One of the policemen said, "Yucai? That sounds familiar."
Another policeman, clearly a Sanda enthusiast, immediately said, "The top four teams from the martial arts tournament have made it." He glanced at me and instantly recognized me. "I've seen you on TV, 'You're from Yucai Strong.' Wasn't your competition today? What are you doing here?"
I put my hand on his shoulder and said, "There's no time to explain, I just came from the hospital."
Upon hearing this, the policeman immediately deduced the general situation. He opened the back door of the police car and said, "Come on, we'll take you."
The policeman was driving, while the Sanda enthusiast sat with me in the back. He held out his hand to me and said, "I'm a fan of your Yucai School." I shook his hand and realized that even a police car couldn't go much faster; there were still a dense line of cars blocking the way ahead.
The Sanda enthusiast looked at me for a while, then said ingratiatingly, "When I was in police academy, I was second in the whole school in Sanda. I recognize you, you're the team leader who's never actually competed—are you competing today?"
I said, "That depends on your speed."
The Sanda enthusiast glanced out the car window, also dissatisfied with the snail's pace. He pounded on the driver's seat and shouted, "Quick, turn on the siren!" The policeman in the lead said hesitantly, "We only use the siren for emergencies." The Sanda enthusiast yelled, "Nonsense! This isn't an emergency? It's about revitalizing national culture!"
Suddenly, police lights flashed, and the Sanda enthusiast grabbed a megaphone and shouted, "Emergency! Emergency! Get out of the way!" But everyone ignored him; the cars in front only made a token effort to move. I snatched the megaphone box from him and yelled, "We have a bomb in our car!"
With a whoosh, the two rows of cars in front cleared a 5-meter-wide path, and the cars on our left almost darted across the road.
The Sanda fan snatched the microphone back and held it tightly in his hand, scolding me: "You're creating chaos in a public place!" Then, clutching the small box, he continued shouting, "We have a bomb in our car! We have a bomb in our car..." I asked in astonishment, "And what about you?"
"I'm doing this on your behalf in a personal capacity so you can conserve your energy for the competition."
Our car arrived at the stadium entrance without any hindrance. Just as I was about to get out, Sanda Mimi shouted to the gatekeeper from afar, "Open the gate!"
The gatekeeper, seeing a police car rushing towards them, assumed something had happened and hurriedly ran into the guardhouse to open the electronic gate. Our car sped straight into the venue, then gracefully drifted to a stop beside the audience seating area, its wheels scraping the steps.
I thanked the two policemen and got out of the car. Only then did I realize that everyone in the room was staring at me. Some were speechless, some were overjoyed, and some covered their mouths with their hands. In short, the whole venue was stunned, and even the judges on the stage stood up and kept looking in my direction.
It seemed impossible to make a low-key entrance anymore, so I waved a few times apologetically. Suddenly, a cheer erupted in the hall. I had no idea when I had become so popular. I walked down the steps, grabbed the railing at the edge of the hall, and stepped onto the stage with one leg, making a clean and efficient entrance. The audience generously cheered for me in unison.
The policeman in the car kept watching me until he made a shrewd comment: "You can tell he jumps into the road all the time."
The arena was easy to find; the 4-to-2 match was, of course, a single-elimination game. Yang Zhi's match was currently underway on the arena, with Duan Tianlang's disciples and fellow disciples on his left, and a host of heroes, along with Tong Yuan and Tiger's large group, on his right.
As I walked over, I observed the situation on the stage. Yang Zhi's moves were simple yet powerful, and he had completely taken the initiative.
I walked up to the heroes with a smile, thinking they would be a little excited about my new decision, but they all remained expressionless. I patted Shi Qian on the shoulder and said, "Victory depends on you, any problems?" Shi Qian stared at me with his small eyes and said, "I have no problem..."
“The problem is with me.” Zhang Qing suddenly stood in front of me and said solemnly, “I lost the second game.”
I quickly realized they weren't joking. It felt like hundreds of buckets of icy manure being poured over my head in the dead of winter—I was cold, angry, and wanted to curse them out. My voice trembled as I asked, "How could we lose?"
Zhang Qing said, "You called too late. By then, I had already conceded too many points. You have to understand that it was already the third game, and the opponent was very strong."
I plopped down on the ground, looking at the sea of people around me, and said, "Damn it, no wonder they're so happy, they just want to see me die on the spot." Losing the first two games meant that if we wanted to win, we had to win three in a row; which meant that I had to play.
That means I'm definitely going to die.
I kicked a clod of dirt and said, "What's the point of even playing then!" I scrambled to my feet, pointed at Yang Zhi on the stage, and shouted, "Let Old Yang come down! That way we can save our energy for the next match and still get third place!"
