“Yo, looks like you have been quite well off in the last few days.” A guy with a clean cut whistled and stood there rascally. He was known as “Sir Tiger” and was a thug under the Hongyi Gang. He trained in martial arts for six years. One time, he single-handedly defeated a group of five gangsters which allowed him to receive special recognition from the big boss at Hongyi.
Although he was not a person of importance, he did have a bunch of followers. Rebellious students that called him “big boss.” He enjoyed being the center of attention.
He spent the majority of his time as a bouncer at Hongyi’s night club and occasionally collected loans for his boss. It was an excellent lifestyle for him.
As unexciting as it was to collect money from a girl, especially when the girl considered calling the cop, her attractiveness made up for the trouble. Thus, he decided to let the incident slide. Besides, did she not know who she dealt with when she borrowed money from Hongyi in the first place? A perverted smile emerged on Liu Hu’s face. His gang already surrounded the flower shop. The customers who were there immediately left.
The busy flower shop was suddenly empty. The shop owner with a frightened look was trembling. He was also afraid to call the cops as he didn’t want any more trouble. With this many thugs here, there was no way to do business.
“Come out? Do you need me to send you a formal invitation?” Liu Hu blew a whistle and looked at her as if she was a prey.
Xia Shiyu bit her lips. Her flawless face was covered by the gloom of terror. She noticed the plea in the store owner’s eyes. She sighed as she put the flower down quivering. She walked over with fixated but tense steps.
“I can’t believe you are still working here.” Liu Hu reached for her face. “Do you have the money for me?”
But to his surprise, the resilient girl avoided his hand.
“I’ll repay the money while working. Please don’t bother me anymore.” She took in a deep breath and answered without any emotions.
“Work? With this? How long would we have to wait? Hehe.” He didn’t seem angry when she avoided his hand, but a grimness filled his eyes.
“What do you want?” With a stern face, Xiao Shiyu stared at the rascal. She was terrified as her legs trembled. But the resiliency deep in her bones made her stand her ground.
[This girl is interesting. Even though she is scared to death, she is still giving me the attitude.] Liu Hu raised his eyebrows, and he pondered with a smile.
“Two options. Money, or you.” He put up two fingers.
“I don’t have any money right now.” Xia Shiyu tried to remain calm.
“Then it’s a simple problem. We’ll take you.” He reached out to shake as if the deal was already made.
“Me?” Xia Shiyu hissed at the remark, “You guys are not afraid of getting accused of human trafficking?”
“Hahahahaha.”
Everyone, including Liu Hu, laughed hysterically.
That made Xia Shiyu feel humiliated. She didn’t think it was funny at all, but she could not deliver a comeback. She thought she could live a fulfilled life as an independent woman by working hard. She would support herself, her parents and realize her value.
But the reality was harsh.
“No No No, that’s a waste. Particularly for a beauty like you.” Finally finished laughing, Liu Hu looked at the thugs behind him, “At least we need to let everyone get a taste of you for a few years before selling you to someone as a wife. What do you guys think?”
“Hahaha, maybe we will even visit you to help you with your business.”
“Why don’t we sell her to Sir Pi? That bastard loves wh*res.”
“F*ck you. I like wh*res, but I never said I was going to marry one.”
After hearing all the rude and perverted comments, blood almost seeped out of Xia Shiyu’s lips because she bit it so hard. She wanted to cry; she wanted someone to save her right now. Even in her most difficult time, this thought never crossed her mind.
Tears of humiliation filled her eyes, and she even thought of killing herself. If they take her away, then it would be better off to die.
Liu Hu was experienced in debt collection. He knew what Xia Shiyu was thinking when he saw her expression, and he signaled his thugs to be quiet.
“Fine. I know this is unfortunate for you, but this is the rule. You pay if you owe money. Don’t worry. If you work for a couple of years in the Hongyi night club, you can leave once you pay your debt off. No one would know anyways. Then, in the end, you can just leave the city and marry someone nice. Just don’t borrow any more money you shouldn’t borrow in the first place.”
That was a tactical move. Sticks and carrots were stereotypical, but it was extremely useful. The rude comments were probably part of the plan to set all of this up. Thugs are scariest when they are knowledgeable and well managed.
