After Mistaking My Stepsister’s First Love - Chapter 36

After leaving the office, the three of them headed toward the parking lot. Ye Wenjin hesitated the entire way but finally asked softly, “Sister, is the Yin family behind all this?”

Jian Mo looked thoughtful and replied gently, “If it really is the Yin family, Xiaojin, what do you think about it?”

Ye Wenjin wasn’t sure what to think. What she really wanted to ask was whether Ye Shuyao had played a role in this as well.

She had some guesses about who posted on the forum only someone who knew so much about her could have done it.

Ye Wenjin knew Yin Feifei would eventually resurface, but she hadn’t expected the retaliation to come so quickly.

And what about Ye Shuyao? Had she fueled the fire in this matter?

Ye Wenjin couldn’t be sure. Though it was all speculation, she hoped not.

As for He Wenxi, though they weren’t close, they had been classmates for two years, so she had some understanding of her.

When Rong Yunshu warned her that He Wenxi was two-faced, she hadn’t fully believed it at first. But now, it made sense.

This was indeed He Wenxi’s doing.

Earlier, spreading rumors about her had made Yi Huan resent her and constantly pick fights.

With the two of them at odds, the one who stood to benefit was clearly He Wenxi.

What He Wenxi hadn’t anticipated, however, was that Ye Wenjin neither fought back nor responded to Yi Huan’s provocations, avoiding conflict whenever possible.

The two of them never escalated into a real dispute.

With her plan foiled, He Wenxi naturally grew resentful but only dared to act behind the scenes.

Given her personality, directly participating in slandering Ye Wenjin was something she wouldn’t normally do, so Ye Wenjin hadn’t suspected her of being the one to report her.

Only after uncovering the truth did she learn that someone had been pulling He Wenxi’s strings.

Ye Wenjin mentally ruled out everyone connected to her and concluded that the Yin family was the most likely culprit.

Apart from the Yin family, she couldn’t think of anyone else who harbored such hatred toward her.

And in such a short time, Jian Mo had already uncovered so much. Ye Wenjin couldn’t shake the feeling that Jian Mo knew more than she was letting on.

That’s why she hesitated the whole way before finally deciding to ask.

Seeing her fall silent, Jian Mo sighed almost imperceptibly.

“Xiaojin, don’t overthink it. Leave the rest to me. Your most important task right now is to focus on rehearsals. This performance is crucial, don’t you want to give it your best?”

Ye Wenjin was momentarily stunned but nodded. “I know, Sister. I’ll give it my all for the performance and won’t let you down. So… will you come to watch me perform?”

Though she had mentioned it to Jian Mo before, she hadn’t formally invited her yet. Now that she had, she couldn’t help but feel nervous.

Jian Mo chuckled softly and reached out to smooth Ye Wenjin’s slightly tousled hair. “Since you’ve invited me, of course I won’t miss it. So Xiaojin, you’ll have to work even harder, won’t you?”

Ye Wenjin’s eyes brightened as she nodded firmly. “I understand, Sister!”

Jian Mo smiled even more tenderly. “Alright, go back now. Get some rest, and don’t let your mind wander during rehearsals.”

Ye Wenjin nodded and watched as the car carrying the two of them drove away before turning to head back.

With the matter settled, she didn’t return to the office but went straight back to the classroom.

Unexpectedly, everyone in the classroom was engaged in basic training. Her gaze swept across the room, and she spotted Teacher Guan.

At that moment, she understood, the matter in the office must have been resolved. However, she didn’t see He Wenxi anywhere, which struck Ye Wenjin as odd.

She called out a report, about to join the training group, but as soon as she entered, Teacher Guan called for everyone to gather, announcing that she had something to declare.

Ye Wenjin guessed that this was likely about He Wenxi’s situation and fell silent for a moment.

“Everyone, quiet down. I have an announcement to make. The originally designated lead dancer, He Wenxi, has been stripped of her performance eligibility due to misconduct.

The vacant position will be filled according to the selection rankings, and Ye Wenjin will now take over as the lead dancer. As for the details of the incident, you may check the school’s administrative website.”

