Forbidden Fruit [Full Text] - 1

Chapter

1, Volume 1: Heart of the Starry Night.

He gazed silently at the furthest point where heaven and earth met, his eyes so deep and distant. Perhaps he saw beyond the horizon, perhaps there lay his dreams, his hopes, and in his gaze lay so much desolation and loneliness. Standing atop the ancient city wall of Lin City, he let the north wind whip snowflakes across his face, yet he made no attempt to yield. He let the cold wind pierce his body.

Where he came from, no one knew. When he entered No. 1 Middle School, besides a brand-new ID card and a brand-new household registration booklet, all he had was a set of pristine white clothes. He possessed nothing else; all others knew was that his name was Ye Tianya.

Originally, the school wouldn't accept a transfer student like him who couldn't afford the transfer fee. However, after he completed a set of college entrance exam questions in the office in front of more than ten teachers and handed it to the academic affairs director, he waited outside the office for half an hour. The director immediately agreed to his conditions, not only waiving his fees but also providing him with free dormitory accommodation and meal tickets. The reason was simple: he had scored full marks on all the college entrance exam questions except for the English and Chinese papers which included essays.

During his first winter break at the high school, he still ate and slept at the school, but in exchange for guarding the school gate during the holidays. "

Iceberg" was the nickname his classmates had given him in the month since he entered the school. Even normally, no one had ever seen him smile. From the day he entered the school until now, he hadn't spoken as many words as any other person in a single day. In his classmates' eyes, he could be summed up in one word: cold. It's not that he's cold and aloof, or that he has no friends. Although he's not talkative, he does have one friend—at least, in his heart, he considers him a friend. That friend is Yin Chao, the class monitor of Class 1, Grade 12. He considered Yin Chao a friend the first time Ye Tianya entered the classroom without his books, when Yin Chao, who sat in front of him, lent him one. He didn't know why he considered him a friend just because of that; it was probably an intuition, he told himself.

Below the ancient city wall, on the highway, a BMW was driving towards them from a distance. In the back seat, Ouyang Xin'er, wearing a pink down jacket, was looking at the snowy scenery along the way through the car window. "Uncle Da, is this the ancient city wall of Lincheng?"

Ouyang Xin'er asked the old driver, pointing to the wall.

The driver chuckled, "Yes, Miss, this is a major attraction in our Lincheng. There's going to be a fireworks display here after our New Year's Eve dinner tonight. We can come and watch it later."

"Really? That's wonderful!" Ouyang Xin'er exclaimed excitedly. "I haven't been back to my hometown since I was old enough to understand things. I never expected to come back and encounter a fireworks display! Home is so wonderful! Hehe."

Suddenly, Ouyang Xin'er froze. She saw that white figure on the city wall, that lonely figure that tugged at her heartstrings. Yet, standing on that high wall, he seemed so harmonious, as if one with heaven and earth.

Something stirred within Ouyang Xin'er. She called out, "Uncle Da, stop the car!"

The driver, confused, quickly stopped the car, intending to turn around and ask what was wrong. Turning back, he saw this pampered young lady, spoiled by three generations of her family, holding up her digital camera, which she had used to take pictures along the way, and snapping away at the city wall.

"It's time to go back!" Ye Tianya finally withdrew his gaze from the distance, turned slightly, jumped off the city wall, and headed towards the No. 1 Middle School in the city center. He needed to relieve Old Fu, who was on duty with him, so he could go home and reunite with his family.

Out of curiosity, Uncle Da also turned to look at the city wall, but didn't find anything worth photographing. But then he heard Ouyang Xin'er sigh behind him, "Why did he leave?"

"Left what?" Uncle Da asked, puzzled.

Ouyang Xin'er sighed, "He was alone. I was standing on the city wall just now, and I only managed to take a few pictures before he left. I can't see him anymore."

Uncle Da laughed, "Miss, what's so interesting about photographing someone alone? Can we drive now? The old men might be getting impatient."

