Although the lectern was heavy, it wasn't too difficult for four boys to carry.

So, Gong Ning and the others, under everyone's watchful eyes, huffed and puffed as they moved the lectern to my seat.

The lectern was really big, making it unsuitable as my personal desk. Thus, Liu Zihong had to share it with me, using his original desk as our makeshift bench. This arrangement allowed us to sit high and see far, and fortunately, we were in the second-to-last row, so we didn't obstruct anyone else's view.

I sat upright, and studying at a lectern indeed felt different—it was spacious, and I didn't have to fight Liu Zihong for the limited space. Meanwhile, Liu Zihong, like a scared little mouse, hunched over the lectern, wishing he could crawl under it.

"What are you doing?" I asked, puzzled.

"Brother Hao," Liu Zihong said with a worried look, "we're being too conspicuous, too arrogant. The homeroom teacher will get mad."

"Let him get mad," I said angrily. "I'm not expelled yet, and he already took my desk away. That's just disrespectful."

Just then, the door opened, and the teacher for this period walked in. "Sorry, got the schedule wrong. I slept until..." As the teacher spoke, he suddenly froze. One foot was on the lectern, and seeing the empty spot where the lectern should have been, he rubbed his eyes vigorously, probably thinking he wasn't fully awake yet.

"The... the lectern?" The teacher pointed at the empty space and then turned to look at us.

He got his answer right away. After all, it's quite noticeable when a student uses the lectern as a desk. "Wang Hao, what are you doing?" the teacher asked, baffled. Suddenly, he seemed to remember something. "Ah, weren't you taken by the police..." He stopped mid-sentence.

"Nothing much," I said irritably. "I'm not expelled yet, but Ge Chen already moved my desk."

The teacher understood immediately and pointed at me, saying, "In all my years of teaching, I've never seen a student like you."

I shrugged. "Well, now you have."

The teacher, fuming, stormed out, and the class erupted into chaos. Still in a foul mood, I turned to Zou Yang. "What do you think of this, class monitor?" Zou Yang ignored me, keeping his head down in his book. "Everyone's talking, and you're not managing them, class monitor?" He still ignored me, or maybe he just didn't dare to respond.

Finding it pointless to press further, I fell silent. Now that I was tougher than him, I still didn't bully others like he used to.

After a while, the classroom door opened, and the homeroom teacher walked in, looking directly at me.

"Wang Hao, why are you back?"

"Why shouldn't I be back?" I said, frustrated. "Everything's cleared up, so of course I'm back to attend class."

"You don't need to attend class anymore," the homeroom teacher said. "Wait for the school's notification at home." His implication was clear: I was definitely going to be expelled, so why waste time here? It seemed he didn't fully grasp the current situation.

"I'm still a student of this school until the notification comes," I said. "I'm not expelled yet, so why move my desk?"

"You never wanted to study here anyway. You were busy with transfer procedures a while ago, and now it's perfect timing."

"Leaving on my own and being expelled are two different things. Besides, Slap King didn't let me transfer."

The homeroom teacher looked confused. "Slap King? Who's Slap King?"

Realizing he wouldn't know this nickname, I corrected myself. "The Director of Academic Affairs."

Stolen story; please report.

"That's none of my concern," the homeroom teacher said. "Go home and wait for the notification. You can be sure you'll be expelled."

Hearing this, I smiled. "Mr. Ge, how about we make a bet?"

"What bet?"

"If I get expelled, I'll crawl out of the school," I said. "But if I'm not expelled, this lectern will forever be my desk. How about that? Our classmates can be witnesses. Do you dare?"

The class erupted. The homeroom teacher, being in his thirties and still hot-headed, couldn't stand being provoked. He immediately said, "Fine! But until the notification arrives, don't come to class, and move the lectern back!"

Just as well—I didn't feel like attending class anyway. So I had Gong Ning and the others move the lectern back, then I left the classroom.

Back in the dormitory, I took a nap. When I woke up, it was still early, so I leisurely made my way to the Academic Affairs Office.

I had to talk to Slap King sooner or later.

At the office, I didn't bother knocking and just pushed the door open. Slap King didn't seem surprised to see me; clearly, he had anticipated my visit. I didn't stand on ceremony either, and plopped down on the sofa, lighting a cigarette.

"What do you have to say?" I asked him.

"Impressive," Slap King said. "Didn't expect you to stick around. Quite surprising." He was straightforward, not playing games anymore, meeting me openly.

