Volume 4: Hidden Struggles, Chapter 114: Getting Better and Better

Chu Tianyu chatted casually with his elder brother for a while before receiving a call from Ouyang Ziyi. He hadn’t seen her these past few days due to Lan Yue!
Chu Tianyu understood her good intentions—she was deliberately giving way to his elder brother to avoid suspicion. He then bid farewell to his elder brother, saying he wouldn’t attend future meetings as they made him feel uncomfortable.
His elder brother, Tiancheng, smiled and didn’t insist. Before leaving, he reminded him to attend the banquet hosted by the Chu family at “Huihuang” the day after, as many influential people, uncles, business peers, as well as celebrities and notable figures would be there. It would surely be a lively event. Chu Tianyu nodded repeatedly, promising to arrive early to handle the reception and “share the burden” for his elder brother.
…
When Chu Tianyu met Ouyang Ziyi, she was alone. Curious, he asked, “Hey, why are you here alone? Where’s Lan Yue?”
“Hehe, of course I gave her back to Bai Lei! They really make a great pair!” Ouyang Ziyi laughed.
“Yes, although Bai Lei seems carefree most of the time, he’s actually quite capable in critical moments…” Chu Tianyu said.
“Mm, sometimes he acts like a scoundrel, other times he seems righteous. His words are impossible to refute. Just when you think you’re about to be moved by him, he suddenly starts talking nonsense and drifts off to some other topic, ruining the mood. But it suits Lan Yue’s temperament. As for my ‘energetic’ little cousin, she never knows what to do all day…”
“Perfect! Bai Lei is also always wandering around, doing lots of things but few meaningful ones. They’re a great match! Haha…” Before Ouyang Ziyi could finish speaking, Chu Tianyu interjected.
“By the way, enough about them. Didn’t you have something to tell me?” Ouyang Ziyi asked, losing her smile.
Chu Tianyu organized his words and recounted the entire incident in detail. When he reached the part about being abandoned by Qin Nianran, Ouyang Ziyi laughed uncontrollably, saying, “Haha, it seems you’re born to keep walking! But don’t get too proud—you’ve tricked another sister!”
Chu Tianyu felt so wronged! What did this have to do with tricking? She was originally there!

“I was looking for you! You went to look for Qin Nianran behind my back without any reason, and didn’t even tell me when you came back. Tell me, what kind of status do you think I deserve as your husband? And now, confess honestly right away—or face ‘family discipline’ tonight!” Chu Tianyu joked.

“Well, that’s a secret!” After saying that, Ouyang Ziyi rolled her eyes and continued, “Keep your so-called ‘family discipline’ for yourself! Starting today, I’ve decided to move back to school!”

“What!? No way! Why?” Chu Tianyu was shocked by Ouyang Ziyi’s sudden statement. This issue was directly related to the quality and frequency of his “sexual” life!

“First, you’re too strong. Second, I’m too tired. Third, there’s nothing interesting. I just came up with three reasons to make it sound more convincing!” Ouyang Ziyi said seriously.

Faced with such direct and honest truth-telling, Chu Tianyu was completely defeated by Ouyang Ziyi and was left speechless.

Then Ouyang Ziyi repeatedly and carefully asked about Chu Tianyu’s time with Qin Nianran, occasionally pondering or smiling. It made Chu Tianyu feel a chill and instinctively silently prayed for Qin Nianran: “Amitabha!” But out loud, he criticized, “Come on, our dear Miss Ouyang, it seems like you only care about that Qin Nianran. The fights I just described were so intense! And that Zhan Zifeng—his methods are so ruthless. Don’t you care about any of this at all?”

“My dear husband can handle these trivial matters. By the way, tell me about Qin Nianran’s expression when she found out you had higher skills than her…”

Seeing that Ouyang Ziyi still wasn’t convinced, Chu Tianyu threatened, “If you move back to school, people like Zhan Zifeng might use despicable tactics. You’re not very good at martial arts, so you won’t even have time to call for help! Hmph, don’t say you regret it later!”

