Chapter 3: Penalty Standing

                         

Zhang Haifeng and Song Bo felt awkward. With a beautiful girl standing next to them, they struggled to maintain their posture, bending and hunching over with exaggerated discomfort. In the end, they tried their best to straighten up like two stiff red poplars.

Song Bo stole a glance at Di Ran. She didn’t seem cold—just oblivious—and he felt too embarrassed to speak. Why was she being punished for standing here anyway? Was the teacher inside having some kind of menopause meltdown?

While Song Bo peered nervously, Di Ran yawned, bored, and without caring who was next to her, she tugged at her sweater collar and fished her mobile phone out of her corset.

Noticing Di Ran’s suddenly smaller-looking chest, Song Bo whispered, impressed: “Girl… that’s some impressive padding.”

Di Ran shook her head earnestly. “Actually, it’s uncomfortable. The phone is too heavy and angular. Normally, I use soft pads to protect my chest. Silicone injections pinch and can explode in a fight. Those are only for external use. Real results come from within—like eating pig’s trotter soup after giving birth. I’m planning a study to see if it actually helps. If it works, I might have a baby.”

Song Bo and Zhang Haifeng stared blankly.

Song Bo, trying to recover, asked mischievously: “Then… do you lack a child’s father? How about me?”

Di Ran replied with deadpan seriousness: “I don’t lack one. But I also have another study in mind… about hair. The male dog and person during qíng period, locked in a closed room, to see if they go hungry, ignore food, or act impulsively… Want to try?”

Song Bo immediately raised his hands in surrender.

☆☆☆

When the bell rang, Di Ran shook out her sore calves. The next class emptied, and students drifted toward the bathroom or just to stretch.

“Zhang Haifeng, did Tianshan Tong Grandma punish you to stand again?” a boy from the next class jeered at the group outside.

Zhang Haifeng ignored him, eyes closed, too lazy to respond.

Di Ran rolled her neck, stretching her spine. “Why call her Tianshan Tong Grandma? Shouldn’t it be Extermination Master?”

The boy noticed an unfamiliar face among the penalty standers. “Who’s this beauty? Haven’t seen her before.”

The boy had a reputation for being lewd. If she were a girl, he’d tease her mercilessly. Zhang Haifeng, protective, immediately cut him down: “None of your business. Don’t look down on anyone.”

The boy sneered and reached out to tug Di Ran’s hair.

With a sharp pop, Di Ran slapped his hand away. “Cheap? Who I am has nothing to do with you. Keep your hands to yourself.”

Song Bo gaped, remembering her audacious earlier comments about fathers, now witnessing her fearless slap. The boy’s face drooped. “You’re insane!”

Di Ran smirked. “You’re the insane one. Your whole family is insane.”

The boy fumed, gesturing to attack her, but his friends held him back.

Zhang Haifeng scolded: “Fan Boming, watch your mouth!”

“I’m not the one with a dirty mouth! She cursed first!” the boy protested.

Di Ran’s face was impassive. “So what? Bite me if you dare.”

“You think I’m scared?” he spat.

“Really? Are dogs afraid to bite?” Di Ran shot back with a mocking smile.

The surrounding students laughed, and Fan Boming’s face turned crimson. He wanted nothing more than to shove Di Ran somewhere. Struggling free from his friends, he lunged to grab her, but a firm hand stopped him midair.

“Hands off!”

“You hit someone in our class?”

Di Ran looked up. Lu Chuan stood behind Fan Boming, tall and imposing, radiating both authority and protection.

Fan Boming froze, retreating with a scowl.

“Everyone disperse,” Lu Chuan said evenly. His reputation alone made spectators scatter.

“Chuan-ge!” Zhang Haifeng called teasingly.

Lu Chuan lightly punched him on the shoulder. “Don’t cause trouble if you can’t handle it.”

Though his words were directed at Zhang Haifeng, his eyes lingered on Di Ran. She huffed defiantly through her nose: “Who says I can’t?”

Zhang Haifeng quickly added, “I’d have stomped him if I wasn’t worried about hurting the weakling.”

Lu Chuan: “Your mouth is the only weapon.”

Zhang Haifeng laughed. “Other places are strong too. Want to test?”

He kicked toward Lu Chuan in a playful sneak attack. Lu Chuan didn’t even glance up—he sidestepped smoothly and lifted Zhang Haifeng’s leg high with one hand.

