Chapter 73: Fight Club
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As a result, that night, when An Lan went to sleep, his mind was filled with those scenes Gu Liyu described.
After-school classrooms, shooting range restrooms, banquets during blackouts, he kept tossing and turning.
The next day, when An Lan woke up, it was already lunchtime.
For someone with a regular routine like Gu Liyu, An Lan thought he must have already gotten up. However, when he turned over, An Lan saw Gu Liyu sitting on the bedside, looking at his laptop.
On the laptop were related materials about Trinity-Nero, lengthy papers, and data. Gu Liyu didn’t even frown as he read through them.
Feeling An Lan’s head approaching, Gu Liyu freed up one hand, circled around An Lan’s nape, and gently touched his ear.
This action was very intimate, but as Gu Liyu’s fingers swept over again and again, it carried a different flavor.
An Lan turned his face and removed Gu Liyu’s hand.
The bedroom heard a light knocking sound, and Song Kelan’s voice sounded, “Little Yu, An Lan, are you awake?”
“We’re awake.”
“Then put on your clothes and come out for lunch.”
“Okay.”
An Lan lifted the blanket, went to the bathroom to brush his teeth and wash his face, and when he returned to the bedside, Gu Liyu had closed the laptop.
They went downstairs for lunch, and An Lan finally enjoyed the legendary treatment—those dishes he had only seen on TV finally appeared.
Song Kelan patted Gu Liyu’s shoulder, saying, “Help me bring the soup.”
“Okay.”
Gu Liyu got up and followed Song Kelan to the kitchen.
“Little Yu, although An Lan is an alpha, you can’t be too overbearing. He’s still in the process of differentiating; his bones and muscles are still developing. If you are too intense…”
Song Kelan’s voice was very soft, but that didn’t mean An Lan couldn’t hear.
“I haven’t done anything excessive,” Gu Liyu replied.
“Really?” Song Kelan asked again.
An Lan’s face was turning red. He suspected that Song Kelan might have heard what they did halfway through the movie last night.
“No, if I did, he wouldn’t have come downstairs for lunch today.”
Gu Liyu’s answer left Song Kelan speechless.
“Ah, okay. Bring the soup.”
An Lan sat awkwardly at the dining table, waiting for Gu Liyu to bring the soup.
“An Lan, Auntie doesn’t know what you like to eat, and it’s a rare weekend, so I prepared a lot of dishes. Eat more,” Song Kelan smiled.
“Auntie, you should eat more too.”
“Mum, are you going to the foundation in the afternoon?” Gu Liyu asked.
“Yes, I am. If I don’t go, it’s hard to stand listening to you two by the corner all the time,” Song Kelan half-jokingly said.
“Be careful,” Gu Liyu advised.
“Don’t worry, your Little Uncle and Qingchuan will go with me.”
“Is the foundation Auntie is going to a charity organization?” An Lan asked curiously.
“Yes, it is,” Song Kelan nodded. “It’s to help some omegas who have been harmed in their families. Sometimes, the strength of alphas is not applied in the right places.”
“But isn’t Gu Liyu’s Little Uncle and his big brother alphas too?”
“This is not a confrontation between two genders. Why can’t Yunyi and Qingchuan go? On the contrary, when those omegas who dare not resist and think that life can’t get better see outstanding and understanding alphas like them, they won’t be so negative,” Song Kelan half-jokingly said.
Gu Liyu handed a piece of rib to An Lan. “More so to make those alphas who are arrogant and clearly wrong feel ashamed.”
An Lan laughed upon hearing this.
He knew that Song Kelan still harbored hope. She had once been cared for and loved deeply by Gu Yunli, so she believed that every omega had the right to be cared for and loved.
“Next week, your little uncle and I plan to go to Qingchuan to see your dad. Will you and An Lan… come along?” Song Kelan asked.
