Xiao Bin stared blankly at everyone. In just one summer vacation, at most two months, every single one of the companions before him gave him a feeling that he couldn't quite figure out.

Xiao Bin was truly dumbfounded at this moment. Student Union President, it sounded so proud, so boastful, but right now, even Hu Xin and Gu Cheng were beyond his reach.

As they spoke, Hu Xin took several more calls, all arranging for their logistics company's trucks to be dispatched. A major company worth nearly a million, in this era, was absolutely a massive boss to students, let alone the fact that Hu Xin and Gu Cheng now commanded over a dozen vehicles, big and small.

A dozen vehicles—he hadn't even touched a single one, nor did he know how to drive. And this was just Hu Xin and Gu Cheng.

Mi Xue, Xiao Dai, and Nan Nan’s restaurant rivaled the scale and class of the Kai Xuan Lou. The Kai Xuan Lou!

That was a place where he felt immensely proud just to dine once. As for Zhang Yang, Xiao Bin couldn't even begin to process him.

Twenty million—that was a figure he had never even dared to contemplate, yet it was tossed away so easily, with no questions asked. He was left speechless, unable to articulate his current state of mind.

He suddenly felt a pang of regret; regret for going home that summer. He even regretted taking the role of Student Union President.

While it sounded glorious, in reality, he was already leagues behind them. His tenure as Student Union President had at best one year left; after that, he would just be an ordinary person.

“Enough about that. Xiao Bin, are you busy for lunch?” Zhang Yang said with a smile.

He had noticed Xiao Bin’s expression and understood what was going through his mind. Classmates should generally be on the same level, but the sudden, immense gap made the previously proud Xiao Bin feel a crushing sense of disparity—a feeling that was profoundly unsettling.

When he was the Student Union President, even when among them, a subtle sense of pride would inevitably surface. Now, his Presidency amounted to nothing in front of them.

Zhang Yang understood this, knew it well, but Xiao Bin needed to resolve this knot in his own heart. Regarding the matter of securing a spot for him to remain at school, Zhang Yang wasn't ready to disclose it yet.

He wasn't a hundred percent certain, as that kid Zhou Yichen wasn't exactly trustworthy; there would surely be complications later. It wouldn't be too late to mention it once everything was confirmed.

“I’m free. School has started, and I’ve handled what needed to be done.

Now it’s up to them what they do!” Xiao Bin quickly shook his head, steadying his nerves. Regret served no purpose now; he could only focus on what was immediately in front of him.

“If you’re free, everyone can eat together at noon. We’ll coordinate later!” Zhang Yang said softly.

The start of the semester wasn't without its demands; they needed to return to their respective classrooms, as they weren't all in the same department, and would need to regroup later. “That sounds good, let’s meet for lunch then!” Xiao Bin nodded.

He wasn’t busy right now, but he still had plenty on his plate. He didn't need to report back to a classroom, but many other things around campus required his attention.

Xiao Bin’s role as Student Union President might seem glamorous, but frankly//Fastest text updates from Shumi Lou After a two-month gap, many students greeted each other with overwhelming enthusiasm upon meeting again, and numerous people stopped Zhang Yang to exchange greetings. Some girls stared in amazement at the lightning symbol on Zhang Yang’s body.

This little creature stubbornly refused to stay home, so Zhang Yang had no choice but to bring it along first. The result was that the many people greeting Zhang Yang were actually drawn by Lightning.

Several girls even asked if they could hold Lightning. This brought Zhang Yang some internal balance.

He had been wondering why his popularity among girls had suddenly skyrocketed, only to realize they weren't actually interested in him. The morning passed quickly.

By noon, rather than waiting for coordination, nearly everyone had gathered near Mi Xue’s location. They all knew Zhang Yang would come to pick up Mi Xue, so it was more efficient to assemble near the Foreign Languages Department, which was conveniently the closest area to the main school gate.

For lunch, they returned to the Kai Xuan Lou, where they ran into a few acquaintances. Fan Sizhe and Hu Tao were both dining there.

Fan Sizhe greeted Zhang Yang politely upon seeing him—his attitude this time was a world apart from when they met during that encounter with the car. This change wasn't solely due to Zhang Yang having saved him; over the past period, Fan Sizhe had also realized that Zhang Yang was exceptional.

How could someone who drove a Mercedes around daily be ordinary? Clothes make the man, and while one might not want to admit it, the importance of outward appearances mattered.

At the very least, Fan Sizhe elevated Zhang Yang to his own level, and since Zhang Yang had saved him once, it resulted in a complete shift in his demeanor. Zhang Yang was unaware that he was now considered quite a 'figure' within the school, particularly among certain special students—no longer just an ordinary student union cadre whom no one paid attention to.

When old friends reunite, a lively atmosphere is inevitable. As soon as the dishes arrived, Hu Xin and Gu Cheng immediately began to scramble for them.

Xiao Bin also joined the fray. The signature dishes of the Kai Xuan Lou were essentially gone the moment the plates hit the table.

If Zhang Yang hadn't been quick enough to place two pieces of meat on Mi Xue’s plate, they likely wouldn't have gotten anything at all. As for Long Feng, he consistently held his chopsticks, eating the plainest items on the edges that no one else fought over.

The sight of these few people frantically competing for food had truly unnerved this Neijin master. Happy times always pass swiftly.

