"Finished using it?"

"Yeah, finished, thank you, Captain Xu."

Even now, Old Xu couldn’t accept the sudden change in Yang Xue today. He always felt like something was wrong, but reality forced him to deny this feeling.

In the end, he could only come to one conclusion: women are fickle. At least for a man like him, who was over thirty and still unmarried, it was truly hard to understand the thoughts and minds of women.

"You’re welcome. Young people, you know, it’s good to talk things over when there’s a conflict. Who hasn’t made mistakes in their youth? The important thing is to recognize and correct mistakes in time. Then you’re still a good comrade."

Old Xu didn’t forget to use this opportunity to help educate Wang Qiang’s somewhat immature girlfriend.

Meanwhile, Li Huiru, ever since leaving the villa, drove around the outskirts of town like a headless fly, aimlessly wandering.

The fearless courage she had built up from anger quickly dissipated upon facing reality.

At this moment, Li Huiru reverted to her original timid and cowardly state. Withered zombies were everywhere on the streets, waving at her like pedestrians hailing a taxi, except these pedestrians’ ferocious appearances truly instilled fear.

In this dazed and terrifying environment, Li Huiru drove absentmindedly, several times nearly steering into the factory’s warning territory. Luckily, she came to her senses in time to correct her direction; otherwise, if discovered by the other side, the consequences would be unthinkable...

To avoid making such a mistake again, Li Huiru simply kept driving until she was over 20 kilometers away from the factory before feeling relieved.

Along the way, she had noticed places relatively suitable for stopping, but her inner fear made it impossible for her to stop the car. She was always worried that once the car stopped and she got out, she might be the next meal in a zombie’s belly.

So, torn inside, she drove further and further, watching the fuel gauge edging toward the warning line.

While Li Huiru was lost and uncertain about her future, her current boyfriend Liu Yunpeng was in his room sleeping soundly without a care, unaffected in the slightest by the past couple of days’ events. He slept until he naturally woke up.

Half-awake, Liu Yunpeng instinctively reached out, not finding the expected soft bosom nor the small sesame he’d imagine. Only then did he realize that Li Huiru hadn’t returned all night.

Negative emotions quickly engulfed him, and Huang Yong’s face, which disgusted him, flashed before his eyes.

Liu Yunpeng sat up angrily in bed, a cold wind sneaking into his covers thanks to his overly hasty movement, causing him to shiver, and he hurriedly retreated back under the blanket.

If only he could take a puff of BD now, he thought, reminiscing about that euphoric feeling. The more he thought about it, the itchier he became, as if billions of ants were crawling on him, making him extremely uncomfortable.

He groped through the drawer of the bedside table, pulling out a cigarette and lighting two in succession, taking a few deep puffs to try to quell his inner craving. Soon the room was filled with swirling smoke.

In the smokey haze, Liu Yunpeng’s face was gloomy, his eyes filled with murderous intent, contemplating how to teach Huang Yong a lesson.

The current situation was painfully clear; his father seemed to be protecting the opponent intentionally, so without concrete evidence to catch Huang Yong’s wrongdoing, it would be difficult to take action against him.

The only solution was to unite with his arch-enemy He Lei and see if they could work together to bring Huang Yong down.

With that thought, Liu Yunpeng had never felt so determined to do something. He threw off the blanket, ready to get up, but just then, the wooden door outside was knocked on: "Young master, this is Huang Yong, could you please open the door?"

Huang Yong! Just hearing that heavy voice was enough to irritate Liu Yunpeng. Annoyed, he replied, "Say what you have to say outside; I’m still sleeping!"

Huang Yong seemed prepared for this, continuing, "Please get up and open the door, young master. I am here under Liu General’s orders to deliver some books to you, and I must explain them face-to-face as instructed by Liu General, so please cooperate so I can report back to Liu General."

Books! Liu Yunpeng felt dizzy. Since childhood, apart from comic books and entertainment magazines, any other text seemed to make his head swell after just a moment of reading. So...

But this was his father’s directive, and he dared not take it lightly or delay, especially since his father had already warned him to restrain himself and study. So, no matter what, he had to at least go through the motions. Otherwise, if his father got angry, he feared he might really be thrown out to be zombie bait.

Liu Yunpeng casually threw on some clothes and quickly ran to open the wooden door, then promptly went back to his bed.

Huang Yong placed two stacks of books on the TV stand, slowly instructing, "Young master, Liu General told me to tell you these classics are works by great writers of the world, and you’re given two weeks to read them all."

"All of them? Two weeks?" Liu Yunpeng glanced at the two stacks of books that reached half-arm’s length, around ten books, and honestly had no idea how he could finish them in two weeks.

"Yes, young master, two weeks to read them all. That’s plenty of time. Moreover, these books are carefully selected by Liu General, and some I’ve read myself; the content is very engaging. I’m sure you’ll be so captivated that you’ll forget to eat," Huang Yong said, a hint of sarcasm in his tone, though Liu Yunpeng missed the nuance entirely, thinking instead that Huang Yong was simply encouraging him to complete the task, fearing he wouldn’t.

"Also, young master, remember to complete the task within the specified time. Liu General will assess you in two weeks, and if you don’t pass..." Huang Yong deliberately paused, teasing Liu Yunpeng. The latter, who initially held on to a glimmer of hope, was frightened and shuddered after hearing this.

Huang Yong’s lips curled involuntarily at the sight, an unconscious gesture not unnoticed by Liu Yunpeng, who had been watching him closely.

Aware of his earlier embarrassment, Liu Yunpeng felt both irritated and resentful—irritated by his cowardice and resentful of Huang Yong’s mockery. This only strengthened his resolve to partner with He Lei: "Fine, I got it. It’s just some books—I don’t even need two weeks to finish them!"

"Haha, that would be best. I believe the young master can finish Liu General’s reading assignment early. I’ve said all I need to say. I won’t disturb your rest any longer; I’ll be on my way." Finishing with a polite nod, Huang Yong walked out.

"Damn you, disgusting!"

"Bang!"

Liu Yunpeng angrily flung the pillow from the bedside towards the TV wall, the two making a muffled thud: "You damn Huang Yong, one day I’ll make you pay." (To be continued. If you like this work, please vote for recommendations and monthly tickets on Qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please read on m.qidian.com.)