Background Check

After getting on the bus, Jiang Yunlu realized Lin Mo wasn’t following behind.

A moment later, she saw him walking over with his hands in his pockets.

Only after Lin Mo returned to his seat did the girl cautiously sit down.

She looked at him with concern.

“Did my dad… say anything to you?”

Lin Mo shook his head. “No. But I’m guessing he’ll dig up a lot about me by this afternoon.”

“You didn’t have to step in, you know. We were already back with the team by then.”

Lin Mo raised a hand to cut her off.

“I wasn’t planning to, but I couldn’t just let you get scammed. Besides, we’ve done nothing wrong—why should we hide? We’ve got nothing to be ashamed of.”

Hearing this, Jiang Yunlu lowered her head slightly.

“What if… I do have something to be ashamed of?”

Lin Mo gave her a strange look. “Don’t tell me you’ve got some arranged marriage with that guy?”

Jiang Yunlu smacked his arm.

“Arranged marriage? That’s such an outdated trope!”

“Good. Then what’s there to feel guilty about? It’s not like you’re cheating.”

The moment he finished speaking, Lin Mo got smacked several more times.

The commotion was noticeable, but no one said a word.

Some were on their phones, while others simply dozed off.

Up front, Qi Tao was struggling to keep his composure.

Others might not have noticed, but he’d been walking at the back and saw Lin Mo lift that guy off the ground with one hand before kicking him away.

He’d sized up that guy earlier—his upper body strength was no joke.

Yet Lin Mo tossed him aside like it was nothing. That meant Lin Mo’s strength was on another level.

He hadn’t fully believed the rumors before, especially after getting beaten up himself without even a scratch.

Now he realized Lin Mo must have held back.

Otherwise, things could’ve been much worse.

Without another thought, Qi Tao shrank into his seat. He wasn’t getting involved in this mess anymore.

Even after seeing Jiang Yunlu’s family’s Rolls-Royce Cullinan and knowing she was loaded, he didn’t dare make a move.

After all, Qi Tao wasn’t exactly a saint either. If rich families could dig up dirt as easily as they did in novels, his own past would definitely come back to haunt him.

Back to Lin Mo.

Jiang Yunlu looked at him and whispered, “So… what do we do now?”

“What do we do? Get some rest. Take a nap. Win the match this afternoon—don’t waste all the training I’ve put you through.”

With that, Lin Mo gently pressed her head onto his shoulder.

Jiang Yunlu’s cheeks flushed as she glanced out the window, making sure no one was watching.

Soothed by Lin Mo’s spiritual energy, she soon drifted into a deep sleep.

—System: Old man, if I park my ghost fire steed outside your cave, it won’t get stolen, right?—

The office air was thick with tension.

Jiang Chengshan stood with his back to the desk, silently gazing at the city skyline outside the window.

He flipped through the documents handed to him, his frown deepening with each page.

“Top of the school? Outperformed the drill instructor? Hmph. Interesting.”

The file also included the school’s public notice about dealing with local troublemakers—all surface-level information.

Even details about Lin Mo’s parents’ deaths were listed.

But Jiang Chengshan barely skimmed those sections.

The report wasn’t thorough enough, though gathering this much in half a day was impressive.

He needed more.

His male secretary hesitated before stepping forward, voice cautious.

“Mr. Jiang, since Lin Mo is currently Miss Jiang’s deskmate, should we… arrange for his removal from Guangba?”

Jiang Chengshan remained still, as if he hadn’t heard.

After a long pause, he let out a derisive snort.

“What nonsense are you spouting? He’s the school’s top student. The principal would have to be insane to expel him.”

Beads of sweat formed on the secretary’s forehead as he bowed.

“You’re right, sir. I wasn’t thinking clearly.”

Regaining his composure, the secretary quickly proposed an alternative, his tone even more careful.

“If direct removal isn’t feasible, perhaps we could arrange for them to be placed in separate classes during the upcoming arts/science division.

This would comply with school regulations and avoid drawing attention.”

Jiang Chengshan turned, his fingers tapping rhythmically on the mahogany desk.

This idea was at least less idiotic than the last one.

Class separation—justifiable.

But…

Jiang Chengshan’s frown returned. The semester wouldn’t end for months.

“Class division?” he repeated, irritation creeping into his voice. “And what about these next few months? Just let them spend every day together?”

The thought of his naive, sheltered daughter spending half a year side by side with some penniless upstart made his chest tighten.

This Lin Mo—his grades were unnaturally good.

He’d seen through Xia Yusheng’s lies in seconds.

Someone like that was bound to be calculating.

Jiang Chengshan recalled Lin Mo’s demeanor when speaking to him.

For a student, the boy had an unshakable confidence—not just youthful recklessness.

Seeing his boss’s reluctant acceptance but clear dissatisfaction with the timeline, the secretary hurriedly added,

“Mr. Jiang, we could arrange for Miss Jiang to skip evening self-study these months. Fill her schedule with extracurriculars.

She has that badminton tournament coming up, right?

We could hire elite coaches and private tutors to minimize their interaction.”

When Jiang Chengshan still seemed unconvinced, the secretary pressed on.

“I’ll also keep close contact with students and teachers at the school to monitor the situation and prevent any mishaps.”

Jiang Chengshan gave a noncommittal hum.

He wasn’t sure Jiang Yunlu would agree to skip evening classes.

But class separation was non-negotiable.

Rubbing his temples, he sighed. His precious daughter, raised so carefully for over a decade, and now some wild boar was sniffing around.

How was he supposed to handle this?

With a dismissive wave, he signaled for the secretary to leave.

The man bowed and retreated, relief palpable.

Alone again, Jiang Chengshan stared out the window as city lights flickered to life, his gaze growing colder.

Lin Mo, was it? He’d make sure to uncover every last secret this boy was hiding.