After finishing her statement, Teacher Guan paused, then swept a stern gaze over each student before her. “Every performance selection we conduct is fair and just, it has always been a merit-based system.

I do not want anyone scheming behind the scenes, committing irreparable mistakes for momentary gain. Failing to be selected is not shameful making such mistakes is.

I hope everyone takes this as a warning. If you harbor such thoughts, suppress them immediately.”

This admonishment all but explicitly revealed what He Wenxi had done.

No one was foolish. Ever since that post appeared on the forum, something had felt off.

Why would that post specifically target Ye Wenjin out of nowhere? It had to be someone with a grudge against her.

And Ye Wenjin was arguably the most skilled in their class, so it wasn’t surprising that someone might harbor ill intentions.

Yet she was usually low-key and unpretentious. Even when others asked her for help with things they didn’t understand, she patiently explained.

So when the post surfaced, everyone’s first reaction was disbelief.

Honestly, Ye Wenjin’s personality just didn’t fit the image of someone who would be kept by a wealthy benefactor.

Though it might sound harsh, she was rather dull and uninteresting.

Could it be that wealthy patrons actually preferred rigid, boring personalities?

Wasn’t the whole point of such arrangements to enjoy someone young, beautiful, and capable of providing emotional fulfillment?

Ye Wenjin was indeed young and beautiful, but they all felt that expecting emotional value from her was a lost cause better to pick someone else who was both attractive and socially adept.

Though it was a bit of sophistry, deep down, none of them could picture Ye Wenjin as the type to accept such an arrangement.

As for the accusations of her being ungrateful while they didn’t know the full story, what kind of positive spin could there be on something lumped together with allegations of being kept?

Still, a few classmates remained skeptical, clinging to the vague notion that “there’s no smoke without fire.” Maybe Ye Wenjin really did have issues otherwise, why would someone expose her?

But now, with Teacher Guan’s words, everything became clear. No wonder He Wenxi had been called away earlier, she was the one pulling the strings behind the scenes.

For a moment, the class was both shocked and chilled, murmuring about how they never would have guessed He Wenxi was capable of such a thing.

While most believed Teacher Guan, a few refused to accept it, those who had been close to He Wenxi.

They couldn’t fathom her doing something like this and were convinced Ye Wenjin had framed her to secure the lead dancer position for herself.

However, before they could go and ask Ye Wenjin, some classmates had already discovered the school-wide notice of criticism regarding He Wenxi’s incident and the disciplinary actions she would face.

What shocked them even more was that Teacher Li and Teacher Yue were also implicated, with even harsher penalties not only were they dismissed from the school, but this blemish would remain permanently in their records, effectively ruining their careers.

Once the notice was posted, the entire college erupted, especially among the students in the modern dance program, as the incident had happened right under their noses. “Shocked” didn’t even begin to describe how they felt.

This was undoubtedly a major scandal in the school’s history, and students were all saying they had never seen anything like it before.

The dismissal of two teachers and the probationary status of the involved student were clear indicators of how serious the incident was.

Those who had initially harbored doubts immediately abandoned their plans. Forget about approaching Ye Wenjin from now on, they would avoid her altogether, afraid of being implicated by association with He Wenxi.

Even though teachers warned everyone to let the matter rest, students couldn’t stop discussing it.

The morning rehearsal was completely derailed. With changes to the lead and supporting dancers and one member short, the teachers needed time to reorganize the formations, so they dismissed everyone early, telling them to return in the afternoon.

As they dispersed, Ye Wenjin could still feel the covert and not-so-covert glances directed her way, along with hushed whispers of discussion.

She sighed helplessly, knowing this wouldn’t blow over anytime soon, only time could fade the attention.

Since it was still early, Rong Yunshu said she wasn’t hungry yet, so the two skipped the cafeteria and headed back to the dorm.

Coincidentally, Chu Yunsheng and Zhou Wuhua were both in the room. When the two returned, the roommates exchanged glances, momentarily unsure of what to say.

Ye Wenjin could tell at a glance that they had also heard the gossip.

