Chapter 36: Can the Chen Family's Hope Crush Chen Fan?

More than half an hour later, Xia Mengmeng returned home. 

Just as she was about to open the door, a delicious aroma hit her nose. The next second, like a greedy cat, she headed straight to Chen Fan's villa. 

When she saw Chen Fan and her sister eating happily, Xia Mengmeng cried out in envy.

"If I had known, I would've come back earlier..." she lamented. Xia Mengmeng had always been obsessed with Chen Fan's cooking.

Without hesitation, she grabbed a skewer of lamb and began eating. As she enjoyed her meal, she overheard Chen Fan calling her sister "Ruoshui," and to her surprise, Xia Ruoshui agreed with a smile, not the least bit upset.

Whoa! Has the relationship between Senior Chen and my sister progressed this quickly? It seems my plan worked perfectly today! If everything continues at this pace, it won't be long before my sister and Senior Chen officially confirm their relationship, she thought excitedly.

After dinner, Xia Mengmeng and Xia Ruoshui left, and Chen Fan tidied up before heading to bed. He couldn't wait for tomorrow.

Right now, he was worth over 8 billion yuan. He only needed one more billion to break the 10 billion mark! If he got lucky with the reward tomorrow, he could become the youngest billionaire in Jiangzhou. How could he not be thrilled about this?

The next morning, after his classes, Chen Fan drove away from the school. At the school gate, Chen Haoyu saw this and quickly called his sister, Chen Yicui.

"Chen Fan left the university. Okay, I understand," Chen Yicui nodded before hanging up.

Standing beside her was a tall, muscular young man.

"Brother Xingrong, Chen Fan has left Jiangzhou University," she informed him.

This young man was Chen Xingrong, the eldest son of Chen Yicui's fourth uncle, Chen Jinping. Xingrong had made quite a name for himself in Jiangzhou as a leader of an underground force, commanding nearly a hundred loyal followers.

"Good," Chen Xingrong nodded.

He then sent a message to one of his men, instructing him to follow Chen Fan's car.

"With Brother Xingrong taking charge this time, Chen Fan won't escape," Chen Yicui said, her excitement evident. To deal with Chen Fan, Brother Xingrong had called in about 20 to 30 men. They were absolutely sure of success.

To Chen Yicui and Chen Xingrong's father, this was a sure-fire way to bring Chen Fan down. Xingrong's intervention was seen as a massive power move, one that Chen Fan couldn't possibly withstand.

"Of course. Your previous attempts were too roundabout. Why not just get straight to the point and solve this with fists?" Chen Xingrong said with fierce eyes, clenching his fists as big as sandbags.

This time, he intended to teach Chen Fan a painful lesson and make him return to the Chen family, kneeling before their grandfather and begging for forgiveness.

Soon, he received a message from his men.

"Boss, that guy got off the car at Tan's Cuisine and seems to be going in for dinner."

Tan's Cuisine was one of Jiangzhou's famous private restaurants, only open to members and known for its high-end dining experience.

"Haha! Chen Fan's got some nerve, eating at a place like Tan's. I'll knock his teeth out before his meal's even done," Xingrong said, waving for his men to follow him. With about thirty of them in tow, they set off for Tan's Cuisine.

Ten minutes later, Xingrong, Yicui, and their men arrived at the restaurant in a threatening formation. One of their spies pointed out that Chen Fan was in a private dining room inside.

Xingrong wasted no time. He kicked open the door to the private room, where Chen Fan sat calmly, scrolling through his phone. Wei Jingxiong had just texted, saying he'd be thirty minutes late due to an urgent matter.

"Chen Fan! I've finally found you!" Xingrong bellowed, a wicked smile on his face.

Chen Fan looked up, unfazed. "What do you want?"

"Want? I want to beat you up, of course," Xingrong sneered. "If you have any sense, you'll go back now, kneel before Grandpa, apologize, return to the Chen family, and agree to marry Xu's daughter. If you do that, I'll let you go."

"But if you refuse, don't blame me for what happens next."

"I'm not going back to the Chen family. Dream on," Chen Fan shot back.

"Chen Fan, I can't believe how stubborn you've become. Brother Xingrong, teach him a lesson!" Chen Yicui urged, fanning the flames.

"Gladly," Xingrong grinned, motioning for his men to stay back. He wanted to personally deal with this rebellious cousin.

Xingrong stood in front of Chen Fan, swinging his massive fist with all his strength, sure that Chen Fan would crumble under his power.

But to everyone's shock, Chen Fan swiftly stood up, easily dodging the blow. In one smooth motion, he grabbed Xingrong's arm and used his strength against him.

**Bang!**

With a loud thud, Chen Xingrong crashed to the floor, screaming in pain.

Everyone in the room was stunned. What just happened?!

Chen Yicui stood there in disbelief. This wasn't supposed to happen. How did her tall, muscular brother end up on the ground?

Xingrong's men rushed to help him up, while Xingrong himself struggled to process the fact that he, standing at 1.9 meters tall and weighing over 200 kilograms, had been knocked down in an instant.

"Is this your confidence?" Chen Fan asked, standing tall.

The advanced fighting skills he had gained from the system had come in handy once again.

"Chen Fan… I underestimated you," Xingrong admitted, though still confident. "I might not be able to beat you, but I've got my men!"

He turned to his men and shouted, "Do you think I'll let him get away with this?"

"No!!!" his men yelled back in unison.

Xingrong gave them the signal, and all twenty or thirty of his men surged forward, surrounding Chen Fan in a tight circle.

Chen Fan might have beaten Xingrong, but with so many people, they believed there was no way he could handle them all.

"Get him!" Xingrong ordered.

But just before they could make a move, a booming voice rang out from behind them.

"I'd like to see who dares to lay a hand on him!!!"

Xingrong turned around in fury, ready to confront the speaker. But when he saw who it was, his expression changed instantly. He was shocked to his core.