Chapter 10: Can I Go See Your Mom Too…
“What are you thinking about?”
In the classroom after the commotion had settled, He Ming’an turned around. Gu Yang was holding a pen, the tip resting on scrap paper where three messy characters were written.
Song Yinxing.
“You’re paying a lot of attention to that special-admissions student?”
Attention?
“He’s pitiful.” Gu Yang said it flatly.
He Ming’an paused, then smiled helplessly. “That’s true.”
“Song’s family situation is… a bit complicated. When the school was recruiting, they learned about it and called him personally, offering very generous terms. That’s why he gave up the chance to go to No. 1 High and came here instead.”
As he listened, Gu Yang drew a circle around the name on the paper and shook his head, as if refuting something.
“The other day when Song was being targeted, I didn’t expect you to step in,” He Ming’an said, looking at him. “That’s rare. You’ve never cared about anyone like that before.”
“Care.” Gu Yang repeated the word, then laughed, like a child who had just received a favorite gift. “Mm. I care about him a lot.”
“Then how about I increase his sponsorship amount?” He Ming’an’s fingertip brushed over the name Gu Yang had written.
“You care about him too?” Gu Yang lifted his eyes.
“I just wanted to thank you.” He Ming’an parted his lips, hesitating. “A-Yang, I…”
“Speaking of which, Nie Ying’s birthday is next week, right?” Ye Chen suddenly called out, flashing He Ming’an a knowing grin. “How nice—there’s a party every year. I wonder what it’ll be like this time?”
“It’s his coming-of-age ceremony. It’ll definitely be even more spectacular,” Xie Wu chimed in, the same guy who’d just traded blows with Nie Ying earlier.
His features were sharp and angular—he looked like a natural troublemaker.
“Do you think he’ll invite us again this year?” Ye Chen asked knowingly. “Gu Yang, you going or not?”
They were all speaking with hidden meanings. Only Gu Yang was in the dark.
“What does it have to do with me?” He didn’t even look at them. “Am I living too happily? Why would I go looking for trouble?”
“Hahahaha—” Xie Wu slammed the table. “Well said. I don’t want to go either. My dad forces me every time. You’ve got it easy—someone in your family can represent you.”
Gu Yang curled his lip. “That’s because they’re birds of a feather.”
“By the way, how are you going to thank me?” Xie Wu dragged his chair closer and pointed at the bruise on his face. “I took that hit for you. If I hadn’t blocked it in time, that punch would’ve landed on you.”
He grinned roguishly, turning the words into a teasing joke.
Gu Yang looked at him.
[ Xie Wu… I remember he didn’t have much screen time. What was the reason again? ]
[ Oh right. He tried to save Song Yinxing when he was surrounded by thugs. During the scuffle, one of them accidentally smashed a steel rod against the back of his head. Died on the spot. No wonder he had no plot after that. ]
[ Those thugs were hired by Nie Ying to cause trouble for Song Yinxing. ]
[ The Xie family blamed Song Yinxing. Xie Wu’s older brother took the same steel rod that killed his brother and beat Song Yinxing half to death. His left eardrum was ruptured—he ended up with lifelong partial hearing loss. ]
Gu Yang reread those lines carefully before coming back to himself and realizing Xie Wu was still staring at him.
“How do you want me to thank you?” he asked.
Xie Wu: “…Never mind. No need.”
Thanks a lot. In just a few sentences, he’d apparently died.
“Wow, Song Yinxing is such an unlucky bastard.”
“Seriously. If there’s blame, blame the right person. Why didn’t Xie Wu’s brother investigate first before beating him?”
“I thought Nie Ying was just a bit violent. Didn’t expect him to be this deranged.”
“Definitely better to avoid provoking him.”
Xie Wu: “Wait—no one’s speaking up for me? I’m dead here?”
Maybe just steer clear of Song Yinxing in the future?
“Yeah, keep your distance. This is his mess. Why get involved?”
“You’re still alive right now, aren’t you? Next time wear a helmet (eating-popcorn.jpg).”
Xie Wu: “@BreezeFromTheEast Thanks, that’s very comforting.”
He scratched his head in frustration. He didn’t even know Song Yinxing, but in a situation like that, he probably would rush in anyway.
You can’t just watch someone get beaten up and pretend nothing’s happening.
…Maybe he really should carry a helmet around.
[ Xie Wu’s brother really isn’t that sharp. No wonder the Xie family goes bankrupt later. ]
At first, Xie Wu had only been shocked. Now his heart went cold.
What the hell—that’s beyond the syllabus.
He could only hope Gu Yang would reveal more specifics.
[ Why is Zhou Qinqin involved again? Shen Shan, Liu Chaoyin, and now Xie Wu too. ]
[ Is she some kind of succubus? With skills like that, maybe I should introduce her to Gu Yuhui. ]
Wait—
There were too many things to unpack in those two lines.
Zhou Qinqin—Yu Zhou’s mother, the one plotting to seize Ying Jiayi’s inheritance—was Liu Chaoyin’s white moonlight. But the child she bore belonged to Shen Shan—her brother-in-law. Later, she’d even get involved with Xie Wu’s brother and help bring down the Xie family.
