My sister never calls me brother.

Although Zhou Han tried to greet Lin Nianwei every time, she almost always ignored him.

Because Lin Nianwei had no legitimate reason to talk to Zhou Han, she couldn't let go of her stubborn pride.

Lin Nianwei glanced at Zhou Han downstairs every now and then, thinking to herself, "Idiot, it's not too late to leave after the rain stops."

But Zhou Han suddenly stopped and held her schoolbag up to her head to measure.

Lin Nianwei immediately found out that Zhou Han wanted to go home in the rain.

Lin Nianwei, who was wiping the windowsill, hesitated for a moment, then suddenly threw down the rag, pulled an umbrella out of her schoolbag, and hurriedly ran out of the classroom.

The two girls were somewhat surprised to see Lin Nianwei like this.

"Isn't she not good at sports? Why is she running?"

"I don't know, that's strange."

Lin Nianwei ran downstairs, panting heavily, the umbrella in her hand held to her chest, rising and falling with her breath.

She arrived late. Zhou Han was already running on the playground in the pouring rain, her schoolbag on her head, being watched by many people with mocking eyes.

There was a world-like distance between the two.

Zhou Han ran amidst laughter, while Lin Nianwei strolled amidst praise.

Lin Nianwei pulled herself together and looked at Zhou Han, who had already run far away. Although the time was different, his lonely and desolate figure remained unchanged.

Even after all this time, he hasn't changed; he's still a pebble full of sharp edges.

He was still the same boy he used to be, running in the pouring rain, enduring the mocking glances of others, but he never looked back.

Because he...felt afraid.

Chapter Sixty-Five: The Storm is Brewing

Zhongqing No. 8 Middle School.

A regular high school in Zhongqing City is a gathering place for problem students.

This high school has an extremely bad reputation; fights are commonplace, and it is known by the public as a "bad high school."

The students mostly traveled in groups, and despite their young age, they already had a gang-like atmosphere.

The arcade next to the No. 8 Middle School in Zhongqing City was sparsely populated due to the heavy rain.

At this moment, Du Jun, who had been beaten by Zhou Han not long ago, sat here somewhat timidly.

Du Jun's black Jinteng Academy uniform stood out in the arcade, as all the boys coming and going wore red Zhongqing No. 8 Middle School uniforms.

Passersby would occasionally cast disdainful glances at Du Jun, muttering "bookworm," unaware that even students from Jinteng Academy would call a student from No. 8 Middle School "trash."

As a key high school in Zhongqing City, Jinteng Academy has a different student body than Zhongqing No. 8 Middle School, so they look down on each other to some extent.

Opposite Du Jun sat Xie Peng, nicknamed "Old Bird," the most famous henchman among the eight youth teams.

Xie Peng has been studying at Zhongqing No. 8 Middle School for five years, but he has not yet graduated because he deliberately skipped a grade and stayed in school.

Twenty-year-old Xie Peng looked mature for his age, with a striking bluish beard.

Xie Peng took a deep drag of his cigarette, then exhaled a long breath, blowing it into Du Jun's face, and asked, "You said you were beaten up by that guy named Zhou Han, so you came here to find someone to teach him a lesson?"

"Cough...cough cough..." Du Jun was choked by the smoke, but could only nod, "Yes, yes, yes..."

"You said Zhou Han is very good at fighting... well..." Xie Peng hesitated, meaning that this matter required payment.

“I understand, I understand. Here’s a thousand yuan. I’ll give you another thousand after it’s done.” Du Jun placed an envelope on the table.

"Well... what if one of my brothers gets injured, and the medical expenses..." Xie Peng hesitated, implying that he didn't have enough money.

"Two thousand isn't enough? It's not like we're going to kill someone, just teach them a lesson." Du Jun was somewhat dissatisfied.

Xie Peng started bargaining with Du Jun...

Just then, a group of boys wearing red Zhongqing No. 8 Middle School uniforms walked in, surrounding a boy with smoky eye makeup on his face.

Wherever this smoky-eyed guy went, his underlings cleared a path for him, making him look quite impressive from a distance.

Du Jun was drawn by the noise, but seeing such a grand display, he shrank back and dared not speak.

The boy with smoky eye makeup stopped and stared at Du Jun as he passed by.

His henchmen rushed forward and surrounded Du Jun.

"Jin Teng Academy?" the boy with smoky makeup asked.

Du Jun didn't dare to look the boy in the eye. He was about to speak when Xie Peng interrupted him.

“Sun Qi, don’t scare him…” Xie Peng stood up, chuckling awkwardly, “He’s my customer, a bookworm from Jinteng Academy, nothing special…”

“Shut up…” Sun Qi said sullenly.

In an instant, several henchmen forcefully pushed Xie Peng back into his chair.

"What are you doing here on our No. 8 Middle School's turf, someone from Jinteng Academy?" Sun Qi paused, licked his lips, and said, "Are you looking for death?"

"No...no..." Du Jun stammered, cold sweat pouring down his face, "I...I came here...to ask for help..."

