Xiao Wei's face darkened. "Get out!"

  Zheng Wu paused for a moment, confused. "Get out for what? I came in to take a piss." He noticed us standing there and assumed we were all friends.

  Xiao Wei was about to speak again when HOUZI interrupted, "It's fine. He's my friend. Let him pee."

  Only then did Xiao Wei say no more. Zheng Wu gave him a strange look, unzipped his pants, and walked to the urinal.

  The sound of urine splashing was harsh on the ears, and although Zheng Wu's kidneys were functioning perfectly fine, it did not deter Xiao Wei from continuing his conversation.

  "You'd better get the money together soon, or else—"

  Before he could finish his sentence, Zheng Wu, like a sudden gust of wind, dashed over with a beer bottle in hand and smashed it onto Xiao Wei's head — his pants still unfastened!

  The three of us were completely stunned. Zheng Wu, cursing as he struck, bellowed, "Daring to extort money from my brothers, huh?!"

  That was Zheng Wu for you — a man who never cared about right or wrong when standing up for his brothers.

  The moment Xiao Wei got hit, the remaining four seniors rushed forward like a swarm of bees. Fortunately, we also had four people on our side, instantly setting the stage for an evenly matched brawl.

  Zheng Wu, being the most formidable among us, continued to hammer his fists the size of iron pots into Xiao Wei. Despite Xiao Wei being a senior, he couldn't withstand a few hits and quickly crumpled to the ground.

  As for HOUZI and Huang Jie, I didn't know much about their fighting backgrounds, but the moment they threw punches, they were as savage as wild animals. Despite the seniors being physically larger, they couldn't withstand the sheer ferocity of these two. Each was dragged to a separate corner and relentlessly beaten.

  And then there was me.

  The moment Zheng Wu made his move, I knew there was no turning back. I clenched my fist and delivered a forceful punch straight to the nose of the nearest senior. This was a cannon punch — something Binzi had once taught me. In essence, it was just a straight punch, something anyone could throw, but in different hands, it yielded different results.

  My punch landed hard, sending the guy staggering several steps back. Blood immediately gushed from his nose, staining his hand as he instinctively wiped it. Knowing I had the upper hand, I aimed a fierce kick at him, but he grabbed my leg and yanked me hard, almost making me fall. I immediately wrapped my arms around his neck, preparing to ram my knee into his stomach, but before I could do so, Zheng Wu had already come over and delivered a savage kick to the guy’s waist.

  The force sent both him and me crashing to the ground. My clothes were instantly soaked in the filth of the restroom floor. The stench was overwhelming, but I didn't have time to care. I quickly flipped over and straddled the guy, raining down punches like Donnie Yen in Ip Man. This move was something I had picked up from HOUZI.

  And just like that, in under a minute, we had completely subdued the four seniors.

  I rose to my feet, my clothes damp and reeking, so dirty that I couldn't even brush it off.

  Zheng Wu scratched his head awkwardly. "Eh… let your little wife wash it for you later."

  The four of us stood in different corners of the restroom, while beneath our feet lay the four defeated seniors, writhing and groaning in pain.

  Xiao Wei panted heavily. "Alright… damn… I see now… no wonder Sheng Ge and Qi Ge think so highly of you."

  HOUZI scoffed. "Being friends is fine; extorting money — not a chance." He wasn't bluffing; we were genuinely broke.

  We left the restroom and found a crowd had already gathered outside, having been drawn by the sounds of our scuffle. Among them were Yang Zecheng, Li Baiyu, and a few others who curiously asked what had happened. I simply said, "Some seniors came to mess with us, so we beat them up." They merely nodded, showing little concern since the trouble hadn’t fallen on them.

  As we walked away, HOUZI remarked, "We've definitely provoked the seniors now. For the next few days, don't wander alone, and always carry something with you."

  We all muttered our agreement and headed back to our classes.

  Returning to class, I immediately drew everyone's attention. My clothes were filthy, wet, and stinking, making me the center of curious stares. Liu Yina approached, asking, "What happened to you?" She had been inside the classroom and was unaware of the commotion outside. I briefly explained the situation.

  Just then, Ma Jie — my "little wife" — rushed over, exclaiming, "Fei Ge, your clothes are ruined! Take them off, and I'll wash them for you."

  I rolled my eyes. "Take off what? We're in the classroom, and I don’t have spare clothes."

  "I'll go grab some for you!" Without hesitation, Ma Jie sprinted out of the classroom. Honestly, having someone like him around wasn't bad — he never asked for much, only hoping that I'd look after him.

  Given the long break after the second class, Ma Jie soon returned, bringing clean clothes and even accompanying me to the restroom to change.

