CHAPTER 33: CHAPTER 32 THE EYE OF THE STORM

At this point, Han Lie became even more cautious.

First, he registered an account with Jinjiang, topped up 500 yuan, and then manually upgraded to a junior VIP account in the backend.

Once that was done, he sent a Deep Sea Torpedo to each of the two books.

This item was equivalent to a 100-yuan gift. It wasn’t expensive, but the culture on Jinjiang emphasized legitimate subscriptions over tips, so it was already quite impressive.

Besides, both books were on hiatus with very few Chapters. After Han Lie sent his gifts, he also fully subscribed to both, boosting his fan level straight to the "Little Cutie" rank.

Then he left a comment in the comment section for each—

"The author’s writing is just so fresh, ahhh I really love it!"

"The female lead Xi Xi is too awesome, I’m so heartbroken that it’s not finished, BOO HOO HOO!"

Who isn’t a little fairy deep down? HEH HEH HEH HEH...

With the preparatory work done, he began to read these two suspected novels.

He had no class during the first period in the afternoon, so he kept reading and constantly monitored the comment sections.

In the end, no reply came from the authors, but Han Lie wasn’t in a hurry.

As long as the authors still harbored ambitions for their work, they would eventually come back to look. In her previous life, Xi Luting still occasionally logged into her alternate account even in her junior year of university; she definitely hadn’t given up!

If Xi Luting wasn’t one of the two authors, that was fine too. Two hundred yuan wasn’t an unaffordable loss for Han Lie. He would just eliminate two incorrect possibilities and search for the next one.

There were fewer than twenty new authors in total who had uploaded their first book after June 7, 2013, and stopped writing before September 1 of the same year.

Worst case, he’d spend a little more time and money to go through every single author! What was the big deal? Brother Lie was broad-minded and never shied away from trouble when doing good deeds. Xi Luting was truly lucky to have met him.

The second class in the afternoon was Microeconomics, and Han Lie attended as usual.

Yu Yun had been staring at the door the whole time. The moment she spotted Han Lie in the crowd, she hurriedly waved.

"Brother Lie, over here!"

The classroom instantly fell silent, and most people turned their heads to look at Han Lie.

A few people looked at Yu Yun and whispered among themselves.

"Is Yu Yun going after Han Lie?"

"Doesn’t she get along with everyone?"

"Getting along is one thing, but she’s never been this proactive with any guy..."

"Pfft, so she’s dropping the act?"

"Quite the opposite, right? She’s about to start her act..."

Yu Yun wasn’t particularly popular in class to begin with, and Han Lie was considered a great catch by many girls. Her loud call stirred up considerable resentment.

Han Lie himself was surprised.

Yu Yun was a woman capable of keeping her composure, wasn’t she? Throughout their four years of university, many guys had pursued her, but she had always kept them on a string, never clearly revealing her feelings. It wasn’t until a year after graduation that she quietly married Duan Xiaoyi and completely retired from the scene. Strictly speaking, Duan Xiaoyi was even her first love. After all, a Sea Queen only fishes and never bothers with actual dating.

Of course, the fact that she eventually cheated on Duan Xiaoyi and found someone else was perfectly understandable. Brother Lie sympathized with her. It was truly a painful existence, after all. To muddle along until the age of thirty with an incompetent man who couldn’t even score twenty on the Special—how much bitterness must have accumulated in her heart? Was seeking solace with an outsider so outrageous?! Well, yes, it was too outrageous—she should have come to me! Han Lie seriously suspected Duan Xiaoyi had never told her about the ’pendulum rankings’ in their dorm. Otherwise, she definitely wouldn’t have let an outsider benefit; she would have sought out Brother Lie to reminisce about old times long ago...

Hold on, hold on, let’s not dwell too much on the future. The important thing was, what was wrong with her today? Being so proactive and friendly towards a guy wasn’t her style at all...

Han Lie couldn’t figure it out, but he keenly sensed the change in Yu Yun. Deciding not to overthink it, he walked straight over to her.

If she wanted to fish, he’d play along! When a Sea King and a Sea Queen got together, it was all just a game of mutual pursuit, a bit of sparring for amusement. Who was afraid of whom?

Han Lie calmly walked over and sat beside Yu Yun.

Xi Luting was still next to Yu Yun, but this time, she was sitting on the inside.

Seeing Han Lie, she lifted her eyelids for a fleeting glance, then acted like a complete stranger, not even offering a greeting.

Brother Lie’s face remained impassive, but inwardly he sneered. Cherish these last moments of your arrogance, little cucumber!

