Episode 36

"Book?"

"Hey, little notebook."

Benjamin greeted Sasin immediately upon seeing him, but Sasin wondered where the mercenaries had come from and why they were there. Looking back, Benjamin's actions deeply moved Sasin, which is why Sasin had the opportunity to reconcile with him.

Why are you here?

"I'm a freshman, aren't you going to welcome me?"

"Pah!"

"Hey! Hey! Hey! School bullying!"

"goodbye!"

"Wait a minute, Sasin, I have something to ask you."

"We'll talk about it when we get back."

"......"

"Hey, what are you doing?"

"They want to put it on."

"Go home and get a sticker."

Benjamin's desire to cuddle with Sassin back then was the same as his desire to cuddle with Sassin before. Because of the school, Sassin didn't want Benjamin to be affected in any way; in fact, they had messed up his own life. This suppression would only make them more convinced of one thing—that it was true. That's why he didn't want to cuddle with him to protect him. But Benjamin acted as if nothing was wrong and insisted on cuddle with Sassin in front of everyone.

"Book!"

"A hug, two minutes is enough."

"All right."

However, those two minutes of touching made Sasin realize what Benjamin really wanted to do. But he accepted it anyway, having long forgotten about going to class. What happened next was even more outrageous.

"Points were deducted?"

"yes."

How many points will be deducted?

"2 points."

"......"

Benjamin thought that missing class or not returning to the classroom would result in a minimum penalty of 10 points, but he never imagined that missing class would only result in a 2-point deduction, which was no big deal! However, Sasin was very worried, as his attitude could easily lead to some serious incident! But Benjamin had seen all kinds of situations. His aunt didn't have many classes, and Sasin didn't have many classes either. After class, he simply told Sasin that they were going somewhere that evening.

Where to?

"My home."

"It's such a hassle to take the train."

"......"

"Benjamin!"

"Why!"

The person named Benjamin, seeing there was another person nearby, then taught the person next to him the name Benjamin again. The thought of having to call one of them Benjamin while ignoring the other made him feel awkward, so he simply replied:

"They are not here."

"?"

As Benjamin and Sasin heard the footsteps getting closer, Benjamin glanced at the student approaching them. After confirming there was no danger, they left. However, Sasin grabbed Benjamin's shoulder; he was sleepy. Whenever he felt sleepy, he liked to grab someone's shoulder and press his face against it. He also liked to grab clothes, but mostly to show he was uncomfortable.

"Sasin, Sasin?"

"......"

"Asleep? Seriously, how can you fall asleep like this..."

Although it's frustrating, waking him up isn't really a good idea. Most people sleep in a princess carry or something, but he's not like that. He's the kind of person who carries Sasin on his back. But I still have to wake him up and tell him, it's kind of a hassle.

"Sasin, Sasin?"

"what?"

Benjamin's posture was as ugly as it could possibly be, but a smile can cover up a hundred flaws. Besides, he was doing it to satisfy Sasin's demands—one sleeping like a pig while the other was exhausted like an ox. Although it was a case of happy weight gain, he was a bit too fat. The limitation of his broken ribs forced Benjamin to be extremely careful. Therefore, at the end of the journey, Benjamin met with a different outcome, but the price was still worth it.

"The meaning of Benjamin is to let you focus on your studies at school, and not to say or think anything out of line."

"But is it somewhat... that he used military personnel to give speeches in schools to intimidate those people?"

"The principal invited them."

"So, the principal and the homeroom teacher both knew that Benjamin was...?"

"Actually, he invited them to suppress the rebellion. That's what it appears to be, but that's not the case in reality."

"......"

"Say it like that will indeed cause misunderstanding, and that's why I'm talking to you privately about this."

Benjamin's mother found out about it, and she told everyone else except Sasin; Sasin was the last to be informed. Rena was completely unaware of the whole thing; the less she knew, the better, and knowing only a part was ideal.

"not enough."

"?"

“Listen to me, you can’t know about this, because Sasin’s current situation isn’t good, but it’s not dangerous enough to put him in danger, I can guarantee that. But you must promise me one thing.”

"What's up?"

“You must remember that this never happened, and you must maintain your previous attitude. Otherwise, he will be in danger, and to me, you are now an obstacle that those people are trying to bring down us.”

"this......"

"Believe me, and your son, once is enough."

"good."

Upon arriving home, Benjamin immediately put Sassin to bed. It was six o'clock, and Benjamin couldn't wake Sassin, who was suffering from acclimatization issues, nor could he do anything effective. Benjamin had traveled between the two countries and was used to the time difference, so getting used to the local time difference was only a matter of time. Although Sassin had been studying here for a long time, he had left when he dropped out because of an argument with Benjamin. This explained why the judges had tried other methods to lull him to sleep without complaining.