  Upon my return, I found a group of girls gathered at our classroom door — all members of the Thirteen Roses. They asked if I'd been beaten up. Puzzled, I replied, "No, why?"

  Apparently, rumors had spread from the restroom, and since I was the dirtiest among the four of us, everyone assumed I had taken the worst beating. The story had taken on a life of its own.

  I didn't bother explaining. Class was about to begin when I received a text from Lin Ke'er: Are you okay?

  I replied: I'm fine. Don't listen to those rumors.

  Just as I sent that, another text arrived — from Wang Yao. How are you doing?

  My heart skipped a beat. Without hesitation, I replied playfully: Ah… miserable. Got surrounded and beaten by four guys. Now my body’s covered in bruises.

  In that moment, I realized the stark difference in my feelings toward Lin Ke'er and Wang Yao.

  To my surprise, after class ended, Lin Ke'er actually came to me with a bunch of ointments, including the premium Yunnan Baiyao. "Let me apply these for you," she said softly.

  I protested, "I told you I'm fine. Why did you bring all this?"

  "Don't pretend," she said, gently lifting my shirt. "In my eyes, you’re already a hero. You don’t have to act tough in front of me."

  Her words left me speechless, a whirlwind of emotions churning within. She had completely misunderstood the situation — and my feelings.

  She couldn't find any visible wounds, so she simply applied ointment wherever she could. Liu Yina snickered from the side, while many male classmates cast envious glances.

  But I felt uneasy.

  Curious, I asked, "Where did you get these medicines so quickly?"

  She replied, "Wang Yao gave them to me. Her brother often gets into fights, so she always carries some."

  My heart skipped again. Wang Yao still cares… she just shows it differently… and now she’s even trying to bring me and Lin Ke'er closer.

  As I pondered, I suddenly caught a glimpse of Wang Yao passing by the classroom door. I instinctively called out, "Hey—" but she was already gone.

  Lin Ke'er looked at me, puzzled. "What is it?"

  "Nothing," I forced a smile. Inside, my heart swelled with warmth. Wang Yao… you still care about me, don’t you?

  If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  But Lin Ke'er suddenly stiffened, her expression turning solemn. Following her gaze, I realized why — Yi Zhen had just walked into our classroom.

  His lips curled into a smirk. "How does it feel? Did you enjoy it?"

  I assumed he was referring to Lin Ke'er applying medicine for me, so I grinned. "Yeah… it felt great."

  Yi Zhen's expression darkened instantly. "I was asking if you enjoyed being beaten."

  Lin Ke'er abruptly stood up. "Yi Zhen, don't go too far!"

  Yi Zhen sneered. "Lin Ke'er, I'm determined to have you. As long as you refuse me, I’ll make Zuo Fei suffer every single day."

  With that, Yi Zhen turned and left, probably thinking he looked pretty cool. I couldn't help but curse under my breath, "What an absolute fool."

  "What did you say?" Yi Zhen spun around, his face contorted with fury.

  "I said you're a fool. You hear one thing and jump to conclusions without even verifying the facts. Why don't you find out who actually got beaten?"

  A flicker of doubt crossed Yi Zhen's face, but he still walked away without another word. Lin Ke'er fumed beside me, "I'm going to report this to the teacher!"

  I stopped her. "Don't bother. Even if you report it, the school turns a blind eye to the Ninth Prince's extortion. Do you really think they'd care about this? Besides, Yi Zhen's family is loaded."

  Lin Ke'er fell silent, then asked softly, "So what do we do now?"

  I smiled faintly. "Don't worry. Have you ever seen me afraid of anyone?"

  All men like to boast a little, and I was no exception. Besides, I genuinely wasn’t afraid of Yi Zhen.

  Lin Ke'er bit her lip, her voice filled with guilt. "I'm really sorry. I feel like I'm always dragging you into trouble."

  If it were before, I would have seized the opportunity to say something like, "For you, I'd walk through fire without hesitation." But now, my heart was different. I simply responded indifferently, "It's nothing."

  Lin Ke'er didn't notice my shift in demeanor; she thought I was merely trying to comfort her.

  After class started, I texted Wang Yao: "You were already here, why didn’t you come in to see me?"

  Wang Yao replied quickly: "I wasn’t there. I just happened to pass by. Besides, you have Lin Ke'er with you — isn’t that enough?"

  I typed back immediately: "Not enough. You know how Lin Ke'er is; she doesn’t even know how to apply medicine properly. My whole body still hurts. Only you can do it right."

  Wang Yao hesitated for a long time before responding: "Then ask HOUZI to help you."

