The Book Soul Chronicles: Godslayer

Chapter 188 Childhood Suffering

Ye Ling felt a surge of heat rush to her heart, and her voice involuntarily rose several decibels, almost shouting at the girl opposite her, "What nonsense are you spouting?"

The sudden roar caught the girl off guard. She stared blankly at Ye Ling, her smile freezing instantly, as if she had been frozen in place. Normally, Ye Ling might have found her comical appearance somewhat amusing, but at this moment, she had no interest in appreciating the scene.

Just then, the girl standing in the middle suddenly spoke up. Her words were like a bucket of cold water, mercilessly extinguishing the anger in Ye Ling's heart.

"Ye Ling, do you even know who she is? She's Uncle's (the school bully's) cousin! How dare you yell at her like that!"

These words struck Ye Ling like a bolt from the blue, leaving her feeling as if she had fallen into an ice cellar. Her face instantly turned pale, her lips trembled slightly, and her original anger and resentment were now replaced by fear.

She silently pursed her lips, slowly lowered her head, and dared not meet the girl's eyes again, her heart filled with resentment and unwillingness.

However, no matter how much she cursed in her heart, reality could not be changed; she had ultimately offended this person she could not afford to offend.

When Ye Ling looked up again, she saw Lanlan and her cousin's mocking eyes, and the undisguised contempt and disdain of the girl standing between them.

Ye Ling opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but found that her throat felt like it was blocked by something, and she couldn't make a sound.

She didn't know what to say to salvage the situation, or at least to make herself less embarrassed.

However, just as she was hesitating, Lanlan seized the opportunity to say to the girl, "She's insulting you!"

My cousin quickly chimed in, "Yes, I heard it too. She said you're vicious, like an old witch!"

Ye Ling's mind seemed to have been suddenly stripped of all thought, becoming completely blank. She never expected that she would lose the ability to speak at this moment.

The shamelessness of the two people in front of her made Ye Ling feel both angry and amused, and she couldn't help but laugh out loud.

However, the two men took Ye Ling's laughter as an affirmation of them, and thus became even more unscrupulous in fabricating stories.

The girl standing in the middle, whose expression had been somewhat unnatural, grew increasingly grim. Finally, like an enraged beast, she lunged at Ye Ling and shoved her to the ground with all her might.

Ye Ling fell to the cold ground without warning. The dull thud of her body hitting the ground seemed to be the best illustration of this absurd scene.

She looked up blankly, expecting to see innocent and kind children, but instead, she was met with indifferent, hypocritical, malicious, and mean faces.

These faces, like demons escaped from hell, were watching Ye Ling lying on the ground with a jubilant air, as if she were a clown for their amusement.

Ye Ling's face grew increasingly gloomy. She couldn't understand why, even though it was clearly the fault of these two people, she, the most innocent one, was the one who ended up feeling embarrassed.

What an irony! A wave of humiliation washed over her, making it almost impossible for her to breathe.

Nevertheless, Ye Ling was still unwilling to be wronged like this; she felt that she had been greatly insulted.

So, she forced herself to get up from the ground, her eyes red, and questioned in an almost hysterical voice: "Didn't you see that I wasn't lying at all? They made up everything, didn't you know that?"

The two girls stopped and looked at the girl in the middle, but the girl opposite them glanced at them coldly and said, "Ye Ling, I'll tell my brother you're talking bad about me. Let's go, and don't talk to her anymore."

Ye Ling was completely stunned for a moment, as if time had frozen and the air had become heavy.

She stared intently at the other person, her eyes filled with a thirst for the truth and a keen eye for detail.

Every movement, every glance, and every subtle expression of the other person was captured by her eyes without exception.

Gradually, a glimmer of understanding flashed in her eyes, as if she had pierced through layers of fog and seen the truth hidden behind it all.

It turns out that the other party didn't care at all whether they were being wronged.

Xiaoyu knew perfectly well what those two people were planning, but they indulged them and even willingly became their pawns.

All of this was because Lanlan was the school bully's cousin. With the school bully backing her up, plus Tingting's relationship with Lanlan being better than hers, and Tingting being very perceptive, she found Lanlan as her protector. Naturally, Xiaoyu wouldn't easily offend her.

And what about Ye Ling? She has nothing, not even her family will stand by her side.

In their eyes, Ye Ling was clearly the least threatening person, and naturally became the unlucky scapegoat.

