11. Amy Arrives

Ye Feng suddenly sensed a hush fall over the room once more, perhaps because of the change in music, or for some other reason... In any case, he felt the eyes of the other guys around him were anything but friendly, as though they all wanted to devour him. After all, standing before him was the charming and adorable elf, Amy. Today, this little minx was dressed even more alluringly than Nan Jing, whom he’d always thought of as a siren. He had never realized before just how well Amy had developed—her neckline plunged daringly low, and her skirt was slit high enough to make Ye Feng swallow involuntarily. Worst of all, the girl bent over to ask if he’d like to dance with her, putting those twin orbs on full display...

“Of course,” Ye Feng quickly stood up and extended his hand. “Beautiful lady, may I have this dance?”

Amy placed her hand in his palm. “Of course you may.”

Thus, Ye Feng stepped into the dance floor for the third time that night.

The three guys who shared Ye Feng’s dorm were stunned. Their youngest roommate, it seemed, had been hiding his true capabilities all along. He’d always kept a low profile, but tonight he’d managed to attract three stunning beauties, each one angel-faced and devil-bodied, including Ouyang Lanlan, the undisputed goddess of the university. The three of them could hardly contain their jealousy and wished they could drag Ye Feng outside and teach him a lesson—hogging all the resources like this was unforgivable for single men like them.

Ye Feng had no idea his roommates had already sentenced him to death in their hearts. He was too busy carefully placing his arm around Amy’s waist. She was wearing so little tonight that the feel of her was in no way inferior to Ouyang Lanlan or Nan Jing, and Ye Feng’s thoughts began to stray into dangerous territory.

Originally, Amy hadn’t planned on coming tonight. But her good friend Hu Fei—who had dined with her and Ye Feng last time—had spotted Ye Feng dancing with Ouyang Lanlan and called Amy, assuming Ye Feng was Amy’s boyfriend. At first, Amy brushed it off; after all, she and Ye Feng were just close friends, practically siblings. But can a man and a woman ever really share a purely platonic bond? Only heaven knows. The more Amy thought about it, the more unsettled she felt. She put on her most alluring outfit and rushed over, arriving just in time to see Ye Feng intimately adjusting Nan Jing’s clothing. Amy felt a surge of jealousy burning in her chest—she nearly stormed over to confront Ye Feng, but managed to calm herself, reminding herself they were just friends. Instead, she waited until Ye Feng sat down, then walked over and asked him to dance. Amy knew Ye Feng would never refuse her—he never had, not once since they were children.

Their dance ended swiftly. Amy didn’t cling to Ye Feng, and together they headed toward Ouyang Lanlan’s table. Now the booth was full: Ye Feng sat with three beautiful women, each one a head-turner. After exchanging names, the atmosphere was friendly enough, and soon the women were chatting and laughing among themselves, leaving Ye Feng out in the cold.

But Ye Feng didn’t mind. Sitting with three beauties was enough to make every guy in the place green with envy. From time to time, someone would come over and strike up a fake conversation—asking if he’d eaten, what time it was, or for a lighter—all just excuses to get a closer look at the hot girls.

Ye Feng dared not show any annoyance; after all, his building was full of computer science students, and if every one of them spat at him, he’d drown. He had already incurred the wrath of the masses, and all that was missing was a spark to set things off.

Bored, Ye Feng watched the three women chat away, their laughter making his heart itch. His reverie was interrupted by a male voice.

Unlike the others, this man spoke directly to Ouyang Lanlan, “Lanlan, you’re here too? I heard you just danced with someone. Didn’t Uncle say you shouldn’t get too close to strangers? On one hand, there’s your reputation to consider; on the other, your kind heart makes you easy prey for bad people. Come, let me take you for a drink. What’s the point of staying at this paupers’ gathering?” His tone dripped with contempt, especially when he glanced at Ye Feng, and as he spoke he reached to pull Ouyang Lanlan to her feet, only for her to deftly avoid him.

It was only when the man tried to grab Ouyang Lanlan that Ye Feng looked up. It was Murong Fu, the eldest son of the Murong family—a notorious playboy on campus. Rumor had it that he and Ouyang Lanlan were engaged, though she had never shown him any sign of affection.

Ye Feng’s first impression of Murong Fu was that he was a wolf in sheep’s clothing. The man wore a perfectly tailored suit, his hair gleaming with pomade and parted just so, giving him a rakish air. To be fair, Murong Fu was quite handsome, and with his family background he had no shortage of admirers at school. Yet his words made Ye Feng’s gaze turn icy, the corners of his mouth lifting in a smile that, to those who knew him, was a sure sign of displeasure.

The Murong and Ouyang families were about equally matched, with the Murongs stronger in some respects. Ye Feng didn’t know whether the engagement rumors were true, but he’d known Ouyang for years and she was still unmarried. Based on what he saw, Ouyang Lanlan was not as formidable as the rumors suggested.

Ouyang Lanlan gave Murong Fu a frosty glance. “Murong Fu, I’m in a good mood tonight. Please don’t bother me.”

“Come on, Lanlan, we’re engaged after all. Can’t you be a little kinder to me?” Murong Fu’s tone made Ye Feng feel queasy.

He would have been better off not mentioning it. At the word “engaged,” Ouyang Lanlan’s face flushed with anger. “Nonsense! Who’s engaged to you? Young Master Murong, I’m not worthy of your high status! Now, I’m talking with my friends. Please leave!”

“Did you hear that? She told you to go—why are you still hanging around?” To everyone’s surprise, Nan Jing spoke up.

Murong Fu, rebuffed, said nothing further. He shot Nan Jing a murderous glare, then silently left with his two lackeys, earning a measure of respect from Ye Feng—there was more to Murong Fu than met the eye. Ye Feng had a feeling the night would not end peacefully.

