Chapter 16

Chapter 16

Su City's New District had many towering commercial skyscrapers, but three were the most eye-catching, making every passerby stop and look.

One housed an internationally renowned media company, its lights on from morning till night.

Another belonged to a decade-old gaming company that held its own in the market with various small and mid-sized mobile games. A massive electronic screen on the building played trailers for their latest releases.

On the opposite side stood the Yu family's Dongqing Group. A fierce sea-eagle emblem stood proudly atop the building, its wings spread as if ready to take flight. Beneath its watchful gaze, floor-to-ceiling windows reflected the vast sky and drifting clouds.

Standing at 6'3" by one of these windows was a towering figure holding a phone to his ear. His face relaxed at the sound of the boy's sweet, clear voice on the other end.

When he heard the request, Yu Jingmo's brow furrowed slightly. "You want me to clean?"

"Yeah," Tian Ruan replied.

"Pass the phone to Yu Shang."

At Desyin High's student council office, Tian Ruan passed his beat-up phone to Yu Shang.

Yu Shang took it with a conflicted look. "Dad."

Yu Jingmo asked, "Is it true?"

Yu Shang: "Xi Qin suggested it. I haven't agreed yet."

"Was it your decision to have him join the student council?"

"...Yes."

"If he doesn’t want to, forget it. He doesn’t seem like he’d be any good at it anyway."

Yu Shang explained, "I thought joining the council might make him behave."

Yu Jingmo: "Oh? Did he do something today?"

"You should ask the others."

Yu Jingmo guessed immediately. "So he pissed you off."

"..."

"Keep an eye on him. If he acts up, I’ll deal with him."

"Got it." Yu Shang returned the phone to Tian Ruan.

Seeing no sign of an argument, Tian Ruan said to Yu Jingmo, "I don’t want to join the student council. I just want to focus on studying."

Yu Jingmo chuckled lightly. "Then study hard and stay out of trouble."

"I’m not causing trouble. I’m very well-behaved."

"Well-behaved enough to get Yu Shang worked up—that’s a talent."

"..."

"Don’t push it. Even though Yu Shang is our son, he outranks you."

"Mhm." Tian Ruan’s ears turned red for no reason when he said 'our.'

Since Yu Jingmo spoke up, no one could force Tian Ruan to join the student council. Yu Shang said with no expression, "Go back to class."

De Yin High ran on a relaxed schedule. After the three morning classes—Chinese, Math, and English—there was a four-hour lunch break.

During this time, students could freely arrange their activities—going home to sleep or eat, participating in club events, or attending extracurricular tutoring. Yu Shang made use of this period to juggle tutoring and dating... though it wasn’t an official relationship yet.

Remembering the original plot, Tian Ruan knew that during this time, Yu Shang would first "invite" Lu Qiuyan to eat, showing some care, then attend calligraphy, fencing, and piano lessons before afternoon classes resumed.

Whether due to elite family expectations or the author forcefully crafting a perfect persona for the male lead, Tian Ruan wondered how romance even fit into that packed schedule.

He had no idea how anyone managed it.

Driven by curiosity, after paying with his meal card at the second-floor cafeteria, Tian Ruan went looking for Yu Shang.

At a small round table in the corner, Yu Shang was sharing his home-packed lunch with Lu Qiuyan—homemade food made Lu Qiuyan more comfortable accepting it.

Lu Qiuyan stood at 1.8 meters tall, so his appetite was predictably large, making Yu Shang’s lunchbox unusually big.

Tian Ruan placed his own tray on the table, which, surprisingly, was about the same size as the lunchbox.

The protagonist and his love interest looked up at him.

Tian Ruan blatantly lied, "Mind if I join? There’s no space left."

Yu Shang pointed to the next table. "Plenty of space over there."

"Oh." Tian Ruan sat down beside them anyway.

Though uncomfortable, Lu Qiuyan didn’t shoo him away, glancing instead at the three fried chicken legs on Tian Ruan’s tray.

Tian Ruan asked, "I can’t finish all this fried chicken. Want to trade two for some sweet and sour ribs?"

The ribs in the lunchbox were clearly Liu Ma's handiwork—Tian Ruan’s favorite.

"Sure." Lu Qiuyan gave him three ribs and took a chicken leg.

Yu Shang said flatly, "Don’t you eat this at home every day? Not tired of it yet?"

Tian Ruan: "Nope. You are? Then give them all to me."

"...No."

Tian Ruan pushed a chicken leg his way. "Here, eat up. Gotta grow big and strong."

Yu Shang’s sharp eyebrows twitched. "You’re the one who needs to grow."

Tian Ruan looked him up and down. "Well, your body is sturdier than mine, bigger—"

"Tian Ruan," Yu Shang cut in, he added, "if you keep talking nonsense, move ten meters away."

At that, Lu Qiuyan looked up and asked, "How do you know about his body? Seen it?"

Tian Ruan hurriedly distanced himself. "No, no, don’t get the wrong idea. That’s your privilege."

"..."

Yu Shang took a deep breath. "Tian Ruan, one more word and I’ll dock your credits."

Tian Ruan closed his mouth.

Lu Qiuyan lowered his head uncomfortably, his eyes glancing at Tian Ruan's delicate, fair-skinned profile. "Do you eat celery?"

Tian Ruan nodded.

Yu Shang: "You should eat it too. It's good for a balanced diet."

Lu Qiuyan: "Stop nagging. I'll eat half."

Tian Ruan silently took a bite—sure enough, these two were naturally sweet together.