“Chuan-ge! Let go! My ligaments!” Zhang Haifeng yelped.

Lu Chuan released him. “I told you—practice proper etiquette before a match. Next time you sneak-attack, your ligaments won’t be spared.”

Di Ran watched with fascination. “Chun-ge, you really need to stretch his ligaments properly. Too stiff, he’ll get hurt in a real fight.”

Lu Chuan glanced at her. “It’s Lu Chuan, not Chun-ge. Do you practice Taekwondo?”

Di Ran shook her head. “Just talking nonsense.”

Lu Chuan: “Go to the Academic Affairs Office for your uniform, ID, and meal card.”

Di Ran: “Where’s the Academic Affairs Office?”

Not long after arriving, Di Ran had already caused untold chaos. Lu Chuan sighed, frowning. “Forget it. I’ll get it for you.”

Meanwhile, Bi Lili had made Zhang Haifeng and Song Bo stand outside for two math classes. During this, Di Ran, Song Bo, and Zhang Haifeng gradually bonded.

Di Ran glanced at Gao Leng. Once she got used to this school, everything seemed like mere chatter.

In addition to being chatty, she was full of thorns.

“Oh, if people didn’t know she’s a girl, the Education Bureau would have already called the complaint hotline. Such a cold, untouchable student… does she even want to be a teacher?”

“Sister Ran,” someone murmured.

“Don’t call me Sister Ran, I’m too old,” Di Ran said with a nod. “Call me Ranran, like a fairy.”

After class, Bi Lili appeared with her small bag in hand and warned the three of them: “If you don’t finish your homework tomorrow, you’ll be standing out here again.”

Satisfied that Zhang Haifeng and Song Bo swore to do their homework, she clicked her little heels and left.

☆☆☆

During the big recess, students lined up for the broadcast exercises. Di Ran had never learned the physical routines of No. 3 Middle School, and even if she had, she wasn’t the type to follow rules. Back at the attached high school, when everyone else dutifully did their exercises, she and Li Dongyang would swim around the building instead, watch which girls flew up during exercises, or sneak into classrooms to draw pig heads on desks of girls who had wronged them. Sometimes, they even peeked at monthly exam papers in the teacher’s office.

Of course, they never copied questions or leaked exams—they simply enjoyed pranks that left teachers tearing open paper bags in frustration.

Their mischief was far worse than this, but at the attached high school, no one dared interfere. Di Ran had a reputation for chaos that even the strictest teachers feared.

Opening her phone, Di Ran saw a message from Di Meng. She had sent a screenshot of Di Ran’s photo of Lu Chuan with the caption: [I will tell my dad.]

Di Ran instantly saw through the “vicious” intent and felt her skin crawl.

Di Meng’s father, Di Junhua, was a man of strict principles. During her school days, he made three absolute rules: no skipping class, no fighting, and no meddling in romantic relationships. Outside of these, Di Ran had free rein—she had caused such havoc at school that teachers feared even hearing her name, and students instinctively stepped aside when she approached.

For years, only Li Dongyang had matched her mischief, the two inseparable, like conjoined twins. School authorities, afraid of angering her father, had learned to endure her lawless antics, unwittingly turning her into a small, untouchable whirlwind of chaos.

Before winter vacation, she had a rare, earth-shattering quarrel with Li Dongyang—the first in over ten years. He stormed off abroad in anger. Because her final exam scores in six subjects totaled under fifty, Di Junhua grounded her at home. Each day, she gnawed through the long list of books her father assigned, all while fuming silently at Li Dongyang. Over time, her resentment grew, and she swore she wouldn’t set foot in school again, refusing to see him.

The school leaders dutifully reported every misdeed to Di Junhua, and he finally granted her wish: a transfer to another school. On the seventh day of the Lunar New Year, her transfer was confirmed.

Di Ran gritted her teeth, hatred and fear of her father mingling with stubborn unwillingness. She fired back a sharp reply to Di Meng, her pride flaring.

As she looked up, Lu Chuan entered, carrying her neatly folded school uniform.

☆☆☆

Dongcheng District Public Security Bureau, Binhai City

Di Meng sipped tea when a WeChat notification popped up.

[Sister, let me tell you, Li Dongyang has already deleted your friends. If you don’t believe me, check it yourself.]

In disbelief, Di Meng sent the message to Li Dongyang. The screen confirmed it—he wasn’t her friend.

After a moment, she calmly set down her cup and walked into the backyard, her expression unreadable.

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