"What are you planning next?" I continued.

“What can I do?” Slap King said. “Things have reached this point, so I’ve decided to go with the flow and make you the next boss to replace Mai Zi. But you’re on your own. I won’t cover for you with Su Xiaobai. Also, you’d better behave at school. If I catch you slipping up, I can still get you expelled.”

“It’s not that easy to expel me now,” I said. “Just like it wasn’t easy to expel Mai Zi.”

Slap King’s face darkened. “Even if it was hard, I still got him out. Wang Hao, don’t get cocky. I’m advising you to behave for your own good. If you go too far, I’ll find a way to kick you out.”

“Alright, since it’s come to this, there’s nothing more to say.” I stood up and walked out of the office.

My relationship with Slap King was completely severed. Without our cooperation, he certainly wouldn’t protect me anymore, and I’d have to rely on myself at Cheng Gao. But that was fine—I no longer had to follow his orders.

As I left the staff building, the fiery sunset was about to dip below the horizon. I swaggered out of the school gates and headed to an internet café nearby. Upon entering, I made a beeline for Yu Chengfei’s territory. Halfway there, the scruffy café owner, Lao Zhang, shouted, “Hey, Wang Hao’s here!”

When he shouted, the noisy internet café fell silent. I found it strange. Lao Zhang often greeted me this way, but it had never gotten so quiet so suddenly. After a few seconds, the café erupted again, and I felt a bit relieved.

However, the ensuing comments startled me. “That’s Wang Hao? He’s so skinny!” “Is he the student who stabbed Mai Zi?” “Is he Cheng Gao’s new boss Wang Hao? He looks nothing like I imagined.” “A boss without any underlings? That’s way too low-key.” “Maybe he’s not that Wang Hao—there are plenty of people named Wang Hao.” “You really can’t judge a book by its cover. How could someone like him become a boss?” “But if Cheng Gao expels him, he won’t be a boss anymore...”

As mentioned before, the internet café was divided into three sections, occupied by students from Cheng Gao, the vocational college, and North Seven. The voices came from all three areas (Yu Chengfei had only a dozen people, not enough to represent all vocational college students). The comments swirled around like a large vortex, and I was at its center.

I didn’t expect to become so famous because of the “stabbing incident,” making me a hot topic in the three schools. Thinking about it, it made sense. Every newly risen campus boss caused a stir among students, spreading rapidly. “Wang Hao” quickly became a name everyone knew.

But who knew that I hadn’t actually stabbed Mai Zi? I was just bearing the title of “the one who stabbed Mai Zi.” As a boss, I was nothing more than a paper tiger, ready to collapse at any moment. Yet, to be honest, hearing those comments made me feel a bit proud. I walked with a swagger and even started to carry myself like a boss, walking leisurely toward Yu Chengfei’s area.

“Yo, Hao Zi’s here.” “Hao Zi, how was your day at the police station?” “Hao Zi, congrats on becoming the boss!” As soon as I entered Yu Chengfei’s area, I was greeted warmly. I called everyone brother, feeling a warm sensation in my heart. The nickname “Hao Zi” sounded so affectionate to me. Scanning the room, I didn’t see Yuan Shao, which made me anxious. I quickly headed to Yu Chengfei’s spot.

To my surprise, Yu Chengfei wasn’t there either. Instead, sitting in his place was a stunning beauty, sexy enough to make any man’s nose bleed—Nan Nan! She was skillfully operating Yu Chengfei’s account, killing monsters while asking, “Hao Zi, you’re here.”

“Sis!” I greeted her respectfully, then plastered a playful smile on my face. “Where’s Yu Ge?”

“What do you need him for? You can talk to me.” Nan Nan smiled brightly, clearly pleased by my respectful address.

“Hao Zi, I’m over here...” a weak voice called out.

I was shocked and looked toward the source of the voice—behind Nan Nan. I saw Yu Chengfei slumped in a chair, or rather half-lying in it, with most of his body curled up under the desk. I was familiar with this posture. Players in internet cafés often napped like this when they were tired. Nan Nan, sitting on his lap, completely obscured him, which was why I hadn’t noticed him when I first walked in.

“Sweetheart, my darling, my precious little sweetheart, could you please get up? My brother Hao Zi is here, and I need to catch up with him...” Yu Chengfei’s voice sounded pained.