Chapter 16: Thinking of and Being Thought Of

The next day.

Xu Shaochen was woken up by a flurry of noises. Groggily opening his eyes, he saw Song Xinran, dressed in a black nightgown, preparing breakfast.

Her fair skin was faintly visible beneath the black gown, and her hair was casually tied up at the back of her head, giving off a lazy yet beautiful vibe.

“What are you staring at, you little rascal? Get up and eat already.”

Song Xinran turned around and caught Xu Shaochen’s gaze. A blush appeared on her pretty face as she glanced at him with a slight reproach.

Xu Shaochen chuckled, then got out of bed to wash up before joining Song Xinran for breakfast.

After breakfast, Xu Shaochen drove Song Xinran to the 4S Store for work.

As soon as she got out of the car, the sales staff gathered around her, all acting extremely enthusiastic. No one dared to give her the cold shoulder anymore.

Seeing this from a distance, Xu Shaochen smiled faintly, then turned the car around and headed to school.

On the way, Xu Shaochen thought about calling Jenny to have her suppress the Jiang and Li Families.

But in the end, he dismissed the idea because it was his personal vendetta. He wasn’t that close to Jenny yet, and she was only following his orders because of his grandfather’s will.

Besides, using domestic resources for his personal revenge against two companies would be making a big deal out of nothing, making him seem too capricious.

Moreover, there’s a unique joy in exacting revenge personally. So, Xu Shaochen decided to handle it himself.

He had 30 million in monthly pocket money, a significant starting fund. He could also occasionally get some help from Jenny, so he could completely start his own company, slowly develop it, and eventually crush the Jiang and Li Families underfoot.

It would also allow him to gain management experience for when he fully takes over his grandfather’s company after graduating from university. Why not do it?

Having thought it through, Xu Shaochen couldn’t help but press the accelerator harder, a smile of slight cruelty and madness curving his lips.

The Jiang Family, the Li Family… Heh.

……………

While Xu Shaochen was thinking about others, someone else was thinking about him too.

Dahui Demolition Company.

General Manager’s office.

“How’s it going? Did you find out?” Liu Hui, his head wrapped in bandages, asked the young man in front of him darkly.

This was the same Mr. Liu who had tried to harass Song Xinran at the 4S Store yesterday and had been beaten up by Xu Shaochen.

These days, people who run demolition companies aren’t exactly the kind-hearted type. After leaving the 4S Store yesterday, Liu Hui had someone investigate Xu Shaochen.

The young man looked at Liu Hui with a flattering smile and said, “Mr. Liu, I found out everything yesterday. That guy’s name is Xu Shaochen; he’s just a poor student. His mother is sick and in the hospital, and they can’t even afford the surgery fees.”

“Damn it! A poor student dares to hit me? He must be sick of living!” Liu Hui’s face turned livid with anger, and he slammed his palm on the office desk.

The young man was startled and quickly nodded in agreement, “Yes, yes, Mr. Liu, you’re right. We need to teach this brat a lesson.”

“Go. Isn’t he struggling with the surgery fees? Pay someone at the hospital to kick his mother out.” A cold glint flashed in Mr. Liu’s eyes as he looked at the young man with a sinister smile.

When the young man heard this, his face turned pale. Hesitantly, he said, “Mr. Liu, isn’t that a bit… too much? It could easily cause trouble; we’re talking about a human life here.”

There was a second thought he didn’t express: Why go after the guy’s sick mother just because he hit you? Don’t you have a family too?

“Slap!”

The next second, Liu Hui slapped the young man across the face and shouted angrily, “Who’s in charge here, you or me? If she dies, how is that my problem? It’ll be his fault for not being able to pay!”

“Mr. Liu, you… you’re the boss,” the young man stammered, feeling the stinging pain on his cheek as his face turned blue and white with humiliation.

Liu Hui spat out, “Then get out and do as I say! Damn it, you people are getting too bold nowadays!”

“Yes, yes, Mr. Liu, calm down. I’ll go right now. Right away.” The young man didn’t dare say anything more and rushed out of the office.

Watching the young man’s panicked retreat, Liu Hui cursed under his breath, then propped his legs up on the desk with a sneer on his face, “You little punk. I’ll make it so that you won’t even know how your mom died.”

He was going to take it slowly, starting by killing Xu Shaochen’s mother to shatter his spirit. Then, Song Xinran would be next. He planned to torment Song Xinran in front of Xu Shaochen until the kid went mad.

………………

Jiangzhou University is the top-ranked university in Canglan Province and is also well-known throughout Longguo, with a history of over a hundred years.

When Xu Shaochen drove into the campus, it didn’t cause any stir. For one, no one knew him; for another, the school was no stranger to luxury cars.

Xu Shaochen majored in Psychology, with four classes a day. Except for his mandatory psychology class in the morning, he rarely attended the other courses.

But his grades were excellent in all courses, so he never worried about failing. No teacher ever gave him trouble either. Being a student who won scholarships every year had its perks.

However, Psychology wasn’t a popular major. He had only chosen it impulsively back then, but now it didn’t matter since he planned to start his own business soon.

After parking his car, Xu Shaochen had just stepped out when he saw Zhao Qingyu enter through the school gate.

Today, Zhao Qingyu was wearing a pale moon-white qipao, her hair styled into a bun and fixed with a hairpin. A few strands of hair hung by her ears, and the tight-fitting qipao accentuated her curvy figure. She wore silver high heels, giving her a classical charm as if she had stepped right out of a painting.

The moment she entered the gate, she caught the attention of many gazes.

Xu Shaochen couldn’t help but remember the photos she had sent last night, and a wave of heat surged through him.

“Teacher Zhao? Teacher Zhao?”

Xu Shaochen greeted her, but Zhao Qingyu seemed to be lost in thought and didn’t notice him.

“Oh, Shaochen, I’m sorry. I was just thinking about something.”

It took a while for Zhao Qingyu to snap out of it. She looked at Xu Shaochen, a little flustered, her face slightly red and unnatural, as if she had just been caught doing something guilty.

She had been thinking about the person she’d chatted with last night who hadn’t messaged her at all today. Mustering the courage to send a ‘Good Morning’ had gone unanswered, leaving her feeling a bit empty. That’s why she hadn’t noticed Xu Shaochen’s greeting.

In reality, Xu Shaochen hadn’t checked the messaging app all morning, so he had no idea that Zhao Qingyu had sent anything.