Ouyang Ziyi didn’t even glance at Chu Tianyu and said directly, “That’s Peking University, not some bandit den. If you’re really worried about me and Qin Nianran, assign a thousand top experts to keep order. I think little scoundrels like Zhan Zifeng will be afraid of them…”

“…” Chu Tianyu was sweating profusely.

But though it was just a joke, Ouyang Ziyi still told Chu Tianyu some truth, saying, “Actually, after hearing what you said just now, I think Qin Nianran’s self-defense barrier has been broken. What needs to be done now is to channel the emotions in her heart toward you. As for me, I can at least play a role in stirring things up from behind!”
Chu Tianyu was deeply moved upon hearing this. He grasped Ouyang Ziyi’s hand and, with tears in his eyes, choked out, “Ziyi, you’re really too kind to me. You really don’t have to worry about me like this…”
“Stop! Who’s worrying about you?” Ouyang Ziyi interrupted him before he could finish.
She continued, “You, who claim to be possessed by some divine power or act like a little rascal breaking free, surrounded by women on all sides, as if you get to take all the advantages in the world—do you really need others to worry about you? Do you think I went to persuade Qin Nianran for you? It was for me, and more importantly, for Qin Nianran herself…”
“To be honest, aside from initially wanting to outdo her, my sympathy for her and my desire to help her have outweighed everything else! Not for anything else, but because she’s just as helpless and pitiful as I am!”
“Just as helpless and pitiful?” Chu Tianyu asked thoughtfully.
“Haven’t I told you before about the helplessness of being born into a wealthy family? I’m okay—through some extreme actions, I can vent my feelings a bit, and I also have a capable brother who doesn’t burden me with family concerns. Even so, I’ve felt oppressed my whole life. How much more so for Qin Nianran, who comes from the same background but bears even more pressure and responsibilities!”
“And she’s in a worse situation than me. She’s so intelligent and outstanding, yet has to take on family responsibilities since childhood. Apart from putting on a cold exterior and acting superior, she has no other way to vent her feelings. On the contrary, those who can’t even afford food suffer a different kind of sorrow…”
“Especially her choice regarding marriage—she would rather marry a fool than face any constraints or hurt. Just as clear water has no fish, for Qin Nianran, being too intelligent makes life boring; she sees too clearly, and thus loses joy!”
Ouyang Ziyi spoke at length, starting in a joking tone and ending in a solemn one, leaving Chu Tianyu stunned. He fell deep into thought about her, about Ziyi, and about Qin Nianran.

“Hehe, Tianyu, I’m not saying this to add to your burden. It’s to clarify that my motivation for helping Qin Nianran is nothing more than—four words: shared suffering!”
“Ziyi, I…” Chu Tianyu was about to say something when Ouyang Ziyi interrupted him, “Don’t say anything. Your task now is to take me back to school this afternoon, carry my luggage, and arrange for a few hundred bodyguards to accompany us. Hehe…”
With Ouyang Ziyi’s continuous reassurances, Chu Tianyu temporarily let go of his heavy mood and smiled, “No problem. Give me the luggage. As for bodyguards, a few hundred won’t do—at least a thousand, and no bargaining!”
…
In the afternoon, Chu Tianyu indeed carried bags big and small into the girls’ dormitory with Ouyang Ziyi, drawing glances from the girls passing by. Especially when they saw it was Ouyang Ziyi, accompanied by a strange “male classmate,” they covered their mouths and started discussing among themselves.
If this had happened when Chu Tianyu first entered school, he might have had some thoughts, but now, for someone who had been naked twice already, it was completely unremarkable to him!
The moment they entered the dormitory, Chu Tianyu was stunned, just as Qin Nianran, who was reading inside, was also shocked! Only Ouyang Ziyi stood by, smiling secretly with a look of pride.
…
Chu Tianyu didn’t know how he got out of the girls’ dormitory. The awkward scene from earlier kept playing in his mind. He never expected that Ouyang Ziyi’s long phone call at noon was actually about arranging for him to share a dormitory with Qin Nianran. She really could think of and do such things—wow!
He remembered that while Ouyang Ziyi was sneering and Qin Nianran remained silent, he simply said goodbye and left. As for what happened afterward—whether Qin Nianran would explode or how Ouyang Ziyi would respond—was beyond his imagination.
“Though it seems Qin Nianran didn’t react at all when I left. I wonder what she’s really thinking? Are Ouyang Ziyi’s words true?”
As Chu Tianyu was lost in thought, he suddenly received a message from Ouyang Ziyi. When he opened it, there were just four words: “Gradually becoming part of the family!”
Chu Tianyu’s heart skipped a beat for no reason. Just as he was about to ponder the meaning behind those four words, he suddenly felt someone rushing toward him, accompanied by a scent of perfume. He looked up and was surprised to see it was Wu Susu, the same girl who had bumped into him before!
How strange the world is! As Chu Tianyu stepped aside, he realized it was exactly the same place where they had collided last time.