"Hmm," Ouyang Xin'er replied absentmindedly, pulling up the photos she had just taken. The snow was falling heavily, the city wall was high, and the lonely figure gave off a strong sense of vicissitude and sorrow. And when she zoomed in on the photo, she finally saw clearly that face—that cold, handsome face, and those deep eyes. It was those eyes that Ouyang Xin'er, the apple of her eye as the current head of a martial arts family, could never forget.

~~~~~~~~ In the distance, someone set off firecrackers before their New Year's Eve dinner.

The firecrackers told Ye Tianya that it was New Year's again. Ye Tianya dreaded New Year's most, but it didn't arrive late because of his fear. Who can stop the wheel of time? Sitting in the guardhouse at the gate of No. 1 Middle School, Ye Tianya idly twirled a pencil in his hand.

It was supposed to be Old Fu's shift tonight, but Ye Tianya thought that since he was alone anyway, living a life where he only had himself to worry about, and New Year's was just as important, he offered to switch shifts with Old Fu so he could go home and reunite with his family. Well, that was good. Old Fu was extremely grateful and even had his family bring Ye Tianya two large bowls of dumplings. After eating them, Ye Tianya sat in the guardhouse by the school gate, lost in thought. He recalled secretly watching Xingye at the orphanage that afternoon; her actions had left him unable to calm down even after standing in the cold wind on the city wall for hours.

Xingye was an orphan at the orphanage, growing up with Ye Tianya (then Ye Xin) and a girl named Du Qing. They remained together until Ye Tianya was ten, when he was adopted by his adoptive father, Zhang De'en, and left the orphanage. Although he left, Ye Tianya often returned, and he, Du Qing, and Xingye attended the same school. Things seemed normal.

Du Qing, his childhood sweetheart, became Ye Tianya's girlfriend, which didn't surprise many. After all, they were childhood sweethearts. However, Du Qing ultimately abandoned him for a more glamorous life in high society. Then his adoptive father passed away, followed by being lured to a nightclub by an anonymous letter, where he was framed by a prostitute and falsely accused of rapism, ending up in Lincheng Prison.

This series of blows, with no one trusting him and no one pitying him, made Ye Tianya contemplate death. He considered ending it all, the simplest way to escape.

However, it was Xingye's distant cry as he was led away from the courtroom and into prison—"Brother, I believe you are innocent, I'll wait for you to come out!"—that strengthened him and made him abandon his suicidal thoughts.

He did indeed return, not after serving his full sentence, but because he had died once, not by suicide, but by being strangled to death by the prison warden. A dead man could naturally leave prison unscathed, but he still couldn't die. Heaven hadn't let him die, not for any particular reason, but because the Nine Dragon Veins within him were a once-in-a-century find, the very person a supernatural being had been searching for for centuries.

So he lived; the supernatural being had saved him and even changed his appearance.

But the extraordinary person probably didn't know that he had revived a wicked star, a ruthless heart that even corrupt officials feared, a demon that caused a global sensation.

Of course, he wasn't yet; he was still an ordinary person, an ordinary person with a clean but somewhat mysterious identity.

The starry night stirred Ye Tianya's emotions because when he secretly visited her that afternoon, he witnessed something he would never forget: while everyone else was preparing for the New Year's Eve dinner, she was secretly carrying food and paper money for the dead, like a thief running towards the mass graves on the outskirts of the city.

Curious, Ye Tianya followed her and discovered that in a corner of the mass graves lay what was probably the smallest grave in the entire graveyard—just a tiny mound of earth with a wooden plank standing on it, inscribed with the words "Tomb of My Beloved Ye Xin" in calligraphy.

Ye Xin was Ye Tianya's former name. Already so surprised he almost felt a sense of disorientation, nearly doubting if he was still the same Ye Xin, he heard Xingye, after paying respects at the earthen mound, say, "Brother, wait for me. After I clear your name and avenge you, I'll move your cenotaph to a better place, and then I'll come down to be with you, to be your wife for all eternity!"

"Wife!?" A frail girl, wanting to avenge him, and then saying she'd go to the underworld to be his wife for all eternity. Ye Tianya couldn't describe the feelings in his heart. He didn't even know how he left, nor how long he stood on the ancient city wall, until darkness fell before he returned to the school's guardhouse. The turmoil in his heart still hadn't subsided. Chapter

Two: Past Events Like Smoke

Ye Tianya was jolted awake from his reverie by the sound of firecrackers from somewhere in the teachers' residential area. He felt a dampness on his face again, and when he touched it, he realized he was crying once more. This was only the second time in his life he had cried.

"I wonder if Frost and Snow have emerged from seclusion yet," Ye Tianya thought, recalling Xingye's repeated mention of "wife" for all eternity. He then thought of the two women, Frost and Snow, who were in seclusion in Tianya Valley. Frost and Snow were entrusted to him by the strange man who saved him. However, they suffered from the incurable Nine Yin Meridian Disease, which could only be cured by dual cultivation with a man possessing the Nine Yang Dragon Meridians and cultivating the Chaos Technique. Otherwise, they would wither and die at the age of eighteen. Ye Tianya happened to be one of those rare individuals with the Nine Dragon Meridians, which was why the strange man wanted to save him.

Because of the need for dual cultivation, Frost and Snow inevitably developed a relationship with Ye Tianya. In a way, it would be reasonable to call them his wives, but in reality, it was impossible to acknowledge both sisters as his wives. However, it doesn't matter inside Tianya Valley. That vast valley is inhabited only by the strange man named Frant and Bing Shuang Bing Xue. Tianya Valley is a small, parallel space created by Frant using his so-called magical artifact. To enter or leave that space, one must either use a magic circle on Ye Tianya's body or possess sufficient magical power to perform a spatial jump. People in the real world simply cannot enter or leave Tianya Valley, except for Ye Tianya, Bing Shuang Bing Xue, and Frant, who claims to be over eight hundred years old.

Frant left Tianya Valley the day I healed Bing Shuang Bing Xue, saying he was going back to his hometown and might never return. Although I found the magic he taught us and his talk of another parallel space unbelievable, I eventually accepted it. However, seeing his white hair and beard, he looked no more than a hundred years old, yet he insisted on being eight hundred, which Ye Tianya found hard to believe.

It wasn't until he gave Ye Tianya a super-intelligent computer before leaving that Ye Tianya truly believed him. The computer was so amazing that it could converse with people. It had its own name and even possessed human emotions and expressions.

From the computer, he learned that Frant came from a place called Dream Star in a star system parallel to the Milky Way, where technology was thousands of years more advanced than Earth's five hundred years ago. Frant was pulled to Earth five hundred years ago during a magical battle in Dream Star's civil war, when he was caught in an energy vortex created by the alignment of nine stars in the solar system. This year, the nine-star alignment phenomenon reappeared, forcing him to leave Earth; otherwise, he would have to wait another five hundred years to return to Dream Star.

Ye Tianya was initially astonished by the revelation of Bing Shuang and Bing Xue's origins. They were actually from the Ming Dynasty. Frant, who had already arrived on Earth, was a close friend of Bing Shuang and Bing Xue's father, a martial arts hero who was murdered by his enemies. Frant avenged him and then raised the two girls, but they possessed the incurable Nine Yin Meridians. Frant had to use time magic to seal them away, and hundreds of years later, he finally found Ye Tianya, who possessed the Nine Yin Meridians. Although Ye Tianya was 'dead' at that time, only his heart remained warm. To save Bing Shuang and Bing Xue, Frant had to use his only Seven-Colored Fruit to feed Ye Tianya, bringing him back to life. He also transformed Ye Tianya's body to sense magical elements and cultivate magic.

Although Frant had ulterior motives in saving him, Ye Tianya was still very grateful to the old man. When the old man left, he gave him many things that would benefit him for life. Of course, according to the old man, these were all rewards for Ye Tianya taking care of Bing Shuang and Bing Xue.

"Beep—" The sound of a car horn at the gate pulled Ye Tianya back to reality. He looked up and saw the principal and his family returning from their New Year's Eve dinner at the hotel. Ye Tianya hurriedly went out, opened the gate, and let the car through.

"Are you new here? I've never seen you before," the principal asked, looking at Ye Tianya through the car window.

The head of academic affairs handled Ye Tianya's enrollment and work-study arrangements, so it was normal for the principal not to recognize him. Ye Tianya didn't say he was a student, but simply nodded and said, "I've only been here a few days."

The principal was somewhat displeased that Ye Tianya had opened the gate a little slowly, saying, "Pay attention next time. Don't just stay in the security room doing nothing."

Although he didn't have much affection for this principal. Ye Tianya still nodded hurriedly in agreement; he was now a security guard, and he had to act like one.

This world is all about self-interest. Just like the dean of students who helped him with all this—he was initially cold to him, but after his grades came out, he was all smiles. If it weren't for the fact that he could secure a spot for them in China, he probably would have had that dean of students and security kick him out of the school long ago. Having seen through all this, Ye Tianya had long since become indifferent to the coldness and warmth of human relationships. However, there was one exception: Xingye. Xingye was his absolute exception.

"Liss, did Lin Siyin touch that money?" The sound of fireworks exploding echoed in the sky outside, but Ye Tianya was in the small guardhouse talking to the intelligent computer that Frant had given him. The intelligent computer's name was Liss; it possessed human emotional programming, only lacking a physical body. Her virtual face was created by combining the best features of women from all over the world—no, from both Dream Star and Earth. There was probably no face more beautiful than hers in the world. At this moment, the face was smiling and speaking, her lip movements and voice perfectly synchronized with a human's. She said to Ye Tianya, "It moved, young master, but not much. Of the twelve million you transferred, she only used five million, and two million of that was used to redeem her father."

Ye Tianya pondered for a moment and said, "So, she only used three million to start a business?"

Liz said, "Yes, I just checked the S City business registration system. Lin Siyin now owns a company called Starry Night Express, with a registered capital of three million. It seems she's also taking the safe route, not daring to be too extravagant."

"Then, what about yours? How did you use your ten million?" Ye Tianya asked, looking at the captivatingly beautiful woman on the screen.

"Young Master, don't worry about it. As long as you don't lose your ten million, I guarantee I'll be even better than Lin Siyin. I'll give you a surprise." Lisi gave him a sly, irresistible smile. Luckily, Ye Tianya had already seen it before, or he would have been stunned. Ye Tianya said calmly, "Alright, I'd like to see what kind of surprise this brat has in store for me."

"Young Master, just you wait and see. I'll make sure your mouth is agape." Lisi said with a laugh.

Ye Tianya ignored her and instead recalled his meeting with Lin Siyin.

Lin Siyin is a business administration master's graduate from Huaxia University two years ago. Her father, Lin Zhengnan, founded a courier company, but was tricked and deceived by Qin Ting, the eldest son of the Qin Group in S City, in collusion with other companies. Not only did his company go bankrupt, but he also owed the Qin Group a large sum of money. All Qin Ting did was to force Lin Siyin to agree to marry him. Unfortunately, Lin Siyin had no feelings for this playboy second-generation rich kid. However, her refusal forced her father to be sent to Jiangling Prison to serve his sentence.

To pay off her two million yuan debt to the Qin family, Lin Siyin worked tirelessly, earning the title of "Business Phoenix" in S City within two years. However, no matter how capable she was, she was still just an employee. Qin Ting declared that anyone who dared to hire Lin Siyin would be going against the Qin Group. Because of this, Lin Siyin, who had only earned a little over two hundred thousand yuan in two years, was fired. She brought the two hundred thousand yuan to Jiangling to visit her father and beg Qin Ting, who was there on business, to release him. She promised to repay the Qin family an additional five hundred thousand yuan later. Naively, she followed Qin Ting's instructions and went to the Crown Nightclub to meet him. Qin Ting had no intention of releasing Lin Zhengnan; he only wanted to lure her to the nightclub to rape her.

At a critical moment, she happened to encounter Ye Tianya, who was investigating her wrongful conviction, and rescued her. After listening to her troubles, Ye Tianya took Liz's advice and gave her 12 million out of the 20 million he received the day before from the auction of the centuries-old treasures and antiques that Frant had collected for him, so that she could start a business on his behalf. Now it seems she really did it, but she was a bit timid. She only invested 3 million.

During his trip to the nightclub to rescue Lin Siyin, Ye Tianya didn't find the person he was looking for—the nightclub hostess who framed him—but he inadvertently discovered a secret room in the nightclub, finding a large amount of dirty money, jewelry, gold bars, and two drug trafficking ledgers. In addition, there were dozens of videos taken by pinhole cameras in the nightclub rooms, showing some government officials and wealthy businessmen who often appeared on television having fun at the nightclub. There were also more than ten kilograms of heroin. After finding these, he simply burned the nightclub from the underground secret room to the top floor. After losing all evidence, Ye Tianya lived off the four million yuan he had embezzled, secretly plotting how to bring down corrupt officials, unscrupulous businessmen, and tyrants.

He'd been back in Lincheng for two months, but the investigation had made no progress; everyone connected to his wrongful conviction seemed to have vanished. Cheng Xiuying, who framed him and brought him to court, had disappeared, and Lei Bao, released from prison, had also vanished. Even the prison guard surnamed Liang, who had stood by and pretended not to see Lei Bao strangle Ye Tianya and bury him in the coal mine to stage a mining accident, had resigned and moved away. He couldn't be found in the civil affairs system either. This left Ye Tianya disheartened.

Despite his despair, he didn't give up. If it weren't for clearing his name, Ye Tianya might not have returned to reality and would have spent his life in Tianya Valley with Bing Shuang and Bing Xue. He was also grateful to be out; otherwise, he didn't know how much Xing Ye would have suffered because of him.

Stepping out of the guardhouse, Ye Tianya looked at the gloomy sky. Thinking of Xingye, his heart surged again.

"Xiaoye, I, Ye Tianya, will definitely repay your kindness. Definitely. All my promises will be kept." Ye Tianya silently vowed in his heart, looking at the sky.

Chapter 3 The Beginning of the Bad

Boy The final exam of the first semester of the senior year of high school was a city-wide joint exam. The senior grades of more than ten high schools in the city took the same test paper, so all the teachers and students of the senior year of high school in the city were very concerned. However, there was one exception: Ye Tianya. More than half a month had passed since the holiday, and he had not checked or cared about his score. He would know roughly how he scored on the day he left the exam room. Ye Tianya did not want to stand out or be too flamboyant. When doing the test, he deliberately made a few mistakes. As long as he could reach the previous year's admission score line of Huaxia University and not be expelled from the school by the dean of academic affairs, he did not have high expectations. Even so, on the first day of school, many people still looked at him with strange eyes. Yes, a student who had just transferred to the school, who never answered the teacher's questions and was a cold, introverted student, suddenly rose to second place in the final exams, second only to the class monitor, Yin Chao. Moreover, his score exceeded the admission cutoff line for Huaxia University, something that every school in Lincheng could boast about if even one student got into Huaxia University each year. It was the dream of every student.

Ye Tianya remained calm and composed, facing the fervent and envious gazes of his classmates. He walked to his seat and sat down calmly. Yin Chao turned around and smiled, "Tianya, you really are a hidden talent! You've given us a big surprise!" Ye Tianya simply

nodded and said, "You flatter me, you're great too." His words were always so concise.

Yin Chao understood his personality and didn't mind, smiling, "Me? Everyone can see me usually. By the way, what were you doing during the holidays?"

"Working as a gatekeeper for the school," Ye Tianya answered honestly.

Yin Chao was taken aback, but he quickly understood and laughed, "How much does the school pay you?"

Ye Tianya replied calmly, "Food, lodging, and tuition," truly sparing with her words.

"Oh—" Yin Chao said, "I'm not much better off. I help my mom with her stall, busy all summer. Hehe, you only scored two points lower than me, I'm starting to get a little scared. Looks like I need to work harder." Ye

Tianya said lightly, "Let's work together!"

Yin Chao laughed loudly, "Okay, let's work together." However, he still felt a sense of crisis. He secretly began to compete with Ye Tianya.

Classes continued as usual. Ye Tianya often went to the Third Middle School to watch Xingye from afar. Xingye was so focused on her studies. Ye Tianya knew that she had a belief and a goal in her heart. Although Ye Tianya felt a pang of pain, she didn't tell her she was still alive. "Let's wait until after the college entrance exam," Ye Tianya thought to herself, letting that belief continue to inspire her for a while longer, supporting her to succeed in the exam.

"Xiao Ye, let's meet in Huaxia." Ye Tianya stood outside No. 3 Middle School, watching Xing Ye reading in the garden from afar, and was about to leave. He had only taken a few steps when Xing Ye's shout made him turn back.

