Standing Next To You-Chapter 432: Speculations

Mid-summer had arrived, and Tian Shen High was bustling with life today.

A long line of students in graduation robes, accompanied by their families, posed for pictures in front of the grand entrance of Tian Shen High. Groups of students crowded together, striking funny poses, while others chanted cheerfully, celebrating their graduation.

Lin Sunji and her family were surrounded by a throng of students and parents, all congratulating the twins on their achievements as valedictorian and salutatorian.

"I wonder what the Lin family feeds their children to make them so smart. Your daughter is the salutatorian, and your son is the valedictorian. You must be very proud, Madame," a lady from a distinguished family praised Li Mei.

Li Mei tried to maintain a composed and dignified appearance, but the constant praise for her children made her grin widely, betraying the happiness she felt inside. "My children are both hardworking. They reap what they sow. I am indeed proud of them, but whether they hold a title or not, I am always proud of them."

The other ladies exclaimed in admiration, showering more praise on Li Mei and her family.

Lin Sunji watched as she and her family became the center of attention. Yet, for some reason, this felt strange to her.

In the past, whenever she and her family were in the spotlight, it felt natural. She didn’t see others as her equals, so it was only right for her to be exalted and privileged above everyone else.

She received praise because she was meant to. She was perfect, without flaws, and these people naturally had to admire her because she possessed everything they lacked.

But this year, that belief—instilled in her mind for so long—began to crumble. Piece by piece, she was forced to confront the reality that she wasn’t perfect. That she, too, was like the others: lacking and flawed in many ways.

Surrounded by praise and admiration, Lin Sunji didn’t feel the same way as before. Instead of pride, she felt uncomfortable, because she knew the truth: she and her brother wouldn’t be receiving this attention if two other people were still at this school.

Lin Sunji glanced at her brother.

Even her brilliant brother wouldn’t be valedictorian today if Fei Chuan hadn’t left the school. And the school wouldn’t be giving them so much attention if Bei Sangyun were still here.

Lin Sunji approached her brother, who was visibly exhausted from all the attention. She tugged at his robe.

"Zhong Cheng and the others are in the back. I’m going to join them. Want to come with me?"

Lin Sanju, whose face had grown dull from the excessive attention, suddenly perked up. "Let’s go." It was clear how much he wanted to escape.

Zhong Cheng and his group were in the nurse’s clinic. They had left their parents, who were busy socializing with other parents and praising other children. They hadn’t received any awards, nor did they stand out in their class.

So when they saw the twins, who were supposed to be the protagonists today, appear at their hangout spot, they were stunned.

Zhong Cheng was surprised as well. "Why are you two here?"

Lin Sunji took off her robe and sat on one of the clinic beds. "Why can’t we be here? My brother is that woman’s lackey. We belong here."

Lin Sanju, the so-called high-end lackey, sat down as well. He looked around at everyone. "So, what are you guys plans for the future?"

Zhong Cheng, He Bao, and Zhi Ming exchanged glances.

As the representative of all Bei Sangyun’s followers, Zhong Cheng spoke for them. "We got a job from the Boss. We’ll continue to work for her."

Lin Sanju nodded. He had spoken with Bei Sangyun just a week ago, but she hadn’t mentioned what to do with Zhong Cheng and the others. He assumed she had forgotten about her school lackeys and was planning to put them to use himself. But it seemed Bei Sangyun already had plans for them.

Lin Sunji perked up. "What job?"

Zhong Cheng crossed his arms. "Secret. The Boss said it’s confidential."

Lin Sunji rolled her eyes at him, but after a moment, she hesitantly asked again, "...Did she mention anything about me?" fɾēewebnσveℓ.com

Zhong Cheng was surprised by her question. "Why would the Boss mention you to me? You should ask your brother, not me."

Lin Sunji glared at him. She was asking because Bei Sangyun hadn’t mentioned her to Lin Sanju either. Of course, she had already asked her brother.

"If you don’t want to tell me, just say so!" she snapped at Zhong Cheng.

Lin Sunji was only asking because, in the past, Bei Sangyun had entrusted her care to Zhong Cheng. But now that whatever ’training’ was over, Lin Sunji wondered if Bei Sangyun had any plans for her. After all, Zhong Cheng and the other lackeys had been given instructions, so... she wondered if she, too, had some other task.

