Chapter 109 Shit Just Got Real
Chapter 109 Shit Just Got Real
When Sola Aoi started an onscreen strip tease, Li Yundong burst into action. He sprang to his feet and began making his way towards the end of the middle row. On his way out, he snatched an empty popcorn bag from the floor. Two seconds later, he reached the end of the row and stepped onto the center aisle where the projector hung directly above his head. He folded the popcorn bag a few times while channeling his Qi to his legs. Then, he made an explosive vertical leap and, while in the air, he shoved the folded popcorn bag into the hollow of the projector's lens. Darkness suffused the media room as the images playing on the screen vanished into nothingness. Curses and screams of protest followed suit, but Li Yundong didn’t care. He was already making his way towards Feng Na and the seniors in charge of the screening. He reached Feng Na in record time and hit the "space" key on the laptop to pause the video before closing the window of the video player application.
"F*ck!! Why the hell did it stop playing?!"
"Oh c'mon! Keep playing it! We're just getting to the fun part!"
"F*cking killjoys! Put it back on, goddamnit!"
"Argh!! Maria Ozawa hasn't even appeared yet!"
Well, this is what happens when your porn stash is being played in a room full of horny guys. Before he knew it, Su Chan was right beside him. Li Yundong forced himself to take several calming breaths. "Su Chan... It was you, wasn't it? You gave Feng Na the wrong DVD yesterday."
Su Chan didn't say anything, though she really didn't have to; the look on her face said it all. Li Yundong grabbed two fistfuls of his hair and released a low growl. "What the f*ck? How the hell did this even happen? You were supposed to give back Feng Na's DVD! Why did you give her mine instead?"
Su Chan stared down at her feet, still not answering his question.
"Explain!" he hissed, causing Su Chan to flinch.
"I- I broke hers..."
"What?!" Feng Na and Li Yundong said in unison.
"A- And then... and then I found another one inside your room. They looked exactly the same, s- so I thought... I swapped it..."
"Oh, for f*ck's sake..." Li Yundong rubbed his temples. "There's a label! Didn't any of you read the label?" He glanced towards Feng Na.
Feng Na snapped out of her stupor and moved towards the laptop. She removed the DVD from the laptop and studied it for a moment. "But it says Cohabitation with a Flight Attendant! That's the same name as my soap opera!"
Li Yundong shot her an exasperated look. "But yours didn't come with a label in the first place, did it?"
Feng Na scowled. "How was I supposed to know! I thought you watched it and then labeled it for me!"
Cheng Cheng gasped. "So it's true... Y- You gave the DVD to him that morning... You lied to me Nana! And you! Li Yundong! How could you—"
"Enough!" Feng Na and Li Yundong both said. "Not now, okay?"
Feng Na groaned. "Why... Why on earth did you label your porn collection with such an innocuous name!"
"C'mon... Seriously? You want me to write 'hardcore sex' on my porn DVD? Even teenagers know not to do that!" Li Yundong sighed. "You know what, this isn't helping." Li Yundong paused and turned to face the crowd of students who were still cursing and complaining. He shook his head. "We need to find a way to deal with this mess."
Feng Na sighed. "It's too late for that now. We're screwed. No. I'm screwed."
Li Yundong turned away from the students to look at Feng Na. "It can't be that bad, can it? Even if the students talked, there's no real proof. Unless someone recorded this on their phones?" Li Yundong hung his head low, then raised his head again. "But I think I managed to stop the video before anyone could get their phones out. Everyone seemed surprised, so I don't think they expected any of this... What?" Li Yundong stared at Feng Na's grim expression.
"You don't understand," Feng Na said. "Director Qian already knows."
"The media room is being monitored," Cheng Cheng said with a grim tone.
Feng Na sighed. "That's how I got the teachers to agree to all of this in the first place. We can screen movies as long as it's done under a teacher's supervision." Feng Na chuckled wryly, then gestured at the students. "Just look around you. Do you think the teachers would allow this bunch to watch movies in a dark room unsupervised?"
Li Yundong let his chin drop. "Shit..."
Feng Na tossed the DVD onto the desk where the laptop had been set up. "That's it... I'm gonna be expelled."
Feng Na's devastated tone brought a stab of guilt to Li Yundong's chest. Li Yundong stepped forward. "Hey... That won't happen."
There were tears in her eyes when Feng Na turned back around. "Don't bother... It's too late."
"No," Li Yundong stated firmly. "Just let me handle this—"
The door of the media room burst open. "You delinquents!" The lights immediately came back on, and the room fell silent. Director Qian stormed along the aisle towards them. "Who! Whose idea was it to play pornographic films on campus!"
Director Qian stopped in front of them, his eyes bouncing from person to person. Finally, he glared at Feng Na. "Well? Was it you, Feng Na?"
Feng Na paled. "N- No sir, this isn't—"
"I did it," Li Yundong said, his voice loud and resolute. He took a step forward. "This has nothing to do with senior Feng Na." Li Yundong stared into the beady eyes behind Director Qian's gold-rimmed glasses. Like hell he was going to allow Feng Na to take the blame. Li Yundong's reputation as a student was already ruined anyway; one more issue wouldn't exactly make a difference. But Feng Na had always been a good student with a clean record. It would follow her for the rest of her life if she took the blame today. And God knew what Director Qian had up his sleeves. Li Yundong certainly wouldn't put it past that slimeball to attempt to cut a "deal" with Feng Na—sleep with me and this thing will never see the light of day. Li Yundong clenched his jaw. Over my dead body.
