The Unexpected Rise of Chen Ran

Chen Ran never expected that after he slipped away from Lin Qingqing, his ‘dating rights’ in school would skyrocket to an unprecedented level.

After all, Lin Qingqing had bullied many people in the past, and the terrifying rumors about her were countless.

It was said that during junior high, she had bullied a classmate so severely that the student had to drop out and transfer schools.

She had also driven a teacher to resign and change jobs.

Outside of school, she had bullied an older man so much that he had to return to his hometown with his wife and children.

These stories made Lin Qingqing one of the most feared individuals at Saint Angel Academy.

Moreover, the Lin family was a prominent pharmaceutical company in Xijing, practically monopolizing over fifty percent of the nationwide medical industry, with close ties to the government’s Ministry of Health and Welfare.

It was rumored that their family had many high-ranking officials.

Even the daughters of the elite at the academy were instructed to avoid Lin Qingqing as much as possible.

But…

Chen Ran was not afraid of her.

In fact, the girls discovered that Lin Qingqing had no power over Chen Ran.

Several times, she had been so angry that she disappeared from school entirely.

Resisting bullying is easy to say, but how many people can actually do it?

Therefore, many girls thought that having Chen Ran, who was not only handsome and bright but also protective, as a boyfriend was the best they could hope for.

Furthermore, Chen Ran seemed to have a great personality—at least in school, he was neither casually agreeing to dates nor secretly playing around with other girls when he had a girlfriend.

So, of course, they were eager to pursue him.

Now or never! If they didn’t act fast, they would only hear the reverse direction bell after Chen Ran was in a relationship!

Thus, within a few days, Chen Ran realized that the situation had changed drastically.

Previously, he would only occasionally be bothered by classmates during breaks, some seriously and others just for fun.

However, now the situation was entirely different.

As soon as he entered the classroom in the morning, he would find his desk filled with various breakfast items, and his desk drawer overflowing with perfumed love letters and all sorts of gifts.

There were books, necklaces, earrings, the latest cell phones, headphones, even shoes and clothes.

Some even stuffed bank cards into his desk, filling it to the brim, leaving no room for his own backpack!

Of course, Chen Ran knew he couldn’t accept these gifts, so he reported it to the teacher, and Aili, the class advisor, took them back to the office, notifying the girls who had sent them to come and collect their items.

But that wasn’t the end of it.

Even during class, girls would throw him notes or deliberately talk to him, or stare at him with flirtatious glances!

Walking through the school, no matter where he went, girls would suddenly appear, some trying to pull him to a secluded spot, others seemingly purposefully bumping into him, and so on.

Chen Ran was completely overwhelmed.

It felt like he was playing hide and seek in school, and almost every girl was a ‘ghost’!

Suddenly, Chen Ran realized how urgent his previous need truly was—he desperately needed a girlfriend in school, and that person was…

****

‘Lengleng, help! QAQ’

After dinner, Chen Ran blinked his eyes, looking pitifully at Jiang Lengleng, who was quietly slurping noodles and practicing her foreign language listening skills beside him.

Then, Jiang Lengleng lightly nodded.

‘Yes, okay.’

The agreement came easier than he expected, as if it were a trivial matter for the girl.

However, Jiang Zilin, on the other side, puffed out her round cheeks and suddenly hugged her younger sister, glaring suspiciously at Chen Ran.

‘Small Ran, what are you up to?! You’re not allowed to have any ideas about Lengleng!’

The porcelain doll-like, cold beauty continued to slurp her noodles, as if everything had become irrelevant to her.

The contrast between the two sisters was strangely fascinating.

Seeing Jiang Zilin’s ‘panicked’ expression, Chen Ran could only sigh and explain.

‘It’s just pretend, Zilin. At school…’

After Chen Ran explained the situation to Jiang Zilin, she fell into deep thought.

‘Uh! This is indeed a problem. If Lengleng doesn’t keep an eye on Small Ran, he’ll be seduced by other women!’

‘That’s not the problem, is it?!’

Chen Ran was exasperated!

‘Fine, then let Lengleng handle it…’

Mumbling, and seemingly not listening to him, Jiang Zilin huffed and let go of her sister, then said to Lengleng, who was still slurping noodles, ‘Lengleng, if Small Ran takes advantage of you, you must tell me immediately!’

‘Yes.’

‘Small Ran seems upright, but he’s actually quite a pervert. Be careful he doesn’t eat you alive!’

‘Eh?’

Jiang Lengleng finally looked up, glancing at her sister and then at Chen Ran beside her, as if there had been some unknown interaction between them.

Her face was filled with shock and curiosity.

‘Listen, Lengleng,’ Jiang Zilin continued, ‘Small Ran frequently sneaks into my room at night, massaging my teddy bear, and he often steals my underwear and panties, leaving them everywhere…’

Upon hearing this, Jiang Lengleng lost interest, continuing to slurp her noodles and ignoring her sister’s wild claims.

At the same time, she softly said, ‘Sister, you should read less adult manga.’

‘…’

!!!

Like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, Jiang Zilin suddenly jumped from the couch, furious, and rushed to Chen Ran’s side.

‘Small Ran, look! Lengleng is bullying me again!! Quick, do something!!! Waaaa…’

‘I can’t handle her.’

Ignoring Jiang Zilin’s feigned crying, Chen Ran calmly replied, ‘Besides, Lengleng is only telling the truth. At 20-something, you should read less adult manga.’

‘Hmph!’

‘You’re both ganging up on me!’

Pouting, Jiang Zilin grabbed her phone and stormed off to the bathroom, probably to sit on the toilet and video call their mother, Jiang Ruohua.

Chen Ran and Jiang Lengleng continued to calmly eat their noodles.

But soon, Jiang Zilin emerged from the bathroom, looking refreshed, and casually said to Chen Ran and Jiang Lengleng, ‘Small Ran, Lengleng!’

‘What?’ (x2)

Chen Ran and Jiang Lengleng responded in unison, and then saw Jiang Zilin excitedly run back to the couch, sitting between them.

‘There’s been a ghost sighting lately!’

As if she had just remembered something, Jiang Zilin looked frightened, clutching Chen Ran’s hand with one hand and Jiang Lengleng’s with the other, her pitiful expression clearly not feigned.

‘Urgent! Let’s all sleep together tonight, okay?’

‘…’