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Volume 2 [337] Luring the Snake Out
With summer vacation approaching, students at the university began packing their bags, and graduating classes started organizing farewell parties. People could be seen frequently on campus, hugging and weeping. Restaurants near the campus gates experienced unprecedented business, while the school cafeterias were the most neglected.
Li Tianwen threw down his chopsticks: "What kind of food is this? No wonder nobody wants to eat here!"
Han Chao said to Li Tianwen, "Alright, if there's food, hurry up and eat. Look at Zhao Qiang, he's eating so heartily."
In truth, Zhao Qiang was already nauseous, but to replenish his energy, he still forced the unpalatable food into his mouth as if it were a delicacy. Compared to the feast he had at Luo Xiaowei's house that day, the food at the university was worse than dog food.
As the deputy director of the laboratory, Zhang Zhen held the most authority. "There are two important experiments this afternoon, astronomy. If you don't want to eat, that's fine, but you can't leave the lab during the experiment. You can go hungry if you want."
Li Tianwen had no choice but to pick up his chopsticks again: "Damn it! Did he ever think we could just let that 30,000 yuan go to waste? Zhao Qiang, go ask your security guard friend. If he doesn't give it to you, scare him."
Before Zhao Qiang could speak, Zhang Zhen said, "Alright, ill-gotten gains are not to be taken. Once I finalize the patent transfer agreement with Haifeng Group, we'll have the money, and everyone will get a share. Of course, the teacher is the most important. With the money, you can eat whatever you want."
Han Chao said, "Isn't CCTV coming to interview us? The date should be here soon, right?"
Zhang Zhen said, "Who cares? Let's just focus on our experiments. Fame isn't always a good thing."
Han Chao said, "Director, this is a great opportunity to make a name for ourselves. As the first interviewee, you must do your best to make us proud. Maybe after we're on TV, all the beautiful women will come flooding in, unstoppable... Hmm, of course, some handsome guys will also come to Xiao Hong's side. We can each get what we want!"
Ni Hong coldly replied, "I don't need men."
Seeing Zhao Qiang grab two more steamed buns, Li Tianwen snatched them away, saying, "That's enough, Zhao Qiang, don't overeat! Tell me, do you need a woman?"
Zhao Qiang stared at the steamed bun in Li Tianwen's hand and said, "I need a steamed bun."
Li Tianwen angrily shoved the steamed bun into Zhao Qiang's hand: "Just eat it like a woman's breasts!"
Zhao Qiang chuckled inwardly, thinking, "My two women's breasts are both much bigger than this steamed bun."
Zhang Zhen's phone rang before he had even finished his meal. After answering it, he told everyone, "Lan Mei is looking for me. She said she's in front of the lab building."
Li Tianwen threw down the steamed bun in his hand: "What are you waiting for? Let's go! They're definitely here to deliver money."
Han Chao was even more anxious and immediately ran outside. Although Haifeng Group was already discussing the purchase of technology with Zhang Zhen, it would take at least half a month for the relevant procedures to be completed. Therefore, the 30,000 yuan they had extorted was crucial to improving everyone's lives. It wasn't that these students weren't going to have enough to eat, but rather that they wanted to live better. If they could go to Tianmeng Nightclub every day, that would be awesome.
In front of the laboratory building, Lan Mei was pacing back and forth. The crowd pushed Zhang Zhen in front of her. Zhang Zhen was a little reserved, which was understandable; honest men usually behaved this way, somewhat like Zhao Qiang.
"Lan... Lan Mei, you... you were looking for me?" Zhang Zhen stammered, seemingly still harboring some unrealistic fantasies about this woman.
Lan Mei's expression wasn't very happy when she saw Zhang Zhen. She said, "Come with me."
Zhang Zhen lifted his foot, glanced at his junior brothers behind him, and asked Lan Mei, "Where are we going?"
Lan Mei asked, "What, are you scared?"
Zhang Zhen steeled his resolve. "At worst, you can rape me!" he thought. "What do I have to be afraid of!" he declared, following behind Lan Mei. Seeing this, Zhao Qiang quickly caught up, saying, "Senior brother, I'll go with you!"
