Due to some well-known reasons, Shen Xingkong and Li Yingni, despite being in the same class, had no interaction with each other. In the year and a half of university, they hadn’t spoken a single word to each other. Occasionally, they would pass by each other in the classroom, but their relationship was no different from that of strangers.

Thus, the hopeful glimmer in Li Yingni’s eyes quickly faded. She didn’t believe Shen Xingkong would help her. Who was Wang Lei? Anyone who crossed him would be lucky to escape without severe consequences.

"Hey, isn’t this our dear class monitor? Could you please step aside? You’re blocking me from taking a leak," Shen Xingkong suddenly said loudly to Li Yingni, as if he hadn’t noticed the tense situation.

"Huh?" Li Yingni was momentarily stunned. She saw the annoying smile on Shen Xingkong’s face, as if he was mocking her, but in reality, he was giving her a chance to escape.

Without caring about her surprise, Li Yingni braced herself against a tree and forced herself to stand up. She didn’t dare look at Wang Lei, biting her lip as she lowered her head and started walking out of the grove.

"Stop!" Wang Lei suddenly stepped in front of Li Yingni, his face as cold as ice. "Class monitor, you’re not doing the right thing. What’s wrong with me, Wang Lei? Don’t act ungrateful when I’m giving you face."

"You… cough, you… step aside…" Li Yingni’s voice was as soft as a mosquito’s buzz.

"And what if I don’t?" Wang Lei, clearly intending to bully her, refused to let her go.

Li Yingni bit her lip so hard it nearly bled, holding back her tears. This was a secluded area, not like school. If she angered Wang Lei here, there was no telling what he might do. Most importantly, she knew she couldn’t resist whatever he decided to do.

"Class monitor!" Shen Xingkong’s playful voice rang out again as he appeared behind Li Yingni. "If you don’t leave, I’m going to pee my pants." As he spoke, he casually gestured behind him.

Li Yingni was quick on the uptake. Without saying a word, she turned and walked in the direction Shen Xingkong had indicated, heading out of the grove from a different angle.

Wang Lei’s eyes flashed with anger as he started to chase after Li Yingni, reaching out to grab her hand.

"Wang Lei, let’s go take a piss together!" Shen Xingkong blocked Wang Lei’s hand.

"Screw you, you’re asking for it!"

Wang Lei finally lost his temper, his face contorting with rage as he swung a punch at Shen Xingkong’s left cheek.

Shen Xingkong had anticipated Wang Lei’s move, knowing that someone like him wouldn’t back down without throwing a punch. The moment Wang Lei’s fist swung forward, Shen Xingkong quickly stepped back, letting Wang Lei’s fist hit nothing but air.

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"Wang Lei, are you really going to make this hard for me?" Shen Xingkong’s expression turned serious; he didn’t want trouble, but he wasn’t afraid of it either.

"Damn it, you little punk, I’m going to kill you today." Wang Lei was determined to make Shen Xingkong pay. No one had ever dared interfere with his business before.

In that split second, Shen Xingkong quickly assessed the situation.

He could run. Whether or not he could outrun Wang Lei was uncertain, but at least running gave him a chance. However, Li Yingni was still nearby, and she wasn’t moving fast. If he left her behind, and Wang Lei caught her again... Shen Xingkong didn’t want to imagine the consequences.

Besides, Wang Lei’s lackeys were nowhere in sight, probably held up by Chang Le.

Gritting his teeth, Shen Xingkong decided to fight. It was a one-on-one brawl, and they were both men—why should he be afraid? Even if Wang Lei could beat him, Shen Xingkong wasn’t going to let him off easy. He was determined to leave a mark on Wang Lei, even if it meant biting a chunk out of him.

"You bastard, bring it on!"

Shen Xingkong let out a roar, his face showing fearless determination as he lunged at Wang Lei, locking them both in a fierce struggle.

Wang Lei was taken aback. He hadn’t expected Shen Xingkong to fight back. In his mind, Shen Xingkong should have been easily overpowered or should have fled in fear.

Wang Lei’s face twisted with murderous intent. He felt that Shen Xingkong was asking for death.

As Shen Xingkong’s fist came close, Wang Lei suddenly caught his hand and pulled him forward. Shen Xingkong lost his balance and stumbled into Wang Lei, who then delivered a powerful kick to his abdomen.

“Thud!”

“Ugh…” The kick was so brutal that it nearly knocked the wind out of Shen Xingkong. He collapsed to the ground, clutching his stomach in agony, his face turning ashen.

It wasn’t that Shen Xingkong was weak; he and Wang Lei were simply from two different worlds. If they were competing in other areas, like academics—though Shen Xingkong wasn’t the best student—he was still far better than Wang Lei. But when it came to fighting, Shen Xingkong was no match for someone like Wang Lei, who had been brawling since childhood. Courage wasn’t enough to bridge the gap in strength.

“Ha ha ha, you little bastard, do you surrender?” Wang Lei laughed maniacally, pressing his foot on Shen Xingkong’s head.

"I surrender… I surrender… I surrender to… your grandma…" Despite the excruciating pain, Shen Xingkong gritted his teeth, refusing to give Wang Lei the satisfaction.

“You motherf—” Wang Lei nearly exploded with rage, lifting his foot to stomp down hard.

If that stomp landed, Shen Xingkong’s head might have been smashed like a watermelon, at the very least causing a concussion.

But just as Wang Lei’s foot was about to come down, a figure suddenly appeared behind him. Moving with lightning speed, the figure rammed into Wang Lei, sending him flying through the air. Wang Lei crashed to the ground, face-first into the dirt.

The person who had tackled Wang Lei also fell but quickly got up and pulled Shen Xingkong to his feet.

“Run, Old Shen.”

"Old Chang, it's you..." Recognizing his savior as Chang Le, Shen Xingkong didn’t hesitate. Ignoring the pain, he followed Chang Le and fled the grove.

At that moment, Wang Lei’s lackeys appeared, having chased Chang Le to the scene. Seeing their boss lying on the ground like a beaten dog, they quickly helped him up.

“Boss, are you okay?”

“Okay my ass! You’re all a bunch of idiots. Go after them, beat them to death, and if something happens, I’ll take the blame.” Wang Lei was beside himself with rage, screaming orders at his lackeys as he pointed at Shen Xingkong and Chang Le’s retreating figures.

And so, on a picturesque hillside, an intense chase began.

Chang Le and Shen Xingkong ran ahead, with Wang Lei’s lackeys in hot pursuit. Both sides ran faster than they had ever run before, quickly making their way down the hill.

As they reached the bottom, Shen Xingkong spotted two women approaching them at a leisurely pace. One of them was none other than the recently rescued Li Yingni, and the other was... Teacher Gao.