They are still close to me today despite their negative feelings

Correction to what I said before. I've been through many negotiations like this... but bringing a child is a first for me. Right now, I just want to gesture to someone to shut the chairman up.

"If it were just a casual interruption, it wouldn't be a big deal, considering I'm in the wrong. But she's talking about escalating things (and involving the authorities), which fundamentally breaks the rules, right?"

"Then I need to make some preparations on my side. Since it's not someone you brought, it shouldn't matter, right? Or can you have her tell us here herself that she forgot everything that happened?"

It's true that this old fox wants to take the lead in negotiations, but sadly, what this bastard said is also an objective fact.

The gray industry has its own rules. All the slang, jargon, and gestures revolve around this hidden balance between black and white.

If it were me, upon hearing the strangers they brought dare to mention sanctions, I would also take that as a signal that things were about to fall apart.

From the chairman's perspective, we might think we have a huge advantage and are in the right. But in reality, neither exposing their fraud nor the number of people present matters to those guys.

The real reason he was willing to back down was simply because of the evidence I had and the consensus in the gray market that they would not interfere with each other for the sake of profit.

"How could I possibly forget something like this..."

"Shut up, you idiot."

Interrupting the black-haired girl's speech, I saw a look of confusion and disbelief in her eyes.

"Stop talking nonsense. Ultimately, is this really a scam? Has anything actually happened and caused any losses? Do you have conclusive evidence? Who would believe you?"

"Eh?"

"What do you know about not being able to forget something so easily? What do you know? And what does this have to do with you?"

"Was Ge Lanlan drugged or hypnotized? We haven't found out yet, have we? She has hands and feet, and she has her own brain and judgment. Isn't it somewhat of a choice that she's willing to go to this point? Otherwise, she could have chosen not to come?"

At this point, I let out a cold laugh.

"Isn't it essentially just her own fault for trusting others too easily? Oh no, it's not even a problem. She and that guy over there were mutually attracted, right? They were in the startup phase, so investing with their own money was perfectly fine, wasn't it? In that case, she was happy to be fed up like a cream puff, wasn't she?"

"At most, this is just Ge Lanlan's own poor judgment of people, right? Are you joking about this strange sense of justice? Isn't a love-struck person and a scumbag a perfect combination? She gets to feel pampered, the other party gets benefits, everyone gets what they want..."

I didn't have a chance to finish my sentence.

It wasn't because of Xu Xingxin's sudden outburst of shouting, nor because of Ge Lanlan silently weeping with her head down, nor because of the president who tried to grab my collar.

"Snapped."

I touched my throbbing cheek. The heat made me feel like the swelling would last for a long time.

"……Why?"

"I was just saying what was on my mind. I've been holding it in for so long," I said nonchalantly.

"Snapped!"

This time, thank goodness, I didn't get hit on my other cheek. Thank goodness, I don't have that Christian tendency to turn the other cheek when slapped.

"That's enough, An Yu."

Chen Di took the slap for me. He frowned and stopped him.

Great! Does this count as successfully getting them to talk to me? I even managed to accomplish another task in this critical moment; Ning Niulang is still as sharp as ever!

Honestly, I'm so sad, I could cry myself to death.

"Leaving aside Ning Ruoyu's previous help to you, even just this time, everyone here has the right to be angry with him, except you!"

Thank you, Chen Di. I wouldn't be able to survive this raid without you.

"No, no! Why, why don't you understand! I'm not angry about that! I am!"

An Yu seemed confused, staring at her hands as if waking from a dream, while anxiously trying to say something.

I casually rubbed my cheeks. I didn't look at the three high school girls again.

"Here you go."

He tossed the phone to the older man.

"What a troublesome farce. I've been quite sincere, haven't I? Please get rid of all these irrelevant passersby, thank you."

What goes around comes around. This time, it's my turn to slump onto the sofa.

This is the price of meddling in other people's business.

The background music, crying, and cursing were all mixed together in my ears, but I kept my eyes closed until those guys were asked to leave by the "friends" who came with the gold-toothed uncle. Only then did I open my eyes.

Only the older man and I were left in the karaoke room.

"Could you please put out your cigarette? I'm a student, after all. What would I look like going back reeking of smoke?"

"You brat, I've been exceptionally lenient with you today, so don't push your luck."

"Please, didn't I voluntarily hand over all the evidence and my statements? And I clearly stood on your side. They're just students; you can't handle a fight to the death, can you?"

The two strangers and the so-called Anan had already left. The fruit platter they ordered looked particularly tempting, so I picked out a cantaloupe and started eating it.

"By the way, consider this a bonus. I see you're primarily a businessman, so keep those hotheads in line. They're always throwing 'candy' and parties; they'll ruin themselves someday—it's good to have brainless subordinates. But if they're also troublesome, that's a disaster."

"Even gossiping can't sweeten your mouth," the gold-toothed uncle chuckled and scolded. "Who exactly are you? Taking care of those brats for no reward, are you actually the school beauty's personal bodyguard or something? Otherwise, what's your motive?"

"Just to have peace and quiet, someone who's disliked by everyone."

"Really?"

"It's fake. Do I look like I have masochistic tendencies?"

