Chapter 4: Ran Into an Acquaintance
But in this life, before now, he had never met this person, so he couldn't let any flaws show.
“I was wondering who it was. Turns out it's you, weakling.”
Being called a weakling naturally didn't put Bai Zhouyun in a good mood.
“Zhang Yun, has nobody ever taught you how to speak properly?”
Zhang Yun's status was actually quite similar to Bai Zhouyun's. The Zhang family's strength was slightly inferior to the Bai family's, yet Zhang Yun still dared to oppose Bai Zhouyun openly.
The reason was simple.
Although the Zhang family itself wasn't particularly powerful, Zhang Yun had an extremely capable older sister. She had married into the Imperial Family, and her husband was far from some useless wastrel. He was currently serving in the military as a lieutenant general.
With such a powerful backing, as long as the Zhang family didn't court disaster themselves, they would never run into any major trouble.
Zhang Yun understood the situation well, so even though he disliked Bai Zhouyun, he only mocked him verbally every time and never actually started a fight.
“Oh? Nobody ever taught me how to politely talk to a weakling like you. Why don't you tell me, among our classmates, who else still hasn't become a High-Tier Ability User?”
“Other than you, it's just the twenty or thirty students ranked at the bottom of the year. They all had enough self-awareness to repeat a grade. You've got quite a thick skin. You're only a Mid-Tier Ability User, yet you shamelessly advanced together with the rest of us...”
As he spoke, Zhang Yun finally noticed Nan Yu, who had been standing quietly to the side the entire time.
He found him somewhat familiar, but couldn't immediately remember where he had seen him before.
At that moment, one of the lackeys behind him sneakily stepped forward and whispered a few words into his ear.
Zhang Yun suddenly understood.
“Oh! So you're Nan Yu, the Mid-Tier Mental Power User from the Nan family. Seeing you once is truly better than hearing about you a hundred times. No wonder you looked familiar. I didn't dare confirm it before.”
Nan Yu actually had quite a good impression of Zhang Yun.
In his previous life, Zhang Yun had helped him once.
And it wasn't when Nan Yu possessed status and influence.
It was after Bai Zhouyun and Yun Feiyu had schemed against him.
At that time, everyone cursed him. Even his status as a High-Tier Mental Power User couldn't save his reputation.
Yet Zhang Yun had still lent him a hand.
Maybe it had only been a whim.
But Nan Yu simply found Zhang Yun more and more pleasing to look at.
“Hello. This should be our first meeting. Why would I look familiar to you?”
Zhang Yun immediately tossed Bai Zhouyun aside.
“Actually, Nan Zhen and I are in the same year. We get along pretty well. I've seen your photos at his place several times before. I didn't expect the real person to be even easier on the eyes!”
Honestly, if Zhang Yun said something like this under normal circumstances, there wouldn't be anything worth mentioning.
The problem was that Bai Zhouyun—the Ability User who was engaged to Nan Yu—was standing right here.
Bai Zhouyun was a man after all.
Hearing those words filled him with anger.
“What did you just say?!”
Seeing Bai Zhouyun's face redden with anger, Zhang Yun found it rather novel.
He had never seen him this furious before.
“Oh my, you're angry? Then come hit me!”
Zhang Yun remained as irritatingly smug as ever.
Watching this actually improved Nan Yu's mood considerably.
He watched with great interest as Bai Zhouyun's face turned red with rage, yet he didn't dare make a move against Zhang Yun.
If Zhang Yun had been a Mid-Tier Ability User like him, he would definitely have rushed over and started fighting already.
Unfortunately, Zhang Yun was a High-Tier Ability User.
Although he was still young and his combat strength couldn't compare to veteran High-Tier Ability Users, Bai Zhouyun knew perfectly well that he couldn't win.
“Zhang Yun, how can you be so shameless? Xiao Yu is my fiancé! You're an outsider. Don't flirt with him recklessly. Otherwise, I have the right to sue you!”
The genuine smile Zhang Yun had been showing Nan Yu faded away.
He looked at Bai Zhouyun and said mockingly,
“Wow, you're so amazing. I'm terrified. Since you're so capable, go sue me right now. Go on. Do it. Do it!”
Everyone on the entire Capital Star knew that the Nan family had an incredibly precious treasure.
Countless people envied, hated, and resented Bai Zhouyun for it.
Even without evidence, he couldn't do anything.
And even if evidence somehow existed, all that would await Bai Zhouyun would be endless ridicule and humiliation.
Nan Yu stood quietly to the side, watching the farce unfold.
At this point, it was more or less enough.
If they wasted too much time, he was worried something unexpected might happen.
“Alright. It's about time.”
Only then did Bai Zhouyun remember why he had come to Black Night Forest in the first place.
He had come to collect medicinal herbs for Nan Yun's upcoming pharmaceutical coursework.
“Hmph. Consider yourself lucky this time.”
The corner of Nan Yu's mouth twitched.
He wasn't sure who had actually been lucky enough to escape disaster.
Watching Nan Yu walk away, Zhang Yun felt somewhat reluctant.
He secretly took a picture of Nan Yu's back.
A frontal photo definitely wouldn't have been allowed.
A picture from behind was another matter entirely.
After taking the photo, he waved energetically.
“Beauty Nan, we'll definitely meet again!”
Nan Yu raised an eyebrow.
He glanced back at Zhang Yun with obvious interest.
Without saying anything, he merely smiled.
Then he quickly turned around and followed Bai Zhouyun into Black Night Forest.
Leaving Zhang Yun standing there alone, rubbing his chin and savoring the moment.
“Mmm... a beauty's smile really is breathtaking.”
Before Zhang Yun could fully recover, he noticed someone approaching from the distance.
He immediately put away his unserious demeanor.
In just one or two seconds, he seemed to transform into a disciplined soldier.
Everything about him radiated seriousness and efficiency.
“Brother Yuan!”
Yuan Qiyang looked at him coldly.
“We don't have much time. Follow me.”
Zhang Yun straightened immediately.
“Yes, sir!”
Following behind him, Zhang Yun secretly wiped away a bead of sweat.
Who was Yuan Qiyang?
Zhang Yun's exceptionally successful sister had married a lieutenant general of the Imperial Family.
And Yuan Qiyang—
was the Crown Prince of the Empire's Imperial Family.
This time, Zhang Yun had only obtained the opportunity to accompany Yuan Qiyang here because of his sister's connections.
Even though it was merely a minor task and Yuan Qiyang only needed someone familiar with the route, it was still a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for Zhang Yun.
Fortunately, the Crown Prince hadn't seen what happened earlier.
If Yuan Qiyang had witnessed his carefree playboy behavior, he probably wouldn't have given him a second glance afterward.
Carefully following behind him, Zhang Yun let out a long sigh of relief.
What he didn't know was—
Yuan Qiyang had seen everything that had happened between Nan Yu, Bai Zhouyun, and Zhang Yun.
He had even seen Nan Yu's smile when he looked back.
For some reason, despite being the Crown Prince...
Despite being the Empire's future ruler...
Despite never lacking people around him...
And despite countless Mid-Tier Mental Power Users desperately trying to become involved with him over the years...
He had never once been moved.