Chapter Seven: No One Will Ever Take Me for a Fool Again!

The dining table fell into a sudden, pin-drop silence.

"Awoo, awoo..."

Only Yang Peng kept stuffing meat skewers into his mouth, smacking his lips with gusto.

Guo Minghao patted Da Le on the shoulder, comforting him: "Just focus on your job for now; we'll deal with whatever comes later." He then glanced sideways at Liu Haizhu and added, "You, Silly Zhu, be a bit more careful. Keep a low profile! I don’t know about others, but the guys at my real estate firm know we’re close, so they always treat me with extra respect."

Liu Haizhu sucked on his teeth, gestured toward Xiao Le, and pointed at Haozi: "Why don't you tell him to go lead the charge?! Silly Hao is a retired veteran from the Dragon Flame special unit. We’ve sparred before—if we weren't fighting for our lives, I’d be hard-pressed to take him down!"

Song Xiaole seemed to have let go of his worries. He rolled his eyes and bared his teeth: "Haozi is the type who keeps his head down, focused solely on becoming the deputy director. Look at how he smiles at everyone he talks to; do you really think he’s like you?"

Guo Minghao smirked and muttered, "Even if you fought for your life, you’d still be no match."

Liu Haizhu got agitated. "Damn it, what if you add my younger brother into the mix?"

Hearing this, Guo Minghao looked seriously at the quiet, brooding younger brother, then sighed: "Three rounds, at most."

Yang Peng slammed the table in shock: "That’s insane, Brother Hao! You mean in three rounds, you could take on both of them?!"

Since ancient times, literary works are never ranked first, and martial arts are never ranked second. Upon hearing this, Geng Wudi raised his eyes and smiled, though no one knew what he was smiling at.

"No!" Guo Minghao shook his head, frowning. "Against my little brother, I wouldn't last three rounds."

"Hahaha!" Liu Haizhu seemed to have regained his pride and laughed, slapping the table. Guo Minghao chuckled too, raising his glass to toast Wudi.

Yang Peng picked up his own glass: "Zhu, since you're heading to Hong Kong, I wish you a smooth journey. Also, I’ve heard there are tons of gangs there, streets full of 'Young and Dangerous' types carrying blades. Don’t let them bully you."

"Pfft!" Geng Wudi, mouth full of meat, sprayed it everywhere.

Seeing this, Yang Peng suddenly realized his mistake. The guy was a powerhouse; in ancient times, he would have been a warrior capable of toppling kingdoms! A true force of nature!

"Pfft, hahaha!" Song Xiaole couldn't hold back his laughter. Guo Minghao, usually a man of hidden depths, was slumped over the table, shaking violently as he tried to stifle his laughter.

What "Young and Dangerous" gangsters? Trying to bully my brother Monkey? Who do they think they are?

Liu Haizhu’s face darkened: "Go ahead, laugh all you want!"

"Hahahaha!" "Hahaha, haha!"

...

The brothers were busy boasting, while Yang Peng kept stuffing his face with meat as if he were starving. He usually chewed betel nut, two packs a day. Now, his mouth was burning from the spice, but he couldn't stop eating.

Song Xiaole laughed: "My dear Peng, have you never eaten meat in your entire eight lifetimes?"

"You—you all don't get it, if I don't eat it, it'll go to waste!" Yang Peng mumbled with his mouth full.

Partway through, Liu Haizhu couldn't hold his liquor anymore and had to go to the restroom.

Not long after, a loud "BOOM!" erupted from the restroom near the wall as it collapsed. Liu Haizhu soared into the night sky!

Instantly, a massive cloud of dust spread across the 212 Night Market, mixed with an indescribable stench that made it impossible to open one's eyes.

In the midst of the dust, Sister Juan stood frozen, her face drained of color. She knew about the situation at the restroom; those guys had a boss, and the fact that they hadn't openly caused trouble in the courtyard until now was already a sign of respect.

