Chapter 103: The Beginning
Yu Lanfeng felt utterly stifled.
That's right. This was probably the first time in his life he had ever experienced such an emotion.
Bai Zhouyun, someone who was destined to exit the stage sooner or later, was still occupying the position of Nan Yu's fiancé.
As for the two of them, even though they liked each other, they had deliberately kept it hidden so no one would find out, waiting until they could use it as leverage.
That was why they had been keeping everything under wraps. After all, both Yu Lanfeng's identity and Nan Yu's current—and future—status were extremely sensitive.
Everyone knew Bai Zhouyun was trash. They all despised him, thinking he was nothing but a toad who somehow managed to become engaged to a swan.
But insulting him was one thing.
If someone else got together with Nan Yu before the engagement was officially broken off, then the people on StarNet would immediately seize the moral high ground and condemn them.
Even if that person was the Marshal.
Even if he had protected the Empire for so many years.
Yu Lanfeng didn't care about rumors aimed at himself.
But he didn't want Nan Yu to suffer through those rumors as well.
So he would deal with this matter properly.
...
About three days after the allied nations' delegation left the Capital Star, Nan Yu received a communication request.
It was from Zi Zhoulin!
After accepting the call, Nan Yu saw Zi Zhoulin standing alone in a deserted plaza. A large group of people surrounded him, and judging from their aggressive expressions, they clearly weren't there with good intentions.
The moment Zi Zhoulin saw the communication connect, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.
He hadn't expected those people to be so bold that they'd actually dare make a move on the Capital Star.
And in such an open area, no less.
Although there weren't many people around at the moment...
"Zi Zhoulin, what good is it calling some brat?"
"The spaceship is already prepared. Did you really think running to the Capital Star would let you escape Miss's grasp?"
"I'd say you'd better come back obediently. If you cooperate now, you won't suffer as much as after we drag you back."
"Exactly. Don't tell me you've forgotten Miss's temper. Didn't you even hit her before? You've got some nerve. If you go back this time, you're definitely in for it."
Nan Yu took a deep breath.
"Senior, where are you exactly?"
Zi Zhoulin reported his location.
"After leaving the spaceport, turn left. There's a secluded plaza. Hardly anyone comes here."
Nan Yu nodded.
"One minute."
Zi Zhoulin raised an eyebrow.
"Thanks, Junior."
The people surrounding him looked completely bewildered.
What did that mean?
One minute?
And who was this kid?
He sounded awfully confident. Could he really bring someone over within a minute?
No way...
Wait.
Did Zi Zhoulin just call him Junior?
Zi Zhoulin had graduated from the Royal Military Academy of the Capital Star.
That meant this baby-faced young man was currently a student there?
Everyone knew what kind of people attended that academy.
Either they were among the very best...
Or they came from the most powerful families.
So this kid belonged to the latter?
The oldest and most experienced man among them hurriedly spoke.
"Little brother, this is a private matter between us and him. As an outsider, you really shouldn't interfere."
Nan Yu blinked.
"How is it a private matter? Senior came to the Capital Star to see me. Naturally, I'm responsible for ensuring his safety."
"I'm not going to waste time talking to you. The people I asked to come should be arriving soon."
"When they get here, you'd better admit your mistakes sincerely and accept your punishment. That way, you might even get out a little earlier."
What did he mean by "get out earlier"?
As though proving Nan Yu's words, barely twenty seconds later—
Police officers in uniform appeared around the plaza.
Moving at incredible speed, they completely surrounded the group.
After verifying Zi Zhoulin's identity, the police immediately let him go.
They even personally escorted him to the academy in a police hovercraft.
The moment Zi Zhoulin got out, he saw Nan Yu already waiting at the school entrance.
"Senior, come verify your identity. After that I'll take you to your dormitory."
"There are already two people living there."
"The three of you were all contacted by me."
"I'm sure you'll have plenty in common."
Only after seeing both the academy and Nan Yu did Zi Zhoulin truly relax.
Even after receiving Nan Yu's message...
Even after seeing the credits transferred into his account...
Even after boarding the spaceship...
Even after arriving at the Capital Star...
