What Zhao Xinxin found even more difficult to accept and understand was that the academy actually launched an official investigation over such an insignificant matter!
Zhao Xinxin initially thought that the academy was investigating this matter because someone had taken the initiative to report it, and it would be inappropriate to ignore it completely.
So she thought that even if the academy launched an investigation, it would at most be for show, a statement of attitude, and an explanation to the whistleblower.
However, the collegeâs investigation gradually intensified and more and more students were involved. It finally dawned on Zhao Xinxin that the college was not just putting on an act. They were simply using this incident to conduct a thorough investigation so as to make an example of them!
If this matter was concerning someone else, Zhao Xinxin might not have cared at all. She might even have made a few mocks. However, this matter concerned her, so the situation was completely different.
Zhao Xinxin had been feeling uneasy in the past few days, and as more and more students were investigated and the investigation results were getting closer to the root cause, this uneasiness was becoming more and more intense.
To start the rumour, Zhao Xinxin only told one person as a precaution.
This person was Zhu Ming, her admirer and a classmate from her elementary school days.
She chose Zhu Ming because, aside from the fact that he had always been devoted to her and flattered her in every way, he was a well-known loudmouth in her class. Basically, as long as he knew about something, it would be spread around the class and even the whole college.
In fact, Zhao Xinxin had made use of this before, asking Zhu Ming to help her spread rumours several times, and she was satisfied with the results each time.
She settled on this plan with little hesitation when she decided to make a move against An Yan, and she used Zhu Ming to implement her plan.
It is true that she chose the right target based on the speed at which the rumours spread. The question now was whether his big mouth would show itself in a different way when he is questioned and becomes the source of the bane that betrays her.
Zhao Xinxin wasnât really that worried at first. After all, he liked her so much that she guessed that he wouldnât betray her even if all his credits were deducted.
But along with the investigation process, more and more students did not hesitate to give up their friends, and there were even cases of random climbing. So Zhao Xinxin began to worry.
No matter how much this person likes her, how can he still care about that when it comes to things related to his own interests?
Zhao Xinxin was a selfish person, and she naturally thought that everyone was like that. The more she thought about it, the more worried she became, and the more she felt that as long as Zhu Ming was investigated, the other party would betray her without hesitation.
At that moment, a classmate who had a good relationship with Zhao Xinxin approached her and said with a gossipy face, "Xinxin, have you heard? The person who started this rumour-mongering incident is actually Zhu Ming. Although I had heard him gossip about An Yan before, I never thought he would be the one who started the rumour. "
Zhao Xinxin was already worried about this matter. Her heart thumped and her expression was unnatural as she said, "Is that so?"
Her classmate nodded, pretending to be puzzled, "Yeah, how could Zhu Ming do such a thing? Itâs not like he had anything to do with An Yan before, so why would he deliberately spread rumours to slander his classmate? "
Zhao Xinxinâs face turned even uglier, "Iâm not too sure."
"Do you think there could be a mistake?" The classmate stole a glance at Zhao Xinxin and frowned, "Maybe Zhu Ming wasnât the one spreading the rumor at all. Maybe he just heard someone else say that and followed it up?"
Zhao Xinxin was already a little breathless, and she said with an unhappy scowl, "I donât want to discuss this matter anymore."
Her classmate nodded and raised her eyebrows, "Then we wonât discuss it. Â Anyway, Zhu Ming will soon be under investigation, and then we will know what the heart of the matter is. "
Zhao Xinxinâs face instantly tensed up, "Youâre saying that Zhu Ming will be under investigation soon?"
The classmate nodded, "Yes. I heard it."
Zhao Xinxinâs face changed a few times, but in the end, she didnât say anything and left in a hurry.
She walked to a secluded place and immediately dialed Zhu Mingâs communication. He answered after only one ring.
Zhu Ming was now in a terrible mental state, having just undergone the academyâs investigation, but he still adjusted his state after seeing Zhao Xinxinâs call. He opened his voice softly, "Xinxin, how are you âŠâŠ"
But before he could finish his sentence, he was interrupted by Zhao Xinxinâs harsh voice: "Where are you now?"
Zhu Ming heard the tension in Zhao Xinxinâs voice and subconsciously asked, "Xinxin, have you encountered something unhappy? No matter what you encounter, you can âŠâŠ"
This time, however, he was mercilessly interrupted again. He was rewarded with an even more impatient question: "I asked where you are now? Do you not understand my words!"
Zhao Xinxin couldnât focus on anything else right now. She was preoccupied with the fact that she had to see Zhu Ming before he was investigated and stop him from betraying her.
Zhu Ming was slightly stunned by Zhao Xinxinâs questioning, and his already bad mood immediately dropped down. But he still tried his best to control his tone and replied, "Iâm on my way to the dormitory right now."
Zhao Xinxin breathed a sigh of relief. He was on his way to the dormitory, so he should not have been questioned yet. She then said, "Donât go back to the dormitory yet. I need to see you for something. Letâs meet at the usual place. Head there right now."
"Okay." Zhu Ming would never refuse Zhao Xinxinâs request, and this time was no exception.
Zhu Ming hurriedly got up and was ready to greet her, but Zhao Xinxin had already walked over quickly and went straight to the point, "I guess you havenât undergone the academyâs investigation yet, right?"
