Wang Hongwei was in a better mental state. He was seated up and talking to his mother when Lin Huai walked in. Both of them immediately turned around and looked at Lin Huai. Mrs. Wang stood up and bowed appreciatively. Lin Huai was stunned and quickly walked over to help her up. In a surprised voice, he asked, “Aunty, what are you doing? Are you trying to shorten my life?”
“I-I have to thank you. I found out that you were the one who paid my son’s hospital bills.”
Lin Huai was dumbfounded. I did not tell Wang Hongwei about this, how did they find out?
Wang Hongwei explained, “My dad saw you secretly look for the doctor.”
Ah, I see.
Now that the truth was out, Lin Huai decided that there was no point in bluffing anymore. He helped Wang Hongwei’s mother into her seat and said, “Wang Hongwei is my good friend. I know that your family—like every other family—is facing difficulties. Shouldn’t friends help each other? Thus, I asked my family for some money, and they supported my decision to help.”
Wang Hongwei’s mother was moved. She said, “I really have to thank you. I know that kids from this college don’t come from wealthy families. Even though your family could afford the bill, it must have been a huge sum to you. I will try my best to save up so that Wang Hongwei can repay you.”
“It’s okay, there’s no rush.” If Lin Huai told them the truth—that he didn’t need the money at all—they would not have believed it. After all, he could not reveal his true identity. Furthermore, he was bailing them out of this situation and not out of poverty. Besides, although helping others was a good deed, it did not always have to be unconditional assistance. If a family was given help and there was no need for repayment, after some time, this could be harmful to the family.
Lin Huai smiled and said, “Just pay me when your family’s condition has improved. Otherwise, I might run into difficulties in the future and need your help. Oh right, where is uncle?”
“Oh.” At the mention of her husband, Mrs. Wang’s gaze turned a little cold. “He went out to look for a job to earn money. His son is hospitalized, and he doesn’t even have the money to save him. There is no point in him staying here. I can take care of Hongwei alone.”
Lin Huai sighed. “Aunty, we have only one life, so it’s better to be happy. As a family, the best thing you can ask for is to live together happily.”
Wang Hongwei’s mother shook her head. “I am done with him. Sigh, you won’t understand this as a kid. Let’s not talk about it, it makes me angry.”
Lin Huai knew that every family had their problems. Since he was in no position to give advice, he just sat there and listened quietly.
Wang Hongwei said, “Brother Huai, from today onward, I will treat you as my big brother.”
Lin Huai smiled and said, “Haven’t you always treated me as your brother?”
Wang Hongwei turned around and looked at his mother and said, “Mom, could you leave the room for a minute? I have some things to tell Brother Huai.”
“Gosh, this kid, still keeping secrets from your mother. Fine, you can continue your conversation. Incidentally, I was about to go for a walk.”
It was Lin Huai’s guess that Wang Hongwei was about to tell him the well-kept secret that got him beaten up and hospitalized. Judging from the circumstances, it was an extremely important secret.
Wang Hongwei’s mother left. Then, he turned to Lin Huai and said, “Brother Huai, I did not dare tell you about this before, but I am not afraid anymore. Even if Big Lei sent people to beat me up and hospitalize me again, I will still tell you. After all, I really do treat you like a brother.”
Lin Huai smiled and said, “Don’t worry, Zhang Chunlei is done.”
“Ah?” Wang Hongwei was not informed about the events that recently took place in the college. So, Lin Huai briefly brought him up to speed. Listening to the story, Wang Hongwei was astounded. He said with excitement, “This is so satisfying. If only I was there! I would have definitely helped you out if I was there. Even if I cannot fight, I could take a beating.”
Lin Huai laughed. “Tell me, what is it you have to say?”
“Okay. Somebody wants to push drugs in the college,” Wang Hongwei said.
“What?” Lin Huai’s eyes popped open. He could not believe it. Lin Huai thought the college was in a bad enough shape with people fighting and daily brawls. These incidents were mostly bullying and had not escalated to illegal activities yet. However, the sale of drugs was most definitely illegal. What was wrong with the kids in this college? How could they be involved in something like that?
Wang Hongwei said, “I overheard this the other day. I heard that Mr. Hu has ties with gangsters outside the college. Recently, the government has been keeping a close eye on drug activities. However, the Public Security Bureau system does not pay much attention to school kids. Therefore, they were planning to pick dependable students to deliver the drugs for the gangsters. Back then, I overheard Brother Di tell Zhang Jindong to participate. He said if things went well, not only will Zhang Jindong get a huge sum of money, he would also be put in an important position.”
Lin Huai asked, “Have they begun their plan?”
