Chapter 99: If Others Don’t Provoke Me, I Won’t Provoke Them; You’re the Real Clown
Chapter 99: If Others Don’t Provoke Me, I Won’t Provoke Them; You’re the Real Clown
Ma Hongjun turned his head again to look at the two tables where Lin Qingmo and Tang San were sitting, his eyes full of urgency.
The meaning was clear: If you’re brothers, join in! Let’s fight together!
However...
Tang San sat alone at his small table, never even lifting his head from start to finish.
All of his attention seemed to be focused on the bowl of white rice in his hands.
Or rather, his peripheral vision was locked onto the back of Xiao Wu, who was smiling and chatting charmingly beside Lin Qingmo.
The conflict over there?
He didn’t care in the slightest.
He even felt that Ma Hongjun’s group was being deathly noisy, interfering with his ’focus’ on Xiao Wu.
As for Lin Qingmo’s table... Lin Qingmo was leaning over to say something to Ning Rongrong, making her cover her mouth and giggle.
He was still holding his wine cup, swirling it slowly, his demeanor as relaxed as if he were sunbathing in his own backyard.
Regarding the tense atmosphere where Ma Hongjun’s side was about to come to blows, he didn’t even bother to lift an eyelid.
It was as if what was playing out over there was nothing more than a boring farce.
"Hey! Lin Qingmo! Tang San!"
Ma Hongjun couldn’t take it anymore and shouted directly, his voice carrying dissatisfaction and urgency.
"What are you two doing? Pretending you didn’t see?"
"We are all Shrek Eight Monsters, we share honor and disgrace alike!"
"Now someone wants to step on Shrek’s face, and you’re just sitting there watching the show?"
These words were quite heavy.
He directly elevated a personal conflict to the level of the academy’s honor.
The other diners in the hall also looked over one after another, though they were all just interested onlookers enjoying the drama.
Having been called by name, Lin Qingmo finally reacted.
He slowly raised his head and swept a cold glance at Ma Hongjun.
That look lacked warmth, like he was looking at an ignorant child throwing a tantrum.
"What else would we be doing?"
His tone was flat without a hint of emotion, even carrying a somewhat matter-of-fact counter-question.
"Eating, drinking, and chatting."
He paused, turning his gaze toward Ma Hongjun and the Canghui Academy students beside him, his lips twitching slightly.
"Should we be like you, having nothing better to do after eating our fill than to go out and actively stir up trouble?"
"You...!"
Ma Hongjun was choked by these words, his face flushing red instantly.
"We are defending the dignity of the academy, this is a confrontation! If you’re a man, you should stand up!"
He tried to drape a cloak of justice over his behavior.
Lin Qingmo set down the wine cup in his hand.
The ceramic base tapped lightly against the wooden table, making a crisp, faint sound.
"Dignity?"
When he spoke again, his tone had clearly turned cold.
"You were the one who walked over and used a frivolous tone to harass a girl from another team."
"You were also the one who took the initiative to provoke them, speaking arrogantly, and forcing your personal low-class tastes onto the name of the academy."
Lin Qingmo’s voice was clear word for word, spreading to every corner of the hall.
"My creed is very simple."
"If others don’t provoke me, I won’t provoke them. I don’t actively seek trouble, but I’m never afraid of it."
"The current situation is that you, Ma Hongjun, actively went to ’provoke’ others."
He stared at Ma Hongjun with a sharp gaze.
"Now that you’ve caused trouble, you want to drag everyone else into the water to take the heat for you and fight for you?"
"Where in the world is the logic in that?"
Lin Qingmo concluded at last, his tone decisive.
"If you cause trouble, you’re responsible for settling it yourself; that’s called taking responsibility."
"Deal with your own problems yourself, don’t drag others down."
After he finished speaking, the hall fell silent for several seconds.
Quite a few Spirit Masters watching on nodded inwardly, their gazes toward Lin Qingmo gaining a bit more appreciation.
This kid wasn’t old, but his head was clear and his words were reasonable.
Ning Rongrong’s eyes sparkled slightly.
She was from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School.