"Can we find that person?"

"Yes, but it will take some time."

"The sooner the better, it's up to you."

"OK".

One of Benjamin's friends is skilled at capturing online comments and hacking computers. For the sake of national cybersecurity, it's crucial for Benjamin to learn the technology. Early on, Benjamin indeed doesn't understand the tech tree, and his friend harbors a secret crush on him.

"Benjamin...."

"Um?"

"Rena has agreed to this, let's finish the rest of the work as soon as possible!"

"good."

They had finished exchanging messages, and Benjamin then confided a rather painful topic to his hacker friend—relationships. He wasn't afraid of breaking up, nor was he afraid of being the one to break up with someone; what he feared was a messy breakup, which is why they sometimes had to confront these issues.

"Are you using me as a tool again?"

"Yes."

"Hey! You actually admitted it!"

"Okay, I'll treat you to dinner."

"That's more like it!"

Benjamin never treated anyone as a tool, and the idea of ​​being a tool might have some element of complaint in Benjamin's eyes, but he was the only one who didn't see it that way.

"You have someone you like?"

"Among the people present."

Did Benjamin realize then who he was talking about? In the following months, the student spent a lot of money pursuing Benjamin, and in the end, he received a rejection from Benjamin.

"You have a really good attitude..."

"Um?"

"Wouldn't anyone else be extremely heartbroken in that situation?"

"Because I've made it through, but no one else has."

"......"

That's why I envy you.

"If it weren't for him, I wouldn't have found a better man."

"I never imagined Benjamin was this kind of man..."

"Scumbag."

"Actually, Benjamin is a good guy, but I want to clarify that I haven't completely become his lapdog, because I'm the one standing at the eye of the storm. Sometimes, the one at the eye of the storm can see what's really inside. If Benjamin is in the eye of the storm, then I'm at the center, understand?"

"this......"

"You've sacrificed so much for him, don't you really regret it?"

"I don't regret it. At least he taught me a lot, and it was actually me who was in love with him but not him. I was the one who was wrong."

"You're not only a simp, you're also a pushover..."

"......"

Years had passed, and both he and Benjamin had moved on, yet she still readily agreed to Benjamin's requests for his help. Furthermore, Benjamin wanted to discuss the latter's progress with her, and he couldn't let her do it alone, therefore...

—The next morning—

"I'm going to chat with my classmates for a bit, I'll be back in a bit."

Is he here now?

"exist."

When Benjamin left, he left Sasin completely bewildered at home. The porridge was already prepared, and the dishes were just waiting to be heated up. However, he never imagined that after Benjamin "dumped" his classmate, the latter would express a "revengeful" attitude through a certain remark upon their reunion.

"Book!"

"Oh, it's been a long time!"

"haven't seen you for a long time!"

"After they met and hugged each other, they got down to business, talking about how he was doing, whether he had a partner, and finally about how he spent money to ask him for computer skills, which made him doubt too many things about Benjamin."

"By the way, do you have a boyfriend/girlfriend?"

"Yes, my senior is named Sasin."

"Senior?"

He recognized Sassin, but had never met him in person. He only knew him from a photograph Benjamin had given him. He had always assumed Benjamin had his reasons for choosing someone like Sassin as his boyfriend. He himself had been single, waiting for Benjamin to change his mind. Now, Benjamin's words had diminished his hopes. So, he said to Benjamin:

"I can teach you, but I'll charge you tuition."

"No problem, name your price."

"good."

After chatting about everyday things for a while, the two went straight home. After receiving the tuition money from Benjamin, Benjamin's ex-boyfriend asked him one last question:

"Why do you want to learn these things? They're clearly not advanced technologies, and you've already said you're not interested in them. If that's the case, then your appearance here asking me to teach you computer technology seems contradictory."

"Yes, but I did it out of necessity to protect my country and my home."

"Defend the country?"

"yes."

"Sure enough, I thought you were a boring person when you broke up with me back then, and you didn't even explain why you didn't want to be with me anymore. If you didn't want to explain before, that would have been fine, but I never thought you still wouldn't explain now!"

"Time has passed, so why bring up some things again?"

"Ben, you've changed. You've forgotten your original intentions."

"......"

