Lu Xueyao, Why Are You Hanging Out with These People

Xu Mu's mind raced as he pieced together the truth.

Fan Shiyu was an assassin, and her target was Dai Xiao.

At this stage, who would want Dai Xiao dead the most?

Undoubtedly, Feng Kang.

If Feng Kang had gone so far as to hire a killer for Dai Xiao, it was highly likely he had also marked Xu Mu for death.

Which meant Fan Shiyu must be here to kill him.

He had never told Fan Shiyu where he lived.

For her to find his home so effortlessly, Feng Kang must have provided the intel.

Xu Mu immediately stood up and headed outside, intending to invite her in.

Despite being an assassin, Fan Shiyu left a favorable impression on him.

Logically speaking, he had saved her life once. If she repaid kindness with betrayal, Xu Mu wouldn’t hesitate to send her to her grave.

After all, his own life was the most important.

However, just as Xu Mu reached the villa’s front gate, the car had already driven away.

It seemed Fan Shiyu was only scouting today, familiarizing herself with the location.

"President Xu! What’s wrong?"

Meng Wanyue noticed Xu Mu heading outside and stood up to follow.

"Nothing. I was just going to fetch something from the car, but I changed my mind. Let’s eat first."

Xu Mu smiled and returned to the table.

"Brother-in-law, what exactly did you do yesterday? Your dad called, and he sounded really anxious."

Ye Yu looked at Xu Mu curiously.

The other two also perked up their ears.

Meng Wanyue hadn’t known anything, but when Ye Tong called late at night asking if Xu Mu was at her place, she realized he hadn’t come home.

"I went to rescue Xu Ningbing. She recklessly went searching for rare spiritual herbs and got trapped."

Xu Mu explained between bites, seeing no reason to hide it from the three of them—they were all martial artists anyway.

"Searching for rare spiritual herbs? President Xu, you should’ve taken me!"

Meng Wanyue set down her chopsticks. "Places with such treasures are always swarming with powerful fighters. It’s extremely dangerous!"

She knew firsthand—even experts like Xiao Ran often got injured in battles over rare herbs.

"It’s over now. I made it back, didn’t I?"

Xu Mu smiled at her. "Let’s keep eating."

Meng Wanyue nodded.

After the meal, Ye Tong prepared to return to the company, while Xu Mu took responsibility for driving Ye Yu to school.

Well, technically, Meng Wanyue was the one behind the wheel.

Xu Mu and Ye Yu sat together in the backseat, chatting until his phone rang.

He glanced at the screen—Feng Jian was calling. He answered.

"Young Master Xu!"

Feng Jian’s voice came through. "I’ve been waiting all day. Did the divine doctor’s medicine reach you?"

"What a coincidence—it just arrived."

Xu Mu chuckled.

"Perfect! Where are you now? I’ll come find you immediately."

Feng Jian sounded eager.

"No need. I’ll visit you this afternoon. I’ll call you then."

Xu Mu planned to make a trip to Yang City—first to reassure Li Yun, then to deal with Fan Shiyu.

They hadn’t exchanged contact details when they parted, so he’d have to seek her out himself.

"Oh, Young Master Xu, about my mother’s situation—have you thought it over?"

Feng Jian had nearly forgotten. "When I brought her lunch earlier, she brought it up again, crying hysterically. She said she’d do anything if you could save her."

Xu Mu almost admired Feng Jian’s priorities—normally, a son would lead with his mother’s plight.

"How can I reach her?"

Xu Mu asked.

"She’s locked up most of the time. Even I can’t get in—only during meal deliveries. But I can have her pull my phone up through the back window with a string."

"Fine. I’ll call you later."

Xu Mu hung up as they arrived at the school.

Right now, the Feng family didn’t require his direct intervention. Simply informing the Dai family that Feng Kang had killed Dai Xiao would suffice.

No matter what, Dai Xiao was the eldest son. Even if his father stayed passive, his mother would act.

As the primary wife, mobilizing a few martial artists would be trivial.

Currently, the Feng family’s protector, Lin Yang, was already crippled.

Though he’d escaped this time, he wouldn’t be causing trouble anytime soon.

That left the Feng family at the Dai family’s mercy—utterly defenseless.

"Brother-in-law, I’m heading in."

Ye Yu waved with a smile.

Xu Mu nodded slightly, watching her disappear into the campus before turning to Meng Wanyue. "Let’s go. To Yang City."

"Understood, President Xu."

Meng Wanyue acknowledged and made a U-turn.

"Wait!"

Xu Mu suddenly spoke up. "Pull over."

Though confused, Meng Wanyue immediately parked by the curb.

Xu Mu’s gaze fixed on a familiar figure in the alley—Lu Xueyao.

The rebellious girl he’d saved once. He’d been too busy lately to visit the school, so they hadn’t crossed paths since.

He got out of the car and walked into the alley. He found that Lu Xueyao was standing beside two bald men.

A young man with red-dyed hair and tattoos on his arms was sitting on the ground with blood all over his mouth.

"What's going on here?"

Xu Mu walked over and asked.

"Kid, we're doing justice on behalf of the heavens. It's none of your business!"

One of the bald burly men pointed at Xu Mu and shouted coldly.

"Brother Xu Mu!"

When Lu Xueyao saw Xu Mu, her face was filled with surprise. She immediately came to Xu Mu's side.

A prompt for increased favorability popped up above her head.

[Favorability + 10]

The bald men over there were so scared that their faces changed. They hurriedly said, "Sorry, Sister Lu."

"Sister Lu?"

Xu Mu frowned. "What's going on with you?"

"I'm teaching this hooligan a lesson. He often leads a group to stop students and rob them of money in the name of borrowing."

Lu Xueyao pointed at the Red-haired Youth sitting on the ground.

"Who are they?"

Xu Mu pointed at the two bald men behind Lu Xueyao.

"They are Zhao Yan's subordinates. Because of you, Brother Xu Mu, Zhao Yan treats me with courtesy."

Lu Xueyao explained. "I've been hanging out with them recently."

"Why aren't you studying hard? What are you doing hanging out with these people?"

Xu Mu's face turned cold.

"Brother Xu Mu, I have no hope. With my current grades, at best, I can only get into a second-tier university."

Lu Xueyao used to be a good student, but she had been bullied all the time.

She was always on edge in class and couldn't concentrate on her studies, which led to a continuous decline in her grades.

She planned to give up and find a job after graduation.

"Come with me!"

Xu Mu grabbed Lu Xueyao's arm and left the alley. "Even if you have no hope, you shouldn't hang out with them."

"Brother Xu Mu, Zhao Yan and his people are very nice to me."

Lu Xueyao looked up at Xu Mu.

"Why are they nice to you?"

"Of course... it's because of you, Brother Xu Mu."

Lu Xueyao lowered her head.

"What if I lose my deterrence one day? What will you do then?"

Xu Mu pointed at the alley and continued, "If that Red-haired Youth gets angry and stabs you a few times when you're alone, what will you do?"

"I..."

Lu Xueyao said in a voice as soft as a mosquito. "But I want to teach these bad guys a lesson. These bad guys who like to bully the honest are the most hateful."

Looking at Lu Xueyao's expression at this moment, Xu Mu suddenly asked, "Do you really like doing these things?"