Finding a senior student to ask wasn’t difficult—after all, I had just added Liu Yina on WeChat.

I messaged her: “Is Houzi well-connected in the underworld?”

Liu Yina replied, “Houzi doesn’t belong to any gang, but the leader of the Nine Princes shows him a lot of respect.”

I asked, “Why?”

She responded, “Back in junior high, when Houzi had just transferred here, the Nine Princes tried to extort protection money from him.”

“And then?”

“Houzi stabbed their leader. After that, no one dared to ask him for protection money again.”

I understood now. No wonder Houzi was always alone, with no gang or brothers by his side, yet even the Nine Princes feared him.

In this world, the ruthless fear the reckless, and the reckless fear those who have nothing to lose.

Hearing Houzi’s story, I suddenly felt a deep admiration for him and had an urge to meet him right away. When I called, he was at an internet café. I told him I’d come find him, and he said, “Sure, come over. And bring me two jianbing. I haven’t had breakfast yet.”

I was speechless.

Arriving at the internet café with two steaming hot jianbing in hand, I found Houzi eating, cursing, and gaming all at once.

I watched him play with amusement. He glanced at me and said, “Why are you staring at me? I’m not into guys.”

I was just about to respond when I suddenly caught sight of Lin Ke'er walking in. Startled, I hadn’t expected to see her here. I instinctively got up, ready to greet her, but then I saw her walk to another computer and hand a bottle of water to someone.

The person sitting at the computer was a guy—tall, good-looking. I had seen him last night. It was Xing Qiu. So, Lin Ke'er was here to bring him water?

For some reason, a sour feeling welled up in my chest. She even leaned in to talk to him, their faces partially obscured by the screen, making the scene look incredibly intimate.

Jealousy gnawed at me, and I no longer felt like going over. Instead, I plopped back down into my chair.

Houzi, oblivious to all this, remained engrossed in his game.

I tried not to look, but my eyes kept drifting toward them involuntarily.

Lin Ke'er finished speaking and straightened up, preparing to leave. And then, I saw it—Xing Qiu casually slid his hand over her thigh.

My heart clenched, as if something had struck it hard, an overwhelming wave of sorrow washing over me.

But what happened next shocked me even more.

Lin Ke'er spun around and delivered a brutal kick to Xing Qiu, sending him crashing to the ground along with his chair. She pointed at him and said something—I couldn’t hear what—but then she turned and ran out of the café.

Without hesitation, I jumped up and ran after her.

She hadn’t gone far. I caught up with her in a few quick strides and grabbed her arm.

She turned around, her face streaked with tears.

“You? What are you doing here?” Lin Ke'er looked at me in surprise.

“I was at the internet café,” I said, then paused before adding, “I saw everything.”

She lowered her head, her shoulders trembling slightly.

I grasped her shoulders firmly. “Xing Qiu is scum, isn’t he?”

She remained silent for a long time before finally whispering, “It’s not the first time… It’s happened two or three times before.”

“Then why were you still bringing him water?”

“Zhang Xuan asked me to. She was busy and couldn’t step away.”

“Oh.” It dawned on me. “Zhang Xuan and Xing Qiu are together, aren’t they? Does she know Xing Qiu has been harassing you?”

Lin Ke'er shook her head. “I don’t dare tell her. She likes him… she likes him so much. I’m afraid—”

Before she could finish, I grabbed her hand and strode back toward the internet café.

“Zuo Fei, what are you doing?!” Lin Ke'er called out.

I ignored her and kept walking.

“You’re going to confront Xing Qiu? I’m not going! If things get ugly, it’ll be a mess!” She struggled desperately, drawing the attention of passersby.

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I stopped in my tracks and looked her in the eyes. “No more nonsense. From now on, listen to me.”

Startled by my sudden seriousness, Lin Ke'er fell silent, not daring to say another word. I picked up a brick from the roadside and, grabbing Lin Ke'er by the hand, entered the internet café, making my way straight to Xing Qiu’s desk. He was still engrossed in his game, unaware of our presence. I slammed the brick onto his keyboard.

Xing Qiu jumped up in surprise. "What the hell are you doing?" At the same time, several of his companions stood up beside him.

I was startled, thinking he was alone, but to my surprise, a few of his brothers were also with him. No wonder he was one of the Nine Princes.

I forced myself to appear calm, narrowing my eyes as I said, "What do you think I'm doing?"

Xing Qiu glanced over at Lin Ke'er behind me, and seemed to grasp the situation. "A guardian knight, huh?"

The café fell silent as many people turned their attention to us.

"Cut the nonsense," I continued, "There are so many people here, so I’ll give you some face and won’t mention what happened earlier. But mark my words, if you try this again, Long-Hair will be your fate!"

Xing Qiu’s face flushed with anger. "What the hell do you think you are? Who gave you the right to teach me a lesson?"

The moment he spoke, his brothers closed in, ready for a fight. I suddenly regretted throwing the brick onto his keyboard just to show off. At least if I still had it in my hands, I’d have something to defend myself with.

Seeing me silent, Xing Qiu grew bolder. "Say it then—what makes you think you can talk to me like that?"

"Because he’s my brother," Houzi’s voice cut in, slow and deliberate as he strolled over.

The moment Xing Qiu saw Houzi, his face turned pale. "Houzi, you're here too?"

