Chapter 7: Quite the Display of Power

Zhang Lijuan said gently, "Why didn't you change your clothes before coming?"

"I thought the teacher had something urgent to discuss with me," Ling Wu said, lifting his eyes to glance at her, "so I hurried over."

Zhang Lijuan could just cry.

Look at that!

Look at that!

This is what you call a good student—this is a good student, someone who keeps their teacher's words in their heart at all times!

Unlike someone else...

Just as she was thinking this, Zhang Lijuan's gaze fell to the other side, where a second-generation heir was sitting brazenly on the sofa, legs crossed, sporting a face that was half blue and purple.

Damn it, the more she looked at him, the more of an eyesore he was!

"Cough... cough cough... cough!"

Ling Wu coughed a few times and asked politely, "Teacher Zhang, may I sit down for a moment?"

"Ah?" Zhang Lijuan blinked twice before coming to her senses; she slapped her forehead and pushed her own chair over: "Sit! Sit! Sit wherever you like!"

"Thank you."

The more Zhang Lijuan looked at his well-behaved appearance, the more satisfied she felt, and the radiance of maternal love instantly illuminated the office...

Gao Sheng and the others:???

Wei Ranxu was leaning back on the sofa in a slouching posture; seeing Ling Wu's pale, teetering appearance, he couldn't help but sit up a bit straighter.

It's not that serious, is it?

It was just falling into the water in the summer, and he's a man, so why is he acting like he's come down with a terminal illness?

Zhang Lijuan began the procedure: "Student Ling Wu, was the injury on Student Wei's face caused by you?"

Ling Wu confessed honestly: "He led people to push me into the water first and even threw away my phone, and only then did I strike back."

Tsk.

What Zhang Lijuan heard: 【Garbled noise】, he led people to push me into the water and even threw away my phone.

How truly wicked!

Zhang Lijuan couldn't afford to offend either side, but she could see that Wei Ranxu wanted to make things difficult for Ling Wu, so she could only try her best to remain neutral: "Young Master Wei... look, both sides are at fault here, let's just let it go."

She would compensate the good boy with some extra academic credits.

"Let it go?!" Wei Ranxu's eyes were cold, and his clear voice was filled with suppressed anger: "You believe whatever he says based on his one-sided story?"

"So my beating was for nothing?"

"Teacher Zhang had better read the room and think clearly; otherwise, it's hard to get back on the right track once you've taken a wrong turn. Don't you agree, Teacher?"

Zhang Lijuan felt like she was sitting on pins and needles, a layer of cold sweat breaking out on her forehead.

This was no longer a matter a teacher could handle; this was a power struggle between two families. Zhang Lijuan stammered, "Then... let's call the guardians."

Wei Ranxu had no objections.

In his view, the Jin Family didn't care about Ling Wu at all; Jin Liangjin was elusive, and his stepmother was no pushover and certainly wouldn't care about him.

He raised his eyebrows, feeling refreshed—Ling Wu was done for.

Wei Ranxu crossed his fingers, rested his elbows on his knees, and leaned forward slightly: "Let him call first."

Ling Wu had no objections: "Teacher Zhang, may I borrow your phone to make a call?"

"Of course you may."

Zhang Lijuan handed him the phone.

Ling Wu quickly entered a string of numbers and dialed; it rang for a long time, and he just sat there quietly, his left hand pressed under his thigh, head bowed as he stared at his toes, waiting for the call to be answered.

Wei Ranxu mocked, "Don't try to act tough, Ling Wu. No one is picking up your call; why don't you beg me?"

"If you beg me, I'll let you off."

Ling Wu never lifted his head from start to finish, maintaining that same well-behaved appearance, yet he boldly ignored Wei Ranxu's words entirely.

Seeing that he was being ignored, Wei Ranxu was enraged again.

If he didn't make Ling Wu suffer today, he wouldn't be a Wei!

It wasn't until the ringing was about to end that the call was finally answered.

First came a silence that lasted for several seconds.