Seeing my bloodshot eyes and seemingly deranged appearance, Wu Yong asked, "Xiao Qiang, what's wrong with you? Why did you suddenly have such a change of heart?"
I whispered Old Zhang's story to the heroes, and these tough guys remained silent. Li Kui shouted, "At this point, who cares about anything else? Let's rush over and wipe out Duan Tianlang's men without leaving a single one alive, and Yu Cai will naturally win." Hu Sanniang immediately said, "I agree!" For the first time, the two of them had a tacit understanding, and they smiled at each other, forgetting their past grievances.
I glared at them both and said, "You know you represent Yucai School, don't you?"
Lin Chong came over and put his hand on my shoulder, saying earnestly, "Xiao Qiang, that's precisely why we can't give up. You're not missing any limbs, so if you give it your all, you might not lose."
I put my hand on his shoulder and said earnestly, "Brother Chong—you make it sound so easy!"
At this moment, Yang Zhi finished his second round. He stepped off the stage covered in sweat and shouted, "That was great! It's been a long time since I've met an opponent like this." Someone came up to him and explained the situation. Yang Zhi said, "I don't care about anything else, I just have to finish this round." He looked at me and said, "Actually, the opponent isn't that strong. Maybe if Brother Lin Chong teaches you a few moves, it will be useful."
I said irritably, "Do you think I'm Zhang Wuji?"
Tong Yuan finally saw through her act and said disdainfully, "So you really don't know kung fu?"
Lin Chong looked at the group of heroes and said, "Let's not worry about anything else for now, let's win these two battles first."
Yang Zhi's third game began, and he continued to dominate the match. Shi Qian, fully dressed, was eager to start. I grabbed him and asked, "Brother Qian, are you joining in the fun?"
Shi Qian pointed to a small figure in Duan Tianlang's group and said, "See that guy? I've been watching him for a while. He also practices lightness skills. I have to have a contest with him!"
"So, after you win, should I play?" I asked with a worried look on my face.
Actually, I really hope Yang Zhi is defeated right now; that would be a relief for me. Now that things have come to this, it's clear that Yu Cai's chances of survival are slim.
But the audience didn't see it that way. Ever since I appeared, they'd become incredibly excited; no one wanted to see my next match more than they did. This enthusiasm even extended to Yang Zhi, who cheered wildly every time he scored. Among them were many troublemakers, such as the Beijing Yucai team who had just lost to us, Fang Xiaorou, and countless other "heroes" who had met Zhu Gui through drinking at Ni Shi Guang. Their initial cheers for us gradually turned into jeering for Duan Tianlang and his team; the slightest improvement from the opposing players would trigger their wailing and bizarre antics.
Tiger glanced at the cheering crowd, nudged me, and said, "So many people came here just to see you. If I were you, I'd be willing to go even if I got beaten to death!"
I stared at his face covered in bandages for a while and said, "If I were you, I would go up there, but the problem is you are you and I am me—if I went up there, I would definitely get beaten to death!"
Let's be frank. I, Xiaoqiang, am a hoodlum, but I consider myself a man. If someone said to me right now, "Xiaoqiang, let me beat you half to death, and that'll be the end of Yucai," I would agree without hesitation—just like Tiger. He may not be as good as Dong Ping, but he achieved his goal after being beaten half to death.
But the current situation is... I won't say what it is, but even experts of Zhang Qing and Yang Zhi's level can't win easily, so what am I supposed to do?
I don't deny that it's admirable for people to risk their lives for their ideals, but risking one's life for someone else's ideals is a bit questionable. To die for someone else's ideals and then fail to achieve them is foolish. The key point is, even if I wanted to risk my life now, I wouldn't have the qualifications; it would probably just be a matter of a punch or a kick. This isn't cowardice on my part; it's just that I'm pragmatic.
Just as Yang Zhi's third round was about to end, he finally knocked his opponent to the ground with a powerful punch...
Chapter Twenty-Seven: For the Sake of Millions, I Will Go
As soon as Shi Qian and his opponent stood on the stage, the audience burst into laughter. One of them was thin and small, Shi Qian, and the other was short and fat. Both of them were just taller than the barre of the ring, and people had to stand on tiptoe to see them clearly.
The referee couldn't help but chuckle. After checking the contestants' names, he looked down at the two of them and called out, "Start."
Before the words were even finished, two figures, one in red and one in black, darted out. In a flash, the two were entangled. This entanglement was anything but a brutal fight. Shi Qian, dressed in red, moved like a nimble mosquito, darting about with effortless grace, while his opponent was far more robust, like a steady and ferocious dragonfly. The small arena was fully utilized; every corner and railing became a battlefield, even the referee's head and shoulders were a battleground. The referee constantly waved his hand at him like swatting flies, eventually forced to stand at the edge of the arena, away from the chaos.