As all the thoughts rushed in like a tide, Ye Ling finally understood everything.

She slowly got up from the ground, her body stiff, as if she had lost consciousness.

She didn't know how she got back to her seat, or when class started. Everything around her became blurry, as if separated from her by a thick fog.

She found it all laughable, felt sorry for herself, and resented all the injustices she had suffered.

She resented their bullying, resented her family's endless concessions, and even more so, resented her own cowardice and weak, easily bullied nature. These emotions raged within her like venomous snakes, causing her immense suffering.

Ye Ling silently lowered her head, and a crystal tear rolled down from the corner of her eye, hitting the table and splashing up a small water droplet.

The splashing water blurred the book in her hands, and also blurred the large words on it—goodness and fairness. These two words seemed to mock her, making her feel even more desperate.

However, Ye Ling had no idea that the unimaginable humiliation and nightmare she was about to experience had only just begun.

Perhaps it was because this excessive behavior made them realize that they were easily manipulated that they became even more reckless.

And so, one tedious and unjust drama after another unfolded, a minor disturbance every three days and a major one every two days, driving Ye Ling to her utter annoyance. Her heart was repeatedly pierced, as if by countless needles, bleeding profusely.

But Ye Ling knew that with her current abilities, she was completely powerless to resist.

She could only choose to lie low and endure, silently bearing it all.

She told herself to wait for an opportunity, an opportunity to break free from the current situation.

She believed that one day she would be able to break free of these invisible shackles and make those who bullied her pay the price.

However, before the opportunity could arrive, Ye Ling was met with the most humiliating nightmare of her life.

During one of their pranks, they teased a teacher's daughter, leaving her alone in the classroom while they laughed outside. Of course, it was us, the oppressed ones, who were responsible for closing the door.

I ruthlessly closed one side of the door, but then I heard her scream in terror. My heart softened for a moment, and I let go. She took the opportunity to grab the door and push it open a crack.

I was both afraid and excited, and even a smile appeared on my lips.

My first act of resistance against their oppression felt like a redemption of my former self. Above the fear was excitement, as if my world had suddenly lit up again.

But then my cousin rushed over and, with lightning speed, grabbed the doorknob again and slammed the door shut. My dark world was shut out as well.

My smile froze on my face. In an instant, my body felt as if it had fallen into an icy hell, and I was shivering with cold. It was strange that I felt so cold even though it was summer.

But just then, the people inside burst into unprecedented sobbing. I panicked, but I didn't know what was happening. I just felt my heart pounding, as if something bad was about to happen.

The people outside were still laughing. Ye Ling was worried that something might have happened to the girl inside, so she hesitated and said, "What if something happens? Shall we open the door and check first?"

They seemed to sense something was wrong and looked at each other for a moment. Then Lanlan spoke up, "Something seems off. Let's open the door and take a look."

Xiaoyu stopped smiling, her cunning eyes darting around, and nodded to her little cousin to let go of the doorknob.

The younger cousin also sensed something was wrong, but she had a fiery personality and was difficult to control. In an instant, she thought of pushing her timid older sister, Ye Ling, to take the blame.

She heard the girl inside crying and saying things like, "My hand is caught in yours, let go!"

Even though she was closest to the door and heard the most clearly, she could tell that the force was even greater, and her expression was filled with a wicked smile, just like the wicked smile she gave me when she hid in my aunt's arms after biting me.

In an instant, Ye Ling seemed to think of her past self, and embarrassment and fear appeared at the same time, as if to drag her into a bottomless abyss.

Ye Ling's face turned pale and her breathing became rapid. Before she could come to her senses, a voice pulled her back to reality.

"Shanshan, what are you doing? You pinched Qianqian's finger."

The speaker was Xiaoyu, who looked pale. Qianqian was, after all, the teacher's daughter. Even if her thought process was a little abnormal, she could still tease her, but if something really happened, she wouldn't be able to escape the consequences.

Ye Ling found this amusing. She was the one who had tacitly approved Tingting and Lanlan's ridiculous suggestion, yet now she was shifting the blame onto others.

At this moment, Ye Ling may have realized this relationship, but she felt that they couldn't escape it. They often bullied me with such boring games and suggestions.

Finally, they were about to crash and burn. Ye Ling was instantly excited. Great! She had finally waited for this opportunity. She wished they could make a bigger scene so that the girl who was also in the same boat could quickly tell her mother to seek justice for her and for herself.

