You all chase after the innocent school beauty, then I'll choose the rebellious female school b

The night was deep and dark, as black as ink, and a cold wind was blowing.

Lu Yuan practically fled back to school.

All the way, the feeling of being watched by a venomous snake followed him like a shadow, and the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end, as if a pair of cold eyes were biting his back.

But when he suddenly turned around, all he saw behind him were the long shadows of trees cast by the streetlights, and no one else was there.

"I'm just scared of myself because I feel guilty..." He comforted himself inwardly, but his legs moved faster uncontrollably. He ignored the enthusiastic greetings from his classmates as they walked towards him and fled back to his dormitory like a frightened bird.

The dormitory was deathly silent; Zhong Daming and the others were not there.

Lu Yuan slammed himself into the chair, panting heavily.

The phone screen lit up intermittently, displaying messages from Ye Yixian.

He stared at the warm words, his fingertips trembling, but he didn't even have the strength to click to reply.

Suddenly, a sharp ringing broke the silence.

A provincial capital city number without a name was displayed on the screen.

Lu Yuan's heart sank. He stared intently at the number, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down with difficulty, before finally pressing the answer button.

"Brother Lu, how was your day?"

On the other end of the phone, Hu Chenghui's voice carried a nauseating smugness.

Lu Yuan's already tense nerves instantly snapped, and the fear and anger he had suppressed all the way out erupted into a string of curses: "You bastard! If you dare send someone to follow me again, believe me, I'll kill you?!"

"Hahaha!" Hu Chenghui was not annoyed at all; instead, he let out a piercing laugh. "Not bad, not bad. You were able to sense that you were being followed and still managed to shake off your tail, which shows that you are quite vigilant. When I was your age, I didn't have such strong adaptability."

He paused, his tone casual, as if chatting about everyday matters: "You don't know, when I first started out in the business, the underworld was a mess. There were gangs everywhere, and when money was involved, it was always a fight. Society has progressed now; you have to use your brain to do business, you can't just shed blood. After all, shedding blood means going to jail, right?"

Bloodshed! Jail time!

These four words were like poisoned needles, precisely piercing Lu Yuan's nerves.

He effortlessly detected the murderous intent in the other person's words and said coldly, "What exactly are you trying to say?"

"Hehe." Hu Chenghui chuckled twice. "Brother Lu, you're quite capable of shaking off my men. But you still don't know me well enough. I always like to take a multi-pronged approach. You think you're safe just because you've shaken off one person?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Lu Yuan suddenly jumped up from his chair, his pupils shrinking sharply.

At that time by the river, the feeling of being watched like a thorn in my back was not an illusion at all!

There really are people there!

The voice on the other end of the phone remained slow and deliberate, yet every word was piercing: "Brother Lu, you're really ruthless, throwing your brother straight into the river. Tell me, if I hand over the video I recorded to the police, what will you do? You'll be in jail for at least ten years, right?"

Lu Yuan gripped his phone tightly, his hand trembling slightly.

But he quickly forced himself to calm down. If Hu Chenghui really wanted to send him to prison, he wouldn't have made this call at this time.

"What do you want?" Lu Yuan gritted his teeth and squeezed out the question.

"Don't be nervous, I'm a businessman, profit is my priority," Hu Chenghui chuckled. "I'm just here to talk business. You know, what I'm after is your 'Love Notes.' Last time I offered five million, but you didn't take it. Now... I'm offering one million, will you accept?"

"You son of a bitch!" Lu Yuan roared, slamming his fist on the table with a loud thud. "One million? That's not even enough to cover the costs I've invested in the past six months!"

"Be content, Brother Lu." Hu Chenghui's tone suddenly turned cold, tearing off his mask of hypocrisy. "I'm only sparing your life because I pity you. Don't forget, if I just nod my head, you'll be doing business in jail. No more nonsense, one million, hand over the entire 'Love Notes,' and then you can get out of my sight. If you don't agree, you can expect to rot in jail."

See the picture poorly.

Hu Chenghui's killer move arrived as expected.

Lu Yuan was so angry that he trembled all over, his teeth were clenched so tightly that they were grinding, and his fists were clenched so hard that he couldn't utter a single word in rebuttal.