"If you still want to be Benjamin's boyfriend, there's something I need to warn you about. They're starting to cause trouble for you and your current boyfriend—I'm talking about Song Ran. Also, she had a relationship with Li Zan, but they broke up, and a few months later she got together with Luo Zhan. Coincidentally, both of them are colleagues at the same company. The biggest problem and trouble is that they're both in the editorial department. At first, I didn't understand what their relationship was about? Now that I think about it, they really are..."

"Indeed what?"

"It's terrifying to think about, and it sends chills down my spine."

"No way?"

"......"

"broken!"

While Song Ran was with Luo Zhan, she realized that there could be no mercy when dealing with Benjamin. Therefore, Song Ran first used Li Zan and then used Luo Zhan. While it's true that a higher rank can suppress subordinates, Luo Zhan and Li Zan's relationship was special—yes, very special.

"How about it?"

"Um."

"Wouldn't you be angry if I became your boss?"

"I still have a lot to ask you."

"......"

—A few days after becoming a leader—

"You're with Song Ran now?"

"yes."

“I’ve noticed that you’ve changed a lot since you got together with Song Ran, I mean your speaking speed.”

Why do you say that?

"Because I heard from other people that the tone you used when you talked about picking up Song Ran from school was practically like an AI."

"?"

It wasn't anyone else, but Luo Zhan himself. That time, Song Ran was driving to look for Li Zan, but Li Zan had gone on a business trip and wouldn't be back for several days. So Luo Zhan told Song Ran that Li Zan hadn't returned from his business trip and wouldn't be back for a while, and that she should just call him directly.

"No, I did call him, but he didn't answer."

"?"

Luo Zhan was also a little confused about Li Zan's sudden disappearance and Song Ran's lack of response to his calls. Li Zan called him every day, and the last time they spoke was last night. He couldn't have just vanished! Nor could he have stopped answering Song Ran's calls. Now that he thought about it, Song Ran had waited a long time, so she should make a call and ask.

"Song Ran, I..."

While on a business trip, Li Zan actually saw Song Ran call him, but due to the special circumstances at the time, it wasn't that Li Zan didn't want to call back, but rather that he couldn't.

"By the way, did you ask him when he's coming back?"

He said there was still a week left.

"That's about it, I should be back today."

"It's tomorrow."

“Not tomorrow, because he always says he will definitely be back the next morning, but he always gets home the afternoon before.”

"......"

"It's time to get off work, let's go."

It's 5 o'clock now. Luo Zhan drove her home, but she refused. Firstly, it was too awkward for them, and secondly, their homes were in different directions. That's all. Now that I think about it, she did it to give herself and Li Zan a chance to be alone.

"?"

"Looks like you've been waiting for me for a long time."

"......"

"Have you started driving yet?"

“My car is over there.”

“My car is over there.”

"Is that your car?"

"?"

"The chassis is too low. Let's ride in my car."

"Okay, okay!"

—A few days later—

"You little brat, you heard our conversation, didn't you?"

"uh-huh!"

Luo Zhan had actually been waiting for Li Zan the whole time, because after learning that they had been together for some time, he felt a nameless anger rising within him. He understood that there couldn't be any romantic feelings between them, but when Li Zan offered to help him with David's war drum as a colleague, Luo Zhan directly refused.

"Why?"

"For no reason."

"......"

Li Zan's business trip was to interview people about civilian casualties in Dongguo, and he was gone for a week. He didn't expect Benjamin to appear at the factory, and after hearing about their superior's injuries, the soldiers were forcibly detained for allegedly knowing military secrets. This gave Li Zan something to write about, as he had a grudge against Benjamin, and their conflict was directly instigated by Song Ran.

"By the way, how is Sasin?"

"not good."

"not good?"

"I can't quite put my finger on what 'not good' means."

"......"

Having given everything for Benjamin, does he now understand what this is wrong? He's now the only one who truly understands Benjamin, but he doesn't want Benjamin to tell him. Compared to Benjamin, he now wants to find Sassin more...

Has Sasin changed his WeChat account?

"without."

“Then I’ll talk to him alone.”

"good."

One of Benjamin's most worried classmates was Sasin, who knew how to say goodbye. The only one he could truly connect with was a two-faced person, and the other was a mutual friend. Sasin was known for being extremely gossipy in front of Sasin, but not so much in front of Benjamin. No, he wouldn't cultivate a gossipy persona because he wanted to be gossipy but was constantly threatened by Benjamin.

"Sasin, do you remember me?"

"Remember."

"I need to talk to you about something."

"Why don't you just say it on WeChat?"

"No, some things should be discussed offline, to prevent eavesdroppers."

"All right."

—Three days later—

"I'm sorry to have kept you waiting."

"No, I just arrived too."

"......"