Gu Liyu looked at An Lan. An Lan had been suppressed by Gu Yunli’s pheromones in the hospital before, but since they had found the reason for Gu Yunli’s loss of control, An Lan’s fear of him had lessened. He nodded slightly.
Gu Liyu replied to Song Kelan, “Okay.”
When Song Kelan left, An Lan and Gu Liyu returned to the bedroom.
An Lan didn’t forget that he was still a student. He took out his practice papers and occupied Gu Liyu’s desk, earnestly focusing on his papers.
Gu Liyu only had a corner of the table with a laptop, probably browsing those profound papers again.
After completing half of the science comprehensive paper, An Lan began to lose focus. He held the pen in his hand but looked at Gu Liyu beside him.
This guy, whenever he was writing a paper or using a computer, he would sit up straight with a rigid posture, giving off a sense of rigor.
“Do you not understand a question? I can explain it to you,” Gu Liyu’s gaze glanced away from the screen to An Lan.
An Lan’s pen almost dropped. He hadn’t forgotten the fantasies Gu Liyu talked about last night, including exchanging kisses for explaining questions.
“No… no. I understand everything for now.”
An Lan’s gaze returned to the paper, and now it was Gu Liyu’s turn to look at him.
“For the third step, you miscalculated the buoyancy,” Gu Liyu said.
An Lan took a closer look and indeed had made a mistake.
“Don’t always look at me; I won’t make a mistake.”
“When I kissed you, you clearly enjoyed it,” Gu Liyu suddenly said.
“… How did we get onto that topic?” An Lan coughed, the question he had known how to solve before suddenly becoming difficult.
“I asked if you didn’t know how to do it. If you said you didn’t know and needed me to teach you, then I would say—you have to kiss me first.”
An Lan deliberately showed a frustrated expression. “You’ve had enough. Can you let me concentrate on my papers?”
As soon as he looked up, he saw Gu Liyu smiling. This guy was doing it on purpose.
“I didn’t know you were so talkative before.” An Lan lowered his head, trying to focus on the papers.
Gu Liyu’s gaze also fell on his laptop.
The afternoon for the two of them was very quiet.
But An Lan liked this feeling; they were each doing their own thing, yet they could easily look at each other.
Even when he turned his head, An Lan felt that Gu Liyu might kiss him.
Around three or four in the afternoon, An Lan finally finished the science comprehensive paper. He straightened his back and stretched lazily.
“Are there any papers left to finish?”
“There’s still math and English,” An Lan sighed.
“I want to go out for a while in the afternoon. When I come back, we can finish the remaining papers,” Gu Liyu said.
“Where are you going?”
“To a fight club,” Gu Liyu said.
An Lan’s nerves immediately tensed. “What are you going there for?”
“To confirm if someone has used Trinity-Nero.”
“Are you going alone? That’s too dangerous.” An Lan held onto Gu Liyu’s wrist tightly.
“Of course not alone.” Gu Liyu turned and held the back of An Lan’s hand. “Xu Xingran and Xiao Chen will also go.”
“Do you really think you can dominate everything just because you’re high-quality alphas? Don’t forget, you’re still students. There are things you can’t solve.” An Lan lowered his voice. Even though the three of them were high-quality alphas, facing the vast shadow hidden in “Eden,” it wasn’t worth mentioning.
“We contacted Captain Hong, and he will send plainclothes to protect us secretly,” Gu Liyu raised his hand, teasingly brushed An Lan’s ear, “Just because we’re young and inexperienced, the people in the fight club won’t be too alert when they see us.”
An Lan thought for a moment and then smiled.
“Why are you laughing? You were worried just now,” Gu Liyu asked.
An Lan replied, “Since you chose to take me with you, it means you are confident that the situation will be under your control. You wouldn’t voluntarily take me on a risky adventure.”
They changed clothes and got into the car, heading to the boxing gym.
Meanwhile, Xiao Chen was also getting ready to go out. He checked Xiao Le’s homework and sighed helplessly.
“Bro, why are you sighing?” Xiao Le asked.
