Chapter 50

Reading books together—this time, it was finally Yuan Yuyuan's turn to invite her. She felt a slight sense of accomplishment in her heart. "Given that it's rare for Yuyuan-kun to take the initiative to invite me, I suppose I can forgive you." "This..." These words made Yuan Yuyuan feel an inexplicable sense of guilt. He looked into the distance, "Because I've been a bit busy lately, and being with Hiyori makes me feel very relaxed..." Even he didn't believe what he was saying... Shiina Hiyori, witnessing the change in his expression, also sensed that things weren't as simple as they seemed: "Could it be that Yuyuan-kun actually came to find me because there's something going on?"

"This..." After a two-second internal struggle, Yuan Yuyuan decided to come clean. Through these days of interaction, he had learned that Shiina was simply too clever; getting caught in a lie would be counterproductive. "Alright, I do have something to say." "I see..." Shiina nodded, "But it's fine. I'm happy to be able to help Yuyuan-kun." This response made even Yuan Yuyuan, who considered himself thick-skinned, nearly blush. Compared to Shiina, he felt like a complete scoundrel, but his professional composure prevented any abnormality from showing on his face.

"Hiyori, you know that next Tuesday I'll be presiding over the deliberation regarding the incident in Class C and Class D, so I did a little investigating. I didn't know until I checked, but it's shocking—Ryuen seems to have left behind some loose ends that could lead to the expulsion of the three people involved. So, I want to talk to him." "What? Expulsion? You mean Ishizaki-kun and the others? That absolutely cannot happen!" Shiina Hiyori stood up in surprise, then realized she was in the library. After apologizing to those looking over, she continued, "I'm sorry, I was too rude." "It's fine, it's understandable to react that way upon hearing such news." Yuan Yuyuan hadn't known about Shiina's situation in her class beforehand, assuming she was a loner, but he hadn't expected her reaction to be so intense. Could she be friends with those people? If he had known, he wouldn't have tried to contact Ryuen through her! But as things stood, Yuan Yuyuan had no choice but to follow through, "So I intend to discuss... that matter with Ryuen."

"I will do my best to persuade Ryuen-kun. It would be terrible if Class D got their hands on this." Because someone's actions had already been spread in the form of complaints by the impoverished Class D, Shiina Hiyori knew exactly what Yuan Yuyuan's goal was. But Shiina wasn't someone who lacked perspective; she didn't actually mind such things. If Yuan Yuyuan suffered a loss on her account, she would feel guilty instead. "So, although it might be difficult, could I ask Yuyuan-kun to trade only with us? Of course, we are willing to pay a higher price. Please." "Of course. When I do business, I prioritize integrity above all else. I would never do something like that!" Yuan Yuyuan was actually hoping for this; Class D was already broke, and if he squeezed them any further, he might not get a single cent. Even though the debt would carry over, he couldn't afford for Class D to just give up and stay at zero for three years!

What surprised Yuan Yuyuan most was what Shiina said. Between the lines, it was clear she had great confidence in persuading Ryuen and could even make the decision to increase the price on her own. In this light, her influence in Class C was likely significant—she might even be the second-in-command... Why had no one ever told him that! He had always thought Shiina was just a background character in her class! Moreover, her mind was sharp enough to even prevent him from selling the information to others. If Class B hadn't been in such an awkward position, he would have done exactly that in the first month. It seemed he needed to re-evaluate this friend of his. A reclusive strategist under a simple-minded delinquent leader? The leadership of two opposing classes had actually become friends in private...

"Thank you so much. Then, without further ado, I'll go contact Ryuen-kun now. Please excuse me." Shiina Hiyori left the library. Yuan Yuyuan nodded with a smile, sitting in his seat with complete confidence. No matter what happened, he wouldn't lose. If Ryuen accepted, he would have points coming his way; if Ryuen refused, it would be even more interesting. It would prove that this thug leader of Class C had absolutely no foresight. Not to mention that his class points would be wiped out once the incident came to light, even if he wanted to save his personal points to buy his way up, it would be useless. Under Comrade Ryuen's brilliant guidance, Class C hadn't even lasted a semester before losing all their class points and having three people expelled, including his own loyal followers. For someone like Ryuen, who lacked popular support, this would be fatal. The sacrifice of Comrade Ishizaki would only make other followers feel a sense of shared grief, so it wouldn't be a total waste. It was a pity that with Shiina around, even if Ryuen were an idiot, he would be persuaded. This made Yuan Yuyuan feel very depressed—why was a talent like Shiina in Class C? If she were in Class B, he didn't know how much trouble he could have saved.

"I'm back." While Yuan Yuyuan was feeling regretful, Shiina Hiyori walked back after finishing her call. "Ryuen-kun said he wants to see it first. If there are no problems, the trade can go ahead." "Sure, I'll send it to you." "Okay." After receiving the video, Shiina Hiyori sent it to Ryuen and then watched it herself. The closer she looked, the more her eyebrows furrowed. Shiina Hiyori rubbed her temples. Contrary to Yuan Yuyuan's guess, she had never interfered in Class C's affairs. She hadn't expected Ryuen to leave such an obvious flaw; this was a case of intentional framing, and Ryuen would also be saddled with a reputation for school violence. Although this was tacitly accepted by everyone in Class C and other classes knew of Ryuen's temperament, if this were brought to light, Ryuen's actions were clearly a violation of the rules. "Ryuen-kun is really too careless." Shiina pursed her lips and looked at Yuan Yuyuan, "It's a good thing you were there, otherwise our class would have really suffered this time." "Don't mention it, we're friends, aren't we? It's only natural for friends to help each other."

At that moment, Ryuen, who was at the Karaoke parlor, had also finished watching the video. He hadn't expected there to be a camera in the private room—what an unscrupulous business—but he couldn't worry about that now. The urgent matter was how to get the others to hand over their points; expulsion was no joke. But the root of this matter was his own mistake, and he had already guessed how much resentment the others would have. The more Ryuen thought about it, the angrier he became. He slammed his fist on the table and said, "Just you wait, you're next." Unlike the enraged Ryuen, Shiina Hiyori was still laughing and chatting with Yuan Yuyuan in the library, with no sense that a grudge had already been formed between their two classes. "It's a message from Ryuen-kun. He agreed, saying he'll pay the 500,000 points in one lump sum..." Shiina Hiyori double-checked to make sure she hadn't misread it. She was stunned. If three people were expelled, that would be 900 class points. Even if Class C only had 600 points now, no one knew if negative points were possible. Wasn't Ryuen being reckless? "Is that so? Your class's Ryuen-kun has quite a sense of humor. Could you let me have a word with him on the phone?" "Of course, please, go ahead and use it."

"Yuan Yuyuan? What do you want with me?" Ryuen wasn't surprised by this, not even bothering to hide that he knew Yuan Yuyuan would be calling him using Shiina's phone. If Yuan Yuyuan had actually agreed to his conditions, that would have been the strange part; in that case, Yuan Yuyuan probably wouldn't have had the intelligence to get a hold of his leverage... "Enough, Ryuen." Seeing him put on an act...