Reborn to heal and take revenge

The morning after the Wei Jun incident, the school didn't feel the same.

Elara noticed it the moment she stepped through the gate: the stares were still there, but they weren't mocking anymore. They were watchful. Hesitant.

Some students looked at her with wide eyes, others quickly turned their faces away as if afraid to catch her gaze.

Even Lina Zhou, the queen bee of the school, paused slightly as she walked past.

It was subtle. Almost imperceptible.

But Elara noticed.

For the first time, they feared her.

And that… was a beginning.

---

During the mid-morning break, Professor Ren did something he rarely ever did — he entered the classroom unannounced.

Without greeting anyone, he walked straight to her desk.

"Elara," he said.

She stood calmly, under the curious eyes of her classmates.

"Come with me," he said.

He didn't explain, and she didn't ask.

She followed him to one of the advanced science labs — a place most students didn't even know existed.

The moment she stepped in, the scent of alcohol, resin, and ancient herbs filled her nose. On the central table sat a locked metal case. Around the room, precision medical tools gleamed under white light.

Ren pointed to a stool.

"Do you know why you're here?"

"Because what I did yesterday drew too much attention," she replied.

Ren gave a dry chuckle. "That too. But more importantly, because I want to see how far you can go."

He unlocked the metal case and opened it.

Inside were real medical tools — scalpels, surgical-grade needles, military first aid supplies. Next to them sat a stack of rare books, some so old their pages were yellowing, all written in classical Chinese.

"Do you want to walk this path, Elara?"

"It's not a matter of want," she answered. "It's who I am."

Ren studied her for a moment, then nodded.

"From now on, you'll train independently with me. Three times a week. No grades. No trophies. Just real learning. Real responsibility."

Elara felt something tighten in her chest. Not excitement.

Purpose.

"I accept."

---

The following weeks were exhausting — and she loved it.

Ren was demanding, cold, and unrelenting. But he was also fair. And when she got things right, he acknowledged her with a single nod or a short:

— "Well done."

Elara threw herself into advanced physiology, pharmacology, and the ancient principles of five-element theory.

She memorized pulse diagnosis patterns, studied tongue inspection charts, and learned to mix herbal remedies with precise measurements — no room for error.

At night, she practiced alone in her room, using an old wooden dummy marked with acupuncture points.

Her hands became steady. Her focus unbreakable.

She wasn't just learning. She was preparing.

For something — or someone.

---

At home, the Lin family pretended nothing had changed.

But they watched her more carefully.

Her father refused to acknowledge her successes.

Her mother dropped passive-aggressive comments like daggers.

"You think you're someone now just because your name made it into a newspaper?"

Meilin whispered rumors around school — claiming Elara was seducing their teacher for special treatment.

Zian tried hacking into her study tablet, hoping to find something to ruin her.

They all failed.

Elara was cautious. Strategic. Cold.

And the fact they couldn't break her only made them hate her more.

She let them hate.

They were building the noose with their own hands.

She was just waiting for the perfect moment to tighten it.

---

One rainy afternoon, as Elara sat revising notes in the lab, Ren handed her a sealed envelope.

"This came for you," he said. "Not from the school."

She opened it carefully.

The paper was thick, formal, with a crimson seal from a medical research institute in Hangzhou.

> Dear Miss Lin Elara,

After reviewing your submitted article on 'Herbal Combinations for Acute Respiratory Reactions,' we are pleased to invite you to our summer program for young talents in integrative medicine...

Elara stopped reading.

Not out of shock.

But because a whisper of something ancient stirred inside her.

Hangzhou.

She remembered that name.

A city tied to something precious. A farewell.

---

"My dad says I'm going to Hangzhou for my treatment... but I'll come back, Elara. I promise."

A child's voice, fragile and warm. A boy's hand squeezing hers. The sound of wheels as he was taken away.

She couldn't remember his name.

But she remembered his eyes.

And the moment she read "Hangzhou," her heart began to beat faster.

The path was forming.

And fate… was calling.

---

"Will you accept it?" Ren asked, pulling her back to the present.

Elara looked down at the letter again.

This wasn't just an academic opportunity.

This was a thread connecting her present to a forgotten past.

"Yes," she said softly. "I'll go."

---

That night, she stood by her bedroom window, watching the rain streak down the glass. Her books were stacked neatly on her desk. Her fingers lightly touched the wooden pendant around her neck — the only thing she'd carried from her forgotten past.

She didn't know how she still had it.

Only that she had never taken it off.

"I'm coming," she whispered to the storm.

Not just for revenge.

Not just for answers.

But because something — someone — was waiting.

And this time, she wouldn't be too late.