What's more, she's Huan Ge's daughter!
I've already inquired. The school Ni Duoduo attends is a typical elite school… and it claims to have completely Western-style management… but that's all nonsense. Real Western school management isn't like that at all! What this school really means by using this excuse is: as long as you pay the exorbitant tuition, and as long as your child doesn't commit murder, arson, or break the law, the school basically doesn't care! After a few years, they give you a diploma, and wealthy families continue to spend money to get their children into another university, or even send them abroad. And clearly, Ni Duoduo and her classmates skipped class this afternoon.
Part One: In the Martial World, Not in Control of One's Own Fate, Chapter Sixty-Nine: Forcibly Taking a Woman
We drove all the way to the Military Club in the city center, a very famous place in Nanjing. Generally speaking, it's the largest book market in the surrounding provinces and cities. Whether it's all the currently popular books or magazines from Hong Kong and Taiwan, you can basically find them here. The club has a whole building, designed like a large shopping mall, filled with booksellers' stalls. From ancient Chinese philosophical works to mainstream propaganda, to textbooks, novels, magazines, and now popular online novels from Jin Yong and Gu Long, it has everything…
The only thing worth mentioning is that they are all pirated.
Generally, many middle school students come here to browse for the latest Taiwanese romance novels, as well as some Japanese manga, such as Hunter x Hunter and One Piece. Every afternoon, you can see rows of students coming and going. Of course, most of the books displayed on the counter are genuine, but if you quietly ask and agree on a price, someone will run to the back warehouse to get the book you want for you.
The reason I'm somewhat familiar with this place is because Ah Ze once brought me here to buy two sets of the Hong Kong film "Dragon Tiger Leopard".
Besides novels and comics, there's a row of audio-visual stores of all sizes around here. They sell all kinds of CDs, games, music, movies, and photo albums—you name it, they have it, and needless to say, they're all pirated. These stores are just across a small aisle from the Five Star Home Appliance Mall. Often, after buying a home theater system, people will run over here to pick up a dozen or so pirated American blockbusters to take home.
Meanwhile, there are also several small restaurants, bars, and a well-known karaoke room in the city.
Of course, the most famous feature of the entire Military Club among students was its former indoor skating rink, which was once the largest in Nanjing. Inline skating was incredibly popular in China in the late 1990s, reportedly a favorite pastime for middle school students. Back then, the "Great Wall" skating rink at the Military Club was packed every day.
Couples often openly stroll hand-in-hand while skating, and of course, many young delinquents and hooligans also spend their time here. This place is a melting pot, and groups of teenagers, barely out of their teens, frequently get into fights, sometimes even involving knives. It's located in a small alley behind the skating rink, often becoming a prime spot for "setting up a scene" (a Nanjing slang term meaning a large-scale brawl).
In short, it can be summed up in one word: chaos!
An ice rink is forced to employ dozens of security guards! Otherwise, they simply can't maintain order!
However, the craze for ice skating rinks has long passed, and young people no longer enjoy this kind of entertainment. But the Great Wall Ice Rink, as a gathering place for young people in Nanjing, has been preserved and business is still pretty good.
When we drove into the military club, the entrance was a bit crowded. By the time we got to the karaoke room, the parking spaces were already full. Several brightly decorated motorcycles were parked across the car parking spaces, looking very arrogant, with many modified, colorful lights attached to their bodies. A few young thugs were smoking around them, acting all high and mighty, swearing arrogantly, and occasionally whistling at pretty girls who walked by.
What caught my attention was that one of Ni Duoduo's classmates was standing next to these young punks, looking meek and obsequious, with a pack of cigarettes in his hand. He looked to be no more than seventeen years old, wearing a school uniform, his hair a mess like a bird's nest. I gestured for Qiao Qiao to stop the car, and then said to her, "Find a place to park, I'll wait for you in the karaoke room lobby."
After saying that, I opened the door and got out of the car. As I walked past those few scouts, I glanced at Ni Duoduo's classmate out of the corner of my eye, and I could almost hear him say in a fawning tone, "Big brother, it took me a lot of effort to bring them here today..."
I frowned slightly and strode into the lobby. The lobby was full of young people loitering around, and there was a cacophony of wailing and howling singing coming from the private rooms. I walked up to the counter and asked a waitress in an inexpensive cheongsam, "Which private room did those people in school uniforms go into?"
The waiter paused for a moment, looking embarrassed: "Sir, I don't know about this..."