The group gathered at the start of the semester, and then everyone became busy with their own affairs. Hu Xin and Gu Cheng delivered plenty of gifts to their academic advisor, who, pleased by their generosity, offered them complete leniency.

Attending class was irrelevant as long as they didn't fail their courses. They had also delivered gifts to the other instructors.

The result was that even if the teachers took roll call and no one answered, they still passed. One couldn't call it corruption; it was simply the way of the world at this time.

A soft hand takes gifts, and a full mouth hesitates to speak ill. Moreover, Hu Xin and Gu Cheng had invested heavily, bringing valuable local specialties by truckloads.

Time slowly passed. More than ten days into the semester, Zhang Yang had completely absorbed his Essence Blood Pill.

His Neijin had stabilized at the early stage of the third layer, showing no signs of being newly advanced. At the early third layer, Zhang Yang was already quite satisfied.

He had originally expected it would take several years to reach this level, never imagining he'd achieve it in just a few months with the help of the System and the spirit medicine. The third layer was considered advanced; among all Neijin practitioners in the country, Zhang Yang could now be counted as a high-level practitioner, one who possessed his own reputation.

Long Feng’s progress was also notable; he, too, had finished absorbing his Essence Blood Pill. His Neijin had stabilized at the peak of the late second layer.

With effort, he would soon cross that threshold into the late second layer. At the late second layer, Long Feng estimated that no disciple of his generation in his family had reached that height.

His current peak of the mid-second layer undoubtedly made him the foremost among his peers in the clan. If he had consumed the Immortal Fruit Pill, he surely could have overcome this hurdle and advanced directly to the late second layer.

If he were to return to the clan like that, he would surprise many and bring immense pride to himself. However, after much deliberation, he ultimately decided not to take the spirit medicine, reserving this particular elixir for another purpose.

During these ten-plus days, Mi Xue had meticulously organized the new house, furnishing it completely so it was ready for immediate habitation. However, for the convenience of attending school, they were still residing near the campus for the time being.

Living there did not diminish Mi Xue’s enthusiasm for decorating the new home. She now rarely even visited the restaurant, rushing to the new house the moment classes ended, frequently asking Zhang Yang for advice on decoration.

To her, this place held more importance than the restaurant's business. Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, a full month had passed since school resumed.

Over this month, everyone gradually adapted to their current lives. Hu Xin and Gu Cheng managed their businesses without neglecting their studies, and Xiao Dai and Nan Nan were able to oversee the restaurant effectively.

Only Zhang Yang felt a bit frustrated. A whole month had passed, and the System hadn't appeared even once, preventing him from realizing his desire to accept a mission.

This was the first time he had actively wanted to take on a mission, yet the System was being so unresponsive—a true disappointment for Zhang Yang. It truly proved the saying: the more you yearn for something, the less it appears.

One notable development over this past month concerned Su Zhantao and Yang Ling. Initially, Su Shaohua was somewhat displeased that Yang Ling was running a business independently; he didn't want his nephew’s wife to be a merchant.

Later, Su Zhantao shared Zhang Yang’s diagnosis with Su Shaohua. After Su Shaohua received confirmation from Zhang Yang himself, he finally accepted Yang Ling.

Her older age didn't matter; maintaining virtuous conduct was difficult to achieve. The Su family didn't demand extraordinary capability from the girl, only that she must be a good person, otherwise, she would never marry into the Su family.

Once Su Shaohua approved of Yang Ling, overcoming the hurdle of Su Shaoqiang became much easier. Su Zhantao’s face had worn a lot more smiles these days.

Apart from occasionally seeking out Zhang Yang, he spent the majority of his time inseparable from Yang Ling. He was even conscientious about his company duties, delegating much of the work to his assistant.

Everything was currently proceeding peacefully. Zhang Yang couldn't claim dissatisfaction with this calm life, but he felt something was missing, though at the moment, he couldn't easily change the situation.

Besides attending classes, his responsibilities were limited to his previous patients: Su Shaohua, Director Zhao’s father, Elder Xie, as well as Zhao Zhi of Jiao Yi and Old Man Wu of Hu Hai. Their conditions were all recovering well.

Zhao Zhi only required restorative therapy post-surgery, a process Zhang Yang didn't even need to attend. For Su Shaohua and Director Zhao’s father, he now visited only once a month.

Elder Xie required visits perhaps twice, with the frequency expected to decrease further. Old Man Wu’s treatment time hadn't arrived yet.

This period was arguably the most relaxed time Zhang Yang had experienced since transmigrating. “Zhang Yang, Director Li is looking for you!” As he was engrossed in a book in the classroom, a classmate suddenly approached him with the news.

At school, besides Hu Xin and the others, Zhang Yang rarely interacted with anyone else. People only knew his name; his classmates weren't particularly close to him.

The person who came to fetch Zhang Yang was the class monitor, who regarded Zhang Yang with a hint of jealousy that left Zhang Yang feeling puzzled. “I’ll be right there!” Zhang Yang nodded, saying so, but he carefully put away his book before slowly rising to his feet.

The Director of his department, Li Yaohua, the former 'Zhang Yang' had certainly had much contact with him. The current Zhang Yang had almost no dealings with him, and Zhang Yang had no idea why the department head wanted to see him.