Owing to her explosive breakout, Chi Wei accepted numerous media interviews over the past few days. During these appearances, she publicly expressed her gratitude to the Xia enterprise for affording her the endorsement opportunity that brought her widespread public attention for the very first time. She also tossed in a few glowing remarks praising Xia Zeyu, noting that he was a genuinely kind person who never looked down on her just because she was an obscure unknown.
Naturally, the general public remained entirely skeptical, universally convinced that Chi Wei was merely reading from a script paid for by corporate funds.
They could hardly be faulted; after all, the original owner’s public footprint had consisted entirely of tearing down rivals under Tang Tang’s social media posts or flexing his unearned privilege across his own feed—caricatured perfectly as an uneducated, hot-tempered, good-for-nothing rich kid.
Xia Zeyu couldn’t be bothered to curate any artificial online persona. Ever since arriving in this world, aside from corporate advertisements for Xia Jewelry, the original owner’s social accounts had remained completely barren. Several of the original owner’s former “drinking buddies” had reached out to ask if he had finally turned over a new leaf, to which he simply replied with a single “Mmm,” severing contact entirely thereafter.
He simply lacked the bandwidth to maintain those hollow, wine-and-dine friendships; if these acquaintances couldn’t generate tangible leverage or benefits for him, he had zero desire to squander precious time on them.
In his original world, Xia Zeyu possessed virtually zero relational or familial bonds. The memories preceding his parents’ deaths had long since faded into a blur, leaving him entirely ignorant of any surviving relatives. Following his adoption by the old scavenger, educational opportunities remained an unaffordable luxury, denying him any traditional schoolmates or peer friendships. By the time he scraped and clawed his way to the age of eighteen, even when inducted into military ranks where he shared mess halls and bunks with fellow soldiers, forging genuine human camaraderie proved an insurmountable hurdle, he simply lacked the operational manual for friendship.
Dropping a character completely devoid of native emotional programming into a world revolving entirely around romance and interpersonal entanglement left him perpetually disoriented.
Much like how he failed to dodge Fu Dongyan’s initial kiss, in his previous existence, not a single adversary engaged him in mortal combat by planting kisses across his lips such maneuvers fell entirely outside his cognitive framework.
The mere recollection of Fu Dongyan instantly made his fists itch with restless aggression.
“2895! Victor!”
A fresh wave of thunderous cheers erupted from the audience stands. Breathing slightly heavily, Xia Zeyu cast an indifferent glance down at the burly giant knocked cold at his feet, feeling an overwhelming sense of tedium.
His visits to the fighting arena were no longer driven purely by financial remuneration; they served as a vital pressure valve to vent accumulated stress. Having to suppress his supernatural abilities in everyday life meant this underground cage offered the sole outlet to secretly release even a fraction of his pent-up energy, convinced that prolonged suppression would drive him utterly insane.
Barely a week remained until the canonical plot point where Tang Tang was abducted and Shen Congjin performed his classic hero-saves-the-beauty rescue. Xia Zeyu intended to intercept Tang Tang and pull off the rescue ahead of Shen Congjin not out of a sudden surge of altruism, but purely for the opportunity to throw down with a few armed kidnappers.
“Any further challengers? Three-minute countdown! If nobody steps forward, tonight’s matches conclude here!”
Retreating to a quiet corner, Xia Zeyu sat cross-legged on the canvas to hydrate with water. Clocking in at 3:00 AM, this hour rarely attracted fresh challengers, and he quietly readied himself to clock out for the night.
To everyone’s shock, with barely thirty seconds left on the clock, the heavy iron gate of the octagonal cage swung open once more.
The figure stepping up into the ring wasn’t a hulking brute, but a clean-complexioned young man standing roughly one hundred and eighty centimeters tall. Though subtle muscle definition traced along his forearms indicating an active fitness routine, his physique lacked bulky mass. His overall appearance and demeanor radiated a scholarly, gentle elegance projecting the precise aura of a university student union president plucked straight from a liberal arts campus.
He looked wildly out of place inside an underground fighting arena, leaving the crowd completely bewildered as to why he would willingly step into the cage.
Xia Zeyu experienced a fleeting sense of familiarity, though his memory failed to immediately place the face.
[Host, that is Chi Feng, the deeply devoted second male lead of this novel.]
“The guy who smuggled Tang Tang out of the basement and fled abroad with him?”
[The very same.]
“Then what on earth is he doing here? I have zero recollection of any storyline where he steps into a fighting ring.”
[In the original text, to force Chi Feng to sever ties with Tang Tang, Shen Congjin secretly sabotaged the supply chain of the Chi family business, triggering catastrophic quality defects across an entire product line. Facing twenty million yuan in indemnity claims alone, and with his family running a mere small-to-medium enterprise, they plunged instantly into crushing debt. In the original plot, driven to absolute destitution, he ended up working as a host pouring drinks in high-end nightclubs. However, catching wind of your massive notoriety from your fighting bouts recently, he pivoted his strategy and sought out this venue instead.]