"Get out of the way, you surnamed Liu, take your lousy flower and get out of here, don't even dream about it." Xing Ye looked at the three boys surrounding her, her anger rising. These three had harassed her more than once, especially the guy in the middle named Liu Qiyun. He relied on his father being the police chief to act lawlessly and commit all sorts of evil deeds. The two beside him were named Li Ke and Wei Shuxian, Liu Qiyun's henchmen, whose parents were both high-ranking officials in the city. No one dared to offend these three guys, but Xingye wasn't afraid of them. Liu Qiyun discovered Xingye's existence when he accompanied his father to the orphanage. He openly declared at school that Xingye was destined to be his, and anyone who dared to mess with Xingye was going against him. Unfortunately for him, he couldn't get any respect from Xingye at all.

"Xingye, our boss came all the way from No. 1 High School to see you, can't you do him the honor? His patience is limited, don't be ungrateful," the boy on the left said aggressively.

Xingye's face hardened with rage as she roared, "Liu, I'll let bygones be bygones with your nonsense at school, but stop daydreaming! Don't think you're so great just because your dad's a bureau chief. Let me tell you, don't even dream about it.

There's no way you'll get away with it. Get lost!" "Hehehe, Xingye, it seems you've decided to take the punishment. Whatever I, Liu Qiyun, want, I can have, hehe—" Liu Qiyun said, reaching out to touch Xingye's face. Suddenly, a cold voice came from behind them: "Didn't you hear Xingye tell you to get lost?"

The three were startled, feeling a chill as if winter had returned behind them. They turned around in surprise. When they saw a young man dressed in pure white staring coldly at them, they all felt a chill run down their spines. A tightness gripped their chests. The three usually arrogant guys felt a little breathless after just one glance from the white-clad youth. However, Liu Qiyun seemed unwilling to lose face, so he took a breath to compose himself, feigning composure, and arrogantly said, "Who the hell are you? Daring to interfere in my business? Don't you even know who you are…?"

Unfortunately, the youth had no interest in his overused slang and interrupted him coldly, "Don't you know how to get lost? Xingye told you to get lost, not to keep spouting nonsense."

The icy voice nearly froze the three men's hearts, but Li Ke and Wei Shuxian seemed oblivious to the danger. They even addressed their leader with the air of authority, saying, "Looks like you're a busybody, kid. You won't know where to go home until we teach you a lesson." They lunged forward to grab the boy's collar. However, before they could even touch him, they were slapped four or five times across the face, their cheeks instantly contorting. When they came to their senses, they found the boy still coldly staring at them, as always. "You didn't even lay a hand on me!" Not only them, but even Liu Qiyun, standing to the side, hadn't seen how the boy had struck. The three men were stunned, their faces turning deathly pale. Seeing the situation was turning against them, Liu Qiyun called to the two still in shock, "Go!"

"Wrong, get lost!" the white-clad boy said coldly.

"You... don't push your luck!" Liu Qiyun's face turned ashen.

The white-clad youth coldly said, "I'll count to three. If he can't roll, I'll help him. One, two, three."

The three, used to being spoiled, refused to roll on the ground, especially since a crowd had gathered to watch. Unable to swallow their pride, they remained motionless. After counting to three, the youth charged at them with lightning speed, grabbing Liu Qiyun by the neck with a snap, and coldly said, "Make them roll away!"

Liu Qiyun's face turned from white to red, then white again, then green. He tried to resist but found himself unable to move. Finally, he couldn't hold on any longer and managed to squeeze out two words: "Get out!"

Li Ke and Wei Shuxian not only didn't roll, but instead charged at the white-clad youth. As their fists swung, the white-clad youth slightly turned, and their punches struck Liu Qiyun hard, causing him to wince in pain. Seeing their attack miss, the two men swept their legs towards the youth's lower body. The boy snorted and released Qi Yun from his grasp. Liu Qi Yun caught his breath, but found himself unsteady and collapsed. Before he could even fall, he was kicked twice more hard in the waist.

Li Ke and the other man were dumbfounded; no matter how they attacked, they were hitting their own men. Seeing the situation was turning against them, they exchanged a glance and charged forward again.

The boy coldly snorted, "You're courting death." Before their fists could even fly, he struck. In a flash, he was in front of them, delivering two heavy punches to their abdomens so fast that no one could see them. The two men immediately collapsed to the ground, beads of sweat forming on their faces.

"Do you know how to roll? I'll give you one more chance. One, two..."

the boy said coldly. All three felt sore all over and had no strength to stand up. The only way to leave was to roll away on the ground.

Seeing the three of them actually rolling out of the garden, the onlookers burst into enthusiastic applause. These three had bullied countless people for a long time, and seeing them get their comeuppance for the first time gave everyone a sense of relief.

The three men hadn't rolled far before they felt their strength return. They stood up, glaring hatefully at the white-robed youth, and said, "If you have the guts, leave your name. I, Liu Qiyun, won't let you get away with this!"

The white-robed youth coldly replied, "I know you won't give up, but I'll play along until you're too scared to continue. My name is Ye Tianya, a student at No. 1 Middle School, just like you. It'll be convenient for you to come looking for trouble. Get lost, before I change my mind."

The three men left angrily, going off to do their own thing. Xingye, who had been calmly watching everything from the sidelines, finally stepped forward and said, "Thank you, Ye Tianya. But you'd better be careful in the future. This Liu guy is vindictive and won't let things go easily."

Ye Tianya didn't respond to her. Instead, he took a small piece of wood from his pocket and handed it to Xingye, saying, "Here, take this. Keep it with you. If you encounter any danger, break it immediately, and someone will come to rescue you. Please trust me."

After saying this, Ye Tianya hurriedly left. He didn't dare linger, afraid that he might reveal something that Xingye would notice.

Watching Ye Tianya's departing figure, Xingye stood frozen in place. That back view seemed so familiar, but she couldn't recall where she had seen it before. Many people had tried to take revenge on her, hoping to be her hero, but the results were always one of two things: either they ended up getting beaten black and blue by the man surnamed Liu, or they chased after Liu and then tried to curry favor with her, showing off to get her attention. In the end, within two days, these people would be taken away by the police and never dared to come looking for her again.

But this man named Ye Tianya was a complete surprise to Xingye. Not only did he not try to curry favor, but he remained as cold as ice, saying only one sentence before turning and leaving. Yet, his eyes, and that back view, felt so familiar to Xingye, so very familiar. Xingye looked down at the ordinary wooden strip in his hand. The strip itself wasn't anything special, but Xingye still carefully put it in his pocket, simply because of Ye Tianya's last words, "Please believe me,"

Chapter Four: The Young Master's Revenge

. "Since I'm going to play along with you, I need to prepare something," Ye Tianya muttered to himself after leaving the Third Middle School gate, hailing a taxi and telling the driver, "Grand Digital City."

Ye Tianya had already met Liu Qiyun and his father, the bureau chief, but only from the videotapes he'd found at the nightclub. This father and son were truly heinous; they were the most numerous among those discs. Moreover, both father and son had affairs with a prostitute named Cheng Xiuying, which made Ye Tianya vaguely suspect that his wrongful conviction was related to them. This was why he hadn't taken action against them.

However, these discs reminded Ye Tianya that in the face of the law, where everything requires evidence, evidence decides everything.

Evidence? As long as you have the evidence, there's nothing to fear. Ye Tianya went to the electronics market and bought the most advanced miniature camera on the market, complete with a microwave-received audio recording function. It was as small as a digital camera. This was exactly the kind of portable device Ye Tianya wanted. He needed to prepare himself to avoid being wrongly accused again.

To Ye Tianya's surprise, Liu Qiyun's revenge came quickly. During evening self-study, two policemen walked into the classroom and asked the astonished students, "Who is Ye Tianya?"

Ye Tianya sneered inwardly, stood up, and said, "That's me!"

A slightly overweight policeman revealed a barely perceptible sinister smile, walked to Ye Tianya's seat, and said, "Someone reported that you seriously injured him at No. 3 Middle School. You'll have to come with us." Without further ado, he pulled out handcuffs to cuff Ye Tianya. Ye Tianya coldly glanced at the fat policeman and said, "It was Director Liu's son, Liu Qiyun, who sent you, right? Let's go, lead the way!"

The fat policeman felt a chill run down his spine from Ye Tianya's cold gaze, and seeing Ye Tianya's calm demeanor, he was stunned. For a moment, he forgot to handcuff Ye Tianya, who had already walked out of the classroom. The two policemen exchanged surprised glances and followed him out.

The classroom erupted in chaos. After the two policemen left, Yin Chao immediately ran towards the teachers' office.

The door to the police station's interrogation room opened, and Ye Tianya, handcuffed, was pushed inside. The door was then closed.

Ye Tianya surveyed the layout and furnishings of the interrogation room, finally fixing his gaze on a fan on the ceiling. The weather hadn't been hot these past few days, so it wasn't needed. He smiled coldly, lightly touching a ring on the middle finger of his left hand, and a miniature camera appeared in his hand. He lightly leaped, attaching the camera to the fan and hanging it upside down. Then, a glint of light flashed in his eyes as he stared at the camera, and it vanished. If anyone had witnessed this, perhaps none of what followed would have happened.

The ring on his hand was a treasure given to him by Frant among the many rings. It was shaped like a seven-petaled lotus, each petal a different color, hence its name, the Seven-Colored Ring. Originally, the ring came from the trunk of the tree from which Frant gave him the Seven-Colored Fruit, but the tree withered when the fruit ripened. Frant then carved three rings from the trunk and used his magic to create a spatial medium within them, capable of storing objects billions or even billions of times larger than himself. The three rings were placed on Frost and Snow's fingers respectively. After placing the camera and casting an invisibility spell on it, Ye Tianya patiently waited for what would happen next. But the people outside didn't have his patience. Soon, the door opened. Three students and two policemen entered. Ye Tianya smiled inwardly. If these three hadn't appeared, he might have actually been held responsible for injuring someone. But since they were there, the claim of serious injury was no longer valid. Moreover, Ye Tianya knew what was to come, which was even more advantageous to him.

Entering were Liu Qiyun, Li Ke, and Wei Shuxian, along with the two policemen who had come to arrest him.

Liu Qiyun laughed arrogantly, "Ye Tianya, how are you? We meet again."

Ye Tianya coldly stared at the five men, remaining silent.

"What, you're speechless now? Weren't you very arrogant this afternoon? Hahahaha, I said I wouldn't let you go, now you believe me?" Liu Qiyun laughed haughtily.

Ye Tianya still remained silent, and Liu Qiyun finally couldn't hold back any longer and was about to make his move.

He took two steps forward, ready to attack, but then hesitated, remembering something. He glanced at the two policemen and said, "Brother Huang, this kid's got some skills. You two go first."

The two policemen chuckled and said, "Young Master Liu, you're not afraid of someone who's handcuffed, are you? Besides, he wouldn't dare to attack in the police station. Assaulting a police officer is a jail sentence. Forget it, we'll handle it."

The two policemen stepped forward and, without a word, rained blows on Ye Tianya. This time, Ye Tianya didn't resist; instead, he used the Chaos Technique to... He shielded himself with his hands, covering his head, letting the two men use him as a punching bag. Seeing Ye Tianya not retaliate but instead cower in a ball, Liu Qiyun and his two companions, their hands itching, laughed, "Brother Huang, let us vent our anger! We've been utterly humiliated by these guys today."

The two policemen stopped and turned to Liu Qiyun, laughing, "This guy's got some tough bones. He hasn't uttered a sound even after being beaten like this. Young Master Liu, you go ahead, my hands are getting tired."

Meanwhile, Ye Tianya, curled up on the ground, sneered inwardly. The real show needed these three to make a move. Police officers beating someone during interrogation wouldn't cause much of a problem, but if the police condoned non-police personnel beating someone in front of them, the consequences would be entirely different.

Liu Qiyun and his companions attacked, beating him with all their might, but Ye Tianya was protected by the Chaos Technique, and they couldn't hurt him. They let the three vent their anger on him. Just then, a knock came at the door, and a policeman said, "The headmaster of No. 1 Middle School has come to bail them out. The bureau chief is with them. Stop hitting them." As

expected

, the three stopped fighting and instead found a place to sit down, pretending to be sickly. After a short while, the dean of academic affairs and a middle-aged man in a police uniform walked in. Upon seeing Ye Tianya on the ground, the officer feigned surprise and exclaimed, "What's going on? Why are you putting the prisoner on the ground? Qiyun, what are you doing here?"

The chubby policeman surnamed Huang hurriedly replied, "Reporting to the chief, this guy seriously injured Liu Qiyun and his two friends. We invited the three victims here for questioning, but he not only refused to confess but also tried to assault us, so we had to subdue him."

Liu Ting'en said, "It's alright. They're all still students at No. 1 Middle School. Director Gao will take them back to the school for education. Release him."

The policeman obediently unlocked Ye Tianya's handcuffs, and Ye Tianya stood up with great difficulty, saying to Director Gao, "Director, I'm sorry to have troubled you."

Director Gao stepped forward, looked at Ye Tianya without speaking, then looked at Liu Qiyun and the others sitting to the side, before saying to Liu Ting'en, "Thank you for your trouble, Director Liu. Liu Qiyun and the others are injured; I think they should recover before returning to school. Ye Tianya, I'll go first..." "Take him back for education."

Liu Ting'en chuckled, "That's good too. I'll have to ask Director Gao to discipline my son more at school. I'm so busy all day long, I don't have time to deal with this naughty boy. Now he's even fighting with someone at school. I'm a little ashamed."

Director Gao smiled, "Not at all. Teaching and educating is our duty. The three children acted out of a moment of loyalty. It's all our fault for not teaching them well. Director Liu's leniency is already a great favor." After saying that, Director Gao said seriously to Ye Tianya, "Ye Tianya, go back to school and write a self-criticism. Let's go."

Ye Tianya flexed his wrists and said to Director Gao, "Thank you for picking me up, Director, but I can't leave now."

As he spoke, Ye Tianya moved a chair over, stood on it with great effort, and reached up towards the fan. Only then did people below see that a camera was hanging upside down on it. In other words, everything that had just happened in the room had been recorded by the camera. After Ye Tianya took the camera and stood on the ground, the two policemen and Liu Ting'en all turned pale and looked terrible. The three guys, on the other hand, were oblivious to the seriousness of the situation and pretended to be weak and listless.

Ye Tianya said to Director Gao, "Director, please go back first. I still need to send this video to the Provincial Public Security Bureau, the Procuratorate, the TV station, the newspaper, and other places. Also, I might need to find a lawyer. Could you please ask my homeroom teacher for leave? It might take me a while to finish all this, and I won't be able to go back to school for the time being."

With each place Ye Tianya mentioned that needed to be taken to, Liu Ting'en and the others' faces turned paler. Although he didn't know what was in the video, he knew from the expressions on the two policemen's faces that he was in deep trouble. He hurriedly looked at Director Gao and said, "Director Gao, I think there might be a lot of misunderstandings in this matter. How about this, Ye Tianya, give me the video recording, and I'll investigate the matter and give him a satisfactory answer, okay?"

Director Gao looked at Ye Tianya and said, "Ye Tianya, you still have class. Just give this to Director Liu."

Ye Tianya said indifferently, "I'm sorry, Director Gao, I can't listen to you on this matter. I'll be leaving now." As Ye Tianya was about to leave, Liu Ting'en looked at the two policemen, who immediately understood and blocked the door. A cold smile appeared on Ye Tianya's lips. At this moment, he heard Director Gao behind him say, "Ye Tianya, if you don't follow the school's arrangements, I'll expel you."

Ye Tianya turned around and sneered, "Director Gao, I'm very grateful that you let me attend No. 1 Middle School. However, if you want to expel me, I don't care. I'll just transfer to No. 2 or No. 3 Middle School after I finish everything."

"You—" Director Gao was speechless with anger. Ye Tianya was a promising student of the school. If he left No. 1 Middle School like this, it would be a great loss. So he sighed and said to Director Liu, "I'm sorry, Director Liu, I've done my best to help. Goodbye, Ye Tianya, I'll wait for you in the car downstairs." Director Gao left without waiting to see if Ye Tianya could leave. He wasn't stupid; he knew that once he left, Liu Ting'en would find a way to get the videotape. This way, he wouldn't have to worry about offending Director Liu or Ye Tianya jumping ship to another school.

Sure enough, as soon as Director Gao left, Liu Ting'en revealed his true colors, saying, "Ye Tianya, I suggest you hand over the videotape, and we won't pursue the matter of you hitting someone. What do you say?"

Ye Tianya glanced coldly at the two guys blocking the door, and walked towards the door without a word. Liu Ting'en was taken aback, but then sneered, "You think you can leave this interrogation room today without handing over the videotape?"

Ye Tianya gave a cold laugh, offering no reply, and walked straight towards the door. The two policemen, seeing Ye Tianya approach, tried to stop him, but before they could get close, Ye Tianya somehow brushed past them and reached for the doorknob. The two policemen and Liu Ting'en instinctively reached for their pistols, but their expressions changed drastically upon touching them—their waists were empty. In the moment they froze, Ye Tianya had already opened the door and walked out.

