Fencing, in its literal sense, is one of the sword-based sports. But due to a homophonic pun, in recent years it has gradually evolved into a rather euphemistic internet slang term referring to gay men.
Although Tang Lingyi wasn't gay herself, as a digital native of the 21st century, she was well-versed in such internet slang.
Not everyone, however, understood this particular meme. When Yu Weilin heard Tang Lingyi's remark, his face instantly scrunched up in confusion. "Fencing? What fencing?"
"Oh, oh—never mind, never mind," Tang Lingyi quickly realized she'd accidentally slipped into male-coded banter.
Back in her dorm, her roommates would sometimes joke with her like this. Ever since she'd grown her hair long and started looking quite feminine, they'd tease her, saying things like, "One cup of bubble tea for a night with you?" Whenever that happened, Tang Lingyi would feign shock and retort, "Are you gay? You wanna fence, huh?"
Yu Weilin frowned impatiently. "Are you gonna do it or not?"
There was absolutely no way Tang Lingyi would agree—even if she desperately needed money, she'd never go "fencing" with a complete stranger.
Actually, even if she knew him, she still wouldn't.
So she lowered her head and bluntly snapped, "No. Get lost."
"Who the hell do you think you're talking to? You—a washed-up slut whose dirty videos are already all over the internet—what right do you have to act so high and mighty? You think your family still holds any power? Let me tell you, your husband—the cuck—has already stripped your family of everything. That corporation doesn't belong to the Tian family anymore. It's the Qin family's now!"
Yu Weilin's father had told him this himself. Precisely because the Tian family had fallen from grace did he dare speak to Tian Suqing so brazenly now. In the past, Yu Weilin would never have dared treat her this way.
But his words gave Tang Lingyi a crucial piece of information: the Tianye Group had been taken over by Qin Xiu?
That meant Tianye was now Qin Xiu's property. If she sabotaged Tianye Group now, wouldn't that indirectly hurt Qin Xiu?
Tang Lingyi's eyes lit up. On her very first day out, she'd already stumbled upon a potential way to get back at Qin Xiu—what a huge stroke of luck!
Xiao Pang, who'd been playing a game nearby, glanced at the downcast Tang Lingyi and whispered, "Hey, maybe just let it go, Brother Lin…"
"Shut your mouth! This has nothing to do with you!" Yu Weilin snapped, instantly silencing Xiao Pang.
Seeing Tang Lingyi stay quiet, Yu Weilin assumed he'd struck a nerve and smirked triumphantly. "What, cat got your tongue? You filmed those videos yourself—what's there to be ashamed of? Take my money, and I'll even fund your next video."
"Oh, sorry—I was zoning out," Tang Lingyi lifted her head and gave Yu Weilin a sweet, gentle smile. "Why don't you… take that money and go ask your mom."
Her smile was so sugary sweet that Yu Weilin didn't immediately catch the insult. But a few seconds later, it dawned on him. Enraged, he grabbed Tang Lingyi by the collar and snarled, "Say that again?!"
"My apologies, I didn't finish," Tang Lingyi said smoothly, still wearing that innocent smile. "I meant—ask your mom what she'd like to eat, then buy her some health tonics or something. You know, show her some filial piety."
Tang Lingyi had mastered the art of passive-aggressive sarcasm.
Yu Weilin froze for a second, then exploded, "You're fucking with me!?"
Tang Lingyi looked at him with genuine bewilderment—was this guy really a college student? How could someone be this hot-headed and impulsive?
Unfortunately for him, the moment he grabbed her collar, Wu Feng stepped up behind him and tapped his shoulder. "Sir, please calm down."
"Who the hell are you?" Yu Weilin turned around, glaring at the unfamiliar man in a suit.
Wu Feng had no choice but to grip Yu Weilin's neck firmly, applying just enough pressure.
"Argh—let go!" Yu Weilin winced in pain, his shoulders jerking involuntarily as he released Tang Lingyi. He immediately swung a punch at Wu Feng behind him.
Wu Feng sidestepped effortlessly, then caught Yu Weilin's wrist mid-swing.
Yu Weilin was startled—he realized this man was probably Tian Suqing's bodyguard. He tried desperately to wrench free, but Wu Feng's grip was like an iron clamp. No matter how hard he struggled, he couldn't break loose.
"Let go of me, damn it!" Humiliated in front of everyone, Yu Weilin raised his other fist and lunged again.
