Three Beauties Gather in Lin Chen's Room

That afternoon, when the news spread, Lin Chen's dormitory welcomed three waves of visitors.

The first to arrive was Dugu Yan.

She had practically run there, rushing from the classroom to Lin Chen's dormitory building. Along the way, she knocked over several passersby and did not even have time to apologize.

She ran to Lin Chen's door and stopped, gasping for breath. She raised her hand to knock, but it trembled in midair and would not come down.

She was afraid. Afraid that when the door opened, she would see Lin Chen covered in blood; afraid that she would see him lying weakly in bed; afraid that she would see anything she could not bear to accept.

She took a deep breath and finally knocked on the door.

The door opened.

Lin Chen stood in the doorway in a loose white shirt, holding a cup of hot tea. His expression was calm and unhurried, and he was completely unscathed—not even a scratch on him.

When he saw Dugu Yan standing there, gasping and red-eyed, he paused in surprise. "Sister Yan? Why are you here?"

Dugu Yan looked at him—looked at him standing before her completely unharmed, still wearing that same serene expression—and the heart that had been hanging in her chest all day finally settled.

Then her tears fell.

She stepped forward and threw herself into Lin Chen's arms, wrapping both arms tightly around his waist. Burying her face in his shoulder, she began to sob loudly.

Lin Chen was caught completely off guard by her sudden action, and the tea in his hand nearly spilled.

He hurriedly set the cup on the nearby table. After hesitating for a moment, he still reached out and gently patted her back. "All right, all right. I'm fine. Stop crying."

Dugu Yan said nothing. She only held him and cried, trembling all over.

She had never known she could be so afraid of losing someone.

For fourteen years, she had always believed there was nothing in this world truly worth caring about.

But today, when she heard that Lin Chen had been attacked, she experienced fear for the first time—a bone-deep terror that made her entire body turn cold.

"I'm sorry..." she said through her tears, her voice indistinct. "It's all my fault... If it weren't for me... Yu Tianheng wouldn't have..."

"It has nothing to do with you." Lin Chen interrupted her, his voice gentle but firm. "Yu Tianheng chose to do something like this himself. You did nothing wrong, and you don't need to apologize for his stupidity."

Dugu Yan said nothing, only hugged him even tighter.

Feeling her body still trembling faintly, Lin Chen did not say anything else. He simply stood there and let her hold him, gently patting her back again and again to soothe her frayed nerves.

Only after quite a while did Dugu Yan's sobs gradually subside.

She lifted her head from Lin Chen's arms. Her eyes were swollen red like walnuts, and the tip of her nose was red as well, making her look both pitiful and amusing.

She looked at Lin Chen, her lips moving as though she wanted to say something. In the end, she merely said softly, "It's good that you're all right."

Lin Chen smiled. "I told you, I'm fine."

The second to arrive was Hu Liena.

Dressed in a fitted red outfit, she hurried all the way from Spirit City's teleportation array to Heaven Dou City, then rushed without pause to Heaven Dou Royal Academy.

She did not enter through the main gate. Instead, she climbed straight over the wall.

With her status and strength, the guards at the entrance could not have stopped her anyway, but she did not want to draw too much attention.

She landed in the dormitory corridor and happened to see Lin Chen's door half-open. A girl's sobbing came from inside.

Raising an eyebrow, she did not knock. She simply pushed the door open and walked in.

"Oh? Looks like I came at a bad time?" Hu Liena leaned against the doorframe with her arms crossed, smiling as she took in the scene inside.

Lin Chen looked up. When he saw Hu Liena, he froze for a moment. "Sister Na? Why are you here too?"

"I heard some little brother got assassinated, so I came all the way from Spirit City to see whether you were dead."

Hu Liena walked in and looked him over from head to toe. Then she nodded with satisfaction. "Mm, you look quite alive. Not even a patch of skin is broken. Looks like I did not misjudge you back then."

Dugu Yan had already withdrawn from Lin Chen's arms and stood to one side. Her eyes were still red, but she had regained her basic composure.

She looked at the red-clad woman who had suddenly appeared, her gaze carrying a trace of vigilance and scrutiny.

