After clearly hearing what was said on the other end of the phone, the smile on Chu Junheng’s face disappeared.

He stood there stiffly for nearly three seconds, gripping the phone, before he finally cursed under his breath.

“Fuck.”

He reacted almost instantly. With a long stride, he chased in the direction Wen Ruyu had just left.

That exit branched in all directions. Students were coming and going, dense as a tide of people.

Chu Junheng’s gaze swept rapidly across the crowd, but he did not see that beautiful figure.

He was gone.

For the first time, Chu Junheng understood what it meant to lift a rock only to drop it on his own foot.

He did not dare imagine the expression Wen Ruyu would have when he received the bill.

Just a moment ago, he had been utterly ruthless.

Now his chest felt as if it were being squeezed tight.

He even wanted to travel back in time and strangle that earlier version of himself.

Chu Junheng took a deep breath and lifted the phone that was still connected. His voice was pressed low, edged with clenched teeth.

“Withdraw the bill.”

“All orders are void.”

“Unfreeze the supplementary card.”

“Remove all restrictions on Wen Ruyu across Chu Group’s subsidiaries.”

The assistant on the other end froze for a moment, unable to react, and only let out a confused sound.

“…Huh?”

“Are you incapable of understanding human language?” Chu Junheng’s tone turned cold. The oppressive pressure in his voice did not lessen even through the phone. There was danger and shadow in his words.

“I said.”

“Withdraw it. Immediately.”

“Y-Yes.” The assistant finally reacted, panic creeping into his voice as he replied respectfully. “I’ll handle it right away.”

After speaking, he seemed to remember something and added cautiously, his tone growing weaker.

“Young Master Chu, about that… the bill was sent via text message. That… that can’t be withdrawn.”

Chu Junheng’s hand paused slightly. His voice came out stiff.

“Find an excuse. Say it was sent by mistake.”

The assistant: “...?”

An excuse?

How was he supposed to explain that?

The list was itemized clearly, and Wen Ruyu’s name was printed right on it. How could that possibly be a mistake?

Only a fool would believe that.

Chu Junheng did not care what the assistant thought. After issuing the order, he hung up. The air pressure around him dropped to a terrifying level.

His presence became eerie.

Zhang Yang and Jin Duoduo were not standing close and had no idea what had happened. They only saw Chu Junheng’s face shift from pale to dark.

Zhang Yang swallowed and spoke cautiously.

“What happened to Young Master Chu?”

“Did Wen Ruyu anger him?”

“I don’t know.” Jin Duoduo shook his head, his voice tense. “Let’s go take a look.”

When they approached, they were startled by Chu Junheng’s expression. Only then did they notice the wound on his lips.

It was clearly a bite mark.

Wen Ruyu had bitten him?

So Wen Ruyu had angered him?

Both of them felt their hearts drop.

As Chu Junheng’s followers, no one understood better than they did how ruthless he could be. Anyone who offended him never appeared a second time.

He did not treat human lives as anything significant.

Chu Junheng touched his lip, where a bead of blood was still seeping out. His tongue pressed against his molars as he spoke casually.

“Go investigate Wen Ruyu.”

“Send me all his information.”

Jin Duoduo and Zhang Yang felt their hearts sink further.

It really was Wen Ruyu who had angered him.

Yet they did not dare speak a single word in Wen Ruyu’s defense. They lowered their heads immediately.

“Yes.”

“Young Master Chu.”

On a secluded path on the other side of campus.

Fearing Chu Junheng might catch up, Wen Ruyu had already changed routes and taken a side path.

As he walked, he wiped his lips. There was a faint sting. They were probably a little swollen.

This appearance was not suitable for meeting anyone.

Even less suitable for meeting Fu Qingfeng.

But he had to go.

No matter what happened, the original host would always go to see Fu Qingfeng. For twenty years, he had done so without fail. Even during a torrential downpour, without an umbrella, he would still go.

Not to mention that he had finally obtained the watch he had long wanted to give Fu Qingfeng.

With the original host’s personality, he would definitely deliver it at the first opportunity.

Just as Wen Ruyu avoided the crowd and hurried toward the path Fu Qingfeng usually took after class, his phone suddenly vibrated.

The original host never muted his phone, afraid of missing any message from Fu Qingfeng. In the quiet alley, the notification tone sounded especially clear.

Wen Ruyu took out his phone and glanced down.

The sender was an unfamiliar number.

“Hello, Mr. Wen Ruyu. As of today, the total value of gifts you have received from Mr. Chu Junheng amounts to 17.32 million yuan. Please return them within three days. Items that cannot be returned must be compensated at market depreciation value. If we do not receive the returned items by the deadline, Chu Group will file a lawsuit against you in accordance with the law.”

Attached below was a picture.

It was a detailed list of all the gifts the original host had received from Chu Junheng, each with a listed price.

