Those Classmates who Suddenly Disappeared
Chapter 416: Digging Your Own Pit

Chapter 416: Chapter 416: Digging Your Own Pit

By evening, at the agreed-upon time, everyone gathered at Gu Fan’s house, their eyes fixed on Lin Xi as they eagerly anticipated the reason she had called this meeting, expecting a big announcement.

Lu Yi was the first to venture a bold guess, "You guys didn’t just secretly get your marriage license, did you?"

On hearing this, Gu Fan nearly rolled his eyes and slapped Lu Yi on the shoulder firmly, "Come on, man, this is a serious meeting. Please listen quietly before making any comments."

"Alright, my bad. I just thought the atmosphere was too tense, so I was trying to lighten things up." Lu Yi apologized, while Su Hui, her face with a fresh face mask and her feet propped up, was filled with interest. "Alright, Lin Xi, now that everyone’s here, let’s get to the point," she said.

"Okay... Alright, let me think about where to start." Lin Xi, finding herself in a quandary, paused to think, then took a deep breath before launching into her story. "You all know that in my past life, I was Queen Qianye, right? That was the life I led after growing up. However, as a child, I was alone and later sold into a horrible place where I was treated with contempt and abused. My childhood was incredibly hard, so much so that you all couldn’t possibly imagine. Living in that environment led to distortions in character, values, and I was no exception."

Lu Yi quickly interjected, "What you’re saying is that all the bad things you did in later life were because of the hardships you suffered in childhood, and you’re now looking for a reason that will make everyone forgive you?"

"Lu Yi, if you won’t shut up, then I’ll help you." After that, Lin Xi snapped her fingers, instantly turning the snacks in Lu Yi’s hands into ashes, leaving him nearly scared to death.

Once everyone had calmed down, Lin Xi resumed her story: "As a child, I met a person named Qian Feng. We helped and supported each other to survive those difficult times. Soon afterwards, during a huge fire and amidst the ensuing chaos, we seized the chance to escape and began to live freely."

This time, Su Hui interjected: "Though your lives were now free, I imagine daily life was still very tough, wasn’t it?"

Lin Xi nodded in agreement, "Yes, even though we had escaped and gained our freedom, life was far from easy. We struggled to even get food and often went hungry. It wasn’t until fortuitous circumstances led us to learn a few unique skills that we truly changed our lives."

Unable to hold back, Gu Fan added: "That’s good news! Improving your lives should have made you happier."

"In theory, yes. But, at a naive young age, I joined a rather dangerous force." As soon as Lin Xi said this, she spotted scepticism in everyone’s eyes and felt rather embarrassed. "Alright, I admit it was Qian Feng and I who created this dangerous force, which we named Shennv Xuanhui. Qian Feng was the first elder sister, and I was the second elder sister. We later recruited many other sisters."

Su Hui frowned slightly, commenting, "Shennv Xuanhui, sounds like an organization dedicated to fighting for women’s rights."

Hearing Su Hui’s comment, Lin Xi quickly shook her hand, ecstatic as if she’d found a kindred spirit. "Exactly, Sister Su. Women held a very low status in ancient times. It was repugnant how men freely took multiple wives and concubines. To protect the vast number of our female compatriots, Qian Feng and I established Shennv Xuanhui. We gathered and united women who had been oppressed, encouraging them to fight for their own survival and freedom."

Gu Fan, Lu Yi, Jie, Su Hui each fell into deep thought, as if weighing the credibility of Lin Xi’s words. Did Qianye truly have such noble goals in those times?

Jie asked, "You said earlier that your twisted values from your harsh childhood experiences, so how did you suddenly have such a noble objective?"

Lin Xi was at a loss for words and could only respond, "Let’s not dwell on these small details. Could we just focus on the story?"

Su Hui voiced an issue, "But I haven’t heard of any historical uprisings led by women fighting for their rights."

"Because the things we did were just minor rebellions and not well-publicized." Lin Xi could only express regret at this, "We thought we could change the times with our power, but changing the world proved very difficult. The power of women is always limited. This is why those with power and influence are always men. No matter how capable Qian Feng and I were, we were unable to lead a group of weak women against the whole world."

"That’s a valid point. Not to mention the past, it’s still the same case today." Su Hui shook her head with a look of resignation. Despite her strength, her superiors were mainly male.

Lu Yi immediately retorted, "Don’t say that. The status of women has risen considerably. Everyone always protects girls. I saw a news story, when a woman was being beaten by a man on the street, many people came to stop it. But when a man was being beaten by a woman on the street, many people laughed. At this rate, it will soon be men who are the vulnerable ones."

Unable to bear the bickering any longer, Gu Fan chipped in, "Alright, alright, stop the side conversations. Let Lin Xi continue.

Thus, Lin Xi resumed her story, "Ultimately, Qian Feng realized it was difficult to change the world. However, she refused to admit defeat, and she would severely punish those who oppressed and tortured women. Her methods were a bit intense, perhaps even downright brutal, and I couldn’t bear to watch. After failing to persuade her to change her ways multiple times, I left Shennv Xuanhui, went to a foreign land and established the Ancient Qianye Kingdom. I believed that if we wanted to significantly change women’s status, we had to take control of real power. Hence, I became a queen to prove to Shennv Xuanhui that my method was the correct one."

Upon hearing this, everyone shook their heads and sighed, "From what we’ve learned from history, the Ancient Qianye Kingdom was brutal, constantly suppressing rebels and waging wars."

Lin Xi immediately began to explain, "Can you really blame me for that? I became a queen, which didn’t sit well with you men. They rebelled against me, and I had no choice but to suppress them. Of course, being a first-time queen, I didn’t have much experience, and my methods of suppression were, I admit, quite savage."

"Was it just ’quite savage?’"" Everyone turned their questioning gazes towards Lin Xi. Lin Xi coughed awkwardly and decided to emphasize, "That’s not the focus. The main issue is that I left Shennv Xuanhui on my own accord, which, according to the rules we made, meant a traitor had to be severely punished. No one was allowed to leave Shennv Xuanhui alive. As long any breath remained, we promised to stay relentless."

Lu Yi raised a question, "That’s an inhumane rule. Who came up with it in the first place?"

"I regret to say, it seems it was in fact me who came up with it in the beginning." Lin Xi gave an awkward smile, which left everyone speechless. Wasn’t she digging her own grave?