Houzi gave him a quick glance. "I don’t know why Zuo Fei’s angry with you, but I know you’ve definitely done something wrong. And when you do wrong, you deserve to be punished. Now, how about you get out of this café?"

Xing Qiu’s face reddened again. "What’s your point?"

"No point," Houzi replied with a smile full of malice, "I just want you to get out of here. My brother doesn’t like you."

I stared at Houzi in surprise. His unwavering loyalty to his brothers reminded me so much of Binzi. They both had an unspoken bond, always ready to back their friends no matter what.

"Houzi, that’s enough!" Xing Qiu snapped, "Don’t think just because Big Cat gives you face that all of us, the Nine Princes, fear you!"

Houzi grinned. "Oh really? If you’re not afraid of me, then come hit me." He took a step forward.

Xing Qiu trembled with anger, but didn’t dare make a move.

"Or, maybe you want to call Big Cat to come hit me?" Houzi’s grin deepened, a cold, mocking smile spreading across his face.

Xing Qiu remained silent, his face burning with shame.

"I said it yesterday," Houzi declared, pointing at him, "None of the Nine Princes are worth anything." He turned to face the café's entrance. "Get out of here. This is Bai Ye’s café, and I don’t want to dirty his place."

Xing Qiu’s face twitched with rage, his body shaking as if on the verge of a meltdown. I feared he might do something reckless, so I kept my eyes on the brick on the keyboard, ready to grab it at a moment’s notice.

But in the end, Xing Qiu did nothing. His head hung low, and he slunk out of the café, his brothers trailing behind him.

Houzi patted me on the shoulder. "Alright, toss the brick out. Don’t bring weapons in here again."

"Got it," I said, taking the brick and heading for the door with Lin Ke’er.

Outside the café, I released Lin Ke’er’s arm and said, "If he bothers you again, just let me know."

Lin Ke’er smiled. "Should I tell you or Houzi?"

I scratched my head, embarrassed. "Either works."

She laughed. "Alright, I won’t tease you. You two are both so handsome." She shook my arm playfully. "I’ll be going now."

As she walked away, I threw the brick aside and quickly rushed back to find Houzi.

He was already back to his game, swearing nonstop. One moment, he was calling Henan people scammers, then mocking Shanghainese for being soft, Guangdong people as gluttons, Beijing folks as idiots, and Shanxi people as country bumpkins. In no time, he had insulted the entire nation.

Taking advantage of a brief pause in his tirade, I quickly said, "Houzi, thanks for today."

Houzi removed his headphones and smirked. "What about lunch?"

"It’s on me!" I declared grandly.

"What about the money I lent you yesterday?"

"No need to pay it back!" I continued in the same grandiose tone.

"Ha-ha, good brother!" Houzi grinned, clearly delighted.

I sat down at a machine and played a game. By noon, Houzi and I went out for some noodles. After eating, Houzi said he was heading back to sleep—he had been up for three days straight. I accompanied him back to the dorm.

Once we were at the dorm entrance, Houzi suddenly stopped. "I can’t take it anymore, Zuo Fei."

I was puzzled by his sudden admission, but then he sat down on the ground by the trash bin and promptly fell asleep.

Speechless, I had no choice but to carry him back to the 305 dorm. The door was unlocked, but no one was inside. I never understood why his dorm was always empty. I stripped him of his clothes and shoes and tucked him into bed before leaving.

In the afternoon, during military training, I resumed my role as a spectator, sitting beneath the large tree with my phone, enjoying the advantages of the bandage on my head.

Our class was lined up facing Lin Ke’er’s class. I occasionally glanced up from my game to check on her. Lin Ke’er would smile at me whenever the instructor wasn’t looking. I cherished these fleeting, intimate moments.

During break, Lin Ke’er came over to talk to me, and Liu Yina joined us as well. Surrounded by two beautiful girls, I basked in the admiration of those around us. Just yesterday, I was beaten to the ground; today, I was the center of attention. The speed at which my status had changed felt like I was riding a rocket.

But as they spoke, I found myself unable to join the conversation. They were talking about things from their school, and I had no input. I overheard Liu Yina say, "Ke’er, join the Twelve Roses. No one will dare bully you then."

Lin Ke’er nodded. "Zhang Xuan said the same, but I need to think about it…"

"Think about what? With us backing you, no one will mess with you," Liu Yina said, wrapping her arm around Lin Ke’er’s waist.

I was taken aback. I had heard that the Twelve Roses were a group of little gangsters, but it turned out Liu Yina was one of them, and now Lin Ke’er was considering joining?

"Ke’er, Yina!" A voice called out, and I turned to see Zhang Xuan—the beautiful girl from last night—walking toward us, a smile on her face.

"Zhang Xuan." Both Lin Ke’er and Liu Yina stood up, and the three girls held hands affectionately.

Xing Qiu walked behind them, slow and casual. I shot him a glare, but he greeted me with a bright smile, as if nothing had happened.

"Ke’er, have you made up your mind? Join the Twelve Roses?" Zhang Xuan winked playfully.

So, Zhang Xuan was part of the Twelve Roses too! Was every beautiful girl in this school a member of this group?

"Uh…" Lin Ke’er rubbed her head. "Can I think about it?"

"Join us! No one will dare bully you!" Zhang Xuan urged, her smile wide.

"Really, even I wouldn’t dare bully you!" Xing Qiu laughed heartily.

I stared at him in disbelief. How could he say that with such confidence? But he seemed so utterly unbothered.