Since childhood, she had seen all kinds of playboys who relied on their family’s power to bully others.
What she hated most were people like Ma Hongjun, who had no ability but caused trouble everywhere.
Zhu Zhuqing nodded slightly.
She had a cold personality and pursued efficiency and strength; she likewise looked down on pointless conflict and teammates who held others back.
Lin Qingmo’s attitude of drawing a clear line and emphasizing individual responsibility was very much to her taste.
"..."
The faces of Dai Mubai, Oscar, and Ma Hongjun could no longer be described as merely ’ugly.’
They were pitch black, a mixture of shame, anger, and embarrassment!
Especially Ma Hongjun.
He felt his face burning as if he had been slapped several times in public.
Lin Qingmo’s words had completely ripped away his fig leaf, exposing his petty thoughts and scapegoating behavior to the light of day.
Meanwhile, the youth leading the Canghui Academy group also gave Lin Qingmo a deep look.
The anger in his eyes dissipated somewhat.
Lowering himself to argue with such a rogue was a bit beneath him.
Instead, this youth Lin Qingmo, who seemed similar in age to himself, had clear logic and was impartial; he was quite a rare find.
He turned back to Ma Hongjun.
"Today’s matter, we of Canghui Academy will remember it."
His tone was still icy, but it had less hostility and more disdain.
"I hope you and your companions can learn well from that brother’s words."
"Not everyone is willing to pay the price for your stupidity."
After saying this, he no longer looked at the colorful expressions on the faces of Ma Hongjun and the other two.
He gave a slight nod toward Lin Qingmo’s direction.
Then he led the Canghui Academy students away to an empty table on the other side of the hall, calmly calling over the waiter to sit down and order food.
Seeing the people from Canghui Academy leave so decisively,
Ma Hongjun froze on the spot.
For a moment, he couldn’t decide whether to leave or stay.
He abruptly turned his head toward Lin Qingmo’s position.
Lin Qingmo, however, had already withdrawn his gaze and was leaning over to listen to what Xiao Wu was saying, a faint smile on his lips.
That calm and detached manner, as if he were an uninvolved spectator, was like a sharp thorn stabbing deep into Ma Hongjun’s heart.
If it weren’t for him, how could he be such a clown?
He was so angry his whole body was trembling slightly, his breathing became heavy, and his fists clenched until they creaked.
But what could he do?
Rush up and hit Lin Qingmo?
He couldn’t win.
Keep shouting like a shrew?
It would only make him look more ridiculous and disgraceful.
A surge of unventable frustration and resentment blocked his chest, making him feel like he was about to explode.
Ultimately...
He could only let out a heavy huff from his nose, and like a defeated rooster, he returned to his own table in disgrace.
He flopped down, grabbed a wine jar, tilted his head back, and poured it into his mouth.
The spicy liquid burned his throat, but it couldn’t extinguish the wicked fire in his heart.
"Drink, drink, drink! What are you still drinking for!"
Dai Mubai snapped in a low voice, his face equally unsightly.
"Fatty, why the hell did you go and provoke that girl for no reason? Is your brain full of lust?"
"Now look, we’ve lost all face!"
He felt that today was truly rotten luck.
First, he was rebuffed by Zhu Zhuqing.
Then he had to watch Lin Qingmo and the beauties getting along harmoniously, which drove him mad with jealousy.
And now he was being dragged into this disgrace by this idiot Ma Hongjun.
Ma Hongjun stiffened his neck and muttered softly, "I... how was I supposed to know they were so serious? It was just a joke..."
In his heart, however, he shifted all of his resentment onto Lin Qingmo.
’Lin Qingmo! It’s all because of you! If you hadn’t undermined us, we might have already beaten those Canghui guys to the ground, and then we would have been the ones showing off!’
’You deliberately made me look like a fool! Just you wait!’
Oscar didn’t participate in their mutual blaming; he only let out a silent sigh.
He had lost face in front of Rongrong again.
He tilted his head back and drained the strong liquor in his cup in one gulp.
After the spiciness passed, only bitterness remained in his mouth.
(End of Chapter)
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