He still hadn't been certain any of this was real.
But now...
He truly had been given another chance.
Afraid Nan Yu would hear the emotion in his voice, Zi Zhoulin merely gave a soft hum in response.
Nan Yu didn't mind.
In high spirits, he led Zi Zhoulin through the identity verification process.
After everything was finished, he took him to the dormitory.
Having received Nan Yu's message that the third roommate had arrived, the other two hurried back from the training grounds to welcome him.
"Welcome! Welcome!"
Chen Yuming smiled.
"From now on, we're teammates. I hope we'll get along well."
Zi Zhoulin awkwardly exchanged hugs with the two of them.
Back when he was still attending the academy, this kind of greeting had been perfectly normal.
But ever since...
He had become uncomfortable with anyone getting too close.
Still, since the three of them would be living together for a long time, he knew he had to slowly recover the trust he once had in comrades and teammates.
Nan Yu clapped his hands.
"Now everyone's finally here."
"In that case, I'll treat you all to a meal."
"You should get to know each other."
"If you decide to stay for the full three years, then you'll be eating and living together that entire time."
The three of them had all noticed how restrained Zi Zhoulin had been.
But they'd all gone through the same thing.
When Chen Yuming and Zheng Fengyin had first arrived, they hadn't been much better.
Chen Yuming had adapted relatively quickly.
But Zheng Fengyin had once been so sensitive that even the slightest physical contact with another person made him uncomfortable for a long time.
Now, however, he was completely fine.
They believed Zi Zhoulin would recover even faster.
Nan Yu grinned.
"After dinner, the three of you should take turns fighting each other."
"I've heard that friendships among Ability Users are built through fighting."
That was true.
Of course, this wasn't the kind of fighting people did outside.
It was simply sparring to deepen their friendship.
Nan Yu treated them to an expensive meal on the top floor of the cafeteria.
It cost him 180,000 credits.
After stuffing all three of them until they were completely full, he accompanied them to the training grounds and watched them spar for four or five hours.
By the time they left the training grounds, the three of them were laughing loudly with their arms slung around each other's shoulders.
Only then did Nan Yu finally feel at ease enough to leave.
Even after Nan Yu left, the atmosphere didn't become awkward again.
Come to think of it...
Fighting a few rounds together really did strengthen friendships.
Even Zi Zhoulin had relaxed considerably.
Although he still instinctively avoided them occasionally, he had already improved tremendously.
...
That day, Nan Yu went to the hospital.
Yu Lanfeng had previously told him there was something very important he wanted to discuss.
Maybe it was about that plan?
But after arriving at the hospital's lounge...
All they did was chat, lie in bed together under the blanket, and sleep.
Nothing else happened.
Nan Yu looked puzzled.
"Brother, didn't you say you had something important to tell me?"
Yu Lanfeng looked at him.
"Isn't this important?"
Nan Yu froze.
So to Yu Lanfeng...
Spending ordinary days together with him was the most important thing.
Everything else, no matter how urgent or significant, came second.
Well...
He really knew how to say the right thing.
Nan Yu couldn't help feeling touched.
He gave a soft snort.
"You sure know how to sweet-talk people. I wonder who taught you that."
Although he said that aloud, he was genuinely happy.
Not long after lying down, he fell asleep.
His good mood was obvious from the faint smile that remained on his lips even after he drifted off.
Yu Lanfeng, meanwhile, felt somewhat confused.
So...
Was he in a good mood?
Or not?
...
Before long, Nan Yu stopped worrying about Bai Zhouyun altogether.
When Yu Lanfeng and the others finally made their move, he would naturally find out.
Besides...
It was probably better if he didn't get involved.
And Yu Lanfeng certainly wouldn't allow him to.
Still...
Day after day passed.
Nan Yu never saw any sign of action.
So when exactly would it happen?
Were they simply waiting for the perfect opportunity?
...
More than half a month later...
On an ordinary morning, Nan Yu got up as usual, washed up, changed clothes, and went into the living room to eat the breakfast Yu Lanfeng had prepared.
Nothing unusual happened.
After breakfast, they each left to take care of their own business.
