"Alright, consider yourself lucky this time. I won't humiliate you in front of your grandchildren; I'll spare you your dignity."
"Thank you, senior." Shen Wan Si's face was a mask of misery, his earlier arrogance completely vanished.
Zhou Hong said no more and turned to leave, opening the door.
"Zhou Hong," Shen Yan Ran rushed forward as soon as she saw Zhou Hong emerge, her expression filled with questions.
"It's fine, don't worry. Your grandfather didn't make things difficult for me; we just had a casual chat," Zhou Hong replied with a smile.
"Mm-hmm, that's good." Shen Yan Ran nodded, relieved. She had feared her grandfather might attack Zhou Hong, causing Zhou Hong to resent her family, which would have negatively impacted her relationship with him.
Just then, Shen Wan Si also walked out, but his complexion was far from good.
"Grandfather, why, why didn't you teach him a lesson?" Shen Dong Yang hurried forward, saying to his grandfather with evident dissatisfaction.
"Slap!" Without another word, Shen Wan Si delivered a fierce slap to Shen Dong Yang's face. Shen Dong Yang spun several times before collapsing to the ground, looking up at his grandfather in disbelief.
Shen Yan Ran was equally bewildered. What had possessed her grandfather? This was his most beloved grandson.
Zhou Hong glanced at Shen Wan Si, a faint hum of amusement in his heart.
It was a pity that Shen Dong Yang remained clueless, still resentful that his grandfather hadn't acted against Zhou Hong, unaware that his grandfather himself had almost met his end.
"Shen Dong Yang, if you dare disrespect Zhou Hong again, don't blame this grandfather for being ruthless," Shen Wan Si said sternly to his grandson.
"Grandfather? I don't understand." Shen Dong Yang's eyes welled up with tears. He couldn't comprehend it. He had assumed his grandfather had discussed something with Zhou Hong, recognized Zhou Hong's immense potential, and thus changed his demeanor to avoid future conflict.
"Elder Shen, I'll be taking my leave then." Zhou Hong turned to Shen Wan Si and said. He was showing Shen Wan Si some respect in front of his grandchildren, otherwise, he wouldn't have addressed him as Elder Shen.
"Very well, safe travels. My apologies for any shortcomings in hospitality today."
"You're welcome."
Zhou Hong turned and walked out of the separate courtyard.
Shen Yan Ran also hurried out after him.
"Zhou Hong, I'll go with you. You haven't had lunch yet, have you? I thought my grandfather would have prepared something, but he didn't. Since that's the case, I'll treat you to lunch today." Shen Yan Ran said, approaching Zhou Hong.
"Whatever you say. I didn't drive out anyway, and I'll need a ride back."
"Mm-hmm."
Zhou Hong got back into Shen Yan Ran's car, and they headed off to find a restaurant.
"Zhou Hong, what did you and my grandfather talk about in there? Why did his attitude change so drastically? He even hit my brother and told him not to provoke you anymore," Shen Yan Ran asked curiously.
"Heh, nothing much, just a casual chat." Zhou Hong smiled faintly. Since he had agreed to spare Shen Wan Si's face, he wasn't about to reveal what had transpired inside.
"Zhou Hong, did my grandfather discover that your talent is immense and your future is boundless, perhaps even surpassing his own, which is why he suddenly changed his attitude towards you?" Shen Yan Ran chuckled.
"Hahaha, nothing escapes your notice." Zhou Hong laughed heartily, too lazy to offer further explanations.
"Heh heh." Shen Yan Ran couldn't help but smile, her gaze towards Zhou Hong filled with admiration. She hadn't expected Zhou Hong to command such respect from her grandfather.
However, the thought of him already having a girlfriend brought a pang of sadness to her heart. If only she were Zhou Hong's girlfriend, how wonderful that would be.
Soon, they arrived at a grand restaurant, where Shen Yan Ran treated Zhou Hong to a sumptuous lunch.
After finishing their meal, they didn't linger. The two returned to school. Shen Yan Ran watched Zhou Hong enter the dormitory gate with a reluctant gaze before finally turning to leave.
Meanwhile, at the Shen family estate.
Shen Dong Yang was in his room applying ointment to his face, which had become swollen from his grandfather's slap.
"Zhou Hong, I may not know why my grandfather suddenly values you so highly, but I, Shen Dong Yang, will not let this rest. Since my grandfather won't act against you, I'll have to find another way. I refuse to believe that no one at school can put you in your place." Shen Dong Yang thought to himself as he applied the ointment.
Just then, an idea struck Shen Dong Yang, a potential way to deal with Zhou Hong.
He immediately opened a WeChat group.
This group was known as the "Genius Group" of their Martial Cultivation Academy. It comprised fifty members, the fifty most talented individuals in the academy.
"Hey everyone, what are you all up to?" Shen Dong Yang posted a message in the group.
"Cultivating."
"Cultivating, plus one."
Within moments, several geniuses responded.
"Has anyone heard of someone named Zhou Hong?" Shen Dong Yang immediately probed in the group.
"Haven't paid attention."
"He's from a regular major, isn't he? Who would bother paying attention to students from regular majors?"
"Exactly, better to focus on cultivating if you have time."
Shen Dong Yang quickly followed up, "This student, Zhou Hong, is the new 'number one madman' of the School of Economics. His arrogance is simply staggering, surpassing even the combined might of the previous four madmen by a mile."
"Impossible, surely?"
"Why would I lie to you? This Zhou Hong doesn't even respect the geniuses of our Martial Cultivation Academy. I heard someone say he wants to make our academy's eighth genius, Yu Tao, eat shit. I don't know if it's true or not." Shen Dong Yang deliberately sowed discord in the group. He chose the eighth genius, Yu Tao, specifically because Yu Tao had a rather impulsive personality. If he saw Shen Dong Yang's message, he would be the most likely to fly into a rage and seek out Zhou Hong for a fight.
As expected, less than a minute later, a WeChat user named "Tao Zi" appeared. He sent an angry emoji and then asked, "Shen Dong Yang, is what you're saying true or false?" Su Dan Novel Network.
Seeing Yu Tao's question, Shen Dong Yang's heart leaped with joy. This user, "Tao Zi," was indeed the eighth-ranked genius of the Martial Cultivation Academy, Yu Tao. Just as Shen Dong Yang had predicted, Yu Tao would undoubtedly respond if he saw the message.
"Brother Tao, it's absolutely true. You can go ask around if you don't believe me. This Zhou Hong is ridiculously arrogant and disrespects everyone. I only heard it from others; he personally said he wanted Yu Tao to eat shit."
"Damn it." Yu Tao's fury erupted. He seemed not to doubt Shen Dong Yang's words, as Shen Dong Yang had no reason to offend him.
"Very well, I will inquire about this person and see if he's truly this arrogant." Yu Tao stated.
At this moment, one of the netizens quickly chimed in, "Brother Tao, no need to inquire. I've heard of this person before. He is indeed as Shen Dong Yang described, outrageously arrogant and disrespects everyone."
"Yes, I've also seen his exploits on the Jin Zhou University forum. He's incredibly, unbelievably arrogant. It's a shame my family background isn't good, otherwise, I'd really like to teach him a lesson," another rarely active martial cultivator chimed in.