"Why aren't you grabbing it back?" Liu Ting'en was frantic. The scene of him agreeing to release Ye Tianya in front of Director Gao was on video, and now that Ye Tianya was leaving, he had no reason to stop him. Re-arresting Ye Tianya was impossible; Liu Ting'en had learned from Director Gao that Ye Tianya was a promising student from No. 1 Middle School, and even if he wanted to detain him, No. 1 Middle School wouldn't let him go. He had no choice but to have someone seize the videotape before letting him go.

Two policemen pounced on Ye Tianya and grabbed him again. Ye Tianya still didn't resist, letting the two policemen twist his hands behind his back. However, the two policemen found nothing on him, not even a small disc, let alone the rather large video camera.

Liu Ting'en was shocked when he learned of this result. Staring at Ye Tianya, he asked, "Where is the videotape?"

Ye Tianya pretended to know nothing and said, "What? What videotape? I don't have it."

"What exactly do you want?" Liu Ting'en was about to go crazy. They couldn't find anything on him. He couldn't lock him up now, and the only person Ye Tianya had contacted was Director Gao. Liu Ting'en was certain that Director Gao had taken the video camera out. "No wonder Director Gao said he would leave first," Liu Ting'en thought to himself, feeling smug. He secretly blamed himself for being careless; he hadn't even noticed the video camera had changed hands. He was convinced that Director Gao was in cahoots with Ye Tianya. Although he hated Director Gao to the core, he was now helpless. If Director Gao was truly in cahoots with Ye Tianya, then even finding him now wouldn't yield the videotape.

Ye Tianya coldly glanced at the two policemen and the three men inside, including Liu Qiyun, and said in a chilling voice, "As long as I can return the blows these five inflicted on me to them, I'll pretend nothing happened today."

Liu Ting'en's expression shifted constantly, revealing a fierce internal struggle. The two policemen unconsciously loosened their grip on Ye Tianya's hands. Watching Liu Ting'en nervously, they released him completely when he managed to utter a single word, crying out in despair, "Chief—"

Liu Ting'en didn't want the foolish actions of these two and his good-for-nothing son to ruin his reputation just as he was about to be promoted. Besides, he thought that even if his son got a beating, it was better than having him tried in court and charged with some crime.

Outside the door, Liu Ting'en heard screams echoing throughout the building, carrying far into the night sky. His heart clenched. Director Gao, downstairs, was also startled by the screams and rushed upstairs. Seeing Director Liu standing at the door with a pained expression and pig-like screams coming from inside, he assumed Director Liu was having Ye Tianya beaten up and said angrily, "Director Liu, Ye Tianya is still a student. Isn't this going too far?"

Liu Ting'en didn't answer him but instead said, "Director Gao, bring me the videotape. And you have the three handguns too."

Director Gao was stunned, his face turning pale with shock. He said, "What? What videotape? What handguns? I don't understand."

Liu Ting'en sneered, "Director Gao, stop pretending. The camera wasn't found on Ye Tianya, and my two men's handguns are gone. I think Ye Tianya must have given them to you to take out."

"What? I took it out? Director Liu, don't make false accusations! What would I do with your pistol? I didn't even touch Ye Tianya when I came in. How could he say such a thing? Besides, even if Ye Tianya committed a crime, even if he's sent to court, you have no right to beat him. Tell your men to stop!" Director Gao was getting angry.

At this moment, the shouting inside stopped, and Ye Tianya appeared in the doorway, now holding three pistols. He coldly said, "Director Gao, Director Liu's police station is known for making false accusations all the time. The pistols and cameras were under the table in the interrogation room, but he insisted that you had them. That's his privilege as the police chief. Just like his son, who was perfectly healthy, he insisted that I had seriously injured him. I had no choice but to listen to him and seriously injure his son. Now we can leave, Director Gao."

Ye Tianya threw the three pistols on the ground and coldly glanced back at the five men on the floor of the interrogation room. Those five men probably wouldn't recover for at least two months. Director Gao looked at Ye Tianya in surprise: "You... they didn't hit you?"

Ye Tianya said calmly: "No, it was the chief who told me to hit them. Let's go, Director."

Director Gao was still confused as Ye Tianya pushed him out. Liu Ting'en called from behind: "Ye Tianya, you... you hit them, you should leave the videotape."

Ye Tianya turned around and said coldly: "Chief, are you out of your mind? I'll give you the videotape, and then you'll arrest me and charge me with assaulting a police officer, right? I just said that if I hit them, I'd pretend today's events never happened, but I didn't say I'd give you the videotape. By the way, Chief Liu, you'd better keep an eye on your precious son, or you'll regret it one day."

After saying that, he left the police station without waiting for Liu Ting'en's response.

The next morning, residents living near the police station woke up to inquire about the five pigs slaughtered at the station the previous night, wondering if something big was about to happen. Liu Ting'en was furious, nearly spitting blood; his son was still in the hospital, and these people had mistaken his son's screams for pig slaughter.

"Just now... those screams were from when you hit someone, not when someone hit you?" Director Gao, even after getting into the car, looked at Ye Tianya with disbelief. Ye Tianya calmly replied, "Do I look like someone who's been beaten and screaming? Let me show you what I looked like when I was beaten." As he spoke, Ye Tianya pulled up the video footage of the five men who had brought him into the interrogation room and assaulted him without explanation. Director Gao was so surprised he could hardly speak. Looking at Ye Tianya, who seemed quite skilled, he asked, "You're not injured?"

I coldly replied, "Injured? Would the police let you see injuries when they beat someone? What would be the point of recording this?"

Director Gao blushed, started the car, and said, "Be careful. You've offended a local tyrant in Lincheng. I'm afraid he won't let this go so easily. By the way, what did you do to his son?"

Ye Tianya calmly replied, "Nothing much, just broke a few bones. He probably won't be able to go back to school for a month or two."

"You—"

Director Gao was speechless. After driving off, he silently prayed that nothing would happen before the college entrance exam, so he could secure a spot for the school. In his mind, Ye Tianya was finished.

When I returned to the classroom, evening self-study hadn't ended yet, and the students all gathered around to ask what had happened. Yin Chao asked, "Tianya, what happened? Who did you hit?"

Ye Tianya replied calmly, "Nothing, I'm sorry to have worried everyone. It was just a misunderstanding; they mistook me for someone else."

The classmates were relieved. They comforted him for a couple of minutes and then left, but Yin Chao still said, "You hit that bastard Liu Qiyun, didn't you?"

Ye Tianya looked at Yin Chao in surprise and asked, "How did you know?"

Yin Chao laughed, "Didn't you ask the police if Liu Qiyun had sent them to arrest people when you left? Besides, this isn't the first time that Liu has sent the police to the school to arrest people for him. That little bastard should have died long ago. Two girls in the school have been ruined by him and are too ashamed to come to school. Another one jumped off a building and died, but she couldn't stand up to his father."

"What, jumped off a building? I've never heard of that," Ye Tianya said, somewhat surprised.

"It was last year... no, the year before last. Ding Xiang, the class beauty from Class 5 of the second year of high school, was raped by him and his two lackeys, and then jumped to her death. The Ding family even hired a lawyer and they're still suing, but they're being dragged out by the court officials protecting each other. I heard that lawyer was even threatened, but he's a real man, still fighting for the Ding family in this case as before. It's just that it probably won't end well," Yin Chao said regretfully.

Suddenly, a glint flashed in his eyes, and he said, "There are still many things in this world waiting to be changed."

Ye Tianya caught that glint in his eyes, and his words, "There are still many things in this world waiting to be changed," and his heart trembled.

"How much can you change?" Ye Tianya said calmly.

"I'll change as much as I can, it's better than nothing," Yin Chao said, looking at Ye Tianya in surprise at first, but quickly uttering these words.

Ye Tianya extended his hand and said calmly, "Count me in."

Yin Chao was taken aback at first, then reached out and grasped Ye Tianya's hand. Their eyes met, and both saw unwavering conviction in each other's gaze.

"Let's fight to change what needs to be changed in this world," Yin Chao said softly.

Ye Tianya nodded heavily. The two, later known as the Twin Dragons of China, had their first heart-to-heart conversation. The conversation lasted only a few short words.

Chapter Six: Perilous Encounter Under the Stars

In the days that followed, Ye Tianya gave Yin Chao a lot of information. This information made Yin Chao realize that Ye Tianya hadn't given his all in the last final exam, but had deliberately scored lower. He was greatly alarmed and studied even harder after receiving the information. Meanwhile, Xingye, a student at No. 3 Middle School, also received the same senior year review materials. When Ye Tianya gave her the materials, he simply said, "I think this can help you better accomplish what you want to do."

Xingye was surprised by Ye Tianya's words and wanted to ask him what they meant, but Ye Tianya left without saying anything. When she saw the review materials, she was completely captivated by them. She also immersed herself in them, focusing intently on her studies. Yes, she did have something she wanted to accomplish; it was her motivation and belief in living in this world. These materials were indeed very helpful in achieving that goal.

Entering the second semester of senior year, the school held weekly quizzes and monthly exams. Yin Chao's grades steadily improved, but no matter how many exams he took, Ye Tianya was always neck and neck with him, sometimes even scoring a few points higher. He became increasingly alarmed, but when he thought about the materials Ye Tianya had given him, he understood everything. Meanwhile, Xingye's grades were also steadily improving. The teachers at No. 3 Middle School treated her like a treasure, repeatedly asking her to share her study methods with the students. She only ever said two words: "Work hard!"

She also wanted to share those materials with her classmates so they could all improve together, but Ye Tianya didn't say whether the materials could be shown to others. She was afraid that if she did, Ye Tianya would be unhappy. After all, Ye Tianya was from No. 1 Middle School, while she was from No. 3 Middle School, and she was fully aware of the competition between schools.

And so, the three students from No. 1 and No. 3 Middle Schools pulled ahead of their classmates in several monthly and joint exams, scoring 30 or 40 points higher. Before the college entrance exam even arrived, Ye Tianya, Yin Chao, and Xingye had already become legendary figures in more than ten schools, objects of admiration for their classmates. However, a few people didn't admire them just because of their good grades. These people were Liu Qiyun, Li Ke, and others who had just been discharged from the hospital. These three had stayed in the hospital for more than two months, feeling incredibly frustrated.

"Damn it, it's that bastard surnamed Ye. I'll make him pay."

"Boss, in my opinion, it all comes down to that guy surnamed Xing. If it weren't for him, we wouldn't have gotten involved with that Ye guy. Our guns have been rusting for the past two months. Let's go catch her and have a couple of rounds with her. Damn it, that bitch is just an orphan. After we're done, no one will stand up for her."

“That’s right, boss. Every weekend she goes back to the orphanage through Luoying Alley. Few people pass by there. Let Brother Huang and the others help guard the alley entrance. No one will know what’s going on inside.”

Liu Qiyun was tempted by their words and laughed, “Alright, let’s have a good time with her this time. Let’s see how arrogant she is.”

After Xingye entered Luoying Alley, two policemen blocked both ends of the alley. When anyone tried to enter, they stopped them, saying, “They’re apprehending a fugitive inside. Take another route.”

The more Xingye walked, the more uneasy she felt. The alley was too quiet, unusually so. She became nervous and quickened her pace. Her hand unconsciously reached into her pocket. As soon as she reached in, she felt a small wooden strip. Ye Tianya had given it to her to break in case of danger. She hadn’t noticed it then, but now that she had it, she held it in her hand.

Intuition is always so accurate. Xingye turned a corner in the alley and saw the two people she least wanted to see. Both of them were looking at her with lewd smiles.

"Xingye, I've been waiting for you for so long! You've finally shown up, hehe. Do you have someone protecting you today?" Liu Qiyun said with a lewd grin, walking towards Xingye. Li Ke, standing beside him, said hatefully, "Because of you, you bitch, we were beaten so badly by that Ye Tianya that we were hospitalized for two months. Today, we'll get our revenge on you. Hehehehehe!"

Xingye turned around, intending to run back, but as soon as she did, she saw another despicable person behind her: Wei Shuxian. He grinned lewdly and said, "You're so pretty! I heard you, Ye Tianya, and that poor kid named Yin Chao are the 'Chinese prodigies' of our city. I wonder how exciting it is to hear this 'Chinese prodigy' moaning under our crotches."

Liu Qiyun angrily retorted, "Damn it, Wei Shuxian, couldn't you have been a little more tactful? If you wanted to hear this 'Chinese prodigy' moaning under our crotches, that would be exciting!"

Xingye was both ashamed and furious. She had heard that these three guys were infamous in the city and knew that she probably couldn't escape today. She didn't want to be defiled by these three men. If she did, she would have no face to meet her beloved in the afterlife. Even if there was only a sliver of hope, she would try. Although she didn't quite believe Ye Tianya's words, she still took out the small wooden stick Ye Tianya had given her and snapped it in two. Even if it was the last glimmer of hope, she wouldn't give up. After breaking the wooden stick, Xingye calmed down. Deliberately stalling for time, he asked, "What happened with you guys getting beaten up by Ye Tianya? Could he possibly take on all three of you by himself?"

"Couldn't take him? He beat him with my dad's permission! That guy filmed something to threaten my dad, otherwise I would have killed him already. Humph."

"Right? What did he film?" Xingren asked.

"He filmed us and two cops beating him. Damn it, he even said he'd send it to the newspaper. But sooner or later, we'll make him suffer a much worse fate."

"Boss, this bitch is stalling for time, don't fall for it," Wei Shuxian pointed out, realizing Xingye's intentions.

Liu Qiyun chuckled, "I know, but let's see how long he can stall. Even if he waits until tomorrow, no one can get into this alley. Have you forgotten that Brother Huang and the others are guarding the alley entrance?"

Xingye was furious and yelled at the three men, "Liu Qiyun, you'll all die a horrible death! Even if I die, don't even think about touching me!"

"Is that so? Hahaha, even if you want to die now, you'll have to wait until we've had our fun, understand? Hahaha!" Liu Qiyun laughed arrogantly and pounced on Xingye, who was facing the wall, ready to smash her head against it. Xingye saw Liu Qiyun rushing towards her, and the person Ye Tianya had mentioned coming to save her hadn't appeared yet, so she didn't hesitate to smash her head against the wall. Unfortunately, Xingye was still a girl, and Liu Qiyun pounced on her and knocked her to the ground. He was about to reach out to tear Xingye's clothes when he suddenly saw a hint of joy in Xingye's eyes as she looked up at the sky. Then he felt a pain in his neck, and everything went black. He knew nothing more.

Just as Ye Tianya saw Xingye about to crash into the wall, he had just knocked down Li Ke and Wei Shuxian. He was about to turn around to save Xingye when Liu Qiyun tackled him. Ye Tianya stepped forward and knocked Liu Qiyun unconscious with a single blow, striking several pressure points on his body before dragging Xingye away and helping him up.

"Little... Xingye, are you alright?" Ye Tianya almost called out "Little Ye," but thankfully he quickly corrected himself.

Xingren stood up, her face flushed, and said, "It's nothing, thank you for saving me again."

Ye Tianya shook his head and said, "No need to thank me. These three people weren't good people to begin with. Let's leave quickly."

Xingye said, "Wait!" As she spoke, she picked up a stone from the ground and smashed it hard against the groin of the three men. Ye Tianya was startled and quickly stepped forward to stop her, saying, "You can't do that now. They all know you, and you're just an orphan. I'm afraid their fathers won't let you off the hook. You have important things to do, don't you?"

Xingye was stunned, staring blankly at Ye Tianya, and suddenly said coldly: "How did you know I had something to do? Who exactly are you?"

Ye Tianya said calmly. "There are police officers keeping watch for these three at both ends of the alley. Let's leave here first."

Xingye put down the stone and looked at Ye Tianya warily. Ye Tianya pointed to the high wall by the alley and said, "There's an alley on the other side of this wall. Let's go through here and avoid the police at both ends."

Xingye knew that these three people dared to be disrespectful to her here, so they must have something to rely on. When she heard Ye Tianya mention that there were police officers guarding the alley entrances, she understood when she thought of Liu Qiyun's background. But when she looked at the high wall, she showed a helpless expression.

Ye Tianya suddenly lunged forward, said "Excuse me," and before Xingye could react, he grabbed her waist and leaped into the air, lightly soaring over the high wall. Xingye screamed in fright, and Ye Tianya quickly covered her mouth, releasing her only after landing in another alley. "Don't scream," he said, "or someone will find out."

Xingye's face was pale, and she stared blankly at Ye Tianya. "Who are you? How can you fly?"

Ye Tianya looked at Xingye calmly, a faint smile finally appearing on his face—the first smile he'd shown since leaving the valley. He said, "I can't tell you who I am right now, but rest assured, I'm working for Ye Xin's wrongful conviction, just like you. Please believe me. Just now, I wasn't flying; that was just light-footed skill."

Xingye was stunned again, asking, "How do you know I'm working for my brother's wrongful conviction?"

Ye Tianya tried his best to calm himself. Qing said, "Because during the New Year, I accidentally overheard what you said at the cemetery in the eastern suburbs."

