Chapter 48: How About Another Fight?

About half an hour later.

Qin Chuan’s door opened, and A-Wei emerged, carrying a black plastic bag in his hand.

“A-Wei, come here for a moment!”

He had just locked the door behind him when Lan Weimin’s aged voice called out from the direction of the second floor.

“Master, is there something you need?” A-Wei asked respectfully.

“Did Mr. Qin go out to take care of some matter in the early hours today?” As soon as he finished, Lan Weimin hurriedly added, “If Mr. Qin has instructed you not to speak, then say nothing.”

“Master, early this morning Miss Lin suddenly fell gravely ill. Fortunately, Mr. Qin intervened in time, or else her life would have been in danger. However, Mr. Qin exhausted himself saving her and is now recuperating in his room. He specifically ordered me not to let anyone disturb him without his permission,” A-Wei replied in a deep voice.

Lan Weimin was a little surprised; A-Wei was remarkably clear and concise today. If this had been the old A-Wei, he would have rambled on, and perhaps never really conveyed the crucial information.

“Could it be that following Qin Chuan around has made him grow?” Lan Weimin instinctively credited A-Wei’s change to Qin Chuan.

“A-Wei, since Mr. Qin has given instructions, you are to personally stand guard at his door with others—no one is to approach, not even half a step,” Lan Weimin ordered at once.

A-Wei hesitated. “Master, the young miss just called and asked me to accompany her to Binhai University.”

“What for?” Lan Weimin’s brow furrowed, and then, as if recalling something, he said with some displeasure, “Don’t tell me that rascal Lantian has gotten himself into trouble again?”

“It seems so, but please rest assured, Master. The young miss will handle everything, and with me by her side, her safety is guaranteed,” A-Wei said with full confidence.

Lan Weimin nodded. “Good. Then protect Jin’er well. I’ll look after Mr. Qin.”

A-Wei agreed and turned to leave the old house.

Watching A-Wei’s retreating figure, Lan Weimin couldn’t shake a sense of unease, though he couldn’t pinpoint the reason.

As the engine of the sports car roared to life, A-Wei sped away from the Lan family estate. No one noticed that as the car swept past a grove of artificial trees, A-Wei cast a fleeting glance into the depths of the woods, a faint, cold smile curling at the corner of his lips.

At the same time, deep within the grove, on a branch of a thick poplar tree whose trunk would take two men to encircle, a young man in camouflage lay hidden among the leaves. With a military binocular in hand, he observed the road, focusing on the direction A-Wei’s car was heading.

“Captain, the target has not reappeared since entering the Lan residence. About half an hour later, a high-level bodyguard from the Lan family drove away alone,” he reported.

A cold voice quickly replied through the communicator, “Remain in place and continue surveillance. I’ll send others to tail the bodyguard.”

“Roger!” the young man replied, then closed his communicator and resumed his watch over the Lan family home.

Elsewhere.

In a secret room in the northern suburbs, a middle-aged man in black robes issued a series of orders. After receiving a response, he frowned.

“Captain, that bastard Qin Chuan messaged me to curse me out, and even taunted us, saying if we want to scam him, we should at least do our homework first,” one of his black-clad subordinates said angrily. “He obviously thinks we’re a gang of fraudsters. Looks like the master’s judgment was off.”

This time, the black-robed man didn’t lose his temper. After a moment’s thought, he said, “Not necessarily. Although Qin Chuan himself hasn’t shown up, both the bodyguard and the young miss of the Lan family went to Binhai University. There are no such coincidences in this world.”

“But Captain, our people have investigated. Everything checks out logically. Could all this have been arranged beforehand?” The subordinate was incredulous.

The black-robed man fell silent. According to their investigation, Lan family’s eldest young master had been pursuing Qin Youyou for half a year. This time, out of jealousy, he started a fight at school, causing quite a scene and prompting him to ask Lan Jin for help. At the time of his call, one of their men was nearby and heard enough to know that this was not the first time Lan Jin had stepped in to resolve her cousin’s trouble. As for the high-level bodyguard dispatched from the old house, it was simply the old master worrying for his granddaughter’s safety.

Everything made perfect sense.

Yet the more flawless it seemed, the more uneasy the black-robed man felt, as if everything had been orchestrated in advance.

“Stick to the plan. If Qin Youyou is forewarned, she won’t take that secluded alley again. If the kidnapping fails, that too will confirm Qin Chuan’s identity,” he said, his face grave.

“Yes, sir!” The subordinate suddenly thought of something and asked, “Captain, if our brothers can’t pull off the kidnapping, will you intervene personally?”

“Nonsense!” the black-robed man snorted coldly.

But before the subordinate could let out a relieved breath, the captain added, “If we’ve already got our answer, what the hell would I intervene for?”

Clang!

The subordinate nearly lost his balance and fell.

“Enough talking. If the worst really does happen, remember to keep your mouth shut—or you know the consequences.”

The subordinate nodded repeatedly, nearly suffocating under the killing intent suddenly released.

“Keep watching the school. If anything seems off, withdraw immediately. Do not let them track you.”

With that, the black-robed man closed his eyes.

The subordinate bowed and slipped quietly from the room.

...

Binhai University.

Academic Affairs Office.

“Now, you two tell me—what was this fight about?” Director Chen Mingjun asked sternly.

Across from him stood two young men in basketball jerseys.

The one on the left looked furious, his eyes nearly spitting fire.

The one on the right seemed utterly at ease, his gaze full of disdain and provocation.

“Here’s what happened, Director Chen. I accidentally broke Lantian’s cup,” said the one on the right.

“You did it on purpose! And that cup was a gift from Professor Qin,” the other shot back.

“I apologized on the spot and offered to pay for it, but he was completely unreasonable and started hitting me,” said the first coolly.

“As if I care about your filthy money! People like you, who deliberately disgust others, deserve a beating!” Lantian retorted.

“Director Chen, you see? If he dares speak like this in front of you, imagine how arrogant he must be in private!” the right one exclaimed.

“Director Chen, you see? Even here he continues to be unreasonable—imagine how insufferable he is outside!” the left one echoed.

The two traded barbs, neither willing to give an inch.

Chen Mingjun’s mouth twitched violently, his head buzzing with indecision. The reason was simple: he couldn’t afford to offend either of these pampered young men.

The one on the left was Lantian, direct descendant of the Lan family’s second branch—the leading house among Binhai’s four great families.

The one on the right was Liu Huanyu, a direct descendant of the third branch of the Liu family—another of the four great families.

Years ago, the Lan family had donated a library to the university; the Liu family funded a gymnasium. Now these two scions were brawling over a trivial matter, leaving the director at a loss as to how to deal with them.

Of course, Chen Mingjun had gathered from other sources that Liu Huanyu bore the greater share of blame this time. But Lantian had indeed thrown the first punch, and the real root of it all was the cup’s original owner—Qin Youyou, the youngest female professor in the university’s history and the goddess of many a male student’s heart, these two included.

Knock, knock, knock!

At that moment, a rhythmic knock sounded at the door.

“Come in!” Chen Mingjun called.

A moment later, the office door opened and a graceful figure entered.

When Chen Mingjun saw who it was, he silently breathed a long sigh of relief.

“At last, the main party has arrived. Now this can be resolved perfectly.”

Yet before the thought had fully faded, the newcomer laughed and said, “Why don’t you two just fight it out right here? Whoever wins, I’ll be his girlfriend.”