Chapter Ninety-Five: A Chance Encounter with an Acquaintance

Qin Anyi lunged to Qin Lianshan’s side, helped him up with great care, and examined him thoroughly. It seemed Qin Lianshan had only suffered superficial injuries, none of them serious. Those punks were clearly experienced; although their blows were vicious enough to make a man ache with pain, they had not caused any internal damage.

“Fortunately, there doesn’t seem to be any real problem. Let’s go to the hospital first,” Qin Anyi said, still not entirely confident in his own judgment as he steadied his father.

“No, no, no. It’s nothing serious, just a bit of flesh and skin. How are the old mates? They’re all right, aren’t they?” Qin Lianshan waved a hand and then went to help the other three men to their feet, one by one, with obvious concern.

After all, the four of them had worked as dock hands and loaders for many years, and their bodies were tough. Though they had been kicked to the ground and beaten for several minutes, they were not badly hurt.

Still, Qin Anyi’s anger continued to rise. To see his father bullied like this filled him with a murderous impulse.

“Dad, let’s go to the hospital. Who knows whether there’s any hidden injury?” Though his fury burned hot, Qin Anyi forced it down and tried to persuade Qin Lianshan patiently.

“Really, there’s no need. I know my own body. It’s definitely fine. Your old man’s as sturdy as ever. What can a few kids’ fists and feet do to me? Anyi, why are you here?”

Qin Lianshan flexed his wrists and arms, speaking carelessly.

“I just finished eating at a friend’s place and happened to pass by. Dad, what exactly happened?”

Qin Anyi no longer insisted and instead asked about the cause. At the same time, he turned and shot a fierce glare at the four crew-cut youths he had knocked down. All four of them tensed instantly, their instincts warning them of indescribable danger. Their hearts sank with misery, yet the pain left them unable even to stand up.

Qin Lianshan briefly explained what had happened. Though he did not voice his suspicion about the person who had suddenly appeared and struck one of his companions, Qin Anyi still keenly sensed that something was wrong.

Bending down beside the new Passat, he looked at the two completely different scratch marks on the car door and had already grasped the general shape of the matter.

By then, the four crew-cut youths had recovered somewhat. The suffocating pressure in their chests had finally begun to ease. They drew in great gasps of air and forced themselves to their feet one after another, all of them glaring venomously at Qin Anyi. But because the few punches he had landed earlier were far too shocking, none of them dared step forward.

“I think the situation is very clear now. You’ll have to give me an explanation,” Qin Anyi said lazily, hands in his pockets as he walked up to them. Though he made no threatening move and stood alone, he utterly overwhelmed the four of them with sheer presence.

“Give you an explanation? You brat, do you even know who you’ve offended? I’m telling you, you’re going to regret this! Agh!”

The crew-cut called Xiangzi had barely finished uttering his threat before Qin Anyi slapped him across the face.

Qin Anyi’s strength was terrifying. That single blow sent Xiangzi crashing to the ground again.

“I’m not here to listen to your nonsense. Just tell me what kind of explanation you intend to give me,” Qin Anyi said, calm as ever, as though nothing had happened.

The calmer he remained, the more frightened the crew-cuts became. If Qin Anyi had been loud and furious, they might not have found him so terrifying. But his unnerving composure made them completely unable to guess what he was thinking.

“Anyi, maybe let it go. We did scratch their car,” Qin Lianshan hurried over and said. He was not afraid of anything else; he was only afraid Qin Anyi would get himself into trouble. Though he was astonished that his son could fight so well, he did not dwell on it.

“Dad, don’t worry. It’s nothing major. But since they dared to lay hands on you, they have to pay a price. This is a society governed by law; I won’t go too far, but I can’t just stand by and let people bully us,” Qin Anyi said with a smile.

“An explanation? We’re the ones who ought to be demanding an explanation from you! Do you know whose people we are?”

Another crew-cut seemed unable to bear the humiliation of being suppressed by Qin Anyi any longer and shouted loudly.

Smack!

Another crisp slap rang out. The shouting crew-cut, just like Xiangzi, was sent sprawling to the ground by Qin Anyi’s hand.

“You... you...”

The third crew-cut seemed stunned, staring blankly at Qin Anyi. He stammered for a long time, but in the end could not think of a single thing to say.

Smack!

Qin Anyi answered him with yet another sharp, resounding slap.

The only crew-cut still standing looked instinctively at his three companions on the ground, only to see that Xiangzi had already fainted, his face swollen high and blood streaming from his mouth. Clearly, several teeth had been knocked out by that blow. The other two, though not unconscious, were no better off. The man’s attacks were simply too vicious.

He shivered all over and said cautiously, “We... we’re willing to pay the medical expenses for the old gentlemen. As for the car, let’s just forget about it. Y-you... do you have any other demands?”

Only then did Qin Anyi nod.

“Good. You’re smarter than the others. I like talking to smart people; at least it doesn’t waste time. Since you wanted to extort ten thousand from my father, then you’ll pay ten thousand. And the one who fainted—he was the one who kept beating my father, yes? I’m going to give him a special welcome. As for this armoire, you carry it upstairs.”

The only crew-cut standing there immediately looked troubled. Ten thousand was no small sum for them. They were only the lowest-level thugs, and the money they took home each month was not much to begin with. And to give Xiangzi special treatment? Xiangzi held a slightly higher position than the other three; otherwise, their boss would not have trusted him to warm up the newly bought car. If he agreed, everyone might know he had no choice, but he would still be hated for it.

“What, there’s a problem?” Qin Anyi calmly rolled his wrist.

The crew-cut’s heart clenched. He hurriedly nodded. “No problem, no problem. It’s just the money... we didn’t bring that much with us. We’ll need some time to scrape it together.”

“What’s there to scrape together? My car is pretty good. Just find a used-car dealer and sell it. There are so many of them these days,” Qin Anyi said casually.

The crew-cut nearly died of fright on the spot. He pleaded in a tearful voice, “Please spare us, sir. That car isn’t ours... If we really sold it, the few of us would have nowhere to live. We were blind, we didn’t recognize a towering figure. Please let us off this once.”

“I already said I don’t like listening to nonsense.”

Qin Anyi looked at him expressionlessly, and that only drove the crew-cut deeper into despair.

“Lianshan, your son is this formidable? Those little thugs were knocked down in a few moves? Has he learned martial arts too?”

The four loaders had gathered together by then, and one of them asked Qin Lianshan curiously.

Their injuries were only superficial; by the next day, they would mostly heal on their own.

“I don’t know either...” Qin Lianshan shook his head without hesitation.

“Lianshan, let’s hurry and carry the stuff upstairs, then get out of here. Those little bastards are hard to deal with. If we really provoke them, they’ll find some petty way to make life miserable for us, and we won’t be able to take it,” another porter said with concern.

“I was thinking the same thing, but once this son of mine makes up his mind, nobody can talk him out of it...” Qin Lianshan said, equally vexed.

Just as the loaders were worrying to themselves, a mountain of a man appeared beneath the apartment building with a dark expression.

“Who can tell me... what is going on here?”

The man’s voice was not loud, yet it carried an unmistakable note of anger.

The only crew-cut still standing was overjoyed at the sight of him.

“Fat Brother! You’re here at last! This kid scratched your car and now he wants to extort money from us!”

The other two crew-cuts lying on the ground, aside from the one who had fainted, also forced themselves up and began to cry out loudly about their grievances.

Qin Anyi turned around without expression, but at the very first sight of the man he froze slightly.

The man likewise reacted the same way. The two of them stood dumbstruck for a moment, then both showed strange expressions.

Big Fatty!