Xingye's face flushed red upon hearing this, and she glared at Ye Tianya, saying, "You heard everything?"

Ye Tianya nodded, "I heard everything, but I don't know if I should say some things. Perhaps your brother would rather you be happy in this world than go over there to be with him. I won't say anymore, you should leave quickly. Don't take such remote places when you go home in the future."

Chapter Seven: Xingye Learns Martial Arts

Xingye was stunned after hearing Ye Tianya's words. Seeing Ye Tianya about to leave, she quickly called out to him, "Wait, could you... teach me... learn martial arts?"

Ye Tianya was taken aback, but quickly smiled and nodded, saying, "Of course, but learning martial arts is very hard. Are you afraid?"

Xingye firmly shook her head, saying, "No, as long as you teach me."

Ye Tianya said, "Alright then, I'll teach you when you have time."

"Right now, I'm not going back. I'll call the hospital and say I can make up for the lessons." Xingye was a little impatient.

Ye Tianya thought about it and decided that it was better to start practicing martial arts as early as possible; every day earlier was better than nothing. So he nodded in agreement. Xingye asked Ye Tianya to find a quiet place. After thinking for a moment, Xingye said, "The back hill of our school is very quiet. It's the weekend, and all the students have gone home. There's no one here."

So the two walked towards the Third Middle School. On the way, Xingye asked, "By the way, how did you know I was in danger? What's with that little wooden stick?"

Ye Tianya knew Xingye would ask this question, so he gave the answer he had prepared: "I've had a special ability since I was little. I can sense a kind of information inside these little wooden sticks. I can't explain what it is, but as long as the wooden stick breaks, I can sense its location. Of course, it's only within a certain range. I can't sense it if it's far away. I was just shopping nearby. By the way, yours broke. Take one with you, just in case."

Xingye seemed to understand, but she still took the wooden stick and said, "Thank you!"

Ye Tianya smiled faintly and didn't say anything. The little wooden stick was something he had recently invented. It was a wooden stick imbued with magic. As long as the wooden stick broke, he could sense it within a certain range. He could then use spatial jump magic to instantly teleport to the scene of the incident. However, he couldn't reveal the matter of magic, only saying it was a special ability he had possessed since childhood.

Upon arriving at the back hill of the Third Middle School, he found it indeed deserted and utterly quiet. Ye Tianya taught Xingye the Xuan Nu Heart Method used by Bing Shuang and Bing Xue, instructing her on how to practice. He said, "Practice this method first, and pay attention to sensing the path of my true energy flowing through your body." As he spoke, Ye Tianya placed his palm on Xingye's back and exhaled his true energy. Xingye cooperated by silently reciting the Heart Method and meditating, sensing the true energy Ye Tianya injected from her back rising from her lower abdomen, circulating throughout her body, and then returning to her lower abdomen. This cycle repeated nearly ten times before Ye Tianya released his hand, saying, "Just follow those paths. You might not feel your true energy flowing now, but just imagine there's a flow of energy moving through you. I'll be here to protect you."

Xingye followed the paths Ye Tianya had indicated within her body. Sure enough, after Ye Tianya removed his hand, she could no longer feel the warm current. However, she still followed Ye Tianya's instructions and imagined there was a flow of energy moving through her body.

Once, twice, three times… Xingye gradually forgot her surroundings, forgot that she was in the pavilion behind the school. When she opened her eyes, she was startled to see a rising sun in the distance, but then she heard Ye Tianya's voice behind her: "Awake? You're a martial arts genius, able to enter a meditative state on your first day."

"Enter a meditative state? What time is it now? I haven't been meditating all night, have I?"

Ye Tianya smiled and said, "Wrong, you've been meditating for a day and two nights. Today is Sunday."

Xingye was so surprised that she couldn't close her mouth. "Two nights and one day, I... you've been guarding here for two nights and one day?"

Xingye smiled and said, "Yes, by the way, try it, do you feel anything inside your body?" Xingye

sat down again, closed her eyes, tried it, and then excitedly opened her eyes and said, "I can feel the heat, but it's very small, only as thick as a thread."

Ye Tianya's face also showed a happy expression, and he said, "It's really true that you're a martial arts prodigy. It took me more than two days to figure it out. Well, I'm hungry and sleepy now. Let's go, let's go get something to eat first, and then I need to find a place to rest." With that, he walked towards the school, and Xingye followed behind. Xingye said apologetically, "I'm sorry, Ye... no, Master."

Ye Tianya was taken aback by Xingye's address, then laughed and said, "Don't call me Master anymore. I have no intention of taking you as my disciple. From now on, you can practice on your own."

Having not eaten for about two days, both were starving. So, they ordered a huge amount of food at a small eatery near the Third Middle School and wolfed it down. Xingye ate quite politely, but Ye Tianya didn't care about such things, wishing he had more hands and a mouth.

Xingye stared blankly at the boy in front of her. His smile, some of his gestures, and even the way he ate were all somewhat familiar, but she just couldn't remember where she had seen that gesture, that smile, and that way of eating before.

"What's wrong?" Ye Tianya asked, puzzled, seeing Xingye staring blankly at him.

Xingye blushed, shook her head, and said, "Nothing, I just feel like I've seen your every move before."

Ye Tianya's heart skipped a beat, and he chuckled, "Boys, everyone's behavior is pretty much the same, especially when it comes to eating. My roommate said that eating like this is how you show manliness." Xingye

giggled. After they finished eating, they returned to the back mountain. Ye Tianya took out an old booklet from his pocket and handed it to Xingye, saying, "I'm going to sleep for a while. You can look at the things in this book first. If you don't understand anything, wake me up when I wake up."

Xingye said "Okay," and after Ye Tianya fell asleep on the lawn, she opened the booklet. The first page was titled "Eighteen Forms of Xuan Nu San Shou." The booklet contained diagrams of acupoints, methods for striking and releasing acupoints, and a set of grappling and fighting techniques.

Xingye looked through the pages one by one, folding up the parts she didn't understand. She glanced at Ye Tianya, who was fast asleep on the lawn, every now and then. She tried to recall where she had seen him before, but she just couldn't remember. Ye Tianya hadn't actually taken the book from his robes, but from the seven-colored ring on his left hand. It was just a trick in front of Xingye.

Xingye was very talented and diligent. When Ye Tianya woke up, Xingye had already finished reading the booklet. She folded up the parts she didn't understand, and Ye Tianya explained them to her one by one, then guided her in practicing until it was dark before returning to school for Sunday evening self-study.

"Ye Tianya, when are you going to come and teach me?" Xingye asked as she was leaving.

Ye Tianya thought for a moment and said, "No rush. You should focus on practicing your internal energy first, and then practice the Xuan Nu San Shou when you have time. I'll come over next weekend. Don't neglect your studies either. You're determined to go to China

, you know." Xingye blushed as she thought about how this guy had overheard what she said at the graveyard. He said "Oh," and quickly turned and slipped away. Ye Tianya then returned to school. Thinking of the punishment he'd given Liu Qiyun and the others the day before yesterday, Ye Tianya sneered inwardly. Those three had just been discharged from the hospital; they'd probably be back in soon. This time, even the doctors probably wouldn't be able to figure out what was wrong with them. The few taps Ye Tianya had applied to the three of them had severed three major meridians. Unless Ye Tianya treated them, they were destined to be impotent

for life. Ye Tianya returned to school more than ten minutes late, but the teachers didn't give him a hard time. They were always lenient with Yin Chao and him, and they turned a blind eye to students with good grades.

Sure enough, for several days in a row, Ye Tianya didn't see Liu Qiyun and the other two at school. He knew those three were back in the hospital. Ye Tianya thought to himself, "These three better not show up before the college entrance exam to ruin my mood." Without their interference, Ye Tianya's life returned to normal. He studied and rested every day, and went to the Third Middle School to guide Xingye on weekends. The college entrance examination was also under his track.

Chapter 8 Despicable Revenge (1)

Liu Qiyun and the other two and Liu Ting'en had not come to cause trouble for Ye Tianya, which made Ye Tianya feel a little uneasy. In his opinion, the Liu father and son would never let it go so easily. If they did not come to cause trouble for him before the college entrance examination, when would they?

Ye Tianya was lying flat on the bed thinking wildly when someone knocked on the door. Ye Tianya opened the door and was stunned. It was the two policemen he had beaten.

"Student Ye Tianya, we meet again. I am really sorry. We received a report that you have hidden drugs, so we have to come and see. This is a search warrant. Do you want to verify it?" The fat policeman said with a smile.

Ye Tianya was shocked. It seemed that these two people came at this time. However, Ye Tianya didn't care and let the two policemen come in to search. After the two policemen came in, they went straight to Ye Tianya's bookshelf, took out two books, and found a small packet of white powder inside. Ye Tianya was completely stunned when he saw the packet of white powder. When he saw the two policemen's sinister smiles, Ye Tianya remembered that the two policemen didn't look at anything else and went straight to those two books. He immediately understood what was going on. Ye Tianya remembered that Zhao Gang from his class wanted to borrow his chemistry notes that morning. He was busy at the time, so he gave Zhao Gang the key to his dormitory and told him to come and get them himself. Now that he thought about it, Zhao Gang had chosen a good time. He knew that he didn't want to be distracted while he was explaining problems to his classmates, so he came to borrow his notes. All of this was arranged.

Having figured this out, Ye Tianya calmed down and smiled, a smile that left the two policemen bewildered. Ye Tianya chuckled, "Gentlemen, your noses are quite sharp, aren't they? Hehehe, I really didn't expect you to find this place so easily, without even looking elsewhere. Come on, are you going to take me to the police station again?"

The two policemen exchanged surprised glances, then smirked, "Yes, you're really clever. Come with us."

Ye Tianya then went to the police station again. This time, the two policemen didn't beat him. Inside, they ran into Liu Ting'en, who smiled and said, "Young Master Ye, we meet again! Hehe, Little Huang, what trouble has Ye Tianya gotten himself into this time?"

The chubby policeman replied, "Reporting to the chief, someone reported that Ye Tianya was possessing drugs. We found this during our search, so we brought him back."

Liu Ting'en said, "Oh, is that so? Then Ye Tianya might have to suffer a bit. I believe Ye Tianya wouldn't do such a thing." "You two should investigate thoroughly and clear Ye Tianya's name. Don't use torture this time."

Ye Tianya coldly looked at Liu Ting'en and said, "Director Liu, I suggest you tell them not to investigate. Otherwise, you might lose your position as director. Don't blame me for not reminding you, some things are unacceptable; you'll regret it for the rest of your life."

Liu Ting'en smiled and said, "Is that so? That's what I was thinking too. However, if you really are a drug dealer, you'd better confess."

The two policemen grinned and escorted Ye Tianya into a detention cell. This time, they didn't beat him; instead, they brought him a drink. The two policemen pretended to interrogate him, but Ye Tianya only said, "I don't know anything," and then said nothing more. After the two policemen left, Ye Tianya sat leisurely and drank his beverage, pondering what Liu Ting'en was up to.

Until the next morning, when it was light, no one had come to answer him. He suddenly realized a terrifying possibility: the college entrance exam was only two hours away. Could Liu Ting'en be trying to lock him up here, preventing him from taking the exam?

This thought filled Ye Tianya with panic. Just then, a policewoman brought him breakfast. Ye Tianya asked, "Where's your chief? I need to talk to him."

The policewoman glanced at Ye Tianya and said, "The chief just went to the exam site to maintain order. He won't be back until tonight. We'll talk when he gets back."

Hearing this, Ye Tianya confirmed his suspicions. Liu Ting'en really wanted to prevent him from taking the exam. He had originally planned to use the videos he found at the nightclub to blackmail him into letting him take the exam, but now even that was impossible.

Ye Tianya slumped weakly in his seat, his expression shifting between anger and uncertainty. He made a decision in his mind. After the policewoman left, he ate breakfast, then stood up, his eyes fixed on the seat, a glint of light in them. Soon, a faint image appeared on the seat, growing stronger and clearer until it became another image of Ye Tianya, sitting motionless against the wall. However, it was merely an image created by Ye Tianya using magic. After completing this, Ye Tianya's figure suddenly vanished from the small detention cell.

The next moment, he was back in his single dormitory assigned to him by the school. He found his admission ticket, exam tools, and washed his face before brazenly heading to his exam room. Since the two policemen had taken Ye Tianya away from the dormitory during his lunch break the day before, it hadn't attracted much attention. Seeing him now, no one was surprised, and several classmates even greeted him.

After finishing his Chinese exam in the morning, Ye Tianya hurriedly returned to his dormitory, then teleported back to the detention cell. The image was still there; Ye Tianya removed it, sat down again, and waited for lunch to be brought in.

Lunch was still plentiful. Ye Tianya sneered inwardly, ate as usual, and after placing the tray by the door, he lay down on a simple bed in the corner for a nap. In the afternoon, Ye Tianya went to take the exam as usual. When the officers from the station came to check, they only saw a 'person' sitting in a chair, lost in thought, and didn't pay any more attention. Ye Tianya took another math exam, and then returned to his detention cell.

Two hours after Ye Tianya returned, the detention cell door opened, and two people entered: Director Gao and Liu Ting'en. Director Gao had gone to Ye Tianya's dormitory to check on his exams but couldn't find him. After asking around, he heard from the old man downstairs that two of Ye Tianya's policeman friends had come to ask him to leave and hadn't returned. Director Gao immediately understood what had happened. The two policemen had mentioned to the old man downstairs that they were Ye Tianya's old friends, which was why he hadn't reported it to his superiors. Director Gao was heartbroken. One of his school's promising students had missed two exams; forget about getting into China, he couldn't even dream of getting into a vocational college. He decided to go to the Public Security Bureau to see what was going on. After hearing Director Liu's explanation, he was so angry he couldn't utter a word. Director Gao knew the truth, but lacking evidence, he could only request that Ye Tianya be released to take the exams first.

With the school director's guarantee, Liu Ting'en readily released Ye Tianya. He chuckled, "I'm so sorry, I forgot about Ye Tianya's college entrance exam. But due to legal procedures, we have no choice but to do this..."

Ye Tianya interrupted him coldly, "Director Liu, don't be so polite. I won't hit your subordinates again this time. Goodbye, Director Liu, I'll come back after my exam tomorrow. Thank you so much for your hospitality today, Director. I ate well and slept soundly; I almost didn't want to leave."

Liu Ting'en was startled to see this person, who had missed a day of the college entrance exam, still so calm. Seeing the cold look in his eyes, he felt a tightness in his chest. He forced a smile and said, "You're too kind. Last time, a misunderstanding caused Ye Tianya to be hurt. How could I repeat that mistake? I believe Ye Tianya wouldn't do something as stupid as drug trafficking. I've already had my men investigate thoroughly. Don't worry, we will definitely clear your name." "Yes."

Ye Tianya said lightly, "Then thank you very much, Director Liu. It's getting late, Director Liu is busy, so we'll be leaving now. See you tomorrow afternoon."

Chapter Nine: Despicable Revenge (2)

After leaving the police station, Director Gao sighed deeply and said, "Ye Tianya, I told you before that you shouldn't offend this local bully. Now look what happened. Not only is the college entrance exam over, but you've also been branded as a drug dealer. What are your plans now? Do you still want to take the two exams tomorrow?"

Ye Tianya said lightly, "Exam? Of course I will take the exam. Not only will I take it, but I will make it spectacular. Let's go back to school. Thank you, Director Gao."

Director Gao sighed and said, "I didn't expect you to be more open-minded than me. It seems I'm really getting old."

After returning to the dormitory, Ye Tianya closed the door, then retrieved Zhao Gang's information from the civil affairs system, and then called out to Lisi, "Lisi, can you do me a favor?"

"What? Young master, just give the order." Lisi's beautiful face appeared on the screen. This improved Ye Tianya's mood somewhat. He said to Lisi, "The person I just investigated is called Zhao Gang. He conspired with others to frame me. I need you to help me create a fake video. The process is as follows..."

Lisi smiled and said, "No problem, young master. First, place the camera in a high place, pointing it at the door. Then, pretend to walk in from outside, and go to the bookshelf and put something inside. I'll then replace your image with Zhao Gang's. By the way, you'd better find out who Zhao Gang is." "What did he wear yesterday?"

Ye Tianya said, "No need, he was wearing jeans yesterday."

Ye Tianya placed the camera on the ceiling fan in the dormitory, then opened the door and went out. He then opened the door from the outside and came back in, pretending to be furtive, looking around suspiciously before finally looking at the bookshelf. He walked to the bookshelf, glancing towards the door while taking a pack of white paper from his pocket and placing it behind two books. After hurriedly putting the books back, he took a notebook from the bookshelf, and left quickly, closing the door behind him. After doing all this, Ye Tianya went back to his room and transferred the footage from the camera into Lisi's computer. Lisi laughed, "Young master, you really have a talent for acting. Just wait a little while, half an hour at most, and it'll be done."