In front of Xi Luting sat the other four girls from their dormitory. Fang Feifei was directly in front of her and turned her head to give Han Lie a deliberate look.

Next to Fang Feifei was Duan Xiaoyi, while Lou Zhi sat in front of Han Lie—a truly chaotic seating arrangement.

Actually, with the limited seating in the multimedia classroom, it was normal for anyone to end up sitting next to anyone else.

But Duan Xiaoyi, Lou Zhi, Fang Feifei, Yu Yun, plus Xi Luting, formed an extremely volatile combination.

To roughly summarize their dynamics:

Initially, Fang Feifei had a slight interest in Lou Zhi but soon realized he wasn’t her type and then grew closer to Duan Xiaoyi.

Lou Zhi had absolutely no resistance to Yu Yun’s allure, fantasizing about her constantly and desperately trying to ingratiate himself with her, yet he also felt particularly bitter about Fang Feifei’s change of heart.

Duan Xiaoyi had always liked Xi Luting the most but never dared to confess directly, all while being entangled with both Fang Feifei and Yu Yun.

Fang Feifei and Yu Yun couldn’t stand the sight of each other from the very beginning.

Lou Zhi and Duan Xiaoyi clicked surprisingly well. One was a lemon essence, the other a master of insinuation—a match made in heaven. Yet they ended up loving and killing each other over women...

Messy, right? And this was just the drama from their freshman year. The subsequent developments were even more bizarre and fantastical, but let’s not get into that for now.

The moment Han Lie sat down, it was as if he had landed in the eye of a hurricane, with everyone inevitably swirling around him.

Far from being afraid, Brother Lie was actually faintly looking forward to it. Come on, baby! Let’s get some drama going!

Honestly, the biggest motivation for Han Lie to remain in the College of Humanities was these weirdos who had left such deep psychological scars on him in his past life. The young Han Lie had indeed been a disappointment, but if it hadn’t been for the toxic environment and his disgusting classmates, he wouldn’t have been so severely affected. Even transferring to a third-rate university wouldn’t have been as bad. The College of Humanities was too small, and there were too many students; the cramped environment amplified conflicts. The Magic Capital was too pragmatic, dreams too burdensome; everyone was repressed yet restless. The Magic Capital locals already possessed a strong sense of superiority and could obtain a second-tier university diploma. The out-of-town students either had money or dreams, and conflicts were everywhere. In such intense clashes, there would always be cannon fodder. Whoever adapted slowest was the unlucky one. All that pressure, concentrated on a sensitive and struggling young man—the outcome was a foregone conclusion. Han Lie became that cannon fodder.

Given a second chance, Brother Lie had to reclaim his standing. Otherwise, a thorn would forever be embedded in his heart.

Of course, Han Lie didn’t plan to seek direct revenge on anyone. How boring would that be? What Brother Lie truly wanted was to rise up right under their noses, to become an unattainable figure of great importance to them. Then, he would help the three or five people who deserved it and let the remaining idiots stomp their feet in envy, regret, and misery for the rest of their lives. Psychological scars? Now it’s your turn.

Just as he was thinking, things started to happen. Yu Yun had deliberately called Han Lie over, clearly prepared to make a move.

Her very first sentence was enough to send one’s imagination racing.

"Brother Lie, what kept you busy this afternoon? Why didn’t you reply to my text~~~"

Yu Yun’s voice was delicate and sweet, the end of her words drawn out long, sounding less like an accusation and more like coquetry.

Honestly, Han Lie was somewhat taken aback. Girl, you’re not just cultivating your little fish pond anymore; you’re launching a full-on offensive... What suddenly made you so reckless? Could a mere phone number scare you into making such a drastic move?

Unable to guess what Yu Yun was plotting, Han Lie casually replied, "I was studying in the dorm."

"TSK!"

Lou Zhi, sitting in front, let out a disdainful snort.

Duan Xiaoyi slung an arm around Lou Zhi, feigning a reprimand, "What’s with the ’tsk’? Look at Brother Lie, then look at yourself... TSK TSK TSK, no comparison!"

The two great masters of insinuation wouldn’t miss any opportunity to be obnoxious.

A flicker of amusement crossed Yu Yun’s eyes, but she exclaimed in apparent shock, "Wow! Han Lie, you’re not thinking of taking the transfer student exam, are you?"

At these words, Xi Luting stopped writing, Fang Feifei turned her head, and the surrounding area fell silent as all eyes shifted to look at him.