Su Mo lowered his head and looked at him.
He said nothing.
Zhang Fugui grew even more panicked. The rate at which he kowtowed doubled. "Thud-thud-thud-thud-thud—"
The other guards watched their fellow in this sorry state. They wanted to laugh but didn't dare, holding it in until their faces turned purple.
Zhang Guiren smiled ingratiatingly as well, bowing and scraping toward Su Mo. "Mr. Su Mo, about this... this wretch—I've already taught him a lesson."
As he spoke, he kicked Zhang Fugui again. "Hurry up and get lost! Don't stand here and offend Mr. Su Mo!"
Zhang Fugui was granted a reprieve. He scrambled to his feet and was about to run.
"Hold it."
A voice spoke, cool and calm.
It wasn't Su Mo.
It was Su Yuntao.
He stood where he was, his hands clasped behind his back. His Spirit Hall official's uniform shimmered faintly in the sunlight, and he looked utterly composed, as if he'd only made a casual remark.
Zhang Guiren's smile froze on his face.
Zhang Fugui's leg froze in midair, unsure whether to put it down or keep running.
Su Yuntao's gaze swept over Zhang Fugui, then settled on Zhang Guiren. His tone was as calm as if he were commenting on the nice weather.
"Manager Zhang, I believe I just heard your cousin say that you pulled some strings and called in favors to get him this job as a gate guard at the academy?"
The smile on Zhang Guiren's face froze completely.
"And that he was supposed to give you half of what he skimmed?"
Zhang Guiren's smile shattered.
It fell to the ground with a clatter, impossible to pick up.
Su Yuntao continued, still calm. "The Spirit Hall and your esteemed academy have always been on good terms. Normally, I wouldn't interfere. But since I happened to witness this today, pretending I saw nothing would make the people of the Spirit Hall seem to have no regard for the rules."
He paused, then smiled faintly.
"How about this? Another day, I'll personally bring people to your academy for an inspection. We'll see whether there are any other cases of 'abusing authority for personal gain' or 'preying on students.' Manager Zhang, what do you think?"
Zhang Guiren's face went completely pale.
An inspection?
An inspection by the Spirit Hall?
Wouldn't they dig up every rotten thing he'd done over the years?
He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but his throat felt stuffed with cotton. He couldn't force out a single word.
Zhang Ergou watched his cousin's expression from the side, and his heart sank.
Something was wrong.
That look on his cousin's face didn't mean he was going to protect him. It meant—
"Cousin!" Zhang Ergou rushed over and grabbed Zhang Guiren's sleeve, his voice already breaking into a wail. "You have to save me! I'm your own cousin! Say something!"
Zhang Guiren abruptly flung his hand away. Forcing an ugly smile, he turned to Su Yuntao. "M-Master Su, you've got it wrong! I have nothing to do with this man! He's just a temp. I'm meeting him for the first time today! I had no idea about anything he did!"
Zhang Ergou froze.
He stared wide-eyed at Zhang Guiren, unable to believe what he'd just heard.
"Cousin... what did you say?"
Zhang Guiren didn't look at him. He kept smiling obsequiously at Su Yuntao. "Don't worry, I'll fire him right away! We absolutely won't tolerate a blight like this at our academy!"
Zhang Fugui watched his cousin behave this way, and the last thread of restraint in his mind finally snapped.
"Cousin! Didn't you say you pulled strings to get me this job?!" He panicked and lunged over to grab Zhang Guiren's sleeve. "You also said you'd take half of what I skimmed! I've given you fifteen Silver Spirit Coins this month! You said you'd make me a team leader once I'd saved up enough!"
Zhang Guiren's face went from pale to green, then from green to purple.
"Shut up!"
"Why should I shut up?!" Zhang Fugui threw caution to the wind. "What's the point of pretending now?! If you won't save me, I'll spill everything you've done! Those shady dealings with the supply purchases—you think I don't know? How many kickbacks have you taken? You—"
"I said shut up!"
Zhang Guiren slapped him, and the two of them immediately fell into a brawl.