Half an hour later, Ye Tianya saw the 'video' Lisi had made and couldn't help but exclaim in admiration. Ye Tianya thought to himself that if he wanted to frame someone, it would be an incredibly easy thing.

Ye Tianya re-imported the 'video' that Lisi had created into the camera, then packed up the computer, a satisfied smile on his face.

While the other students in the dormitory were away, Zhao Gang couldn't resist taking out the stack of money again and counting it. He hadn't expected the money to come so easily; just placing a few things in someone else's room could earn him ten thousand yuan. Although he felt somewhat guilty towards Ye Tianya, he thought, well, after graduating from high school, they'd all be scattered in different places, who would recognize whom? Besides, Ye Tianya was usually cold and aloof, and they had no real relationship. Offending Liu Shao was his own fault. Just as he was engrossed in counting the money, there was a knock on the dormitory door. He quickly hid the money under his blanket and shouted loudly, "Come in!"

However, the person who entered made his heart skip a beat. "Ye... Ye Tianya, what are you doing at school? Oh, no... what do you want?" He found his voice trembling, looking fearfully at the cold-faced Ye Tianya. He didn't know why Ye Tianya was at school; he should be at the police station.

Seeing Zhao Gang's pale face, Ye Tianya felt a surge of resentment and said calmly, "Oh, I'm here to retrieve my chemistry notes. Do you still need them, Zhao Gang?"

Seeing that Ye Tianya hadn't mentioned it, Zhao Gang was eager to get rid of him immediately, so he hurriedly said, "No, I'll give them to you right away."

He frantically pulled back the covers to find the notes by his pillow, forgetting the stack of money underneath. He was startled and quickly pulled the covers back down. Looking back, he saw Ye Tianya holding a video camera pointed at the area under the covers, saying, "Zhao Gang, you really have a lot of money. By the way, did Liu Qiyun give it to you or Liu Ting'en?"

Zhao Gang was completely flustered and blurted out, "It was Young Master Liu... no... my dad gave it to me."

Large beads of sweat were already dripping down his forehead.

Ye Tianya held the camera in front of Zhao Gang and said calmly, "Zhao Gang, I'm going to show you something you might be interested in."

Zhao Gang turned his head to look, and when he saw the small screen on the camera showing him sneaking into Ye Tianya's dormitory, and then...

Zhao Gang was already extremely nervous when he entered Ye Tianya's dormitory that day, so he didn't pay attention to what he had done. He only watched half of it before he couldn't watch any further. His face turned pale as he looked at Ye Tianya and said, "You... how did you film that? That... it's not my fault... it was Young Master Liu... they threatened me..."

Ye Tianya looked at his blanket again and said, "There must be a lot of money buried under there, right? Young Master Liu gave it to you?"

"Yes... Ye Tianya, I know I'm sorry for what I did, but please... let me go. I still have to take the college entrance exam... I..." Zhao Gang climbed off the bed and knelt in front of Ye Tianya, begging.

Ye Tianya coldly said, "Didn't I take the college entrance exam? I was detained in the police station for a day, missed two exams, and even got a drug dealer charge. Zhao Gang, I don't think I've offended you. Why are you doing this to me? I don't want to say anything. I'll give you two choices: one, I'll let you take the exam tomorrow, and then you can turn yourself in; two, I'll sue you first thing tomorrow morning, and you can forget about taking the exam tomorrow. This is the most merciful thing I can do for you out of consideration for our friendship. If you turn yourself in, and since you were acting under someone else's orders, I don't think you'll be guilty of anything serious. Maybe you can even get your university acceptance letter."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Gang's face turned pale and then red. He gritted his teeth and said, "Fine, I promise you. I'll turn myself in after the exam tomorrow. Thank you for your leniency. I apologize for my stupidity."

Ye Tianya said calmly. “No need to apologize. Some things can’t be resolved with an apology. Now, tell me everything that happened. Don’t say I don’t trust you; I’m also worried you’ll run away after the college entrance exam. I need to have something to explain to the judge.”

Zhao Gang didn’t refuse. Since he was going to the prison anyway, it wouldn’t hurt to tell the whole story first. So he said, “Here’s what happened. The day before yesterday, Liu Qiyun came to me and said that you had beaten them so badly that they were hospitalized for more than two months. He wanted me to put that bag of heroin in your dormitory, and he would give me 10,000 yuan. Otherwise, he would frame me in the same way. I couldn’t afford to offend them, so I had to do as they said. Yesterday, I saw you busy explaining problems to Yin Chao, so I took the opportunity to borrow your notes. After you gave me the key, I went into your dormitory and put that bag of heroin in your bookshelf. All of this was recorded in your video. I don’t know anything else.”

“Do you have any evidence to prove these things? If not, then the Liu family father and son might say that you framed them. In that case, you’ll be guilty on both sides, understand?” Ye Tianya asked coldly.

“Yes, I’m on guard against them,” Zhao Gang pulled a small recorder from the box and played their conversation, which Ye Tianya recorded. He then put away the camera, picked up his notebook, and gave Zhao Gang a cold look, saying, “Don’t blame me for not warning you, you’d better not let the Liu family know you’re planning to turn yourself in before you do, otherwise they might kill you to silence you.” He then left. With this information, and knowing that Zhao Gang would never dream the video was fake, Ye Tianya wasn’t worried about Zhao Gang turning himself in. Tomorrow, there would be a good show.

Chapter Ten: Conclusive Evidence

After finishing his last science exam, Ye Tianya didn’t return to his dormitory. Instead, he went to a law firm, hired a lawyer, explained the situation, and told the lawyer to come to the police station in an hour. Then he leisurely went to the police station, waiting for Liu Ting’en to arrive.

When Liu Ting’en entered and saw Ye Tianya sitting in his office, leisurely drinking water, he was clearly stunned. He probably never expected that his rival would return on his own. However, the old fox is still the old fox, and he quickly laughed, saying, "So it's Ye Tianya, the great talent! Ye Tianya really keeps his word. How did the exam go today? I heard you're a promising talent in China."

Ye Tianya gave him a cold look and said, "Not bad. My combined English and comprehensive scores are probably higher than your son's. Director Liu, I kind of miss that little bed in the detention cell. Oh, and that pretty policewoman, could you please have her bring me another dinner?"

Many people came in with Liu Ting'en, as well as many police officers from the original office, including the policewoman. Hearing Ye Tianya's words, everyone's expression changed. Liu Ting'en's face turned a deep purplish-red, while the policewoman blushed to the roots of her neck. The office suddenly became so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Liu Ting'en, barely suppressing his anger, said, "Since Ye Tianya wants to go in, Xiao Huang, take him to the detention room and interrogate him thoroughly. Uncover his drug trafficking network and wipe him out."

Ye Tianya sneered, "Then you'd better keep a close eye on your son. Don't let him escape, or you won't be able to catch him."

Without waiting for the fat policeman to approach, he walked towards the detention room, winking at the policewoman who had brought him food before, saying, "Officer sister, remember to bring me food!"

Ye Tianya's arrogance made Liu Ting'en's face turn ashen with anger. He went into his office without a word. Shortly after entering his office, the phone rang. He answered the phone, "Hello, who is this?"

The person on the other end said, "Old Liu, this is President Zhang of the court. A student named Zhao Gang has turned himself in, saying that your son threatened him to frame a student named Ye Tianya. I'm holding off on this. What do you think we should do?"

Liu Ting'en's face changed drastically upon hearing this. He said, "Oh dear, thank you so much, President Zhang, for letting me know. My good-for-nothing son has caused you trouble again. How about this, you hold off for now, I'll be right there, okay?"

"It's alright, Old Liu. I told him I was off work and didn't accept his confession, but he requested legal protection. His lawyer was here just now, so I had to have someone protect him. I just asked him, and Zhao Gang said that the whole process of framing him was recorded by that student surnamed Ye. I think we have to work on Ye Tianya. As long as Ye Tianya doesn't pursue the matter, Zhao Gang probably won't turn himself in."

Liu Ting'en was almost going crazy again. It was about recording again. He was stuck on recording again. This Ye Tianya was really a troublesome devil. After hanging up the phone, Liu Ting'en's heart began to pound. He wondered what Ye Tianya was going to do to him this time. Thinking about how he had caused Ye Tianya to fail his college entrance exam, this kind of hatred wouldn't be easily resolved.

He opened the door and called out, "Xiao Huang, quickly go and invite Ye Tianya to my office."

The fat man didn't understand why he had to "invite" him out after just being locked up, instead of bringing him out. However, he did as he was told. When Ye Tianya arrived at the main office, he didn't go into the bureau chief's office, but instead smiled wickedly at the policewoman in the main office, saying, "Police sister, it seems I still can't eat the dinner you bring."

"You... please have some self-respect!" The policewoman, though secretly pleased to be called "police sister" by such a handsome man, couldn't lose face in front of her colleagues, so she blushed and feigned anger. At this moment, Liu Ting'en came out of the office and said to Ye Tianya, "Oh, Ye Tianya, I'm so sorry. We've investigated everything. You were framed innocently. We've caught the person who framed you. You can leave now."

Liu Ting'en was really adorable. He thought Ye Tianya only knew that Zhao Gang had framed him, but didn't know who was behind it all. So he thought he could just get away with it like this. Once Ye Tianya left the police station, he could do whatever he wanted with Zhao Gang.

Unfortunately, Ye Tianya didn't give him any face, sneering, "Go? Go where? The college entrance exam is over now, and you deliberately locked me up for a day, making me miss the exam. Where am I supposed to go now? Go to Huaxia University? They won't accept me, will they? Or will they make me waste another day studying for my senior year? Waiting for you and your precious son to frame me again? Hmph, I haven't even had the meal cooked by that pretty policewoman yet. Oh, and I have an appointment with my lawyer; he'll be here soon. I have to wait for him to arrive before we talk. Oh, I forgot to tell you, Zhao Gang has confessed everything. You probably know best where your son got the heroin."

Ye Tianya plopped down on the policewoman's desk, standing... Taking a sip of the coffee the policewoman had just brewed, Ye Tianya chuckled, "Sister, I can't go to China anymore. I might as well just stay here in jail and have you bring me food every day, okay? Your coffee smells so good. Oh, and there are red lips! Did you just drink from it? Looks like we indirectly kissed!"

Hearing Ye Tianya's words to Liu Ting'en, the policewoman immediately understood that this student had been ruined by the bureau chief's son, unable to take the college entrance exam. Ten years of hard study had been wasted on a spoiled brat like him. She felt quite sorry for him, and his teasing made her face burn. Out of sympathy for the boy, she didn't get angry, but instead lowered her head, blushing, and said nothing.

Seeing his subordinates looking at him strangely, Liu Ting'en felt both anxious and resentful. He said, "Ye Tianya, you need evidence before you speak. Be careful, or I'll sue you for defamation."

Ye Tianya produced a video camera as if by magic, coldly saying, "Director Liu, I have some recordings here, along with Zhao Gang's confession

. Shall I show them to you?" "You—" Liu Ting'en deflated upon seeing the camera. He said, "The matter hasn't been investigated to see if that Zhao guy framed my son. Don't rush to conclusions. At most, it only proves your innocence."

Ye Tianya sneered, "It's quite unfortunate that I also obtained a recording of your son's conversation with Zhao Gang. Your son probably didn't expect Zhao Gang to have a backup plan. He's no

less intelligent than your son. Do you want to listen?" A buzzing sound filled the large office. The police officers began whispering amongst themselves. Liu Ting'en, having no other recourse, said, "I will investigate this matter. If it really was my son who did it, I won't let him off the hook. As for the losses you suffered because we arrested the wrong person..."

Before he could finish, a young man in a suit carrying a briefcase entered through the door and said, "Excuse me, where is Mr. Ye Tianya? I am his lawyer."

Ye Tianya turned to look at the man and said, "Attorney Hu, come here quickly, I've been waiting for you."

Attorney Hu walked over and first said to Ye Tianya, "I'm sorry, Mr. Ye, I'm late."

Ye Tianya said indifferently, "Not late at all, not late at all. If you had come earlier, I wouldn't have had this delicious coffee." Saying this, he put the coffee cup back on the desk, completely ignoring Liu Ting'en, and said to the policewoman, "Thank you, sister. My lawyer is here. It seems I won't have another chance to drink your coffee, sigh!" Ye Tianya sighed and said to Attorney Hu, "Attorney Hu, Director Liu just said he would cover my losses. Could you please help me calculate them?"

Attorney Hu sneered at Liu Ting'en, "I'm really sorry, but I'm going to sue your son again. Dingxiang's case has been dragged on, are you going to drag this one on too?"

I looked at Attorney Hu in surprise and said, "You're the righteous angel who was threatened and beaten but still fought for Dingxiang and sought justice? That's great! I didn't expect to get you. I've decided, the commission will be doubled. However, Director Liu will pay."

Liu Ting'en glared at me hatefully and said, "Attorney Hu Qing, you studied law, so let's follow the legal procedures. Please come to my office."

Ye Tianya followed Hu Qing into Liu Ting'en's office. Liu Ting'en closed the door, as if afraid that people outside would hear the conversation inside. Unfortunately, Ye Tianya was at odds with him again. His eyes flashed with a sharp light as he stared at the wall outside before turning back to Liu Ting'en and coldly saying, "Director Liu, are you planning to settle this privately or wait until we meet in court?"

Liu Ting'en's face was ashen. He said, "Tell me, what will it take for you to stop?"

Chapter Eleven: Extortion of the Director.

Ye Tianya coldly said, "Director Liu, I don't know what will take you to stop. How about this? You've probably done this many times before. Why don't you see how you can compensate me for my losses?"

Liu Ting'en glanced at the lawyer behind Ye Tianya, his face still ashen. "I want you to stop pursuing Zhao Gang's responsibility and stop him from turning himself in. Name your price, how much do you want?"

Ye Tianya said coldly, "Money? Fine, Director Liu has plenty of money. How about this, I'll name one item, and Attorney Hu will write it down for me. Whatever the total is, that's what I'll pay, how about that?"

Liu Ting'en snorted, which was considered his acquiescence. Ye Tianya sneered, "Let's start with the big one. Your son framed me, causing me to be arrested by the police twice in front of my classmates. This is something that will make me unable to hold my head up in front of my classmates forever. The compensation for this mental distress should be around 100,000 yuan, right? Attorney Hu, I'll say 100,000 yuan."

"You—" Liu Ting'en glared angrily at Ye Tianya, but then fell silent. Ye Tianya continued, "Your son is hiding drugs and framing me. You want us to keep quiet about his drug trafficking, so you probably have to give us some hush money, how about 50,000 each? Lawyer Hu, add another 100,000. As for the suffering you endured at the police station, not eating or sleeping well, even though a pretty policewoman was there to look after you, that's nothing. You probably have to give me 100,000 or so as compensation for that. Oh, I forgot the biggest thing. You deliberately kept me locked up and I missed the college entrance exam. Do you know how high the cutoff score for Huaxia University is? Every year, at most only two or three people from Lincheng get in through the exam. I'm a promising student from No. 1 High School. If I miss this year, I'll have to waste another year of my youth. Look at my prime years, a year of youth, that's not something money can buy. But I'll still take the loss, let's say 800,000."

"Also, I have a small request. Last time, your son and your subordinate were hospitalized for two months after I beat them up. This time, I want to beat you up. Let me have a beating, and we'll be even. I guarantee Zhao Gang won't turn himself in again. Director Liu, 1.1 million plus a beating, you shouldn't think that's too expensive, right? I know what you're up to. You want us to sue your son so you can get him out. But don't worry, I won't let him suffer in jail. That bag of heroin weighs at least 500 grams. I'll post all the videos online, on TV, and in newspapers, so everyone can keep an eye on you. Maybe when your son comes out, he'll be a middle-aged man."

Liu Ting'en glared at the young man with eyes blazing with anger. He had been defeated by this young man twice, and both times he had been defeated badly. He stood up angrily and said coldly, "You surnamed Ye, don't push me too far, or you won't get away with it."

Ye Tianya waved the camera in his hand and said, "Director Liu, I'm recording everything here. My lawyer might sue you for intimidation. Didn't I tell you before? There are some things you can't do, but you wouldn't listen to me. I'm sorry, I don't have much time. I have to go to my classmates' reunion. Whether you agree or not, I need my lawyer to prepare the appeal materials."

Liu Ting'en gritted his teeth and said, "Fine, I agree, but I don't have that much money. You wait while I call my family to borrow some."

"Really? Director Liu, as far as I know, you're very rich. Do you need to mention it? But never mind, I'll just sacrifice a little more time. I'll go outside and chat with that policewoman. I'm leaving soon, and I'm a little reluctant to go." Ye Tianya said lazily.

Outside the door, a group of police officers gathered in the office to listen. After Ye Tianya came in, he added a sound amplification spell to the wall, so that everyone outside could clearly hear what was being said inside. When the policewoman heard that Ye Tianya wanted to come out and chat with her, she blushed and tried to run away, but Ye Tianya stopped her as he opened the door, saying, "Pretty sister, Director Liu asked you to pour me a cup of coffee, please add extra sugar, I'm afraid it will be bitter."