"Huh!?" Sun Qi chuckled, a hint of malice in his eyes, and said, "You guys from Jin Teng Academy, aren't you supposed to be enjoying your beautiful youth and having bright futures? Why are you coming to us? Isn't playing house better?"

After Sun Qi finished speaking, his underlings burst into laughter. In their eyes, the people from Jinteng Academy were idiots who had become stupid from studying too much.

Du Jun swallowed hard, not daring to speak.

"Then let me ask you this: who... could make a little kid playing house get so angry?" Sun Qi laughed, patting Du Jun's face.

"His...his name is Zhou Han, he's in Class 3 of the second year," Du Jun answered softly, hesitantly.

Sun Qi paused for three seconds, then suddenly became excited and said, "The 'Han' in 'cultivation'?"

Du Jun nodded.

"What does it look like?" Sun Qi pressed.

“Dead fish eyes, a thug-like face…” Du Jun replied.

"Is he very good at fighting?" Sun Qi continued to ask.

"Pretty...pretty impressive..." Du Jun answered truthfully.

Sun Qi was silent for a while, then suddenly burst into laughter.

"Haha, I thought he had already left this city. I didn't expect him to go to Jinteng Academy. Really? That's not a place for him..." Sun Qi looked at Du Jun and asked happily, "What is Zhou Han doing now?"

"He's a member of the Seigaku Agency." Du Jun was a little scared. Could this Sun Qi be Zhou Han's friend?

“Seigaku Agency? What’s that?” Sun Qi was stunned.

“It’s a community that helps people. Zhou Han goes there every day and seems to take it very seriously. He seems to be a core member,” Du Jun replied.

Sun Qi was silent for a while, then frantically ran her fingers through her hair, saying with some sadness, "Club? Importance? Core members? What is this? Is this just a game of friendship to enjoy youth? Will he be happy? It shouldn't be like this. Why not continue on the original path? Why take a detour? Why..."

Sun Qi kept asking questions, and it was unclear who he was talking to.

Du Jun felt that Sun Qi was a bit like a lunatic, behaving abnormally.

“I know…” Sun Qi said, her dark circles widening. “Zhou Han has been poisoned by the drug called youth! That’s right! He… is poisoned! Hahahaha…”

Everyone stared at Sun Qi silently; no one spoke.

"You want... us to teach Zhou Han a lesson?" Sun Qi suddenly asked, pressing his face close to Du Jun's.

"Yes...yes..." Du Jun was startled by Sun Qi's sudden approach.

“I’ll take this job!” Sun Qi said.

"Tsk!" Xie Peng clicked his tongue and said, "This is a fight between schools, do you think it's easy? It's hard to even get through the gates of Jin Teng Academy..."

"Yo yo yo..." Sun Qi suddenly moved closer to Xie Peng, pressed her ear against his, and asked, "What...what did you just say?"

"I said, this..." Xie Peng was about to speak when Sun Qi interrupted him.

Sun Qi suddenly grabbed Xie Peng's hair, slammed him hard onto the table, and then pulled him up.

Xie Peng's face was already a bloody mess, and blood was streaming from his nose.

"Tell me quickly, tell me what...what did you just say?" Sun Qi listened intently.

"N-nothing..." Xie Peng said haltingly.

"Really... You'll be coming to Jin Teng Academy with me tomorrow too." Sun Qi released Xie Peng, picked up the envelope containing money from the table, stuffed it into Du Jun's hand, and said to him, "I don't want the money, but can you let us into the academy?"

"Yes, yes, yes, the academy has a small gate." Du Jun nodded vigorously.

"You're so useful..." Sun Qi smiled and patted Du Jun on the shoulder.

"Um..." Du Jun swallowed, then tentatively asked, "Can I ask you a question?"

"Go ahead and ask. I'm a very kind person," Sun Qi said with a smile.

"Teaching Zhou Han a lesson...you seem...very happy?" Du Jun asked after a moment's hesitation.

"Of course I'm happy..." Sun Qi licked her lips and said—

"If a friend goes astray and I have the opportunity to bring him back to the right path, shouldn't I be happy?"

Du Jun felt a chill run down his spine.

Chapter Sixty-Six: Let's Make a Scene!

Zhou Han returned home.

He was soaked to the bone, looking like a drowned rat, with water still dripping down his face, and he looked extremely disheveled.

Miyazaki Airi, wearing an apron, was busy in the kitchen when she saw Zhou Han's miserable appearance upon returning. She was startled, then frowned and walked out of the kitchen.

"Why are you acting like this? Didn't I remind you to bring an umbrella this morning?" Miyazaki Airi asked.

“I brought an umbrella…” Zhou Han replied.

"Then why did it end up like this?" Miyazaki Airi asked, puzzled.

"Lin Nianwei didn't bring an umbrella, so I lent it to her..." Zhou Han scratched his head.

Miyazaki Airi was stunned. She looked Zhou Han up and down as if he were a stranger and asked, "My God! You actually care about girls? Are you still yourself? Are you possessed by an alien?"

"Huh!?" Zhou Han was speechless. "I just lent out an umbrella, and now I'm not myself anymore?"

"Hmm." Miyazaki Airi nodded. "I don't think you'd be that meticulous..."