The total came to over seventeen million yuan.

Wen Ruyu: “...?”

After reading the message, Wen Ruyu stopped walking. His long eyelashes trembled slightly.

Not from fear.

But from delight.

There was such a good thing?

Didn’t this mean he could completely sever ties with Chu Junheng?

He had been considering how to deal with the original host’s “fish” without breaking character. He had not expected someone to hand him a ladder so quickly.

And it was the most difficult fish of all.

With Chu Junheng’s family background, if he did not declare it over, the original host would likely not even have the right to end things.

Only someone as reckless as the original host would dare provoke him.

However, Wen Ruyu had not even finished being pleased for a full minute when his phone rang.

It was the same number that had sent the text.

He paused, then answered.

“Oh?”

There was about three seconds of silence before a polite voice came through.

“Hello, may I ask if this is Student Wen Ruyu?”

Before Wen Ruyu could respond, the other side hurried on.

“I accidentally sent the wrong text just now. You don’t need to return the bill. I had a bit to drink today and didn’t check carefully before sending it. It must have been sent to you by mistake. Just pretend you didn’t see it.”

“I sincerely apologize.”

Wen Ruyu paused. He lowered the phone and looked again at the name on the bill. After confirming that it clearly read “Wen Ruyu,” he lifted the phone and spoke calmly.

“The bill has my name on it.”

There was a moment of silence.

Then an awkward laugh came from the other end.

“Haha… I must have written it wrong.”

“When you’re drunk, it’s easy to make mistakes.”

Wen Ruyu replied just as calmly.

“The list contains every gift I’ve received.”

“I-It does seem that way.” The assistant forced a smile. He had compiled the list himself; he knew it perfectly well. Yet he still forced himself to speak.

“What a coincidence, wouldn’t you say? Haha…”

“This was Chu Junheng’s idea, wasn’t it?” Wen Ruyu’s tone was indifferent, directly exposing the lie.

“How could that be?” The assistant immediately denied it. “Young Master Chu would never ask for something back after giving it.”

“He’s not that kind of person.”

“Then why send me a bill?” Wen Ruyu asked quietly.

An assistant capable of working for Chu Group was never an ordinary person, usually graduates from top universities.

Yet now he was cornered by Wen Ruyu’s few simple questions.

Sweat broke out on his forehead. His mind raced, and in desperation he blurted out:

“I—I betrayed him!”

“I’ve never liked Young Master Chu. Seeing him give you so many gifts made me upset, so I wanted to mess with him on purpose and make him unable to get what he wants.”

Wen Ruyu clearly had not expected that answer.

He fell silent for a second before speaking slowly.

“Then why are you explaining it to me now?”

The assistant was speechless.

“I—I was drunk earlier,” he stammered. “Now I’ve sobered up. The Chu family is powerful. A small person like me can’t afford to offend them. That’s why I’m explaining.”

His voice turned cautious.

“Could you please just pretend this never happened?”

Wen Ruyu did not answer that question. His tone remained calm.

“Please inform Chu Junheng that I will return everything according to the gift list.”

“Wait, don’t—”

Before the assistant could finish, the call was cut off.

He stared at the busy tone and hurriedly called back.

The next second, a mechanical female voice played.

“Hello. The number you have dialed is currently on another call. Please try again later.”

He had been blocked.

The assistant: “...”

This might be bad.

After blocking the number, Wen Ruyu also blocked Chu Junheng’s contact and deleted all of his information.

Then he set his phone to reject calls from unknown numbers.

Only after finishing all that did he put the phone away and continue walking toward the usual place where the original host waited for Fu Qingfeng.

Because of the delay, by the time he arrived, the intersection was empty.

Fu Qingfeng had likely already left.

The university had many cafeterias, eight or nine in total. Fu Qingfeng had no particular preference; he chose based entirely on mood.

If the original host missed him at this intersection, finding him again was nearly impossible.

Wen Ruyu looked at the empty tree-lined path and pressed his lips together lightly.

He could only turn back toward the dormitory.

But the moment he turned around, someone called his name from behind.

“Wen Ruyu.”

He instinctively looked back.

Before he could see who it was, a white handkerchief with a faint, pungent smell suddenly covered his nose and mouth.

His heart skipped a beat.

He struggled instinctively, but the other person’s strength was immense. A hand gripped his shoulder firmly, pressing the cloth tightly against his face.

In less than three seconds, a powerful wave of dizziness hit him. His body began to lose strength.

There was a drug on the handkerchief.

Realizing this, Wen Ruyu used his last bit of strength to try to see the person in front of him.

But the drug had already taken effect. The figure before him blurred. The sounds in his ears grew distant.

The effect was swift and domineering.

Wen Ruyu did not even have the strength to make a sound.

His slender body swayed lightly.

Then he collapsed.

Chapter 48

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