However...
The moment Nan Yu arrived at school, he discovered the entire campus had exploded with excitement.
Students were gathered in groups everywhere, discussing something enthusiastically.
Every face was filled with excitement.
Yet the instant they noticed Nan Yu...
Every conversation stopped.
Expressions of awkwardness, pity, and sympathy immediately appeared on everyone's faces.
Nan Yu was briefly stunned.
Then he immediately understood.
They had finally made their move.
He didn't know exactly what had happened, but he couldn't help becoming curious.
Keeping an expression that clearly asked, What happened?, he walked into the classroom.
What surprised him even more was that Yang Zhou had actually arrived before him.
After sitting down, Nan Yu looked at him.
"Yang Zhou, did you suddenly change your personality today?"
"You actually got up early instead of sleeping in?"
Yang Zhou jumped in fright.
He had been completely absorbed in looking at something and hadn't even noticed Nan Yu's arrival.
The moment he saw him, he didn't bother answering.
Instead, he directly shared his StarNet screen.
Nan Yu quickly saw what was on it.
A surveillance recording.
That's right.
A completely unedited surveillance video.
The timestamp showed it had been recorded two months earlier.
The protagonist was naturally Bai Zhouyun.
As for the location...
It appeared to be some sort of residence.
After entering, Bai Zhouyun changed his shoes before sitting down on the bed.
A moment later, however, he walked directly toward the surveillance camera.
Yes.
He walked straight toward it, adjusted the camera slightly, then returned to his original seat with a satisfied expression.
It looked as though he were waiting for someone.
About ten minutes later—
A panting figure appeared at the doorway.
"Zhouyun! I'm back!!"
Smiling warmly, Bai Zhouyun beckoned.
"Come here."
Yun Feiyu obediently walked over.
He casually dropped everything he was carrying before kneeling on one knee in front of Bai Zhouyun.
He rested both his head and hands on Bai Zhouyun's thighs.
The sight resembled nothing more than a spoiled pet acting coquettishly toward its owner.
To be honest...
It really looked exactly like that.
After all, among wealthy families, there were always a very small number who kept "pets."
People occasionally witnessed such scenes.
Was Yun Feiyu seriously that shameless?
Nan Yu continued watching.
Very quickly...
The video entered territory unsuitable for children.
The two embraced.
They kissed passionately.
They began taking each other's clothes off.
Then—
Huh?
It ended?
Not only everyone else—
Even Nan Yu felt an unexpected sense of disappointment when the recording cut off.
He quickly regained his composure.
It wasn't as though he'd never—
Actually...
He really had never seen the two of them actually doing it.
He absolutely wasn't going to admit that he'd been a tiny bit excited just now.
Nan Yu took a deep breath.
He wasn't entirely sure how much impact releasing this video would have.
But remembering how almost everyone at school had looked at him with sympathy...
He realized his own influence was probably far greater than he had imagined.
Although the video didn't contain direct proof that the two had slept together...
It was already close enough.
More importantly...
It looked like Bai Zhouyun had installed the surveillance camera himself.
Why would he install a camera just to record himself having sex with Yun Feiyu?
If he wanted to make a recording, shouldn't he have used proper equipment?
What kind of quality could a surveillance camera possibly produce?
Very quickly, everyone realized the discussion had completely gone off-topic.
Once it was brought back on track, the public condemnation of Bai Zhouyun began in earnest.
The academy forum had already exploded.
Every second, countless new discussions appeared.
"My God! I told you Bai Zhouyun trash never deserved the strongest Mental Power User student! Look! The evidence is here! He even recorded it himself! He probably wanted to keep it to watch later, but someone stole it!"
"I just want to say this—to whoever uploaded the video: You've got the guts to post the first half, so post the second half too! Let the rest of us broaden our horizons! We haven't been beaten by society yet!"
"I wonder how Nan Yu will react after seeing this. Will he get angry and break off the engagement?"
"I think that's very likely. If it were me, engagement or not, I'd beat him half to death first, then drag him over to cancel it."
"The Empire's protection laws for Mental Power Users clearly state that once an Ability User has a Mental Power User as their fiancé, they are forbidden from cheating!"
