Shu Ning sucked in a breath. T-t-this…

“No, no, no…” What a huge misunderstanding. 

“Then why did you secretly take my photo?”

Shu Ning took his phone back. He looked around and was faced with several pairs of curious eyes. Even if he had the soul of an adult, he still felt an urge to bury himself in a hole in the ground.

Shit.

Why did he forget to mute his phone when he was taking the photo? 

So stupid!

Fortunately, Shu Ning’s mind spun quickly. He calmly explained, “A girl asked me to take a photo of you for her. Your photo’s hot on the market right now.”

Yin Mingzheng was starting to hate him more and more. How shameless can he get?

First, he dyed his hair. Then, he copied his leg shaking and even provoked him to his face. Later, he teamed up with others to copy his leg shaking and make fun of him.

Now, he was even secretly taking photos of him!

Yin Mingzheng had nowhere to vent his anger, so he kicked Shu Ning’s chair, causing Shu Ning to fall to the ground without warning.

The people around them gasped.

Cheng Xiaoyu stood up in a hurry and said, “Don’t fight! Don’t fight!” 

When he saw Cheng Xiaoyu, Yin Mingzheng remembered that she had given him bread buns and biscuits when he couldn’t afford lunch. So, he took a deep breath, pushed his chair aside, and left.

He had to give Cheng Xiaoyu some face.

He took a deep breath in the hallway, barely suppressing the disgust in his heart.

If Cheng Xiaoyu hadn’t stopped him, he would have beaten Shu Ning up just now. 

Shu Ning really hadn’t expected Yin Mingzheng to get physical. He was caught completely off guard, so he fell straight to the ground. His head had hit the floor and started buzzing.

His thigh was scraped by a corner of the upturned chair. It just so happened to hit his funny bone, causing him to hiss in pain.

The classmates nearby rushed over to help him up.

“Shu ge, are you alright?” 

“Shu Ning, you didn’t get injured, did you?”

“Did you get hurt anywhere?”

Shu Ning waved them off and said, “No, I’m okay, I’m really okay.”

Then, he thought of something and reminded the people around him, “Don’t tell the teacher. If anyone tells the teacher, I’m not going to let them off.” 

The classmates gave each other a look.

Shu Ning acted as though it didn’t hurt and stood up. He spread open his arms and grinned, “See? I’ve got thick skin. This is like nothing to me.”

Long Qiao gave him a punch, “Don’t be so full of yourself!”

“Yin Mingzheng’s always been like that. Shu ge, don’t provoke him next time.” 

Shu Ning smiled bitterly, “It’s my fault. I took a photo of him first.”

Everyone fell silent. It wasn’t too appropriate to keep badmouthing Yin Mingzheng. After all, this was in fact caused by Shu Ning secretly taking a photo of him.

“Yeah, it’s wrong to take photos without permission, but the photo has been deleted. Was there any need to get physical?” There were others who weren’t happy.

Shu Ning said, “Sigh, it’s my fault for taking the photo without permission. Do any of you guys have a photo of him? Give me a couple high-resolution photos. I need them.” 

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After cutting his hair, the villain was incredibly pretty, so a lot of girls had taken his photo. Shu Ning had never seen the villain get angry over it. He would always just ignore it. Therefore, he also secretly took a photo and ended up getting his ass handed to him. 

There you have it, the difference between men and women.

It seemed that the villain hated guys taking his photo.

“Shu ge, don’t worry. I’ll give it to you later. My girlfriend knows another girl who has a lot of his photos.”

“That’s great, thanks.” 

The bell rang, and so everyone went back to their seats.

Shu Ning looked at the empty seat beside him and thought: Was it necessary to be so angry?

The reason he was secretly taking photos of him was because he wanted to get a clear photo of the villain. Then, he can put all his information into a file and send it to the Wei family.

The little villain’s appearance was really good now, and he didn’t shake his legs anymore either. Even if he still had a couple of bad habits, there’s no way the Wei family would hate him like they did in the book once they see his well-behaved appearance. 

Recently, he had been searching for information on the Wei family. From the bits and pieces that he gathered, he knew that they were an incredibly wealthy family and that they possessed several companies under their wing. Their most well-known company, Wei Corporation, was worth hundreds of billions.

Either way, it was a CEO novel about wealthy families. Any family that isn’t worth at least tens of billions can’t even be considered a wealthy family.

If it was possible, it would be best to meet with the head of the Wei Corporation, the Old Mr. Wei. This was because the Old Mr. Wei had firmly supported Yin Mingzheng, his blood-related grandson.

This file needed to contain the villain’s picture and his hair. This way, they can perform a paternity test. 

He didn’t know where the Wei residence was located, but it didn’t hurt to prepare things in advance.

