At Jiang University, in the girls’ dormitory—
“Hey, Nuo’er, you’re back.”
“Damn, Nuo’er brought back this much food today? Who asked you to bring takeout?”
“Nuo’er, did you get injured?”
But Lin Nuo’er ignored her roommates’ questions and rushed straight to the balcony.
Yes—the same girl who couldn’t even walk properly earlier was now striding like nothing had ever happened.
As Lin Nuo’er squinted and looked down from the balcony, she saw Gu Zhe’s tall figure walking under the streetlights.
She had initially wanted to invite Gu Zhe to eat with her, but after finding out he had been “invited” by the counselor, she reluctantly gave up on the idea.
The dim yellow light stretched Gu Zhe’s shadow long, very long…
Even after his figure disappeared into the night, Lin Nuo’er still leaned against the balcony, unwilling to look away.
“Gu Zhe… do you know…”
“You are also… a girl’s youth…”
Inside the dorm, three heads with varying sizes and hairstyles shared the same thought.
“Wait a second—didn’t her obsession with romance get cured a year ago?”
“Ugh, have you checked the confession wall at school? I heard Gu Zhe broke up with someone!”
“What? That Gu Zhe again? Don’t tell me Nuo’er’s getting tricked by a scumbag?”
“Could be! With how starry-eyed she is about him, who knows how badly she’s being fooled!”
Watching Lin Nuo’er flailing her arms on the balcony, the three roommates exchanged concerned glances.
Munch munch.
Munch munch.
As they watched Lin Nuo’er binge-watch her drama while finishing all three packed meal boxes, one of the girls poked her head out.
“Nuo’er, isn’t that a bit much for dinner?”
Lin Nuo’er waved her hand dismissively. “It’s fine. Mainly, this was bought by Gu Zhe—ugh, I mean, I just don’t want to waste food!”
That damn man again!
The three girls on the top bunks looked at each other and silently made up their minds—
They absolutely could not let their campus belle roommate be deceived by some scumbag!
On the other side, why was Gu Zhe summoned by the counselor?
To be fair, it wasn’t really Gu Zhe’s fault.
That afternoon, after Gu Zhe woke up, Zhao Si found out about the post Duan Mingdong had made on social media.
Thinking about how devastated Gu Zhe had looked earlier, Zhao Si couldn’t help but feel furious.
Gu Zhe had always been a good guy—warmhearted, good-natured, loved playing football, and had formed solid friendships over time.
Zhao Si vented to a few of the other guys, and they were all fuming.
They had never liked Gu Zhe being with Song Yihan, but even so, the two of them had been a proper couple.
And who the hell was Duan Mingdong anyway?
He had ruined their anniversary date and even posted about it to show off. What kind of man pulls that kind of stunt?
They were at that hot-blooded age—if something like this happened to themselves, maybe they could hold back.
But their brother got hurt—they couldn’t just let that slide!
So, after already being beaten up by Lin Nuo’er, Duan Mingdong returned to the dorm barely catching his breath before Zhao Si and the boys pinned him down and gave him another round.
After taking two beatings in one day, Duan Mingdong snapped.
Damn it, he couldn’t survive in this university anymore. Everywhere he went, he got ganked.
After pretending to beg for mercy, he decided to go full “manly man mode”—by snitching to the counselor in the middle of the night.
The counselor, Yang Yan, a stylish woman in her early thirties, had been getting ready to leave work. But the moment she saw Duan Mingdong, all bruised and battered, she ended up working overtime on the spot.
Outside the administrative building, Gu Zhe ran into Zhao Si and the others as they were heading upstairs.
Zhao Si looked a little guilty and said, “Brother Zhe, sorry. We acted on impulse and dragged you into it.”
But if you had a group of brothers willing to stand up for you and you just stood aside, then you were just being a coward.
Gu Zhe waved it off, “It’s fine. You guys are my brothers. I’ll treat you all to a big meal another time!”
“But right now, the priority is solving this mess.”
After a few years of real-world experience, having dealt with all kinds of jerks and crap situations, Gu Zhe was way better at handling this kind of mess than most students.
Ultimately, this situation could be big or small—it all depended on how the counselor and the college administration viewed it.
Downplayed, it was just a minor student conflict. Blown up, it could be considered a deliberate act of violence.
For Zhao Si and the others, the consequences ranged from a verbal warning to having a disciplinary record.
Gu Zhe couldn’t let his brothers carry the blame for him.
“Actually, we only meant to scare him and speak up for you, Brother Zhe.”
“But that guy is just so damn annoying! Even Brother San, who’s always the calmest, couldn’t hold back and punched him!”
“And we only found out after the beating that the guy was already injured!”
Gu Zhe paused for a moment and asked Zhao Si, “You beat him in the dorm, right? And you all gathered in the dorm?”
Zhao Si nodded, “Yeah, it’s the weekend. Everyone was there.”
Gu Zhe grinned, “Then this’ll be easy. Our dorm building doesn’t have surveillance cameras.”
The boys looked at each other, feeling like Gu Zhe had lost his mind from all the relationship drama.
“Brother Zhe, people saw us beating him!”
Gu Zhe shook his head, “So what? As long as Duan Mingdong doesn’t admit to being beaten, it doesn’t matter how many saw it—it means nothing.”
Zhao Si was already about to reach out and feel Gu Zhe’s forehead to check if he had a fever.
“Brother Zhe, are you crazy? He’s the one who went straight to the counselor! You think he’ll just drop it?”
Gu Zhe smirked meaningfully, “He won’t dare not to.”
“Trust me. Leave everything to me. Just stick to your line: none of you hit anyone.”
The boys exchanged uncertain glances but, in the end, decided to trust Gu Zhe.
After all, they didn’t have a better plan.
Inside the counselor’s office, Duan Mingdong was wailing in front of Yang Yan.
“Counselor Yang, you have to stand up for me! You don’t even know how brutal they were!”
“If behavior like this goes unpunished, how can any student at Jiang University feel safe in their own dorms?!”
Duan Mingdong really was a master manipulator.
It sounded like he was just venting his frustration, but he was actually putting pressure on Yang Yan.
And she understood the stakes—if a student got beaten in a dorm and it wasn’t handled properly, it would seriously harm the school’s reputation.
Yang Yan adjusted her glasses. Behind the reflection, her gaze turned sharp.
This matter would be handled strictly.