( ) Chapter 1100 Dining is paramount. Regardless, Da Peng still shows considerable courage—otherwise, how could he have dared to tackle that hot potato of a vacant position?* Li is still chattering on, as if an old lady, going on and on. Logically, every sentence reflects his genuine concern. What exactly is Brother Li here for? Having shared hardships in battle and indulged in the same nightlife, is he truly a brother? Otherwise, the Buddha says: Li Zi's relationship with the Great Swallow, Lu Yun's with Zhou Quan—when they shout "brother," they laugh heartily. These two are clearly one upright and one eccentric. Yet, as one is influenced by the surroundings, so one's character changes—Li Zi, during his time with Lu Yun, has already lost his once hesitant, indecisive nature. Still, it's hard to change one's nature once it's formed. The Great Swallow strives for the position of school's little king, but Li Zi wholeheartedly opposes him. If not, he would have already gone up with a chair leg in hand to lend support. Between Lu Yun and Zhou Quan, there's a genuine mutual understanding—like true friends—though their fierce rivalry on the playing field has only strengthened their bond. "Lu Yun," Li Zi says, "suppose we were wearing the same pair of pants. When you marry, shall I leave one leg of the pants for you and your wife to wear together, or shall I go it alone and wear the other leg myself?" At that very moment, Lu Yun suddenly heard Zhou Quan's light-hearted words echoing in his mind. "Together," Lu Yun murmured. Li Zi was just discussing the advantages and disadvantages of the great crane's move when he suddenly heard Lu Yun say "together." His face changed instantly, and he hurried two steps to walk beside Lu Yun, sighing in concern, "Cloud brother, are you also in favor of the great crane's decision?" "Lu Yun came back to himself, looking at Lei's worried face, and chuckled, "I've been daydreaming—just now I remembered someone just as bad as me." Lei was startled at first, but soon understood who Lu Yun meant. "Come on, let's go find Dapeng. If this guy doesn't listen, I'm going to give him a good beating." Lu Yun laughed heartily, the subtle tension that had built up from careful thought now completely dissolving. Lei, seemingly touched by Lu Yun's mood, smiled with a fresh, somewhat naive expression, the cloud of worry lifting from his face. Before even reaching Dapeng's classroom, Lei spotted Dapeng carrying a rice bowl, heading toward the canteen. He hurried forward a few steps and called out, "Dapeng!" Dapeng paused, turned around, and saw Lei. A moment of resignation flashed across his face—but as soon as he saw Lu Yun behind Lei, that resignation vanished, replaced instantly by a pair of furrowed brows!" "Lei, I've already made up my mind. Don't try to persuade me—no matter how much you argue, it won't change anything." Dapeng whispered to Lei, who had just arrived at his side. "You brought Yun over here for what? This has nothing to do with him..." "You're kidding, right? Didn't you yourself say back then you wanted to follow Yun around and build your career with him? Now Yun's your boss—so what do you expect? You should listen to his advice instead." Lei spoke frankly to the boy who had grown up barefoot with him. "I'm telling you, Lei—give me a break! Yun's here!" Dapeng lowered his voice as Land Yun approached. Lei rolled his eyes. "I didn't want to interfere at all. I just didn't want to lose out myself." As he spoke, Yun had already reached the front. Dapeng smiled and said, "Yun, let's go have dinner—right now I'm heading to the canteen." Yun chuckled. Though Dapeng had helped him several times, they weren't from the same class and hadn't been particularly close in daily life. So Yun "Since Lu Yun came along with Lei, Lei must have told him all about these matters. Dapeng nodded, not withholding any details: 'Cloud brother, there's indeed something like this, though it's still in the planning stages. My team is understaffed, and the number of people who can actually take action is limited, so I can only manage to make occasional surprise moves.' As he spoke, Dapeng deliberately walked toward the base of the wall. It was now lunchtime, and students were rushing in droves to the canteen, creating a bustling, noisy atmosphere—Dapeng truly needed to keep his plans under wraps regarding his ambition to become the school's top figure. Lu Yun naturally understood this point, so he stepped to a quieter spot by the wall, sat on the steps, and asked: 'Dapeng, is this truly something that matters deeply to you?' "Dapeng nodded: 'Yun, my greatest dream in life isn't about how well I do in school or getting into a top university. It's about leading a group of brothers to build something great—drinking heartily, eating heartily...' 