The math teacher was an old man with a good temper. When he saw that Yin Mingzheng’s seat was empty, he asked, “Where is Yin Mingzheng?”

Shu Ning said, “Sir, Yin Mingzheng has a stomachache, so he went to the doctor’s office.”

The math teacher nodded and didn’t ask any further. 

Cheng Xiaoyu glanced at Shu Ning. Then, she lowered her head and typed, [Shu Ning, is there any misunderstanding between you and Yin Mingzheng? Do you need me to help mediate?] She knew that Shu Ning was very concerned about Yin Mingzheng. He even sent bread and biscuits to Yin Mingzheng through her. However, now, Yin Mingzheng beat Shu Ning up for secretly taking photos of him. She felt that this was too excessive.

Shu Ning felt his phone vibrate and opened WeChat. When he saw Cheng Xiaoyu’s message, he couldn’t help but smile.

She really was a very kind girl.

Then, he typed out a reply: [Please don’t tell him anything.] 

The little villain hated him a lot, and he had a lot of pride. If he knew the truth, he would probably hate him even more.

[There is a bit of a misunderstanding, but it’s my fault, it doesn’t have anything to do with him. I’ll fix it, don’t worry.] [What did you do?]

[I won’t tell you, heehee.]

[…] 

Shu Ning put away his phone and grinned in Cheng Xiaoyu’s direction.

Cheng Xiaoyu just so happened to look over at him, her bright eyes full of curiosity.

Yin Mingzheng came back right before second period, his expression ice-cold.

He walked to his seat and sat down. From beginning to end, he didn’t give Shu Ning a single glance, nor did he say a single word. When Shu Ning said sorry, Yin Mingzheng suddenly turned around and sneered, “Your apology sure is cheap.” 

Shu Ning was taken aback.

The little villain had already looked away. He didn’t look back at Shu Ning again, treating him like air.

Shu Ning rubbed his nose.

The English teacher walked in and gave Shu Ning a knife-like glare. It seemed as though she was still holding a grudge about how Shu Ning contradicted her. 

Shu Ning promptly sat up straight and did his best to look studious.

Yin Mingzheng’s words just now had made Shu Ning feel rather troubled.

It was true, he had apologized to the villain three times now. The first time, he wrongly accused the villain and then apologized. The second time, he copied the villain’s leg shaking, hurt his feelings, and then apologized. The third time, he secretly took his photo and then apologized…

Do something wrong first, apologize later. It wasn’t like an apology could wipe away everything he did wrong. 

Sigh.

He went for wool and came back shorn. Every time he tried to get close to the villain, he would always make things worse.

Forget it. It was better not to bother him anymore.

The two of them didn’t say anything else to each other. This continued until the end of school. 

Shu Ning didn’t have the guts to keep following after Yin Mingzheng. He packed up his school bag and quickly walked out of the classroom. He left with Long Qiao and a few other classmates, chatting and laughing as they went. When they reached the school gates, Shu Ning told them he had something else to do.

Long Qiao and the others were going to go to an Internet cafe, so they said their goodbyes and parted ways.

Yin Mingzheng waited until only the students on clean-up duty were left. Then, he slowly picked up his school bag and left the classroom.

Most of the students had already left campus. There were only two or three cats left on the entire school grounds. He walked out of the school gates with a cold face and returned to his neighborhood. 

It was already past six o’clock in the afternoon. People were coming and going through the neighborhood gates.

Yin Mingzheng didn’t want to go back home and face that drunkard, so he looked away and headed down another street. As he was walking, he suddenly heard someone hesitantly calling his name, “Xiao Yin?”

When Yin Mingzheng heard this voice, his whole body stiffened. He turned his head slowly and saw a middle-aged man with a briefcase standing under a billboard a few meters away. He had a pair of glasses sitting on his nose bridge and appeared very refined, educated.

When he saw Yin Mingzheng turn his head, the man gave him a small smile, “It really is you. You’re getting more and more beautiful.” 

The look in his eyes gradually became more and more vulgar.

A familiar smile and familiar eyes. Yin Mingzheng’s pupils widened slightly. It was as if he had returned to that night.

Seeing this man, Yin Mingzheng slowly balled up his fists and turned to leave.

There was a bit of a traffic jam. Rows and rows of cars were stuck on the streets, beeping their horns. 

“Xiao Yin!” The man chased after him. His high-end suit started to wrinkle and fold because of the movement.

Yin Mingzheng walked faster.

The two rushed past the supermarket, one of them running away and the other chasing after. Shu Ning was carrying a box of Wang-Wang Pure Milk in his left hand and a large bag of nutritional supplements in his right. After a lot of effort, he finally managed to squeeze past the crowded promotional booth. There was an employee advertising their latest sale, “We’ve got a big sale! Thermal underwear for 99 cents a pair!” He made his way down the stairs amidst the clamoring noise, and, from the corner of his eyes, he caught sight of a familiar figure.

