Xie Ran wore a neat and well-fitted riding outfit. The style was not complicated, but it especially highlighted the boy’s advantages, making him appear tall and noble.

He skillfully urged his horse forward, his body slightly leaning ahead. When approaching each obstacle, he precisely and decisively adjusted the angle of his lean. The fine horse galloped and jumped, clearing the obstacles.

The boy’s gaze stayed level and focused ahead the entire time. His thin lips pressed into a slight curve. The whole person looked like a sword drawn from its sheath, carrying an unstoppable sharpness, stabbing straight forward.

All the spectators had no doubt that even if there was a thousand-foot chasm in front of him, he would still fearlessly leap over it.

It was both terrifying and astonishing.

Xie Ran calmly rode his horse. Like before, horseback riding was actually just a basic social skill for him, he had no interest in using it to intimidate a group of young high schoolers.

But Xu Feiyan crossed his biggest taboo.

In the cutthroat business world, Xie Ran never allowed anyone to coerce or threaten him—especially not by raising a horse’s hoof above his head.

A slight breeze passed his ear, along with Meng Feixuan’s metallic-toned voice: “Quick step over the wave… I remember this path data. The gentleman taught me this is the jumping path for horse riding.”

In the previous world, during the holo-online game, Xie Ran had personally taught Meng Feixuan how to ride.

Meng Feixuan’s server stored all the data generated together with Xie Ran in the game. At this moment, the familiar path data coincided with his stored data frequency, stirring up Meng Feixuan’s memory.

Xie Ran also recalled the times in Bright Moon River Lake when he and Meng Feixuan often rode one horse together to collect debts on East Third Street. Meng Feixuan sat behind him, his well-proportioned arm wrapped around Xie Ran’s waist, his chin lightly resting on Xie Ran’s shoulder, his chest perfectly pressed against Xie Ran’s back.

Meng Feixuan said his model was the most perfect.

By “perfect,” he meant that his body data almost perfectly matched Xie Ran’s.

That kind of match was subtle, yet made people unconsciously accustomed to it.

Now that Meng Feixuan mentioned it, Xie Ran could clearly recall the feeling of being held by Meng Feixuan.

Xie Ran was slightly distracted. Meng Feixuan’s voice with a hint of regret sounded again: “Ah, I’ve started to miss the days riding together with the gentleman… but my current posture still counts as riding on the gentleman’s back, right?”

Xie Ran: “…”

He almost had a mental image.

Xie Ran’s riding style was aggressive and strong. His speed was much faster than Xu Feiyan and Guan Heng. In the dazzled eyes of the crowd, he completed a lap, leading the two horses one after another back to the starting point. With a long leg stretched, he easily leapt off the horse’s back and landed upright on the ground.

Finally, Xu Feiyan, who had barely survived the lap, still tightly held onto the saddle and reins. When his horse finally stopped, he felt a sense of relief. He hurried to dismount, but his strength was gone, his limbs weak, and he failed to steady himself. With a “thud,” he fell to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.

“Brother Xu!” Liu Man and several others quickly ran over and helped him up.

Xu Feiyan’s face turned pale, his legs still trembling. Shocked and angry yet disbelieving, he was momentarily speechless, staring at Xie Ran with wide eyes.

Xie Ran stood proudly and glanced at him sideways with his peripheral vision: “Sorry, I didn’t control it well. Scared you.”

He returned exactly the words Xu Feiyan had said to Guan Heng earlier, instantly shutting down Liu Man and the others who had originally wanted to challenge Xie Ran aggressively.

Xu Feiyan had first used his horse’s power to intimidate Guan Heng, nearly trampling him underfoot, and dragged Xie Ran into it, only receiving a “sorry” from Guan Heng in return.

By contrast, the danger Xie Ran caused Xu Feiyan was far less than Xu Feiyan’s actions. It could even be called a brilliant performance.

Of course, this was the onlookers’ view. Only Xu Feiyan, the person involved, clearly knew the feeling of being held hostage on a horse galloping wildly. Unlike the brief scare he gave Guan Heng, he was dragged by Xie Ran for a whole lap. The fear felt as if it had been infinitely prolonged.

Xu Feiyan even suspected he would develop a psychological shadow from it. At least, he would not touch horses for a while afterward.

But his feelings could not be voiced, and he had no right to blame or accuse Xie Ran.

No matter what, he was the one who acted first, and everyone was watching.

Liu Man and the others could only swallow their curses and grudgingly helped Xu Feiyan to rest aside.

“Ahhh! Brother Ran, you’re so handsome!” Guan Heng had recovered from the sadness caused by Brother Ran’s strike. Excited, he ran to Xie Ran and tried to throw himself onto him.

Meng Feixuan sharply said: “Sir, is he trying to hug you? I strongly oppose it!”

Xie Ran did not like being touched either, so he calmly shifted his body sideways. Guan Heng missed the catch. He scratched his head and turned around to try hugging Xie Ran’s shoulder again: “Brother Ran!”

Xie Ran pushed him away: “Keep your distance.”

Guan Heng meekly asked: “…Brother Ran, why do you dislike me?”

Xie Ran was silent for a moment and decided to blame Meng Feixuan: “Lawyer Meng doesn’t like it.”

Guan Heng: ?

Guan Heng: “Lawyer Meng controls too much, huh?”

Xie Ran thought for a moment: “Because he’s rude.”

Guan Heng also thought: “True.” After all, he was so good at swearing in the game.

Meng Feixuan angrily said: “Sir said I was rude, I admit it. He even agreed! He’s dead!”

What happened during the horseback riding class quickly spread throughout Qixing school. Before dismissal, Xie Ran was already famous.

