Chapter 14 “Battlefield”

Chapter 14 "The Shura Realm"

Gu Shiying bit his tongue, picked up his phone, and turned away, trying hard to calm his frustration before forcing a smile at Yang Shuhang.

"Found the phone."

He immediately stood up and moved to Yang Shuhang's seat—staying with Fu Huan for even one more second would suffocate him.

What kind of shameless person was Fu Huan anyway? With that aloof face that looked like he wanted nothing to do with the world, yet his mind was filled with lust-filled thoughts.

Liang Qi also pulled out a phone from another box: "We found one too."

Next, they needed to charge the old phones, find the chat records, take videos and screenshots of the key conversations, and then have Guan Yu organize all the information chronologically and match it with the performances. That would create a well-founded piece of evidence.

This was what Yang Shuhang would use to negotiate with them. Just sending out this hundred-page PDF would be enough to ruin the band.

Although Yang Shuhang had to handle this matter himself, Gu Shiying had also seen that his roommates were not to be trifled with. Guan Yu was a talent—just a second-year law student, yet he already had his own logical framework and even the ability to argue in court.

Looking at the densely packed, highly rigorous PDF, Gu Shiying couldn’t help but praise: "Brother Guan, you’re amazing."

Guan Yu calmly pushed his glasses up his nose: "Just standard procedure for a law student, nothing special."

Yang Shuhang grabbed Guan Yu by the neck, once again moved by his roommates: "Brother Guan, what would I do without you?"

Liang Qi interrupted their exchanging compliments: "What’s next?"

After the fight video was posted, Yang Shuhang had followed their advice and didn’t immediately confront his former bandmates. But since this was his first time dealing with something like this, he actually relied more on Gu Shiying.

Throughout the whole process, Gu Shiying had been the one reminding him that his bandmates were treating him unfairly and helping him analyze what was inappropriate.

"Ying Er, what should we do next?"

Gu Shiying already had an idea: "Simple—hit them where it hurts most. You said they’re about to sign with a management company and start performing at legitimate music festivals and commercial gigs, right?"

Actually, it was clear to all of them that Yang Shuhang and his bandmates were completely different styles. With his idol-like looks and background as a music major, he stood out sharply from the others, who were rougher around the edges and far less versatile. It was obvious they weren’t on the same path.

From this, it was clear that the lead singer had only brought Yang Shuhang in as a stopgap measure—to take advantage of Young Master Yang’s generosity—and planned to kick him out once they got through their tough times. Yang Shuhang had never been acknowledged by them and had never truly been part of their band.

Yang Shuhang said: "That’s right."

Gu Shiying asked: "Has any business partner reached out to you privately?"

Yang Shuhang replied: "Yes, they asked me if I wanted to sign with a company. At the time, I thought we should all sign together, so I didn’t agree."

Gu Shiying said: "Use that to threaten them and get back what they owe you."

Yang Shuhang asked: "Will that work?"

Gu Shiying replied: "I don’t know much about the entertainment industry, but as long as there’s dirt, this band could blow up at any time. Otherwise, why would they force you out with a stain on your record instead of talking to you calmly? Maybe they’re afraid you’ll bring up old debts once they get famous. But that’s just my personal guess."

Gu Shiying didn’t understand why they wouldn’t do it this way. They could have talked it out properly and reached a win-win outcome.

Guan Yu also felt sorry for Yang Shuhang: "They’ve been pretty ruthless toward you."

Liang Qi said: "If you ask me, we should just sneak attack them to vent our anger."

Guan Yu replied: "We can’t do that. There are surveillance cameras everywhere nowadays—it’s hard not to get caught. It would only backfire on Yang Shuhang."

Liang Qi retorted: "That’s why we do it secretly—ambush them in a locker room, bag them, beat them up, and run."

Gu Shiying: "You seem quite experienced."

Liang Qi teased Fu Huan, who'd been staring at Gu Shiying the entire time. When Fu Huan got caught, he shot Liang Qi a warning glare.

Liang Qi laughed: "Just kidding."

Gu Shiying: "Alright, let's continue."

They finally worked out a plan, and Yang Shuhang also thought it would work.

Quite a few people knew about Yang Shuhang joining the band. He was usually lively and had many friends. After the incident blew up, he kept getting messages from concerned friends.

Dorm 504 was buzzing nonstop all day.

In the evening, Yang Shuhang sent the evidence his roommates helped him gather to the lead singer, and the two had their first talk since everything went down—on speakerphone, with Guan Yu recording nearby.

Yang Shuhang: "Brother Sid, I really don’t understand why you all targeted me? Was there something that couldn’t be discussed openly? Did it really have to come to this?"

Lead Singer: "We had no choice. The circumstances forced our hand."

Yang Shuhang: "No matter what, you were just using me from the start, right? You were all broke when you first got here, living in a basement. The so-called 'band fund' was really just to improve your quality of life. And now that you’re ready to take off, you kick me out."

Stone Bro replied: "Yeah, it’s exactly what you think. Yang Shuhang, you’re too much of a pampered rich kid. We always had to tiptoe around you. We’re not your servants—what’s the problem?"

Hearing this, Yang Shuhang turned pale and felt his heart sink. Just last night, they were eating together, and Stone Bro had actively lightened the mood to keep things from getting awkward. And now he said it was all just to humor him? That's just pathetic.

Gu Shiying watched as Yang Shuhang went from pretending to be calm to being on the verge of tears from anger. He couldn’t stand listening anymore and spoke up for Yang Shuhang.

He had no affection for these people: "You schemed against someone, spent his money, and now you have the nerve to complain? I've never seen nerve like this."

