After seven consecutive days of military training, Song Yu still hadn’t caught even a glimpse of Lu Qiwen’s figure, not even Cheng Yao was around.
At the same time, the school announced that due to the excessively hot weather, the military training period would be shortened to just one week. On the final day, after a group photo was taken at 5:30 p.m., everyone was dismissed.
The intense heat, accompanied by the incessant chirping of cicadas, always seemed to stir up irritation. Song Yu absentmindedly twirled his phone, a fine layer of sweat on his forehead nearly dampening his bangs.
As soon as he opened his phone, he saw the class group chat buzzing with everyone enthusiastically discussing where to go for fun during the break after military training. Such things had never really concerned Song Yu.
Before he could close his phone, a new text message popped up.
[Song Yu, why haven’t you gone out to eat with us brothers since starting university?]
Song Yu glanced at the contact name, Chen Kang, and suddenly remembered.
It was someone from the same orphanage. However, this person had always taken advantage of his past closeness with the original host, often coaxing him into handing over money. Strangely, the original host had always fallen for it.
But how could Song Yu not see through what these people were thinking?
They simply thought the original host had received financial support from a wealthy family and had money to spare, hoping to swindle some for themselves. In reality, aside from tuition, the original host had earned every penny through part-time jobs.
It could only be said that it was a case of one willingly taking the bait and the other gladly reeling it in.
[We’ve been in military training lately.]
[Oh, I forgot university students still have military training.]
[Sigh, it’s so nice to have someone sponsor your university education. Even though we’re both betas, you’re really lucky, kid.]
Song Yu immediately frowned in displeasure.
Was this how this person always played on the original host’s sympathy?
How could the original host tolerate this?
[Coincidentally, I’m near B University these days. Let’s meet up! I just found a newly opened place.]
Song Yu wanted to refuse, but he knew all too well that the original host would have agreed.
He sighed.
…
Red and green lights flickered across people’s faces, while the pounding electronic music hammered the air, thudding against chests and making it hard to breathe.
As Song Yu was stopped at the entrance and had his ID checked multiple times, he wondered if he should just make a run for it. After all, he had one “get out of jail free” card.
But he was already here.
With that thought, Song Yu walked inside.
The stage was packed with all sorts of people. In a corner, Chen Kang spotted Song Yu and immediately breathed a sigh of relief, then turned expectantly toward the burliest man at the table.
“Brother Wang, he’s the richest among the people I know! He’ll definitely be able to help me pay back the money!”
The man set down his glass. A scar ran straight from his chest to his face, and his right eye was a milky white, making him look even more terrifying in the dimly lit bar.
“Fine. Once he comes over, you can scram.”
Looking at the dense crowd on the dance floor and smelling the strong scent of alcohol, Song Yu stood still at the entrance and sent a message.
[Where are you?]
[I’m over here! Come over!]
Song Yu looked up and finally spotted Chen Kang. However, thanks to his sharp eyesight, he also noticed the tall, burly men surrounding him.
Song Yu sensed something was off.
Without changing his expression, he took a step back.
Unexpectedly, Chen Kang had sharp eyes and immediately noticed Song Yu’s movement.
“Brother Wang! He’s trying to leave! Let’s go after him!”
Song Yu turned and ran out without looking back, moving so fast that the bar staff almost thought he was trying to skip out on the bill, stopping him to ask questions for a while.
Perhaps because that group of people was positioned too far on the edge, it was just as Song Yu ran out that they finally squeezed their way out of the crowd on the dance floor.
The man called Brother Wang angrily grabbed Chen Kang, who was trying to run, his tone menacing, “If he gets away without paying, tomorrow we’ll show you what the bottom of the river looks like.”
Hearing this, Chen Kang panicked and dashed outside, trying to chase after Song Yu.
Before military training, Song Yu might have been easily caught, but he wasn’t the same Song Yu anymore.
He deftly used passersby to conceal himself, and when he spotted an alley nearby, he immediately ducked into it.
Brother Wang, seeing the person vanish in an instant, angrily kicked Chen Kang, who was trying to shrink his presence as much as possible.
“Damn it, didn’t you say he was your good buddy? Why did he run as soon as he saw you, huh?”
Chen Kang, kicked hard, lay on the ground groaning, “I… I really don’t know.”
“Really, Brother Wang, you have to believe me, he’s loaded!”
“We were in the same orphanage. When he was ten, the Song family adopted him and even sent him to B University!”
Hearing this, Brother Wang crouched down, pulled a cigarette from a hidden pocket in his clothes, and Chen Kang tremblingly took out a lighter to light it for him.
“You’d better be telling the truth.” As he spoke, smoke billowed onto Chen Kang.
Hiding in the corner, Song Yu heard every word clearly and clicked his tongue.
The Song family? If the Song family’s assistant heard about a kidnapping and ransom, they’d probably just say, “Just kill him.”
The more Song Yu thought about it, the more likely it seemed.
Seeing that the two were about to leave, Song Yu, having crouched for too long, felt his legs go numb and tried to shift slightly. Unfortunately, there happened to be an empty soda can someone had tossed on the ground right under his foot.
Normally, with bars, late-night snack shops, internet cafes, and pool halls around, the sound wouldn’t have been noticeable, but Brother Wang had exceptionally sharp hearing.
“Someone there?”
Song Yu held his breath. Just as he thought the man wouldn’t come in, Brother Wang kicked Chen Kang into the alley. “Go check.”
Chen Kang hadn’t heard a thing, and his chest still ached from the kick, but he didn’t dare say anything, slinking into the alley instead.
Song Yu felt like either the original book or the system was out to get him, it had to be intentional!!
He instantly stood up from the corner and continued running deeper into the alley.
Chen Kang froze for a moment before snapping back to reality and shouting, “Brother Wang, he’s here!”
Hearing the voice behind him, Song Yu didn’t dare stop, even though his legs felt like they were being gnawed by ten thousand ants.
The alley wasn’t long, only a hundred meters. Just as Song Yu was about to run out, Chen Kang shouted with a face full of resentment:
“Song Yu! Have you forgotten? Back then, it was me, I gave up that chance so the Song family would adopt you! Can’t you just help me this once?”
“I just need a little money!”
Hearing this, Song Yu couldn’t hold back. “Are you insane? You were the one who didn’t make an effort.”
“Did I force you to drop out after middle school? It’s because you never studied properly. The director sent you to vocational school, and you got expelled for fighting.”
“And ‘gave up’? Gave up what, your mom?”
“You didn’t even meet the standard to see the Song family because your grades were too low!”
Chen Kang was instantly rendered speechless; he hadn’t expected Song Yu to already know everything.
Inside the private room, Lu Qiwen, who had been catching up on sleep, slowly opened his eyes. The noisy voices drifted straight through the window and into his ears. His medium-length hair was tousled and sticking out in clumps, and the dark circles under his eyes were enough to show he had been staying up late for a long time.
Extremely annoyed, he threw off the blanket, pulled open the window, and was about to yell at whoever was making the noise.
“Fuck you, I don’t owe you shit!”
The voice was so clear it almost pierced through Lu Qiwen’s eardrums.
He squinted his eyes and looked down into the alley below the window.
There, he saw the little pup he had last seen a week ago, now slightly tanned from the sun, with a head of curly hair so puffed up it looked like it was about to explode.
This was the first time Lu Qiwen had ever heard the little pup curse since he’d known him.
He couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow, leaning against the windowsill with a playful expression as he watched the scene below.