Ling Wu wasn't sure if Jin Shaoyu would answer; in his memories, his younger brother had grown up rapidly, no longer following behind him calling him 'brother', the affection in his eyes gradually turning into disgust, and he no longer needed his protection.

Ten years of time had stolen the hearts of two sincere youths.

On the other end of the line, Jin Shaoyu's voice was clearly tinged with irritability and displeasure: "Speak."

"Hello." Ling Wu lifted his head and swept a glance at Zhang Lijuan and Wei Ranxu, then spoke in a gentle, slow tone: "Could you please not hang up the phone yet?"

"It's just... I hit someone, and things are a bit troublesome. Teacher Zhang says we need to call the parents."

He whispered, "Could you please come and save me?"

On the other side, Jin Shaoyu was silent for a long time; he snapped the lid of his lighter shut, lowered his lashes, and spoke in a haughty, slouching tone: "If they told you to call your parents, why are you calling me?"

"Am I your parent?"

He suspected that Ling Wu had deleted his number long ago.

Because even on his birthday, the other party hadn't called to say happy birthday.

He was extremely patient, as if waiting for a reason—a reason that needed to be spoken by Ling Wu himself.

Ling Wu said earnestly, "You are the only younger brother I have left."

He said it extremely lightly and slowly, like snow falling gently in winter, or a willow branch brushing across the surface of the water, leaving a sense of itchiness and melancholy in the depths of Jin Shaoyu's heart.

Heh.

Younger brother.

Jin Shaoyu gazed into the distance and asked vaguely, "Ling Wu, so you actually know that I am your younger brother?"

"Beep—"

The call was disconnected.

Ling Wu looked down, bewildered.

Well, that conversation had clearly fallen apart.

Wei Ranxu looked at Ling Wu's slightly dejected profile; the other party hadn't turned on the speakerphone, but from the content of the conversation, it was clear he had called Jin Shaoyu.

"It seems Young Master Jin has no intention of managing you," Wei Ranxu said with absolute certainty. "Teacher Zhang, I intend to resolve this matter privately; you have no objections, do you?"

He emphasized the word "you" sharply.

His eyelids drooped lazily, carrying a hint of gloom and intimidation, and while the corners of his lips were slightly raised, it made one feel no sense of a smile, as he invisibly exerted pressure on Zhang Lijuan.

Whether Zhang Lijuan agreed to his proposal or not, she had no choice but to agree.

A commoner teacher with no power or influence knew better than anyone how to protect herself.

As long as this matter didn't go through the Academy's formal procedures and was kept private, Wei Ranxu could quietly play Ling Wu to death; who told him not to think of the consequences before he acted?

If one does something wrong, one must pay the price for it.

Zhang Lijuan swallowed hard and gathered her courage: "Young Master Wei, this... this isn't very appropriate..."

Wei Ranxu stood up from the sofa, his 1.8-meter height making him imposing, and he cut off the rest of Zhang Lijuan's words: "Teacher Zhang!"

"Calling you teacher is giving you face."

"Did I say this was a discussion?"

It seemed Jin Shaoyu would not be coming.

Ling Wu looked at Wei Ranxu's overbearing manner and couldn't help but wonder what the chances were of beating him up severely again and then retreating unscathed.

The setting sun shone in through the window, the Tyndall effect making the whole room look somewhat dreamlike; footsteps sounded rhythmically in the corridor, a long breeze pulled at a corner of the youth's clothing, and the light cast his silhouette in cold, hard lines.

Zhang Lijuan was like a quail, not daring to speak again.

"What a display of great prestige."

Jin Shaoyu's voice clearly reached the ears of everyone present.

In an instant, a cold, stern face appeared at the office doorway, black hair neatly combed back to reveal a fair forehead, his temperament aloof and arrogant, giving people an indescribable sense of oppression.

Jin Shaoyu glanced sideways at Wei Ranxu, revealing an unquestionable sense of authority: "Since when is it your turn to call the shots at Sike Academy?"