Inferior Cigarettes Chapter 22

Chapter 22: The Anonymous Letter

After that unpleasant argument, Chen Shu felt Jiang Yuan was deliberately avoiding him. Jiang Yuan was always in a hurry, always asking for leave, even missing several exams. He would take detours whenever he saw Chen Shu, deliberately avoiding eye contact in the classroom corridor.

Three days later, Chen Shu finally managed to corner Jiang Yuan in the small bamboo grove.

Jiang Yuan held a folder, his brow furrowed, looking hurried and impatient. “Chen Shu, let’s talk later, I have something to do.”

Chen Shu blocked his path, his pent-up frustration and anger finally erupting. “No! Jiang Yuan! Are you still avoiding me?! Jiang Yuan! Why?! Just because I’m gay, you’re going to cut ties with me, is that it?”

The term “cut ties” sounded childish.

Jiang Yuan sighed wearily. “No, Chen Shu, I really do have something to do right now. We’ll talk later.”

“No! Today, right now! Jiang Yuan, I know you’ve been avoiding me! Jiang Yuan, can’t you think about how I feel? I don’t want to be like this either, but I can’t control my feelings. Can’t you understand me?”

“Chen Shu, I understand you, I know it’s not your fault, but I still advise you to see someone. Our school has a counseling room, I’ve asked, they…”

“I’m not going!” Chen Shu shouted angrily, interrupting Jiang Yuan. “So, you understand me, but you still can’t accept it? Why?! Is it that difficult?”

Jiang Yuan looked directly into Chen Shu’s eyes, feeling exhausted, mentally and physically drained. He was already overwhelmed by his family issues. He wanted to help Chen Shu, but Chen Shu wouldn’t listen, and right now, he had more important things to do.

Jiang Yuan said bluntly and cruelly, “Chen Shu, this is simply unacceptable. Do you think your parents can accept it? Or the boy you like? Chen Shu, stop being childish.”

Jiang Yuan’s words were like a sharp knife, piercing Chen Shu’s heart. Seeing the cold and indifferent look in Jiang Yuan’s eyes, Chen Shu felt even more heartbroken. He wasn’t just rejected by Jiang Yuan, but rejected by the person he liked. A merciless, absolute rejection, a death sentence for his feelings.

Chen Shu was unwilling to accept it. His feelings hadn’t even been acknowledged, yet they had already been extinguished, and Jiang Yuan seemed not to care at all. Chen Shu’s mind raced, wanting to see a stronger reaction from Jiang Yuan.

“What if I said I liked you?” Chen Shu stared into Jiang Yuan’s eyes, repeating obsessively, “Jiang Yuan, what if I said the person I like is you?”

“Would you still not accept it?” His calm tone barely concealed the desperation of a gambler.

Chen Shu wanted to gamble, would Jiang Yuan change his principles, lower his standards for him?

Jiang Yuan froze, his gaze flickering, looking at Chen Shu in disbelief. Uncontrollably, his memory subconsciously searched for any past clues. Those strange, overly intimate encounters suddenly became evidence. Jiang Yuan suddenly recalled the time he had been roughhousing with Chen Shu, and Chen Shu had become aroused… Jiang Yuan’s scalp tingled, a wave of disgust rising from his stomach.

Jiang Yuan subconsciously took a step back, clenching his fists to suppress the discomfort, wanting to escape this hellish place.

Chen Shu watched as the look in Jiang Yuan’s eyes changed from shock and disbelief to fear, disgust, and rejection.

He saw Jiang Yuan take a step back, clenching his fists, as if he would turn and flee at any moment, leaving him forever.

The rising flames of his crazy hope were instantly extinguished. Chen Shu panicked, instantly regretting his words.

“No, it was a hypothetical, just a hypothetical,” Chen Shu hurriedly stepped forward to explain, as if afraid Jiang Yuan would run away. He grabbed Jiang Yuan’s arms, pleading desperately, his gaze fixed on Jiang Yuan, panicked and flustered, rambling, wanting another chance, wanting Jiang Yuan’s acceptance.

He was afraid of this unfamiliar look in Jiang Yuan’s eyes, afraid that Jiang Yuan would really stop talking to him because of this.

“Jiang Yuan, suppose a boy liked you, he liked you very much, he had liked you for a long time, and he was very good to you, except he wasn’t a girl, he would do anything for you, couldn’t you try to see it from a normal perspective, without prejudice? Jiang Yuan, what if you also liked him?”

So it was a hypothetical. The dying embers of his heart rekindled slightly, but Jiang Yuan still pushed Chen Shu’s hands away. Even if it was a hypothetical, he couldn’t accept it.

“No, I would only feel disgusted,” Jiang Yuan confessed his true feelings mercilessly. “Chen Shu, stop being stubborn.”

Chen Shu froze, his strength draining away like a receding tide. Jiang Yuan easily pushed his arms away and turned to leave without hesitation, without a shred of sympathy.

Disgusted, disgusted…

These two words weighed him down like a mountain, crushing him, shattering him, almost killing him.

Chen Shu stood frozen, pathetic and defeated, like a discarded leaf, ready to fall with the slightest breeze, to crumble with the slightest touch.

