NOVEL NEXT C5
Chapter Five: Harassment
Getting into the Source Martial University, especially a relatively good one, could at least prevent harassment from those debt collectors. Ying Luo had said that students at the Source Martial University received national subsidies, which could also solve living issues.
Yuyin couldn’t help but lower her head, looking at her skin, smooth as jade, her fingers delicate enough to let light through. It seemed that in this life, she was also a pampered young lady, but who would have thought that on the day of her rebirth, she had already lost everything.
Her mother had run off to Africa; what else could she do? As for her father, she had just checked online, and Xia Yuxue was a single mother. At this time, those relatives probably avoided her like the plague; otherwise, why hadn’t she arranged for Yuyin to rely on friends or family?
She could only rely on herself.
As for the ghost king’s engagement… with Yuyin’s current perspective and understanding, even if she racked her brain to think of ways to cope, she would still be at a loss… Since that was the case, thinking too much was pointless; she could only take it step by step.
But even though she stood at the window, resolutely declaring she would get into the Source Martial Academy, she had no foundation at all.
Looking at the late hour, there were still so many people in the school practicing, either training their bodies or practicing things Yuyin couldn’t understand at all, showing just how fierce the competition was. The admission rates that Ying Luo mentioned were shockingly low.
It seemed her physical fitness and grades were decent, but Yuyin had a concept of cultivation from her previous world, regardless of where that concept came from. Cultivation relied on talent.
Did she have talent?
That was unknown, but optimistically thinking, since she could be reborn, she should have some unusual aspects, right?
In this regard, some well-off kids in Lingdu, as heard online, started from a young age, attending cultivation classes on weekends in kindergarten, and even practicing prenatal education.
She, however, had no foundation at all, and the college entrance examination was only 60 days away… In this aspect, she was far behind others.
As midnight approached, the school began to clear out.
After bidding farewell to everyone, Yuyin walked alone on the quiet, dilapidated path of the shantytown, taking advantage of the back door that was left open, making her way closer to the place her mother had arranged for her to stay.
Thump, thump…
On the dimly lit road, a soccer ball bounced towards her from ahead.
A tall, burly shadow ran out from the grass after the ball.
“Xia Yuyin?” This boy had a buzz cut, wore a soccer uniform, and had particularly developed leg muscles, moving agilely, clearly a skilled player.
Is it him?
Isn’t this Zhang Biaoyang, nicknamed the “Pujiang Beast”? The captain of the school soccer team, a power forward who was quite the sensation at school, but had a very poor reputation with girls. It was said he had gotten someone pregnant, and when the girl’s family came to reason with him, even her father was injured and hospitalized. Yet, he seemed to have gotten away with it; who knew how he managed to smooth things over? Of course, this was all before her rebirth; the Zhang Biaoyang in this world might not be the same.
Just as Yuyin was thinking this, Zhang Biaoyang swaggered over, relaxed in the presence of such a beauty, showing that this guy had plenty of experience with women.
He stepped into a distance that was somewhat disrespectful to Yuyin, forcing her to take a step back.
“Xia Yuyin, Miss Xia. When will Aunt Xia invite me over for dinner?” Zhang Biaoyang said, his voice a bit rough, clearly just having finished playing soccer.
Probably because Yuyin usually kept a cold demeanor and was relatively distant from her classmates, even without the memories of her previous life, it didn’t raise any suspicions among her peers. But did this guy have some connection to her family?
“Mom isn’t home lately.”
“Oh? Oh! I remember now, your mom’s company went bankrupt and fled to Africa. Sorry, sorry, I shouldn’t have brought that up. Africa is quite chaotic, you know, your mom, uh, I mean Aunt Xia, with her looks and figure… she’s probably in a lot of danger; she might as well sit in jail back home!” Zhang Biaoyang exclaimed dramatically.
Yuyin’s expression darkened; even if her mother had been reborn, that was not something to be desecrated! But in the stillness of the night, with only the two of them on the road, it was better not to provoke him.
“I’m going home; let’s talk tomorrow.” Saying this, Yuyin tried to leave.
But Zhang Biaoyang blocked her way.
“What’s wrong? Not happy? No wonder, with such a thing happening at home. Do you want me to comfort you?” He leaned in close to Yuyin’s ear.
Yuyin immediately stepped back, whether out of instinct or self-protection, she was extremely repulsed by this action.
“I forgot my book,” Yuyin said, turning to walk towards the teaching building, where her classmates should still be around, and there were also patrolling teachers.
Slap.
Yuyin’s slender arm was forcefully grabbed by Zhang Biaoyang’s strong hand; his strength seemed to exceed his already burly physique. The boys in this world were incredibly strong! He must have trained.