Nan Yu browsed the forum for about an hour.
Nearly every post condemned Bai Zhouyun while expressing sympathy for Nan Yu.
Some students even declared they wanted to pursue Nan Yu themselves.
Fortunately...
Nan Yu ran away quickly.
Actually, it wasn't just because he was fast.
Someone hidden in the shadows was also helping him.
That was why he managed to escape.
...
After leaving school, Nan Yu went straight to the hospital lounge.
He had only intended to stop by.
If Yu Lanfeng wasn't there, he'd simply wait for him.
Unexpectedly...
Yu Lanfeng actually was there.
In broad daylight...
He was calmly browsing StarNet...
The news?
Upon seeing Nan Yu, Yu Lanfeng waved him over.
"Come here."
Nan Yu instinctively started walking toward him.
But for some reason, he suddenly remembered the scene in the video where Bai Zhouyun had beckoned Yun Feiyu over.
Rolling his eyes, he thought to himself that something like that could never happen between him and Yu Lanfeng.
He slowly walked over, sat beside him, and leaned in to look at the StarNet page.
The moment he saw it—
He was stunned.
Bai Zhouyun's scandal had climbed to third place on the trending list?!
That couldn't be right.
No matter how shocking it was, shouldn't it only be circulating within a relatively small circle?
How had it become this huge?
Nan Yu looked at Yu Lanfeng.
"Did you buy the trending spot?"
"No."
"If not you... then the Empress?"
"No."
Nan Yu frowned.
If it wasn't either of them...
Then who?
"Who was it?"
Yu Lanfeng looked back at him.
"Why do you assume someone bought it?"
Nan Yu stared.
"They didn't?"
Yu Lanfeng replied calmly,
"I own shares in this company."
"I once stated that the top ten trending positions—the ones displayed on StarNet's homepage—cannot be bought or sold."
"So..."
Nan Yu stared blankly at Bai Zhouyun's familiar name sitting in third place.
"So... it climbed there on its own?"
"How is that possible?"
"No matter how much of a scumbag Bai Zhouyun is, this shouldn't have become such a huge story."
Yu Lanfeng looked at him in surprise.
"Because of you."
Nan Yu became even more confused.
"What does that have to do with me?"
Yu Lanfeng sighed.
"The video of your competition was released."
"You purified an A-rank mentally contaminated Ability User in ten minutes."
"You also treated the volunteer Wu De abandoned on the competition stage after losing his temper."
"Even though that volunteer wasn't from our Empire..."
Nan Yu covered his face and raised a hand to stop him.
"So... this trending topic only got this high because of me?"
Yu Lanfeng nodded.
"That's right."
"At first, nobody cared."
"It was just another video of some spoiled young master from the Capital Star fooling around."
"But later, someone uncovered another detail."
"They discovered that the Ability User in the video happened to be the fiancé of Nan Yu—the person who had recently brought honor to the Empire."
Nan Yu looked expressionlessly at Yu Lanfeng as he calmly delivered that entire explanation.
Rare.
Very rare.
"I see."
"So what's your plan after this?"
Yu Lanfeng answered without hesitation.
"This is only the first step."
"We're going to ruin Bai Zhouyun's reputation."
Nan Yu paused.
For some reason...
He remembered his previous life.
Back then, after Bai Zhouyun and the others decided he no longer had any value...
They had openly abandoned him.
The first step had also been slowly destroying his reputation.
Then...
The second step...
Yu Lanfeng answered as though reading his thoughts.
"Bankrupt the Bai family."
Compared to what had happened to him...
That still seemed merciful.
The Bai family would merely go bankrupt.
He, on the other hand...
Had lost his entire family.
Not a single loved one remained.
Thinking of his father and two older brothers, Nan Yu felt another sharp ache in his heart.
He hadn't recalled those memories in a long time.
Yet every time he did...
The pain was unbearable.
Because all of it had been his fault.
A hopeless simp stays devoted until he's left with absolutely nothing.
Wasn't that the perfect description of his previous life?
It couldn't have been more accurate.
Nan Yu quietly asked,
"And after that?"