Little villain? 

Shu Ning looked up and focused on the figure in the distance. Sure enough, he saw the little villain wearing a blue school uniform. He was carrying his school bag on one shoulder, looking as arrogant and stubborn as ever. However, he wasn’t alone this time. There was a man in a gray suit by his side, chattering on without end.

The little villain turned his head and said a few words. Then, the two of them seemed to start struggling with each other.

Shu Ning frowned and followed behind them.

The two of them went around the main road where the supermarket was located and entered an alleyway. There were fewer people here, and even the screeching car horns were much quieter. 

This was a shortcut back to the neighborhood. The villain must have taken this route because he was in a hurry to go home.

Shu Ning followed the two of them. The two people in front of him stopped, so Shu Ning hurriedly hid himself in a nearby alley.

If the little villain encountered a dangerous situation, he would go call someone immediately.

“Don’t follow me! You fucking pervert!” The little villain roared. 

The man had followed him all this way. How could he give up now? Not only did he not retreat, he even stepped forward to pull Yin Mingzheng’s hand.

Yin Mingzheng slapped his hand away with great force. His school bag almost fell off his shoulder. It was obvious that he didn’t want to be anywhere near this man. His eyes were ice-cold, “Do you wanna die?”

The man gazed at him, his eyes full of infatuation.

The obsessed expression on his face made Shu Ning’s hair stand on end. That was not an expression a normal person would have. The man looked like he was insane. 

He suddenly felt goosebumps rise on his skin.

Shu Ning seemed to have an impression of that man, but he couldn’t seem to remember him right away.

The man murmured, “It’s been such a long time. You’ve grown so big, and you’re getting more and more beautiful…”

The hatred and disgust in Yin Mingzheng’s eyes was clear as day. He spat, “It would be better if we never saw each other again!” 

The man gazed at him and said, “I’m divorced.”

Yin Mingzheng was stunned for a moment. Then, he spoke, his voice dripping with sarcasm, “For a pervert like you, isn’t it normal to end up divorced?”

The man continued to stare at him with his blood-curdling gaze, “My daughter was also taken away by my ex-wife.”

Yin Mingzheng laughed elatedly and clapped his hands, “Ha! That’s good news! That’s really great news!” 

“When my ex-wife saw the photos I took, she threatened me. I ended up leaving my marriage with nothing.”

Yin Mingzheng grinned and let out a vindictive laugh, “Congratulations! No one believed what I said back then, but, now, there’s finally someone who believes me!”

“I have nothing now.” The man’s face suddenly turned gloomy, “What are you so happy for? I left my marriage for you, and I lost my daughter for you. Why are you so thrilled to see me lose everything?”

Yin Mingzheng stared at him in disbelief and pointed at himself, “For me?” 

The man nodded, and his eyes suddenly became affectionate, “I haven’t been able to forget you, even after all this time.”

The sun began to set, their shadows stretching across the pavement.

If it weren’t for the fact that both of them were guys, and if it weren’t for the fact that one was a seventh grader and the other a middle-aged man, this picture would look a lot like a scene in a romance movie where the two lovers are finally reunited.

Shu Ning hid in the corner of an alley, completely stunned by the information he just heard. 

Yin Mingzheng’s face became twisted. He shouted under his breath, “Back then, you secretly took pictures of me and plastered them all over the walls because you liked me?”

The man took a step closer to him, his eyes carrying a morbid infatuation, “Of course. I only took those photos because I liked you. I wanted to be able to see your cute appearance all the time…”

“Then, you tried to force yourself onto me because you liked me?”

“I wouldn’t force myself onto someone I don’t like.” 

Yin Mingzheng was so disgusted that he wanted to vomit, “You falsely accused me of stealing from you because you liked me?”

The man seemed to feel a little guilty and explained himself, “I’m sorry. I was just so angry at the time. Besides, I didn’t demand any compensation from you, did I?”

Yin Mingzheng’s eyes were bloodshot. His entire body seemed to be filled with a violent rage, and the veins along his jaw throbbed. He looked as though he were about to kill someone. “Get lost!”

“If I ever see you again, I’ll beat the shit out of you!” 

He clenched his fist and waved it threateningly at the man. It seemed he didn’t want to listen to anymore of the man’s nonsense, so he turned around and left.

The man stood under the setting sun, gazing at Yin Mingzheng’s direction. He stayed there for a long time. Then, he hung his head, dejected, and disappeared from sight at the end of the alleyway.

After a while, Shu Ning picked up his groceries and came out of his hiding spot, shocked beyond belief.