Free Web NovelChapter 2129: Chapter 2330: Dividing the Turf!!!
Li Weiwei didn’t believe Hao Jian’s claim that nothing was wrong. If it really were nothing, Gu Peng, one of the school’s top bullies, wouldn’t be causing trouble for Hao Jian. From their interaction, it was clear that there must be some unknown grudge between Hao Jian and Gu Peng.
As a teacher, and especially a homeroom teacher, one can tell if a student is lying just by their demeanor. If a student wants to lie to a teacher, their eyes will wander, not daring to meet her gaze. And indeed, when Hao Jian spoke earlier, he made just such a small gesture.
She immediately realized that Hao Jian was lying. However, she also knew that if Hao Jian didn’t want to speak, she couldn’t force him to talk. So she decided not to press further, though her eyes remained fixed on Hao Jian, filled with doubt.
Hao Jian was startled, thinking that Li Weiwei must have guessed something already, probably hearing everything; hiding it wouldn’t be possible. But if he told her, it would ruin the fun, so he couldn’t reveal anything.
If Li Weiwei found out that he and Gu Peng were going to have a life-or-death duel behind the school on Friday, she’d probably kill him. She’d definitely scold him first for keeping such an important matter from her, and then she’d likely run off to find Gu Peng’s homeroom teacher, so the two could work together to settle the issue.
Before long, word would get out, saying Hao Jian was afraid of Gu Peng, and informed his homeroom teacher about the Friday duel. Once the two teachers convened, the plan would fall through. Soon, everyone’s perception of Hao Jian would change, calling him a coward all over the school.
At that point, it wouldn’t just be a matter of losing face; given Gu Peng’s nature, he would definitely come over specifically to ridicule him. Plus, those guys from Class 5 wouldn’t pass up the chance to mock him either, surely they’d join in.
That would create a pile of troubles, attracting bothersome people daily. That’s something he absolutely didn’t want. Within just a few seconds, he had mentally prepared himself.
If Li Weiwei insisted on getting to the bottom of this, he’d brush her off, and if that didn’t work, he’d just run for it. He didn’t believe she’d be able to chase him down; this was his conviction today, he must not reveal it to Li Weiwei, doing so would spell disaster.
However, unbeknownst to him, while he was thinking all this, Li Weiwei had another set of thoughts running through her mind. After pausing, she suddenly said, "Uh... don’t keep anything from me. I can’t solve things outside school, but within school, I still have some influence. So if something’s up, please don’t hide it from me."
Hao Jian quickly shook his head, "Of course there’s nothing, absolutely nothing."
"Better be the case." With that, Li Weiwei shot Hao Jian a sharp look before leaving.
Watching Li Weiwei finally leave, Hao Jian let out a long sigh of relief, while Liang Xiaohan, who had been waiting impatiently at the side, motioned for them to head to the classroom. Once there, everything proceeded as usual, following the routine.
But today, Fatty and Hu Lai seemed unusually low-energy. Besides greeting Hao Jian as he arrived, they had mostly been sleeping, even during break time, slumped over their desks instead of going out. Seeing this, Hao Jian immediately knew they must have stayed up all night gaming; otherwise, they wouldn’t be in such a state.
He chuckled without saying anything, inwardly thinking how great youth is. It’s been ages since he last threw himself into something with such fervor. Unlike them, sneaking out to game all night behind their parents’ backs was something he hadn’t done in a long time, which stirred his envy.
Gradually, the morning passed by. During lunch, he went to eat with Liang Xiaohan and unexpectedly ran into Lin Dongyang and Li Yaqin. Liang Xiaohan was surprised to see a pretty girl with Lin Dongyang and only learned that Li Yaqin was Lin Dongyang’s girlfriend when he introduced her.
She was visibly surprised, thinking this was all too fast, only finding out now was unexpected. The group then sat down to eat together, and after finishing lunch, they dispersed. As for last night’s events, Hao Jian didn’t discuss them further with Lin Dongyang. After last night, everyone learned why Lin Dongyang was always around Hao Jian and understood why he brought Lin Dongyang along.
He advised Lin Dongyang to interact more with Baldy in the future; they exchanged phone numbers. He felt he’d done enough, and the rest was up to Lin Dongyang’s own efforts.
The path had been paved for him; the rest depended on how he chose to walk it. Whether it led to a broad avenue or an abyss, it was on him to decide.
The afternoon classes went by uneventfully. Walking down the hallway, he unexpectedly ran into Li Weiwei again, who was still trying to subtly probe what exactly was going down with him and Gu Peng on Friday. Having prepared for this, Hao Jian remained tight-lipped and didn’t reveal a thing.
Realizing she couldn’t get any information out of him, Li Weiwei let it go, and the incident was shelved for the time being.
After evening self-study, Hao Jian was about to head home with Liang Xiaohan, having had little sleep throughout the day’s classes and feeling quite drowsy. His steps quickened as he anticipated rest. But just as they reached downstairs, his phone suddenly rang.
It was Baldy, asking him out to eat. He hesitated but figured since Baldy called, he should go. Informing Liang Xiaohan of the plan, at first, Liang Xiaohan didn’t want to go, wondering why they should eat so late, but eventually relented.
Afterward, Hao Jian hailed a cab to the location Baldy mentioned. It wasn’t far from Yawen, right next to Yawen School. They were already waiting there, so Hao Jian felt it would be rude to keep them waiting and decided to head over immediately.
In no time, the taxi stopped outside a restaurant, where Hao Jian alighted, paid the fare, and watched the car drive off before heading inside. Upon entering, he immediately spotted Baldy and others sitting towards the back; with so many people, it was hard to miss them.
"Brother Hao," Baldy called out, so Hao Jian went over and sat beside him.
As soon as he settled, a waiter brought over a set of dishes and chopsticks. Although it hadn’t been too long since dinner, he was feeling a bit hungry and began eating. At this point, Baldy spoke up, "Brother Hao, I wanted to talk to you about something. The territories of Long Yi and the others have been divided. Do you want a share of it?"
Upon hearing this, Hao Jian smiled, understanding Baldy’s implication. Although he had said yesterday that he wanted nothing to do with these interests, and everyone had heard him, Baldy likely thought he was just being modest, trying to be courteous. After all, no one does something with no gain in mind, and given that the matter was solved, no one would refuse a piece of the pie. Baldy must have thought there was a hidden meaning in his previous words, hence pulling him aside to ask him which portion he’d like.
Some people climb the ladder because they have a sharp mind. While Hao Jian admitted Baldy was reliable, his thinking went too far this time. He smiled and replied, "Do you really think a tiny bit of territory would satisfy me? You all keep it; I don’t need a share."
Upon hearing this, Baldy frowned. Who in their right mind would refuse clear benefits? He had thought this, but hearing Hao Jian’s words seemed to make him realize something and he didn’t pursue it further, instead smiling and continuing to eat.
Hao Jian also smiled, but at that moment, the commotion from a few tables over grabbed his attention.
A woman was sitting by herself at a table, surrounded by several empty bottles, seemingly having drunk quite a lot, and continued to gulp down more, clearly intent on getting drunk. She drank happily alone, but nearby, a group of men, noticing her tipsiness, exchanged knowing glances and three of them sat down at her table.
"Hey miss, why drink alone? How about joining us?" one of the guys with a shifty look said to her.
Another sleazy-looking guy echoed, "Yeah, yeah! Drinking alone isn’t fun. It’s always better with a group."
The third guy stayed silent, but his eyes, which hadn’t moved from the woman’s chest since he’d seated himself, had a lewd smile on his face.
The woman, originally quietly drinking, was visibly displeased by the unwanted company.
