Tucked away deep inside the East Mountain was a large meadow where small creeks surrounded the sun-kissed grass. The local people called it the East Mountain Meadow and was considered the most peaceful and serene area of the East Mountain.
“Xiao Fan, why do you want to know about it?” Chen Huaian furrowed his brows and asked.
“Grandpa, is there anything wrong with the East Mountain Meadow?” Chen Fan asked curiously.
“That’s a can of worms that no one wanted to touch.” Chen Huaian heaved a sigh and started to explain to his grandson. The East Mountain Meadow became known to more businessmen after the development of the East Mountain Villas. The size of the prime location of the meadow was perfect for turning it into a resort or a luxury manor.
The city planner of the Jin City had been mostly focusing on the land on the west side of the city until recently. The development of the land on the eastern side of the city brought the East Mountain Meadow into the spotlight. Despite its secluded location, many development groups had been eyeing the property.
Under pressure from many sides, the Jin City was forced to put this swatch of land up for auction.
“In the end, the Wan Rong Group won the bid and bought the land with three billion yuan. Rumor has it that they are planning to invest a few more billions into the land and develop it into a high-end resort center.” Chen Huaian heaved a sigh and then continued, “In order to win the bid, the Wan Rong Group fought many wars with other local powers, a few people were dead as a result of the war. However, in the end, Wan Rong Group was able to emerge victorious thanks to its influence and prowess.”
“The Wan Rong Group? The richest man in Jiang Bei, Sheng Ronghua?” Chen Fan narrowed his eyes and let out a half-smile.
Shen Junwen was the father of his rival, Shen Junwen. The Wan Rong Group had also acquired the Jin Xiu Group after Chen Fan was dealt a few blows from Shen Junwen and fell from grace.
The Sheng family was a mighty opponent before whom I could only feel fear and despair. However, this time, I can crush them like an ant.
“Xiao Fan, I hope you don’t underestimate Sheng Ronghua. Although his power is mostly limited in Jiang Bei region, his benefactor is extremely powerful, otherwise, he wouldn’t be able to defeat so many other powerful real-estate companies as well as a company owned by the federal government.” Chen Huaian said worriedly: “Plus, the East Mountain Meadow was sold at an unimaginable price, and even Sheng Ronghua needed the support of banks to acquire this land.”
“So it all came down to money.” Chen Fan was light-hearted by the thought. “Grandpa, haven’t you forget that I own the Yun Wu Spirit Water? By now, I have already made over fifty billion Yuan.”
In addition to the huge wealth, Chen Fan also had the Medicine God Valley Sect and the Lu family at his disposal.
The Lu family was the dominating figure in southern China and their wealth and power were no less significant than that of the Zhen Family of Hong Kong. The Medicine God Valley Sect on the other hand, despite its seclusion with the outside world, its influence in the world was even more impactful than the Lu family. They had many powerful families wrapped around their finger and were able to raise a few hundred billion Yuan with ease.
“Ah-that’s right. Grandpa is getting old and forgot about the Yun Wu Spirit Water.” Chen Huaian laughed abruptly. “Speaking of which, you have no idea how popular the Yun Wu Spirit Water is. Many magnates and tycoons from Jian Nan province spared no expense just to get one bottle. After some of my old friends realized my stash, they came to visit me almost every day, trying to mooch off of me. I wager that the profit in selling the water must be more than a trillion Yuan a year.”
By now, Chen Huaian finally felt much more comfortable with Chen Fan’s potential conflict with the Sheng family.
“My grandson is the Head Sergeant of the Cang Dragon, a Transcendent Grandmaster. He has the backing of General Li and many other leaders in the military of course, he won’t be afraid of Sheng Ronghua.”
Chen Huaian let out a peal of laughter.
“Now let’s drink up! If you wish to take the East Mountain Meadow, you will have grandpa’s wholehearted support. Let Wan Rong Group test our might and we will prove it to everyone that the Chen Family has risen to power!”
Chen Fan’s grandpa announced confidently in a booming voice. It was the first time in a long time that Chen Fan saw his grandpa straightening his back and be so confident. It was as if his youth had returned to his old bones, transforming him into the strident young man he used to be.
After dinner, Chen Fan treated Chen Huaian’s body with the Yi Wood Spirit Qi. Chen Fan noticed that half of the cancer cells in Chen Huaian’s body had already died out. It was only a matter of time before he was fully recovered.
After that, Chen Fan lived a few months of mundane college life.
These had been a few notable characters in this year’s freshmen. Qi Wangsun was one of them. Rumor had it that he had been studying abroad in a private school in the UK ever since he was a child and he was suddenly transferred back home after a serious violation of the school’s policy. He drove a Lamborghini to the orientation all by himself, making him even more conspicuous than Qiu Yilun and his BMW 330. In addition to Qi Wangsun, there were another two attention-grabbing youngsters among this year’s freshmen.
Chen Fan was nearly unnoticeable among his fellow classmates. Therefore, very little attention was focused on him.
After a few weeks, the social between Chen Fan’s roommates and the girls happened much more frequently, thanks to the increasing temperature between Qian Lulu and Qiu Yilun and Liu Xiaojin insistent attempt to impress Qiu Yilun.
