As everyone congratulated Lin Feilong, his gaze swept over to Shi Feng in the corner. A trace of displeasure showed in his eyes.
He was the pride of the class and a future star, yet this underachiever hadn't even come over to flatter him.
After everyone had finished singing his praises, Lin Feilong finally let them return to their seats.
"Thank you all for encouraging me. Please quiet down. I came here today to talk about something," Lin Feilong said.
Hearing Lin Feilong say this, everyone listened attentively. Only Shi Feng wasn't interested in what he had to say.
But after hearing Lin Feilong's words, even Shi Feng had to pay attention.
"It's about the school's recommendation slots," Lin Feilong said evenly. "As you all know, I'm devoted to fighting, and my grades aren't very good. As a result, I have a problem getting a recommendation. So I'd like to ask you to give up a slot. The school has agreed to this, so I wanted to discuss it with everyone."
"What's the big deal, Brother Long? You've brought glory to our class. It's only one recommendation slot. Just say the word, and someone in the class will surely give theirs up," a brown-nosing boy said with a grin.
Although the entire class nodded in agreement, not a single person stepped forward to give up their recommendation slot.
After all, finding a job was difficult, and big companies cared more about having a recommendation than about your degree. If they gave theirs to someone else, what would happen to them in the future?
As for those who had no chance of getting a recommendation slot in the first place, they had no skin in the game. They kept egging everyone else on, acting like impassioned firebrands.
When Lin Feilong saw that no one was volunteering, his expression darkened.
"Since everyone's so enthusiastic, it wouldn't be fair for me to choose. How about this: let's vote by a show of hands," Lin Feilong said with a smile.
"That's a great idea. Brother Long really knows what he's doing."
"Then let's count the votes."
The firebrands all stood up, grinning as if they were enjoying everyone else's misfortune.
Only then did Shi Feng, who had been sitting in the corner, finally understand.
Damn, so this guy was the one who stole his recommendation slot.
Anger surged in Shi Feng's heart. He'd been such an idiot in his past life, even working with Lin Feilong. But he wouldn't make the same mistake this time. If Lin Feilong wanted to pick a fight with him, he'd better be ready for the consequences.
Perhaps because history was repeating itself, the class vote went exactly as it had before. Shi Feng was directly pushed onto the "throne."
"Shi Feng, you're so lucky. I'm almost jealous."
"Now that you've got Brother Long looking out for you, Shi Feng, you should thank us."
The whole class congratulated Shi Feng, as if he'd just won five million yuan in the lottery.
"Shi Feng, thank you so much. I'll treat you to a good drink at the Maple Leaf Bar after school today," Lin Feilong said with a fake smile. He didn't take Shi Feng seriously at all; there wasn't a hint of gratitude in his voice, only contempt. Then he turned to the others. "Of course, I'll treat all of you, too. Let's have a good time today."
"Wait," Shi Feng suddenly said.
Everyone in the class turned to look at him. If Shi Feng hadn't spoken up, they probably would have forgotten he was there.
"May I ask what you want, Shi Feng?" Lin Feilong asked with a pleasant smile.
"I never agreed to this. What are you so happy about?" Shi Feng shot Lin Feilong a look. "If anyone wants to give you their recommendation slot, let them do it. I won't give mine up. If there's nothing else, I'm leaving."
The classroom fell silent. No one had expected Shi Feng, who was often bullied by students from other classes, to defy Lin Feilong. It was completely out of character. Wasn't he afraid Lin Feilong would deal with him?
Lin Feilong was stunned, but not by Shi Feng's defiance. He was stunned by how stupid Shi Feng was.
Did he really think refusing would let him keep his recommendation slot?
The whole class had voted. Shi Feng's refusal wouldn't make any difference. The school would still give him the recommendation slot. He knew the result wouldn't change, yet he'd stupidly chosen to oppose Lin Feilong.
Was Shi Feng an idiot, or was he just missing a few screws?
Just as Lin Feilong was about to do something, an impatient voice came from outside the door.
"Xiaolong, are you done yet? Brother Zhang doesn't like waiting."
A tall, burly young man with dyed blond hair walked in. Behind him was a woman in a short, sexy dress, her figure drawing envious glances from the boys in the class.
Shi Feng glanced over and realized she was an "old acquaintance."
The tall, burly blond was Flame Tiger, whose real name was Zhou Yuhu. He was also a senior, and a skilled fighter who had taken third place in this year's School Fighting Tournament. Shi Feng knew the alluring woman beside Zhou Yuhu, too. Her name was Qin Shuyu, and she had once been his classmate—the class beauty back in high school.
He really had been blind back then. When he was young and foolish, he'd fallen for the seductive Qin Shuyu and confessed his feelings to her. She'd naturally rejected him. After they started university, Qin Shuyu became Zhou Yuhu's girlfriend. She'd even told Zhou Yuhu about Shi Feng's confession, which had annoyed him. As a result, Shi Feng had spent all four years of university being given a hard time by people from other classes. Later, at Shadow Studio, Zhou Yuhu had saddled him with all sorts of tedious work, slowing his progress in God's Domain during its early stages.
"Brother Tiger, what brings you here? I'll be right over once I've taken care of this," Lin Feilong said, greeting him with a smile and showing great respect.
"How much longer? I don't have all day." Zhou Yuhu frowned impatiently. Because of that Ye Feng, he'd been inexplicably stripped of his team leader position today. By now, he'd only managed to reach level two, and then Brother Zhang had given him an earful. He was in a foul mood.
"Just two or three minutes," Lin Feilong said with a smile, thinking that teaching Shi Feng a lesson would be no big deal.
"Fine. Hurry up," Zhou Yuhu said.
Just then, Qin Shuyu happened to notice Shi Feng, and her expression immediately soured. She'd never liked him. He had no money and no ability, and gave her no sense of security or strength. Compared with Zhou Yuhu, he was a thousand times worse. He had no self-awareness at all, yet he'd dared to confess to her. It was an insult—and he'd given the other girls plenty to laugh about, too.
Seeing the disgust on Qin Shuyu's face as she looked at Shi Feng, Zhou Yuhu hooked a rough right hand under her chin and teased her. "Sweetheart, I'll teach him a lesson now, so he won't dare show his face in front of you again."
Qin Shuyu smiled faintly and nodded without trying to stop him.
"Hey, you. Get over here." Zhou Yuhu pointed at Shi Feng and beckoned with a finger, shouting.
Seeing Zhou Yuhu's imposing presence, everyone was intimidated. Zhou Yuhu had placed third in the School Fighting Tournament—far stronger than Lin Feilong, who'd placed ninth. One punch from him could easily land someone in the hospital for half a month.
Lin Feilong understood the situation perfectly. Zhou Yuhu was unhappy with Shi Feng and wanted to beat him up. Lin Feilong had wanted to teach Shi Feng a lesson, too, and show the whole class what he was capable of. If he dealt with Shi Feng now, he'd help himself while earning Zhou Yuhu's favor—a win-win. So he stepped forward and volunteered. "Brother Tiger, there's no need for you to get your hands dirty. I was going to teach this kid how to behave anyway. Give me thirty seconds."
"So this is what you meant, Xiaolong," Zhou Yuhu said, eyeing Shi Feng contemptuously. He licked his lips and sneered. "I'll handle it. I could use a chance to loosen up."
With a cold smile, Zhou Yuhu strode toward Shi Feng.