“I just feel that your homework is pitifully unbearable,” Xiao Chen rubbed his chin.
“You don’t even look at who my brother is.”
“What use is it for you to write like me? I lost all the neatness points! You need an IQ like mine to redeem it!”
At this moment, there was a crashing sound from the next room, as if a wheelchair had overturned.
Xiao Chen and Xiao Le continued discussing the difficulty of writing without seeming to have heard anything.
After a couple of minutes, Xiao Le’s door was knocked. The caregiver stood outside, looking a bit awkward, and said, “Sir, sorry to bother you. Could you please help us with something?”
“No,” Xiao Chen answered without hesitation.
The caregiver was taken aback and could only watch as Xiao Chen closed the door.
Xiao Le chuckled while covering her mouth.
Xiao Chen picked up her workbook and slapped it on her head. “Laugh! Laugh! Laugh! I don’t know what’s so funny about your homework looking like this!”
After a few more minutes, Xiao Le’s room door was knocked again.
The two siblings pretended not to hear, but this time it was Wang Aunty, the one responsible for cleaning their house.
“Ah Chen! Ah Chen, can you help? Xiao Yun’s wheelchair flipped, and his legs are stuck between the wheelchair and the bed. I and the caregiver don’t know how to move it, afraid of hurting his legs!”
Wang Aunty treated them like children. Since she asked for help, Xiao Chen couldn’t refuse.
“Coming.”
Xiao Chen followed Wang Aunty to Xiao Yun’s room.
Once, he thought this room was large, exuding the style of the head of the family. But now, it seemed a bit messy.
Porcelain plates and cups were broken, and some books were scattered on the floor.
When Xiao Chen passed by the bookshelf, he lifted his chin, glanced, then turned his head to see Xiao Yun in a very embarrassed state, stuck between the wheelchair and the bed corner. He was supporting his upper body with one hand, trying to pull himself up with the bedsheets, but the sheets were just pulled over.
“I don’t need your help,” Xiao Yun said coldly.
“Oh, then I’ll just watch,” Xiao Chen said, standing aside and folding his arms.
Wang Aunty and the caregiver both looked awkward.
At this moment, Xiao Hongwen came over, looking at the mess on the floor, and the blood vessels on his forehead were pulsating. “What’s going on again?”
“I don’t know what’s going on.” Xiao Chen spread his hands, indicating that he had just arrived.
The caregiver quickly explained, “Mr. Xiao Yun wanted to reach for a high book, but he was sitting too far forward in the wheelchair, so it overturned. Now he’s stuck between the wheelchair and the bed corner, unable to get up.”
Xiao Hongwen sighed, rolled up his sleeves, and together with the caregiver, moved Xiao Yun’s wheelchair. His wheelchair had many functions, a bit heavy, and the caregiver alone couldn’t lift it. If not handled properly, it could fall back on Xiao Yun.
After Xiao Yun got up, Wang Aunty quickly cleaned up the broken pieces on the floor and tidied up the sheets.
Xiao Chen just stood there, seemingly unaffected. If it were before, Xiao Hongwen would have been furious and shouted at him.
But this time, Xiao Hongwen’s temper was unusually good.
“Ah Chen, how about having dinner at home tonight?”
“No, I won’t be home.”
“You… Have you made plans with someone after dinner?” Xiao Hongwen’s face showed an expectant expression.
“Yeah.”
“With whom?”
Xiao Chen smiled, “Who else could it be, with Xu Xingran and the others.”
Sure enough, Xiao Hongwen’s face showed joy. “You’re going, you’re going. Do you want me to arrange for someone to take you?”
“No need. We’ve been into sharing bikes lately.”
Xiao Chen really rode a shared bike a few streets away to meet up with Xu Xingran.
He got into Xu Xingran’s car, took the tablet handed over by Xu Xingran, and saw an introduction to the fighting club.
“So, do you suspect that someone has used ‘Eden’s’ Trinity-Nero and gone to the fighting club to fight?” Xiao Chen asked.