Chen Fan was fallen out of love among the senior girls after his lies were exposed. Although Zhou Qinya sat beside him at each gathering, they never spoke a word to each other. She left in the middle of all the gatherings after having received phone calls. Pan Li told everyone that it was her boyfriend on the other end of the phone call. Her boyfriend was an heir to a powerful Jiang Bei family and he drove a Ferrari that was worth five to six million.
Meanwhile, a lot was going on among the teachers and instructors of Jin City University as well.
Chen Fan’s first public elective was about to start.
Many young instructors had been waiting ever since the class was announced to teach this young visiting professor a lesson at his class for using the Jin City University as a tool to decorate his resume.
“Xiao Qiong, have you heard that the professor teaching the elective was a visiting professor. He is young and extremely handsome!” Fang Qiong’s BFF said excitedly.
The two gorgeous girls walking in the campus attracted a lot of attention from bypassers.
Fang Qiong’s BFF was only eighteen, yet her face looked mature and sultry. Her innocent eyes would melt the hearts of any young man, beckoning and daring them to flirt with her. Fang Qiong knew that her BFF was not an “easy girl ” as her overall demeanor might have suggested, and despite the few male friends she was seeing, she had never agreed to anything more than a peck on her cheeks.
On the other hand, Fang Qiong was elegant and deva-like. Although she was not a drop-dead gorgeous out of photoshopped pictures, she was more attractive than even Jiang Churan. Adding on her excellent grades and a powerful family background, many would think twice before flirting with her.
Therefore, most of the passerby’s poured their attention to Fang Qiong’s BFF instead of Fang Qiong.
“Oh really?” Fang Qiong asked distractedly. There had been a sense of nagging remorse in the back of her mind ever since the term started.
“Xiao Fan had promised me to meet me at Jin City University, did he forget?”
When they were both little, they had promised each other to attend the Jin City University together. Although the promise was still loud and clear in her mind as if it happened just yesterday, she wondered if Chen Fan had already forgotten about it.
“Of course! Xiao Qiong, I saw you have registered for this class, why don’t you take me with you?” Her BFF asked hopefully.
“You are in the school of fine arts, why do you need to take biology?” Fang Qiong asked.
Her BFF was very reliant on her. Even though she was admitted to the school of fine arts, she insisted on sharing the same dorm with Fang Qiong. Thanks to her family’s influence, the school agreed to change her accommodation.
“That’s fine, I’m not there to learn biology, I’m here to see the handsome man!” Fang Qiong’s BFF covered her mouth to stifle a giggle.
When they finally arrived at the class, the huge classroom was already packed and most of the students were female. It was evident that Fang Qiong’s BFF was not alone in her desire to adore the handsome professor.
Since Fang Qiong’s BFF was one of the most popular girls in school, she only made a hand gesture and many male students stood up from their seats, eager to please her by offering their seats.
“Uhh…” Fang Qiong grunted helplessly.
She truly liked her BFF except for when she tried to take advantage of the young men using her sexuality.
“Zhong Yaoyao, I won’t bring you here if you do that again!” Fang Qiong lashed out at her.
“Sorry, madam.” Zhong Yaoyao threw herself into Fang Qiong’s arms like a little toddler and said in a kittenish voice. Her action slightly embarrassed Fang Qiong but the embarrassment quickly turned into lightheartedness.
Suddenly, a few screams came up from the entrance. Fang Qiong looked up and saw a tall young man in a black outfit walked into the classroom. His dark eyes glinted sharply and every aspect of his looks seemed to be designed with aesthetic intent.
“OMG! He is so handsome!”
Zhong Yaoyao was so stunned by the appearance of the young man, she could only stare.
“Why… why does he look so much like Xiao Fan?” Fang Qiong was taken aback.
Although she and Chen Fan were separated ever since elementary school, they had been frequently exchanging pictures of each other since then. Therefore, Fang Qiong knew what Chen Fan looked like. Despite Professor Chen’s much better looks than Chen Fan, she noticed surprising similarities between his face and Chen Fan.
“I am your new teacher. My name is Chen Beixuan and you can call me Professor Chen.”
Chen Fan walked over the podium and scanned the students.
“Can we call you ‘oba’?” Many female fans of Korean drama screamed.
Chen Fan didn’t reply. He looked over toward the group of screaming girls and his cold glance suddenly quelled the girl’s excitement. Chen Fan’s indifferent and chilling regard gave them goosebumps on their skin.
“The subject of the class is to introduce Life Science and discuss the future of pharmaceutical research. Now, I would like to start the class by explaining the definition of Life Science.”
Chen Fan looked away from the girls and started to write notes on the backboard.
Fang Qiong could only stare.
“Chen Beixuan? Did he call himself Chen Beixuan? Is he the same person who I met last year? Could it be just a coincidence?”
Many questions arose in her mind, stirring up complicated emotions.
Half a year ago, at the lakeshore of the Jin City, she had met a stranger called North Mystic Celestial Lord, Chen Beixuan. He had given her a jade pendant as a gift and left abruptly by running on the water. So thinking, she pressed the jade pendant against her chest.
She had never taken the jade pendant off of her in the half-year. She could feel the difference it made on her overall health the longer she wore it. By now, she was convinced that the jade pendant must have magical powers.
Chen Fan carried out the class for a while and no one interrupted.
Suddenly, someone stood up and said loudly.
“Professor Chen, can you please explain it more? I don’t get it.”