Chapter 10: Supporting a Useless Brother? Not Happening!
Xie Yaozu, who was originally supposed to be discharged on the 7th, got scalded by hot breakfast and then got so worked up by Lin Zhifeng that his rib fractures worsened. He kept complaining about dizziness, so he had to stay another ten days for observation.
Wang Tingmei had stayed up several nights looking after him and kept dozing off at work and while cooking. She had no choice but to ask a grumbling Li Amei to take over caring for Xie Yaozu.
Ever since getting shut down a few times, those few leeches hadn’t dared to bother Lin Zhifeng again.
With the house finally quiet, Lin Zhifeng told Xie Laidi to focus on studying essays and stop passing out flyers to prepare for the upcoming competition.
She hadn’t forgotten to repay the favor Yang Xiaofang did by passing on the message. She called the Yang house a few times to share some potential essay topics.
Early in the morning on August 8th, Lin Zhifeng and Xie Laidi headed out. As they left, they noticed that Xie Guibao’s bedroom door was tightly shut — clearly no intention of getting up for the competition.
“Big sister, if we win the prize money, will they take it away from us?” Xie Laidi asked, gesturing with her hands, her bright eyes full of worry.
“I checked it out. The prize money comes out on August 28th, and the winner must claim it in person. If you have a bank card, it can be transferred directly to it. For junior contestants without cards, you can designate an account for the transfer.”
Xie Laidi thought for a moment, then her eyes lit up and she started gesturing excitedly. “Your birthday’s on the 25th — then you can get an ID and a bank card!”
“Exactly. Once the money’s on the card, no one can touch it without the password. Even if they find out, all they can do is watch helplessly. Ah, just imagining the look on their faces feels so satisfying.”
When the two of them arrived at the fast food restaurant, Yang Xiaofang was already waiting outside. As soon as she spotted them from a distance, she gave a shy smile and waved.
“My sister-in-law made us sorghum buns. She said eating them brings good luck.”
Lin Zhifeng and Xie Laidi took the sorghum buns with thanks, and the three of them strolled slowly toward the Cultural Center. Upon arrival, they were assigned to different classrooms based on the numbers they had drawn, and thus separated.
Lin Zhifeng ended up in the first room on the first floor. When she entered, not everyone had arrived yet. She laid her head on the desk to rest for a bit and only stirred when the exam supervisor walked in.
Looking around, she spotted Xie Guibao sitting in a corner. The moment he saw her wake up, he exaggeratedly mouthed the words “jinx” at her without making a sound.
If it were the original owner, she would’ve just turned her head and ignored him. Xie Guibao was counting on exactly that and provoked her on purpose.
Unfortunately for him, he didn’t realize that Xie Zhaodi had long since been replaced.
Lin Zhifeng sent out the faintest wisp of her spiritual essence—just a sliver—and at the moment it was about to fade, she suddenly used it to slap Xie Guibao across the face.
The force was so strong it almost shattered his teeth.
“Ah!” Xie Guibao crashed to the floor, wailing and clutching his face, drawing startled glances from both contestants and the teacher.
Even in the God Realm, Lin Zhifeng’s spiritual soul was considered top-tier. If she hadn’t deliberately held back, she could’ve slapped this brat to death with one hit.
“If you’re not feeling well, please go to the hospital,” the supervising teacher said.
The proctor, a young woman named Bai Jing, was delicate-looking and fair-skinned. Seeing that Xie Guibao didn’t appear to be sick or injured and was moving around just fine, she assumed he was just causing a disturbance.
Xie Guibao had been slapped by thin air and was now tasting blood in his mouth, his vision going dark from the pain. When he heard Teacher Bai’s calm reprimand, he immediately lost his temper.
“What a crappy contest! I’m not doing it anymore!”
“Then please leave quietly,” Bai Jing replied coolly, her tone hardening at his attitude.
Clutching his face, Xie Guibao got up and stormed toward the exit. As he passed Lin Zhifeng’s desk, he raised his foot, intending to kick her and her desk over.
He didn’t care what had happened to his face—he just couldn’t let Xie Zhaodi have things easy.
