CHAPTER 36: CHAPTER 35 IS MY EXPLANATION CLEAR ENOUGH?

The current point in time was precisely when Duan Xiaoyi was fanatically infatuated with Xi Luting.

To be more specific, it was the stage when Duan Xiaoyi was trying hard to show off to Xi Luting like a peacock spreading its feathers.

In his previous life, Duan Xiaoyi had boasted about his advances in the dorm more than once.

For instance, having had a pleasant chat with Xi Luting one day, or earning a beautiful smile from her another day, and so on and so forth...

Later on, it turned out that all of that was just normal social interaction, and Xi Luting had absolutely no interest in him.

But the issue was, within the entire 1918 dormitory, it truly was Duan Xiaoyi who had the best relationship with Xi Luting.

At least they could have a normal conversation and chat casually.

There were no more than five boys in the class who were treated this way.

So, Duan Xiaoyi always considered himself Xi Luting’s good friend, always feeling that his hopes were very high, just lacking an opportunity.

But something about the current situation just wasn’t right!

In choosing between himself and Han Lie, Xi Luting actually took the initiative to defend Han Lie?!

Duan Xiaoyi couldn’t accept it and was genuinely anxious.

"How high must his math skills be for the class monitor to praise him like this?"

"Let me see..."

"Yo, isn’t it just filling in answers on the exercise page?"

"Not even a single piece of scratch paper. Don’t tell me you did it all in your head?"

"If you’re just blindly scribbling answers, I could do that too!"

Before Han Lie could even open his mouth, Xi Luting lost her patience.

She cocked her head slightly, and a Queen-like condescending expression that Han Lie was very familiar with made an early appearance.

"Randomly filled in? You can’t even get the formulas right."

"Uh..."

Duan Xiaoyi’s face suddenly became quite a sight.

Fang Feifei turned her head and leaned over the back of her chair to take a look. Then she suddenly lifted her small, palm-sized face, full of curiosity, "Han Lie, are you really doing the problems? Why aren’t there any calculations?"

The question itself was quite stupid, but surprisingly, her attitude wasn’t malicious; instead, it carried a kind of innocence.

Any normal person could easily feel that her question was just a question, and not ill-intentioned.

Han Lie’s mood was a bit subtle.

In the early stages, Fang Feifei was not only not annoying but also somewhat candid and cute.

So how exactly did she become like that?

What a tragedy...

Han Lie shook his head and responded casually, "The problems are too simple. Mental math was enough."

Mathematics Level 3 was at least equivalent to the level of a sophomore in the mathematics department at Qingbei University. To deal with a mere "Higher Algebra I," why bother with scratch paper?

Just drop the "paper" part, close your eyes, and breeze through it.

"Wow..."

Fang Feifei uttered a long exclamation, her eyes filled with admiration.

"You’re amazing! I’ve been studying for half a month and still haven’t grasped the first Chapter..."

Yu Yun covered her mouth and chuckled coyly, her peach-blossom eyes brimming with tenderness and shyness, "Big Bro Lie, you must have put in a lot of effort, right? So diligent and ambitious."

"Uh..."

Big Bro Lie was somewhat at a loss for how to respond.

Am I diligent?

Thinking about the tooth he had personally knocked out, the scoundrel confidently nodded. "Indeed, I’ve made no small effort, but it’s worth it."

"Inspirational!"

Yu Yun gave a thumbs up.

"Inspirational!"

Fang Feifei chimed in with a giggly smile.

Xi Luting rolled her eyes, scoffing inwardly, "Two smitten fools!"

Then she silently added another 0.5 points to Han Lie’s capabilities.

Duan Xiaoyi was nearly driven mad.

It was bad enough that Xi Luting was backing Han Lie.

Now, his own bootlicker Fang Feifei, and even Yu Yun, his confidante, had all damnably switched sides at the critical moment!

Was he, a member of the demolition nouveau riche from the Magic Capital, really so lacking in prestige?!

The contempt that natives of the Magic Capital have for outsiders might be etched in their bones.