“I have no idea,” Wang Hongwei said. “However, I don’t think they have started yet because Brother Di also said that they have to be very careful with this. Not only do the prices have to be negotiated and agreed upon, the commission has to be settled too. Mr. Hu would want a part of the revenue, and so would Zhang Jindong. Zhang Jindong is Brother Di’s henchman, so Brother Di would definitely receive some payment as well. However, Zhang Jindong did not agree to this, but instead suggested Zhang Heng, Zhang Chunlei’s henchman. Zhang Jindong said that Zhang Heng was courageous but dumb.”
Lin Huai smiled and said, “That is an accurate depiction of Zhang Heng. However, how could you let someone dumb handle such a thing? I am afraid that it would be risky.”
“I feel the same way too. However, I stopped listening to their conversation since I never meant to listen in the first place. I was also afraid, and because of this, I accidentally made some noise and alerted them of my presence. After… after that, I ran back to my dormitory. I did not expect them to figure out my identity. Luckily, you were there to stop them. Otherwise, I would have ended up in the hospital that night.”
Lin Huai said, “It’s okay, you don’t have to thank me. This time around, they won’t have laid their hands on you if not because they heard that you were planning to tell me this secret. However, by the looks of it, the sports major must have come into contact with Zhang Chunlei. Both parties may have started working together. Otherwise, why would Zhang Chunlei’s man lay their hands on you?”
“Now that you mention it, that makes sense.”
Lin Huai frowned and his gaze turned ice-cold. In a solemn voice, he said, “If this was nothing more than a fight, I would write it off as hyperactive youngsters with too much energy to spare. However, drug pushing is a completely different thing. How could they partake in such unlawful and unethical activities? Do they have any idea how many families they will tear apart with their actions? Would they not feel ashamed spending such dirty money?”
Wang Hongwei probed, “Brother Huai, since these events have nothing much to do with us, let’s not poke our noses into it. Mr. Hu is not a person to be messed with.”
Lin Huai smiled and said, “I have already chased Big Lei and Xuan Yuzhai out of college.”
Wang Hongwei was shocked to hear that even Xuan Yuzhai was chased out of college. However, he still shook his head and said, “That’s different. If Zhang Chunlei is a wolf, Mr. Hu is an actual tiger. He’s the actual boss of the college.”
“Oh? Tell me about this Mr. Hu. Also, briefly tell me about all the various powerhouses in the college.” Lin Huai was curious. Previously, Lin Huai had zero interest in people like Mr. Hu. However, now that he had learned about the drug pushing, Lin Huai could not turn his back. The experiences he had had since he was a kid has developed in him a deep hatred toward gangsters and illegal organizations.
“Alright, sure,” Wang Hongwei thought about it and said. “Actually, our college has a tripartite.”
“Who are the three parties? Mr. Hu from the sports major, Zhang Chunlei from the Computer Science major, and who else?’ Lin Huai asked.
Wang Hongwei shook his head. “Zhang Chunlei was not part of the trio. He was merely a second tier leader, miles behind the first tier leaders. However, he had the potential to be part of the first tier. The members of the trio are Zhou Minghu from the Sports major, Wu Shanhe from the Business major, and Gao Mengchao from the Music major.
Lin Huai was surprised. He asked, “There is a girl leader? Is Gao Mengchao a girl?”
Wang Hongwei replied, “Yes. Don’t underestimate this girl. She is a third-year student from the Music major. She became the boss of the Music major when she was only a freshie. Now, at least twenty percent of the girls in this college are her henchmen. In other words, all the girls in this college who want to be involved with thugs fall under this twenty percent.”
Lin Huai whistled and looked interested. He gasped. “Such a powerful person. So she has united the girls thugs in this college.”
“Yes. Therefore, she has the most henchmen. There are around five thousand students in this college and half of them are girls. This means that there are approximately two thousand five hundred girls, of which five hundred or so of them are her henchmen. So you tell me, is she powerful?”
Lin Huai said, “However, I am afraid that girls are less capable in terms of fighting prowess.”
“Yes. Because of that, they are the weakest of the three gangs.”
Lin Huai gasped. “Five hundred girls as her henchmen, and yet her gang is the weakest? In that case, the Mr. Hu you were referring to must be Zhou Minghu of the Sports major. Who is this Wu Shanhe from the Business major then?”
Wang Hongwei said, “A martial arts lover. A true martial arts lover! Everybody believes that if the three leaders were to fight hand-to-hand, Wu Shanhe would definitely come in first place. He knows actual Kung Fu. There are rumours that he was able to face off ten people and escape unscathed.”
Lin Huai’s eyes glinted with interest. He asked, “Who is stronger, him or Dao Zi?”
“That I have no idea. However, everyone believes that Wu Shanhe is the number one master in our college, and neither Zhang Chunlei nor Dao Zi refuted it.”
Lin Huai nodded his head. “I get it.”
If Wang Hongwei was telling the truth—that Wu Shanhe could single-handedly escape unscathed from a fight with ten people—then he must be stronger than Dao Zi. Yulan College really has a lot of hidden talents!