Rebirth: My Childhood Sweetheart Came into My Arms

Before Lan Yuan could react, Jiang Chengyu thrust his knee into the back of his knee.

With a groan of pain, Lan Yuan's legs buckled, and he knelt on the ground.

This familiar scene reminded He Ziyu of Liu Wen being pinned to the ground by Jiang Chengyu on the day he returned to school. Back then, Lan Yuan didn't stand up for Liu Wen, and naturally, no one would help him now.

He Ningqiu was afraid of He Ziyu, and given that the other side had a large and powerful force, it was impossible for her to stand up at this critical juncture. So she could only stand aside and symbolically move her lips.

"Brother Yu, don't be impulsive..."

Jiang Chengyu ignored him and continued to exert force with his hands.

Lan Yuan grimaced in pain, which looked rather comical given his crooked nose. He struggled desperately to take the initiative, but the next second, a little guy was riding on his back.

"You dare bully my brother! You dare bully my brother!"

Su Chi waved his two little fists, his expression both cute and fierce.

Passersby were drawn to the commotion and stopped to watch, some even taking out their phones to record.

He Ningqiu couldn't stand it any longer.

He walked over to He Ziyu and gently tugged at his sleeve. "Brother, shouldn't you do something about this?"

He Ziyu crossed his arms and glanced sideways at He Ningqiu. "Why should I care? Didn't he start this trouble himself?"

"But we're outside."

"He doesn't care where he causes trouble, so why should I care where I teach him a lesson?"

"..."

He Ziyu's rhetorical question silenced He Ningqiu completely.

……

As the crowd grew larger, Lan Yuan finally couldn't withstand the pressure and gritted his teeth, saying, "I was wrong. I apologize to He Ziyu."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Chengyu released his hands that were restraining him.

Lan Yuan staggered to his feet and walked up to He Ziyu in full view of everyone.

He Ziyu remained calm, raised his chin, and stared directly at the disgusting, big, dumb guy in front of him.

He firmly believed that Lan Yuan would not lay a hand on him in front of Jiang Chengyu, unless the guy wanted to get another full-face plastic surgery.

After a long pause, Lan Yuan's Adam's apple bobbed, and he managed to squeeze out three words: "I'm sorry."

The apology was meant to be sincere, but instead it was filled with resentment and bitterness.

He Ziyu couldn't help but click his tongue.

"Look at how reluctant you are, like you have a knife to your throat. Fine, fine, I didn't expect you to sincerely apologize to me anyway. From now on, let's just leave each other alone."

Having been given a second chance at life, He Ziyu has become much more open-minded about many things.

He no longer expects anyone to abandon evil and embrace good, nor does he fantasize that every day will be filled with clear skies.

After all, there are too many things in this world that people cannot control, just like the "two sides" of the fire-spark painting. Yin cannot produce life, and Yang cannot grow.

The only thing people can ever change is themselves.

……

After dealing with Lan Yuan, He Ziyu and Jiang Chengyu took Su Chi back to the ice cream shop.

Upon seeing them, Jiang Nanqiao quickly asked, "Are you done playing?"

"Yes!" Su Chi nodded excitedly, "We even chased away a bad guy!"

"Bad guy? What bad guy?"

"He's not a bad person, it's Lan Yuan," He Ziyu said. "We bumped into him with He Ningqiu when we came out of the children's playground."

"Oh, so it's Lan Yuan. Then he's definitely a bad guy. Our A-Chi wasn't wrong." Jiang Nanqiao pulled Su Chi into her arms, brushed his messy hair aside, and asked, "Did you greet him?"

"It wasn't just a greeting, it almost turned into a fight."

He Ziyu sat down in the chair and briefly recounted what had happened.

Jiang Nanqiao wore a disgusted expression the whole time, her eyes practically rolling to the sky.

"He Ningqiu and Lan Yuan should be together. Their being together is a good way to rid the people of a scourge."

"To rid the people of this scourge!" Su Chi chimed in, waving his little fist.

"What's it to you, little thing?" Jiang Nanqiao said, both amused and exasperated, pinching Su Chi's cheeks with both hands. "Don't tell anyone I took you to the arcade tonight, okay? Otherwise, your aunt will kill me."

"I know, you've said it eight times already, you're so nagging!"

The scene of the siblings chattering away was harmonious. He Ziyu was lost in thought while watching them until Han Zhiruo tapped the table, bringing him back to his senses.

"Ayu, there's something I must remind you of."

"What?"

"Recently, the He family has been suppressing the Lan family in business, and He Ningqiu is your father's adopted child. To put it bluntly, his relationship with you is very weak. Now that he is getting too close to Lan Yuan, it is not a good thing for your He family. If possible, it would be best to be cautious."

He Ziyu paused for a moment, then his expression turned to surprise.

"How do you know all this? I mean, about He Ningqiu and my relationship, and about Lan Yuan..."

"Qiaoqiao told me," Han Zhiruo said. "I came out to her and clarified my relationship with Jiang Chengyu. Qiaoqiao saw my sincerity, so she shared some things she knew with me. You don't mind, do you?"

