Chapter 18: To Leave No Survivors

Outside the girls' dormitory.

A dazzling, bright red Maserati sat parked there.

Young Master Liang leaned against the car door with his hands in his pockets, a pair of black sunglasses perched on the bridge of his nose. The cuffs of his exquisitely tailored casual wear were slightly pushed up by his pose, perfectly revealing his Seagull Heritage Series Double Tourbillon watch. He remained completely indifferent to the lingering, affectionate gazes of the girls passing by.

He had maintained this exact posture for over ten minutes.

Just as Liang was beginning to feel his body stiffen and was thinking of moving to change his pose, his target came into view.

He immediately froze, becoming like a statue. Leaning against the luxury car, he maintained a forty-five-degree angle looking up at the sky, projecting a deep temperament that was half-radiant and half-melancholy.

It had to be admitted that, bolstered by his wealth, this fellow possessed a certain charm. Many of the girls passing by had eyes brimming with emotion, and some even looked back three times after walking past. If Liang Zhenlun had actively waved at them, most likely they wouldn't have refused.

Unfortunately.

The purpose of Young Master Liang waiting here like a hunter waiting for a rabbit was not these common beauties.

"Look, isn't that Liang Zhenlun?"

Returning from class, Zheng Jingjing pointed and asked curiously, "What is he doing? Contemplating life?"

Damn it.

With such a handsome look, you freaking say I'm contemplating life?

If Liang knew what this girl was thinking, he would surely be mortified.

"Pfft."

Guo Ran couldn't help but let out a laugh, turning her head with sudden realization. "Shurui, he isn't waiting for you, is he?"

"Let's just go over and see."

Xu Siyi took the lead, walking forward with a half-smile.

"Young Master Liang, what are you doing? Is there a plane in the sky?"

As she spoke, she deliberately lifted her head to gaze at the sky as well.

Liang Zhenlun's eye twitched in embarrassment, but he could only force himself to act natural. Pretending he had only just noticed Li Shurui and her friends, he stood up straight and politely removed his sunglasses.

"Siyi, I am specifically waiting for you all."

"Waiting for us?"

Xu Siyi withdrew her gaze from the sky and blinked in confusion.

"This weekend is my birthday. I want to invite you all to my birthday party. I wonder if the four of you would do me the honor?"

Though he said "the four of you," Liang Zhenlun's gaze was fixed intently on the approaching Li Shurui.

As a prominent figure in the school, Liang Zhenlun basically knew every beauty from every department, and Li Shurui's dormitory was no exception.

They had bumped into each other a few times at nightclubs before and had shared a few drinks, but they weren't exactly close.

"This... I'm afraid that might be a bit inappropriate?"

Zheng Jingjing hesitated.

"What's inappropriate about it? I've invited many friends from school as well. It's nothing more than wanting to have a big, lively gathering."

Liang Zhenlun's smile was sincere and seemingly harmless.

As the saying goes, one does not strike a person who is smiling.

Since he had come specifically to invite them, a direct refusal would certainly be awkward.

After all, Liang Zhenlun was different from Jiang Chen; one had to save face for this young master.

"I might be going out to do some photography this weekend, so I'm afraid I won't have time."

When someone shows unprovoked kindness, they are either up to no good or looking to steal something.

Though they knew each other, she wasn't particularly close to this notorious playboy of the school—at least not close enough to attend his birthday party.

Thus, Li Shurui declined tactfully, and her reason wasn't entirely a lie.

Aside from livestreaming and posting videos on Xingkong, she did indeed work part-time as a fashion model.

"That's fine, then how about in the evening? You should be finished with work by then, right?"

Liang Zhenlun smiled nonchalantly. He sounded kind, but in reality, he had subtly blocked all of Li Shurui's escape routes.

Since he had put it that way, refusing again would be a direct slap in the face.

Li Shurui fell into a dilemma.

She didn't want to go, but she also didn't want to offend Liang Zhenlun.

"Young Master Liang, are you here to invite us, or are you here to kidnap us?"

At the critical moment, Xu Siyi spoke up to diffuse the tension.

"An invitation, of course, haha."

Liang Zhenlun laughed heartily. "If I were to kidnap four great beauties, wouldn't the boys of the entire school devour me alive?"

"Alright, stop with the hypocrisy. The only beauty here is Shurui; the three of us are just the greenery."

"Siyi, I don't agree with that."

After a few polite exchanges, Xu Siyi smiled and said, "Fine, this weekend, right? If we have time, we'll definitely come."

Li Shurui frowned slightly, wanting to say something but hesitating.

But how could Liang Zhenlun give her another chance to speak?

"Great, then it's a deal. I shall await the arrival of the four beauties this weekend."

With that, he nodded and smiled at the four girls, put on his sunglasses, and turned to get into his car.

*Vroom!*

The Maserati, which possessed absolute destructive power on campus, roared away, leaving a trail of dust.

"What did Liang Zhenlun mean by that? Are we really that close to him?"

Zheng Jingjing was bewildered.

"What else could it mean? He's definitely set his sights on one of us," Guo Ran muttered.

"Set his sights on one of us?"

Zheng Jingjing asked quickly, "Who?"

"Who else?"

Guo Ran nudged her chin toward Li Shurui. "Shurui, of course. Didn't you see his eyes staring at her just now?"

"Doesn't he have a girlfriend?"

Zheng Jingjing looked surprised.

"And wasn't she Jiang Chen's ex-girlfriend?"

"That's her, yes. But I just heard that Liang Zhenlun had a fight with her and even hit her."

Zheng Jingjing's eyes widened, staring at Guo Ran in disbelief. "Are you serious? He hit a woman?"

"Why is that so strange?"

Xu Siyi seemed to have heard about it as well, saying nonchalantly, "To a rich playboy like Liang Zhenlun, women are just trophies—mere props."

"That's going too far!"

Zheng Jingjing said angrily, "I am definitely not going to that birthday party of his."

"But Siyi already agreed."

Guo Ran said helplessly.

"Siyi, why did you agree to him?"

Zheng Jingjing questioned her. Although they liked making friends with wealthy children, they preferred to keep their distance from men with poor character like Liang Zhenlun.

"Didn't you see his attitude just now? If we didn't agree, would he have let it go? He's not a magnanimous person. If we didn't give him face, he would definitely hold a grudge against us. There's no need to offend him for no reason, is there?"

Zheng Jingjing fell silent, feeling that Xu Siyi had a point.

"Is he doing this on purpose?"

Guo Ran mused.

"Doing what on purpose?"

Zheng Jingjing asked.

"Think about it. He snatched Jiang Chen's ex-girlfriend before, and now that Jiang Chen has his eyes on Shurui, he comes running to invite us to his birthday. Isn't it obvious he's trying to... drive Jiang Chen into a corner?"

Zheng Jingjing woke up as if from a dream, saying resentfully, "This Liang Zhenlun is truly despicable, actually using Shurui as a tool for his revenge!"

"It's fine. We'll just go through the motions."

Xu Siyi, who had been smiling brightly at Liang Zhenlun just a moment ago, changed her tone. Her flat voice revealed undisguised contempt and disdain.

"A useless, profligate wastrel—he's not much better than Jiang Chen. Shurui can earn hundreds of thousands in a single night; how could they ever be her equal?"

(End of Chapter)