  I rolled my eyes. "Don't be ridiculous. I’m not letting a guy touch me again. Last time Da Mao did it, I almost puked. Seriously, come help me. It really hurts."

  After I sent that message, Wang Yao went silent for a long time. I kept nudging her, "Come on, just help me out. No one will see us."

  Finally, she replied: "Fine. Meet me at the corner of the hallway. Either now, or not at all."

  It was still class time, but slipping out wasn't difficult. I quickly raised my hand, "Teacher, I need to use the restroom."

  Once I was outside, I hurried to the designated corner, my heart already racing at the thought of Wang Yao’s soft hands on my back. The mere anticipation was enough to make my pulse quicken. Moments later, Wang Yao appeared. I deliberately groaned, "Ah… ow… ow…"

  Wang Yao shot me a glare. "Shame they didn’t beat you to death."

  I grinned. "You wouldn't have the heart to let me die, would you?"

  Her face darkened instantly. "Zuo Fei, cut the crap. I told you not to flirt with me."

  I raised my hands in surrender. "Alright, alright. Just help me apply the medicine, okay?"

  It was funny — back when there was nothing between us, Wang Yao would snatch the medicine from Lin Ke’er without hesitation to treat me. But now, despite everything, she was helping me in secret like we were doing something shameful.

  "Turn around," she instructed. I did as told, lifting my shirt slightly. Before I knew it, she gave my butt a hard kick. "Where the hell are your injuries? Your back is spotless!"

  I had completely forgotten. Lin Ke'er couldn't tell, but Wang Yao definitely could. I panicked. "It's internal! They covered their fists with books and hit me! Honest!"

  She squinted suspiciously. "Really?"

  "Really! Just help me apply it, please."

  With a half-hearted sigh, she began applying the medicine. The first touch made me wince. "Ow! Go easy!"

  Wang Yao snorted. "Didn’t you say Lin Ke'er was too gentle? Well, I'm making up for it now."

  I gritted my teeth and endured it, but she wasn’t applying medicine — she was practically kneading and pinching me like dough. The pain was unbearable.

  "Grandma, have mercy!" I finally cried out, grabbing her hand.

  Wang Yao laughed. "Serves you right for faking it."

  I turned to her, exasperated. "You knew?"

  "Of course. I just wanted to see you squirm," she smirked.

  Before I could retort, I noticed her expression change. I turned my head and froze. Zhang Xuan was walking up the stairs, and my hand was still clutching Wang Yao’s wrist.

  Zhang Xuan’s gaze was filled with curiosity. "What are you two doing?"

  I hastily released Wang Yao’s hand. She, however, remained unfazed, casually raising the bottle of ointment. "Helping him apply medicine."

  I quickly added, "Yeah, and she’s killing me in the process."

  Wang Yao scoffed, "Oh please, you asked me to help because Lin Ke'er was too gentle."

  Zhang Xuan didn’t seem suspicious, even smiling as she approached. "Well, Lin Ke'er’s not exactly cut out for that. Here, let me help."

  Without hesitation, she poured some ointment into her palm and began applying it to my back. Her touch was gentle and soothing — exactly what I had hoped for.

  I glanced smugly at Wang Yao. "See? Now that’s how you apply medicine."

  Wang Yao rolled her eyes. "Then why don’t you let Zhang Xuan do it from now on?"

  Zhang Xuan laughed, "I don’t think I can. If Lin Ke'er finds out, she’ll kill me."

  That one sentence made the atmosphere heavy. Wang Yao's smile froze, and I fell silent.

  She was right. Everyone believed Lin Ke'er and I were a couple. If anyone tried to get close to me now, they’d face immense backlash. Just like two years ago — when the same thing happened with another girl, and we ultimately drifted apart.

  The irony was that Lin Ke'er and I weren’t even really together. Fate truly loved its cruel jokes.

  Once the medicine was applied, we all returned to our respective classes. After the final morning lesson, I slipped a wooden club into my sleeve. HOUZI’s words still echoed in my mind — "Don’t get caught alone. Always carry something for protection."

  As I stepped outside, I ran into Zheng Wu. He, too, had a wooden stick hidden up his sleeve — but more strikingly, he was decked out in full leather gear, sunglasses included, like some gangster straight out of an action movie.

  I blinked. "What the hell are you wearing?"

  Zheng Wu adjusted his sunglasses solemnly. "This isn’t a game, Zuo Fei. This is war."

  "…Let’s just find HOUZI and Huang Jie, alright?"

  We made our way to HOUZI's classroom, only to find it deserted. Without hesitation, we rushed to Huang Jie’s class, but he was nowhere to be seen either. A vague sense of unease crept over me—could they have gone to the internet café again? Impossible. Not at such a crucial moment. It was HOUZI himself who repeatedly emphasized the importance of not being alone. Was he not afraid of being cornered by those seniors?