Sister Juan’s mouth hung open... This is insane... Should she send a banner of gratitude or something tomorrow?

In the ruins, Liu Haizhu stood like a god of war, fighting several men amidst the dust.

A brawny man shouted in desperation: "Iron Monkey, can’t you give us a way out, damn it!"

Liu Haizhu swung his massive fist: "So you remember me! Damn, I can’t even have a midnight snack in peace without you forcing me to act for justice!"

Kicked into a corner, the man clutched his head and wailed: "Brother Monkey, stop hitting us! We work for Lei Zhenyang; is it really worth it just for a robbery?!"

Liu Haizhu parried a punch with one arm and kicked back with the other, not pausing for a breath: "You’ve got hands and feet, yet you choose to act like ghosts instead of men! Forget Lei Zhenyang; even if the god of thunder himself came, it wouldn't matter! Damn you! I’m going to settle the score with him tomorrow!"

On the sidelines, Song Xiaole stood calmly, smoking a cigarette, with no intention of helping. Yang Peng, however, showed his loyalty; his eyes turned red, and he charged in with a beer bottle, howling.

"Sigh!" Guo Minghao wiped his mouth with a tissue, picked up Liu Haizhu's Nokia from the table, and dialed a number.

"Uncle Wan... don't shout yet, yes, it's me, Haozi. Yes, on Bayi Road, 212 courtyard."

Geng Wudi watched him finish the call and blinked: "Brother Hao, what are you doing?"

Guo Minghao looked at the table of barbecue with regret: "This table of food, sigh, what a waste."

Wudi still didn't understand and asked naively: "Aren't you going over?"

Guo Minghao smiled and shook his head: "I’m a respectable man, a government official; how could I possibly get into a fight?"

"Oh!" Geng Wudi replied honestly and got up to run toward the fray.

In the ruins, Liu Haizhu was in the heat of the fight when he turned and saw Wudi charging over... he panicked instantly. With one thug pinned under his hand and another under his foot, he yelled: "Don't you come over!"

Wudi hesitated, scratched his head, and prepared to dive in anyway. Liu Haizhu was pale with fright; he quickly headbutted one of the men into unconsciousness and shouted earnestly: "Brother, for the love of God, don't come over! If you kill someone, you'll be executed!!!"

...

Back at the Liu family home, Da Du Zi supported Er Du Zi as they spent a long time vomiting in the courtyard restroom, until it seemed he had vomited up his very bile. During this, the second aunt got up to check, brought a cup of warm honey and brown sugar water, and watched Wudi drink it. As she headed back to her room, she gave Zhu a swift kick in the backside before grumbling and going back to sleep.

The guest room had only one 10-watt lightbulb. The light was dim and yellow. On the rough cloth sofa, Geng Wudi held the cup with trembling hands, sipping the warm honey water with intense focus, not daring to stop for a second.

Liu Haizhu looked at him sideways, feeling a bit smug. "Heh... you're fierce in a fight, so how come you're such a wreck when it comes to drinking?"

Geng Wudi turned to say something, but he exerted too much effort, and his face twisted in pain. "Waaah!" His stomach churned again, and he began vomiting frantically into a trash can.

Liu Haizhu was bewildered: "Take it easy, the bin is already full..."

Geng Wudi: "Waaah..."

Liu Haizhu looked on with disgust: "Fine, fine, I’ll shut up, okay?"

He used a thermos to refill his brother's cup and handed him a roll of toilet paper. Patting his back gently, his tone softened: "Feeling any better?"

"I'm fine!" Geng Wudi took the tissue, his eyes watery as he leaned back on the sofa, taking a deep breath.

Liu Haizhu kicked the half-full trash can aside, smiled, lit a cigarette, and handed it to him: "I've always heard from the elders that drinking is a test of one's body. You've got the strength of a thousand men, how is it that your alcohol tolerance is so pathetic?"