Gu Ya saw Ye Ying off and went to the Security Bureau alone to continue his statement from the afternoon.
By the time he emerged from the Security Bureau, the sky had darkened considerably.
The night sky, once full of stars, was now devoid of starlight,
as empty as Gu Ya's heart.
What will I do from now on, Gu Ya thought dejectedly.
At that moment, Liu Feng sent a communication, "What are you doing? You and Ye Ying haven't been to school all day. Is Ye Ying feeling any better?"
Gu Ya looked at Liu Feng and said faintly, "Want to grab a drink?"
"Huh? Now? Okay!"
It was near midnight when Gu Ya and Liu Feng finally met at a deserted little bar.
Gu Ya told Liu Feng about Ye Ying going to war.
Liu Feng smiled helplessly and said, "Now you understand how I felt back then, right?"
"Helpless, lost, hollowed out, but also full of anticipation for the future. It's a very strange feeling," Liu Feng mused.
Gu Ya stared at Liu Feng and said, "It's different for me. You have Sister Hua keeping you company now, living the good life."
"Don't mock me," Liu Feng said after taking a sip of his drink, "It's over."
Liu Feng couldn't hold his liquor well. His face turned red after just two drinks, and he said in a low voice, "It's funny, isn't it? Us guys, with our women out there fighting, and we're stuck in this ivory tower."
Gu Ya said firmly, "That's why we need to become stronger. Only by being strong can we protect the ones we love."
Liu Feng suddenly felt a surge of ambition. Puffing out his chest, he declared with gusto, "I've made up my mind. Starting tomorrow, I'm intensifying my training! I'm going to join the Wuxian City Mecha Guard!"
Gu Ya scoffed, "Don't just have a burst of enthusiasm!"
"Just kidding! Liu Feng always keeps his word," Liu Feng said, then downed another drink.
Gu Ya said, "Your family isn't short on money. You could just get certified as a mecha master and go back to being a rich young master. Why bother with all the fighting?"
Liu Feng pouted and said, "First, it's for Fu Yafang. Second, my dad was a mecha master before. When he wasn't successful yet, he often dragged me to watch mechas and took me for a few rides."
"Later, when he made money in real estate, he never touched mechas again."
"My dad always told me, 'If you're a man, you drive a mecha! After a few near-death experiences, you'll understand how to live!'"
"Gu Ya, teach me how to pilot a mecha. I want to be strong like you too!"
Gu Ya looked at the already drunk Liu Feng and after a moment's thought, said, "Alright! But not in the academy. Do you have a private mecha?"
Liu Feng squinted his eyes and shouted, "Tomorrow, I'll have my dad get one!"
"Once you're trained, I'll take you to the mountains to practice with some bandits, haha!" Gu Ya said with a laugh.
...
As soon as Xuan Lang took office, his first move was to burn down the entire Hecheng Society.
Paper files piled like mountains were continuously delivered to the vast conference room.
Information streams like a sea flowed ceaselessly into the closed system.
Dozens of staff members were working overtime, scrutinizing the misdeeds of every executive and every department.
It was as if a giant stone was pressing down on the heads of thousands of people in the company.
Xuan Lang himself was sitting on the sofa, silently staring at an old man in front of him.
The man took a sip of tea and said softly, "Lang'er, you are an adult now. Xiao Wei trusts you and has handed over the management of Hecheng Society to you."
"It's a shame Xiao Wei left us so soon."
Xuan Lang said in a low voice, "Dad, if you want to chat, you don't need to have me kidnapped. Just say what you need to say."
Xuan Heyi glanced coldly at Xuan Lang and said, "How many years has it been? Ever since your mother died, you haven't called me Dad."
"After your mother died, you went to live at Xiao Wei's house..."
Xuan Lang impatiently got up, ready to leave.
"Sit back down!" Xuan Heyi commanded with an imposing aura, "This is your home!"
"Home?" Xuan Lang retorted, "You didn't care about my mother's death! Three days after her burial, you married someone else."
Xuan Heyi's expression remained unchanged.
Xuan Lang continued, "I lived at my eldest brother's house for eight years. How many times did you care about me in those eight years?"
"And now you tell me this is my home. Heh, I bet you don't even have a room for me."
At this moment, a group of people in combat uniforms, armed with clubs, burst into the conference room of the Hecheng Society building, attacking anyone they saw.
Papers flew everywhere, and chaos ensued.
After driving all the staff members out of the conference room, these people began to collect the paper files and took away all electronic devices.
Having done all this, they securely locked the conference room, sealed it, and quickly left.
Meanwhile, Xuan Lang, in the Upper District, was completely unaware.
He looked at his father resentfully and said, "Don't forget your promise. Once I get first place in the academy and prove my strength, please give me the top position in the Xuan Corporation!"
"Then, I'll acknowledge this as my home!"
Xuan Heyi looked at Xuan Lang sternly and said coldly, "You will never be the head of the Xuan Corporation."
Xuan Lang's eyes widened in disbelief as he looked at Xuan Heyi.
Only now did Xuan Lang finally see his father's true face.
Just then, Xuan Heyi's wristband lit up, and he unhesitatingly turned on the speakerphone: "Boss, Hecheng Society has been cleared. All procedures are being processed, and it should be out of Xuan Lang's control and back in your hands by tomorrow."
Xuan Heyi nodded, hung up the communication, and said faintly, "You heard that."
Then, Xuan Heyi revealed a deeply cunning smile, "I let Xiao Wei pass Hecheng Society to you, and secretly sent so many capable people to assist you, all to use your hands to clear out the trash in Hecheng Society."
