October 31, 2025 — 12:23 pm

Chapter 4

A representative from the group following Lin Ting stepped forward and whispered something into Wen Lan’s ear. Lin Ting watched as Wen Lan’s gaze shifted from sternness to disbelief, and finally to a pitying smile.

“I say, you bring my subordinates to find me… are you trying to rebel or surrender?” Wen Lan smiled, the corners of his lips curling.

Lin Ting let out a long, helpless sigh. “I’m just a good student, really.” He glanced around at the people eyeing him menacingly. “You send dozens of people to beat up one high school student? Where would that leave Brother Wen’s reputation, wouldn’t you say?”

“Oh? How come I think that sounds quite impressive?” Wen Lan wasn’t ashamed.

“We were deskmates, after all. This is a fated connection built over a hundred lifetimes. Maybe we were related in a past life? How about we make peace?”

“Tsk, why does the word ‘make peace’ sound so unbelievable coming from you? If I let you go today, tomorrow you’ll open that foul mouth of yours and spray me again. Why not just cut off your tongue?”

Wen Lan reached into his pocket and pulled out a folding knife. He played with it in his hand, laughing. His subordinates joined in, and for a moment, a joyous and cheerful atmosphere spread out from Wen Lan.

Lin Ting, no longer hiding his disgust and disdain, was about to say something when he suddenly heard bustling footsteps from behind.

At this point, not only Lin Ting but also Wen Lan’s entire group stopped laughing. Their gazes shifted past Lin Ting’s shoulder, looking towards the rear.

Lin Ting didn’t need to turn around to know that at least a dozen pairs of eyes were on his back. The arcade had been taken over by this group of people who clearly looked like trouble. The young couple who had been playing the claw machine and the middle schoolers playing racing games in their school uniforms suddenly scattered.

The air became tense. Lin Ting’s feet felt as if they were cemented in place, his bones and sinews utterly immobile.

Tap, tap, tap. The sound of leather shoes dragging on the floor. Lin Ting didn’t move.

Click. The sound of a lighter, followed by the sound of a deep inhale of smoke and a slow exhale. Lin Ting couldn’t move.

The smell of smoke grew closer, accompanied by the scent of cologne. It was getting closer and closer, and he couldn’t even turn his head.

At this moment, the loudest sound in his ears wasn’t the music from the arcade games, but the pressure generated by the approaching person behind him, causing his eardrums to swell and his heart to pound violently. This sound was eerily similar to his heartbeat, both foretelling an imminent threat. Was it his imagination, or had the arcade sounds diminished since this person arrived?

He heard the source of the threat right by his ear, but even that close, Lin Ting had no intention of turning his head.

“Who is it that’s making our Brother Wen angry again, hmm?”

Wen Lan’s expression was cold, completely different from his usual demeanor. Though, Lin Ting had only seen him for a few hours.

But Lin Ting had a feeling that the newcomer was not to be trifled with.

While Wen Lan was a school bully who could easily gather a group of rich kids who didn’t study to do questionable things, Lin Ting felt he could handle a fight with them, one-on-one, of course.

But this newcomer was different. It wasn’t just him; the expressions and actions of those around him showed that this person was on an entirely different level than a mere school bully.

“Isn’t this Boss Ye? What wind blew you here?” Wen Lan’s features were already sharp, and now he was enveloped in a dark aura. He seemed to be smiling, but upon closer inspection, the smile was eerily frightening.

“Just bringing some kids to play. Who knew we’d run into each other! What a coincidence, right?” Boss Ye took a few more steps forward, and Lin Ting could see his back at an angle.

This Boss Ye looked to be in his late twenties or early thirties. He wore a black suit, a very expensive-looking watch on his left wrist, and a string of prayer beads on his right. From the meticulously styled hair, held in place with hairspray, to the gleaming black leather shoes on his feet, Lin Ting was suddenly reminded of Gu Jiang.

Although their tastes in suits differed, one thing was consistent: they both looked quite pretentious.

Of course, Lin Ting dared not say anything now. After all, the other party clearly had the capital to be pretentious.

“This is indeed a coincidence. But we’re done here and about to leave. If I don’t go home soon, my little genius’s smart watch will start ringing with my mother’s nagging.” Wen Lan said, starting to walk towards them.

The schools here were different from Lin Ting’s previous one. Perhaps because the rich kids had no academic pressure, there were no evening study sessions. It had been half a day since school ended, and the sky was only just beginning to turn a faint blue.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, don’t rush,” Boss Ye suddenly turned around and looked at Lin Ting. “Our little brother here and Brother Wen haven’t resolved their grievances yet, have they? Don’t tell me I’m spoiling everyone’s fun. No, no, continue, continue!” He then flashed Lin Ting a malicious grin.

Only then did Lin Ting see Boss Ye’s face. A jagged scar ran diagonally from his left temple to his right jaw, crossing his eyebrow and eye socket, and over his high nose. It lay on his face like a giant centipede, coming alive with Boss Ye’s expressions.

Lin Ting shivered. He opened his mouth to say something but swallowed it back.

Wen Lan looked at his face for a second, then stepped closer, blocking Boss Ye’s view of Lin Ting with his body, and directly pushed back the malicious smile. “It’s all a misunderstanding. We good students need to go home for dinner.”

However, Boss Ye wasn’t easily fooled. He pushed Wen Lan’s shoulder aside with one hand, took another deep drag of his cigarette, and exhaled, the mist swirling around the three of them. Lin Ting felt like coughing but managed to suppress it.