I interrupted her: "Just now, there were four or five people, all wearing school uniforms, both boys and girls, dressed like middle school students. One of them had an afro, so he should be easy to recognize."
The waiter frowned: "Sir, if you want to find your friends, you can call them yourself..."
I was getting impatient, so I pulled a large pink banknote from my pocket, slammed it on the counter, and pushed it over: "Which private room are they in?"
"319, the second room on the left on the third floor." The waiter quickly reached out and swept the money across the counter, then casually swept it back, saying this in a swift and discreet manner.
"Okay, get me a private room, the one next to theirs."
The waitress gave me a strange look, probably thinking I was odd, but seeing my indifferent expression, she didn't say anything, quickly gave me the bill, and I paid and went back to the lobby entrance to wait for Aze and Qiaoqiao.
Just as they reached the door, they heard a whistle coming from outside. Qiaoqiao and Aze walked up the steps with their heads held high and pushed the door open. Qiaoqiao even turned around and gave the outsider the middle finger.
"What's wrong?" I asked.
Qiaoqiao looked disdainful: "A few punks whistling at me."
I smiled and didn't say anything.
This kind of thing is quite normal. Under normal circumstances, these few thugs would probably have swarmed them. They probably didn't make any rash moves because Qiaoqiao and Aze didn't look like ordinary people and they arrived in a luxury car.
We went up to the third floor. Before entering the private room, I secretly peeked into the next room from the outside. The door to the private room was made of patterned glass, so I couldn't see very clearly, but I could vaguely make out four or five people inside. Judging from their clothes, they were Ni Duoduo's classmates. Even through the door, I could hear deafeningly loud music coming from inside. The lights in the room were dimmed, and it seemed like they were dancing.
"Chen Yang, are we just going to sing like idiots here?" Qiao Qiao raised her eyebrows: "I haven't sung karaoke in ages, what's the point of this place?"
Aze didn't care about any of that. He randomly picked a song, grabbed the microphone, and started yelling.
I pulled Qiaoqiao to sit next to me. My seat was near the entrance; the private rooms here are all U-shaped. From where I sat, I could see the door to the next private room, and I could see people going in and out of Ni Duoduo's room.
I lit a cigarette and said in a low voice, "Sit down first. We're just killing time anyway, so find something to do."
Qiaoqiao rolled her eyes: "Tch. I knew I shouldn't have come out with you today. I've spent the whole morning with you, and I haven't picked up any girls. I've just been driving you around like a chauffeur."
I smiled ingratiatingly: "Alright, consider it helping a friend... To be honest, I asked you guys to keep me company and give me courage. I've never dealt with girls like this before, and since you're a girl, I might need your help with something. When that girl goes to the restroom later, could you follow her? I overheard one of her classmates talking to some thugs outside, and something might happen."
Qiaoqiao's eyes lit up immediately: "Something wrong? That's more like it! What's up? Are we going to fight here today?" I glanced at her. I thought to myself, only this crazy girl's unbridled nature would make her eyes light up at the mention of fighting, like she wanted to stir up trouble. Looking at her like that, she seemed ready to climb on the roof and tear the tiles off the house.
After sitting for a while, I saw a few people walk into the next room. They were the same thugs I had seen at the door earlier, and Ni Duoduo's classmate. Then the music from next door got even louder, and I could hear whistles every now and then.
I was sitting down and drinking a Coke when I saw the door next door open, and Ni Duoduo and two female classmates came out. I immediately said to Qiao Qiao, "Go ahead, find out what's going on in the restroom, and don't let them come back too soon. I have something to take care of."
"What's going on?" Qiaoqiao stared at me with her almond-shaped eyes.
"Oh, that's easy! Just do whatever you want! Talk to them, flirt with the girls." I said nonchalantly, "Isn't that what you always do?"
"Damn! Just these few girls?" Qiao Qiao said with a look of disdain, "I don't even look at them! I, Miss Qiao, don't just pick any girl! Pshaw! I'd rather take a bite of a perfect peach than eat a whole basket of rotten pears!"
I sighed: "Damn it, I'd go to any lengths for my brothers! It's just picking up a girl, not like you're hooking up with men! Didn't I even pretend to be a gangster to scare those two guys last time?"
Qiaoqiao sighed helplessly, "Fine, I'll consider this my way of repaying that favor." After saying that, Qiaoqiao got up and followed me out. I pushed Aze again, "Don't just stand there, you go too."
"Me?" Aze asked with a pained expression.