Someone secretly recorded a video of Xie Ran riding two horses jumping obstacles alone. Soon, everyone at Qixing had a copy, and jaws dropped.

There were many chat groups among Qixing students. For a while, all groups discussed the matter.

[Is this really Xie Ran? Poor little Xie Ran?! Guan Heng’s new little brother Xie Ran?!]

[What the heck, Guan Heng’s new little brother? People from Xie Ran’s class say Guan Heng calls Xie Ran “bro.”]

[??????]

[To be honest, just watching this riding video, Xie Ran definitely deserves to be Guan Heng’s “bro.”]

[Aaaaaah, Xie Ran is too handsome! I’m crazy about him!!!]

[He’s really amazing. People from their class said during the later class their teacher was super nervous, didn’t dare to coach Xie Ran, but kept consulting Xie Ran instead, LOL.]

[What the heck, wasn’t the riding coach hired by Qixing from a club at a high price? He actually consults Xie Ran?]

[… After all, even professional coaches haven’t seen anyone who can control two horses and jump obstacles at the same time.]

[LOL]

[Honestly, Xie Ran’s looks, temperament, and skills make him worthy to be the Qixing campus heartthrob!]

[Is it just me? I feel like this semester entered a strange timeline. Only one summer passed, but Xie Ran has completely changed.]

[Who says not? This is probably what a genius looks like, sigh.jpg]

[By the way, some gossip says the Noble Lord originally wanted to teach Xie Ran horse riding… Not sure how he feels now?] (Noble Lord refers to Xu Feiyan.)

[What? Noble Lord wanted to teach Xie Ran horse riding? Didn’t Xie Ran just beat him up?]

[The timeline is getting stranger and stranger~]

Xie Ran’s glory was unlimited. Conversely, the embarrassment of Xu Feiyan in the video was obvious. But Xu Feiyan had long dominated Qixing, so most students dared not openly mock him, though private discussions were ineVittable.

Xu Feiyan was extremely ashamed and angry. He felt classmates stole glances at him with mocking eyes on the way back from the riding ground to the teaching building. He could not lash out, so he vented all his anger on Liu Man and the others.

But these were minor troubles. The real problem was the Xu family’s reaction.

Xie Ran’s performance in riding class was so amazing that even the riding coach, hired at great expense by the Xu family, was impressed and felt inferior. The teacher eagerly reported this to superiors.

However, such a student was not necessarily good news for Qixing, which urgently wanted to build a good reputation for the riding course.

Because the overshadowed person was Xu Feiyan, a junior from the Xu family and nephew of the school principal.

And Xie Ran was just a student from a poor family who entered Qixing only by tuition remission, obviously with no prior horse riding experience.

This meant the Xu family’s own junior was less skilled in horse riding than a poor student. This was obviously not something worth publicizing for the reputation of Qixing’s riding course.

But Qixing’s student network was broad and uncontrollable. Soon, the video and topic spread through these influential circles.

Especially Guan Heng, who had originally been frightened by Xu Feiyan and wanted revenge. But soon, Xie Ran had avenged him tenfold.

Xu Feiyan’s fall from the horse looked much more embarrassing.

Guan Heng instantly felt balanced psychologically and didn’t bother with Xu Feiyan anymore.

Of course, part of this was to protect Xie Ran, since he didn’t pick a fight with Xu Feiyan, and Xu Feiyan started it, Xu Feiyan had no grounds to trouble Xie Ran further.

…Whether Xu Feiyan still had the courage to trouble Xie Ran was beyond Guan Heng’s concern.

But Guan Heng stopped seeking revenge and actively led the spread of the video and mockery of Xu Feiyan.

Guan Heng was different from other students—he was not afraid of Xu Feiyan.

Thanks to his relentless exaggerations and embellishments, not only Qixing students but even many elders in their families heard about this.

Xu Feiyan was so frustrated he nearly spat blood.

He originally wanted to use his riding skills to gain face for the Xu family, open the riding course’s prospects, and let the Xu family elders recognize his value sooner.

Instead, he lost face. Now the Xu family wanted to clarify that his horse riding skills were not learned from the family’s riding course.

Although the riding teacher tried to explain that Xu Feiyan’s skills were quite good and that Xie Ran was just outstanding, the teacher’s explanation could not compare to the video’s persuasiveness.

Everyone saw Xu Feiyan struggling desperately to hold onto the horse, staggering, utterly lacking control.

Moreover, everyone knew Xie Ran came from a poor family and couldn’t even afford sports gear last semester. After one summer, he improved so much. Whether by talent or unknown training, wasn’t he better than the Xu family’s heir?

When the school was buzzing about this, Xie Ran quietly changed back into his regular clothes and packed up to leave class.

In his earphones, Meng Feixuan skillfully broadcasted real-time topic updates from Qixing students.

Xie Ran said: “You snuck into those student groups again?” The “again” sounded natural.

Meng Feixuan replied naturally: “Yup.”

Xie Ran was not surprised. His system was always curious and bored.

Meng Feixuan continued: “I even registered an account pretending to be Guan Heng’s alternate account and snuck into a big group without Guan Heng. I posted a lot of curses against Xu Feiyan.”

He sounded proud: “Now people in that group privately say Guan Heng’s manners are terrible.”

Xie Ran: “…”

His system’s desire for revenge was still so strong.

Xie Ran asked: “Didn’t you block curse words? How can you post curses in the group?”

Meng Feixuan replied righteously: “Those curses were sent by Guan Heng. What does that have to do with me, Meng Mark!”

Author’s note: Guan Heng: ????

nsdd = You’re right.

Yes, I’ve grown weaker and shorter too.