“Are you his subordinate?” Boss Ye asked, looking at Lin Ting.

“…No.”

“Oh…” Boss Ye flicked the ash from his cigarette and looked up at the sky, which was beginning to turn gray.

Twilight had not yet fallen, and the streetlights were not yet lit. This was the darkest time of the day. Lin Ting watched as the figures of the large group in front of him blurred. He suddenly felt as if he might be dreaming. Otherwise, how could he have ended up in this situation?

“Oh… no…” Boss Ye seemed to be contemplating something. “A Ming! What happened this morning? Tell Brother Wen and me again!”

The man named A Ming stepped forward from the crowd. “Brother Wen, no, Wen Lan… Wen Lan said I should be his subordinate, that following Boss Ye has no future. I firmly refused, so… so Wen Lan punched me.”

Lin Ting was very familiar with this voice. He had heard it in the alley that morning.

Wen Lan’s expression was now incredibly complex. His eyes narrowed naturally, one eyebrow lowered while the other arched, and the corners of his mouth couldn’t help but curl up. Even Lin Ting, an “outsider,” knew how illogical A Ming’s words were.

Boss Ye couldn’t possibly not know.

“Look at this!” He threw his cigarette butt on the ground and crushed it with the tip of his gleaming leather shoe. As he lowered his hands, the prayer beads on his wrist fell into his palm, and he began to idly rub them. “Little Wen, you’re not being upright in your dealings.”

Wen Lan watched him calmly, as if he knew what the other man was going to say next.

Indeed, less than a minute later, Boss Ye spoke again. “You say he doesn’t want to follow you, so you beat him up? Isn’t that like the underworld! I consider meeting this kid today a matter of fate. How about…”

He looked at Lin Ting and took another step closer. “How about you follow me? I guarantee it’ll be better than following that Wen kid. What do you say?”

A commotion erupted from behind.

Lin Ting glanced at Wen Lan, who subtly shook his head.

Lin Ting smiled. “I’m used to being free. Thank you for your kind offer, but I’m afraid I must decline.”

With that, he turned to leave.

However, the subordinates of the man named Ye quickly formed a human wall in front of Lin Ting. Silent, serene, and impenetrable.

Lin Ting turned back, helpless.

“It seems you’re quite loyal to your Brother Wen?”

“Big brother, you jest. I just transferred here today. I’m just a country bumpkin. I’ve only known him for less than a day, so there’s no loyalty to speak of.” Lin Ting found it exhausting to talk to someone deliberately looking for trouble. The other party was clearly lying, yet he couldn’t afford to be impolite.

Most importantly, this trouble had nothing to do with him! It was clearly a long-standing feud between two “not-so-good guys,” and he had become a target.

“How about this…” Boss Ye stopped fiddling with his prayer beads and smiled at Wen Lan. “Let’s be fair and just. This Saturday, at the Cotton Mill, we’ll let the newcomer see what we’re made of, won’t we?”

The words were ambiguous, but everyone present knew this was a challenge to a fight.

Lin Ting didn’t know the stakes, but he guessed it had something to do with the person named A Ming.

It was probably something like a subordinate being beaten up, which was an insult to the boss’s face, so they were coming to regain that face.

How boring. These people’s brains must have been kicked by a donkey.

Wen Lan’s dark eyes seemed to be pondering something, staring directly into Lin Ting’s eyes. But he spoke to Boss Ye. “I don’t think he’s very capable. We don’t lack people, do we?”

“Hey… you’re not giving him much face with that statement. I think he’s brave and daring, a good prospect. If you don’t want him, I’ll take him.” The man named Ye didn’t give Wen Lan a chance to back down.

“…That’s a bold statement.” Wen Lan paused, and finally, a frank and fearless smile appeared. “Then I’ll have to fight for him. Boss Ye, you don’t mind, do you?”

“Of course not. Then… Saturday at 6:30 PM, same old place.” Boss Ye was extremely satisfied. He patted Wen Lan on the right shoulder and left with his entourage.

He didn’t forget to look back and give Lin Ting a smile.

.

“Wen Lan, is the tap water in your rich houses imported from that island nation next door?” Lin Ting felt the dark cloud hanging over his head finally disperse. A Damocles sword labeled “Saturday” was slowly taking shape. At least for now, he was free. He let out a long sigh.

“What the hell do you want to say now?!” Wen Lan didn’t hide his impatience. He took out his cigarette case and lighter, lit one, took a deep drag, and then offered one to Lin Ting.

Lin Ting paused for half a second. Seeing Wen Lan’s hand still extended, he took it. “I just think the proportion of mentally challenged people here is unusually high. I suggest you investigate properly.”

“…You!” Wen Lan pointed at Lin Ting with his cigarette-holding hand. His face was a mixture of confusion and rage, as if his thoughts couldn’t keep up. He was frozen between stifling a laugh and being furious.

“The ‘eavesdropping’ classmate who’s about to lose his freedom on Saturday should probably investigate his future ‘boss’s’ preferences properly, lest he fails to serve adequately and lose his tongue.” Wen Lan glanced at him and held out the lighter. “Want a light?”

“Oh, I don’t smoke.” Lin Ting placed the cigarette he had just received behind Wen Lan’s ear and clapped his hands, turning around and walking away briskly.

“…F you!”