She felt a bit exasperated Chu Yunsheng might as well have written “treading carefully” on her forehead.

“I’m fine, Yunsheng. You don’t have to look at me like that.”

Chu Yunsheng let out a relieved breath but still pressed, “Really, you’re okay? Wenjin, we’re all friends here. If you’re feeling upset, you can talk about it. I’m great at comforting people!”

Zhou Wuhua hesitated beside her but ultimately stayed silent, merely turning her head slightly to avoid undermining Chu Yunsheng.

Ye Wenjin thought of something and couldn’t help but chuckle, politely declining, “Let’s save your comforting skills for someone else.”

Though gently rebuffed, Chu Yunsheng wasn’t the least bit offended. Instead, she sighed in relief. “Seems like you really are fine. So, how did things turn out? Is it all settled?”

Ye Wenjin nodded. “It’s resolved. The notice should already be out.”

Chu Yunsheng immediately pulled up the school’s website and gasped. “This serious? Two teachers got fired?”

Ye Wenjin nodded again, hesitating briefly before adding, “The two teachers were mainly involved because of the earlier selection process, so…”

She phrased it delicately, but everyone understood, the selection had been unfair, with someone pulling strings behind the scenes, and those “someones” were undoubtedly the two dismissed teachers.

No wonder Ye Wenjin hadn’t gotten the lead role there had been underhanded manipulation at play.

Rong Yunshu now understood the whole story. “No wonder I felt something was off when the list came out. Wenjin’s dance adaptation was excellent, there’s no way she wouldn’t get the lead role. Turns out there really was some shady business behind it.”

Chu Yunsheng listened anxiously before asking, “What about now? Did Wenjin get the lead role?”

Ye Wenjin nodded. “He Wenxi’s performance qualification was revoked. According to the rankings, we’ll move up to fill the spots in order.”

Chu Yunsheng finally nodded in relief. “Well, that’s a decent outcome.”

Rong Yunshu frowned. “It’s a shame we couldn’t find out who posted on the forum.”

At the mention of the forum, Chu Yunsheng’s expression lit up with excitement. “You wouldn’t believe it, Zhou Wuhua was on that forum, taking on everyone single-handedly! Anyone who badmouthed Wenjin or tried to stir the pot got an earful from her. I had no idea she was so sharp-tongued!”

Zhou Wuhua stiffened, her face slowly turning red.

Ye Wenjin looked at her in surprise, unable to imagine the usually introverted and shy Zhou Wuhua engaging in a heated debate online as Chu Yunsheng described.

Really?

Rong Yunshu was also taken aback. She had been keeping an eye on the forum thread and vaguely remembered some of the exchanges Chu Yunsheng mentioned.

She gave Zhou Wuhua a thoughtful look. “So that was you.”

Ye Wenjin: “?”

Why did it feel like everyone knew except her?

She wanted to ask, but Zhou Wuhua seemed to have retreated into herself, making it impossible to press further. Reluctantly, she let the matter drop.

Looking at the three of them, Ye Wenjin felt a surge of gratitude. “Thank you all for everything this time.”

Chu Yunsheng waved her off. “What’s there to thank us for? We didn’t really do much.”

Ye Wenjin smiled. “Let’s go out for dinner tonight, my treat.”

The three exchanged glances.

“I want hot pot.”

“I want barbecue.”

“I want spicy hotpot.”

“…”

“Zero teamwork here! No way, we’re having hot pot!” Chu Yunsheng declared, slapping the table.

Zhou Wuhua’s gaze flickered uncertainly, as if she wanted to say something but held back.

Rong Yunshu crossed her arms, refusing to back down.

Watching their playful bickering, Ye Wenjin’s lips curled into a smile, her mood lifting unexpectedly.

The matter might have been resolved, but it didn’t feel entirely over.

At the very least, Ye Wenjin still didn’t know who was truly behind it all.

And Jian Mo hadn’t brought it up again, as if deliberately keeping her in the dark.

Ye Wenjin couldn’t shake the feeling that there was more to this story.

Moreover, she had a sense that things weren’t truly finished yet.

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