章 26: **Chapter 26: Kowtow**
Early the next morning, Song Shi was awakened by the sound of a whistle.
Her eyes remained closed, but her fingers instinctively reached for her waist, pressing gently.
The pain had diminished even further compared to yesterday.
She sat up, slipped into the clean clothes she had placed by the bed the night before, and headed to the bathroom to freshen up.
Staring at her reflection in the mirror, her lips were smooth, and the redness and swelling from the punch she had received yesterday had completely disappeared.
Song Shi touched the area thoughtfully with her fingertips. Her recovery was far too swift. While it's known that individuals with the "Berserker" potential typically exhibit enhanced regenerative abilities, it seemed implausible that she could recover by eighty to ninety percent in a single night.
She needed to conceal it. Song Shi remembered the small packet of cosmetics that Tang You had prepared for her, tucked away in her suitcase.
She pushed open the bathroom door and squatted by the bed to pull out her suitcase. Digging through the contents, she found the cosmetics bag beneath a pile of medication.
Returning to the bathroom, she sifted through the makeup until she found the perfect shade of purple. Using her finger, she carefully applied it to her lips. Taking a step back to assess, she felt it still lacked authenticity, so she layered a bit of red on top.
It still didn't look quite right.
With a sigh, Song Shi squeezed out some foundation, gently dabbing it on. She applied a thin layer to her lips, careful not to entirely conceal the purple bruising, creating the illusion that she had deliberately tried to cover the wound.
Standing before the mirror, she examined her reflection from various angles. Satisfied with the effect, she returned the cosmetics to the bag, tidied her hair, and left the room.
Life in the disciplinary school seemed repetitive and monotonous, each day indistinguishable from the last.
Upon entering the cafeteria, Song Shi grabbed a tray and went to collect her breakfast.
Today's meal consisted of a small piece of bread and a serving of stew.
Carrying her tray with these items, Song Shi scanned the room for a seat.
She had arrived a little late again, and every table for eight was occupied to some degree. Deciding not to waste time, she walked straight to the nearest available table and sat down.
After all, people would instinctively avoid her.
As expected, when she approached, everyone sitting in her direction subtly raised their eyes to observe her. Once she set her tray down, those not sitting with her quickly averted their gaze and resumed eating, while the unfortunate few who ended up seated beside her muttered a curse and moved to another table.
Song Shi ignored the insult, lowering her head to eat quickly.
Meanwhile, she remained acutely aware of the surrounding movements, keeping her focus sharp.
She could not afford to be caught off guard again, as she had been when her neck had been seized yesterday.
Someone was approaching, accompanied by a large group of followers.
Song Shi continued eating without changing her pace, but anyone observant would notice that her grip on the steel spoon tightened, her knuckles paling, and her eating slowed. She had prepared herself for an immediate, violent defense.
The person extended a hand toward her shoulder.
Song Shi's shoulder tensed, her hand holding the spoon against the plate, then quickly sliding down to grasp the handle in the middle, flipping it so the pointed end faced downward.
When the warm fingers touched her shoulder, Song Shi's wrist twitched, ready to strike.
"Hello, miss," the person greeted, patting her shoulder before retracting his hand.
Song Shi didn't loosen her grip on the spoon but turned her head to assess the situation. The young man sat down beside her, his hand casually tucked into his pocket.
He leaned sideways, placing one leg across the crossbar between two chairs, elbow on the table, head resting on his fist, eyeing her with a relaxed familiarity. "I heard you sent Tong Jun to the hospital yesterday. I didn't expect you to be so tough."
Song Shi, after confirming that he had no immediate intent to act, lowered her head and continued eating.
Not receiving a response, the young man furrowed his brows, sensing a slight offense, but quickly masked it with a smile, "Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Dai Ming, a year below you. If you ever need anything, feel free to come to me. I'm a loyal friend."
Hearing someone mention "friends" and "loyalty" upon first meeting, Song Shi found it hard to believe.
She had already finished the stew and was now nibbling on the remaining half of her dry bread.
The bread was so dry that, despite eating slowly, she found herself struggling to swallow.
Dai Ming gestured to one of his subordinates, who handed him a bottle of water. With a helpful smile, he twisted open the cap and placed it in front of Song Shi.
She glanced at it but made no move to touch it.
"Do you know why Tong Jun came looking for you?" Dai Ming asked, resting his head on his hand.
Song Shi cut to the chase, "How much did Wei Yuyu's mother pay you?"
"Hmm… not much, just 100,000. Whoever gets the video to her first each day gets the reward."
Song Shi caught an important detail:
"Each day, the first one."
The reason the person rushed to find her during breakfast was because they were concerned that someone else might "beat her to the punch," filming a video and claiming the 100,000 reward.
Yesterday, only one group had approached her for the same reason—the reward had already been taken by someone surnamed Tong, and it would be pointless for anyone else to seek her out now, no matter how eager they were for the 100,000 prize.
Thus, every day, only one group would approach her, and due to the fierce competition, the timing would only get earlier. Like today, she had just woken up and was heading to the cafeteria when they found her.
"Miss, I really don't want to hurt you," the person sighed dramatically, feigning sympathy. He reached out toward her mouth. "That Tong Jun doesn't know how to cherish a woman; look how vicious his blows were. Tsk, this won't heal in five or six days."