"Boss really didn’t mention you. Maybe she’s forgotten about you?"

Lin Sunji shot him a death glare and fell silent.

She ground her teeth in frustration, cursing Bei Sangyun. That damned girl had made things difficult for her under the guise of training, only to forget about her in the end! The nerve of her!

"It means you’re free to do whatever you want, Sunji. She trusts you to handle that," Lin Sanju offered, trying to reassure his sister.

Lin Sunji’s tense expression finally softened a bit. "...Okay."

So that girl hadn’t forgotten about her. She just didn’t know where to put her to use yet. After all, she was on a higher level, like her brother.

"Anyway, I wanted to ask... does anyone know why the two of them left? Did they break up?" Lin Sunji’s question caused the atmosphere in the room to stagnate.

Lin Sanju shot her a look, signaling her to stop asking pointless questions.

"Why? Aren’t you guys curious too? When those two suddenly left school two months ago, everyone was shocked. They left without saying goodbye to us. I have no idea what happened. But for them to leave so abruptly, they must have broken up, right?"

Zhong Cheng coughed. "Lin Sunji, sometimes it’s better to play ignorant. Don’t ask that question out loud anywhere."

"I know. That’s why I waited until we were alone. I just can’t find any reason for them to leave school with only two months left before graduation. They didn’t even take the entrance exams."

Lin Sunji was so curious about their situation that she stayed up late thinking about it. She even considered sneaking into her brother’s phone to get Bei Sangyun’s number and call her to ask. But it’s too bad this burning curiosity had nowhere to go.

Lin Sunji really wondered what had happened between those two that made them leave the country.

She was there when they were studying and preparing for entrance exams. She had heard about their plans to become a campus couple. So she was really taken aback when the teacher suddenly announced their withdrawal, one after the other.

She might have understood if they had left together. But no, they left separately.

"Why are you so curious about them? It’s not like you’ll gain anything if they get back together," Zhong Cheng remarked.

Lin Sunji’s eyes widened. "So they really broke up!"

Zhong Cheng quickly covered his mouth. "Shit."

Everyone turned to look at Zhong Cheng, waiting for him to spill the details.

Zhong Cheng, who had the most contact with Bei Sangyun, hugged himself defensively. "Don’t stare at me! If you want details, ask him!" He pointed at Lin Sanju. Since the secret was out, he figured it was better to drag others into it.

Lin Sanju shook his head. "I don’t know either. I had a guess, but I only confirmed it because of what you just said."

Zhong Cheng: "....."

Damn. The Boss is going to kill him.

"....Please don’t tell anyone, guys." Zhong Cheng finally pleaded.

"So what happened? Why did they break up?" Lin Sunji pressed on, clearly more intrigued than concerned with Zhong Cheng’s pleas.

"I don’t know. I’m as shocked as you are. We all saw how lovey-dovey they were. So, like you, I was surprised too." Zhong Cheng found it overwhelming to keep such a big secret to himself. When he first heard that the Boss had left the country, he was stunned.

But when she dropped the bombshell that she and Fei Chuan had broken up, Zhong Cheng felt as if someone had told him the earth was actually triangular.

It was just too hard to believe.

But the fact that Bei Sangyun tasked him with tracking Fei Chuan’s traces he left in the country, Zhong Cheng finally accepted that they had indeed broken up. And it seemed it didn’t end well.

The room fell silent.

When the school tyrant, Bei Sangyun, and the top-ranking student, Fei Chuan, suddenly announced their withdrawal, the entire school was thrown into an uproar. The news dominated conversations for a long time.

With no details on why the two left, rumors and speculations ran wild. Some claimed they had eloped to get engaged and were traveling the world on a honeymoon. Others whispered that Bei Sangyun was pregnant. A few even suggested that Fei Chuan had cheated on Bei Sangyun and was buried by her. But none of it made any sense.

In the end, no answers emerged, and life went on. As this was the most critical time for senior students, their attention shifted from the mysterious couple to their graduation and entrance exams.

Although it seemed like the school and its students had moved on from talking about the pair, online forums dedicated to speculating about their disappearance remained on the front page. No one dared to overshadow this topic with anything else.

Thus, graduation came and midsummer ended, yet there were still no answers about what had happened to them or what they were doing now.

Even the lackeys Bei Sangyun left behind were in the dark. No one knew why they broke up or where they were at the moment.