Back at the dormitory.
Her roommates were curious and wanted to gossip about what was going on between Lin Yutang and Lu Chaosheng, but afraid she might be in a bad mood, Jian Ying and Ni Qianqian both kept quiet and lay on their beds scrolling through their phones.
Ji Shuning had known Lin Yutang for a long time and understood some of the situation. She sat at her desk and sent Lin Yutang a WeChat message, asking if there was anything she could do to help.
Lin Yutang turned around and gently shook her head at her.
So many things about her family—not even her close friends could help, let alone herself.
In truth, she had never really understood the specifics of her family’s situation all these years. Her family had spoiled her like a carefree little princess, shielding her from all the storms, never letting her touch even a hint of the harsh realities of the world.
It wasn’t until her family went completely bankrupt that she learned their group company had been struggling and losing money for years.
Just as her thoughts were wandering, a WeChat message popped up.
It was from her brother.
He said he was downstairs at her dormitory building and asked her to come down.
Lin Yutang was momentarily stunned, then quickly realized—her brother must have heard that someone came to the school to cause trouble for her today.
She went downstairs and was immediately pulled aside by Lin Yuheng, who was standing at the entrance.
“Tangtang, are you okay? Did you get hurt? Were you scared?” Lin Yuheng looked anxious, scanning his sister from head to toe.
Lin Yutang smiled, her eyes curving into crescents. “Brother, I’m standing right here in front of you in one piece. What are you still worried about?”
Hearing this, Lin Yuheng’s eyes grew even redder. “It’s your brother’s fault. I let you suffer…”
Lin Yutang pulled out a tissue and wiped the tears from the corner of his eyes, gently shaking her head. “Don’t say that. When it comes to family matters, we should bear this burden together.”
Lin Yuheng’s eyes were bloodshot, his fists clenched tightly.
He had to work even harder—start his business successfully sooner, earn more money, pay off the massive debts their parents had left behind, and protect his innocent sister from being hurt again.
“Young Master Lin.” From not far away came Zhou Shiying’s lazy, carefree voice.
Lin Yuheng froze.
It had been a long time since anyone had called him that.
With the family’s sudden bankruptcy, he was no longer any kind of Young Master Lin.
“Young Master Zhou, just call me Aheng.”
Lu Chaosheng walked over slowly, hands in his pockets. He lifted his eyes, and his languid gaze happened to meet Lin Yutang’s.
He nodded at Lin Yuheng, then spoke with perfect naturalness: “Brother.”
Lin Yuheng: “??”
Zhou Shiying’s mouth twitched from the side.
Lin Yuheng immediately looked at Lu Chaosheng with wariness. “Young Master Lu, I can’t accept you calling me ‘brother.’ I’m already more grateful than I can say that Uncle Lu was willing to let Tangtang stay at your place for a while.”
“Tangtang is currently staying at my house. My father told me to treat her like my own sister, and she now calls me ‘brother.'” Lu Chaosheng’s voice was low. “You’re older than me, Young Master Lin, so it’s only right that I follow Tangtang and call you ‘brother.'”
Lin Yuheng was speechless again: “…”
And who exactly asked him to be his brother?
After chatting with Lin Yutang for a bit and confirming she was fine, Lin Yuheng left to go back to work.
Lu Chaosheng handed a few sheets of paper to Lin Yutang. “This is the contract Liu Yiqiang has in his possession.”
“Contract?” Lin Yutang looked down and flipped through a few pages. The more she read, the angrier she became. “The contract President Liu had my parents sign is very different from this one in many places!”
She looked up at Lu Chaosheng. “How did you get the contract he was holding?”
“I just took it back from him.” Lu Chaosheng explained, “You were right. He maliciously split the contract back then—the repayment agreement your parents signed was only a subsidiary attachment.”
“The main contract was never jointly signed. He deliberately had your parents sign only the invalid attachment. The repayment agreement for May of next year doesn’t hold. The whole thing was a trap.”
The moment Lin Yutang heard this, her heart went cold, as if all the blood in her body had reversed its flow.
If the agreement was invalid, it meant they still owed President Liu six million. But forget six million—her family couldn’t even scrape together six hundred thousand right now.
Lu Chaosheng raised an eyebrow, took the agreement from her hand, and tore it up on the spot before tossing it into the trash can.
“Go home and tear up the agreement your uncle and aunt kept as well. You don’t need to pay Liu Yiqiang back anymore.”
Lin Yutang was stunned. “Huh?”
Zhou Shiying really couldn’t stand watching these two fail to say anything useful for ages. He cut in directly: “Because the money Liu Yiqiang was owed—Chaosheng already paid it off for you. Otherwise, a petty man like Liu Yiqiang would keep coming after you.”
“Six million…” Lin Yutang looked at Lu Chaosheng in disbelief, biting her lower lip. “Brother, thank you, but can we pay back the six million slowly?”
Even if she sold herself, she wouldn’t be worth six million.
Still, owing Lu Chaosheng money was far better than owing Liu Yiqiang.
Lu Chaosheng looked down at her, his bangs half-covering his eyes. He let out a low chuckle. “Little sister, kiss me once, and the money’s all forgiven.”
Zhou Shiying, standing nearby, couldn’t hold back his laughter and nearly sprayed out the drink he’d just taken a sip of.
Lin Yutang’s face instantly flushed bright red. She glared at Lu Chaosheng with a mix of embarrassment and annoyance. “You! I’m trying to talk to you about something serious, and you keep saying all this nonsense!”
“What I’m saying is serious too.” Lu Chaosheng raised an eyebrow and let out a light chuckle. “Honestly, six million isn’t a big deal to me. Give me a kiss, and we’ll call it even.”
Lin Yutang wasn’t about to listen to his improper nonsense. She said earnestly, “I’ve noted down this six million. I’ll pay you back slowly.”
By the time Lin Yutang returned to her dorm, Zhou Shiying clicked his tongue twice and walked up to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Lu Chaosheng. “The girl may be innocent and shy, but she remains as steady as a mountain in front of an old pervert like you. I truly admire that, truly!”
Lu Chaosheng gave him a faint, dismissive glance. “You have the nerve to call me an old pervert? I’m clean. My innocence is still intact.”
He couldn’t be bothered to deal with Zhou Shiying and the others. He pulled a silver lighter from his pocket, and with his slender, well-defined fingers, he clicked the lid open and shut repeatedly. The flame flickered on and off, casting light across his handsome, refined profile.
Zhou Shiying stood rooted to the spot for a few seconds, then chased after him, complaining, “What do you mean by that, Lu Chaosheng? Sure, I fall for every pretty girl I see, but I’m clean and innocent too. What I am is—a little flirtatious but not much, okay?”
He was walking in a hurry and didn’t notice he’d accidentally stepped on a passerby’s foot.
A fierce female voice rang out.
“Hey, you stepped on my new shoes! Don’t you have a mouth? Don’t you know how to apologize?”