Song Shi turned her face to avoid his touch, throwing the remaining crumbs of her bread back into her plate.
"Say what you want to do."
Dai Ming withdrew his hand, resting it on his knee, his voice laced with feigned sincerity. "I just want to help you. Rather than being beaten by different people every day, suffering for nothing, why not establish a long-term partnership with me? We can act out a little scene, send it to Wang Danyu, and I'll collect the money while you suffer less."
Song Shi gritted her teeth. "What kind of scene?"
"Simple," Dai Ming said, dropping his leg from the bar. He pointed to a wrist-mounted lightbrain of one of his subordinates, his eyes sparkling with excitement. "You kneel, beg for mercy in front of the camera, cry as dramatically as you can, be humble, bow a few times—make Wang Danyu believe it. Then, the money will be transferred to you."
Song Shi lowered her gaze, focusing on the reflection in her steel plate. "What if I don't want to?"
Dai Ming rubbed his neck, and his subordinates shifted restlessly behind him. "Then I'll have to use Tong Jun's method from yesterday, after all... I'm going to get that money."
Song Shi paused before responding, "Fine."
Dai Ming's eyes lit up. "You agree to cooperate?" He quickly signaled his men to activate their lightbrain cameras.
Song Shi gripped her plate tightly, leapt up, and swung it toward the back of the person standing behind her.
"Take that!"
The steel plate was deformed under the three powerful strikes, leaving a large dent.
Dai Ming, caught off guard, stumbled, falling toward the ground, but his subordinates caught him just in time, sparing him from hitting the floor.
The number of subordinates surrounding Song Shi grew far beyond the ones Tong Jun had brought yesterday.
Song Shi leapt onto the dining table, swinging the plate and sending anyone who got close flying.
The sharp sounds of the plate slamming against arms and heads were so loud that the surrounding diners winced.
Despite the commotion, the cafeteria attendants continued their duties without intervening.
Song Shi's swift movements left trails of afterimages, and those who tried to grab her could barely react before feeling a sharp sting from the plate.
The cries of pain echoed as no one could approach her.
After a while, Dai Ming, who had been helped aside to rest, finally regained his composure. Rubbing his neck, he glared at Song Shi, who was still jumping on the table, furious. He grabbed a plate that had been left behind by someone fleeing, and hurled it toward her.
Song Shi, keenly aware, spotted the silver object flying toward her head. She held the plate by its end, swinging it like a badminton racket, sending the object flying back.
Dai Ming barely dodged the returning plate, which struck the table, causing it to scratch deeply and flip over.
Fuming, Dai Ming grabbed a subordinate by the collar and dragged him to another table close to where Song Shi stood.
"Get up! Bring her down!" Dai Ming ordered.
Song Shi, standing above, knew that no one would be able to get close unless they tackled her first.
The subordinate hesitated, his fear evident, but Dai Ming forced him to look into his eyes and said coldly, "If you don't do as I say, you'll be the next one she takes down!"
The subordinate, trembling, nodded hurriedly. "I'll do it."
Dai Ming released him, and the subordinate climbed onto the table, steeling himself before lunging toward Song Shi.
As the heavy figure descended upon her, Song Shi was ready. She knew the objective was to drag her down, so she braced herself and, as he lunged, struck his head fiercely.
The blow caused him to stagger back, dazed, with blood pouring from his nose, but he remembered his mission. He opened his arms to seize Song Shi, but she swiftly raised her leg and kicked him squarely in the chest.
Her strength was unmatched, especially in this explosive state—one kick was enough to send him flying. His arms flailed as he fell, instinctively protecting his head, unable to focus on her anymore.
Just as she thought she had neutralized the threat, a warm hand grabbed her ankle, pulling her backward.
In a flash, another hand reached for the plate in her hand.
She held on tightly, falling to one knee, with the plate still in her grasp. Surrounding figures rushed at her, and she slashed at them with the jagged edges of the broken plate.
Blood splattered across her face and hair as someone yanked her hair loose, pulling her backward, her body falling to the ground. In her final moment, she threw the plate at one of her attackers, hitting him in the head and causing a deep gash. He stumbled back, clutching his bleeding skull.
Each person was a casualty, and the more that were injured, the better it was for Song Shi.
Eventually, she was overwhelmed by the sheer number of attackers, but she curled up, protecting her neck as best as she could, trying to minimize the damage.
After a long period of beating, the group finally dispersed when Song Shi's breath grew faint.
They left, snapping pictures of her battered state and mocking her.
She did not lose consciousness this time. It took a long while for her to regain her composure, rising from the floor to see the blood-soaked ground. There was her own blood, but far more of it was from her attackers.
She had won today.
A low laugh escaped her lips.
Her bloody face, tangled hair, and the wild grin painted the image of a wounded wolf surviving a savage battle with hyenas—a brutal victory that was as horrifying as it was cruel.
The cleaning staff, startled by her appearance, stepped back, hesitant to approach.
Song Shi wiped the blood from her nose, wiping it on her hand. She reached into her pocket, pulling out the tissues she had prepared that morning, crumpling them to stop the bleeding. Dragging her right leg, she limped toward the academic building.
(End of Chapter)
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