  I hastily pulled out my phone and dialed their numbers, but neither of them answered. Anxiety gnawed at me. Although HOUZI and Huang Jie were notorious for their playful nature, they were dependable when it mattered. They wouldn't deliberately make such a reckless move—unless something had already happened to them.

  Exchanging a worried glance with Zheng Wu, we began scouring the campus, first circling the corridors, then peeking into the restrooms, but still no sign of them. With growing panic, we split up, simultaneously calling them while searching every possible spot, from the basketball court to the main playground.

  Suddenly, it struck me—I slapped my forehead and immediately dialed Liu Yina.

  “Did you see where HOUZI went after the third class?” I asked hurriedly.

  “He and Huang Jie went straight to the internet café,” Liu Yina answered nonchalantly.

  I nearly smashed my phone to the ground in exasperation.

  Zheng Wu, equally dumbfounded, asked, “Didn’t he say not to be alone? Why would he sneak off like that?”

  Fuming, I gritted my teeth. “How the hell should I know? The man clearly has no sense of team spirit.”

  Zheng Wu nodded firmly. “We have to teach him a lesson for this.”

  “Absolutely,” I agreed without hesitation.

  Zheng Wu glanced at me sideways. “I'll handle the lecturing. You, as his underling, should stay out of it.”

  I shot him a glare. “I’m not his underling!”

  We stormed toward the internet café, and sure enough, there they were—HOUZI and Huang Jie, completely immersed in their game, cursing their teammates like a couple of lunatics. The sight of them, so carefree and indifferent, instantly ignited my suppressed fury. Without a second thought, I stormed over, ripped off HOUZI’s headset, and growled, “What the hell is wrong with you?”

  Startled, HOUZI turned around, his face blank with confusion. “What’s up?”

  “What’s up?” I practically roared. Pulling out the wooden club hidden in my sleeve, I demanded, “You told us not to wander alone, and now you two are off having fun? Care to explain that?”

  Zheng Wu tugged at my sleeve and whispered, “Hey, you're the little brother here. Watch your tone with the big bro.”

  “Shut the hell up,” I snapped, too enraged to care. I turned my blazing gaze back to HOUZI, who now looked slightly guilty.

  Huang Jie leisurely removed his headset, smirking. “Should I cue the dramatic internal conflict soundtrack?”

  “You shut up too. I'll deal with you later.”

  Finally, HOUZI sighed, embarrassed. “Can you let me finish this round first?”

  “Fine. Play your damn game.”

  I slumped into the seat beside him, crossing my arms, glaring daggers into his back, determined to hear his explanation once his game was over.

  Minutes later, he finally pulled off his headset and turned to me. “Did Wang Yao not tell you?”

  My rage flickered into confusion. “Tell me what?”

  “That she’s already settled everything. She went to talk to Ding Sheng and Liang Qi. They promised not to trouble us anymore, and they’re even planning to invite us for a meal soon.”

  I froze, my mind struggling to process his words. “What…?”

  HOUZI grinned. “Relax, man. The storm has passed.”

  I opened my mouth but found myself speechless. Desperate to say something, I mumbled, “Since when did Wang Yao have that kind of influence?”

  “You kidding me?” HOUZI chuckled. “She’s got more sway than all of us combined. Honestly, her relationship with Ding Sheng and Liang Qi might even be closer than her relationship with us.”

  “…Seriously?”

  “Dead serious. They’ve known each other for a while now, helped each other out a couple of times too.”

  I fell silent, piecing everything together. Earlier that day, Wang Yao had spent time with me but mentioned nothing about this. She probably assumed HOUZI had already informed me, and HOUZI likely thought Wang Yao had filled me in. That’s why I’d been left in the dark.

  Understanding the situation now, I watched as HOUZI and Huang Jie resumed their game, while Zheng Wu, drenched in sweat, peeled off his leather jacket, muttering about the unbearable heat.

  And just like that, the storm that I feared never came. Our days continued, peaceful and undisturbed, as we maintained our reign over the freshman territory. No one dared challenge us.

  Except for Yi Zhen.

  Every time we crossed paths, his venomous glare bored into me, laced with hatred and bitterness, as though he wished to tear me apart. His gaze was unnerving, and I often had to suppress the urge to confront him physically. Were it not for HOUZI’s insistence that we leave him be, I would have long beaten him senseless and made him call me ‘daddy.’

  I foolishly believed our tranquil days would stretch on indefinitely—until that fateful day arrived.