One cursed, "You ungrateful bastard!" while the other yelled, "You rotten-hearted bastard!"
The other guards exchanged glances, unsure whether to break up the fight or run for it.
Su Mo watched the scene, the corner of his mouth twitching slightly.
Dog-eat-dog.
This was really dog-eat-dog.
Nothing but a mouthful of fur.
Su Yuntao didn't even glance at them. He simply turned to Su Mo, his manner once again that of a respectful junior.
"Sir, please."
Su Mo nodded.
He looked down at himself—his two-meter frame, bulging with muscle. His clothes had long since burst apart, leaving only a few scraps of fabric hanging from him.
"Um..." For once, he felt a little awkward. "Could you find me some clothes first?"
Su Yuntao froze for a moment, then laughed. "I was careless. Manager Zhang—"
He called out. Zhang Guiren and Zhang Fugui, still wrestling, both froze with their hands clutching each other's hair and looked over.
"Go get a suitable set of clothes."
Zhang Guiren was granted a reprieve. He sprinted away, moving faster than any middle-aged man had a right to.
Before long, he came running back with a large robe. He handed it to Su Mo with both hands, bowing and scraping. "Mr. Su Mo, this is the largest spare uniform the academy has. Try it on and see if it fits."
Su Mo took it and threw it on.
It was all right. It covered him, barely.
He rolled his shoulders and turned to look behind him.
Old Jack stood there with his mouth open wide enough to fit an egg. He looked as if he'd been struck with a pressure-point technique.
Tang San stood beside him, his eyes shining like two little lanterns. His face practically said, "My master really is amazing."
Big Black Ox ambled over and looked up at Su Mo.
"Moo." (Not bad. You didn't disgrace the ox.)
Su Mo: "..."
You're an ox. What face do you have to disgrace?
He took a deep breath and walked toward the academy gates.
As he passed Zhang Fugui, the man curled into a ball, wishing he could bury himself in the dirt.
Su Mo paused.
He looked down at the fellow who'd been so high and mighty just moments ago, calling him a "pauper" and insulting his mother as a "useless woman."
Zhang Fugui trembled all over, not daring to raise his head.
Su Mo suddenly smiled.
It wasn't a cold smile or a mocking one. It was the smile of someone who'd just understood.
He remembered that summer in his previous life, when he couldn't even get a job as a security guard.
That world where connections got you ahead, while anyone without a powerful background was cast aside.
Now this world was the same.
But the difference was—
Now he was the one with connections.
Even if those connections only existed in Su Yuntao's imagination.
Who cared?
As long as it felt good.
Su Mo looked away and stepped over the threshold.
Tang San and Big Black Ox followed behind him.
Old Jack stood stunned for a while, then hurriedly drove the carriage inside.
Su Yuntao took one last look at Zhang Guiren and Zhang Fugui, still locked in their brawl, shook his head, and followed them.
The sun shone brightly.
The gates of Notting Academy slowly closed behind them.
From within came Tang San's excited voice. "Master! You were so cool just now! You sent that guard flying with one punch, and Master Su even bowed to you! You have no idea how excited I was..."
Su Mo: "Shut up."
Tang San: "Yes, Master. Are you thirsty? I brought water. Are you hungry? I brought food. Master, do you..."
Su Mo: "..."
He suddenly found himself missing that treacherous, cunning Tang San who was always saying, "You already have a way to die."
At least that Tang San didn't talk much.
Big Black Ox let out a leisurely "moo" beside him.
(You'll get used to it.)
Su Mo sighed.
He looked up at the sky over Notting Academy.
Blue skies, white clouds, bright sunshine.
Then he looked around at the teaching buildings, the sports field, and the students coming and going.
The plot might be cliché.
But—
Damn, it felt good!
"Can someone tell me what happened here?"
"This isn't how I remember it from my previous life!"
By the time Yu Xiaogang rushed to the academy gates, the fight had been over for quite a while.
He stood at the entrance, looked at the scene before him, and fell into thought.