boom—
After a loud bang, the data was released...