As soon as those words were spoken, Su Man’s expression immediately changed.

Even the onlookers nearby began whispering among themselves.

“Oh… oh, so *that’s* what you were plotting! Just to get Yan Ge to take you inside, you actually came up with something this underhanded!” Su Man pointed at Li Li, furious. “Li Li, you just wait! I’m definitely telling Uncle Li and Auntie Li!”

“Su Man, are you out of your mind?! It’s obvious he’s framing me!” Li Li shouted in rage. “I didn’t even touch him! He fell on his own!”

Su Man wasn’t buying it. “Lu Yuwen doesn’t even know you — why would he frame you? Do you think everyone is as unhinged as you are?!”

She took Lu Yuwen by the arm and said, “Come on, let me walk you somewhere to rest.”

Lu Yuwen said, “We should probably clear things up first — after all, your two families are close…”

“It’s fine, don’t bother with this lunatic.” Su Man was completely unbothered. “I’ve known him since we were kids. I know him too well — whenever he didn’t get the toy he wanted as a child, he’d throw a fit around the house. Grown up and he’s still the same rotten self.”

Li Li’s face turned utterly ugly.

The crowd murmured among themselves.

Lu Yuwen was walking with a slight limp. Su Man looked at him with concern and asked, “Did you hurt your foot in the fall?”

“…Might have twisted it.”

“Your foot only just recovered, and this Li Li really is — forget it, forget it, I’ll carry you back…”

Without giving him a chance to refuse, Su Man hoisted Lu Yuwen onto her back and left the banquet hall.

The other onlookers watched for a little while longer before gradually dispersing.

Li Li stood frozen in place, both hands clenched into fists, trembling with rage.

A friend of his stepped forward and patted him on the shoulder, saying gravely, “Li Li, you’ve met your match…”

Li Li’s face was ashen as he cursed, “What the hell is wrong with him?! I clearly didn’t touch him — he fell on his own!”

But aside from him, no one seemed to care how Lu Yuwen had actually fallen.

Li Li couldn’t stand to remain at the banquet any longer. He stripped off his soaking wet jacket and left with a dark expression.

……

Bai Youwei finished watching the spectacle and withdrew her gaze, turning to look at Zhu Shu beside her.

Zhu Shu was also looking at her.

“What do you want to say?” Bai Youwei asked.

Zhu Shu narrowed her eyes with a smile. “You go first.”

Bai Youwei said, “Same old recipe…”

Zhu Shu burst out laughing and finished the line, “…different flavor.”

The two of them could hold back no longer and broke into loud laughter together.

……

Afterward, the forthright Su Man did indeed go to the Li family to lodge a complaint.

Li Li was berated by his parents, and the relationship between him and Su Man deteriorated even further as a result.

Even during brief periods of calm, whenever Lu Yuwen appeared, it would inevitably dissolve into chaos.

Su Man blamed Li Li for being petty and small-minded.

Li Li called Su Man brainless.

As over twenty years of childhood friendship seemed on the verge of being burned to the ground, Yan Qingwen, Bai Youwei, and the others made no move to intervene or mediate. They simply let those two quarrel more and more fiercely until they ended up in a cold war to the bitter end.

And Lu Yuwen, who would occasionally visit the Su family to counsel Su Man, was increasingly earning the approval of her parents…

Life carried on with its petty squabbles and small dramas.

Before anyone realized it, the one-month deadline was nearly upon them.

During that month, everyone threw themselves into preparation — whether it was stockpiling supplies, or pushing their bodies through rigorous training. No one dared to slack off for even a moment.

Bai Youwei and Shen Mo had registered for Battle 20.

According to their estimates, the only ones who would have registered for Battle 20 would be the two of them, so as long as one surrendered, they could smoothly advance to the next round.

But now that the moment was almost here, anxiety was inevitable. They couldn’t help thinking — what if… what if some oblivious king had also signed up for Battle 20? What then?

Bai Youwei felt uneasy.

Before setting out, she looked at Shen Mo, whose expression was calm and indifferent, and once again asked him gravely, “When we get to the battlefield — you’re going to surrender, right? You will, won’t you?”

—