He Ziyu quickly shook his head, "Of course I don't mind, anyway, these aren't secrets, but you just said that you..."

"Coming out?" Han Zhiruo smiled. "Qiaoqiao is a girl, and out of respect, I should tell her the truth."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Nanqiao scratched her head somewhat shyly.

Actually, she didn't mind at all that Han Zhiruo liked girls.

As a seasoned yaoi fan, she's long been unfazed by same-sex relationships. To put it even more dramatically, she might actually be quite happy if Han Zhiruo were to fall for her someday.

After all, gender aside, Han Zhiruo has good looks, a good family background, and an overseas study background. From any perspective, she is the best choice for a partner.

After chatting for a while, He Ziyu, seeing that it was still early, decided to take Han Zhiruo to Xinrong Jiayuan to visit their studio.

"The studio is not yet profitable, but we have already connected with several publishers. Once the first draft of Fire Seed is completed, we can start printing and simultaneous promotion."

"Aren't you planning to do any derivative development?"

"derivative?"

"Like anime, games, and the like," Han Zhiruo said. "If you have any needs in this area, perhaps I can offer my small contribution."

After saying that, Han Zhiruo took out her phone and opened the hidden photo album.

……

At Westper High School in the United States, Han Zhiruo is recognized as a cool and aloof goddess.

But in fact, she also has a little-known, somewhat childish, identity—

A genius gamer girl.

Since being introduced to games in elementary school, Han Zhiruo has played hundreds of single-player games, web games, and PC games, and has completed more than 90% of them.

The hidden album is full of game screenshots, a wide variety that's dazzling.

He Ziyu was dumbfounded. "You...you've actually played so many games?"

Han Zhiruo nodded. "Besides playing games, I also make games, but due to limited time, I've only made single-player mini-games."

As she spoke, she switched to the photo album and clicked on an icon on the desktop.

"This is a tower defense game, similar to Plants vs. Zombies. There are a few minor bugs that haven't been fixed yet, but they don't affect the experience."

He Ziyu took Han Zhiruo's phone and tapped the screen incredulously.

The game is set in a medieval manor, with a winding path leading from the gate to the castle. Various mechanisms can be built around the manor, and once activated, they can defeat the endless waves of invading alien creatures.

"Brother, can I play for a while? I want to play too!"

Su Chi waited anxiously by the side for a long time, but seeing that He Ziyu was having more and more fun and showed no intention of letting go, he was so anxious that he kept circling around him.

"Okay, okay, you can play with it."

He Ziyu pressed the pause button, handed the phone to Su Chi, and then looked at Han Zhiruo.

"Ruoruo, I have a favor to ask..."

"What?"

"May I invite you to join our studio?"

He Ziyu clasped his hands together, his gaze incredibly sincere.

Han Zhiruo probably hadn't expected He Ziyu to be so proactive. After a pause, she asked him, "May I?"

"Why not? Absolutely! Letting you go would be my loss!" He Ziyu was a little excited, rubbing his hands together, eager to get started. "If you join us, you can be in charge of the game side. We'll operate on two fronts and I guarantee we'll make a fortune!"

Han Zhiruo also wanted to make money, so she naturally didn't want to miss this opportunity. The two hit it off immediately and finalized the deal.

Afterwards, He Ziyu took her to Xinrong Garden to see Huozhong and showed her the draft of "The Front and Back". They didn't return home until the bright moon was high in the sky.

"Ruoruo, Qiaoqiao, remember to let us know in the group chat when you get home." He Ziyu saw the three of them to the roadside and watched them get into the car. "Achi, come visit your brother sometime."

"Okay! Goodbye, brother!" Su Chi leaned against the window, his smile exceptionally bright.

Once the car had completely disappeared into the night, He Ziyu took Jiang Chengyu's hand and walked side by side with him towards the No. 2 bus stop.

There was still the last bus at this time, and neither of them wanted to take a taxi home. After all, taking the bus would be slower, and they could enjoy their time together a little longer.

Soon after, the bus slowly arrived.

He Ziyu pulled Jiang Chengyu to the last row and sat them in a window seat.

The winter night was cold and windy. He Ziyu huddled in Jiang Chengyu's arms, shivering. Seeing this, Jiang Chengyu quickly hugged him tighter and gently rubbed He Ziyu's cold fingers with his warm palms.

"You're coming home so late, won't your aunt be upset?" He Ziyu leaned on Jiang Chengyu's shoulder, his tone quite worried.

"No," Jiang Chengyu said, "with Han Zhiruo around, the security gates are practically useless."

He Ziyu raised an eyebrow. "Oh, I see..."

Smelling the sour smell in the air, Jiang Chengyu looked down at him.

"Didn't you say you weren't jealous anymore?"

"I'm not jealous."

"Really? Then look up and let me see."

He Ziyu obediently looked up upon hearing this, but the next second, Jiang Chengyu sealed his lips with a kiss.

The last bus was empty except for the two of them, which made Jiang Chengyu even more unrestrained.

He pressed He Ziyu against the back of the chair, and then slipped his right hand under the hem of He Ziyu's clothes.