Chapter 136: Being Targeted for No Reason

The boy was about 1.7 meters tall and his whole body was full of flesh; it wasn't the kind of sturdiness that comes from frequent exercise, but a roundness purely caused by obesity.

He likely weighed no less than 150 jin.

Otherwise, he couldn't possibly have been unscathed after hitting that tree just now.

The boy was stunned for a moment, then said with pleasant surprise, "You're Brother Rice Noodle! No wonder you looked so familiar just now."

Shen Yan laughed, "So it's you! What a coincidence!"

This boy was the type to get familiar quickly; he grabbed Shen Yan and started chatting, saying his name was Jiang Yingyu, he was a freshman majoring in Computer Science, and he had heard of Shen Yan's name like thunder, asking why he hadn't seen him in the Art Department before.

Shen Yan said he was a latecomer, just here to fill a spot, and Jiang Yingyu nodded as if he understood.

Can you join the Student Union halfway through the term?

Seeing the two chatting happily, Yu Youwei was curious about how they knew each other; Jiang Yingyu scratched his head in embarrassment, and Shen Yan said they had just bumped into each other downstairs.

Jiang Yingyu gave Shen Yan a grateful look; naturally, the fewer people who knew about such an embarrassing thing, the better.

I have my pride too!

There were quite a few people curious about the suddenly appearing Shen Yan, all stealing glances this way or whispering into each other's ears.

At this moment, a round-faced girl sitting opposite named Huang Ying, wearing gold-rimmed glasses, asked with a flushed face, "Brother Rice Noodle, have you joined the Art Department too?"

Before Shen Yan could answer, the boy at the left of the head seat, who had been looking down at his phone, suddenly looked up this way and said somewhat aggressively, "Who are you? This is where the Art Department is preparing for a meeting; unauthorized personnel, get out immediately."

Shen Yan swept a calm glance at him and said, "I don't think I count as unauthorized personnel; your Minister asked me to come."

Yu Youwei hurriedly explained, "Vice Minister Zhou, this is Shen Yan; Minister Chen invited him to join the Art Department."

Zhou Qing frowned slightly; he had long heard of Shen Yan's reputation—wasn't he just a pretty boy who knew a bit of dance? He couldn't understand what those ignorant students were thinking, actually crowning such a person as the school heartthrob.

But since he was someone specifically recruited by Chen Xiaowei, he couldn't refuse to give face, so he just darkened his face and said, "This is a place for a meeting; don't be noisy, have some discipline."

Everyone present looked at each other; why did it feel like there was gunpowder in the air? Shen Yan must have offended Zhou Qing, who was giving him a hard time right to his face.

Shen Yan was also feeling baffled; he felt this person's brain wasn't quite right, and said neither humbly nor arrogantly, "The meeting hasn't started yet; I don't think there's any problem with talking."

"May I ask if not being allowed to talk is a rule of the Art Department, or a private regulation of yours, Vice Minister Zhou?"

The scene suddenly became deathly silent, and one could almost hear a pin drop; everyone was shocked that a freshman dared to openly disrespect Zhou Qing.

To the right of the head seat, the refined-looking boy adjusted the glasses on the bridge of his nose, watching this scene with great interest, a hint of schadenfreude in his eyes.

This Zhou Qing always liked to throw his weight around, using his status as Vice Minister to boss freshmen around, but this time he seemed to have hit a hard target.

Zhou Qing never expected a freshman to dare question him to his face; he was stunned for a moment, then after reacting, he slammed his hand on the table with a "Bang!" and stood up, shouting angrily, "Do you think this is your home? Look at the occasion before you speak."

If it were an ordinary student, they might really have been intimidated by him.

But Shen Yan leaned back in his chair, clicked his tongue twice, and said in a mocking tone, "Before a Politburo meeting, the leaders still exchange pleasantries. Does Vice Minister Zhou think that an Art Department meeting is more important than a Politburo meeting?"

"Also, you slammed the table so hard, your hand must hurt, right? Do you want to go apply some medicine?"

"Pfft!"

The bespectacled boy couldn't hold it in and laughed out loud on the spot.

Others were also struggling to contain their laughter, but because they were intimidated by Zhou Qing's authority, they could only try their best to hold it in, not daring to make a sound, their bodies trembling slightly as if they had been hit by a paralysis spell.

Some bit their lips tightly, their faces flushed red; some lowered their heads and covered their mouths with their hands; some even laid directly on the table, their shoulders shaking non-stop.

Yu Youwei had been dissatisfied with Zhou Qing for a long time; his bureaucratic style was nauseating, and now that he was undisguisedly targeting Shen Yan, how could she hold back?

She stood up and said unceremoniously, "Vice Minister Zhou, I think your IQ might be offline today. I suggest you go back and get some good rest, otherwise, I'm afraid you'll infect everyone else."

Zhou Qing's face turned livid upon hearing this; someone was openly provoking him now. If he didn't suppress Shen Yan today, what prestige would he have left in the Art Department in the future?

Just a freshman, and he dared to talk to him like this? Did he not want to stay in the Art Department anymore?

Zhou Qing had never encountered such a situation; only then did he notice that there was a hint of disdain in the corner of Shen Yan's eyes, completely disregarding him, a Vice Minister.

After a moment of thought, Zhou Qing made a threat, "Freshmen these days are getting more and more undisciplined. Watch your attitude; believe it or not, I'll kick you out of the Art Department."

Shen Yan nodded and said, "Hurry up then."

"What?" Zhou Qing was stunned for a moment.

"Aren't you going to kick me out of the Art Department? Hurry up. I'll go outside immediately and publicize the bureaucratic style of the Art Department's Vice Minister, whose airs are even bigger than the Politburo, and your Minister might not necessarily agree."

Shen Yan had an indifferent expression.

Zhou Qing choked; his relationship with Chen Xiaowei had always been poor, and he knew without thinking that this wouldn't work at all; he just wanted to scare Shen Yan into submission.

Who knew Shen Yan wouldn't fall for this at all, and wouldn't give him any face.

Besides, he wasn't stupid; if this style of his were really publicized, he, the Vice Minister, would have to pack his bags and get out immediately; even the King of Heaven couldn't protect him.

"You're a Law major, right? Who is your counselor?"

In desperation, Zhou Qing unleashed his ultimate move; usually, freshmen would be 100% intimidated in this situation.

But Shen Yan was the exception; he puffed out his chest and said with full vigor, "My counselor is Huang Shuren. This is his phone number; do you need me to dial it for you?"

While speaking, Shen Yan opened his phone to find Huang Shuren's contact information.

"You..."

Zhou Qing was completely stumped, thinking that with this old-fashioned style and that fearless posture, where was there any sign of a freshman?

As for finding the counselor, that was complete nonsense; he was just a sophomore, a small Vice Minister of the Art Department—the counselor wouldn't even pay him any mind, and the phone would probably be hung up before he could say two sentences.

Seeing that Zhou Qing had no way to deal with Shen Yan, everyone suddenly realized that this Vice Minister was nothing more than this; he was full of airs on the surface, but turned out to be a hollow shell.

At the same time, they secretly admired Shen Yan's boldness; sure enough, anyone who becomes famous far and wide cannot be an ordinary person.

They were all the same age, yet they were still intimidated by the Vice Minister's authority, acting timidly, while Shen Yan dared to talk back to the Vice Minister to his face—he was truly a role model for their generation.

Jiang Yingyu even quietly gave Shen Yan a thumbs up.