"Alright, I'll listen to you," Zhou Hong said with a wry smile. As the foremost young prodigy, how could he possibly change people slowly through actions? If he was unhappy, he'd act. He didn't have so many words. But today, he would listen to Qiao Xiaoyu just this once.
"Also, you smashed the phones of several classmates today. I hope you'll compensate them and apologize." Qiao Xiaoyu said.
"They were playing on their phones during class. Wouldn't the teacher confiscate and break them too? I was just helping the teacher."
"Don't talk nonsense. You've been to middle school before."
"Fine, I'll compensate them, but apologizing is impossible."
Qiao Xiaoyu didn't insist. For a hooligan like this, getting him to compensate was already a great achievement. She herself hadn't expected Zhou Hong to actually listen to her words. She had prepared herself to be spanked by Zhou Hong. It seemed Zhou Hong wasn't beyond redemption, which made her feel quite relieved.
"One last thing. Don't let the classmates know about our relationship, and don't call me your wife. We aren't even considered boyfriend and girlfriend right now; we're practically enemies."
"Heh, I promise," Zhou Hong said with a laugh. He hadn't planned to call her his wife in front of the class anyway.
"Good. It seems you're salvageable. I hope you'll truly reform yourself and stop being a hooligan."
Zhou Hong was furious. When had he become a hooligan? He, the supreme young prodigy of the Zixiao Continent, was being called a hooligan here.
However, upon closer thought, from Earth's perspective, a "prodigy" and a "hooligan" weren't much different.
"Alright, I'm leaving. I hope you'll reform and show me a completely new you." Qiao Xiaoyu said no more and turned to leave.
"Wait," Zhou Hong called out quickly.
"Is there something else you want to say?"
"You've said so much, you should at least let me say something."
"Okay, speak."
"I can be less violent, but that doesn't mean I'll tolerate being bullied. If anyone seeks death by provoking me, I certainly won't be polite."
"If others actively trouble you, that's self-defense. No one will say anything."
"Alright then."
"I'm going to eat." Qiao Xiaoyu finally departed.
"Xiaoyu, how was it? That hooligan didn't do anything to you, did he?" Qin Mengxue was waiting for Qiao Xiaoyu at the original spot after they walked away from the secluded area. Seeing Qiao Xiaoyu emerge, she rushed to ask.
"Don't worry, he didn't do anything to me."
"How is that possible? What did you say to him?" Qin Mengxue was puzzled. Based on her understanding of Zhou Hong, a few slaps and spanking were unavoidable.
"I told him that I wouldn't break off our engagement if he could reform himself and make me reconsider him. I might even give him a chance to be my boyfriend, or even my wife."
"No way, are you crazy?" Qin Mengxue couldn't believe it. She thought Xiaoyu was going to tell Zhou Hong, "Don't dream, I'll never like you," or something to make Zhou Hong leave her family voluntarily. To her surprise, Qiao Xiaoyu did the opposite, even giving him a chance.
"Heh heh," Qiao Xiaoyu said with a bitter smile.
"He forcibly kissed you this morning, and you're still saying you'll give him a chance? I don't understand you at all. Does this hooligan deserve you? With your beauty, countless princes charming must be waiting for you!" Qin Mengxue looked utterly bewildered.
"Sigh, my first kiss was taken from me by him, and I'm still unwilling. But since it has already happened, what can unwillingness do? Although he's a hooligan, if no one guides him, he'll become even more of a hooligan in the future, perhaps even walking down a criminal path one day. So, I thought, why not let go of my disgust for him and see if I can guide him towards goodness and reform. To my surprise, he's actually salvageable. He listened to my words and promised me he wouldn't be violent anymore and would compensate for smashing the students' phones," Qiao Xiaoyu said with a helpless smile.
"So, you're not really planning... to be his girlfriend, or even his wife in the future, are you?" Qin Mengxue asked.
"Haha, I said I'd consider it if he could change my mind. But it's not that easy to impress me!" Qiao Xiaoyu laughed heartily. Although she had indeed said she would be his girlfriend if she could change her opinion of him, her goal was to motivate Zhou Hong, to prevent him from continuing to sink into being a hooligan, to give him a goal. Whether he could achieve this goal was not up to her. Even if she didn't become Zhou Hong's girlfriend in the future, it wouldn't be a broken promise.
"Regardless, Xiaoyu, you're too kind. If he's truly willing to change himself for you and work hard, then you've performed a great deed," Qin Mengxue said. If it were her, she knew she couldn't do it. When Zhou Hong was her fiancé, all she thought about was how to get rid of him. Yet Qiao Xiaoyu was so kind, thinking of saving him and preventing him from going down a criminal path. Qin Mengxue deeply admired her best friend.
"Alright Mengxue, let's not talk about him anymore. I'm still very unhappy with him. No matter what, he forcibly kissed me, and I can't forgive that."
"If you can't forgive him, then why motivate him?" Qin Mengxue playfully tapped Qiao Xiaoyu's nose, and the two walked towards the cafeteria, chatting and laughing.
Not far away, Zhou Hong watched their receding figures and couldn't help but smile wryly. He suddenly had a profound realization. It turned out that being "prodigious" didn't necessarily mean using fists and feet to make everyone who defied him submit to prove it. Sometimes, using another method to make your enemies lay down their swords and willingly acknowledge you was also a form of prodigiousness.
"Sigh, damn it, I, the supreme young prodigy of the Zixiao Continent, was actually tamed by a woman," Zhou Hong mocked himself. If it were before, he would have beaten her until her backside blossomed for daring to lecture him.
However, Zhou Hong didn't feel it was wrong. Back on the Zixiao Continent, relying on his family background, talent, and strength, he had flaunted his arrogance and caused trouble everywhere. Although he thought he was mighty and many people on the continent feared him, it constantly worried his parents behind him. There was nothing to be proud of in that.
Today, it wasn't so much that he was persuaded by Qiao Xiaoyu as it was that his own thinking had matured. People are always growing.
Giving it no further thought, Zhou Hong left the school.
Since he had promised Qiao Xiaoyu to compensate those classmates for their phones, he naturally had to do it.
So, he was going to find a bank outside to withdraw some money. He didn't know how much those phones were worth. He had smashed a total of seven phones, so he'd withdraw seven stacks of cash. Giving them one stack each should be enough.
Zhou Hong didn't know about mobile banking or WeChat payment now, otherwise, he wouldn't have to go through such trouble to withdraw money.