Yu Lanfeng replied,
"We'll decide according to the situation."
"So we won't make any detailed arrangements for now."
"After those first two steps are complete, we'll discuss what comes next."
Nan Yu nodded.
"Mm."
"I'll leave everything to you."
"Suddenly... I think you're really amazing."
Yu Lanfeng answered matter-of-factly,
"I've always been amazing."
Nan Yu was speechless.
Yu Lanfeng genuinely saw nothing wrong with praising himself.
After all...
It was simply the truth.
No one had ever defeated him.
Nan Yu twitched the corner of his mouth.
"You're right."
...
Come to think of it...
He hadn't seen Bai Zhouyun all day.
Actually...
Not just today.
He hadn't seen him for several days already.
Where exactly had Bai Zhouyun gone?
Nan Yu immediately remembered Bai Zhouyun's earlier determination to become a High-Tier Ability User.
Could he have secretly gone to use prohibited enhancement drugs?
If so...
That would explain why he still had no idea what was happening here.
Very possible.
Extremely possible.
Nan Yu was so lost in thought over that possibility that he didn't even notice Yu Lanfeng leaning closer.
By the time he sensed something unusual and turned his head, he nearly jumped out of his seat.
The only reason he didn't was because Yu Lanfeng had already wrapped an arm around his waist.
Looking at Yu Lanfeng's face so close to his own, Nan Yu's heart immediately began pounding wildly.
"Y-You... what are you doing?"
Yu Lanfeng replied calmly,
"You were spacing out."
"I just wanted to remind you that I'm still here."
As he spoke, he gave the side of Nan Yu's waist—which felt remarkably nice in his hand—a gentle squeeze before withdrawing his hand and slowly returning to his usual upright posture.
Meanwhile, Nan Yu sat there with a flushed face, secretly rubbing the spot that had just been pinched.
If he hadn't already been sitting on the sofa...
He felt like his legs would have given out and he'd have collapsed onto the floor.
Who would have thought that someone as serious as Yu Lanfeng could be so devastatingly good at flirting?
Carefully, Nan Yu shifted a little farther away before quickly standing up.
"I suddenly remembered there are still a few patients at the hospital I need to check on. Um... I'll come back later!"
Without waiting for Yu Lanfeng to respond, he opened the door, stepped outside, and closed it behind him in one smooth motion.
The instant the door shut, he bolted downstairs at the fastest speed of his life.
Looking at the closed door, the corners of Yu Lanfeng's lips slowly curved into a smile.
"You won't be able to run forever."
His gaze then returned to the trending page on StarNet.
Had they really done absolutely nothing behind the scenes?
Of course not.
They hadn't spent money buying a trending spot.
Yu Lanfeng hadn't used his status to pressure the company either.
Nor had they hired online commentators.
So even if someone tried investigating, they would never find the slightest trace of artificial manipulation.
He and the Empress had agreed on this plan from the very beginning.
They would only provide the initial push.
Everything else would be left alone.
Especially the release of Nan Yu's competition video some time ago.
One of the purposes behind spreading that video so widely was naturally to let more people know who Nan Yu was—
To let them see his strength.
His abilities.
His potential.
And then came today's most important move.
The release of Bai Zhouyun's video.
Placed side by side, the contrast was overwhelming.
Anyone who saw both would come to the same conclusion—
That scumbag Bai Zhouyun didn't deserve Nan Yu, the young hero who had brought honor to the Empire.
Nor did he deserve Nan Yu, the little angel with extraordinary mental power and unparalleled treatment abilities.
They had been preparing for this moment for a long time.
The greater the public's attention had been on Nan Yu before...
The more explosively popular Bai Zhouyun's scandal had now become.
Yu Lanfeng looked at the situation with complete satisfaction.
It wouldn't be long before he achieved his goal.
As for whether that video was genuine...
Of course it was.
Countless experts had already verified that it hadn't been edited or tampered with in any way.
So where had it come from?
Yu Lanfeng's answer was simple...
Wasn't it recorded by that perverted Bai himself?
Although...
He still had no idea why Bai Zhouyun had recorded something like that in the first place...