…

For almost a week, Chen Shu didn’t see Jiang Yuan. He only heard that Jiang Yuan had taken leave. He saw Jiang Yuan again during class. Jiang Yuan walked past the corridor. Chen Shu, lost in thought, happened to look out the window and saw him. But Jiang Yuan didn’t seem to notice Chen Shu’s gaze, just walking past hurriedly, looking haggard and exhausted.

Chen Shu belatedly realized that Jiang Yuan might not be avoiding him anymore. Something must have happened at home, otherwise he wouldn’t have taken so much leave.

Chen Shu suddenly remembered that day of the confession. It had been Jiang Yuan who had suggested exchanging secrets, but in the end, Jiang Yuan hadn’t said anything.

What it was, he never found out.

Chen Shu’s heart felt empty, his soul seemingly following that hurriedly retreating figure. He didn’t hear a word of the rest of the class.

The hurtful words still echoed in his ears, but Chen Shu still wanted to see Jiang Yuan. Not for any other reason, but just to check on him. If they could talk, Chen Shu just wanted to ask if he needed any help.

But when he went looking for him, he couldn’t find him anywhere. Chen Shu asked around and learned from the homeroom teacher that Jiang Yuan had taken a month’s leave.

A month, another month without seeing him.

Chen Shu felt down and sad, becoming much less talkative, losing interest in many things. This obvious change was noticeable to his friends. Deng Xinghua even joked that Jiang Yuan had taken the real Chen Shu away with him.

It seemed to be true.

Liking someone really could make you happy, sad, or absent-minded because of their every word and action, as if countless strings were connected to your heart, all your emotions pulled and changed by them.

Chen Shu could have easily gotten news of Jiang Yuan by sending a message. Jiang Yuan would definitely reply. But Chen Shu didn’t know how to write the message. Later, he simply didn’t have the energy to think about these things, he didn’t even have the time to pick up his phone.

Because an anonymous letter suddenly appeared in the complaint box in the principal’s office, instantly plunging Chen Shu into a scandal.

The letter accused Chen Shu of being gay and claimed he had been sexually harassed by him. The news spread quickly, attracting the school’s attention.

Strange looks, whispers, words like “gay” and “sexual harassment” became permanently associated with Chen Shu. Many friends started distancing themselves from him.

Overnight, Chen Shu became a pariah.

Already devastated, Chen Shu was further tormented. He didn’t understand how things had come to this. Who had written the letter? Who had spread the news? He had only told Jiang Yuan about being gay.

But Jiang Yuan would never do such a thing. Then who? But dwelling on this was pointless. The scandal was enough to crush him, the judging eyes enough to rob him of all freedom.

Chen Shu’s parents were called to the school, and they went to the principal’s office together.

Chen Shu was a top student. The principal had even awarded him a scholarship. In the principal’s impression, Chen Shu was a bright, cheerful, and outstanding student. This scandal was truly unexpected.

But there was no smoke without fire, and there must be a source for such malicious accusations. No matter how beautiful the exterior, the inside could be rotten.

The principal didn’t dare to jump to conclusions, so he called Chen Shu’s parents to inquire about the situation.

Upon hearing the news, Chen Shu’s mother, Li Xiaoyun’s, eyes trembled. Then she refuted angrily and resolutely, “Impossible, Chen Shu would never do such a thing! He’s not that kind of person, I know him! This is slander!”

Chen Shu’s father, Chen Hehao, immediately put his arm around Li Xiaoyun, gently rubbing her shoulder, comforting her as she became agitated, then calmly looked at the principal. “Principal, can I see the anonymous letter?”

The principal said, “I’m sorry, to avoid unnecessary trouble, the letter is confidential.”

“Alright,” Chen Hehao said, “Then may I ask if there are any photos, recordings, or concrete evidence in the letter?”

“This… no.”

“No evidence at all, yet the whole school knows about it. This is malicious slander. How is Chen Shu supposed to continue studying here? How can he hold his head high? If the school refuses to take action, we’ll have to seek legal help.”

The principal hurriedly stood up. He naturally didn’t want the matter to escalate, as it would severely damage the school’s reputation.

“Please calm down, Mr. and Mrs. Chen. Chen Shu is an excellent student, and we are also reluctant to believe such accusations. But because the events and details described in the letter are quite detailed and seem real, we have to investigate thoroughly. I can guarantee that the information wasn’t leaked by our leadership, but there was indeed negligence on our part, and we will take full responsibility. If this is just a rumor, we will clarify it immediately, control the spread of the rumor, and clear Chen Shu’s name.”

The principal walked over to Chen Shu, who had been standing silently with his head lowered, and patted his shoulder comfortingly, asking seriously, “Chen Shu, this is just a necessary questioning process, not an accusation, but I hope you can be honest, because the school will also send people to investigate. So, Chen Shu, are the accusations in the letter true?”

Chen Shu trembled, his eyes reddening as he forced himself to look up. He gritted his teeth, suppressing his anger, helplessness, and sadness. After a long moment, he finally spoke with difficulty, “No.”

At least, he hadn’t sexually harassed anyone.

“Good!” The principal straightened up, saying to Chen Shu and his parents, “The situation at school is indeed a bit chaotic now, and the students are definitely affected. So I suggest Chen Shu stay home for a week to rest and adjust his mood, maybe go out and relax. The school will definitely give you an explanation for this matter.”