A Turning Point

Chen Ziwu, on the other hand, gave a scoff and came over to stand beside Jimo. "That ungrateful bastard. You saved him, and he still treated you like that."

Jimo ignored him. For no reason, a surge of irritation rose in him, along with a sense of helplessness at being manipulated.

When had things between him and Ke Yueyi become like this?

Had it started at the riding grounds, when Ke Yueyi had refused to help him? Jimo had readily accepted that, and he had won the competition on his own.

Or had it started in the cafeteria, when Ke Yueyi had deliberately watched with indifference as he was bullied, then happily come over to play the savior?

Those incidents had also brought Jimo to his senses. He knew the cruel things F4 did to the male lead early in the original novel, and the fact that Ke Yueyi treated him a little differently from everyone else couldn't change that.

Ke Yueyi was like an observer, enjoying all the reactions of Jimo, the bird that had fallen into the water.

Just because he found it amusing.

So Jimo had done his best to stay away. His task only required him to keep F4 away from the male lead; he really had no need to have too much contact with F4.

Keeping up appearances and completing the task smoothly was the best solution.

Ke Yueyi must have noticed Jimo distancing himself. Otherwise, he wouldn't have seemed as indifferent as ever on the surface while actually acting as though he were holding in his anger, making things difficult for Jimo again and again, insisting that Jimo be the one to swallow his pride and seek him out.

For all Jimo knew, today's scene had been planned too, deliberately staged for him to stumble upon.

And the person beside him was suspicious too.

Jimo turned to look coldly at the person who had popped up earlier, his tone less than pleasant. "Are you working with them?"

Chen Ziwu was baffled, and Jimo's sudden question made him angry. He knitted his brows. "What?"

"What's wrong with you? Are you blind? I've been with you this whole time."

He had even stood up for Jimo just now. Bah, he'd really brought that on himself. There definitely wouldn't be a next time.

Seeing the suspicion in Jimo's eyes, Chen Ziwu sneered. "Now I suddenly want to fight you. Come on."

His reaction made Jimo believe him a little. He looked away. "No."

With that, he turned and headed toward the dormitory building.

Suddenly, a gust of wind swept past, and Jimo raised his hand to block it.

Chen Ziwu said viciously, "If you don't fight, don't even think about leaving."

He shoved Jimo hard, sending him stumbling back several steps, nearly falling to the ground.

He wasn't as strong as Chen Ziwu, so meeting force with force put him at a disadvantage, and his stamina was quickly exhausted. But a shoulder throw was no good either. His lower back still hadn't fully recovered, and using it again had made it worse.

Jimo dodged and retreated, thinking quickly. Chen Ziwu was angry, and his punches relied entirely on brute force. Jimo wore him down, using technique with every move.

By the time Jimo kicked Chen Ziwu to the ground, Chen Ziwu was panting. He clutched his stomach and actually laughed.

"Not bad. You still don't hold back at all."

Jimo picked up his books. "Calmed down?"

Chen Ziwu scoffed. "I've been calm the whole time."

"This is too rough a way to compete. Next time, come to my boxing gym with me. We'll put on protective gear and have a proper match."

Jimo paused and looked at him in surprise. "A boxing gym? Yours?"

"Yeah. I've trained there since I was little. I know the techniques of every coach there." Thinking Jimo was interested, Chen Ziwu grew even more eager to explain. "Our gym has hired some professional fighters to train there. You might not be able to beat them."

After listening, Jimo held out a hand to him. "Chen Ziwu, are you interested in investing in a fitness center?"

Chen Ziwu stared at the hand in front of him, somewhat incredulous. "So you knew my name."

He had thought Jimo didn't care about anything.

Jimo pulled him up and halfheartedly brushed the dead grass off him twice. "Yeah, I knew it before."

"So, are you interested? I have a complete business plan, and it's already been validated through an MVP, a minimum viable product. Trust me, I guarantee you won't lose money. We'll need some initial funding, but I predict we can start making a profit after a year. We could collaborate with your boxing gym under both our brands then..."

Jimo enthusiastically pitched his project, his indifferent eyes becoming remarkably bright. Chen Ziwu hadn't had time to adjust to the change in Jimo's attitude. He just stared at Jimo's mouth as it opened and closed, without really listening to what he was saying.

He wondered, Were all the things Jimo had said before put together as long as what he'd just said?

"So, what do you think? Want to be my investor?"

Jimo had talked until his mouth was dry, but the man just looked at him without saying a word, as though he'd been struck dumb.

Jimo frowned. He had only meant to give it a try in the first place. "Forget it. If you're not interested, I'll find someone else..."

Hearing that, Chen Ziwu immediately grabbed him. "Who said I wasn't interested?" He clicked his tongue as if impatient. "I say, can't you be a little more patient with me?"

"Is this how you treat your investor?"

Then Chen Ziwu saw Jimo's eyes light up little by little, and Jimo finally gave him a genuine smile.

"Deal!"