After the interruption, none of the four were in much of a mood to linger. It was already nine o’clock, and Ye Feng could tell the three women wanted to leave but were too polite to say so. He took the initiative: “It’s getting late. Let me walk you back.”

“Alright,” Amy replied first.

“Who wants a wolf like you to walk us?” Nan Jing, as usual, contradicted Ye Feng, though her expression was anything but disapproving.

Ouyang Lanlan simply smiled and nodded.

...

To walk a beauty home is both agony and delight for any man. But to walk three such bewitching beauties home at once—well, that’s not a matter of simple addition; the complexity increases geometrically. In that case, all delight vanishes, leaving only agony.

Ye Feng trailed behind as the three women walked ahead, chatting and laughing as if Murong Fu’s sour mood had never happened.

They soon arrived at Building Fourteen. This was Ye Feng’s third time coming here, each visit accompanied by different feelings. The first time, walking Ouyang Lanlan home, he’d been elated—after all, not everyone got to accompany the goddess herself. The second time, bringing Amy home, he’d been happy to see an old friend. But this time, with all three, his mind was elsewhere—he suspected Murong Fu wouldn’t let things go so easily. While he wasn’t afraid, the feeling of being targeted was unpleasant.

At the entrance, the four of them stopped in unison, and the three women turned to face him. Amy spoke first. “Feng, be careful on your way back.”

Next was Nan Jing. “Wolf, don’t wander around outside tonight, or you might get beaten up again.”

Before she finished, Ouyang Lanlan chimed in, “Ye Feng, you’d better head back now. Beware of Murong Fu.”

Ye Feng was at a loss for words—being fussed over by three beauties was a rare happiness. “Alright, don’t worry about me. You’d best head up.”

The three women glanced at him once more before turning and heading inside. Ye Feng didn’t hear them speak as they went, and wondered why they’d suddenly fallen silent.

When the trio had disappeared from sight, Ye Feng turned and strolled away, feeling a twinge of melancholy.

...

In the shadowy stretch along the path back to Building Twenty-Six, four figures crouched, occasionally breathing into their hands to warm themselves against the cold.

“Boss, are you sure he’ll come this way?” asked a chubby one, round as a ball.

“Of course he will—if he wants to get back to the dorm, he has to use this road. Why are you asking stupid questions?” The lanky one snapped, smacking the fat guy on the back of the head.

“So how long do we have to wait? It’s freezing out here!” another, a pale pretty boy, complained.

“We wait until he shows up—why do you all have so much to say?” The boss, taking his cue, thumped the pretty boy as well.

This boss was known as Turtle—a local thug who ran errands for Murong Fu, handling his dirty work. He’d roughed up plenty of people at Murong Fu’s command, and many girls from the university without family backing had been delivered to Murong Fu for his amusement, with Turtle always getting his cut.

Tonight, Murong Fu had been thoroughly humiliated by Ouyang Lanlan, but couldn’t afford to lose his gentlemanly facade in public. As soon as he left, he ordered an investigation into the two women and one man who had been with Lanlan. The findings showed that although Amy wasn’t from a top-tier family, she was untouchable in Haifeng City. Nan Jing’s family was wealthy but had no notable background, though since she was with Lanlan tonight, she was also off-limits. Only Ye Feng was a penniless orphan, with some distant connection to the Luo family—so distant that it barely counted. Giving him a beating to vent Murong Fu’s anger posed no problem. Thus, Turtle and his crew were lying in wait for Ye Feng along his route home.

At that moment, Ye Feng was ambling along, chilled to the bone—his thin clothing had seemed fine in front of the beauties, but now he felt the cold acutely. He glanced around, thinking that surely Murong Fu wouldn’t seek him out on a frigid night like this.

...

Soon enough, Ye Feng reached the spot where Turtle and his gang lay in ambush. The lights on either side were dim, but not so dim that Ye Feng’s face couldn’t be made out.

As soon as Ye Feng appeared, Turtle’s eyes lit up. To him, Ye Feng was a sack of cash; beating him up would earn a tidy sum from Murong Fu.

The four of them fanned out, surrounding Ye Feng from front, back, and both sides.

Ye Feng tried to dodge left, but Turtle blocked him. He tried to dodge right, and Turtle cut him off again.

Anyone with half a brain could see these men were here for trouble.

Ye Feng didn’t panic. He glanced around, then feigned alarm. “Who are you? What do you want?”

“What do you think?” Turtle sneered and swung a slap at Ye Feng’s face.

Ye Feng had anticipated this. Before the slap landed, he shielded his face with his hand and let himself fall to the ground with a pained groan.

The move was so quick, and the light so dim, that no one caught what really happened.

Seeing Ye Feng curled up and groaning, the four men looked down on him with contempt.

“Boss, you’re amazing—one slap and he’s down,” the fat one chimed in, seizing his chance to flatter.

“Of course. Who do you think your boss is?” Turtle basked in the praise. “Don’t just stand there—beat him, but leave him breathing.”

“Yes, sir!” The other three wasted no time, laying into Ye Feng with their boots, prompting him to groan even louder.

“Help! Murder!” Ye Feng shouted at the top of his lungs, all the while deftly dodging their kicks.

After two minutes, Ye Feng’s cries grew fainter until at last he fell silent, startling the assailants.

The fat one nervously crouched beside Ye Feng and checked his breathing. “Boss, he’s still alive—looks like he just passed out.”

Turtle knelt to check for himself. There was breath, and with Ye Feng’s face bruised and swollen, he figured it was enough.

“Looks like he really did faint. Lucky bastard! Let’s get out of here.” With a wave, Turtle led the group away, their footsteps shuffling off into the night.