“Well, look at that. Did I accidentally stumble into rescuing a wayward youth?”
Setting aside his water bottle, Xia Zeyu pushed himself up and strolled toward Chi Feng.
Stationed in the shadows earlier, Chi Feng hadn’t caught a clear glimpse of his face; stepping now into the harsh overhead glare, the moment his eyes registered Xia Zeyu’s features, Chi Feng’s eyes widened in sheer shock.
“Y-You’re Xia Ze—”
“Shh,” Xia Zeyu cut him off smoothly. “I am 2895.”
Looking so scholarly and mild-mannered, why jump headfirst into such a reckless stunt? Did he wander up here without even watching the matches or identifying his opponent?
Stepping directly into Chi Feng’s personal space, Xia Zeyu lowered his voice to a murmur right beside his ear: “I’m well aware of the damage Shen Congjin inflicted on your family enterprise. Things have been exceptionally rough for you lately, haven’t they? If you step into this ring, I promise to pull my punches and split the prize money fifty-fifty with you. How does that sound?”
“I want you to fight me at full strength,” Chi Feng countered with stubborn, unyielding pride. “If we fight, we fight with absolute integrity. I don’t need your charity!”
Possessing this level of unwavering backbone, how on earth did the original plot manage to shove him into a nightclub pouring drinks? Was he planning to grit his teeth and endure forced intimacy?
Xia Zeyu couldn’t help suspecting this was simply the author demonstrating a twisted sense of dark humor.
“Did you honestly never bother watching my matches beforehand?” Xia Zeyu pressed. “Are you entirely certain you want me to unleash my full force? Perhaps you ought to review a playback of my previous matches before locking in your decision.”
“Unnecessary.”
Refusing to yield to his stubbornness, Xia Zeyu pivoted toward the referee. “Referee, I need two minutes to step outside and chat with this challenger.”
Dragging an uncooperative Chi Feng down from the platform, Xia Zeyu wasted zero breath, pulling out his phone on the spot to cue up footage of his past annihilation matches.
Barely a minute elapsed before the color drained entirely from Chi Feng’s face, leaving him chalk-white.
“You can still turn around and walk away right now,” Xia Zeyu offered. “Or, take my deal: accept two of my blows, drop flat to simulate a KO, and pocket half the purse.”
“Why… why would you help me?”
“Do you harbor hatred toward Shen Congjin?”
“I despise him with every fiber of my being.”
“Splendid. Coincidentally, I hold a rather robust distaste for him as well. The enemy of an enemy is a friend, after all. I possess the capability to pull your family’s factory back from the brink—just look at how Xia Jewelry has managed to claw its way back to prominence recently. My execution capabilities are proven; if you trust me, ally with me.”
“But…” Chi Feng hesitated, a visible struggle warring across his features.
Xia Zeyu understood the root of Chi Feng’s hesitation instantly. Given that the original owner had previously terrorized Tang Tang, Chi Feng feared that aligning with Xia Zeyu out of self-interest would earn Tang Tang’s permanent disdain and disgust.
“Just what kind of desperate strait are you in, and you’re still wasting brain cells on romantic trivialities?” Xia Zeyu scoffed coldly. “Why don’t you spare a thought for your parents—have you looked at how hollowed out and exhausted they look running themselves ragged trying to save the factory? Which carries heavier weight: Tang Tang, or your family and your livelihood? Furthermore, Tang Tang doesn’t even love you back; otherwise, after pursuing him for all these years, you wouldn’t still be empty-handed.”
“Shut up! Stop talking!” Struck directly in his most agonizing vulnerability, Chi Feng completely fractured under the weight of the verbal blow.
“Either walk out that door right now, or step onto that canvas and take your beating. Pick one.”
Without waiting for a response, Xia Zeyu turned his back on him and strode resolutely back into the octagonal cage.
Thirty seconds later, Chi Feng climbed through the ropes. Yet the defiant, righteous fire he carried moments prior had evaporated entirely, leaving his hands trembling visibly at his sides.
The shrill blast of the opening whistle echoed. Xia Zeyu surged forward instantly, clamped onto Chi Feng’s arm, and executed a clean, textbook over-hip throw. A sharp, agonized wail escaped Chi Feng’s lips as he slammed heavily onto the canvas, instantly passing out cold.
Xia Zeyu stared down in blank bewilderment. Seriously? I hadn’t even thrown a proper punch yet! Is his physical constitution genuinely this fragile?
If he went down this easily, the match lacked any visual spectacle, which meant his prize purse was guaranteed to take a fifty-percent slashing penalty.
A chorus of disappointed boos cascaded from the stands as medical staff rushed in to haul an unconscious Chi Feng away.
Clocking out for the night, Xia Zeyu gazed at his seven-million-yuan earnings for the evening, ultimately resolving to transfer the entire sum to Chi Feng.
If sacrificing a minor payout could secure the absolute loyalty of a pivotal second male lead to do his bidding, the investment yielded an extraordinary return.