Lan Mei didn't say anything. Li Tianwen wanted to follow, but Ni Hong pulled him back, saying, "What are you going to do? Zhao Qiang is enough."
Leaving the physics lab building, Lan Mei continued walking. Beside a small lake, surrounded by lush green grass and trees, the area was pleasant, a favorite spot for couples at the university to relax—quiet and rarely visited. Lan Mei stopped in this tranquil place, leaving Zhao Qiang, following behind, feeling a little awkward. Was Lan Mei planning to rekindle her old flame with Zhang Zhen? He was definitely being a third wheel.
Zhang Zhen was getting impatient: "Lan Mei, what exactly do you want me to do here?"
Lan Mei suddenly took more than ten steps back: "You'll find out soon enough."
Zhang Zhen looked around in confusion when suddenly five men jumped out from behind the trees and bushes. They were all burly men. Zhang Zhen recognized two of them because one was Zeng Kefan and the other was Zeng Kefan's friend. They had met at the Tianmeng Nightclub before. Zhang Zhen could tell something was wrong just from Zeng Kefan's sinister smile. They had fallen for this woman's trap!
Zhang Zhen cursed at Lan Mei, who had already run far away, "Damn, do you think this is funny?"
Zeng Kefan, holding a baseball bat, chuckled wickedly: "Zhang Zhen, huh? Trying to scam me out of money, huh? I, Zeng Kefan, have money, but I won't let you spend it!"
Zhao Qiang stepped forward to block Zhang Zhen: "I'm the one trying to extort money, come at me then."
Zhang Zhen took two steps past Zhao Qiang and stood in front of him, saying, "Junior brother, don't be afraid. This is a school campus. He won't dare to do anything!"
Zeng Kefan said, "What do you mean I wouldn't dare to do anything? Let me tell you, I've already spent a thousand yuan to take care of the school security guards. Even if I cripple you today, no one will care. Don't expect to get help from Tianmeng Nightclub. I've already paid off the security guards there too! I'd rather give them my money to burn than give it to you!"
Zeng Kefan has done a lot of work these days, thoroughly investigating the backgrounds of Zhang Zhen and others. He knows that Zhang Zhen and his group don't know Zhang Lingfeng at all, which is why he came to take revenge. As for Zhao Qiang, all he can find out is his time at Donghai University. How many people in Donghai City know the inside story hidden behind it?
Zhang Zhen was certainly intelligent; otherwise, how could he have worked in Professor Gu Yu's lab for so long? He bent down, grabbed a brick from the nearby flowerbed, and threw it at Zeng Kefan, shouting to Zhao Qiang at the same time, "Run! Go back and find someone!"
Zhao Qiang grabbed Zhang Zhen's vest and yanked him away, shouting, "You go! I'll hold them off!"
Using the momentum from Zhao Qiang's throw, Zhang Zhen ran six or seven steps. At this moment, Zhao Qiang had already charged towards Zeng Kefan. This was a case of striking first to gain the upper hand; those who struck later would suffer the consequences. Zeng Kefan hadn't expected these two bookworms to dare to attack first, so Zhao Qiang landed a solid punch, causing his nose to bleed profusely. Enraged, he yelled and directed the others to pounce on Zhao Qiang.
Seeing that Zhao Qiang was more agile than him, and knowing he couldn't hesitate any longer, Zhang Zhen turned and ran towards the edge of the woods. He needed to find reinforcements; otherwise, how could he possibly defeat the thugs Zeng Kefan had brought? However, Zhang Zhen was unaware that Han Chao, Li Tianwen, and their group were also fighting in front of the laboratory building. The leader was a friend of Zeng Kefan whom they had met at the Tianmeng Nightclub. They had devised a plan to separate the group before preparing to eliminate them one by one.
Zhang Zhen had run far away, and Zhao Qiang was no longer in a hurry. So he stood firmly on his feet, sneered at Zeng Kefan who was jumping and shouting wildly, and said, "Zeng, if you stop now, I can forgive you."
Lan Mei saw that Zeng Kefan had a nosebleed and stepped forward to support his arm: "Are you alright?"
Zeng Kefan shoved her aside and pointed at Zhao Qiang, yelling, "You're asking for it! Beat him until he vomits blood!"