Jiang Chen wanted to keep watching, but the crushing look of his previous boss made him abort the idea. Although he hated her before, he didn’t want to see her breakdown.
[Fine, I will help her.]
In the past he would be terrified if he met a bunch of thugs, but now.
“Hehe, how should I address you sir?”
Liu Hu paused momentarily. He didn’t even realize there was someone that passed him a cigarette.
With teary eyes, Xia Shiyu looked at the man with pure disbelief. Her face had shock written all over. Is it him that stood up for her? The guy she fired in a moment of rage? She felt a sense of regret for her careless actions in the past, but she didn’t imagine her next encounter with him would be in such a scenario.
[Why is he here? Why is he standing up for me? Shouldn’t he be watching this drama right now as a bystander?]
Her face was completely stunned by everything that just happened. Regret, sympathy, sincerity, and confusion?
“Liu Hu.” Liu Hu was dumbfounded. He was shocked by what just happened. Who would dare to talk with a gang when they were in the middle of something?
Cop? Liu Hu immediately rejected this idea. His boss has connections at the police department. So, unless the incident made headlines, they would not be involved.
Retard? Liu Hu’s facial expression suddenly changed.
“What a coincidence. I just met a friend of mine here.” Jiang Chen laughed. He then changed the topic, “I heard the conversation. How much does she owe you?”
Liu Hu examined Jiang Chen with his eyes squinted. In his opinion, this guy was too calm and collected.
His boss’s mission for him was to bring the girl back if possible. The interest on the loan was nothing compared to the potential revenue she could generate at the nightclub. This girl’s perfect look and the gorgeous figure would sell her as a top choice at the nightclub. That was the cash generating business for the gang.
“Buddy, are you looking for trouble?” Liu Hu sneered as he reached for Jiang Chen. Xia Shiyu’s heart almost jumped out of her throat as she nervously watched the guy that stood up for her.
“My clothes cost around ten thousand dollars. Can you buy me a new one if you rip it?” Jiang Chen sighed as he clinched onto Liu Hu’s hand. With his reflex stats of 28, it was not enough in the danger-filled wasteland, but it was certainly sufficient for these thugs in the modern world.
Liu Hu felt as if both of his hands were clamped down. He couldn’t even move a single inch.
[F*ck, this guy must have trained in martial arts before.]
He realized he messed with the wrong person. Although he wanted to backup, since all his thugs were watching, the ruthless side of him came out as he flipped out the knife hidden in his left hand. Then, he slashed at Jiang Chen’s head.
Jiang Chen slightly turned his head to avoid the slow moving knife. He then pushed Liu Hu away.
“F*ck, you think you are tough? Guys beat him up!” The thug that was obviously connected to Liu Hu saw the tide of the fight turn. He wanted to escalate the fight from one on one to a full brawl.
Jiang Chen sighed. If he knew this conflict was tedious to resolve, he wouldn’t have worn expensive clothing to a fight.
“Why don’t we go to the ally there? There’s monitoring here.” Jiang Chen casually pointed to the alley.
Liu Hu paused again. His reaction was abnormal to Liu Hu. He didn’t look the slightest bit afraid, which made Liu Hu unsure. Since he already proposed it, it would be cowardly if he didn’t agree. How would he maintain his reputation in front of his thugs?
“Hehe, what a brave guy. Please.” Liu Hu fixed his collar as he signaled towards the alley.
[What a show-off] Jiang Chen didn’t imagine Liu Hu would have the audacity to go even if it was a brawl. Jiang Chen stepped into the alley.
A sneer appeared on Liu Hu’s face as Jiang Chen followed into the alley. [Regardless of how good your martial art is, there is no way you would beat ten people. Do you think you are superman?]
He left the most useless thug to keep an eye on Xia Shiyu. The rest of the thugs followed him into the alley.
Worried about Jiang Chen’s safety, she anxious thought about possible solutions. She considered calling the cop, but the thug was looking at her fiercely. She glanced over at the store owner that always took care of her before, but he just pretended he didn’t see anything.
She had the urge to cry with a mixture of emotions. Not because she was afraid, but because she felt helpless.
