Chapter 2: Informing the Parents

Wen Xiao walked to the last row as soon as he entered the classroom, only to find that Song Jingbai was already gone.

As he sat down and opened his textbook, he suddenly remembered something he had forgotten: asking the teacher for a change of seat.

Honestly, he did not want to sit with Song Jingbai. That name brought him nothing but bad memories. Since he had been reborn, there was no reason for him to just sit idly by; it would be good enough if he didn’t retaliate against them, let alone get along with them.

Besides, he had just run into Huo Zhanyan at the office.

The saying "seeing someone grow up since childhood" was truly accurate. Short-tempered, lacking empathy, and self-righteous—those were the perfect descriptions for Huo Zhanyan.

Just as this thought crossed his mind, a shadow rushed into the classroom. After scanning the room, the figure hurried to the last row and slammed his hands onto Wen Xiao’s desk. The loud bang silenced the entire class for a moment.

"Go tell the teacher right now that you want to change seats!" Huo Zhanyan gritted his teeth, glaring at him fiercely.

Yet, the more he tried to look intimidating, the more comical his face appeared, covered in bandages and half-swollen. Being still young and without any "idol baggage," Huo Zhanyan perhaps hadn't realized he had been disfigured.

Wen Xiao felt that Huo Zhanyan must have been beaten into a state of incoherence by Song Jingbai, given his random and inexplicable outburst. Even if Huo Zhanyan hadn't said anything, he would have asked to change seats anyway—anyone would do, as long as it wasn't with the F4.

"I forbid you from sitting with Song Jingbai!" Huo Zhanyan said, enunciating every word.

Wen Xiao caught on. So, the reason Huo Zhanyan wanted him to change seats was still because of Song Jingbai, who had just beaten him up yesterday. Holding a grudge against Song Jingbai and trying to drive away his seatmate because nobody else wanted to sit with him—how childish.

"What business is it of yours who I sit with?" Wen Xiao looked up at him, his face expressionless, showing no effort to hide his disdain. "You can't beat him, so you resort to these petty tricks."

Wen Xiao’s voice was very soft. The other students were too far away to hear clearly and could only watch with curiosity as to why Huo Zhanyan would pick on the new student the moment he arrived.

When Huo Zhanyan slammed his hands on the desk, he leaned forward, putting them face-to-face and very close. He heard every word clearly.

He stared at Wen Xiao with wide eyes, looking as if he had been struck where it hurt most, his face turning red with rage.

Wen Xiao felt it wasn't enough. He wanted to get rid of this pest as quickly as possible, so he added fuel to the fire.

"Also, you didn't see wrong. I was indeed laughing at you just now..."

In the next second, Wen Xiao felt his collar being grabbed. The chair next to him was even knocked over by Huo Zhanyan's sudden movement.

Huo Zhanyan gripped Wen Xiao's collar, pulling the neat, dark blue bowtie until it became wrinkled and crooked.

"You admitted it," Huo Zhanyan hissed, his eyes turning red as he glared at him.

If Wen Xiao didn't know how strong the other boy was, he might have thought Huo Zhanyan was being bullied to tears. But he knew that was impossible. It might happen to anyone else, but never to Huo Zhanyan.

He had always been the one to bully others until they cried; who would dare to bully the young crown prince of the Huo family?

He looked at Huo Zhanyan, his indifferent eyes suddenly curving slightly. When those beautiful eyes smiled at someone, it seemed enough to soothe the rage of even the most furious person—though that list did not include Huo Zhanyan.

"Don't you think you're funny?" Wen Xiao asked.

Seeing how much strength Huo Zhanyan exerted, Wen Xiao couldn't help but wonder how Song Jingbai had managed to beat him up without getting a single scratch himself. Because, whether in this life or the last, Song Jingbai was never the type to get into physical fights.

He was more like a wind carrying blades; by the time the wind passed, one would already be covered in countless tiny cuts, while the other would always wear that detached, gentle smile, as if nothing had anything to do with him.

"Do you believe I'll beat you up..." Huo Zhanyan clenched his fists, finally forcing these words out after a long pause.

Wen Xiao withdrew the smile from his face, losing all interest in talking to Huo Zhanyan further. "Huo, beating people doesn't solve problems. You need to use this..."

He extended an index finger and tapped his own head lightly. Huo Zhanyan's complexion changed like an overturned palette, a vivid display of colors.

Red, then green, then purple—the speed of these changes almost made Wen Xiao want to suggest he start a class to teach it.

"Are you saying I have no brain?" Huo Zhanyan widened his eyes.

Wen Xiao figured Huo Zhanyan was on the verge of a breakdown. Just as he was thinking that some students had already gone to find the teacher and the homeroom teacher should be arriving soon, he felt the grip on his collar suddenly loosen.

Looking at Huo Zhanyan, he expected even more anger, but instead, he heard something unexpected.

"I'm going to tell my mom! You're just pretending!" Huo Zhanyan’s chest heaved. Standing in front of Wen Xiao with his height and build, which usually dwarfed the rest of the class, he looked surprisingly pathetic.

He had always been the one to make others run to their parents; this was the first time he had wanted to do the same.

Wen Xiao found it incredible. "Do you think your mother will believe me or you?"