Yuyin felt a sharp pain in her arm, as if it were caught in an iron clamp, and she couldn’t shake it off.
Powerlessness… this was a feeling that even when she was a weak boy, she could never comprehend, a deep sense of helplessness.
“Seeing the reports, your house was raided, right? Where are you living now?”
“…”
“You’re not homeless, are you? Come to my dorm; I’m the only one there tonight. By the way, my uncle got me a cultivation manual from over there, it’s really useful for cultivating source energy, worth millions outside. How about coming to check it out?” Zhang Biaoyang forcibly pulled Yuyin closer, threateningly whispering in her ear.
A cultivation manual, Yuyin couldn’t say she wasn’t interested.
But Yuyin wasn’t foolish; did she not understand men? What cultivation manual, eating apples, it was all fake! Moreover, what kind of person Zhang Biaoyang was, he was even worse than he appeared!
“Let go of me; this is school, there are cameras everywhere. You wouldn’t want to cause any trouble before the college entrance exam, would you?” Yuyin said calmly.
Cameras, that seemed to remind the physically strong Zhang Biaoyang, and he hesitated slightly.
But soon, he became aggressive again, “Cameras? Do I look like I’m afraid of cameras? Go ahead and upload the video online! Your mom still owes my family money! Twenty-one million. Your mom ran away; if I don’t come to you for the money, who should I go to?”
The truth of this statement was hard to discern, and Yuyin didn’t know how to refute it for a moment.
“Debts must be repaid; it’s only right. If you don’t have money, can you repay it in other ways?” Zhang Biaoyang whispered in Yuyin’s ear.
“Get lost!”
Yuyin acted faster than she could think, her high heel stomping hard on Zhang Biaoyang’s foot. He was caught off guard and cried out in pain.
Seizing the opportunity, Yuyin escaped, turning and running towards the teaching building.
Zhang Biaoyang cursed and chased after her. Yuyin, wearing high heels, couldn’t outrun the soccer team captain, and it looked like she was about to be caught.
“What’s going on over there?”
A blinding flashlight shone towards them.
It was the patrolling physical education teacher, along with Ying Luo. In fact, Ying Luo had just been in the teaching building watching Yuyin leave and had seen her being entangled, so she immediately went to call the patrolling teacher.
The physical education teachers in this world were not to be trifled with; most were either disciples of secular cultivation or retired soldiers. Although Zhang Biaoyang was not afraid, he didn’t want to suffer a loss right now.
“It’s nothing, nothing. I was just discussing studies with the president’s daughter,” Zhang Biaoyang said, casting a disdainful glance at Yuyin before turning to kick the ball away.
Though Yuyin sighed in relief, her heart was deeply shaken.
She had still underestimated the dangers a beautiful girl might encounter in such a world.
Power… if she had power, how could she be bullied by such a person!
“Hmph.” Yuyin shook her head, realizing that without strength, even tears were a mistake. Feeling wronged? That was an utterly meaningless emotion.
With Ying Luo’s hint, the teacher and Ying Luo accompanied Yuyin to the school gate.
After thanking the teacher, the physical education teacher gave a few reminders before leaving.
“Ying Luo… thank you.” Yuyin looked at Ying Luo, who was noticeably shorter than her, and said sincerely.
“Yuyin, is there anything you need… need my help with?” The two were alone at the school gate, but she became hesitant again, glancing at the nearby cement flower bed.
“It’s nothing; my place is just ahead.”
“Then…”
“Goodbye.” Yuyin said.
A seemingly ordinary goodbye left Ying Luo feeling somewhat hollow inside.
“See… see you.” Ying Luo seemed to want to say something else, but ultimately didn’t.
After parting with Ying Luo, Yuyin cautiously walked along the quiet, dilapidated path of the shantytown, where a silly-looking bald fat man sat at his door in the middle of the night, staring at Yuyin with a blank expression, mumbling something. Yuyin quickened her pace.
On the way, although there were some malicious glances, no one took any action. After all, even a sexy beauty walking alone late at night wouldn’t always encounter a criminal; the security in Lingdu wasn’t that bad.
“You have arrived at your destination, navigation ended.”
Yuyin found her residence, an old five-story apartment in Lingdu, dilapidated and worn.
The elderly caretaker seemed hard of hearing, hunched over with deep-set eyes, resembling an elder from some dark game under the dim light.
“Miss, make sure to lock the door at night,” the old man reminded her after Yuyin took the key.
With the stairs cluttered with junk and electric bikes, in a place where one couldn’t see their hand in front of their face, Yuyin would do that without him saying.