“There are three of them. I’m afraid Qiaoqiao can’t handle them by herself. You should go help her. Aren’t you the best at dealing with girls?”
Before Aze could refuse, I quickly said, "If your family arranges a blind date with a gay man next time, I'll help you out." After saying that, I pushed him out.
After Aze left, I turned off the music, walked to the door, and pressed my head against the wall to listen to the sounds from next door.
The rooms in these low-end karaoke rooms are furnished with cheap partitions, offering very poor soundproofing. You can hear almost everything coming from next door through the partitions. Luckily, the music next door had been turned off, so all I could hear was a man's voice.
"Boss, is this okay? Won't this cause trouble?" I recognized the voice as Ni Duoduo's male classmate.
"If you're scared, then fucking get the hell out of here!" a vicious voice muttered. "Damn it, it's just a few girls, you've never done this before!"
“But… Ni Duoduo’s little girl seems to have some connections!” Ni Duoduo’s classmate hesitated: “Some people tried to take advantage of her before, but they were beaten up several times. One guy even broke her leg.”
"Stop talking nonsense!" another voice yelled, "She's just a middle school student! I don't believe she has any connections. Let's sleep with her first!"
The menacing voice suddenly chuckled, the following tone becoming somewhat lewd, likely spoken in a low voice. It was somewhat muffled: "I...took...six...Spanish...flies...big...taken away..."
The more I listened, the angrier I got. Although I didn't hear the whole thing, I roughly understood what it meant!
These guys were probably planning to drug Ni Duoduo, knock her unconscious, and take her away. As for the name "Spanish Fly," I was certainly familiar with it; it's an aphrodisiac and hallucinogen. Many petty thugs use this drug to pick up girls in nightclubs. They'll drug those young women who've had too much to drink at the nightclub, then take them wherever they want, do whatever they want to them. Forget about being drugged and raped; being gang-raped is quite normal.
I stubbed out my cigarette, then grabbed a beer bottle from the table and went out the door.
Pushing open the door to the next room, I saw the same group of thugs I'd seen at the door sitting on the sofa, legs splayed out, casually smoking. The room was filled with smoke and haze. My eyes immediately fell on a small, translucent plastic bag on the table… I'd seen this kind of thing countless times. A surge of anger welled up inside me!
The thugs were stunned when they saw me, a stranger, push the door open and walk in. But immediately, one of them, who reacted the fastest, snatched the packet of hallucinogenic drugs from the table. The guy sitting closest to the door stood up and shouted menacingly, "What are you doing! What are you doing in our private room! Get out, get out!!" He then walked over and tried to push me.
With one hand behind my back, holding a beer bottle, I said casually, my face expressionless, "Oh, I came to the wrong door." Just then, the guy's hand reached for me. I suddenly grabbed his shoulder and smashed the beer bottle down with my other hand.
Bang!
The guy didn't even utter a sound before going limp on the spot. The other thugs all jumped up. "Fuck your mother!"
With a murderous look on my face, I grabbed the first guy who rushed in front of me, pulled him down by the hair, and at the same time raised my knee and delivered a knee strike. The guy screamed and fell to the ground, clutching his face. His face was covered in snot, blood, and tears. At that moment, the other two thugs actually pulled out knives from their waists!
Damn, these thugs these days are something else! They even carry weapons with them when they go out! I thought to myself with a slight sigh, when the skinniest-looking guy across from me stabbed me with a knife.
I sidestepped, grabbed his arm, and with a little force, dislocated his joint. Then I punched him in the chin. The guy yelled in pain, but one arm went limp, and he didn't know whether to cover his face or his arm with the other. I grabbed the knife he had dropped, pointed at the remaining two guys, and shouted, "Come on!"
The last two thugs seemed hesitant. Seeing me take down three guys with ease, they looked panicked, holding knives but refusing to come forward. Ni Duoduo's classmate, on the other hand, cowered in a corner, trembling.
I've seen plenty of these petty thugs back in my day; they're all cowardly bullies who prey on the weak. If you're tougher than them, they'll back down; if they're vicious, you have to be even viciouser! Then you can bully them however you want! I casually tossed aside the broken beer bottle in my hand, completely ignoring the two guys with knives in front of me. I walked to the corner, grabbed Ni Duoduo's classmate, and dragged him over. Seeing him cowering with fear, I felt disgusted. I raised my hand and slapped him across the face with a loud "smack," making his nose bleed. Not satisfied, I slapped him seven or eight more times. At first, he tried to raise his hand to protect his face, but when I glared at him and shouted, "Don't dodge!" he went limp and didn't dare move.
