Chapter Seven: Scar’s Decision

With Li Peng's towering frame at six foot three, a punch thrown with all his might was certainly formidable. While professionals might find fault—he neither aimed for vulnerable spots nor bothered with defense—one must remember, Li Peng’s opponent was just a high schooler who seemed timid and weak.

As Li Peng began to move forward, Chen Hongxu pulled Xue Xi, who looked as if she’d love nothing more than chaos, behind him, naturally placing himself between her and danger.

In Chen Hongxu’s mind, fighting was always a costly affair: even if you defeat your enemy, you’re bound to take a few hits yourself. He intended to withstand Li Peng’s punch head-on, then counter and take him down—hoping to intimidate the thugs surrounding him.

But...

“So slow!” Chen Hongxu focused his energy, watching Li Peng’s approach as if it were slow motion, almost mocking him. Hands in his pockets, he tilted his head slightly, sidestepping Li Peng’s outstretched arm and closing the distance.

To outsiders, it looked like Li Peng must have a problem with his vision—how could someone so large miss his target? And not only did he miss, but he allowed his opponent to get so close.

The thugs began to jeer and mock, but the scarred leader’s eyes flickered with confusion before he narrowed them, watching the duel with caution.

Chen Hongxu drew near, not to use brute force to shove Li Peng away, but instead bent his left leg and drove his knee into Li Peng’s abdomen.

A scream echoed. This burly man was doubled over by Chen Hongxu’s strike, his legs lifted nearly half a meter off the ground.

Before Li Peng could land, Chen Hongxu’s left leg snapped upwards like a whip, catching Li Peng’s jaw just as he began to fall.

A sharp, cracking sound rang out—bones breaking, echoing through the now silent alley.

All eyes were fixed on Li Peng, whose body, as if performing acrobatics, flipped backward and burned itself into everyone’s memory. Had it not been for Li Peng lying on the ground unconscious, his mouth unable to close and blood frothing like a fountain, the crowd might even have cheered.

For a moment, the scene was awkward. The thugs struggled to accept what they'd just witnessed: in their worldview, size equals strength, and martial arts? Please—no matter how skilled, a knife beats bare hands, especially a machete.

Li Peng, six foot three and built like a tank, had been felled in a single move by Chen Hongxu, who stood barely five foot nine and looked frail.

There was no collective gasp. Chen Hongxu’s attack happened so quickly that none had time to react.

“So cool,” Xue Xi said, clearly not included in the crowd. In her eyes, they were nothing but a rabble. She skipped forward, pressed close to Chen Hongxu, and gently patted his arm, looking like a boxing coach helping a fighter relax.

“Stop fooling around,” Chen Hongxu glanced at the overly familiar Xue Xi, his tone serious. He knew this wasn’t over—perhaps it had only just begun.

Facing these thugs, Chen Hongxu felt no pressure. But numbers gave them power; if they grew desperate and targeted Xue Xi, things could get tricky.

Yet to the thugs, what they saw was something else entirely: the two surrounded youngsters, flirting boldly after a small victory. If the uncle could bear it, the aunt certainly couldn’t—let alone this crowd, so concerned with their reputation but ignorant of the world.

“Damn, that little brat’s getting cocky. Boss, finish him!” A youth with hair dyed in a rainbow of colors was the first to react. With a swift motion, he drew a hidden knife from a wooden sheath, staring at the pair with ice-cold menace and a lewd grin.

The other thugs responded, pulling out weapons that gleamed with cold light. The small alley suddenly felt suffused with murderous intent.

Seeing this, Xue Xi stopped showing off, quickly moving behind Chen Hongxu, her body pressed tightly against his back. “Protect me,” she said softly. But her mischievous eyes betrayed no fear.

Since it had all started because of her, Chen Hongxu would never let Xue Xi come to harm.

He didn’t have time to dwell on the softness pressing against his back. Stepping forward, he resolved to hold back no longer and deal with the thugs swiftly.

Just then, the scarred leader snapped out of his contemplation, calling out boldly, “Put the weapons away! Did I say you could attack?”

Chen Hongxu stopped in his tracks, puzzled by the scarred man’s sudden intervention.

Xue Xi, hiding behind him, pouted in annoyance, muttering internally that the scarred man wasn’t much of a man—backing down at a time like this.

Chen Hongxu made no move to attack, watching as the thugs carried off the unconscious Li Peng without interference.

The scarred man glanced at Li Peng, then instructed a lackey to take him to the hospital. Turning to Chen Hongxu, he replaced his scowl with a wide, almost humble smile. “Friend, this was all a misunderstanding. How about we let it go? Tonight, I’ll host a table at Encounter Hotel—a feast to mark our acquaintance through adversity?”

Chen Hongxu saw no deception in the scarred man’s face, and his smile seemed tinged with humility. As he hesitated over his reply, Xue Xi jumped in, shouting, “I’m rich but have no background. Aren’t you going to kidnap me? And besides, I’m so pretty—don’t you have any ideas?” She struck a dramatic S-shaped pose.

The scarred man rolled his eyes, casting a sympathetic glance at Chen Hongxu. For someone so strong, how did he end up with such a scatterbrained girlfriend?

“How could I?” the scarred man replied with a grin. “We may lack education, but we know not to covet a friend’s wife.”

Xue Xi cursed inwardly, thinking, “Who’s like you—uneducated?” But since he called her a wife, she decided to let him off the hook.

She lowered her head, blushing, and said nothing more, though her eyes kept darting to Chen Hongxu’s face to catch his reaction.

Chen Hongxu wasn’t sure where the situation had turned, but he disliked pointless brawls—especially with the street so nearby; he couldn’t slaughter them all. The culprit was already dealt with. He looked at the ever-smiling scarred man and replied, “Alright, no need for the feast. Someone’s waiting for me at home.” He then gave Xue Xi an apologetic glance. Though the scarred man misunderstood, Chen Hongxu’s words meant he’d gained the advantage.

Before the scarred man could respond, Xue Xi misinterpreted the apology—thinking Chen Hongxu meant to go home to Bing Ling—and protested, “How can you refuse? He’s a big figure in the underworld, inviting you with such sincerity. You’ll shame him if you don’t go, you know…” She spoke as if Chen Hongxu would be less than a dog if he refused, and the scarred man would be cursed if he didn’t invite him.

Despite her words, Xue Xi secretly thought, “Hmph, that vile woman—tonight you’ll go hungry!” The woman she cursed was, of course, Bing Ling.

The scarred man nodded with a smile, for the first time thinking Xue Xi wasn’t just trouble—without this feast, who knew if Chen Hongxu would turn hostile? If Xue Xi knew his thoughts, she’d probably call in a hundred bodyguards to beat him up, then shout, “You’re the idiot—your whole family’s idiots!”

In the end, Chen Hongxu agreed to the scarred man’s invitation—thanks entirely to Xue Xi’s persistent interference.

The thugs didn’t understand why their leader had suddenly changed, but that didn’t stop them from supporting his decision. In their world, the most important thing was to follow orders, not to act out and show off. Anyone who did would be “appreciated” by the boss—always sent to the most dangerous jobs.

But let’s leave that aside. As the crowd escorted Chen Hongxu and Xue Xi from the alley, a small incident occurred.

The onlookers at the alley’s entrance—why were they all so burly, dressed in matching outfits, and with faces more savage than even their own gang? That was the question haunting the thugs.

During this, an inadvertent nod from Xue Xi was caught by the scarred man, deepening both his respect and his anxiety. Indeed, while the mantis stalks the cicada, the oriole lurks behind—there’s always someone watching from the shadows.