No matter how well they usually disguised it, it would be blatantly exposed at a critical moment.

Duan Xiaoyi’s emotions, after being repeatedly provoked, finally collapsed.

"Mental calculations? Oh, you’re just *sooo* clever!"

"Well, I wish you success in getting into Fudan or Jiao Tong University and finding a good job soon!"

"Work hard, with a bit more support from home, and perhaps in less than ten years, you’ll be able to save up for the down payment on a house like one of mine."

"But it will probably be tough in the first few years after graduation, right?"

"You’ll have to be frugal with your salary."

"If it really doesn’t work out, you can just rent my place!"

"We’re classmates, after all. Just say how much of a discount you want, okay?!"

Upon hearing this, Lou Zhi was overjoyed.

He had finally found an opportunity to retaliate and quickly played along.

"Big Bro Lie lives in a 3,500 international dorm; would he care about your little rent discount?"

"That’s not necessarily true!"

Duan Xiaoyi sneered, twisting his mouth, "3,500 a year versus over a hundred thousand a year—that’s quite a difference. Our building is within the inner ring. If your starting salary isn’t at least 25,000, you really might not be able to afford it!"

The two went back and forth, and to tell the truth, it was especially disgusting.

Fang Feifei originally had quite a good impression of Duan Xiaoyi, but now she was frowning.

Having a building in the family is indeed incredible, but why keep bringing it up?

It’s not like *you’re* remarkable yourself!

Han Lie isn’t even paying attention to you, why the heck are you being so overbearing?

...

Yu Yun didn’t have such a strong sense of righteousness and was all tangled up inside. Should I help Han Lie, or should I wait and see?

Although she believed that Han Lie’s family background wasn’t ordinary, she wasn’t sure if it could hold up against the four apartment blocks owned by Duan Xiaoyi’s family.

Perhaps...

Men’s issues should be left for them to resolve?

...

Xi Luting watched the commotion with amusement in her eyes.

Did she not know what Duan Xiaoyi was thinking?

No, she knew all too well.

That’s why she deliberately praised Han Lie while taking a jab at Duan Xiaoyi.

It was quite obvious that she was pouring fuel on the fire.

’You scoundrel, let’s see you act all high and mighty with me now!’

She didn’t hate Han Lie, nor did she dislike him.

Even emotionally, she leaned toward Han Lie.

But that didn’t affect her desire to teach Han Lie a lesson and enjoy watching him look foolish.

What if things escalated into a fight?

A fight would be even better!

After all, Han Lie definitely wouldn’t be at a disadvantage; at most, he’d just be a bit embarrassed—and the more embarrassed he was, the happier she would be.

Xi Luting was, after all, just an 18-year-old girl. Her so-called Queen-like personality, before being sufficiently honed by life’s trials, could at best be described as "domineering" and "willful."

So, she just wanted to see Han Lie in an awkward state.

Then she would personally step in to save the day.

Ultimately, she would have to find the perfect opportunity to ask him face to face—

’Kid, are you still going to play it cool with me, still doing the whole ’hard-to-get’ act?’

Right, at that moment she absolutely must not laugh. She must have a condescending air, her expression cold, her gaze could carry a hint of mockery...

WOW!

Just thinking about it was so satisfying!

Xi Luting’s inner drama was the richest, but her expression remained utterly calm.

She completely relaxed, leaning against her chair back, switching to spectator mode.

All the others were tense.

Except for Han Lie.

At this point in the drama, there clearly wasn’t anything new to see, and it would be just as well not to watch the rest.

Next, it would be time to flip the table.

So, Han Lie raised his head with a smile that was not quite a smile and looked directly into Duan Xiaoyi’s eyes.

"Which of your family’s houses is so expensive?"

"Every house my family owns is that expensive!" Duan Xiaoyi blurted out his reply.

"Heh..."

Han Lie let out a laugh and shook his head, "Kid, you don’t actually count those four apartment blocks, which the whole village pooled together to get, as your family’s private property, do you?"

"Damn it!"