But even more coincidentally, they still collided!!! It turned out that while Chu Tianyu was trying to avoid her, Wu Susu was following closely in his footsteps, taking a few steps forward before rushing at him. This wasn’t an accident at all—it was clearly intentional! But judging from Wu Susu’s momentum, if he gave way any further, she would surely fall hard. With no other choice, Chu Tianyu stopped in his tracks and barely managed to catch her. Yet the unexpected didn’t end there—he felt Wu Susu’s small hand slip into his jacket pocket and leave something behind… As Chu Tianyu was puzzled, Wu Susu’s voice quickly rang in his ear, “Please keep this item for me for now. Call me later!” Without waiting for Chu Tianyu to explain or ask questions, she pushed herself up and left in a hurry, leaving Chu Tianyu completely confused. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small image storage device. At that moment, Chu Tianyu sensed a murderous intent approaching from afar. Quickly reviewing what had just happened, he first ruled out the possibility that it was some prank or joke by Wu Susu. Second, he realized the storage device she gave him must hold some secret. Third, the murderous intent was aimed at Wu Susu—or more precisely, at the item in his hands now! His quick reasoning led him to make a decisive decision. Sensing the approaching murderous intent, he released his own energy, casting it in their direction. The pressure from his energy shocked those experts significantly. Though they hadn’t met face to face yet, Chu Tianyu had already made them aware of his presence. Instead of confronting them head-on, Chu Tianyu kept sending out his energy so they could sense it, then turned aside. As expected, those people followed him. Ignoring them, he led them toward another school gate. With traffic and crowds everywhere, the streets were clearly not the right place to resolve things, so Chu Tianyu gradually led them to a quieter area. He found a small park, which, being outside the weekend, had few people in it. Chu Tianyu went to the back of a small hill, stopped there, calmly took out a handkerchief from his pocket and covered his face. He secretly resolved that he needed to carry a human mask with him whenever he went out from now on!

Everything was taken care of. In no time, Chu Tianyu smiled. The three who had followed him were indeed experienced. Sensing that he had suddenly stopped in such a secluded place, fearing some ambush, they first swam rapidly around to scout the area.

Chu Tianyu didn’t have time to wait for them. He said casually, “There’s no need to search. It’s just me. Come over quickly!”

Chu Tianyu’s voice reached all three of them. They froze for a moment, then seemed to communicate through some secret method before surrounding Chu Tianyu in a triangular formation from three directions.

Standing in front of Chu Tianyu were two men and one woman. The two men were on either side of him, while the woman faced him directly. All three had expressionless faces, their energy gathered, ready to act at any moment.

“Did you lure us here?” A stiff and awkward question came from the woman’s mouth.

Chu Tianyu was taken aback. So she wasn’t Chinese! He took another close look at her. She appeared to be around twenty-three or twenty-four years old, with light makeup on her face, giving her a cold and delicate look. Her snow-white skin emphasized her alluring charm. She was dressed in a professional suit that accentuated her graceful and curvaceous figure. Her long legs, wrapped in flesh-colored stockings, formed beautiful curves that sparked imagination…