Huo Zhanyan fell silent. He thought of the way his mother had doted on Wen Xiao earlier, as if Wen Xiao were her own son and he were just something picked up from the side of the road.

If he complained, he might even get scolded for bullying a classmate...

For the first time, he felt a deep sense of helplessness.

Huo Zhanyan didn't move; he just hung his head low, his clenched fists trembling. "You're in cahoots with Song Jingbai..."

Song Jingbai and Wen Xiao—one beat him, the other laughed at him. They must be partners, teaming up to bully him. He had been bullied, and his mother wouldn't help him; she would join in to reprimand him too.

Huo Zhanyan suddenly felt very aggrieved.

"What kind of..." Wen Xiao was about to ask if he was crazy, but he saw Huo Zhanyan glare at him with what he thought was his most ferocious look before quickly rushing out of the classroom.

Wen Xiao paused. If he wasn't mistaken, Huo Zhanyan had actually cried.

But thinking about it, Huo Zhanyan was usually the one who made others cry. Even if Huo Zhanyan really was crying, he could feel aggrieved, but he would never shift his perspective to empathize with others; he only cared about what he wanted.

If that was the case, then Huo Zhanyan was still the same Huo Zhanyan from his memories—nothing would ever change.

Wen Xiao opened his textbook as usual, unaware that the way the entire class looked at him had changed.

A moment ago, they had been watching him like monkeys in a zoo; now, it was more like they were looking at the king of the jungle, the lion, with an added sense of awe.

"No way, he scared Huo Zhanyan off? This is the first time I've heard Huo Zhanyan threaten to call his parents."

"Did you see that? Huo Zhanyan didn't even dare to hit him. If it were me, I'd be terrified!"

"Last week, Huo Zhanyan snatched my toy car. If my dad hadn't promised to buy me ten more, I wouldn't have let him off!"

"So, is Wen Xiao even more powerful than Huo Zhanyan?"

"That's for sure! Even Huo Zhanyan doesn't dare mess with him!"

The chatter of these children gave Wen Xiao a headache, especially the way they watched him while not daring to get too close.

Suddenly, a few children walked up and respectfully placed a toy car, a water gun, some snacks, and a comic book on his desk.

Under Wen Xiao's puzzled gaze, they spoke in unison: "Boss, these are all for you!"

Watching the reluctant looks on those children's faces—as if they were heartbroken to part with their little treasures but still forced themselves to offer them—Wen Xiao felt like he was exploiting children.

From the disjointed discussions of the other students, Wen Xiao finally understood: these were all Huo Zhanyan’s lackeys.

He had scared Huo Zhanyan off, giving them the illusion that he was more powerful than Huo Zhanyan. So, not only had he inherited the snacks and toys meant for Huo Zhanyan, but he had also inherited his lackeys?

"Boss, are we still going to look for the treasure left by the Pirate King?"

"Yeah, Boss, will you still take us on an adventure?"

Wen Xiao felt a vein throb in his forehead, so embarrassed he almost wanted to bury his head in his book. He closed the book, which inexplicably made the children fall silent, looking at him with expectation.

"First, take these things back; I don't like them." Wen Xiao held up one finger, then immediately added a second. "Second, whoever promised you, go find them. Don't come looking for me."

The bell rang, ending the farce. As the children left, he could faintly hear them saying things like "The Boss is so cool."

Wen Xiao felt as if all his energy had been drained. He felt that such an exhausting day was likely the start of a miserable life.

As a cannon fodder in his past life, his days were certainly bitter. After being reborn, he had a hunch that he might be starting a different kind of "bitterness."

As this eerie sixth sense emerged, it gave Wen Xiao goosebumps, and just then, he saw Song Jingbai standing at the door, watching him with a smile.

Song Jingbai had a well-proportioned figure with long, straight legs—at least, they were long for his age.

Even though he was so young, he possessed a composure and elegance that didn't match his peers, and his school uniform was always impeccably neat. Even the first-graders didn't think he was the type to get into fights.

Yet, unexpectedly, he had unilaterally beaten up the big, burly Huo Zhanyan. Wen Xiao looked the slender Song Jingbai up and down, his face full of suspicion.

Song Jingbai sat down next to him and said, "New seatmate, you're amazing."

Wen Xiao noticed he was carrying a paper bag; judging by the packaging, it looked like... breakfast.

In his past life, he could say he had starved to death. He was so destitute that he could only afford a basement, and after going days without food, combined with illness and anemia, he had simply collapsed.

Seeing food suddenly, Wen Xiao felt that intense hunger wrap around him again, making him feel physically uncomfortable, even though he didn't feel hungry at all right now.

"When did you get here?" Wen Xiao forced himself to change the subject, thinking that he could go see if there was any breakfast left to buy after class. He also regretted that he hadn't kept one of the snacks "offered" by those lackeys, even if he didn't like them.

"Just when Huo Zhanyan ran out," Song Jingbai said. "But he didn't see me."

Wen Xiao didn't understand. Even after he had just rejected Song Jingbai, the other boy could still smile at him as if nothing had happened—his psychological resilience was simply too strong.

He thought he had made his meaning quite clear. Surely, anyone else would know he didn't like them after such a direct rejection.