Chapter 14

Hearing the teasing in Yue Feng's words, He Qinghuan smiled and said nothing.

Outside, the night was deep, a storm brewing in the darkness.

He Qinghuan hung up and idly spun his phone in his hand, his eyes lowered.

Few people were close to He Qinghuan, but everyone who was knew he had one particular flaw.

He Qinghuan cared about looks. A lot.

He even went a little easier on good-looking illegitimate children, showing them some mercy. To He Qinghuan, a beautiful face was a visual pleasure, nothing to do with feelings.

The book hadn't mentioned this, and the current Gu Wang knew nothing about it, much less that he was practically dancing all over He Qinghuan's aesthetic preferences.

There was a reason Gu Wang, whose looks matched He Qinghuan's tastes perfectly, had been able to pester him for so long. With everything He Qinghuan had going for him, countless people had liked him since childhood-secret admirers, open admirers, normal ones, abnormal ones. His people had dealt with who knew how many.

Yet Gu Wang was the exception.

Before, He Qinghuan had simply thought he looked nice, but his personality really wasn't appealing. Still, actually dealing with him would have been a shame.

But lately-He Qinghuan's lips curved-even his personality had begun to match his tastes.

The kid really did seem to be sulking, though. He Qinghuan had heard every word of Gu Wang's conversation with Jiang Chi outside the auditorium that evening.

Who gave him the nerve to leave whenever he pleased?

Darkness surged in He Qinghuan's pitch-black eyes.

Xiao Liu gently pushed the door open and peeked inside, blinking. "Big brother, Dad wants you."

He Qinghuan smiled. "Got it."

Xiao Liu gently closed the door and tiptoed downstairs. The woman waiting for her scooped her into her arms and asked anxiously, "Why are you so pale? Did he scare you?"

Xiao Liu buried her face in the crook of the woman's neck. "No."

The woman stroked Xiao Liu's back and sat on the sofa, shooting the woman opposite her a glare. "Why does Xiao Liu always have to go? Look how scared our Xiao Liu is!"

"Don't be like that. Don't you know how he treats Xiao Liu? She's just timid. If she showed a little promise and latched onto her brother, would those ugly things even stand a chance?" She had no children herself, only a pretty face and skill in bed. Seeing that He Qinghuan seemed a little more lenient toward Xiao Liu, she intended to get on good terms with the mother and daughter.

Xiao Liu lifted her head from the woman's neck. "My brothers and sisters aren't ugly things."

Zhang Bailu smiled seductively out of habit. "Whether they're ugly things or not, won't we know once we see who ends up worst off?"

That was too profound for Xiao Liu to understand. She shook her mother's arm. "What does Auntie Lu mean?"

Zhang Bailu's gaze fell on Xiao Liu's pale, plump arm, like a section of lotus root. A red cord hung around her wrist, with a bead dangling from it. At first glance, it looked nothing special. The only difference was that He Qinghuan had given it to her.

He Qinghuan had sent someone to deliver it to her third birthday banquet, stunning everyone there. From then on, Xiao Liu and her mother had gained a little more say.

He Qinghuan was the third child, with an older brother and sister above him and a whole crowd of younger siblings below. The He Family had money, after all, and could afford to raise any number of children. But He Qinghuan was the only one who truly deserved the title of young master.

The current head of the He Family had long since chosen He Qinghuan as the next family head and heir to the He Corporation. Nobody dared offend him, even though He Qinghuan barely acknowledged their existence.

The slightly older ones could manage not to show their fear when they saw He Qinghuan. The younger ones, in their teens or single digits, would stammer when they spoke. Those younger still might even cry from fright.

They both respected and feared He Qinghuan.

One rainy evening a while ago, He Qinghuan had returned from school in what seemed to be a particularly good mood. He had even held Xiao Liu and played with her for a while. He Qinghuan was handsome, the best-looking of his generation. His mother had come from an established family, after all; the blood in his veins would never change.

Though Xiao Liu was afraid, seeing that her brother wasn't as cold as before, she soon began to giggle. Her mother watched beside them with her heart in her throat.

He Zhiyan, He Qinghuan's father, valued legitimate birth and felt nothing but admiration and affection for this son. Seeing his good mood, he asked whether something nice had happened at school.