And this legendary woman—Gu Yang wanted to introduce her to Gu Yuhui?
Wasn’t Gu Yuhui his own…?
Was the Gu family too stable, and this little ancestor bored?
Just sorting out the relationships fried their brains.
No one could understand Gu Yang’s train of thought—but it didn’t stop them from developing a strange fear of him.
The true untouchable of Class Eleven… had been right here all along.
Unaware of the sudden silence, Gu Yang continued drifting in his own world.
—
After school, Gu Yang packed up and left with He Ming’an.
They had just exited the teaching building when Gu Yang suddenly stopped. “I just remembered something. You head back first.”
“But it’s getting dark. Can’t it wait until tomorrow?”
“Not today.” Gu Yang waved him off and, rare as it was, gave a fairly bright smile. “Tell Uncle Huang for me later. Bye.”
He Ming’an said nothing. He watched the direction Gu Yang walked toward, his reflection in the glass growing clearer as the sky darkened.
Song Yinxing.
Gu Yang remembered this small plot point.
In the novel, after introducing the male lead’s tear-jerking tragic backstory, Song Yinxing once witnessed Nie Ying leading a group to surround students from another school after class. Instead of rushing in, he chose to call the police. Even so, it brought him trouble.
Nie Ying somehow found out who had meddled—and coincidentally, two of his lackeys were in Song Yinxing’s class.
During a monthly exam, those two cheated. A note they threw away accidentally landed at Song Yinxing’s feet and was discovered by the proctor. They resented him for not covering for them and eagerly instigated Nie Ying. That led to the previous confrontation.
In the original story, without Gu Yang’s intervention, Song Yinxing had no choice but to kneel to buy time for repaying his debt.
The day exam results were announced, the teacher praised Song Yinxing’s consistent performance and subtly reminded everyone about academic integrity.
Though no names were mentioned, everyone knew who it referred to. The two lackeys felt humiliated and blocked Song Yinxing again after school.
“Well, if it isn’t our top student?”
“Why aren’t you heading home? Waiting around for what?”
“Forgot? He signed up for work-study. Waiting to clean the classroom.”
“Wow, how inspiring~”
“Yeah, what can you do when your dad’s drowning in debt?”
Song Yinxing looked at them coldly. After everyone else left, he moved to go inside and clean.
“Hold on, top student.” Ding Ziyu blocked him. “We came specially to see you. No greeting? That’s rude.”
“Speaking of which, you dirtied Ziyu’s shoes. Haven’t apologized yet. Let’s talk about that.”
“I already paid you,” Song Yinxing said coldly. “It’s settled between us.”
The debt had just been transferred to someone else. He thought briefly of that boy’s face.
“Settled?” Ding Ziyu sneered. “You think because Gu Yang backed you once, you’ve got support now?”
“Let me tell you—Gu Yang’s a moody lunatic. He might pull you up when he’s happy. When he’s not, who knows what he’ll do.”
“So his name is Gu Yang,” Song Yinxing said softly.
Ding Ziyu was instantly furious. “Don’t push your luck.”
He kicked over the trash can at the door, scattering paper scraps everywhere.
“Thank me. Now you get to clean properly.”
“That’s the difference between us. Good grades don’t mean anything. Someone with your background only deserves to trail behind me sweeping the floor. A maid’s son will never—”
“Never what?” An arm hooked over Ding Ziyu’s shoulder from behind.
“Gu—Gu Yang?” Ding Ziyu froze.
“Mm. Correct.” Gu Yang glanced at the other lackey. “Didn’t I transfer the money to you? Why are you still giving him trouble?”
“Wait—you transferred it to me?” Ding Ziyu blurted, then wished he could slap himself.
“That mouth of yours just said, because you’re richer than him, whatever you do is justified.” Gu Yang smiled faintly. “Then by that logic, since I’m richer than you, whatever I do to you is justified too?”
Ding Ziyu stared into those dull gray eyes, scalp tingling.
“Doesn’t it look ugly?” Gu Yang released him and walked toward Song Yinxing. “You’re responsible for cleaning this classroom.”
Ding Ziyu’s face turned deathly pale.
Before leaving with Song Yinxing, Gu Yang suddenly turned back. “Oh, and if anything happens again, I’ll come find you.”
He was smiling—but it didn’t reach his eyes.
Ding Ziyu nodded frantically.
Only after they’d gone did Song Yinxing finally snap out of his daze. He loosened the nails he’d dug into his palm and looked at Gu Yang, complicated emotions in his eyes.
“I owe you again.”
“Again?” The wind outside was strong. Gu Yang adjusted his coat. “Don’t you feel awkward? I was just using my power to bully others.”
Song Yinxing shook his head. “It’s not the same.”
“Thank you for stepping in. I… have to go to the hospital to stay with my mom. She’s sick.”
He had never told anyone about his family situation. It was his weakness—something he could never expose at this school.
But in that moment, his tightly sealed heart softened.
He bowed solemnly.
“You’re going to see your mom at the hospital?” Gu Yang asked casually. “Can you take me with you? I want to see too.”
Song Yinxing froze.
“…Huh?”
