ALL NOVEL Chapter 52: When People Ignore, Dogs Still Bark!
Chapter 52: When People Ignore, Dogs Still Bark!
Su Mu held on tight, feeling the man’s firm chest muscles through the thin shirt. His head pressed against the man’s warm back as the wind whistled past his ears.
If not for the urgent circumstances, he would have loved to lean against the man’s back longer, just riding together.
There would be opportunities in the future, Su Mu thought.
Meanwhile, Chu Hanting was completely focused on weaving through traffic, dedicating all his energy to getting Su Mu to the competition venue on time.
Otherwise, he definitely would have noticed Su Mu’s wandering hand at his waist.
But right now, he had no romantic thoughts, only thinking: Faster! Need to go faster!
In contrast, Su Mu felt surprisingly relaxed the moment he pressed against Chu Hanting.
He found it amazing how whenever he was tense, just being close to this man could soothe all his anxiety and worries.
He didn’t understand why this happened. Perhaps it was trust, or dependency, or love, or maybe all of these.
Either way, holding onto Chu Hanting made Su Mu inexplicably calm.
He nuzzled closer, finding a comfortable position, keeping his head pressed against the man’s back.
Besides the howling wind, he occasionally heard passing drivers’ voices – some admiring, others cursing.
Chu Hanting remained intensely focused on the road, aware of everything around him, and managed to arrive at the venue with just two minutes to spare, all while maintaining safety.
There was no time for thanks or goodbyes. As soon as they arrived, Chu Hanting gave Su Mu a push forward: “Hurry, come back with first place.”
Su Mu waved while running, and managed to enter the competition venue just in time, avoiding disqualification.
Being the last to arrive, all other competitors’ eyes turned to Su Mu as he entered the waiting room.
Most looks were curious and investigative, with competitive spirit, but one gaze held hatred mixed with jealousy.
This most unfriendly stare came from Su Ning.
Damn it! How did he make it in time!
Su Ning had been hoping time would run out before Su Mu arrived, thinking perhaps he’d been delayed by something on the road.
That would have eliminated Su Mu directly.
Yet he still made it!
Why couldn’t he have been just a few minutes late and gotten disqualified!!!
Though Su Ning hadn’t personally heard Su Mu’s playing, from what Su’s parents said, he knew Su Mu was skilled and had a good chance of winning.
Although Father Su had made arrangements, it would have been simpler if Su Mu hadn’t shown up at all.
Su Mu hadn’t immediately spotted Su Ning among the crowd, but he keenly felt a piercing stare on his back.
Turning around, he caught Su Ning’s venomous glare.
Su Mu didn’t take it to heart – a mere look couldn’t harm him. But what puzzled him was Su Ning’s presence here.
No one knew Su Ning’s skill level better than him. If Su Ning could get in on merit, they might as well let a monkey play randomly.
In fact, a monkey might have better musical sense.
There was only one explanation for Su Ning’s presence – the Su family had pulled strings.
This wasn’t something that could be solved by donating a library. This was a major national competition in China that affected many people’s futures. If this wasn’t fair, it trampled on ordinary people’s dignity.
Like college entrance exams – if those weren’t fair, it would be devastating for students from humble backgrounds.
Su Mu didn’t think the Su family had enough influence to get someone like Su Ning into the competition.
But he couldn’t figure out the reason right now.
He needed to focus on the competition first.
Whatever tricks Su Ning had planned couldn’t affect his ranking – first place would be his.
After drawing lots, Su Mu went to the bathroom. Fortunately, his performance slot was later, giving him time to fix his appearance.
After running around the Chu Da Plaza looking for bombs and riding the motorcycle, his once-neat performance attire was wrinkled, and his hair was windblown.
Without proper tools, he could only do his best to smooth things out, running his fingers through his hair – still better than looking completely disheveled.
Seeing Su Mu enter the bathroom, Su Ning followed.
Su Mu saw Su Ning in the mirror and intended to ignore him.
But the dog insisted on barking.
Su Mu had just finished washing his hands, shaking them dry and adjusting his hair and clothes.
Su Ning approached, leaning on the sink with one hand, his mouth curling into an evil smirk.
“Su Mu, why don’t you just withdraw now? You’ll save face that way.”
Su Mu looked at him like he was mentally challenged: “Did you hit your head? Already acting stupid before the competition?”
Su Ning was furious: “I’m kindly warning you. Since you insist on asking for trouble, don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
As Su Ning stormed off angrily, a glint flashed in Su Mu’s eyes.
Su Ning’s words had revealed quite a bit – it seemed the Su family hadn’t just inserted Su Ning into the competition, but had also taken measures specifically against Su Mu.
Meet the enemy head-on, counter every move.
Let them try whatever they planned. In his previous life, Su Mu had been blind and willing to be manipulated. This time, he wouldn’t let them get away with it. They’d better hope he didn’t find evidence of the Su family’s crimes, or he’d send them all to VIP prison cells.
When Su Ning had gotten close earlier, Su Mu had been extra vigilant.
He didn’t believe Su Ning had come specifically to give friendly advice. He worried Su Ning might try something underhanded, but even after Su Ning left, he hadn’t noticed anything unusual.
Never mind, he’d find out soon enough.
After watching Su Mu go in, Chu Hanting hadn’t left the venue.
Instead, he entered through the ticket gate as an audience member.
Actually, when Chu Hanting bought the ticket, the venue had been sold out. Most tickets were reserved, with some given to contestants’ friends and family. Very few were available to the public, and those had been quickly snapped up by media and others.
But money could solve most problems, except buying health.
So getting a front-row VIP ticket was trivial for CEO Chu.
Even if he didn’t make the effort himself, just hinting at his desire would have various people eager to curry favor rushing to hand-deliver tickets to him.