The other four men were also carrying baseball bats and sticks. They had originally wanted to bring machetes, but their friends, the school security guards, wouldn't allow it. They figured a fight was one thing, but if someone died, they'd be in big trouble. However, if someone really did die, it could happen even with bare hands.
Zhao Qiang bent down and caught the brick Zhang Zhen had thrown. He figured weapons like the compression gun weren't worth showing off in front of Zeng Kefan and the others; this time, he'd let them taste the power of a brick.
The saying goes, "An inch longer, an inch stronger," so Zeng Kefan and his group of five were extremely confident. No matter how hard the brick was, it was still a short weapon. Unless Zhao Qiang threw it, he would lose his support once it was thrown away, and he would be at their mercy.
A guy with a cigarette in his mouth charged forward, wielding a baseball bat with impressive skill. However, to Zhao Qiang's lightning-fast reflexes, the man was riddled with openings. His flashy moves were like slow-motion footage; the super biochip controlling Zhao Qiang's eyes slowed down every movement of the enemy into a series of frames. Suddenly, Zhao Qiang struck. A brick flew through the gaps in the baseball bat, hitting the smoking guy squarely on the forehead. Crack! The brick shattered in two, and blood streamed down the smoking guy's forehead, making him look far worse than Zeng Kefan.
Zhao Qiang grabbed the other broken piece of brick with his other hand, now he had two weapons. Zeng Kefan hadn't expected Zhao Qiang to be so agile, actually crippling one of his fighters, so he loudly urged the other three to join the fray. These three were also fierce fighters; the injury to his smoking companion hadn't intimidated them. They roared and charged straight at Zhao Qiang, their baseball bats flashing like a flurry of fire. Even with two bricks, Zhao Qiang couldn't possibly overpower them all.
Zhao Qiang was worried about Zhang Zhen, as he should be back by now. Could Zeng Kefan have other plans? Zhao Qiang took off running towards the edge of the woods. Seeing this, Zeng Kefan shouted and directed others to chase after them. Lan Mei followed behind. The group rampaged through the campus, and some students who had just returned from lunch immediately pulled out their phones to film. This was today's top news on the school forum. One guy even carried a large video camera and followed along to film—truly impressive! With that kind of money, why bother studying? He could just become a professional videographer.
Sure enough, a fierce fight was raging in front of the physics lab building. Zhang Zhen couldn't care less about helping Zhao Qiang at this point; the three of them were locked in a brutal battle with over a dozen men. Zhang Zhen's shirt was torn, and he had a large scratch on his face. Li Tianwen was in even worse shape, with one ear bleeding profusely. Yet, this man was incredibly fierce; ignoring his own injuries, he bit one of the men's wrists tightly. The man, in pain, dragged Li Tianwen's head and slammed it against the wall, the thuds making Zhao Qiang's heart pound. If he were to become mentally impaired, the country would lose a valuable talent.
Zhao Qiang hurled the half-brick in his hand, and with a whoosh, it hit the guy who was beating Li Tianwen squarely. Zhao Qiang had thrown it with great force, making the guy's eyes roll back. A classmate watching shouted, "A brick killed someone!"
Volume 2 [338] Let's take pictures first.
Li Tianwen, his eyes red, stood up, grabbed the broken brick that had fallen to the ground, and charged at the group of guys fighting with Han Chao like a madman. Caught off guard by the brick coming from behind, he was struck on the back of the head. His eyes darted around, the baseball bat in his hand clattered to the ground, and then his body went limp and he collapsed.
Han Chao, blood trickling from his mouth, was driven mad by the smell of blood. He grabbed a baseball bat, and just then, another guy charged at him. Han Chao actually took the blow to the other guy's back with the bat, then forced his way into his arms, slamming his shoulder into his chest. The charging man staggered backward, and Han Chao immediately swung the bat at his groin, making a cracking sound; his thigh bone was likely broken.
Zhao Qiang wasn't idle either. He had already knocked down three people with the remaining half of the brick, which was a piece of cake for him. Now only Zeng Kefan was left, being chased by Zhao Qiang with the brick in his hand. Although Zeng Kefan was still holding a baseball bat, these students were in a bloodthirsty frenzy, each one more ruthless than the last. This was unexpected; everyone thought students were timid and weak, but who would have thought they would be so ferocious? Zeng Kefan wasn't a fighter, and most of the men he brought were crippled. Now he was filled with regret and fear.