"I'm not very satisfied with your performance."
"You are too much like your mother. Kind! What a disgusting quality."
"Now, please get out of my house. Escape as much as you can. You are no longer protected by the Xuan Corporation."
"Those executives in Hecheng Society are all people who devour others without spitting out bones."
After Xuan Heyi finished speaking, several servants immediately seized Xuan Lang, lifted him, and threw him out like a dead dog.
Xuan Lang had no time for surprise; he immediately realized he had to flee.
He quickly got into a hovercar and flew towards the academy.
A bad premonition filled his mind.
He had become a discarded pawn of the Xuan Corporation.
Death was not far away!
"I should have known long ago that Xuan Heyi is a heartless beast!"
...
Gu Ya and Liu Feng returned from drinking.
They stumbled their way to the dormitory building.
A gust of cold wind blew, and Liu Feng vomited, "Ugh!"
"Hahaha! You couldn't handle it! How many bottles did you drink?" Gu Ya mocked with a laugh.
Liu Feng spat, and as he tried to stand up, he vomited again.
Just then, at the helipad below the dormitory building, a luxurious hovercar slowly descended.
Gu Ya recognized it as Xuan Lang's vehicle at a glance.
As expected, Xuan Lang hurried out of the car, glanced at Gu Ya, and then rushed into the dormitory building.
Less than a minute later, Xuan Lang returned, his expression even more terrified, his steps more hurried.
Following Xuan Lang out were two men in black, holding unknown weapons, pursuing him steadily.
Gu Ya's mecha mechanic's optical screen analyzed their weapons as being similar to stun guns, capable of emitting electromagnetic pulses that would instantly incapacitate the target.
In other words, these two men were specifically here to capture Xuan Lang.
"No!" Xuan Lang cried out in terror, running past Gu Ya and Liu Feng and fleeing into the distance.
The two men in black pursued relentlessly, even faster.
Liu Feng asked dazedly, "Should we save him?"
Gu Ya said coldly, "What's it got to do with us? Let's go back to sleep!"
"What if someone gets killed?" Liu Feng grabbed Gu Ya's arm.
"You're too much of a saint. Xuan Lang is a scoundrel. He instigated Wei Ping and colluded with Jiang Tingyue to frame me, and he hid behind the scenes to reap the benefits," Gu Ya said, about to leave.
Liu Feng held Gu Ya tightly, his eyes firm, "Gu Ya! Help him! Do it for me."
Gu Ya lowered his head and fell silent.
Xuan Lang fled frantically. He hadn't expected retribution to come so quickly!
The two behind him were like hungry wolves, staring at him intently.
Suddenly, a deep blue beam of light shot out from the weapon of one of the men, heading straight for Xuan Lang.
Xuan Lang dodged frantically, and although he avoided the beam, he crashed into a tree.
By the time he got up, the two men in black had blocked his path.
"No! Please!" Xuan Lang cried, experiencing fear for the first time in his life.
Suddenly, two small engine bursts sounded in the pitch-black night.
The two men in black looked back and saw two red halos hurtling towards them, sending them flying backward.
Before the men in black could react, their heads were struck by blunt objects, and they fell unconscious on the spot.
...
Late at night, in an abandoned teaching building.
Xuan Lang, Gu Ya, and Liu Feng sat facing each other.
Xuan Lang recounted his motives, goals, and experiences truthfully to Gu Ya and Liu Feng.
"So, you're just a stray dog being hunted?" Gu Ya said coldly.
Liu Feng said calmly, "Xuan Lang, I don't sympathize with you at all. We saved you because we have consciences."
Xuan Lang gave a dejected, bitter laugh and said, "I might survive tonight, but what about tomorrow, the day after? Heh!"
"I know the methods of the Xuan Corporation best."
Gu Ya stood up and said, "Take care of yourself."
Xuan Lang quickly said, "Gu Ya! Can you help me?"
"Help?" Gu Ya retorted angrily, "When you spoke to me with that arrogant attitude, when you plotted to frame me, did you ever think this day would come?"
"I know you have the strength, you can help me!" Xuan Lang exclaimed excitedly.
Gu Ya looked at Xuan Lang as if he were an enemy and said, "Help you? Alright! Kneel down, apologize, and beg me."
Xuan Lang heard the most astonishing words of his life, trembled, and stared blankly at Gu Ya, his eyes filled with complexity.
Liu Feng stood up, pulled Gu Ya, and said, "We've done what we needed to do. The rest is not our responsibility. Let's go!"
"Gu Ya!" Xuan Lang shouted, standing up, his whole body shaking violently, as if poisoned, his entire being showing a kind of inner madness.
Gradually, Xuan Lang's trembling legs bent, his knees protruded forward, and the angle between his thighs and calves decreased.
"I'm sorry, it was my fault," Xuan Lang stammered.
"Please!" His legs bent.
Just as his knees were about to touch the ground,
Gu Ya and Liu Feng grabbed him and pulled him up steadily.
Xuan Lang looked at Gu Ya incredulously.
Gu Ya said coldly, "You're going to kneel just because I told you to? If you're a man, stand tall, fight against fate! Live as if you're already dead!"
Xuan Lang lowered his head, tears streaming down his face uncontrollably, shaking his head and stammering, "I have nothing left now."
Liu Feng looked at Gu Ya's face, which had turned green with anger.
He instantly understood Gu Ya's thoughts, sighed heavily, and said to Xuan Lang, "You idiot!"
"You still have us!"