"...Your behavior is a habit you've developed over the years, but I just don't understand this kind of self-destructive behavior. Those easy targets are fine, but is it necessary to protect them all?"

"Aren't you being a bit too greedy, kid?"

"Stop guessing, this was purely an accident. If it hadn't happened right in front of me, I wouldn't care what happened to them."

Pause slightly.

"Oh, that guy named Chen Di, he's kind of my friend—but he probably wouldn't let himself fall to this level."

"It's really pathetic. We're the kind of selfish people who insist on forcing ourselves to be ordinary students." Uncle Gold Tooth stood up.

"You're in for a world of hurt, kid."

"What's so great about campus life...?"

Did I tell you that I graduated from a prestigious university with a master's degree? I studied IT.

"Holy crap, is this for real? Are graduate school admission standards really this outrageous now?"

Surprisingly, there were actually college students at today's "college student" entrepreneurship dinner.

"Don't underestimate school life. Sometimes the interpersonal relationships and shady dealings there make me feel that the gray industry is actually very clean and transparent."

The gold-toothed man left with an awkward smile, got up, and left the KTV.

"Hey, have you paid yet, sir? Can I order another fruit platter? These oranges don't look fresh."

The older man ignored me. How stingy.

...After learning about this guy's educational background, I even started to doubt his age.

Honestly, could this face be a distorted version of the features of someone from the IT industry?

With that in mind, I opened the app that had just been loaded on my phone.

Unlike that graduate student from a prestigious university, I am a self-taught person in software engineering—no, strictly speaking, I haven't even left my field of study.

My learning in this area is not as systematic as when I was just casually stealing things. I'm good at doing the lowest level of sabotage, but I'm completely out of my depth when it comes to real, high-tech warfare.

Even so, if I have the other party's personal terminal in my hands for a period of time, I can still do some tampering.

For example, now.

Uncle Gold Tooth, there really should be some bottom line in life... Okay, I'm just pretending. Bottom line doesn't matter, I just feel really annoyed by how easily you make money.

Feeling quite satisfied that I had done a good deed, I hacked into the platform the other party had built.

"I can't be the only one doing all the work for no reward."

It sounded like self-mockery, or perhaps self-consolation.

With the background music playing in the karaoke room, I pressed the format button on the remote control with a wry smile.

This farce, which is completely out of character for campus life, has finally come to an end. While I am relieved, I also feel a little melancholy.

I don't know if it's because I've finally gotten away from that grayness, or if even if I'm away, I still can't get close to the rainbow I long for.

……

Ah, wait a minute.

It's too early to be sentimental.

Am I seeing things, or is that aggressive woman standing at my door like she's waiting for someone, really my righteous Miss Wu Yuehua who was driven away in anger?

After the hero defeats the Demon King and returns to the kingdom, even if he can't marry the long-lived elf and watch the meteor shower, he should at least have a victory celebration banquet with free drinks, right?

You can't exactly let some merchant NPC come and block your door, yelling, "Hey you, you still owe me money for those scrolls!"

How tactless of them! They're ruining the atmosphere!

I didn't come back from Baldur's Gate.

However, it was clear that for Senior Wu Yuehua, suppressing her hatred overnight was quite difficult.

When our eyes met, she exclaimed with delight, "Here I am!" as she looked at me from around the corner.

At that moment, I even resented the fruit platter at the karaoke bar. If there had been more of it, or if the oranges had been even slightly fresher, I could have stayed in this damn torture much longer.

However, as neighbors who see each other all the time, I ultimately didn't want things to get too tense.

Pull her away and hide inside. Running away may be shameful, but it might be useful.

Having prepared myself mentally, I slightly raised my hand the moment I saw the opponent close in on me.

"sorry!"

Don't get me wrong, I haven't had a chance to say that yet.

Because the other party said it first.

With a face full of guilt and apology.

"I'm sorry... um, yeah? Oh, it's okay?"

My computer crashed.

[Next chapter preview: That bastard, did he do something to An Yu again?!]

An Yu seemed stunned with emotion.

Because humans are such a complex entity. Honestly, applying concepts like loneliness, reluctance, and dependence to anyone is both devastating and a devastating blow.

"A symbol that neither party owes the other anything."

"It's okay. It's really okay."

Interlude: You were just fooled.

"An'an, let me tell you something... Hey, what are you writing?"

As usual, as soon as Hu Dan entered the classroom, she spoke to her friend in a coquettish tone.

But unlike usual, my friend wasn't sitting there eating snacks and listening to the people around him chatting with a smile. Instead, he was looking down and writing something on a small card.

What's going on? An'an isn't eating snacks, is the sky falling?

Hearing her own voice, she was clearly startled and immediately hid the card and pen under the table, glancing guiltily in her direction.

"Any tests today? You're not cheating, are you?"

"Huh? Oh... Ah! Yes, I was cheating, cheating!"

"..."

Hu Dan sighed silently to herself.

If you admit it so readily, then it must not be a cheat sheet, right?

But seeing how flustered she looked, it would be too pitiful to continue asking her questions.

Just as Hu Dan was about to put down her backpack and return to her seat, the gentle voice of the popular character from Class F rang out from the doorway.

Hu Dan didn't look in that direction; instead, she subconsciously glanced towards An Yu.