Lan Mei chased after them, shouting, "Stop fighting! Stop fighting!"
Suddenly, Ni Hong kicked out, tripping Lan Mei as she ran past. Lan Mei stumbled and fell to the ground, her face making intimate contact with the concrete. A large patch of skin was scraped off, leaving a bloody and gruesome sight. Ni Hong lifted her skirt and sat on Lan Mei, then began punching her head repeatedly. Lan Mei was badly hurt and dizzy from the blows, unable to speak. After kicking her legs a couple of times, she passed out.
While chasing Zeng Kefan, Zhao Qiang knocked down two more people, finally turning the tide for Zhang Zhen and Li Tianwen. The remaining students, seeing how ferocious the students were, scattered in fear. Li Tianwen and Han Chao, however, wouldn't let them go. They grabbed the weapons the students had dropped and relentlessly pursued them, beating them mercilessly. Chaos erupted on campus.
Zhao Qiang finally caught up with Zeng Kefan. If it weren't for the large number of students watching, Zhao Qiang might have caught up with him in one step. Zeng Kefan was forced into a corner. Zhao Qiang walked over with the brick in his hand. Zeng Kefan brought nearly twenty people today, but who would have thought that he would be beaten to a pulp by four students? Are students these days so good?
"No, don't hit me!" Zeng Kefan's voice trembled as she gripped the baseball bat.
Zhao Qiang sneered: "Don't you think it's too late?"
Zeng Kefan said, "I'll pay you back, and that'll be the end of it."
Zhao Qiang said, "We don't need the money, just let me hit you with a brick."
Zeng Kefan said, "I'll pay you, stop filming, or I'll never forgive you!"
Zhao Qiang wasn't afraid of him at all. He raised a brick, ready to hit Zeng Kefan, when someone behind him said, "Hey, you're really going to hit him?"
Zhao Qiang turned around and saw a man carrying a large video camera, filming him incessantly. Zhao Qiang thought to himself, "You've recorded my fight! You've caught me red-handed! Who cares who you are? This camera's done for today!"
Thinking of this, Zhao Qiang grabbed a brick and charged at the man with the camera, scaring him into turning and running away: "What are you doing? I'm not with them! I... I'm a news worker!"
"I don't care what it is!" Zhao Qiang chased after the man, snatched the camera from his hand, and smashed it to the ground! The camera shattered. The man was shocked and, forgetting his escape, lunged at Zhao Qiang, yelling, "You pay! This is worth hundreds of thousands!"
Zhao Qiang, caught up in the moment, saw the man making a racket and smacked him on the back of the head with a brick. Despite the man's handsome and tall appearance, he couldn't withstand the blow; his eyes darted around a few times before he collapsed to the ground.
Looking up, Zhao Qiang saw that Zeng Kefan had already run more than ten meters. Was this guy trying to escape? He flung the brick in his hand, hitting Zeng Kefan squarely on the back of the head. Because the force of throwing the brick was difficult to control, the impact was greater than a slap on the head. Zeng Kefan didn't even have time to scream before he was knocked unconscious.
Zhang Zhen and his two companions had scared away everyone still standing on the field. Zhao Qiang joined them, and after the fight, Zhang Zhen glared at them, saying, "What are we going to do now? It looks like we've injured a lot of people."
Li Tianwen wiped the blood from his mouth and said, "We were injured too. They outnumbered us and still came to the school to provoke us. We're in the right, what are we afraid of?"
Ni Hong had already released Lan Mei from the ground. She said to the four boys, "What are you standing there for? Run! The school security is coming!" The battle was over. The school security guards couldn't believe what they were seeing. Of the people Zeng Kefan brought, only two were unharmed. The other fifteen were all injured. Four suffered severe concussions and were still unconscious. One had a broken leg. The remaining ten had serious cuts and bruises. One had a large chunk of flesh torn from his wrist, and another woman's face was so badly rubbed raw by the ground that she was almost unrecognizable. Later, they discovered two more unconscious wounded men outside the fighting area, one of whom had a shattered camera lying at his feet.