“Gu Liyu and I have investigated several cases similar to Zhang Lin and Liang Hao these days, and this one seems to be the most suspicious,” Xu Xingran held the steering wheel, answering casually.
Xiao Chen narrowed his eyes, half-jokingly, “Did you invite me because I’m more resistant to beatings?”
Xu Xingran smiled and replied, “We invited you because we really want to see you get beaten.”
An Lan, sitting in the back, couldn’t help but laugh.
Xiao Chen twisted a tissue into a ball and threw it at An Lan’s face. “Little guy, no laughing allowed!”
Xu Xingran’s car arrived at the entrance of the fighting club, and the four of them got out of the car.
As they were about to enter the club, they were stopped by someone at the entrance.
“How old are you?”
The person had a cigarette in his mouth, a disdainful expression, wearing a black tank top, and both arms covered in tattoos, giving off a fierce vibe.
In the past, Xu Xingran usually took charge of external communication, but this time, he lightly pushed Xiao Chen forward. Xiao Chen coughed and said casually, “What do you think?”
“Student, finished your homework?” The guy laughed.
Xiao Chen lowered his head as if about to say something, but suddenly grabbed the guy’s shoulder, shook him violently, and with a “click,” dislocated his shoulder!
“Do you think I should go home and do my homework, or can I come in and play?” Xiao Chen asked with a smile.
Normally, a dislocated shoulder would be very painful, but the guy didn’t make a sound. He just pressed against the wall with one hand and shook it vigorously. The dislocated part snapped back.
“That’s interesting. But if you try to ambush me again, I promise to twist your head off.”
While speaking, he picked up his phone and made a call, “Ah Long, there are a few students here who want to have some fun… I know we don’t entertain students, but they seem to have some skills. Let them experience the harsh reality, and then send them out.”
Before long, a guy named Ah Long came out wearing flip-flops. He also wore a tank top, and although his muscles weren’t exaggerated, they were tight. An Lan could imagine this guy might punch hard enough to burst a sandbag.
Among the four of them, Xiao Chen, with his bold appearance, drew the most attention when Ah Long came out.
“Oh, young man, and an alpha. A high-quality one, I presume?” Ah Long remarked.
Ah Long’s eyesight was obviously better than the doorman from earlier.
The doorman raised an eyebrow, his voice laced with a hint of mockery, “Oh, so it’s a high-quality Alpha. Then dislocating my shoulder wasn’t in vain.”
Ah Long chuckled, “I’m not talking about him. I mean all three of them.”
After saying this, Ah Long’s gaze swept over Xu Xingran and Gu Liyu.
“Huh? Three of them? Did the sun rise in the west, or is it going to rain red? You’re not here to play, but to challenge, right?”
“Just the three of us want to challenge, but we can’t even beat him,” Xu Xingran raised his chin, indicating Ah Long.
Ah Long laughed, “They say high-quality alphas are arrogant, but I see you have some self-awareness. I’ll be upfront; if you’re just here to take a look, I suggest you turn around and leave. There’s a fitness center three streets away where coaches can teach you judo, kickboxing, and martial arts.”
“What if we’re not just here to look?” Xu Xingran asked.
“Then it’s about winning or losing, not just losing a tooth or bleeding from the nose. One of you has to step up,” Ah Long showed a sinister smile. “Only at that point does it become a matter of victory or defeat.”
An Lan became worried upon hearing this. He knew that Gu Liyu and the others wouldn’t do anything unprepared, but the internal structure of this fighting club probably claimed to have its own system. An Lan imagined scenes from movies involving life-and-death challenges.
“Just go up,” Xiao Chen shrugged.
Ah Long turned around, casually took the doorman’s cigarette from his ear, and said, “Follow me. Crying and begging won’t help here.”
An Lan instinctively clenched his fists, and Gu Liyu, beside him, held his hand, separating his fingers, and whispered, “Don’t worry.”
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