I opened my eyes strangely and saw Ye Zhan grabbing Zou Yang's wrist. Zou Yang's strength was certainly greater than Ye Zhan's, but he didn't dare to break free.

Li Jie stood up, dissatisfied, "Ye Zhan, didn't we agree to let them have a one-on-one? When Wang Hao was hitting Zou Yang just now, I didn't interfere, did I? Now that Zou Yang has finally fought back, you want to step in? Isn't that unfair?"

I also stood up and touched my cheek, which had just been hit by Zou Yang. If this went on, I wouldn't be able to get up. Zou Yang looked a bit miserable, his nose and mouth bleeding profusely from the dozen or so punches I had landed.

"Zou Yang can't fight Wang Hao," Ye Zhan said, each word deliberate.

"Why?!" Li Jie gritted his teeth, visibly angry.

The other students in the dormitory looked at Ye Zhan strangely, while Zou Yang wore an expression of disbelief.

"Because you can't handle him," Ye Zhan said calmly. "He's Meng Liang's brother."

When Ye Zhan mentioned "Meng Liang," I felt Li Jie's face change instantly. His expression was one of astonishment and disbelief, and the same was true for Zou Yang, who, like me, was from Dongguan Town and naturally had no idea who Meng Liang was.

"He... he..." Li Jie stuttered, looking at me in disbelief, clearly still not convinced.

"Otherwise, why do you think I came over?" Ye Zhan smirked. "Who can make me do anything?"

The other students in the dormitory remained quiet. These students from various towns didn't know who Meng Liang was, but judging from Li Jie's reaction, he seemed to be someone not to be messed with. I found it amusing. Meng Liang was just a brother casually assigned by Yuan Shao, yet the respect he commanded was remarkable. And then there was Yu Chengfei, known as "Big Brother Yu" to them... I couldn't help but wonder, considering his appearance, how much more powerful he might be.

"Li Jie, who is Meng Liang?" Zou Yang furrowed his brow, asking. To him, Li Jie was already a big shot in Beiyuan.

"He's someone we absolutely can't afford to provoke," Li Jie said with a wry smile. "Zou Yang, just accept it. Wang Hao isn't someone we can bully. It's lucky that Ye Zhan came today. If it were Meng Liang..." His face darkened. "I'm afraid we'd all be leaving lying down."

Zou Yang fell silent. He hung his head, looking like a defeated rooster.

Ye Zhan released Zou Yang's wrist and silently walked to the side. "What to do next, you guys decide."

Li Jie sighed in relief. "Ye Zhan, thank you."

Ye Zhan waved his hand. "No need to thank me. We're all in this together. I can't just stand by and watch you fall into a pit."

Li Jie nodded. "Zou Yang, apologize to Wang Hao."

Zou Yang lifted his head in surprise, as if he had misheard. Li Jie's expression was serious. "Apologize, and it'll be over."

Zou Yang saw Li Jie's determination, hesitated for a moment, then looked at me. I could see the reluctance in his eyes, but he still said softly, "I'm sorry," before quickly turning his head away. Perhaps he had never imagined he would end up like this.

"This blanket..." Ye Zhan pointed to the floor. My blanket was filthy, covered in black footprints.

Li Jie waved his hand casually, and a nearby brother immediately rushed out. After a while, he brought back a new blanket.

Ye Zhan shook his head. "I planned to handle this myself, but in the end, the name 'Meng Liang' came out. Li Jie, oh Li Jie, you really don't give me any face." Then he looked at me. "Wang Hao, what do you think?"

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I could tell that Ye Zhan and Li Jie actually had a good relationship. Zou Yang had apologized, and the blanket had been replaced. Technically, this matter should be considered settled. Ye Zhan and Li Jie were both ready to make a mountain out of a molehill.

But, inexplicably, I shook my head.

This time, both Li Jie and Ye Zhan's expressions changed.

Li Jie looked at Ye Zhan, who then looked at me. "Wang Hao, forgive and forget. Zou Yang won't dare to do this again in the future..."

I still shook my head. Ye Zhan only knew that Zou Yang had thrown chicken bones at me, but he didn't know that Zou Yang had bullied me for three whole years in junior high school.