'You're not afraid of getting cut down?' Lei interrupted coldly, his expression annoyed. Dapeng didn't mind, smiled warmly at Lei and Yun, saying: 'Heh, what kind of venture doesn't carry risks? If I'm afraid of wolves in front and dragons behind, then I might as well go back home and work steadily in the fields. By the way, even farming isn't safe, Lei. Do you remember Xu Fugui from our village last year? His name has the words 'wealth' in it—yet did he really become wealthy? He spent his whole life working hard, facing the soil and turning his back to the sky, and what happened at the end?' Encountering rainstorms while working in the fields, I hadn't even made it back home when a thunderbolt struck my hoe right on the shoulder—hey, I'm dead, dead, and didn't get a good send-off at all, though I'm grateful I didn't have to go to the crematorium...” "Wealth and prosperity are earned through hard work and perseverance—only the way I see it differs from what you think, but the end goal is the same." Li Lei couldn't bear it anymore and roared, "Isn't there a better way to achieve prosperity? Doesn't it have to involve some crooked paths?" Da Peng chuckled, "Well, prosperity often comes through risk—after all, that's how my life has always been." Li Lei complained, "Don't you listen to advice?" "Big Peng just shook his head." Li Lei remained silent. Lu Yun was quite surprised—how could such a sturdy, imposing Big Peng manage to express himself so clearly? Whether right or wrong, Big Peng had already laid out his life path for the future, just as Lu Yun had vowed to build a harem of three thousand consorts. "Cloud brother, this guy's brain must have been kicked by an ox. Give him a good scolding, make him snap out of it," Li Lei had been saying all along, wasting countless words, yet achieving absolutely no results—so he now placed all his hopes on Lu Yun. Lu Yun fixed his gaze steadily on Big Peng, pausing for a while before finally speaking: "Big Peng, be careful." Then he rose and walked away. From the way Big Peng had spoken, there was a clear sense of profound wisdom hidden beneath simplicity. Lu Yun couldn't find any argument to challenge Big Peng's stance. To Li Lei's astonishment, Lu Yun's words had completely exceeded his expectations—having come to persuade Big Peng, he now found himself unexpectedly convinced by Big Peng himself. "Uncle Yun, I'll do it!" Da Peng laughed widely and happily. Lei stared at Da Peng, then hurried after Lu Yun to ask him what was going on. Before Lei could open his mouth, Lu Yun stepped in and said, "Lei, what do you want to do when you grow up?" "Lei was taken aback, scratched his head, and said honestly, 'Uncle Yun, I don't have any grand ambitions. All I want is to grow up and marry Xiao Jing, bring her home as my wife, have two children, and then earn as much money as possible so that we can live a good life.' If Lei had said this to Kong Senior in the morning of several thousand years ago, Kong would have loudly criticized him for being unambitious. Even today, if his teacher heard this, he would surely scold him. Lei seemed aware that his aspirations were rather ordinary. Yet, by nature, he never imagined himself leading a dramatic or heroic life. Perhaps, at his current age, he hadn't even thought about the future yet. Still, in Lei's heart, marrying a wife, having children, and living a simple life was his ideal—especially the wife who would warm his bed, someone as beautiful as Xiao Jing. Suddenly, as if remembering something, Lei, who had been slightly shy before, straightened his back and smiled, asking, 'Uncle Yun, don't you think I'm rather unambitious?'" Lu Yun shook his head, calmly saying, "No. As you've imagined, everyone has their own ideals—whether good or not—life's path cannot be controlled by anyone else. Take you, for instance. If you truly managed to marry Xiao Jing and live a sweet, peaceful life, would you not rather stay put and go with me to explore the outside world? What would you do then?" Lei firmly shook his head: "Cloud brother, I won't mind if you're upset. If I really managed to marry Xiao Jing and make her my wife, I'd never leave. I'd stay close to her, find a place nearby to earn a living, and stay with her for life." At this point, Lei suddenly felt it all click into place. Though he now understood clearly, he realized that the path chosen by Dapeng was simply too risky. Standing by a river, who wouldn't get their shoes wet? Even if Dapeng succeeded in achieving his dreams and gained fame with a group of companions, could he truly guarantee that he wouldn't be outmaneuvered or betrayed at some point? Navigating social circles—just one misstep, and you're in serious trouble. Lai was a bit depressed, quietly following Lu Yun all the way to the classroom, rarely speaking. As they stepped into the classroom, Lu Yun suddenly smiled and asked, "Hmm, haven't you figured it out yet?"