Li Yundong took a breath. "This is my fault. I brought the DVD by mistake." From the corner of his eye, Li Yundong noticed Su Chan's lips moving as though she wanted to say something. Keeping his hand hidden behind his back, he reached over and pinched Su Chan's hip. When Su Chan glanced at him, he sent her a warning glance: Do not say a word.
Su Chan lowered her head and went back to staring at her feet.
A moment later, Director Qian released a sneer. "Well, well, well. Look at you, playing the hero again, Li Yundong. Are you that desperate for attention?"
Li Yundong squared his shoulders. "You're mistaken." He looked at Director Qian steadily. "This has nothing to do with me trying to play the hero. It's called having the courage to admit my own mistakes." He smirked. "Not that someone like you would understand it."
Director Qian seemed to have caught on to Li Yundong's insinuation as he paled immediately. However, Director Qian regained his bravado a few seconds later. He laughed mockingly. "Admitting your own mistakes? What about the other trouble you've caused? Are you ready to claim responsibility for those too?"
Li Yundong bristled and opened his mouth to argue, but Director Qian silenced him with another derisive laugh. "You brought this upon yourself, Li Yundong." An evil glint formed in Director Qian's eyes. "I've been waiting for this day, you little troublemaker. Now I will finally make you pay."
"No!" Feng Na shouted all of a sudden. "I- I mean, s- sir... I can explain..."
Li Yundong turned around abruptly and gave Feng Na a look. Feng Na looked extremely pale, like she was about to pass out. Li Yundong gave her a reassuring look. I've got this, he mouthed the words to her. Then, he gave Cheng Cheng an eye signal. Cheng Cheng took the cue and quickly pulled Feng Na away.
Li Yundong turned around to face Director Qian once again. The old bastard was looking all too smug now, but Li Yundong didn't care. He wasn't about to let Feng Na take the fall for his negligence and mistakes. None of this would've happened if he: A) didn't collect pornography in the first place, and B) paid more attention to the DVD instead of letting Su Chan handle it.
Yes, it definitely sucked to give Director Qian the satisfaction of having the power to decide his fate as a student. But it didn't matter, because this wasn't about him. This was about honor.
Time to put his pride aside and do the right thing.
Li Yundong took a deep breath before letting out a long exhalation. He gazed into Director Qian's eyes steadily. "There is nothing to explain," he said with a tone of finality. "I'm supposed to bring the DVD for tonight's screening. But I took the wrong one. It was an honest mistake. An accident."
"An honest mistake? An accident?" Director Qian snorted. "You expect me to believe that? After all the trouble you've caused?"
"I don't expect you to believe anything," Li Yundong said calmly, then paused to look at Feng Na. "However, I expect you to make a fair judgement based on the facts." Li Yundong returned his eyes to Director Qian. "Senior Feng Na is a good student. A responsible one, in fact. Her grades are impressive, and she has never done anything to discredit the university. Considering these facts, do you think it's likely that she would pull a stunt like this?"
Seconds passed in silence until Director Qian snorted. "I suppose not." Then, the bastard smirked. "You, on the other hand..."
Li Yundong gave him a nonchalant shrug. "I've already said it from the start. This is my fault. But..." Li Yundong paused and held up a finger. "I must emphasize that I didn't do it on purpose."
Li Yundong honestly didn't know why he even bothered. The old bastard was out to get him from the start, so it was pointless to justify anything. The others students remained silent in their seats, though Li Yundong could feel their pitiful gazes on him. They all knew what was coming. It was pretty much inevitable at this point.
Director Qian's laughter broke through the silence. "Hah! It's official, then! Li Yundong! You don't have to come to class starting tomorrow. The university council will hold a meeting to finalize your expulsion."
Gasps filled the room. A couple of students rose to their feet in protest.
"Oh, come on! That's not fair!"
"Yeah! He said it was an accident, didn't he?"
"This is an abuse of authority!"
"Yeah! We can file a complaint against you!"
"Silence!!!!!!" Director Qian's yelled. When the room fell silent once again, he continued, "Does anyone else wants to get expelled?"
More silence ensued.
"That's what I thought," Director Qian said.
While Li Yundong appreciated the students' sentiments, he also realized that it was pointless to reason with Director Qian. This was bullshit right from the beginning. Which student in their right mind would bring pornographic films to campus and then play them on a large screen in front of so many students? Anyone with a functioning brain could see that the whole story didn't hold water. Why would Li Yundong, who was already on the verge of expulsion, do something so incriminating? None of it made any sense. Director Qian probably knew it too. He was just too much of a scumbag to care about something like truth and justice.
"Whatever," Li Yundong said. "Consider me expelled, then."
Director Qian sneered. "You're a disgrace, Li Yundong. And the university is glad to finally be rid of you."
No. It was actually the other way around. Li Yundong was glad to finally be rid of this stinking place ran by morally corrupt people.