Ch 23 - The calm before the storm

TL-ed by weiisnothere

The purpose behind taking down the internet cafe was to set up a stronghold for his brothers, no matter what, it still counted as a legitimate career doesn’t it?

Song Meiyuan's appearance was timely. Other than studying for her degree,  she had nothing else to do.

Occasionally, she could do some tax-related duties but other than that, she just had to hired a cashier and a network manager.

After school, Liu Wanchuan, Liangzi, Lin Jiadong could go to the cafe.

The first years were led by Lin Jiadong, so as long as he makes the call, the internet cafe’s business would flourish.

A day before the vacation ended, Luo Lin met up with Song Meiyuan.

Song Meiyuan had just registered her attendance in college. It seemed like she had things to deal with, so the two of them only chatted for 10 minutes or less.

Wise people work smart, Luo Lin clearly expressed that he wished to become an arm-flinging shopkeeper while Song Meiyuan did this for some pocket money all along.

TL-er Note: An arm-flinging shopkeeper - someone that does nothing, and reaps the benefits.

Luo Lin waved his hand in a straightforward manner: "Judging by this, it's fine as long as we don't incur any losses. I'll let my brothers deal with the trifling matters.”

"What matters?" Song Meiyuan inadvertently inquired.

Luo Lin smiled mysteriously: "You won't understand...", and he turned around to leave.

Song Meiyuan then became disinterested in talking about discussing these matters with Luo Lin anymore.

After she watched him leave, Song Meiyuan broke out into a smile, the corners of her lips curled up in a confident manner: “Hmph hmph, Little Obedient Luo, I can't wait to see how capable you really are.”

In fact, Song Meiyuan retained some memories when she was under the influence of the drugs.

On the second morning, she woke up to find her clothes dishevelled, and her entire body drenched in sweat however, her chastity was still intact. At that moment, she questioned her own charm.

She was puzzled... with her appearance, no men who could ever resist if she ever took the initiative.

However, Luo Lin, the slick-mouthed little fellow actually didn’t touch a single hair on her body. Not only that, he even administered acupuncture and endured her crankiness for an entire night.

When Song Meiyuan thought about those blood-boiling moments, her face inadvertently turned red.

Even though Song Meiyuan acted bold and open-minded on the surface, she was still an unripened woman. In the end, Song Meiyuan was more on the naive side.

Just as birds of the same feather flock together, the same goes for people.

Both Qin Wanshu and Song Meiyuan were campus belle beauties. The main reason why they hadn’t dedicated their most important baseline as a woman to someone, was because there weren’t many trustworthy men in the world.

In their eyes, men were creatures who wipe their butts and leave after enjoying their meal.

Hence, these two sisters who had been together since their childhood made a pact. No matter how suitable a man was, they could only dedicate their most important aspect during their wedding nights.

In society nowadays, women like them were hard to come by.

If Luo Lin knew of these things, his impression of Miss Song would definitely be elevated.

When Song Meiyuan and Qin Wanshu attended the class reunion, they were frightened badly by the group of men who forced them.

No matter how powerful their backgrounds were, women are bound to suffer in some aspects.

Losing their chastity was an issue of a lifetime. Even if they got their revenge, even if the perpetrator had their entire clan eradicated, it wouldn’t be able to return them what they had lost.

Fortunately, Song Meiyuan was smart. She pretended to be drunk when she went to the bathroom and phoned Luo Lin.

In that moment, she formed a slight dependence and expectation for the person named "Obedient Little Luo".

Later on, Luo Lin appeared during the most critical moment, and handled the matter. What’s more important was that Song Meiyuan, who was under the influence of drugs, took the initiative to send hugs but Luo Lin never took advantage of her.

If one said Luo Lin had no place in Song Meiyuan's heart then it would be a lie.

To put it bluntly, Song Meiyuan had developed a subtle affection for Luo Lin.

During that night, Luo Lin's reliable back aroused Song Meiyuan's affection. It made her sprout the desire of a prince charming, a dream that every woman had.

Even though her prince charming was a little naughty, a little hooligan, and a little "young"...

She knew about Qin Wanshu's vague feelings for Luo Lin. She also knows that Luo Lin was young, but even then, Song Meiyuan was a person who dares to love and hate bravely.

She couldn’t bear to deceive her own genuine emotions, even if nothing comes out of her yearning. If she became friends with Luo Lin, it might make her feel better.

Song Meiyuan’s feelings for Luo Lin were temporarily stuck at a certain sentiment, it definitely wasn’t love so she wasn’t too concerned. It's better to let nature take its course.

She helped Luo Lin because she wanted to fulfill her hopes of getting closer to Luo Lin, another reason was to find something to do while she studies for her masters.

Except for Qin Wanshu, she had no relatives or friends residing in Zhengzhou City, so heading out with her for shopping is inevitable. So there would be a lot of contact between her and Luo Lin in the future.