She didn’t rely on anyone in the past ten years. The weariness caused by her resilience overwhelmed her by her helplessness.
“Beat him up…” Just as he opened his mouth, Liu Hu’s rascal expression froze.
A pistol was pointed at his forehead.
“There’s no monitoring here.” Jiang Chen shrugged. He didn’t expect the pistol that Yao Yao picked up would be useful. He didn’t mind teaching these thugs a lesson with his fist if it was not because of his clothing.
“Fake… It’s fake right?” Sweat rolled down Liu Hu’s forehead. He forced a smile and stared at Jiang Chen. He wanted to look for the uncertainty, which would give him courage.
Jiang Chen moved the gun and pointed elsewhere.
Bang!
The explosion of the bullet struck like thunder beside Liu Hu’s ear. In such a close range, it almost popped his eardrum.
“Ahhhhhhh…” A thug covered his leg as he fell to the ground. His face was pale and twisted due to the unbearable amount of pain. Everyone just stood there terrified; they didn’t dare to help the guy.
The bullet penetrated through the thug’s leg and pierced into the concrete ground. The poor bastard that got shot was the thug that wanted to fight outside. He should have thought about this when he tried to escalate the whole thing.
Gun
It was dead silent. Only the lunatics and the cops had guns. His boss once told him that. He never touched a gun before, but he memorized it by heart.
Regardless of which type, they were all extremely dangerous.
There were many gangs in Wanghai City. If Liu Hu accidently offended a person of power, nobody would say a thing if he died.
“B… Boss, there is always a solution. No need to bring a gun into the conversation.”
Jiang Chen pressed the burning barrel against his forehead. He resisted the pain as he was too terrified to move. The skin on his forehead was probably burned, but he couldn’t say a word.
“I tried to come up with a solution, but you always interrupted me.” Jiang Chen made a harmless expression.
[This guy must be crazy!]
Liu Hu swallowed his fear. He kept laughing to alleviate the intensity of the situation.
“Ok, I don’t have all day for you.” Jiang Chen tapped Liu Hu’s head with the gun. Liu Hu noticed that Jiang Chen didn’t close the safety. He was drenched in cold sweat. It was the first time in his life that he felt so terrified.
“Do we have an agreement?”
“Ye…Yes.” Liu Hu quivered as he took out the agreement.
“What’s your bank account number?”
“Hmm?” Liu Hu was confused as to what Jiang Chen meant.
“I’ll repay the money. Are you dumb or what.” Jiang Chen suddenly raised his voice which made Liu Hu heart pound even faster.
“Repay the money?” In a trembling voice, he asked. He thought he heard it wrong.
“It’s as if you sold me the debt. Do you understand what that means? What’s in your brain? Do I look like the type who wouldn’t pay?” Jiang Chen stuffed the gun into his pocket.
“No, nope.” There was no way Liu Hu would answer yes.
Ripping the debt would not be a solution as Hongyi Gang would not easily let this go. Jiang Chen was not afraid. Xia Shiyu, on the other hand, would be in danger.
Jiang Chen had things to take care of in the apocalypse. He didn’t have enough time to look after Xia Shiyu. He only helped because he was a good person with no intention of putting any more effort into this. His time was quite valuable as he was planning a trip to a famous tourist city Sanya.
Changing the ownership of debt was the best solution Jiang Chen came up with. She could repay him while maintaining her dignity.
He didn’t care about the money, but he did not want to just write the debt off for her. The high-interest loan was illegal but repaying the principal amount was reasonable. If he didn’t have the opportunity to oppress his previous manager with the terrible attitude, it would be a waste of a beautiful chance.
Also, Jiang Chen had previous considerations as well.
Liu Hu happily accepted the payment as he furiously bowed to Jiang Chen. After Jiang Chen repaid the 410,000 dollars, he immediately left while hustling the injured thug. There was no way he would dare to ask for interest. He was sure his boss would not blame him since the other person had a gun. Jiang Chen was in good faith to repay the principle amount.
They rushed out of the alley without daring to ask Jiang Chen’s name.
Jiang Chen scorned at the direction Liu Hu left as he threw the gun into the storage dimension.
He touched his face and stepped out of the alley.
Hmm? Where did the blood come from?