He Qinghuan pinched Xiao Liu's chubby cheek and nodded.

When he was in a good mood, the whole household would speak a little louder.

That evening had been the time He Qinghuan lent Gu Wang an umbrella. The boy had beautiful eyes and hadn't dared look at him. The way he reluctantly accepted the umbrella had been adorable.

The next day, a downpour came just as morning study ended, sheets of rain sweeping down from the sky with the wind. The branches of several pine trees on campus swayed in the air.

Ever since becoming He Qinghuan's deskmate, Gu Wang had arrived at the classroom early every day. Whenever He Qinghuan wasn't there, he hurried to the restroom. In short, he did everything he could to avoid contact with him.

It was easy for Song Zhiyan to talk when he wasn't the one dealing with it. He had become Meng Ou's deskmate and was delighted. Watching Gu Wang live in fear every day struck him as rather funny.

Aside from Gu Wang, cannon fodder like Song Zhiyan knew absolutely nothing about He Qinghuan's situation. They might instinctively say He Qinghuan seemed a little dangerous, but Gu Wang knew better than any of them exactly what he was like.

He Qinghuan had changed into the autumn uniform, a combination of lake blue and white. As soon as he entered, many people involuntarily turned their eyes toward him.

Gu Wang had his head down, chatting in the group.

He Qinghuan glanced at him coolly, seeing only the fluffy crown of his head. Gu Wang didn't notice his arrival until he sat down.

Startled, Gu Wang shifted to the side, still looking down at his phone.

[Zhaozhao's going to college: Wangwang, why was He Qinghuan the one giving you flowers yesterday?]

[Wangwang: I don't know either.]

[Song the dog's moving up a hundred places: I know this one. Our Youth League secretary was supposed to do it, but since they needed photos for the records, she wanted the good-looking people in class to go. So she picked me too. I think He Qinghuan gave the flowers for the same reason.]

[Zhaozhao's going to college: Since when are you good-looking? Your class monitor needs her eyes checked. You looked ugly as hell standing next to Meng Ou yesterday.]

[Song the dog's moving up a hundred places: At lunch, Daddy's going to make you regret being born.]

Watching Shen Zhao immediately derail the conversation, Gu Wang smiled. Shen Zhao and Song Zhiyan had already started trading insults in the group. Shen Zhao called Song Zhiyan simple-minded and said even his limbs weren't particularly well developed. Song Zhiyan called Shen Zhao a short drama queen. He still remembered how Shen Zhao had pretended to faint and left him to die when the police showed up at the internet café.

Class began, and Gu Wang turned off his phone.

He stole a glance at He Qinghuan, who was looking straight at the blackboard. Good. Keep this up. After the next monthly exam, once he moved up another few hundred places, he could ask Li Shuya about changing deskmates.

The flower incident last night had just been an accident. As Song Zhiyan had said, He Qinghuan had done it for the class's honor. He had presumably been reluctant too.

Judging by He Qinghuan's attitude toward the original owner in the book, he was more likely to have sprayed the flowers with dichlorvos before giving them to him.

Gu Wang certainly wasn't going to read anything into it.

At noon, however, Shen Zhao shared a popular forum post with Gu Wang.

Its title was-He Qinghuan pursuing Gu Wang?

The title certainly packed a punch. Who was He Qinghuan? The very embodiment of a favored son of heaven. And Gu Wang? An utter idiot from a nouveau riche family. He did seem to have changed a little lately, but the gap between him and He Qinghuan was still enormous. Who would believe He Qinghuan was pursuing Gu Wang?

The post was still extremely popular, though, because everyone loved gossip.

Gu Wang opened it. The attached picture showed He Qinghuan giving him flowers. It wasn't very clear, but there was something inexplicably intimate about the atmosphere between them, as if pink bubbles might start floating up at any second.

He Qinghuan's gaze rested on Gu Wang's face, while Gu Wang had his head lowered as though he were shy. That, at least, was what the people on the forum had deduced from the photo.

[I really hate to admit it, but these two look so good as a couple!!!!]

[Sorry, I refuse to let the hot guys date each other. I've reported the post.]

[I think you people have too much time on your hands. How could He Qinghuan possibly like Gu Wang? If he did, would Gu Wang have had to chase him for so long? Use your brains.]