She hadn’t done anything to feel guilty about so she would face this matter in an upfront manner.

During the first day of classes, Song Meiyuan's mind was brimming with these thoughts.

When afternoon came, Song Meiyuan phoned Qin Wanshu as she made her way out of the campus.

"Hello, Wanshu, mhm. I have reported my attendance, there’s nothing much to do these days. You must not have eaten yet, I'll treat you to coffee, how does that sound?"

...

Luo Lin had nothing to do at night so he went home early. The moment he walked through the door, the fragrant scent of food wafted over.

Before he could speak, Qin Wanshu walked out with some dishes in her hand. She was clad in an apron which made her look like a housewife.

When she noticed Luo Lin, her fair and tender face blushed slightly before she smiled abashedly: "Little Lin, you're home? You're just in time, the dishes are ready. Go wash your hands first."

When Luo Lin saw Qin Wanshu's demeanor, he raised his brow: "Aunt Qin, you're not with your friend today?"

Qin Wanshu smiled as she took off the apron. She brushed her hair, causing the supple strands to disperse on both sides of her shoulders like a waterfall. She had a virtuous smile on her face, giving Luo Lin an urge to give her a hug and a kiss.

"You mean Song Meiyuan?" Qin Wanshu sat on the chair naturally, "When we were having lunch this afternoon, she wanted me to thank you for that night."

Luo Lin looked at Qin Wanshu's appearance and knew that Song Meiyuan didn’t tell her about the cooperation between them, including the drugging incident.

Luo Lin nodded and sat down to eat.

After some time, Qin Wanshu finally lifted her shy face, her voice was soft as a mosquito: "Little Lin, on that night, it's all thanks to you. Without you, Meiyuan and I might have... a-anyways thank you..."

Luo Lin smiled, Qin Wanshu was thin-skinned so these words must have been brewing for several days.

"Aunt Qin, you don't have to thank me. I have said this before, only I'm allowed to bully you. Other men who dare to bully my dear Aunt Qin, I won’t let them off."

In normal times, Luo Lin's words were half-joking and would be followed up with Qin Wanshu's rebuke.

However today, Qin Wanshu silently nodded. Her ears turned red, she dared not meet Luo Lin's eyes, and absent-mindedly ate her food.

Luo Lin shook his head inwardly: ‘This is getting messy, have you fallen for me already…’

...

The October holidays have finally come to an end.

For the students of One High, this signified the start of a long semester. To Luo Lin however, it was the beginning of his journey, even if it began from school.

When he was taking a stroll through the campus in the morning, there were a lot of students pointing at him.

"That’s Luo Lin, he’s the one who fought with Brother Dragon!"

"Hehe, he's going to be doomed today. He really needs to open his eyes, to think he provoked Brother Dragon. I heard that our school's Brother Shi had received Brother Dragon's pledge of allegiance. Let's stay after school, there must be a great show!"

"I wonder if our Prince of the Underworld Qian Hu will interfere in this matter?"

"Interfere what! This Luo Lin is only a small delinquent, I heard his family has some stinking money, but I don't know who they are. He sure is ballsy, to think he dares to show up at school."

There were gorgeously-dressed female students in the courtyard. When they laid eyes on Luo Lin who swaggered into school with a calm demeanor, they sighed collectively.

"Who would've thought Luo Lin was such a handsome guy... why didn't I notice him before?"

"Sigh, this is such a waste, anyone who angers Brother Dragon is doomed."

"If he gets hurt, I will consider comforting him in my embrace." A little delinquent girl who was charmed by Luo Lin uttered.

Usually, Luo Lin acted rather low-key at school. As the third year began, he began focusing on his studies so not many people knew about him.

As the contradiction between him and Brother Dragon was spread outrageously, it inadvertently pushed Luo Lin to the cusp of the waves.

Luo Lin sensed the various complicated gazes of the students around him but he didn’t pay it any heed.

How would these students who had only watched a few gangster movies know what "mixing" really meant?

TL-er Note: Mixing/mix - to be involved in gangster activities.

How would they know what Luo Lin planned to do?

During the afternoon, Luo Lin sat in class and studied seriously. In between lessons, Chi Shi and his followers purposely swaggered around Luo Lin's seat in a provocative manner.

Luo Lin however, didn’t pay it any attention and continued doing his work with one leg over the other.

On the other side, Lin Jiadong, Liu Wanchuan, Wang Liang, Li Nan, and Li Chenggong didn’t attend the last lesson of the day and acted according to Luo Lin's instructions.

They left school early to gather in an alleyway not far from the school.

This was usually the gathering place for delinquents to "duel".

"Ring Ring!"

When the school bell rang, the ones who wished to watch the show ran out of the classroom. They took a rickshaw and made their way outside the school, their destination was one and the same- the alleyway not far from the school.

They know that if a fight goes down, then it must be done there.