Ye Ling never expected that this fire would spread to me, and that she would ultimately be the one to take the blame.

Xiaoyu didn't care about anything else and was determined to find someone to take the blame and divert attention. Obviously, Xianxian, who had been holding the door closed, was the best choice. She adopted her usual threatening and blame-shifting stance.

"Xianxian, you slammed the door and pinched Qianqian. Go apologize to her right now."

Xianxian was quite clever and knew what kind of person the other party was. She immediately thought of what her parents had told her and retorted.

“My parents said you have no right to talk to me like that. If you bully me, my parents said to go to them and they will help me. Do you believe me? I’ll go home and tell my parents.”

The atmosphere became tense for a moment. Ye Ling was overjoyed to finally see the swordsman suffer a setback, and even her annoying little cousin seemed much more pleasing to the eye now.

I remained silent beside her, trying my best to suppress the excitement in my eyes. But she was too immersed in her own world and didn't see Tingting glance at her and give Xianxian a wink.

Xianxian wasn't stupid; she immediately found a way to save face for Xiaoyu.

"Ye Ling closed the door before me, and then Qianqian cried. She must have accidentally pinched someone's finger."

After she finished speaking, she glared at me defiantly.

I watched this dramatic scene in utter shock, the sudden turn of events leaving me completely bewildered.

Xiaoyu saw all of this, but she took the opportunity to back down. She needed to maintain her authority as the leader, but Xianxian was too difficult to deal with. Why didn't she just go with the flow when Xianxian offered her a way out, thus preserving her own dignity and solving the problem for the other party? As for Yeling's thoughts, she didn't care at all.

"Ye Ling, apologize!"

This sudden change finally brought her to her senses. She still tried to defend herself, but when she looked up and saw those indifferent "friends," she couldn't utter a sound.

This time she fell silent. She knew she was the scapegoat, and no matter how she explained, she was wrong in their eyes. Even if everyone knew the truth, no one would stand up for her.

She bowed deeply in apology, and when she looked up at the other person, there was still some hope in her eyes. After all, she had opened the door and the other person had seen it, and when Xianxian closed the door again, the other person had also seen it. She desperately hoped that the other person would speak up.

But...no! The other person glanced at Xianxian, then saw many people around her, some watching the commotion, and Xiaoyu holding Xianxian's arm. She realized something, then she backed down, pretending she knew nothing, and just kept crying.

Xiaoyu was also annoyed and wanted to resolve the matter as soon as possible, but the other party kept saying things like she was going back to her hometown to find her grandmother. Although the other party wasn't very bright, if she really skipped school, wouldn't her mother find out?

It's obvious that everyone knows things have gotten out of hand, and I know that too, but right now the most important thing is how to appease her and keep her from leaving.

Meanwhile, I was thinking about how credible her mother would be if she found out that I had told her everything. Clearly, I was at a disadvantage. No matter how I explained, Xiaoyu had many supporters. Even if the teacher found out in private, she would force those people to insist that I was the one who hurt Qianqian.

This approach is clearly not viable, but what should I do to avoid being held accountable by her?

Suddenly Xiaoyu said, "Kneel down and kowtow to Qianqian to apologize."

boom! ! !

Ye Ling's brain seemed to freeze. What? Kneel down! What kind of feudal remnants are these? Is this some kind of TV drama?

Thinking about it, the most popular genre during that period was palace dramas, which often featured characters kneeling down to apologize. It was enjoyable to watch these dramas, but it was only when you actually knelt down to apologize to someone that you could truly empathize with the characters in the shows.

Just as Ye Ling was about to explode without thinking, a crazy idea suddenly popped into her head. If she did it, the news would spread, and the teacher wouldn't openly confront her about it. Moreover, these people would quiet down for a while because they felt guilty.

In the end, she gave in. She didn't want to cause trouble for her family. No matter how much she resisted, she would be the one apologizing and begging for forgiveness in the end. She didn't want to belittle herself, but based on past experience, this was the only correct answer.

Rather than letting your family turn against you with a knife in the end, it's better to redirect your hatred and prevent it from having the chance to kill your will to live.

That's right, human nature is biased. Ye Ling had experienced this long ago, so she understood better how to minimize the harm by indulging in her own beautiful dream, like an ostrich burying its head in the ground, assuming that they love themselves more.