This woman was beautiful, and she radiated a mature, seductive charm that instinctively made Dugu Yan feel threatened.

Naturally, Hu Liena noticed Dugu Yan's gaze as well. She glanced at her, and the smile on her lips deepened. "Oh, there's another little beauty here. Lin Chen, is she your girlfriend?"

"A friend," Lin Chen quickly corrected. "This is Dugu Yan, granddaughter of Poison Douluo Dugu Bo."

"Dugu Bo's granddaughter?" Hu Liena raised an eyebrow and looked Dugu Yan over again. "No wonder you smell faintly of medicinal herbs. Not bad. You're quite pretty too."

Dugu Yan felt somewhat uncomfortable under her appraising gaze. She frowned slightly but said nothing.

Hu Liena did not continue teasing her. Instead, she turned to Lin Chen, walked up to him, pinched his cheek, and smiled. "Six years apart, and you've become even more handsome. You were good-looking as a child, but you're even better-looking now. In a few more years, who knows how many young girls you'll charm to death."

Lin Chen helplessly brushed her hand away. "Sister Na, you're still as fond of jokes as ever."

"I'm not joking." Hu Liena withdrew her hand and said with a bright smile, "I'm telling the truth."

The third to arrive was Xue Qinghe.

He wore a white robe and still carried himself like the gentle, refined crown prince he appeared to be. Accompanied by a personal attendant, he entered through the academy's main gate at an unhurried pace.

He was not as anxious as Dugu Yan, nor did he climb over the wall like Hu Liena. Instead, he walked calmly and steadily to Lin Chen's dormitory door in a manner befitting a crown prince.

He knocked on the door.

Lin Chen opened it. Seeing Xue Qinghe standing outside, he secretly sighed. His dormitory was far too lively today.

"Your Highness." Lin Chen gave a slight bow. "Why have you come?"

Xue Qinghe smiled faintly, his gaze passing over Lin Chen's shoulder as he swept his eyes across the two women in the room.

One was a green-skirted girl with swollen red eyes who had clearly just cried; the other was a familiar woman in fiery red, brimming with charm.

His gaze lingered on Hu Liena for an extra moment before he withdrew it and said gently, "I heard something unpleasant happened last night, so I came to see whether you were well. Now that I see you, you seem to be in even better spirits than I expected."

"Thank you for your concern, Your Highness. I'm fine."

"That's good." Xue Qinghe nodded, then took a token from his sleeve and held it out to Lin Chen.

"This is a passage token from the Heaven Dou Royal Family. Whoever holds it may travel freely within Heaven Dou City without being stopped or questioned at any checkpoint. In addition, I have ordered the city defense troops to strengthen their patrols around the academy. Such petty scoundrels will not have another chance to approach you."

Lin Chen accepted the token. It felt slightly heavy in his hand, gilded all over, with the Heaven Dou Empire's national emblem engraved on the front and the character for "Imperial" carved on the back.

He understood full well what this token meant. It was not merely a pass; it was a declaration that the Heaven Dou Royal Family stood on his side.

"Thank you, Your Highness."

"There's no need to thank me." Xue Qinghe smiled. "You are a student of Heaven Dou Royal Academy. Protecting your safety is simply part of my duty."

After saying that, his gaze paused on Hu Liena for another moment. Then he gave a slight nod and turned to leave.

Hu Liena narrowed her eyes as she watched Xue Qinghe's departing back. Then she turned to Lin Chen and said meaningfully, "This crown prince is certainly treating you very well."

Lin Chen caught the implication in her words, but he did not take the bait. He merely smiled. "Yes, His Highness is a very good person."

Hu Liena glanced at him and did not press further, though a thoughtful look appeared in her eyes.

Inside the room, the three of them stood around Lin Chen.

To his left was Dugu Yan, whose eyes were still red; to his right was the smiling Hu Liena; and at the doorway lingered the fading silhouette of the crown prince who had just left.

Standing in the middle and feeling three different gazes upon him, Lin Chen had only one thought: His dormitory was truly far too lively today.