C4 The School Incident

Faang Yu's methods were harsh, but they served more as a warning than anything else—they were merely skin-deep injuries.

He tossed the young punk to the ground and demanded, without a trace of emotion, "Spill it. Who sent you?"

The kid's nerve had been shattered by Faang Yu long before, and he spilled the beans without hesitation. It was a straightforward tale: someone had set their sights on Shen Mengyao and, after being spurned, had their pride wounded. In a fit of spite, they dropped all pretenses and that's what led to today's confrontation. They'd pulled a dagger on Faang Yu, hoping to slash him, but hadn't anticipated Faang Yu's ferocity—that he would turn the tables and stab them first.

After listening, Faang Yu took a moment to reflect, then glanced at the thug sprawled on the ground and dismissed him with a single word: "Scram."

"Thank you, big brother, thank you!" The kid, feeling like he'd just been pardoned, took off running, leaving his cronies behind without a second thought. In his eyes, Faang Yu was the kind of man who didn't play by the rules, a man to be feared. Escaping with his life felt like divine mercy.

"Faang Yu, did you... did you kill someone?" Shen Mengyao asked, her body shaking as she gazed at the motionless "corpse" on the ground.

"No," Faang Yu replied with a brief glance in her direction.

"But I—" Shen Mengyao started, only to be cut off by Faang Yu's reassuring words, "I've got it under control. They're just superficial wounds. Let's go."

"Are you sure?" Shen Mengyao's face was still clouded with concern, but seeing Faang Yu's stoic demeanor, a sense of calm washed over her. She gave a soft nod and followed him towards the school.

The University of Paton was picturesque, with flowers and trees lining the campus paths and wooden corridors draped with climbing vines—a romantic backdrop for the many student couples who strolled and whispered sweet nothings to each other at night. It was a charming scene.

Initially, Shen Mengyao was preoccupied with worry, unable to shake off the evening's events. But as they walked, she observed Faang Yu's nonchalance and her anxiety began to ebb away. The rollercoaster of emotions left her feeling faint, and she suddenly found herself struggling to stay upright.

Faang Yu sensed something was off with Shen Mengyao. He stepped back to support her, asking with concern, "Are you alright? Should I take you to the hospital?"

Shen Mengyao felt a comforting warmth from Faang Yu's touch. A bit embarrassed but genuinely weak, she murmured softly, "No need, just take me back to the dorm, please."

After giving Shen Mengyao a thorough look-over, Faang Yu saw her cheeks flush with red. He nodded, reassured by his observations and the basic medical knowledge he had that she wasn't in any serious trouble.

Meanwhile, at the nearby basketball court.

"Holy smokes, am I seeing this right? Is that Faang Yu with the sweet and naive girl? Isn't Soong Haoran pursuing her?" A bespectacled guy gawked at Faang Yu and Shen Mengyao, his jaw nearly hitting the floor.

A tall, muscular guy next to him watched the pair with an odd look and confirmed, "You're not wrong, it's definitely them."

"Jun, if Soong Haoran gets wind of this, Faang Yu's going to have problems. He's our roommate, after all. Maybe we should give him a heads-up to steer clear of Shen Mengyao. If Soong Haoran and his cronies pull a few strings, Faang Yu could end up not getting his diploma," the man with glasses said, glancing at his taller companion with uncertainty.

The graduate and undergraduate schools at the University of Paton were in close proximity, leading to frequent interactions between the two. Many undergraduate girls were keen on dating a graduate student, especially since several graduates often stayed on as faculty, giving them considerable clout. Having a graduate student boyfriend could be quite advantageous. Conversely, if an undergrad crossed a grad student, they might find themselves at odds with faculty who were friends with the offended party.

"Pfft, Soong Haoran and his crew have turned a decent school into a petty bureaucracy. It's so irritating!" Brother Jun scoffed, clearly harboring strong disdain for Soong Haoran. "If they try anything against Faang Yu, I'll bring in my older brother."

Xia Taiping, the guy with glasses, rolled his eyes dismissively. "Your brother's just a deputy secretary of the graduate school's branch committee; he's no match for Soong Haoran."

Pang Yajun, realizing his attempt to impress had fallen flat, chuckled awkwardly before getting serious. "Faang Yu's probably in his dorm today. Let's head over and wait for him. If he shows up, we'll give him a heads-up. If not, well, it's his tough luck."

Considering Faang Yu hadn't spent much time in the dorm, their friendship was at best casual. So, Pang Yajun and Xia Taiping were already going above and beyond.

As Faang Yu escorted Shen Mengyao back to her dorm, they ran into Soong Haoran, who was loitering at the entrance.

Soong Haoran, clutching a bouquet of roses and leaning against a red Porsche 911, was clearly awaiting Shen Mengyao's arrival.

The sports car, the roses, and Soong Haoran himself—with his tall, slender, scholarly appearance, high-end gold-rimmed glasses, and sharp blue suit—made an impressive picture. Even Faang Yu, who usually held himself above others, had to concede that few women at the University of Paton could resist such a suitor.

It was then that Faang Yu's curiosity about Shen Mengyao was piqued. How could an ordinary girl like her withstand such a determined courtship?

"Good heavens, when did Shen Mengyao get a boyfriend? And who is this guy? Soong Haoran has been waiting for ages. This is going to be quite the spectacle!"

The onlookers' eyes were practically popping out of their heads. A showdown like this was a rarity, especially with Soong Haoran, a campus celebrity, involved. Someone was actually bold enough to vie with him for a woman, sparking intense curiosity about Faang Yu's origins.

Soong Haoran's brow creased in annoyance, but he quickly masked it with a smile and approached them.

"Mengyao, are you not feeling well?" Soong Haoran had an epiphany as he drew closer. It was just this guy lending Shen Mengyao a hand. He had worried for nothing. After all, who in the school would dare challenge him? Besides, this guy was clearly just another student.

"Thank you for assisting Mengyao, junior. I owe you a meal and will make sure to treat you next time. You can leave Shen Mengyao with me; I'll drive her to the hospital." Soong Haoran's voice was warm and friendly, yet Faang Yu couldn't help but notice a flicker of disdain in his eyes—a look all too familiar to Faang Yu, as he had once regarded others with the same condescension.