“Hey! What do you think you’re doing?!”
Teacher Bai let out a startled cry, and everyone’s eyes widened, thinking Lin Zhifeng was about to be kicked over, desk and all.
Several people, including Teacher Bai, instinctively stepped forward to stop it—but they all froze in shock at what happened next.
Xie Guibao’s raised foot never made contact. Instead, it was as if he had slipped on thin air—his body suddenly lurched backward, and with a heavy thump, his thick backside slammed to the ground, sending him sprawling in a mess of limbs.
“Hahahaha—!”
The classroom erupted in laughter, while Xie Guibao’s chubby face twisted into an angry, embarrassed scowl.
Lin Zhifeng, meanwhile, had gone pale. The fatigue from forcibly using her spiritual essence was washing over her, making it hard to even lift her eyelids.
Even so, seeing Xie Guibao grimacing in pain, on the verge of tears but trying not to cry—that made her feel absolutely delighted!
Her pallor didn’t go unnoticed. Teacher Bai and the other contestants assumed she was shaken from the scare, and their sympathy for her grew. In contrast, Xie Guibao, who had caused the scene and embarrassed himself, became even more disliked.
Lowering her gaze to hide the smile in her eyes, Lin Zhifeng stood up unsteadily and softly apologized, “I’m sorry. It was my fault—I didn’t keep an eye on my younger brother and ended up wasting everyone’s time.”
“What, they’re siblings? I thought they were enemies!”
“You don’t need to apologize—he should be the one saying sorry.”
“If that kick had landed, you’d be in the hospital. He totally deserved what he got.”
Everyone thought she was pitiful and began to speak up on her behalf.
Seeing all this, Teacher Bai quickly pieced things together. It was clearly a case of favoritism at home—an older sister constantly b*llied by her family, which explained her timid demeanor.
Feeling a surge of righteous indignation, the young teacher slapped the desk and firmly declared, “Student, please leave immediately, or I’ll call security.”
Xie Guibao’s butt felt like it had been split in half, blood still oozed from his mouth, and the pain was so intense tears were rolling down his face.
He was full of rage with nowhere to vent it. Clutching his face and backside, Xie Guibao struggled to his feet and glared viciously at Lin Zhifeng.
“Xie Zhaodi, just wait till my dad gets out of the hospital—you’re dead!”
He hobbled out of the room, completely ignoring Wang Tingmei’s strict instructions that he had to participate in the contest.
Once he left, the classroom quickly settled down again, though everyone was silently judging him.
A few middle schoolers who knew him had exposed his behavior during the commotion, and the image of a jerk who disrupted the competition and b*llied his own sister firmly took root in everyone’s mind.
“The topic for this essay is ‘Wish.’ Please do your best, focus, and aim for an ideal result,” Teacher Bai announced.
She handed out the papers, and the classroom soon fell silent.
Lin Zhifeng felt a wave of exhaustion hit her—she was barely able to stay awake. This time, the spiritual energy she had expended far surpassed what she’d used when placing talismans. Her eyelids were impossibly heavy.
Grinding her teeth, she forced herself to grip the pen tightly and began writing down the essay she had long since prepared, word by word.
To leave a good impression on the grading teachers, she wrote in a neat and elegant script. The content blended the experiences of both the original Xie Zhaodi and herself, forming a unique narrative voice.
By the time the bell rang, she had finally completed what she felt was the perfect essay.
After turning it in, Lin Zhifeng immediately left the classroom. Spotting Xie Laidi and Yang Xiaofang waiting outside, she didn’t waste time on conversation and simply waved for them to hurry and leave.
She needed to get home and sleep—badly.
Back in the now-empty classroom, Teacher Bai was collecting the papers. She paused when she came across the one signed “Xie Zhaodi,” her eyes lighting up in surprise and admiration.
“This is beautifully written—definitely worthy of a prize,” she murmured.
Then, as if suddenly remembering something, her brows furrowed slightly and she said to herself in a low voice, “I wonder if the rumors are true… If they’ve already decided on a winner ahead of time, it’d be such a shame for this girl.”
