Chapter 8: Conditions for Picking Up Beautiful Girls

Just as Chen Yu finished speaking, Tian Bin roared from behind

"Stop right there! Don't you dare walk away!"

Only a fool wouldn't run; stay here and get mobbed?

Li Shuo immediately broke into a sprint. Soon, he was pulling Chen Yu along as they ran, with several high school boys chasing close behind them.

"Hee hee!"

Chen Yu laughed as she ran, looking like someone who enjoyed watching chaos unfold. Li Shuo found it incredibly annoying and snapped, "You really are a femme fatale. I just met you and I'm already being chased by a mob, and you're still laughing..."

"That's your fault for hitting on me! Complimenting a girl's beauty the moment you meet her—hmph, I knew you had ulterior motives," Chen Yu argued righteously.

Li Shuo fell silent. His main issue was that he had just been reborn; his body was merely that of an ordinary student, and after running for so long, he was already exhausted.

"Stop!"

Standing at a small path intersection, Li Shuo turned around. He made a gesture toward Tian Bin and the others and shouted, "There are so many of you and you're picking on just me? Where's your courage? If you're so tough, just wait until I call for backup!"

High schoolers in small counties were basically deep-seated victims of "chunibyo." Li Shuo intended to provoke them.

Sure enough, Tian Bin stopped. He glared at Li Shuo with intense jealousy and said with a touch of street bravado, "Fine then. Don't blame me for not giving you a chance. Call them now—let's see who you can actually bring!"

He then shouted to those around him, "Xiao San, you call people too! Call everyone from our school!"

Standing beside Li Shuo, Chen Yu whispered a tip: "You'd better think carefully. Tian Bin is a school bully at No. 1 High. If you let him call people, he'll probably bring dozens of them to beat you up..."

By the end, she was giggling heartlessly.

Li Shuo was so angry he wanted to pull her onto his lap and give her a good spanking, but he didn't have the time.

He picked up his phone, quickly dialed a number, and said, "I'm being cornered in front of your house. Hurry up and grab something to use as a weapon and come save me!"

The places he frequented for internet access were naturally within his familiar circle. Not only was this close to home, but the small path behind the intersection where he had stopped was actually his cousin's house.

In just one or two minutes, Li Haoran came running out.

"Just one person?"

"He called for an adult, but that's it?"

"Hey, you 'adult,' don't come over, or we'll beat you up too!"

Since Li Haoran was in plain clothes, Tian Bin and the others weren't intimidated at all. Relying on their numbers, they even started shouting. Tian Bin stood with his hands on his hips, looking toward Chen Yu with an air of triumph, fantasizing that she would look at him with admiration.

Seeing that Li Shuo had only called one person, Chen Yu stopped laughing. She said to Tian Bin, "Hey, Tian Bin, are you really going to fight? It was just a little conversation. You're so petty, it's really no fun..."

"What do you mean petty? I didn't intend to make things difficult for him at first, but it's your fault for walking with him!" Tian Bin yelled. However, seeing "Xiao Yu'er's" stunning, flawless face, his attitude softened. "Xiao Yu'er, come back with me. We can go online together again. I'll let him go, how about that?"

Chen Yu looked at Li Shuo and pouted, looking extremely reluctant. She said to him, "I thought you were impressive, but it turns out you only called one person. Hmph, so useless. I'm leaving..."

Li Shuo was momentarily stunned. He reached out and grabbed Chen Yu's hand. She said impatiently, "What are you doing?"

He said seriously, "Do you know what the worst thing you can say in front of a man is? Calling him useless!"

Chen Yu looked at him with disdain. "I'm trying to save you. Let go!"

"Tch, do I need your saving?"

Seeing Li Haoran walking straight toward them, Li Shuo's confidence returned.

"You dare come over..."

"Boys, beat him up!"

"Chen Yu, get back..."

Amidst the clamor of the brats, Li Haoran pulled back his coat, revealing the police uniform underneath. "Brawling in a group—all of you, come to the police station!"

In an instant, the kids went silent. Then, without a word, Tian Bin turned and bolted, followed immediately by the others scattering in all directions...

"Tch, a bunch of brats..."

Li Haoran muttered. He turned to look at Li Shuo and the beautiful, slender Chen Yu standing beside him, and couldn't help but tease, "Not bad, kid. Just graduated high school and you're already fighting brawls over women?"

Li Shuo smiled and said, "Yeah. I can't wait until I'm working to secretly chase the woman I like and get caught doing something, right? Wouldn't that be awkward..."

Li Haoran choked for a moment, then gave a sheepish laugh. "Uh, that was a mistake. It was just too much of a coincidence. I didn't expect to run into Miss Shao..."

This guy still hadn't realized that Shao Yiying was in league with the thief.

Speechless, Li Shuo waved his hand and said

"Forget it, brother. No need to explain to a high schooler like me. Thanks for saving me today. I'll treat you to dinner another day. I'm heading off..."

With that, he pulled Chen Yu along and left.

Chen Yu asked curiously, "Is that your brother? Is he a policeman?"

"Why ask that? What, you want to date me?"

"Tch, I just didn't expect you to be so unconventional, actually calling the police."

"What else could I do? Just stand there and let them beat me?"

...

Chatting with a beautiful girl felt quite nice, but after walking for about ten minutes, Li Shuo stopped. "I'm home. Well then, see you if fate allows..."

Chen Yu's eyes widened. "After everything that happened today, shouldn't you be walking me home?"

Li Shuo shrugged. "Tian Bin was targeting me. I saw that he practically wanted to kneel down and lick your feet; there's no way he'd hurt you. So..."

"So, that's your reason for not walking a girl home?"

"Have you ever heard a certain saying?"

"What saying?"

"A man should prioritize protecting himself."

"...Hey, I don't even know your name."

"My name is Li Shuo, a graduate of Class 2, Grade 12 at No. 2 High."

Li Shuo turned and walked away. Although he had enjoyed his time with the beautiful girl, he knew that a girl like Chen Yu, whose worldview had matured prematurely, could only be won over through absolute strength.

His lack of lingering attachment wasn't because he had no interest in her, but because he needed to build the conditions to woo a beautiful girl as quickly as possible.

When he arrived home, the moment he stepped through the door, he heard his mother and father arguing. His mother was complaining that his father couldn't earn enough money and was making her suffer, while his father argued that he worked hard all day long and she did nothing but complain...

In short, it was the usual domestic squabbles, but they were the root cause of his parents' impending divorce.

Li Shuo didn't shout at them to calm down as he usually did; he knew that wouldn't solve anything. Instead, he went straight to his bedroom, found a notebook, and recorded the information he had searched for today using simple pseudonyms.

He had little influence; nothing he said now would change his parents' minds. But if he became a billionaire—no, even if he were just a millionaire—he would immediately have a voice in the household. At that point, he could simply produce a million yuan, and his parents could live however they wanted; the conflict would naturally vanish.

After all, there is only one terminal illness in this world, and that is poverty. Most of the suffering in human existence stems from it...

The next morning, Li Shuo got up early and headed out, specifically choosing an internet cafe that was quite far away.

Because of Chen Yu yesterday, Li Shuo had forgotten one thing: securing his first pot of gold.

Originally, his first pot of gold was supposed to be the reward from Shao Yiying, but that note had given Li Shuo a new choice.

(End of Chapter)