The policewoman, still blushing, actually poured Ye Tianya a cup of coffee. Ye Tianya thanked her and then took a sip with relish, saying, "Thank you so much, I've never had such delicious coffee before. What's your surname

, sister?" The policewoman, blushing, whispered, "My surname is Lu. You...you really want to hit the director? Were you the one who hit Brother Huang and the others last time?"

Ye Tianya smiled faintly, took another sip of coffee, and then said, "If you want to stay working here, you'd better pretend you didn't hear anything. Hehe, I'm only reminding you for the sake of the coffee."

The policewoman's expression changed, and she immediately understood Ye Tianya's meaning, softly saying thank you. Ye Tianya stopped talking to her, drinking his coffee and ignoring the strange looks from the other policemen.

Not long after, Liu Ting'en called in Ye Tianya and Hu Qing. He closed the door tightly, and handed Ye Tianya a check, saying, "Here's 1.1 million. Can you return the videotape to me now?"

Ye Tianya coldly replied, "Impossible. Same excuse as last time. Anyway, I've signed the settlement agreement with you, and I won't use those documents to threaten you anymore. Sign it first. I'm afraid you won't have the strength to sign later."

Liu Ting'en's face contorted as he signed his name. Hu Qing also signed his name. I looked coldly at Liu Ting'en and said, "Are you ready? I'm about to make my move."

Outside the door, dozens of policemen stood around, eavesdropping. They could hear sounds of punches and kicks, muffled groans of suppressed pain, and the thud of overturned tables and chairs. The crowd exchanged uneasy glances, none daring to go in and help. Only when Ye Tianya's lawyer emerged did they scatter like birds, returning to their seats and pretending not to have heard anything.

Ye Tianya gave a sinister smile to the crowd, then turned to Liu Ting'en inside the room and coldly said, "Director Liu, I have some good news for you. Actually, your subordinate surnamed Huang secretly let me take the college entrance exam yesterday. However, I returned before you did, so you didn't know." "Pfft—" Liu Ting'en, overcome with anger

, couldn't help but spit out a mouthful of blood. Ye Tianya coldly smiled and said, "Some things shouldn't be done; doing them will lead to a lifetime of regret." Then he and Hu Qing left the police station. That guy surnamed Huang, because of Ye Tianya's parting words, might be tormented by Liu Ting'en for life; he deserves his bad luck. Ye Tianya never sympathizes with those who abuse their power.

Looking at Hu Qing, who seemed angry, Ye Tianya calmly said, "Attorney Hu, are you upset that I didn't prosecute?"

Hu Qing coldly replied, "No, I'm just following my client's wishes. If you want a private settlement, I'll comply."

Ye Tianya smiled faintly and said, "If a termite can only make a tree sick, wouldn't it be better to raise the termite until it can kill the tree before releasing it?"

After Ye Tianya finished speaking, Hu Qing's eyes lit up, and he looked at Ye Tianya in surprise. Ye Tianya smiled faintly and said, "A classmate of mine once said, 'There are many things in this world waiting to be changed.' I think you understand. If you're willing, I'd be happy to make you a righteous friend."

Hu Qing's face lit up with excitement, and he reached out to grasp Ye Tianya's hand, saying, "Well said, 'There are many things in this world waiting to be changed.' You are my friend, and so is your classmate."

Ye Tianya laughed. This was the second time he had laughed happily; the first time was in front of Xingye.

Chapter Twelve: An Old Friend Assassinates

Liu Ting'en After being discharged from the hospital for a week, Liu Ting'en was determined to kill Ye Tianya. However, when the people he sent returned to report that Ye Tianya had disappeared and no one knew where he was, Ye Tianya had already gone into the mountains with Xingye and Yin Chao, settling down in a small farmhouse. Every day, he instructed the two in martial arts. When Yin Chao heard that Ye Tianya knew martial arts and was willing to teach him, he jumped for joy. Xingye, having also experienced the benefits of learning martial arts, agreed without hesitation to go into the mountains with Ye Tianya to learn martial arts.

Yin Chao learned an ancient secret manual of the Diancang Sect taught to him by Ye Tianya. Ye Tianya didn't teach him the Chaos Technique because it was too domineering, and Ye Tianya was worried that Yin Chao wouldn't be able to handle it. If it weren't for saving Bing Shuang and Bing Xue, Ye Tianya wouldn't have practiced it either.

Not long after the three met, Yin Chao and Xing Ye also became friends. Xing Ye gradually lowered her guard against Ye Tianya and Yin Chao, focusing wholeheartedly on cultivating the Xuan Nu Heart Sutra. Time flew by, August arrived, and the college entrance examination results were released. Ye Tianya, Yin Chao, and Xing Ye respectively occupied the first, second, and third positions in the province, while Ye Tianya also held the top spot nationwide. However, when education officials and news media wanted to interview the three, they discovered that all three had disappeared. No one knew where Ye Tianya had gone, but Xing Ye and Yin Chao had both left Lincheng under the pretext of going on vacation. Reporters and teachers could only return disappointed.

Half a month later, the admission notices from Huaxia University arrived. That year, only three people from the entire city passed the entrance exam: two from No. 1 Middle School and one from No. 3 Middle School. Unfortunately, none of these three lived in the city, leaving the reporters who wanted to interview them empty-handed. Unbeknownst to them, Xingye and Yin Chao were practicing their punches and kicks under Ye Tianya's supervision.

"Xingye, your spinning kick isn't high enough. Your 'Butterfly Dance White Waves' move needs to be lowered. Yin Chao, your 'Soaring Roc into the Clouds' isn't up to par. What kind of 'entering the clouds' is that? It's more like a chick! Spread your arms wider. Continue—" After the two stopped, Ye Tianya corrected their mistakes and had them practice again. During the day, he made them practice constantly, and at night, he supervised their meditation, acting as their protector. Another half month passed before Ye Tianya called the two over and said, "It's about time. Our acceptance letters are probably getting impatient. Go back and prepare; school should be starting soon."

The two silently packed their bags, said goodbye to the farmhouse owner, paid the rent for the past two months, and returned to the city. They parted ways, agreeing to take the train to China together to collect their acceptance letters. Ye Tianya had already checked online a month earlier using his laptop. Xingye was studying law, Yin Chao was studying software engineering, and Ye Tianya himself had chosen network engineering.

When Ye Tianya returned to the school to retrieve his acceptance letter from Director Gao's house, Director Gao was almost overwhelmed by his enthusiasm, trying to persuade him to give a presentation at the school. However, Ye Tianya refused. He didn't want to attract attention. Actually, his high score was only due to being provoked by Liu Ting'en after being arrested, which motivated him to focus all his efforts on the exam.

Ye Tianya, having refused Director Gao's offer, seemed to have vanished from the city again. Upon learning of Ye Tianya and his companions' return, reporters searched the streets and alleys for him, but to no avail. Because Ye Tianya had no residence in Lincheng, no one knew his whereabouts. Xingye and Yin Chao, however, were not so lucky. They were caught red-handed by reporters upon returning home and forced to give interviews. As a result, their images became household names.

While others couldn't find Ye Tianya, someone had been watching him since he left Director Gao's house. These people were called assassins by outsiders, but they called themselves hunters. Their prey, however, was people.

Ye Tianya left Director Gao's house, intending to visit Hu Qing. He would soon be leaving Lincheng, and he needed to say goodbye to this friend before leaving. For convenience, he took the nearest alley to Hu Qing's law firm. As soon as he entered the alley, he sensed something was wrong. This was the alley where he had encountered danger that night. Ye Tianya felt a chill run down his spine the moment he entered, but being skilled and daring, he remained vigilant and continued walking.

"Killing intent!" When Ye Tianya reached the spot where he had encountered danger that night, he felt a strong killing intent. He quickly released his divine sense, spreading it out, and soon discovered that there were snipers on both rooftops, and a person waiting for him not far around the corner ahead. There was also someone who had followed him in, blocking his way from behind.

Ye Tianya had nowhere to hide in this narrow alley. It seemed that these four people had planned everything; they were professional assassins. Ye Tianya sneered inwardly. It seemed to be Liu Ting'en's doing again. He really was willing to spend a lot of money to hire assassins.

Gunshots rang out, but Ye Tianya vanished from his spot, appearing a second later on the rooftop to the left. Before the sniper could react, Ye Tianya knocked him unconscious. Ye Tianya picked up his sniper rifle and, without hesitation, fired at the opposing sniper.

The sniper had been on high alert since Ye Tianya disappeared. He hastily dodged when Ye Tianya raised his gun, but a bullet still pierced his thigh, momentarily halting his movement. Ye Tianya pounced like a roc spreading its wings, knocking him unconscious before he could retaliate. Ye Tianya picked up the two snipers and threw them into the alley, then waited with his arms crossed for the other two formidable enemies to appear.

Soon, two formidable enemies appeared simultaneously on either side of the alley. Ye Tianya coldly said, "Make your move. If you can't kill me, you'll both die."

Both assassins wore masks, and when they saw the two snipers at Ye Tianya's feet, surprise flashed in their eyes. However, assassins are assassins after all, and they no longer cared about life and death. As they leaped up simultaneously, two Swiss Army knives appeared in their hands.

"As long as it's not a gun, I'll have some fun with you," Ye Tianya thought coldly, meeting the assassin in front of him head-on. With lightning speed, he kicked at the hand holding the knife, but the man was quite skilled and skillfully dodged it. The blade spun, slashing towards Ye Tianya's neck. Behind Ye Tianya, the sound of a blade cutting through the air rang out; the assassin behind him had already attacked.

Ye Tianya whirled around, dodging both assassins' blades, and landed behind the last assassin. He slapped the man hard on the back, causing him to cough up blood and lunge at the first assassin's blade. The first assassin hastily dodged the attack and charged at Ye Tianya again.

The assassin struck by Ye Tianya collapsed to the ground.

The last assassin, seeing his three companions fall, went berserk, each strike aimed swiftly and accurately at Ye Tianya's vitals. Quick! The man's blade was so fast it was only a blur, while the other's speed was so great that an ordinary person would only see a fleeting shadow. Ye Tianya dodged left and right, observing the assassin's excited expression, knowing he was a man of loyalty and honor. Furthermore, Ye Tianya noticed the assassin's eyes seemed familiar, so he didn't intend to kill him. As the blade slashed down, Ye Tianya clasped his hands together, forcefully holding the cleaver in his grasp. The assassin tried several times to pull it away, but it wouldn't budge. The man's expression turned horrified; he abandoned the hilt and launched a flying kick towards Ye Tianya's groin. Ye Tianya snorted, raised his right foot, and delivered three powerful kicks to the assassin's inner thigh. The assassin felt a surge of internal energy rush upwards from his thigh into his dantian, his arms went limp, and he collapsed to the ground. This man was definitely a master, as were the other three. However, they underestimated him, and instead encountered a monster like Ye Tianya, destined for defeat. Ye Tianya reversed the cleaver, pressing it against the last assassin's chest, and coldly said, "Speak, Liu Ting'en invited you here, didn't he?"

The assassin snorted and angrily retorted, "We brothers are no match for you. Kill me or torture me, just do it. Don't expect to get anything from me."

Upon hearing the voice, Ye Tianya exclaimed in surprise, "Brother Ye? You're Night Owl, Brother Ye?"

"You...you know me? Who are you?" The assassin looked at Ye Tianya in astonishment and asked curiously. At the same time, he removed the mask from his face, revealing himself to be Night Owl, the one who had taken care of Ye Tianya in prison.

Ye Tianya quickly threw the knife on the ground, helped Ye Xiao sit up, patted him a few times to regulate his internal energy, and Ye Xiao finally recovered and breathed a sigh of relief. Ye Tianya then said, "Do you remember, in Lincheng Prison, the boy named Ye Xin that you protected from Lei Bao's torture?"

Ye Xiao fell into recollection and said, "That was more than a year ago. Unfortunately, little Ye... died in a mining accident."

Ye Tianya said, "No, he didn't die in a mining accident. Lei Bao strangled him and buried him in the coal mine."

"What? How do you know? Is this true? Who are you?" Ye Xiao asked in shock.

Ye Tianya recalled the torture he suffered at Lei Bao's hands in prison. If it weren't for Night Owl's intervention and protection, he might have endured even more humiliation. He smiled bitterly, "Brother Ye, my surname is Ye, and I'm sworn brothers with Ye Xin. He told me about your situation when I visited him. Later, I met you and heard your voice, but you didn't know me then. I recognized you just now. I'm sorry, I went too far. Are you alright?"

Night Owl was still shocked: "Then how did you know that Little Ye was buried by Lei Bao?"

Ye Tianya coldly replied, "If you don't want people to know, you shouldn't do it in the first place, especially since..." "Lei Bao was even bragging to his men, wasn't he? By the way, are those three your brothers? I'll save them first." Ye Tianya's lie sounded plausible, and Night Owl didn't suspect a thing. He looked at his three companions and nodded, "They are my companions. Thank you for your help. Sigh, it's all our fault for attacking you. Liu Ting'en is a real bastard."

Ye Tianya shook his head with a wry smile, "Don't feel guilty, you didn't know anything." As he spoke, he woke up the two assassins Ye Tianya had knocked unconscious. The two were about to attack Ye Tianya again when Night Owl quickly stopped them. Only then did Ye Tianya go and wake up the assassin who had been shot in the foot. After personally bandaging his wound, he said apologetically, "I'm sorry, brother. I didn't know what was going on and injured you. Please forgive me."

Hearing Night Owl explain the situation, the assassin, enduring the pain and sweating, said, "Don't say that, brother. Although we're paid to kill, we're still human beings with flesh and blood. Since you didn't kill us today, our lives are yours. Whatever your orders in the future, we, the Four Tigers of Yanhuang, will never refuse, even if it means going through fire and water."

Ye Tianya quickly said, "Brother, please don't say that. Night Owl has taken care of my brothers before, which is a kindness to me. Let's just consider this a misunderstanding." " You'd better leave quickly and recover from your injuries. There was a gunshot, the police will probably be here soon."

Night Owl understood that the police would arrive soon, so he stood up and, along with the other three, helped the man who had been shot. "Okay, Little Ye, I'll call you that too. We four brothers consider you our friend. Until we meet again."

Ye Tianya nodded and said, "Until we meet again!"

After Night Owl and the others left, police sirens sounded at the alley entrance. Ye Tianya's figure flashed and disappeared from the spot. The next moment, he was in another alley, leisurely walking towards Hu Qing's law firm, plotting how to make Liu Ting'en pay a heavy price for this. Because Ye Tianya always felt that Liu Ting'en was related to his wrongful conviction, he hadn't dragged the guy into it. Before finding Lei Bao, Ye Tianya didn't want Liu Ting'en to get involved.

After being repeatedly antagonized by him, Ye Tianya couldn't hold back any longer.

“I’m leaving Lincheng in five days, and I’ll use these five days to make you bleed profusely,” Ye Tianya muttered as he walked towards Hu Qing’s law firm, plotting an unprecedented extortion.

Chapter Thirteen: Snow Cliff and Frosty

Leaves When Hu Qing saw Ye Tianya, he happily gave him a bear hug and laughed, “Good lad, you’ve really got yourself into China! Last time I thought you were just trying to extort that Liu guy. You’re a real talent, are you here to treat us this time?”

Ye Tianya smiled faintly, “Yes! I’m a millionaire now. Don’t forget that Director Liu gave me over a million in compensation last time.”

“Then I’d better seize the opportunity to take advantage of this rich guy, otherwise I won’t have a chance in a few days,” Hu Qing laughed.

The two found a restaurant and drank until they were half-drunk before leaving. Ye Tianya pulled Hu Qing aside and said, “I need to discuss something with you?”

“What is it?” Hu Qing asked.

"I want to set up a foundation to use the money I extorted from that Liu guy to help people in need. I'd like you to manage it for me. Are you interested?"

"Really?" Hu Qing's eyes lit up again.

"Of course! In short, are you in or not?"

"Yes! Why wouldn't I? I like managing money."

"Okay, think of a good name for the foundation."

"Hmm, how about the Tianya Foundation?"

"No, don't use my name."

"Then how about the Hu Qing Foundation?"

"No, your name is too common."

"What? My name is common? Yours is common, how about Hope?"

"No, too unoriginal."

"No, then what should I call it? You decide."

"Snowy Cliffs and Frosty Leaves," Ye Tianya mumbled drunkenly, uttering a name that would later become world-famous. When someone later asked how the foundation's name came about, Hu Qing laughed and said it was a drunkard who suggested it, much to the surprise of the questioner.

The foundation was established in Xingye's name and is a charitable foundation. However, Ye Tianya asked Hu Qing to keep it confidential and not let anyone know that Xingye is the owner of the foundation for the time being. On the other hand, he hasn't talked to Xingye yet and doesn't know if Xingye will agree. However, Ye Tianya is confident that he can persuade Xingye to take on this title.

The foundation's establishment attracted widespread attention in Lincheng. At the founding ceremony, Hu Qing invited Mayor Li, the city's top leader, and Secretary Wu, among others, to personally cut the ribbon. Mayor Li announced a government donation of 500,000 yuan to the foundation, which immediately spurred donations from numerous businessmen, ranging from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of yuan. The foundation's first charitable act was allocating 100,000 yuan to the city's orphanage to help cover the living expenses of its students, including tuition and living costs for those attending university. Major media outlets throughout the city reported on this, and reporters from the provincial and national television stations covered the event. Within two days, the name "Xueya Shuangye" Foundation resonated throughout Jiangnan Province. Lincheng thus became a focal point of the entire province.