"I'll give you ten seconds to think it over. Otherwise, don't blame me for being impolite."

Seeing Lu Yuan remain silent, Hu Chenghui began the countdown.

"ten."

"Nine."

"eight……"

Each sound was like a heavy hammer blow to Lu Yuan's heart, shattering his last psychological defenses.

"Wait! I agree..." Lu Yuan finally gave in, his whole body slumped into the chair like a deflated balloon.

"Hahaha! You're smart to be late!" Hu Chenghui laughed loudly. "Come sign the contract tomorrow. If you dare to be late, I guarantee you'll rot in jail!"

"No problem. But..." Lu Yuan took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down, "I need to take a look at the electronic version of the contract first. I must guarantee that I can get that million."

"Troublesome. You think I'm afraid Brother Hui won't give you the money? Do you think I'm short of a million?"

"I don't trust you." Lu Yuan's voice held a resolute determination, as if he had nothing to lose. "You have to show it to me. Otherwise, I won't go tomorrow. If I don't get the money, even if it means going to jail, I will never let you get your 'Love Notebook'!"

There was a two-second silence on the other end of the phone.

"Young people are just restless and impatient." Hu Chenghui's tone returned to its usual condescending composure. "Alright, alright, I'll have someone send it to you later."

beep--

The phone hangs up.

Lu Yuan clutched his head in anguish, digging his fingers deep into his hair, his mind a complete mess. He couldn't understand how things had come to this.

Just then, my phone vibrated again.

Lu Yuan's heart skipped a beat, thinking it was Hu Chenghui returning. He was about to answer the call and give him a good scolding when he discovered it was Ye Yixian calling.

He took a deep breath, slapped his cheeks hard, and forced down the bloodshot eyes and panic. When he answered the phone, his voice sounded almost as calm as usual: "Hello, Yixian."

"Lu Yuan, can you get in touch with Brother Zhe?" Ye Yixian's voice was filled with anxiety.

Lu Yuan felt as if an invisible hand was gripping his heart tightly, and his breath hitched. He hesitated for two seconds before answering in a dry voice, "I don't know... I haven't seen him all day."

"That's strange. Qingyu said she hasn't been able to contact him either. It's really worrying," Ye Yixian muttered to himself.

He knew, of course, that no one would ever be able to contact Gao Zhe again.

"Lu Yuan, what's wrong?" Ye Yixian keenly sensed something was wrong. "Why do you seem so unhappy?"

"I...I'm fine." Lu Yuan felt his back was soaked with cold sweat. He stared intently at the empty space, and almost blurted out, "Yi Xian, do you want to...go with me to a place where nobody knows us and start a new life?"

"Huh? What do you mean?" Ye Yixian was stunned.

"It's about going somewhere else... like, going abroad or something." Lu Yuan's voice trembled slightly, as if he were grasping at the last straw.

"Going abroad? I've never thought about it." Ye Yixian scratched his head, amused. "Why would we go abroad? I think our life is pretty good right now. Besides, what about our studies? What about our families?"

Yes... studies... family...

Lu Yuan felt as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over his head, instantly sobering him up.

Running away is not a solution. My parents are still alive; even if I were to take them with me, I would need a perfectly plausible reason.

"Lu Yuan, have you been too busy with the Entrepreneurship Challenge Cup lately? You're starting to talk nonsense." Ye Yixian's voice softened, tinged with a hint of coquettishness. "Or... are you missing me? If you miss me, you can say so. I don't have classes lately because I'm studying, so I have plenty of time to come see you. Although I'm on my period these past few days, I still have other ways to make you feel comfortable..."

"No, no need."

Lu Yuan interrupted her, his voice utterly exhausted, "I'm tired, I'm going to rest."

He hung up the phone in a hurry.

The dormitory fell silent once more. Lu Yuan sat slumped in the darkness, feeling as if the whole world had abandoned him.

Soon, a document was sent over.

Lu Yuan opened the document. The contract terms were cold and harsh. Basically, Longhui Group was forcibly acquiring the "Love Notes" project for a "dirt cheap" price of one million.

Once he signs the document, all the countless days and nights he's endured and all the effort he's poured into over the past six months will be completely irrelevant to him.