Liu Ruyan pushed open the classroom door and paused for a moment.
The once lively, noisy chatter inside instantly quieted the moment she appeared.
But she could still hear the remnants of the gossip echoing in the air:
"Did you see that? Ji Xiaolan actually carried her to the infirmary…"
"Tsk tsk, no wonder Yang Tian's face looked like that."
"Girls these days just throw themselves at people?"
Liu Ruyan didn't bother offering long explanations. She simply looked around the room, her gaze calm and unwavering, voice clear and unmistakably firm:
"He only brought me to the infirmary for treatment. Nothing else."
One short sentence—enough to cut through every whisper.
Some lowered their heads. Others rolled their eyes. But no one dared to speak up again.
Just then, the homeroom teacher walked in, arms full of test papers, frowning deeply:
"Alright, that's enough—quiet down! I could hear your noise all the way from the stairwell."
The classroom instantly fell into pin-drop silence.
Students scrambled back to their seats, pretending to be attentive.
Liu Ruyan returned to her seat as well. Her fingers still trembled slightly, but she didn't look back.
She knew—this was only the beginning of the war.
[Meanwhile]
On the southern outskirts of the city—
A black Maybach quietly entered a highly secured, restricted compound.
The gates responded to both facial recognition and palm-print verification. Anti-drone jammers rose from the ground.
Yang Tian stepped out and stood before the cold gray building, both familiar and foreign.
In his last life, he hadn't known of this place until after his death.
The "Family Backup Resource Command Center" secretly established by his father—the true heart of the Yang family.
Shen Xue followed beside him, eyes wide with silent shock.
Yang Tian walked forward, Old Wu trailing closely behind.
As they entered the hall, a mechanical voice echoed in Yang Tian's mind:
[System prompt: Family command hub access confirmed. Initiating inheritance protocol...]
[Threat trace detected: Ji Xiaolan's system attempting infiltration of 'social resource network'.]
[Main Quest Triggered: Resource Defense Operation - Phase One]
Objective 1: Stabilize media and resource control within 7 days. Prevent asset hijacking.Objective 2: Initiate 'Shadow Alliance'. Recruit key allies (Shen Xue, Old Wu, and hidden members).
Yang Tian took a deep drag on his cigarette, eyes fixed on the slowly opening black metal doors ahead.
A faint smirk appeared on his lips.
"—Finally, it's my move."
He led Shen Xue into the depths of the facility.
The automatic doors slid open, revealing a massive holographic projection wall—a heart of data that looked straight out of the future.
Shen Xue froze in place the moment she entered.
In her previous life, she hadn't seen this room until after Yang Tian had died.
By then—it no longer belonged to the Yangs.
But now, it pulsed with life, cold and powerful—and it belonged to Yang Tian.
"Don't be afraid," Yang Tian's voice snapped her out of her daze.
"I brought you here... because I want you to be a part of this."
Shen Xue nodded silently, her eyes moist.
She understood—this was the beginning of his trust.
Yang Tian waved a hand, and several tech specialists quickly approached to report:
"Young master, the target phone has been located. No signal interference detected."
"Beginning the breach now."
On the holographic screen, a cold blue progress bar began to crawl forward.
[Connecting… 40%]
One hacker wore a headset, sweat already beading at his temples.
"We're in. Data's being transferred. Should be done in under two minutes."
Yang Tian nodded and took another drag of his cigarette.
Smoke curled through the air, the only sound in the room coming from clacking keyboards.
"Damn... why is it going so slow?" one technician muttered under his breath.
Another hacker shivered, cold sweat running down his neck.
"If this drags on, I swear I'm gonna drop dead right here..."
Yang Tian said nothing. But when his gaze swept the room, the control center instantly fell silent.
Finally, the progress bar hit—
[100%]
The massive screen flared to life.
Ji Xiaolan's phone interface was projected in full:Call logs, voice memos, WeChat messages, hidden albums, encrypted chats with mysterious contacts—laid bare.
The technician slumped into his chair, exhaling in relief:
"Young master, data extraction complete. No trace left behind… We made it."
Yang Tian's eyes were icy cold. He exhaled a breath of smoke and said quietly:
"Sort it. Copy it. Back it up."
"Priority filter: anything related to Liu Ruyan. Raw video files. Accounts used to post on 'KNet'."
"I want to know—who's working with him in the shadows."
Shen Xue stood silently beside him, her gaze firming.
She knew—the real counterattack had just begun.
Yang Tian stared at the flowing streams of data for a long time. The cigarette between his fingers burned to its end.
He exhaled the last wisp of smoke, then stood up and gave a single, deep command to the control team:
"Counterattack."
[One minute later – Cyberstorm hits]
At that exact moment, a new trending post exploded on an anonymous forum:
"Clarification and Restoration of Liu Ruyan's Rumored Video: A Calculated Setup"
Attached were unedited raw clips, forensic breakdowns, account source traces from KNet, and partial leaked chat logs.
Within ten minutes of posting—
Shared: 1.2 million+ timesComments: Exploded
"So it was edited out of context…"
"Ji Xiaolan, you sick freak! You're behind this?!"
"Holy hell, this is evil. Straight-up career sabotage."
"Liu Ruyan deserves justice. She was set up!"