Intent on tracking down Chi Feng at the hospital, Xia Zeyu reached for his car door handle, only for that familiar, obnoxious scent of gardenia to drift once more into his senses.
Materializing silently directly behind him, Fu Dongyan cut straight to the chase: “You held back your strength tonight. You’re well aware that pulling your punches violates the arena regulations.”
“Even while holding back, I knocked him out cold. If I had actually gone all out, do you think he’d be walking out of here breathing?”
“You shouldn’t have let him walk out breathing at all. He will betray anyone and everyone the second Tang Tang snaps his fingers—that is the inescapable destiny written into his character arc.”
Whirling around, Xia Zeyu fixed a piercing, icy glare upon him. “And just how did you manage to break free from your destiny?”
Fu Dongyan froze for a few seconds before releasing a heavy, resigned sigh.
“If you possess the capacity to rewrite your fate, what gives you the right to assume others cannot?” Xia Zeyu pressed forward relentlessly. “And what makes you think I am incapable of rewriting the outcome of this entire chessboard?”
“Stop speaking with such unrelenting aggression. I simply…” Fu Dongyan paused, swallowing his words. “I simply wish to spare you from walking down the exact same bloody path I once traveled.”
“Spare me your misplaced sentimentality. I require none of it.”
Before Xia Zeyu could pull away, Fu Dongyan had already matched his stride, seamlessly sliding into the passenger seat of his vehicle without waiting for an invitation.
“I’m accompanying you to the hospital.”
Opting not to waste energy evicting him, Xia Zeyu simply let him ride along.
Arriving at the inpatient surgical wing, the instant they stepped out of the elevator, a furious wave of shouting echoed violently down the corridor.
“You still refuse to let go of him, don’t you?!”
Ah. Shen Congjin’s signature roar.
“I have explained countless times that everything between us was completely innocent! Why won’t you ever believe me?!”
Tang Tang’s heart-wrenching, tear-soaked sobbing.
“You spent over two years shackled together overseas, sharing a roof day in and day out! Do you honestly expect me to believe nothing happened?!”
“I didn’t! I swear to god, I never crossed that line!”
Xia Zeyu glanced down at his watch: 4:00 AM. A slightly unhinged hour to be staging a melodramatic soap opera.
Lifting his gaze to check the ward plaque: Surgical department. Correct floor, thankfully not psychiatry.
“Perhaps we should simply turn around and leave,” Fu Dongyan murmured, a rare flicker of hesitation crossing his features.
“I wholeheartedly concur.” Xia Zeyu found himself remarkably aligned with Fu Dongyan’s instincts for once.
Right as the two pivoted to retrace their steps, the heavy wooden doors of the ward burst violently outward—and this was no rhetorical exaggeration. The entire door panel shattered clean off its hinges under a massive impact, sending Shen Congjin flying backward to crash hard onto the linoleum floor. Before he could scramble back to his feet, a second figure erupted from the room, pouncing directly onto Shen Congjin to rain down a flurry of ferocious punches.
“Shen Congjin! I won’t let you terrorize Tang Tang ever again!”
Squinting through the commotion, Xia Zeyu finally registered the assailant: Chi Feng. Despite his head being wrapped in thick surgical gauze and his complexion remaining ghostly pale, the punches he landed across Shen Congjin’s face carried an impressive, bone-rattling velocity.
Tang Tang came tumbling out right behind them, weeping hysterically as he tugged frantically at their sleeves. “Stop fighting! Please, I’m begging you both, stop fighting!”
“Tang Tang belongs to me! If you care even a fraction about saving your pathetic little family factory, back off and stay the hell away from him!” Shen Congjin roared back, his voice cracking with rage.
“He will never find true happiness tied to a monster like you! I’ll never hand him over to someone as rotten as you!” Chi Feng roared back, his eyes blazing a bloodshot, incandescent crimson.
“Stop it! Will you both just stop! This is a hospital!” Tang Tang choked out through cascading tears, driven to the absolute brink of panic.
The surrounding circle of nurses, on-duty doctors, and security guards scrambled in utter disarray, completely paralyzed as to which combatant they ought to subdue with their anti-riot poles.
Heaving an exhausted sigh that shook his entire frame, Xia Zeyu turned his head to look at Fu Dongyan.
“Based on your comprehensive psychological profile of these individuals, would intervening right now yield any positive outcome?”
“Zero,” Fu Dongyan replied with instantaneous, uncompromising certainty.
“Heh. Well, I refuse to yield to common sense.”
Fu Dongyan massaged his temples in mute disbelief. “…Are you perpetually trapped in a defiant teenage rebellious phase? You’re twenty-four years old act your age.”
Ignoring him entirely, Xia Zeyu strode purposefully forward. Closing the distance in a flash, he reared back without a second word and delivered a brutal, perfectly placed kick straight into the ribs of a flailing Shen Congjin, sending him crashing flat onto his back across the floor.