Chapter 007: The Trouble with a Basketball

A class period passed quickly, and poor Lu Hongzhe stood by the door, playing doorman for forty-five minutes.

When the bell rang, Lin Le was about to get up and stretch, but his keen senses suddenly caught something shooting towards him at lightning speed.

Lin Le reacted instantly, grabbing the object in his hand.

It was a basketball!

During the lesson, Pan Hao had already impatiently sent Zhao Hu a message about Xu Xier and Lin Le, including the photo of them hugging.

As Pan Hao expected, Zhao Hu erupted in fury on WeChat upon hearing the news, vowing to teach Lin Le a lesson after school.

The previous boy had only sent flowers to Xu Xier twice and had his leg broken by Zhao Hu. Now Lin Le had gone straight to hugging her.

Pan Hao was curious to see how Zhao Hu would deal with this reckless fool Lin Le.

In Pan Hao’s eyes, Lin Le was as good as dead, a lump of useless mud. Since Lin Le was bound to be chased away by Zhao Hu, Pan Hao decided to trample him a bit himself, avenge his grudge for Lin Le daring to touch Xu Xier, and have some fun.

So, the moment class ended, Pan Hao aimed for Lin Le’s head and hurled a basketball at him, hoping to teach him a lesson. Several boys were ready to watch the show.

But what none of them expected was that Lin Le’s reaction was astonishingly quick; he caught the basketball in one hand with ease.

“Damn…” Pan Hao exclaimed in surprise.

“Hey, sorry, man,” Pan Hao feigned an apology.

Lin Le glanced at the basketball in his hand, then at Pan Hao and his friends, instantly understanding the situation.

Such tricks could never escape Lin Le’s eyes.

But it was Lin Le’s first day, and he didn’t want to stir up unnecessary trouble.

He smiled mildly and said, “No worries, just be careful next time.”

With that, he tossed the basketball gently back to Pan Hao.

Pan Hao caught the ball, pretending to fool around with his friends, but his eyes were fixed on Lin Le.

When Lin Le turned his back, Pan Hao seized the moment and suddenly flung the basketball at him again.

“Whoosh!” This time, it was even faster, slicing the air with a gust.

Pan Hao was sure he’d hit his target, and his friends grew excited.

Yet, to their astonishment, Lin Le didn’t even turn around or look; he caught the basketball again, effortlessly.

Pan Hao and his friends were dumbstruck.

They’d thought the first time was a fluke, but now it was clear Lin Le had some real skill.

Everyone in the class knew Pan Hao’s character; his repeated attacks made it obvious he wanted to put the new student in his place.

The boys were all eager for drama, waiting to see the newcomer embarrassed.

The girls, meanwhile, still held some hope for Lin Le—after all, he was Xu Xier’s close friend. Surely there must be something remarkable about him, or else why would the famous beauty be interested in a poor boy?

The girls were almost ready to see Lin Le explode in anger.

But to their disappointment, Lin Le wore the same smile as before.

“Next time, you really should be careful…” he repeated.

The girls felt utterly let down—so he was just a pushover, too timid to fight back. Disappointing!

Lin Le cared nothing for their opinions. As before, he raised his hand and tossed the ball back to Pan Hao.

After two tests, Pan Hao concluded that Lin Le was just a coward who wouldn’t retaliate, feeling quite pleased with himself.

But as Pan Hao caught the basketball, his smug expression froze.

The ball seemed light and harmless, but the moment he caught it, a tremendous force surged from it, as if his palm had been struck by a heavy club.

“Ah!” Pan Hao cried out in pain, feeling his arm go numb, and the ball dropped to the floor.

“You…” Pan Hao stared at Lin Le in disbelief, utterly shocked. How could it be? Lin Le hadn’t seemed to exert any force, but the ball carried such powerful momentum!

“Hao, what’s going on?” his friends asked, puzzled.

The other students didn’t understand either, but it was clear Pan Hao hadn’t gained the upper hand.

Pan Hao said nothing, his gaze burning with fury as he glared at Lin Le.

Lin Le remained calm, not even looking at Pan Hao, turning away.

Pan Hao grew even angrier. Damn it, this brat dared to play tricks on him—he’d see to it Lin Le paid for this!

He picked up the basketball, this time not bothering to hide his intentions, and hurled it with all his strength directly at Lin Le’s body.

He would smash him to pieces!

Pan Hao was strong, and the force behind his throw was tremendous.

“Whoosh!” The ball tore through the air, howling as it sped toward Lin Le.

“Hiss…”

The students gasped in shock.

Such a powerful blow could seriously injure Lin Le!

“Lin Le, watch out!” Lu Hongzhe, just returned to the classroom, cried out.

Everyone expected Lin Le to be struck and hurt—after all, the speed and power of the throw were overwhelming for anyone.

Some timid girls even closed their eyes, unable to watch.

“Bang!” A thunderous boom echoed.

Then a piteous scream filled the classroom.

Everyone assumed the scream came from Lin Le, but when they looked, Lin Le stood there calmly, unscathed.

All eyes turned to Pan Hao in shock.

Pan Hao’s nose had somehow been broken, blood streaming from his nostrils and into his mouth.

“Ah!” Pan Hao screamed in pain, nearly jumping to his feet.

Lin Le snorted lightly and said, “I told you, you should be careful—it rebounds.”

Just now, Lin Le sensed the basketball coming from behind and quietly channeled his inner energy outward, causing the ball to suddenly change direction and smash into Pan Hao.

Lin Le didn’t want trouble, but he wouldn’t let anyone walk all over him.

Because Lin Le hadn’t turned around or moved, everyone assumed Pan Hao’s throw had accidentally hit himself.

But Pan Hao knew for certain—Lin Le was behind this!

Enraged, Pan Hao pointed at Lin Le and shouted, “You brat, you dare fight back against me!”

Lin Le looked innocent. “I don’t understand what you’re saying. You clearly hit yourself—why blame me?”

“Don’t play dumb! It was you!” Pan Hao insisted.

“That’s right, we all saw you injure Hao!”

“Exactly, we saw it!”

Pan Hao’s friends all sided with him, accusing Lin Le together.

“You’re slandering him! You were the ones causing trouble for Lin Le!” Lu Hongzhe spoke up for Lin Le.

Though Lin Le didn’t care, he was moved by Lu Hongzhe’s loyalty—after only knowing him for a morning, he was willing to offend Pan Hao’s group for Lin Le’s sake.

“Lu Hongzhe, are you looking to get kicked out? Dare to side against me?” Pan Hao roared.

“Yeah, you poor loser in fake clothes, who do you think you are?” his friends chimed in.

Lu Hongzhe, brave but timid and somewhat insecure, fell silent for a moment.

The boys pointed at Lin Le, shouting, “We all saw Lin Le hit Hao with the basketball!”

The rest of the class knew they were twisting the truth, but nobody dared object.

Lin Le smiled bitterly, then raised his eyes to Pan Hao and said quietly, “Alright, let’s say I did it—what do you plan to do?”

“You…” Pan Hao began to curse, but when he met Lin Le’s gaze, a chill ran down his spine, leaving him stunned.

Those eyes seemed calm as water, yet sharp beneath the surface.

There was a cold, ruthless indifference in them—a gaze that looked down upon the world, making Pan Hao feel a strange, inexplicable fear deep within.