Duan Xiaoyi’s heart pounded. His face turned white and his lips quivered as he swore on the spot.

"What nonsense are you spouting?!"

The girls were stunned, casting doubtful glances at Duan Xiaoyi.

Han Lie laughed again.

It was an extremely relaxed and composed laugh, as if everything was under his control.

Then he spoke leisurely.

"Yangpu District Xinyuan Jiayuan’s Building No. 4, right?"

"A small high-rise, one staircase serving four households per floor; one-bedroom apartments are 42 square meters, two-bedroom apartments are 64 square meters."

"Your family, spanning three generations, got eight apartments on the 10th and 11th floors of Block 1."

"Two for personal use, six for renting out."

"Oh, and your parents bought an additional 48-square-meter ground-floor commercial unit from the developers and opened a small supermarket, right?"

"What’s the average price this year for relocated apartments in Yang Pu District?"

"I don’t recall. Do you?"

"Now, I’ll give you another chance to choose your words. Think carefully before you speak again."

"Your family, which house, is *that* expensive?!"

"You, you, you..."

Duan Xiaoyi was dumbstruck, his complexion deathly pale, looking as if he had seen a ghost.

Not just him—Lou Zhi, Fang Feifei, Yu Yun, Xi Luting... all were stunned into silence.

Big brother, what exactly does your family do?!

FBI warning?!

Han Lie smiled in a teasing but not ostentatious manner.

Quite handsome.

But in Duan Xiaoyi’s eyes, it was more terrifying than a devil’s grin.

And the devil’s whisper continued.

"The original inhabitants banded together to pressure the developers, ultimately achieving mass relocation. That’s quite impressive."

"However, your family wasn’t the one leading the charge, nor did your family have the connections. Yours just tagged along and benefited from the situation."

"Duan Xiaoyi, you’re a lucky child, blessed by the times."

"The surging historical currents of the nation’s booming development brought a lifetime of wealth to your doorstep. You can brag about your wealth to me, but you cannot attribute your family’s prosperity to personal struggle."

"You should thank the Party and the country, but not yourself."

"You must always remember two things—"

"First, your family isn’t as amazing as you boast."

"Second, even if your family has some money, it still has nothing to do with you."

"You currently have nothing and are nothing."

"So, don’t prance around being sarcastic and condescending in front of me. You’re not qualified. Understand?"

Duan Xiaoyi was completely stunned.

His mind was a tangled mess, filled with confusion, and for a moment, his thoughts were completely blank.

Eventually, he instinctively asked the biggest question puzzling him.

"How... how in the world did you know all this?!"

Level 3 Acting kicked in. Han Lie smiled, a calm and playful expression on his face.

"In the Magic Capital, hidden dragons and crouching tigers abound. Coming here to study, my family doesn’t want me to cause trouble, but they also don’t want to see me bullied."

"Of the 64 people in our class, I need to know in advance who I can provoke and who I can’t."

"I know what level you’re at, and you, more than anyone, should be aware of it."

"Kid, make absolutely sure there isn’t a next time."

"Have I made myself clear enough?!"

Han Lie’s voice wasn’t loud, nor was his tone heavy; he spoke deliberately, unruffled.

Thus, Duan Xiaoyi heard every word Han Lie said.

And he had ample time to feel the terrifying tension lurking beneath the surface of those words.

Duan Xiaoyi’s eyes widened. He was dazed for a moment, then suddenly nodded hurriedly and in a panic.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah!"

Don’t worry, Big Bro Lie, I guarantee there won’t be a next time!

He was too embarrassed to verbally admit his submission, but his expression was already as docile as a little chick.

A profound fear had suddenly gripped his heart tightly.

...

「Years later, Duan Xiaoyi saw a media exposé online about Han Lie’s story of "coming from an ordinary family and starting from scratch," with comments full of praise and admiration underneath.」

Duan Xiaoyi sneered disdainfully, his sense of superiority palpable, and forcefully spat out a wad of phlegm.

PTUI!

How can you believe such bullshit?!

A bunch of morons!