The school administration was furious! The first to be implicated was the security department. From the head of the department to the team leaders, everyone was dismissed from their posts. Allowing so many outsiders to bring weapons into the school was a serious offense. The head of the security department was so wronged. Zeng Kefan had promised not to make a big deal out of it, and now he had even lost his position. If Zeng Kefan hadn't been unconscious, he would have liked to smash a brick over his head. Nearly twenty people couldn't even handle four students. This was a disgrace!
In the principal's office, a large screen was playing a scene of intense fighting. A chubby male student, carrying two bricks, was chasing after several people and relentlessly hitting them. Less than five seconds into the video, two people had already been knocked to the ground.
A woman in professional attire stood before the camera with a serious expression, while several school leaders' faces twitched. Suddenly, an outsider grabbed a student's head and slammed it against the wall. The school leaders' hearts clenched; if the student died, their positions would be in jeopardy! This was an extremely heinous criminal case!
Fortunately, a brick suddenly flew through the air and knocked down the guy who was slamming the student against the wall. The student who had been hit on the head was incredibly resilient; he got up, shook his head, grabbed half a brick, and turned to hit someone else. Several school leaders watched, their eyelids twitching. Was this kind of violence really happening on the campus of the university? It looked more like a gang fight in Hong Kong or Taiwan.
There's an even more shocking scene: a female student suddenly trips a running woman. The cameraman is standing directly in front of her as she falls, and the camera quickly pans down to capture the woman's face. Her delicate skin rubs against the concrete, leaving a trail of blood nearly half a meter long! And that's not all. The female student who tripped her then indecently lifts her skirt and sits on top of the woman, brutally beating her. During this, her underwear is briefly visible on camera!
*Bang!* The principal slammed his hand on the table: "Are these...are these students from our school? What...what have they done?"
A vice-principal whispered in the principal's ear, "Yes, Principal, it's Professor Gu's doctoral student, named Ni Hong. She's usually a quiet and unassuming student, never saying much. I think she might have intervened to help someone in need."
"No, don't hit me..." A man who looked respectable pleaded desperately in the shot. At this moment, the camera shook slightly, and an off-screen voice shouted, "...What are you doing? I'm not with them! I, I'm a news worker..." Then the camera rotated and shook, and the signal was cut off. The woman, who had been looking serious the whole time, finally couldn't help but slam her hand on the table: "I demand an explanation from the school!"
A vice principal in charge of teaching immediately stepped forward, bowing deeply, and said, "Reporter Chen, please calm down! We will investigate this matter immediately! We will definitely give you an explanation! We will severely punish those who assaulted you! Anyone found will be expelled!"
Reporter Chen said, "My cameraman just arrived and he's already in the hospital, and the camera is broken. How am I supposed to conduct an interview?"
The principal stepped forward and said, "Don't worry, Reporter Chen, we'll compensate you for the camera. Our school also has photographers; we'll get one for you right away to ensure you can successfully complete your interview!"
Reporter Chen said, "Okay, I hope so. Now I want to see the four students who were fighting."
The principal turned to the vice principal in charge of logistics and security and asked, "Where are they? Have they all been found?"
The vice-principal looked a little embarrassed and pulled the principal aside, saying, "They've recognized everyone, but it's a bit tricky."
The principal said angrily, "What's so difficult about it? Students like this who are a black sheep should be expelled! We must not tolerate evil!"
The vice-principal said, "But we can't expel them. They are all Professor Gu's students, including Zhang Zhen."
The principal suddenly felt a sharp, nerve-related headache, so painful that he had to sit down in a chair: "What? How is this possible? Professor Gu's students are all top-notch, pillars of our university, pillars of our nation! How could they be fighting! You must have mistaken them for someone else."
The vice principal said, "I also hoped it was a mistake, but after dozens of students identified the person, it is indeed true."
The principal had a headache and felt dizzy: "What should we do?"
The vice principal said, "Why don't we call Professor Gu in to discuss it? He's his student; it's more appropriate for him to handle this."
What could the principal say? He could only deal with reporter Chen for now and resolve his own issues before dealing with her again. The principal stood up and came to reporter Chen's side, saying, "We will find the person as soon as possible and give reporter Chen a satisfactory answer!"