Wu Feng didn't dodge. Instead, he twisted Yu Weilin's captured wrist sharply, forcing his body to spin half a circle. In one fluid motion, Wu Feng locked his other arm around Yu Weilin's elbow, executing a textbook takedown.
"Ow, ow—easy, man!" Yu Weilin groaned, completely immobilized.
"Stop fighting! The teacher's coming!" someone in the class suddenly shouted.
Hearing this, Wu Feng decided it wouldn't be wise to cause a scene on campus. He released Yu Weilin and gave him a light shove away.
The warning instantly silenced the entire class, which had been buzzing with excitement.
Though hot-tempered, Yu Weilin wasn't stupid. He knew he was outmatched. Rubbing his sore shoulder, he sulked back to his seat without another word.
"Miss Tian, I'll wait for you outside," Wu Feng said calmly before striding out of the classroom as if nothing had happened.
Tang Lingyi watched his retreating figure, her expression turning serious.
She'd deliberately provoked Yu Weilin just to test whether Wu Feng would intervene. If he did, she could gauge his combat ability—and assess whether she stood any chance of escaping him.
After witnessing Wu Feng's impressive display, her conclusion was clear:
This man's skill level was far beyond anything her amateurish tricks could handle.
So, for now, fleeing wasn't an option. She'd have to lie low and bide her time.
A few seconds later, an elderly professor wearing glasses entered the classroom. After scanning the room, his eyes narrowed slightly behind his lenses as they landed on the back row.
"So, Tian Suqing's back."
"Yes, good morning, Professor," Tang Lingyi replied politely with a small, closed-lip smile.
"Since you're back, focus on your studies," the professor said. He'd heard about Tian Suqing's scandal but chose not to dwell on it, launching straight into his lecture.
Only when the professor began speaking did Tang Lingyi realize this was an English Literature class.
Her English was terrible—her vocabulary barely exceeded a hundred words. To her, English text looked like gibberish, let alone analyzing literary styles in English novels.
Back at Jiangcheng University, she'd usually just pull out her phone to kill time during lectures like this. But when she reached for her pocket, she remembered—Qin Xiu that bastard had confiscated her phone.
Not that it mattered anyway; that phone was only for mission use and contained no personal data.
Her attention drifted to her surroundings. She noticed her chubby seatmate, Xiao Pang, still hunched over his handheld game console.
"Hey, thanks for trying to help me out earlier," she said, leaning toward him.
Xiao Pang, engrossed in his game, glanced up in surprise, then quickly looked back down. "Ah… it's nothing. Didn't really help much."
Tang Lingyi spotted the textbook on his desk. "I forgot my book—can I borrow yours?"
"Sure," Xiao Pang mumbled, still focused on his game.
She picked up the book and flipped to the first page. Written there in ink were the characters "Peng Yuan."
So his name was Peng Yuan.
"Peng Yuan, you can't fight that monster like that. You need to target its wings first—once they're down, it can't fly anymore."
Peng Yuan looked up, stunned. "You've played this game before?"
In his mind, Tian Suqing only ever cared about her looks and luxury brands—games were definitely not her thing.
Tang Lingyi nodded. "A little. Let me give it a try—I'll see if I can beat it."
Skeptical but curious, Peng Yuan handed over his console. After quickly familiarizing herself with the controls, Tang Lingyi began playing.
Her gaming talent was the polar opposite of Li Tianlong's. While Li Tianlong had spent nearly a decade stuck below Gold rank in his favorite game, Tang Lingyi had reached top-tier solo queue level within just one year.
"Holy crap, you're insane, Tian Suqing!" Peng Yuan blurted out, watching her fluid movements with awe.
"Eh, it's fine. You've gotta stay close to this boss—don't give it space."
"I've been stuck on this for ages…" Without realizing it, the two of them had leaned in close, heads nearly touching as they stared intently at the screen.
"You came back just to learn this?" a voice suddenly cut in from beside Tang Lingyi.
Absorbed in the game and assuming it was Peng Yuan speaking, she replied without looking up, "Well, what else can I do? I can't understand a word that old man's saying in English, so I might as well—"
She froze mid-sentence.
Peng Yuan was sitting on her left.
But that voice… had come from her right.
She jerked her head up—and found the elderly professor, who'd just been lecturing at the front, now standing right next to her.
In a panic, she blurted out something that sounded vaguely like English but was really just her version of "Holy crap!"
"What's up!"