Ye Yang returned to his dormitory at 11 PM, with his roommates still engrossed in their phones, deeply involved in the game "King of Glory". The second eldest, Guo Qiang, was simultaneously playing and verbally abusing two other players through the microphone.

Seeing Ye Yang come in, the third brother, Shen Yuchen, without looking up from his game, remarked, "Fourth bro, I heard from classmates that they saw you walking off campus shoulder to shoulder with the department beauty, Chen Meng. Got some news for us?"

"Yeah, man. You just got dumped by Zhang Xuan and now you're on to the department beauty? We single guys can only hide in our dorms and play games. It's really all about looks, isn't it?" Guo Qiang chimed in.

Ye Yang gave a wry smile, listening to his buddies' teasing. But he didn't directly respond, knowing they were just joking. There really was nothing going on between him and Chen Meng.

"Enemy Penta Kill! Defeat!" Just then, their phones blared out with the game's sound effects, indicating someone had messed up again.

Predictably, the dormitory was instantly filled with Guo Qiang's familiar rant. "Damn it! These two in the double queue are trash. One is 0-8, and the other is 1-10. Even bots play better than them! What's wrong with this damn matchmaking system?"

Zhou Bin set down his phone, conveniently ignoring Guo Qiang's outburst, and curiously asked Ye Yang, "Yangzi, how did you get to know Chen Meng? How come none of us knew about it?"

The rest of the group leaned in, all ears.

Ye Yang recounted the day's events at school.

"Nice move, bro. Looks like you've caught the department beauty!" Shen Yuchen flashed a '666' hand gesture, a popular way of praising someone in Chinese internet slang.

"I'm just regular classmates with Chen Meng, not boyfriend and girlfriend," Ye Yang clarified.

"Come on, Ye Yang, with your abilities, you should chase after Chen Meng. Maybe you two can become the campus couple," Guo Qiang teased.

"Yeah, and then she can introduce her friends to us. Maybe help some of us get dates!" Shen Yuchen joined in the jesting.

"Doesn't Yuchen have a lot of admirers? With all those love letters and heart-shaped breakfasts, it should be easy for you to get a girlfriend," Ye Yang tried to deflect.

Upon hearing Ye Yang's words, Shen Yuchen's mood seemed to plummet, as if weighed down by some unspoken woes.

Noticing this, Ye Yang didn't push further, instead engaging in light banter with the others until lights out.

...

The next morning, Ye Yang promptly settled his overdue high-interest loans and credit card debts.

Seeing his friends still asleep, Ye Yang, with a growling stomach, headed to the school cafeteria.

On the school field, a sneaky figure whispered into his phone, "Reporting to young master Li, target located. Ye Yang is heading towards the school cafeteria, likely for breakfast."

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

Ye Yang, after getting a bowl of beef noodles, sat in a corner of the cafeteria, eagerly devouring his third serving.

"Are you Ye Yang?" An icy voice disrupted the cafeteria's peace. The disdain and contempt in that voice were palpable.

Ye Yang looked up to see a young man in a black leather jacket, with a robust physique and bulging muscles. His eyes exuded menace, challenging anyone to meet his gaze.

"And who are you?" Ye Yang asked coldly, sensing that this person was here for trouble.

"I'm Li Kui, vice president of the Sanda club." The young man pointed proudly at himself, then continued with arrogance, "You beat up my cousin yesterday. I'm here to settle the score."

Ye Yang glanced at him, then turned back to his noodles, seemingly uninterested in the man's threats.

"You?" A dark scowl descended upon Li Kui's face. He clearly hadn't expected Ye Yang to dismiss him so outright. Unable to contain himself, he reached out to roughly grab Ye Yang's hair.

However, Ye Yang seemed to have anticipated this, using the chopsticks in his hand to strike accurately at Li Kui's outstretched hand.

With a crisp "snap", Li Kui's hand froze mid-air. Looking down, he found his hand trembling faintly from the impact of the chopsticks.

Looking up, he found Ye Yang slowly raising his head, his face void of any emotion, only a pair of deep, calm eyes quietly watching him.

"You're not as foolish as your cousin, Li Kui," Ye Yang said, his voice cool and indifferent. He raised the chopsticks that had just struck Li Kui's hand, tapping it lightly against his bowl of beef noodles, as if nothing had happened.

Li Kui's face darkened. He hadn't expected Ye Yang, whom he considered just a common bookworm, to be so difficult to deal with.

As he stared at Ye Yang, his finger still faintly trembling, his emotions swelled with fury and humiliation. He knew he couldn't just let Ye Yang go. Otherwise, where would he put his face as the vice president of the Sanda club?

"You..." Li Kui was about to retaliate, but Ye Yang's next move cut him off.

Ye Yang slowly put down his chopsticks and pulled out a folding chair from beneath the table. He calmly unfolded it and sat down. He looked at Li Kui, a challenging gleam in his eyes.

"Since you want to settle the score, come at me. I'm in a hurry. I don't have much time to play these boring games with you," Ye Yang said indifferently, gesturing at Li Kui in a provoking manner.

Li Kui was taken aback, his gaze fixed on Ye Yang's hand. It had been a long time since he last encountered such blatant provocation, especially from someone who seemed insignificant.

He inhaled deeply, his gaze fierce as he raised his head.

Suddenly, Li Kui lunged at Ye Yang, his fist aimed at Ye Yang's face.

However, Ye Yang was ready. Seated firmly in his chair, he blocked Li Kui's punch with one hand.

A silence fell over the cafeteria. Everyone watched them, their mouths agape.

They hadn't expected the normally low-key Ye Yang to have such extraordinary strength, blocking Li Kui's full-force punch with a single hand.

Li Kui was stunned. He hadn't expected his punch to be blocked so effortlessly.

His strong sense of pride was severely bruised. His eyes widened in anger and humiliation as he stared at Ye Yang.

However, Ye Yang remained expressionless. He stood up and walked towards Li Kui, his eyes playful.

"You still want to fight?" Ye Yang asked, his tone cold. His eyes were sharp and cold, like a wolf. He gave a mocking smile at Li Kui.

His laughter echoed in the cafeteria, making Li Kui's angry face even darker. Unable to accept the provocation, he glared at Ye Yang, a strong intent to kill revealing itself in his gaze.

However, Ye Yang wasn't scared. He merely chuckled, slowly raising his own fist, like a predator ready to hunt, eyeing its prey.

With a dull thud, Li Kui's body slammed into the floor like a falling tree.

The cafeteria fell silent. Only the sound of Li Kui's labored breathing echoed. Everyone watched in shock, unable to believe their eyes.

Ye Yang, an ordinary medical student, had defeated the vice president of the Sanda club in just a few minutes. This was something they had never imagined.

Ye Yang looked at Li Kui lying on the floor, a cold smile on his lips. He returned to his seat and continued to eat his hot noodles.

The atmosphere in the cafeteria instantly quieted, everyone looking at Ye Yang eating with awe.

Li Kui still lay on the floor, his face pale, disbelief written all over his face.

He raised his hand, trying to touch his chest. The pain there made it almost impossible for him to breathe.

After a while, he stood up slowly, wincing at the pain. He limped towards the cafeteria exit.