This year's batch of new students at the vocational college was notably more united compared to previous years.
Perhaps it was because when people find themselves in a completely new environment, they instinctively seek solidarity—especially in a place like this vocational college, often dubbed the "cattle pasture," where fights are practically a daily occurrence.
Of course, most fights are just small-scale clashes—a few people getting into it over some petty disagreement, followed by a disciplinary notice from the school.
When it comes to full-on brawls, unless someone genuinely doesn’t care about staying in school, most would think twice before escalating things.
For new students, the best way to avoid being bullied is to stick together.
The problem, however, is that their relationships aren’t strong enough to warrant fighting side by side, making it hard to form a united front.
But recently, an incident at the college completely changed that.
It started when a group of freshmen were waiting in line at the cafeteria, only to have an older student cut in front of them. Naturally, this pissed off the others in line.
The cocky upperclassman, a guy with dyed blond hair, sneered, "What’s the big deal? Keep yapping and I’ll send you flying, believe it or not!"
And then, he really did fly.
Three or four hot-headed freshmen didn’t hesitate—they rushed him, kicked the crap out of him, and eventually tossed him out of the cafeteria.
At this school, freshmen who dare to lay hands on upperclassmen usually either have connections or are backed by one of the campus big shots.
These guys were an exception—they straight-up beat an upperclassman.
Unsurprisingly, retaliation came swiftly.
The guy they’d beaten was a lackey of Xie Dong, the top dog at the vocational college.
To save face, he rounded up a dozen troublemakers to harass the freshmen during military training, spiked their iced tea when they weren’t looking, and even ambushed lone freshmen at night.
Under this relentless pressure, the freshmen finally snapped.
Sure, they were new here, but many of them had been around the block in high school—they’d never been pushed around like this before.
So, they started banding together. Within days, thirty or forty freshmen had formed a united front against the upperclassmen.
And surprisingly, their strategy actually worked—they started gaining the upper hand.
When Ma Da returned to the vocational college with Ji Yu, he spotted a noisy crowd gathered in a corner of the sports field, seemingly in the middle of some kind of ceremony.
As they got closer, Ma Da couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow.
A group of freshmen with wildly dyed hair were standing in a circle, preparing to swear brotherhood.
By the way, Ma Da was now a freshman at the vocational college too.
The guy still felt he couldn’t fully grasp the "young miss’s" ideology—blaming it on his lack of education—so he pulled some strings through his vocational school connections, greased a few palms, and managed to get himself enrolled.
Liu Yutong hadn’t been thrilled about the underhanded method, but after some thought, she figured wanting to learn was a good thing and gave her approval.
At least it was progress.
Not only that, Ma Da also had Zhao Tianyi help get Ji Yu a disability certificate—given Ji Yu’s stubborn, single-track mind, it wasn’t entirely fabricated—and then pulled the same trick to get him into the school.
Now, both of them were students here.
At the moment, the group of rainbow-haired freshmen were laughing and bragging about their recent exploits.
"You should’ve seen it—that second-year guy actually avoids me now, scared he’ll go flying again!"
"Hahaha… guess he learned his lesson!"
"I never thought the upperclassmen would be such cowards. Now when we challenge them, they don’t even dare to fight back. And here I was, thinking they were tough!"
"Seriously, they’re all bark and no bite!"
"Hey, isn’t Xie Dong supposed to be the top dog here? Dude’s been MIA this whole time!"
"Top dog my ass—he’s hiding like a damn turtle! The real boss now is our Fan-ge!"
"Hell yeah!"
At the center of the crowd, a lanky guy with bleached hair, wearing a baggy T-shirt and ripped jeans, smugly cupped his hands in a show of false modesty, playing the part of a gang leader.
"Since you all think so highly of me, I’ll take on this role! From now on, if any of you run into trouble, just come to me—I’ll handle it, no questions asked!"
The atmosphere was electric. Then, someone shouted, "Big bro!"
The chant quickly spread.
"Big bro!"
"Big bro!"
"..."
Ma Feifan’s chest swelled with pride as thirty-plus voices roared his title. Riding the high, he dramatically raised a hand and declared,
"Alright! I, Ma Feifan, swear this today—from now on, the thirty-two of us stand as one! We’ll charge through hell itself if we have to! Anyone who dares lay a finger on any of my brothers, I’ll wipe out their whole damn world!"
"Hell yeah!!"
"Hell yeah!!"
The group was fired up, hearts pounding. They dropped to their knees in unison, ready to seal the brotherhood pact.
Then, laughter cut through the moment.
"Pfft—hahaha… damn, I can’t even."
A mocking chuckle shattered the solemn mood.
Everyone turned to see Ma Da standing a short distance away, a cigarette dangling from his lips, shoulders shaking with laughter.
Ma Feifan’s face darkened. "Ma Da! What the hell are you laughing at?!"
Ma Da shrugged, feigning innocence. "Didn’t mean to laugh."
"But you guys are so hyped up, it’s contagious. Also—where’s the booze? The knife? How are you gonna swear a blood oath without a knife? This is the sloppiest brotherhood ceremony I’ve ever seen."
"Seriously, it’s kinda pathetic."
"Ma Da, don’t push it. How we do this is none of your damn business!" Ma Feifan snapped.
"Yeah, none of your business!" the others echoed angrily.
Ma Da raised his hands in surrender. "Fine, fine, not my business. Just passing through. Carry on."
With that, he turned to leave with Ji Yu.
Ma Feifan glared at his retreating back, fists clenched so tight his knuckles cracked. But one glance at Ji Yu’s towering, two-meter-plus frame looming behind Ma Da made him swallow his anger.
They’d never seen someone so intimidating—picking a fight wasn’t an option.
Still, as the newly elected "big bro," Ma Feifan had to at least pretend to be magnanimous.
He took a deep breath and suddenly called out, "Ma Da! I asked you before to join us against the upperclassmen, and you refused. I’ll ask one more time—you in or not? Wanna rule this school together?"
Truth was, even with thirty guys at his back and recent wins against the upperclassmen, Ma Feifan was nervous.
He’d heard the rumors—Xie Dong, a third-year, had held the title of top dog for two straight years. If he came back and decided to settle the score, the freshmen might not stand a chance.
Unlike the neighboring Finance University, the vocational college allowed students to intern as early as their second year. Many were often off-campus as long as they had filed the necessary paperwork.
This was why Ma Feifan had set his sights on Ma Da and Ji Yu—especially Ji Yu. The guy had an intimidating presence just standing there. If he could win him over, dealing with Xie Dong wouldn’t be so daunting.
When Ma Da heard Ma Feifan’s invitation again, he scoffed. "Work under you? Who do you think you are? Overestimating yourself much?"
"Oh, and a friendly reminder—Xie Dong is really coming back."
With that, he left, taking Ji Yu with him.
The freshmen, seeing Ma Da brush them off so dismissively, cursed under their breaths. "Ungrateful bastard!"
In their hearts, they swore to teach this arrogant guy a lesson—right after they dealt with Xie Dong and his crew of upperclassmen.
