Chapter 178

“You still have the nerve to address Josie?” Delilah stepped forward and seized Kyle’s collar. “If I’m not mistaken, you’re a Langton, aren’t you? Weren’t you on the same team as Josie before? What, now that Josie left, got better, and even won an award, you feel uncomfortable about it?”

Delilah tore into Kyle. “Are you even human, using such dirty tricks against a young girl? All the growing up you’ve done is wasted. How dare you call yourself a man? Do you even have the guts to admit your fault?”

Josie tried to stop this forceful display, but couldn’t.

Hadley, fearing that Delilah might act on impulse and hit someone, quickly pulled her away. “Calm down, calm down. The school has already said it will handle this matter seriously, and it certainly will. You can’t resort to violence!”

Delilah let out a soft scoff. “How could someone like me resort to violence? What kind of person do you take me for? Striking someone would only dirty my hands, and even wasting a few words on him would be letting him off easy. He doesn’t even deserve that much.”

Josie nearly failed to suppress a smile.

“Since the matter has already been thoroughly investigated and the mastermind identified, I will not take up any more of your time. I will fully defer to the school’s decision regarding how this matter is handled,” Josie said.

Hadley, visibly irritated, waved his hand and said, “That’s enough. You may go now. Please advise your professor not to become anxious or upset over such matters. It is not worth it.”

“Understood. Thank you.” Josie stepped forward to take Delilah by the arm. She then reached out to help the village party secretary up, before she turned to leave.

From start to finish, she did not spare Kyle so much as a single glance.

The disregard in her eyes nearly drove Kyle to the brink of collapse.

He had never felt so embarrassed and regretful. It seemed as though he had done something that would make him regret it for the rest of his life.

Upon seeing that Josie was about to leave, he panicked completely.

“Josie…” Kyle called out as he rushed toward her.

However, before he could get closer, Hadley yanked him back and snapped, “Behave yourself! What on earth are you thinking? You still want to hurt Josie now?”

“No, I never intended to harm her.” Kyle shook his head forcefully. “I was wrong, I truly was wrong. Director, I beg you, please let me speak to Josie. It’d just be a minute!”

With a pleading expression, he sidestepped Hadley and ran toward Josie again.

Josie stood at the doorway, her hand already resting on the handle.

Kyle started, “I’m sorry, Josie, truly, I’m so sorry. I…I didn’t do it on purpose. I never meant to hurt you. I really have no way out, I have no way out. I don’t know what to do!”

“Please, could you forgive me? No matter what, we still shared the bond of being senior and junior. Over the past few years, my concern for you has always been sincere. Could you…could you help your senior out?” Kyle begged.

Kyle grasped Josie’s arm as he pleaded desperately, “I cannot be disciplined, please. Otherwise, my entire life will be ruined. Please, Josie, I beg you, could you plead on my behalf? I don’t want to be ruined like this! Please, I’m begging you!”

It was a pathetic sight: a man nearly six feet tall, so anxious that tears were streaming down his face.

“You should have known better.” Josie pried the man’s hand off. “The only reason why you’re treating me like this is because you’re afraid that, once my paper is published in the university journal, it will show just how bad your paper is by comparison, isn’t it?”

Josie continued, “But have you ever considered that the poor quality of your thesis was not caused by me? Yet you had almost single-handedly destroyed my reputation.”

“If I did not dare to stand up for myself, if the village secretary had not kept all the IOUs from my childhood up to now, and if the school had not thoroughly investigated the matter, it would have implicated Professor Jeremy as a result,” Josie raised her voice.

Josie spat out, “If that happens, not only will my own reputation be ruined, but Professor Jeremy’s lifelong reputation will also be destroyed. He will lose his job and face criticism and reproach, and Delilah as well as Claire will likewise be implicated. Being expelled from school would be nothing.