Zhu Ming was slightly stunned by the question. His gaze flickered for a few moments before he shook his head with a reluctant smile, "No, thereâs no way the academy will investigate me. Donât worry."
Zhu Ming said this was because he didnât want to make Zhao Xinxin worry. Even if the academy investigated him, he would never betray Xinxin.
Instead of making her worry and feel bad along with him, it would be better for him to take everything on himself.
However, to Zhao Xinxinâs ears, this was not the case at all. She thought that Zhu Ming was really planning to betray her, so he was deliberately hiding it so that he would not be exposed on the spot.
Zhao Xinxin became very angry in her heart, but now was the most critical time, and she could not vent her temper directly like she did in the past. She could only slow down and speak as calmly as possible: "Zhu Ming, I know that this incident may have caused some bad effects on you, but I really did not mean to say those things to you in the first place, and I never expected that you would spread rumors."
Zhu Ming froze for a moment, seemingly unable to understand what Zhao Xinxin meant.
Zhao Xinxin was a little guilty when she first opened her mouth, but she felt that she was right the more she spoke.
She had only complained to Zhu Ming at that time. Things wouldnât have come to this if Zhu Ming had been unable to control his mouth and had not deliberately spread those words out.
So, in her analysis, Zhu Ming could only be blamed for not keeping his mouth shut.
The more Zhao Xinxin thought about it, the more she felt that this was the case, and her tone of voice became increasingly justified: "So why did you deliberately spread those words at that time? Did you deliberately want to harm me?"
At this point, Zhu Ming was completely frozen. He now understood what Zhao Xinxin was saying, but was completely unable to understand and accept it.
Half an hour ago, he had undergone questioning, and he didnât Zhao Xinxin at all during the process.
He even planned to keep it to himself  in order not to worry about her, but he never expected that his patience and persistence would end up with such a malicious questioning.
At this time, Zhu Ming was even a little confused. In his memory, Zhao Xinxin had always been noble and reserved. Although she had a little temper, those little tempers were cute at best.
It was at this moment that Zhu Ming realised how wrong he had been as he looked at Zhao Xinxinâs accusatory gaze and words.
The person standing in front of him was not noble and reserved; she was a perfect synonym for selfishness and malice.
He remembered that a few days ago, Zhao Xinxin was deliberately slandering An Yan in front of him, but he subconsciously and subjectively excused her even though he was well aware of Zhao Xinxinâs small-mindedness, just like every other time before.
When An Yan reported the matter to the academy, he never thought of involving Zhao Xinxin, even though he was worried about it.
He had done everything willingly, and he could not blame anyone for it. Moreover, Xinxin had always cared about her reputation, so how could he let her get affected by this matter?
He was even thinking that Xinxinâs attitude towards him would change when this matter was over.
Even if it would still be impossible for her to accept him, she would at least interact with him a bit more, right?
It was a pity that just when his idea had come into being, he was severely douched in cold water by reality.
This cold water not only quenched his unrealistic fantasies but also extinguished all his love and consideration for Zhao Xinxin.
It was at this moment that he realised how stupid he had been, and that perhaps in Zhao Xinxinâs eyes, he was not even a clown.
He surprisingly did not feel anger and despair, but only a strong pang of irony, an irony of himself.
He had chased after Zhao Xinxin for so long with his eyes closed, not looking or listening, thinking that this would shield him from all harm, only to realize in the end that it was all just an empty dream on his part.
Zhu Ming heard himself open up with unparalleled calm, "Xinxin, is that really what you think?"
Zhao Xinxin, unaware of Zhu Mingâs inner drama, lifted her chin slightly to say, justifiably, "Didnât you? I was just in a bad mood and made a few casual remarks. If you hadnât been unable to control your own mouth, how would things have spread like this?"
Zhu Ming felt like laughing. "So when you said with conviction that An Yan had cheated on the entrance exam and had used unorthodox means to befriend the Cheng brothers, in your opinion, those were just a few casual remarks?"
Zhao Xinxinâs gaze couldnât help but avert, "I âŠâŠI was just furious at the time I said that. Who knew that you would believe it! Anyway, no matter how this matter came about, the main responsibility lies with you. Even if I said something bad about An Yan, I only told you. You were the one who spread such rumors and ended up making a scene that everyone from other majors knew about it. So, if you want to blame someone, you can only blame yourself for loving to spread gossip."
Zhu Ming let out a bitter laugh, "Is it really because I love to spread gossip? Canât you see by now that I did all this for you?"
"You neednât be shirking your responsibilities here!" Of course Zhao Xinxin couldnât accept this pot, she snapped. " Even if itâs true that I told you such things this time, what about before? You used to spread rumours everywhere; everyone knows that! "
Zhu Ming lowered his head slightly, bitterness in his voice, "How would you have remembered my existence if I hadn't done that? Didnât you think of me only when you want me to spread rumours for you? " It was true that Zhu Ming was a big mouth in everyoneâs eyes and liked to spread rumours about everything, but he initially wasnât like that.
It was only when he occasionally heard Zhao Xinxin complaining about another classmate that he had an epiphany-like thought about a possibility.
If he could help Zhao Xinxin, would she be able to see him?
With that, he slowly became a loudmouth in everyoneâs eyes, and it was only after that that he had the chance to get close to Zhao Xinxin.
At that time, he felt proud of his cleverness. It was only now that he realized how stupid and ridiculous his actions really were.