After I slapped him a few times, the guy's face was covered in blood, and his cheeks were swollen high. I left him and looked at the two thugs with knives. They were still terrified and dared not come forward. One of them was even trembling.
"A knife?" I scoffed. "So what if I gave you a gun?" The guy on the ground who'd been hit with a beer bottle stirred a few times, seemingly trying to get up. I sneered, then went up the hill and started kicking and stomping on his back, making him scream in pain. He rolled on the ground, and only then did I let him go.
The two men with knives didn't dare to move and just watched as I beat up their companion.
Only after I stopped did one of them timidly speak up: "Friend...you..."
I glared at him and said, "Who the hell is your friend?" He was so scared that he shut his mouth and didn't dare to say anything.
My gaze turned grim as I stared at the two thugs. "Who was it that said they wanted to sleep with Ni Duoduo? Come here." The two thugs, holding knives, seemed unsure whether to put them down or what to do. Hearing my words, they quickly shook their heads. "It wasn't me!"
I kicked one of the guys to the ground with one slap, and another fell to the ground after I glared at him. I pointed the knife at him and said coldly, "Slap yourself. Slap yourself!"
"ah?"
"Hit!" I squinted. "If you won't hit, I'll do it for you!"
Under my intense gaze, he remained silent for a few seconds before finally raising his hand...
A series of slapping sounds came from the room. I glared at the other person I had just kicked onto the sofa: "And you too!"
This guy looked a bit older, probably in his twenties, with a gold chain around his neck and earrings. He looked at me for a moment, then suddenly asked tentatively in a fearful tone, "You...I know you...you're Brother Xiao Wu, right?"
I raised an eyebrow, a fierce glint in my eyes: "How do you know me?"
The guy shrank back in fright: "I... my cousin works as a security guard at Jinbihuihuang... you're the boss of Jinbihuihuang... I've seen you before."
"Damn it." I went up and grabbed him again, slapping him across the face until he dared not say another word.
I then sat down at the middle table, tossed aside the knife, pulled out a cigarette, and lit it. I glanced at the guy who had been slapping himself; he had stopped and was looking at me. I immediately glared at him: "Did I tell you to stop?"
He was so frightened that he quickly raised his hand and continued slapping himself repeatedly. Both cheeks were red and swollen from the slaps, but he didn't dare to stop.
I stared at the guy who recognized me, squinting my eyes: "You recognize me... well, so are you guys planning to make a move on Ni Duoduo today?"
Even a fool would understand by now that I was standing up for that little girl, Ni Duoduo. This guy shrank back in fright and quickly said, "I wouldn't dare! I didn't know she was your girl, Brother Xiao Wu. I'll never do it again!"
"Who the hell is my girlfriend!" I roared. "Let me tell you! Ni Duoduo is my sister! If you dare to have any more thoughts about her, I'll cripple you anytime, you believe me?"
Then I reached out my hand: "Give it to me."
"Huh?" He paused, taken aback. I glared at him, but didn't say anything. He immediately understood and quickly pulled out the packet of hallucinogenic drugs from his pocket. I threw them all into the ashtray, then picked up a tissue from the table, wiped the blood off my hands, threw it into the ashtray, and lit it with a lighter.
The flames flickered a few times, and the packet of hallucinogenic drugs burned along with the tissue.
Looking at the flames, a look of distress crossed his face. I knew this medicine wasn't cheap; such a small packet would cost at least several hundred. But of course, he didn't dare say anything at the moment.
I took two cold drags on my cigarette, then casually stubbed it out on the face of one of the men at my feet. The guy, who had been lying on the ground groaning, immediately screamed in pain when the cigarette butt burned him.
I stood up on my own, dusted myself off, and glanced back at the guy: "Don't let me see you again." He nodded quickly.
I glanced at Ni Duoduo's classmate again; he was sitting on the ground, covering his face and crying. I made a disgusted face and went over to kick him down again.
Honestly, I really wanted to chop this little bastard up on the spot... how dare he bring outsiders to harm his own classmates!
I turned around, pushed open the door, and went out. As soon as I stepped out, I saw Ni Duoduo running angrily down the corridor, with only Qiao Qiao following behind her.
We looked at each other in the corridor. She stared at me for a moment, raised her eyebrows and shouted, "What, it's you again? What are you doing following me? Are you crazy?!" After saying that, she walked quickly past me and went into her private room.