Deyin High School only had three classes in the afternoon, each lasting just thirty-five minutes. As a result, students in the rotating classroom system might never get to know each other after three years. Most friendships still formed within fixed classes.

Tian Ruan packed up his textbooks, climbed to the third floor, and entered Geography Class 3, casually taking a seat by the window.

A scattered group of about a dozen students trickled in, and by the time the teacher entered, there were only around twenty. The lecture began.

It had to be said that teachers at elite schools knew their stuff. Though the class was short, they made complex concepts simple.

Next were biology and chemistry, both conducted in the lab. The teacher lectured while students could immediately start experiments. It was only Tian Ruan's second time using a microscope, and the thought of being able to study with one in future biology classes got him excited.

By the time school ended, Tian Ruan wondered how the afternoon had flown by so quickly—it had passed in a blink.

There wasn’t even evening study hall.

Yu Shang and Lu Qiuyan walked ahead, with Tian Ruan bringing up the rear. From a distance, they saw a line of luxury cars waiting to pick up the privileged students.

The extravagance of the scene was such that even stray dogs would pause to gawk.

Everyone seemed to find their own cars and drivers effortlessly—except for Tian Ruan, who was utterly bewildered, unable to spot the Yu family’s car among the hundreds of Rolls-Royces, Ferraris, and Maseratis.

"...Over here." Yu Shang finally called out to the wandering Tian Ruan.

Tian Ruan hurried to catch up.

"I’ll head back now," Lu Qiuyan said.

Yu Shang: "Mm."

Tian Ruan chimed in: "Aren't you seeing him off?"

"..."

Lu Qiuyan waved a hand. "No need, I have a ride."

Then, from some obscure corner, he wheeled out a beat-up old bicycle—one of those classic heavy-framed models.

"See you." Lu Qiuyan threw his long leg over the leather seat. Just as he was about to pedal, a figure in gray lunged past him, holding a knife to Yu Shang’s neck.

"Don’t move! Or I’ll kill you!" The figure in gray held Yu Shang hostage from behind, the trembling blade leaving a thin trail of blood on Yu Shang’s slender neck.

The sudden turn of events shocked the area into silence for a few seconds before students screamed and scattered, car alarms blaring everywhere.

Yet Yu Shang, under threat, remained expressionless. If there was one thing he shared with Yu Jingmo, it was the ability to stay calm under extreme pressure, his mind instantly calculating countless countermeasures.

From the assailant’s clothing, expression, micro-movements, and words, he could assess how serious the threat was.

—Not much of one.

Yu Shang was confident, but he didn’t mind asking one more question: "You’re with the Wangs?"

Wang Badan, with his scraggly beard and bulging bloodshot eyes, clearly running on no sleep. Not only was he limping, but he also stank of booze and smoke. "Your old man destroyed my family!"

"You after cash, or just revenge?"

"..." Wang Badan’s cheek spasmed. "Give me five mil, and I won’t kill you."

Yu Shang gave an icy chuckle.

"What are you laughing at? I swear to god, I’ll kill you right now?!"

Tian Ruan calmly took two steps back, while the driver who had come to pick them up went pale as a ghost, his lips trembling too much to speak.

Lu Qiuyan wanted to help, but he was still perched on his bike, and any movement would be magnified.

A tense standoff ensued.

Wang Badan shoved the blade forward, snarling, "Pay up or else?!"

"Fine," Yu Shang said.

In that split second of distraction, Yu Shang jammed his elbow back, kicked Wang Badan’s shin, and as the man staggered, wrenched his wrist holding the knife. With a sharp *crack*, the fruit knife clattered to the ground.

The next moment, Wang Badan was sent flying twenty feet, doubling over before crashing to the ground.

Two bodyguards rushed out—one picked up the knife, while the other shielded Yu Shang. The driver, trembling, didn’t dare approach—driving for rich folks was truly a perilous job, with near-death experiences happening at any moment.

Some were frightened, while others gawked at the scene. The crowd parted as a tall, imposing figure strode forward, his leather shoes clicking sharply against the solid concrete, producing a muted, almost musical sound.

The man’s cold, glacial eyes lent an air of intimidation to his handsome face. He stepped out from the crowd and into the heart of the crisis. "What’s going on?"

The deep, icy voice struck Tian Ruan’s eardrums like shards of frozen glass. Why was Yu Jingmo here?

In the novel, this standoff hadn’t involved Yu Jingmo.

Tian Ruan hadn’t been part of it either, so he tried to stay invisible, observing the male lead’s alpha male act and the protagonist’s fearful reaction—further deepening their bond.

This scene was supposed to be thrilling but harmless.

But Yu Jingmo’s appearance instantly maxed out Wang Badan’s hatred. Clutching a small knife from his keychain, he charged forward: "Yu Jingmo!!!"

Tian Ruan felt half his soul leave his body in fright. Without thinking, he lobbed his backpack—heavy as a rock—straight at Wang Badan—

*Thud!* The bag struck the back of Wang Badan’s head, sending him face-first into the ground.

Yu Jingmo looked at Tian Ruan, his poised hand freezing mid-motion.

Just as Wang Badan was about to snarl and lift his head—*Thud!* A foot stomped down on the back of his skull, putting him down hard.

Tian Ruan scurried over to Yu Jingmo’s feet to retrieve his bag. Feeling its weight, he patted it sympathetically. "Truly, knowledge is power."

Everyone: "…………?"

Such a *realistic* kind of power.