[We do have too much time on our hands. So what? We just like watching two hot guys flirt. We enjoy it. What the hell's it to you?]

[It's just a nice photo. We're only sharing it.]

Though the post was soon deleted, many people had already saved the photo of He Qinghuan giving Gu Wang flowers. Last night, everyone had been caught up in the party atmosphere and hadn't thought much about it. Today, they had time to savor it.

The photo was nice, and the hot guys were nice. Those two absolutely couldn't get together.

During the lunch break, Gu Wang sat with Song Zhiyan. After reading the post, he looked up at He Qinghuan. He wasn't using his phone, so he probably hadn't seen it.

Song Zhiyan had read the post along with him and said indignantly, "What idiot's spreading rumors about you? Haven't you already said you don't like him?"

Gu Wang lay over his desk and said mildly, "It's deleted anyway. It's fine."

The truth would speak for itself. Gu Wang only needed to make his position clear, and everyone would understand. This was also the original owner's fault for making such a spectacle of pursuing He Qinghuan. Now, whenever he and He Qinghuan appeared in the same frame, people would start running their mouths.

Of all the people pursuing He Qinghuan, Gu Wang had been outstanding. He allowed nobody but himself to pursue him, drove away the other suitors, and fought Jiang Chi every few days. Wherever He Qinghuan was, Gu Wang was sure to be there.

Everyone had thought He Qinghuan was pretty unfortunate to have someone like Gu Wang on his hands. Now that Gu Wang had stopped pursuing him, they wanted to tie the two together instead.

Gu Wang tugged at the corners of his mouth, his smile a little cold.

"Wangwang, Ms. Li wants you to come to her office in the north building!" called a girl near the door at the front.

"Got it!" Song Zhiyan answered for Gu Wang, then turned to him. "Isn't Yaya usually here in the south building? Why's she in the north building?"

Li Shuya held several positions and had offices in both buildings. It was pouring outside, and going to the north building meant leaving the classroom building with an umbrella.

"Want me to come with you?"

Gu Wang took Song Zhiyan's umbrella. "No. Do your practice questions."

Song Zhiyan was speechless. His little scheme to avoid doing questions had been exposed. Wangwang really was getting more and more annoying lately.

Rain poured down in torrents, forming little streams on the running track. Gu Wang had barely left the building when a blast of icy mist hit him.

The sports field and a small grove stood between the north and south buildings. The grove, a stretch of evergreen pines and cypresses, was a popular nighttime spot for young couples dating against school rules.

Holding his umbrella, Gu Wang saw someone emerge through the hazy, surging curtain of rain. He stopped, narrowing his eyes slightly before he could make out the person's face.

Jiang Chi?

Gu Wang took a step back. He had a bad feeling.

Sure enough, Jiang Chi raised a hand, and three people stepped out from behind him. Their tattoos reached their necks, and they were dressed like outsiders. They approached Gu Wang, clearly ready to attack him outright.

Gu Wang frowned at Jiang Chi. "Are you sick in the head?"

Jiang Chi snorted. "I knew not a word out of your mouth was true. What did you do to force He Qinghuan to give you flowers? You had someone put up that post this morning, didn't you? Gu Wang, I almost believed you yesterday."

"I don't want your explanations anymore. I'm not after anything else today. Just giving you a beating. How bad it gets, I don't know. Wait until I tell them to stop." He backed away a few steps to give them room, one hand in his pocket, looking ready to enjoy the show.

Gu Wang lowered his brows. He knew his limits. He might manage one opponent, but three... he probably couldn't beat them.

Running clearly wasn't an option either. He couldn't get away. It was the midday break, and with rain this heavy, nobody would come outside.

The man in front even made a show of saying, "Sorry, brother," before throwing a punch at Gu Wang.

Gu Wang closed the umbrella and kicked the man in the stomach. As he doubled over in pain, Gu Wang grabbed his collar and slammed his head hard into the ground.

The man was stunned that a student had the nerve to strike so viciously. Seeing their leader get hit, the other two charged together. Gu Wang didn't have extra arms, nor was fighting his specialty. He soon found himself at a disadvantage.

Jiang Chi laughed from the sidelines.

His previous little scuffles with Gu Wang had been because Gu Wang was utterly beneath him, not worth his attention. But lately, Gu Wang had become increasingly different, and the people around him praised him