Countless memories flooded into my mind, vivid and unforgettable. Especially that scene on the small square, where Zou Yang made me kneel down with a notice in his hand—it's something I'll never forget!

Who could forget such humiliation? Who could accept letting it go like this!

"Wang Hao, if you still want to teach Zou Yang a lesson, you can continue now, I'll watch," Ye Zhan said softly.

But I didn't say anything. I walked up to Zou Yang.

Then, I took out a bag of instant packaged chicken necks from my pocket. There was a small shop downstairs from the dormitory, and before Ye Zhan and I came up, I inexplicably went in and bought it. At the time, I didn't know what I wanted to do, but now I should be very clear about its purpose.

Not only did I understand, but everyone in the dormitory understood.

Zou Yang's face turned red, his breath heavy.

"Don't be nervous," I said. "I just want you to experience what it's like to be publicly humiliated."

With a sharp tear, I ripped open the package of chicken necks.

I pulled out a greasy chicken neck, mashed it in my palm, and held it over Zou Yang's head.

That was good enough; I didn't chew it up like he would, that was just too disgusting. Only he could do something like that.

Bits of chicken meat and bones slid down Zou Yang's hair, sticking to his face, shoulders, and body.

Zou Yang's eyes were terrifyingly red, glaring at me with hatred but without the slightest hint of resistance.

I leaned close to his ear and whispered, "Do you think it's over now? You still owe me a 'kneel'..."

Upon hearing this, Zou Yang's face contorted in horror, as if bitten by a rat!

"Don't be nervous, not now," I smiled. "Our reckoning can wait."

With that, I stepped back, wiped my hands on a tissue from my pocket, crumpled it up, and tossed it onto Zou Yang's nose.

"Get lost," I said coldly.

Zou Yang hung his head and quickly left the dormitory. Li Jie and the others nodded to Ye Zhan and followed Zou Yang out.

The other students in our class stood up quietly, preparing to follow.

"Hold it," I said coldly. Everyone froze, not daring to make a sound.

In their eyes, I had become a demon.

It's funny, this morning I was still being sneered at and mocked by them.

I walked to the window, pushed it open, and let the fresh breeze brush my cheeks.

I took two deep breaths, calmed myself, then turned back to them and said, "Sorry, couldn't give you the show you wanted."

They came here to see how I would get beaten up.

Not a single one of the dozen or so students said a word. They either hung their heads or turned them away, not daring to meet my gaze.

I walked slowly to the middle of the dormitory. Ye Zhan looked at me with some concern, as if he thought I was going to do something to the other students.

"It's not like that," one student suddenly said. "We came here to try to stop Li Jie and them from beating you."

"Hahaha..." I laughed, but it was a sad laugh. "You think I'm stupid?"

The student fell silent, wisely lowering his head. But I also admired him; to come up with such a perfect lie in such a short time, he must be quite adept at getting along.

"The reason I'm not letting you leave," I said slowly, "is because you don't have to leave, because I'm leaving."

With that, I glanced at Ye Zhan, then strode out the door. Ye Zhan and the others followed me silently.

The other dormitories on the corridor peeked out, but when they saw me they quickly retreated.

When I reached Zou Yang's dormitory, I couldn't help but glance inside and saw Zou Yang, Li Jie, and the others gathered together, discussing something. Were they planning how to deal with me next? I didn't look at them again, just quickly walked out of the dormitory building.

I had just humiliated Zou Yang thoroughly, which relieved some of the pent-up frustration, but I couldn't feel happy. I couldn't pinpoint why exactly, but seeing Zou Yang lose face like that did bring some satisfaction.

A hand rested on my shoulder, and Ye Zhan smiled. "Feel better now?"

I nodded, smiling wryly. "Do you think I'm a bit petty, always seeking revenge?" The scene where I sprinkled the instant chicken necks on Zou Yang's head must have left a deep impression on him.

"Not at all," Ye Zhan said with a smile. "An eye for an eye, tit for tat. That's how it goes when you're out here!"

Out here? I was momentarily stunned. "Out here" had never been associated with me before, and suddenly linking with it felt strange.

But Ye Zhan kept on talking, praising my actions from earlier as normal. In his eyes, since I was Meng Liang's brother, I was naturally one of those who "were out here."