CCTV used the headline "'Xueya Shuangye,' a cold name hiding a burning heart of love" to report on the foundation.

Hu Qing's name became well-known along with the foundation's. Reporters even uncovered the inside story of how he was threatened and retaliated against while representing Ding Xiang's family in a lawsuit. Liu Ting'en became increasingly frustrated. Many reporters demanded an explanation from him regarding the threats against Hu Qing, since Hu Qing's lawsuit was against his son. How could he answer? Could he admit that he was the one threatening Hu Qing? Of course not. He could only promise the reporters a thorough investigation into the threats and a satisfactory explanation to the media. With media involvement, Hu Qing was safe. Perhaps in the future, Liu Ting'en would not only dare not threaten Hu Qing again, but would also protect him better. Otherwise, if Hu Qing were to be beaten or threatened, the reporters might immediately think of him.

What frustrated Liu Ting'en even more was that news came that the assassin he had hired not only failed to kill Ye Tianya, but also returned to warn him not to harm Ye Tianya again, or he would be dealt with harshly. Upon hearing this news, Liu Ting'en nearly vomited blood in anger. Ever since Ye Tianya beat him up last time, he had often been so angry that he would vomit blood. Adding to his woes, his son, Yiping, was now like a sickly kitten, barely able to walk without support, limp and powerless, let alone capable of carrying on the Liu family line. It seemed the plague hadn't let him off the hook. Today, on his way home from get off work, he received a package containing only a CD and an anonymous letter. The letter's contents made him vomit blood again. It read: "Look at the good deeds you've done. If you don't want me to put it online, then prepare five million and deposit it into this account: 2546……………. If I don't find any money in the account within three hours, I will release the contents of this CD." The letter was signed with a scale mark.

After watching the DVD, Liu Ting'en felt his vision go black. The DVD contained the entire process of his affair at the nightclub. If this got out, no one would dare to do anything to him, but a serious accusation of moral depravity would slap him on the shoulder, ruining his chances of promotion, not to mention his wife, the daughter of the Public Security Bureau Chief.

Five million, plus the more than one million Ye Tianya had extorted from him recently, that was all the money he had embezzled over the decades. What terrified Liu Ting'en even more was that the photo was taken at the nightclub, meaning that everything else he did might have been recorded. When the Crown Nightclub burned down, he had indeed discovered a secret surveillance room that could secretly film the entire process in the room. At the time, he had searched everywhere but couldn't find anything like the DVD, assuming it had been burned in the fire. Who knew it would have appeared today?

"Damn it, Lei Bao, your nightclub burned down and you're trying to blackmail me? You son of a bitch, don't fall for my tricks!" Liu Ting'en was convinced that Lei Bao was trying to extort him. But Lei Bao had disappeared long ago after the nightclub burned down, and even the police chief hadn't seen him. Now, he could only try his best to find a solution.

Liu Ting'en gathered his money while having someone check who opened the account. However, the result was that the account holder was named Tian Ping, but the ID number only had ten digits; the rest were missing. The bank claimed there was a problem with the computer system, and the ID number on the paper document was completely blurred and couldn't be found.

Liu Ting'en was horrified, but he had no choice but to comply. He transferred all his savings into the designated account and then had it monitored. Anyone who withdrew money from that account was to be arrested. He considered having the bank freeze the account, but he was afraid the extortionists would expose his shady dealings. Helpless, he had no choice but to monitor it. However, to his horror, the amount in that account increased rapidly within just two hours. Money was constantly being deposited—hundreds of thousands, millions, and two even exceeding his five million. When the increase stopped, the account balance was already over eighty-five million.

Liu Ting'en knew that many others besides himself had been extorted. He immediately ordered the bank to investigate where the money had come from, but the system didn't give him time. The bank was hacked shortly after the money was deposited, and after a three-minute system crash, the money in that account mysteriously vanished without a trace. Even the account itself was wiped out; it no longer existed in the bank.

Liu Ting'en was devastated, vomited blood, and was hospitalized. The doctor diagnosed him with overwork, and he became bedridden. He and his son spent several months in the hospital.

In fact, Liu Ting'en wasn't the only one receiving this treatment; many other officials and wealthy businessmen in the city had also been extorted, which explained why the amount in that account kept increasing. After the bank was hacked, everything seemed normal except for the disappearance of Tianping's account. The bank breathed a sigh of relief and reported the incident to the police. The cybersecurity department investigated for a long time but found nothing. The person named Tianping didn't cause any trouble for the bank, and the matter was dropped. Only one person hid in a hotel, secretly laughing. That person was Ye Tianya. It was all his and Lisi's doing, one with a computer each. Lisi handled the hacking, while Ye Tianya handled sending the anonymous emails and CDs.

Five days later, Ye Tianya had forced Liu Ting'en into the hospital before checking out of his room and taking a taxi to the train station. Xingye and Yin Chao were waiting for him there to go with him to Huaxia University in S City. He was preoccupied with how to spend the 50 million. After much thought, he finally decided to deposit the money into the 'Xueya Shuangye' Foundation, which finally calmed him down.

The train station was crowded, mostly with students. These past few days have been the start of the new semester for university students across the country, and the station was bustling with students dragging suitcases and carrying backpacks. Ye Tianya, alone and empty-handed, seemed out of place. His white clothes were quite conspicuous. He had just arrived when he heard Yin Chao calling from afar, "Tianya, Tianya, we're here!"

Before Ye Tianya could even push his way through, the clicking of camera shutters filled the air, and a large group of reporters swarmed around him. Ye Tianya was startled by the overwhelming number of reporters; they weren't there for an interview, they just wanted to snatch him away. Ye Tianya's expression changed, and he hurriedly weaved through the crowd, skillfully avoiding the reporters. But there were too many people, and he was eventually blocked when he approached Yin Chao and Xingye. More than ten reporters blocked his way, making it impossible for Ye Tianya to move an inch. The reporters' questions rained down like a storm. At this moment, Ye Tianya most missed the way mainland journalists worked more than twenty years ago. Since the bill on freedom of speech was passed five years ago, mainland journalists have become as frenzied as Hong Kong paparazzi.

"Ye Tianya, can you say a few words about your study methods?" "Can you talk about your values? Will you come back to Lincheng in the future?"

"Ye Tianya, I heard you're an iceberg at school. Are you aloof or do you disdain interacting with other students?"

"I heard you refused to give a report at an education seminar. Did you look down on the invitation?"

"Ye Tianya, you always wear a white shirt. Who washes your clothes?"

"Ye Tianya, do you have a girlfriend? What type of girl do you like?"

...

Ye Tianya didn't answer a single question, but even with his profound skills, he was already sweating profusely. One reporter even asked if his underwear was as white as his shirt. Ye Tianya remained silent, his expression calm yet indifferent, ignoring the reporters' questions. He squeezed next to Xingye and Yin Chao and said to them, "Let's go, it's almost time."

Yin Chao glanced at the reporters relentlessly pursuing him, his expression changed, and he quickly picked up his luggage and turned to leave. Ye Tianya looked at Xingye's two canvas bags, picked one up in each hand, and walked inside. Xingye followed closely behind. The reporters, getting no answers, were blocked at the outer entrance of the waiting hall. Two female reporters blocked his way, relentlessly asking Ye Tianya, "Ye Tianya, are you acting like a diva and refusing to answer our questions?"

The two reporters' posture clearly indicated that they wouldn't let Ye Tianya pass unless he answered their questions.

Ye Tianya remained silent, staring intently at the two reporters blocking his way. The two reporters began to panic; after a while, they felt uneasy under Ye Tianya's gaze. After a while, neither dared to meet his eyes. Finally, they involuntarily moved aside. Ye Tianya smiled coldly and, as he passed the two female reporters, said softly, "Miss, let me ask you the same question you just asked me: what color underwear are you wearing today? Can you answer me? I suggest you report on the many people living in dire straits in the slums of South Street, and let those self-righteous bastards who think the whole country is well-off wake up. I will respect you greatly."

After speaking, Ye Tianya walked into the waiting hall with Xingye and Yin Chao. This dramatic turn of events at the station left everyone bewildered; he had managed to make the two reporters move aside with just a glance. Ye Tianya, this already mysterious student, was now shrouded in even more mystery.

"What did he say to you?" the reporters asked the two female reporters who had stopped Ye Tianya. The two women, blushing furiously, remained silent, glancing back at the white-clad figure entering the waiting room before running away, their faces still red. The reporters were utterly bewildered.

From that moment, two top reporters from Jiangnan Province were born.

Chapter Fourteen: Travel Anecdotes

"Tianya, what did you say to that reporter? It made her blush so much!" After boarding the train, Yin Chao asked curiously. Ye

Tianya replied calmly, "Nothing. By the way, didn't your mother come to see you off today?"

Yin Chao was the only one of the three with family. His mother was supposed to come, but he thought that being with Ye Tianya and Xingye, two orphans, would bring them some sadness, and he himself dreaded the thought of parting. Therefore, he didn't ask his mother to come. When Ye Tianya asked, Yin Chao smiled nonchalantly and said, "She's busy, I didn't ask her to come."

Xingye sat down in the seat next to Ye Tianya, with Yin Chao opposite her. Next to Yin Chao sat a boy who looked like a student. They didn't greet each other after sitting down, and Ye Tianya and the other two, wanting to avoid trouble, didn't bother to greet the student.

The rhythmic sound of the train hitting the tracks drifted in, making one feel drowsy. Xingye leaned against the window, looking at the scenery outside. Yesterday, she had added a lot of soil to the small grave. Suddenly having to leave, she prayed in her heart that her lover in the other world wouldn't feel lonely. Although Xingye didn't know where her real hometown was, she had grown up in Lincheng and lived there for over ten years, which she already considered her hometown.

When she left the orphanage, the director gave her four years' worth of tuition and living expenses, and instructed her, "Xingye, according to government regulations, you can no longer rely on the orphanage for support after you turn eighteen. You'll be eighteen in two months. However, if you can get into Huaxia University through your own efforts, the government has granted you special permission to pay your tuition and living expenses for four years. Once you leave, you'll have nothing to do with the orphanage anymore. Just come back and visit your younger brothers and sisters whenever you have time. Take good care of yourself while you're away. You're all unfortunate children, and you've matured early, so I don't need to say much. I don't want you to remember any kindness. Just do good deeds and try your best to help more people like you who are suffering in the future. That would make me happy."

Xingye didn't make any promises to the director; she simply knelt down and kowtowed to her. What that orphanage had given her couldn't be expressed in words; only actions, future actions, could express it.

"Rootless duckweed, where will you eventually drift? Lone goose, where is your home..."

A melancholic song played from the train's loudspeaker. Xingye turned her head away, hiding the tears in her eyes. I longed to hold her in my arms and comfort her, to tell her she wasn't alone in this world, but Ye Tianya couldn't and dared not. Suppressing his heartache, he stood up and walked towards the train's announcement booth. When he returned, the song had been changed to Wilber Pan's "Unavoidable Love."

The song had changed, but when Ye Tianya returned, he found his seat gone, crowded with a group of students. Yin Chao and Xingye were chatting with them. Ye Tianya stood quietly behind them, listening. Xingye seemed a little better, talking to the students about school and life. Yin Chao was surrounded by two or three girls, while the boy who had been next to him was nowhere to be seen. Ye Tianya looked around and realized he had been squeezed out by three girls and was standing to the side with him. When Ye Tianya looked at him, both he and Ye Tianya gave a wry smile. Two boys were crowding around Xingye's seat, enthusiastically introducing themselves. Meanwhile, the three girls on Yin Chao's side were probably die-hard fans, actually asking Yin Chao for an autograph. Yin Chao, not at all modest, actually signed their notebooks. Seeing his quick movements and decent handwriting, I thought to myself, this guy really is developing a bit of star quality.

"Yin Chao, I heard Ye Tianya is in your class. Didn't he ride the same bus as you?" one of the girls asked Yin Chao.

"Yes, he just left. His seat is over there," Yin Chao pointed to the seat next to Xingye.

"Really? That's great! Finally, we can see him! By the way, are you three close?" another girl asked.

Yin Chao laughed, "I'm familiar with him, but I don't want to be familiar with him. Everyone who's familiar with him gets bombarded with questions about him."

"Then we won't ask you questions about him, can you tell us his story instead?" a girl asked. Yin Chao gave a 'it's all the same' look and hesitated to speak. The three girls used their typical girl tactics: coquettishness!

"Please, tell us, what are his hobbies? Like, does he like watching movies? What sports does he like?"

Yin Chao smiled wryly, "I... please spare me, okay? That guy is like an iceberg. Besides being a good friend, I really don't know what he likes. You can ask him yourselves when he gets back."

Ye Tianya felt a little intimidated by this onslaught and turned to leave, but Yin Chao noticed. He himself was getting fed up with being pestered, so how could he let Ye Tianya off so easily? "Tianya, where are you going again? Come back quickly, someone's looking for you!"

Ye Tianya cursed Yin Chao inwardly for being disloyal, but he couldn't run away anymore, so he turned around and walked towards the large group of people.

"Ah—" one of the three girls exclaimed, attracting the attention of the passengers in the carriage. Unexpectedly, the girl blurted out, "You're Ye Tianya? You're so handsome!"

Yin Chao had just wanted to take a sip of water when the three girls stopped bothering him, but he choked on the girl's words and spat it out with a "pfft," spraying it directly onto the two boys next to Xingye across from him. Yin Chao quickly apologized, and Xingye turned to give Ye Tianya a smile. Just as Ye Tianya didn't know what to do, one of the three girls suddenly covered her face with her hands and whispered, "Oh no, I didn't put on any makeup." Then she covered her face and ran away with her head down. The other two girls seemed to remember something and followed suit, covering their faces and running away. Xingye finally couldn't help but giggle. Seeing her laugh, Ye Tianya finally felt much relieved, and with the three girls gone, the alarm was over. The two boys sitting in Ye Tianya's seat stood up and looked at him with admiration, saying, "Hello, Ye Tianya, it's a pleasure to meet you."

Ye Tianya smiled faintly and said, "Me too." He didn't continue. The two boys, feeling embarrassed to remain in his seat, said, "You sit down, we'll go back to our seats."

Ye Tianya didn't try to stop them, because he realized Xingren wasn't particularly welcoming to the two. So he nodded and said, "Well then, goodbye."

Only after the two left did Ye Tianya sit down. Yin Chao glanced at Ye Tianya strangely and said softly, "How did you manage that? They wanted to see you so much, but once they saw you, they all left?"

Ye Tianya smiled bitterly, "I'm like an iceberg, of course I'm not as approachable as you. Are you blaming me for chasing away your beauties?"

Yin Chao chuckled, "That's right, you have to compensate me with three beauties, or I'll never forgive you."

Ye Tianya said calmly, "It seems I left so cleverly, but someone called me back. Do you think I should blame myself for that?"

"This—" Yin Chao was speechless, then chuckled, "Never mind then, there are plenty of fish in the sea... wait, that sounds like you're surrounded by fish everywhere you go. Why did you call yourself Tianya?"

Xingye giggled, "Is Yin Chao jealous of Tianya?"

Yin Chao chuckled, "A little bit. Didn't you see those three girls rushing to put on makeup when they saw him? I was so jealous."

Yin Chao was a real character; wherever he was, there was bound to be laughter. Xingye was amused by his words. The journey was no longer so boring, and the three girls didn't dare to come back. Yin Chao said they were going to Fudan University, and perhaps they were too embarrassed to return after their earlier blunder. However, Ye Tianya noticed that the three girls were hiding in the connecting area between the carriages, looking this way. Not only them, but perhaps due to their effective promotion, many other people deliberately walked through the carriage and back, glancing at Ye Tianya's face. This made Ye Tianya somewhat uncomfortable. Fortunately, night fell quickly, and many people went to sleep, finally making the carriage quiet. The boy who had been pushed aside returned to his seat and kept curiously observing Ye Tianya. Helpless, Ye Tianya could only try to ignore him. Xingye gradually fell asleep, initially leaning against the window, but after a while, she felt uncomfortable. Perhaps like turning over in bed, she turned and leaned against Ye Tianya. Ye Tianya was startled, but let her lean on him, carefully moving his arm to make her more comfortable. That night, Ye Tianya didn't sleep, maintaining that difficult position to ensure Xingye slept well. Yin Chao and the other boy fell asleep on the small table. Ye Tianya quietly watched Xingye's sleeping face. He inadvertently recalled what Xingye had said at the small grave when he visited. This girl was his lifelong happiness. Ye Tianya told himself this in his heart.

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