Stone Bro: "Oh, it’s Xiao Gu. That’s a bit harsh."

Gu Shiying: "I don't know you that well. My friend has already sent over the bills. Let’s stick to the facts—pay what you owe for the performances and reimburse the meal expenses. No need to say more; you’re not worth it."

Bassist: "But he volunteered to pay those expenses! Why should we cover them?"

Gu Shiying: "Did you enjoy taking advantage of the rich kid? He doesn’t even smoke—did he have to buy your cigarettes at the supermarket too? I've seen shameless people before, but you guys take the cake."

The bassist fell silent because it was true.

Gu Shiying continued: "Oh, and by the way, we have plenty of interesting videos. We can release those too if you’d like. If we go down, we go down together. We’re just college guys you look down on, and we’re capable of anything. After all, A Hang really is just a college student."

Gu Shiying refuted them one by one, leaving the other side speechless.

Since he was the one doing the talking, even if the other side recorded it, it wouldn’t matter. If Yang Shuhang ever became famous, this recording would be useless.

Hearing no response from the other side, Gu Shiying winked at Guan Yu.

Guan Yu cleared his throat, lowered his voice, and continued: "I am Yang Shuhang’s representative. From now on, I will handle all matters with you. We can handle this privately, or we can take it to court."

After a long silence, the lead singer replied: "We’ll settle privately. The performance fees and the band expenses Xiao Huan covered will be transferred to him tomorrow."

Gu Shiying and Guan Yu high-fived, having successfully negotiated on behalf of the speechless Yang Shuhang. Their teamwork was effective—it was even easier than they’d expected.

Gu Shiying gently patted Yang Shuhang: "By the way, you still owe Yang Shuhang an apology."

The other end fell silent.

The lead singer probably genuinely felt guilty. In a very soft voice, he said: "Sorry, Xiao Huan."

In the end, it was Yang Shuhang who hung up the phone—he could never forgive these people.

At this point, the damage was already done, and whether they apologized or not no longer mattered.

Guan Yu shook his head: "They got off too lightly, a bunch of weak, spineless trash."

Gu Shiying: "Agreed."

Rumble~

Someone’s stomach rumbled—no one was sure whose.

Gu Shiying rubbed his belly: "Crap, we still haven’t had dinner."

Yang Shuhang waved a hand dismissively, a relieved smile finally appearing on his face: "Tonight’s on me—order whatever you want!"

Guan Yu rubbed his hands together eagerly: "Then I want Quzhou cuisine. I love their braised duck heads—spicy and fragrant. And an ice-cold cola to go with it, so refreshing."

Yang Shuhang: "I know that place. I heard their signature braised fish is really good too. Brother Huan, what do you think?"

Fu Huan: "Anything’s fine."

Liang Qi glanced at Fu Huan again and winked at him once more: "I’m not picky."

Yang Shuhang: "Let's go!"

On their way downstairs, Fu Huan took advantage of the others not paying attention and gave Liang Qi a kick.

Liang Qi: "What was that for?"

Fu Huan warned him: "Watch your mouth later."

Liang Qi made a zipping motion over his mouth: "Fine, I’ll shut up. But, now that you mention it, I thought you never eat fish?"

Fu Huan stuck his thumb in his pocket and shot him a cold glare: "I said, don’t blab."

Liang Qi laughed: "No way, I’ve got to see you make a fool of yourself."

Fu Huan turned his back on him and strode after Gu Shiying, standing behind him like a guardian.

Just then, Yang Shuhang suddenly called out to a figure approaching from around the corner.

"Zhang Zhi!"

Gu Shiying had trouble recognizing people clearly at night: "Zhang Zhi?"

Zhang Zhi walked toward them, and standing beside him was a girl—it was actually Liu Wenqing.

Zhang Zhi asked them cheerfully, his delight completely unconcealed.

"Ying Er, where are you all headed?"

As soon as Gu Shiying saw who Zhang Zhi was with, he was speechless. Didn’t he promise not to be a simp anymore? How did he end up walking with Liu Wenqing again?

Gu Shiying explained: "We’re going to get dinner."

Yang Shuhang: "It’s my treat tonight. Have you eaten yet?"

Liu Wenqing spotted Fu Huan standing among them, and her eyes lit up slightly.

She deliberately put some distance between herself and Zhang Zhi, turning toward Fu Huan to explain: "We just finished a club activity and were about to grab dinner."

Yang Shuhang wasn’t fully aware of the complicated "love-hate dynamics" between Zhang Zhi, Liu Wenqing, Fu Huan, and Gu Shiying. Right now, the more people, the more it proved he had good connections, so he directly invited both Zhang Zhi and Liu Wenqing.

"Come join us! We’re going for Quzhou cuisine—the more the merrier!"

Liu Wenqing was an outgoing and proactive girl: "Thank you, we’d be happy to join."

Zhang Zhi was delighted that Liu Wenqing agreed and said cheerfully, "No problem!"

The owner arranged a large round table for them, and the seven of them fit perfectly.

Yang Shuhang, who currently relied on Gu Shiying quite a bit, pulled him to sit beside him.

Fu Huan took the seat on Gu Shiying’s other side, while Liu Wenqing subtly positioned herself next to Fu Huan. Zhang Zhi naturally sat down beside her.

Gu Shiying deliberately suppressed a smile, forcing a pained and restrained expression.

He lowered his head, pretending to nervously pick at his fingers on the table, feigning anxiety—making sure Fu Huan would notice, all in an effort to stir up some drama.

Rumors started, don’t disappoint!

Author’s Note:

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Fu Huan: [Dog emoji holding a rose] Wife, you’re asking for it.

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Random 100 sweet little red packets~