"You think you’re so great just because you are strong! That gives you the right to just hit without holding back? Have you ever thought, even though he’s a thief, isn’t he a person too? You’ve injured his leg , have you thought about what he’ll do in the future?"
The old man pointed at Xiao Yifei and scolded him. Xiao Yifei listened to the old man’s scolding and slowly furrowed his brows.
"Old man, are you in cahoots with this thief?"
Xiao Yifei cocked his head, asking somewhat puzzledly.
"Hmph! I am a person of high moral standing, how could I possibly be in cahoots with him!"
The old man first expressed disdain for the thief, then he turned his head back to Xiao Yifei and continued to rebuke him, "This young man, you’re truly terrible, your heart is so cruel, resorting to violence at the slightest disagreement! Do you have any feelings at all! Can’t you consider others?"
Xiao Yifei felt strangely stifled in his heart upon hearing the old man’s words. He looked at the old man and said, "If the first time I hadn’t stepped in to help, it certainly would have been this woman who got hurt. If I hadn’t acted the second time, perhaps it would be me lying on the ground right now. Did you ever think about the fact that he tried to kill me just now?"
The old man heard Xiao Yifei’s words, sneered disdainfully and said, "So what? Did you die? All I see is you standing here safe and sound, while he’s the one injured and on the ground! If I were you, I would never have acted !"
Xiao Yifei found the old man’s words unreasonable and grew increasingly angry. He couldn’t help but say angrily to the old man, "Then why didn’t you help just now? Instead, you have so much to say afterward. There were so many people on the bus, and not a single one of them came forward to help!"
The old man was momentarily lost for words by what Xiao Yifei said, but he quickly raised his head and said righteously to Xiao Yifei, "You should see the state of my body. How could I help? I definitely couldn’t! How could you expect me to physically confront a thug at my age!"
After hearing the old man’s words, a mocking smile appeared on Xiao Yifei’s face, "So you just make mouthy comments after the fact?"
"You... you! You young man, you’re absolutely terrible!"
The old man was so angered by Xiao Yifei that he was shaking!
However, just as Xiao Yifei had solved the trouble, old man, everyone on the bus who had previously avoided the situation like the plague suddenly came forward like demons and ghosts, and surprisingly, they were all targeting the same person.
Not the thief lying on the ground, who had done wrong and threatened others, but Xiao Yifei, who had stepped in to help the victim.
This group of onlookers, who knew what they were thinking? Perhaps because they had not been able to help while Xiao Yifei stepped in, they now felt embarrassed. They were silent and fearful when the thief was making threats, but after Xiao Yifei saved the country girl, they started pointing fingers and criticizing him.
"Exactly, what were you thinking! They said it was just a bundle of bedding, couldn’t you just let the thief take it? Now you’ve resorted to bloodshed. I have things to do! Now that there’s been bloodshed because of you, we have to call the police! You’ve delayed my time! I really don’t know what you were thinking."
"Hmph! You’re strong, you’re trained, you have good skills, why didn’t you show up sooner, and only appeared at the end to play hero? Did you think you looked handsome or what?"
Following behind the old man, the crowd didn’t know whether they thought Xiao Yifei was easy to bully or what. Just a moment ago, each of them was acting like a scaredy-cat, but now, seeing Xiao Yifei, they were puffing themselves up, each one feeling entitled to criticize him.
"Look at how much pain you’ve caused him, he just scared you with a knife and you treat him ? Do you have no regard for the law? Just because he’s a thief, you think you can treat him this way? Haven’t you considered anyone else?"
Xiao Yifei lifted his head, his eyes sweeping across the grimacing expressions of the passengers who were pointing and gesturing at him, feeling a wave of frustration. Was he seriously going to face criticism from these onlookers who did nothing but watch, even after he stepped in to help?
"You young man, how could you be so ruthless! A little lesson was enough, did you need to go that far? And look at this woman, dressed in tatters, you can tell she isn’t wealthy. If she got robbed, so what? She wouldn’t have much money on her anyway. Do you realize that your actions delay me, costing me how much in lost earnings?"
Deeply inhaling, Xiao Yifei said to the crowd, "Just now if I hadn’t fought back, it wouldn’t just be an injury I’d be facing, but my very life would have been in danger!"
"What danger did you face! Aren’t you standing just fine in front of us? Thinking you’re so important, is this your excuse for injuring someone?"
A woman’s shrill voice full of disdain resounded, speaking discontentedly to Xiao Yifei before turning her scornful gaze to the rural woman kneeling on the ground before him.
"Get off the bus! Get off now! Both of you, get off!"
Little did they expect this command would resonate with even more passengers.
"Exactly! Get off quickly! Don’t waste my time! You two are just troublemakers. The thief isn’t your responsibility to handle; we’ll leave it to the police! Now just get off the bus!"
"Get lost! You don’t deserve to ride the same bus as us!"
Sarcastic voices echoed from all directions, filling Xiao Yifei with raging anger, while the woman from the countryside widened her eyes in disbelief, still unable to comprehend why a good deed was being reproached.
As Xiao Yifei endured the insults, not everyone on the bus was cold and indifferent; there were indeed a few who stood up in his defense.
"How can you speak like that? Don’t you have any heart? The young man acted heroically to help, and even if you don’t praise him, why mock and sneer at him?"
A plump middle-aged woman stood up; her eyes wide open, she fearlessly confronted the group mocking Xiao Yifei.
After the plump woman spoke up, it was as if she were a flag raised high, and following her lead, more people began to voice their support for Xiao Yifei.
"Exactly! You’re the ones with the problem. How can you be so indifferent? We might be scared to help, and that’s understandable, but why insult the young man in this manner?"
A man of over fifty immediately followed the woman, challenging the opposite group.
"I, for one, really admire this handsome guy! I don’t know what you all are thinking, but surely being human doesn’t mean being like you!"
The girl who spoke out in support of Xiao Yifei was young, but her words were sharp, "I saw this handsome guy stepping in to help, and when I heard this woman pleading for us to help, I already felt cruel and was feeling a bit guilty. And now to see you all with no shame whatsoever! Not helping is one thing, but why on earth are you berating this handsome guy?"
Soon, the passengers on the bus began taking sides against each other.
"What’s it to you? Who asked you to butt in? Think you’re all that? Mind your own business!" Find the newest release on NoveI[F]ire.net