Fang Bai glanced sideways to see who was calling him "Master Fang", and it turned out to be none other than Ruan Hongpeng, a small-time hoodlum with some notoriety in the West Suburb, known as "Master Hong".
It had been many days since they last met, and the once robust and ruddy-faced Ruan Hongpeng had become gaunt, almost skeletal, and seemed to have lost his previous vitality, appearing as if he had suffered much hardship and weariness during that time.
The relationship between Fang Bai and Ruan Hongpeng could be described as turning fights into friendship. They had had their conflicts, but after Ruan Hongpeng was taught a lesson by Fang Bai, he became much more manageable. Later, when Mao Qiangwu invited Shaolin Monks intending to seek revenge on Fang Bai, Ruan Hongpeng gave Fang Bai an early warning, thereby owing Fang Bai a favor.
Ever since the last lesson had been imparted by Fang Bai, Ruan Hongpeng held a mix of respect and fear for him. This evening, bringing his girlfriend Xiao Yan and a bunch of lackeys to enjoy some barbeque, he happened to notice Fang Bai and came over to greet him.
When Ruan Hongpeng approached Fang Bai’s table, he saw Abiao clenching his fists, seemingly itching to make a move against Fang Bai.
Lately, Ruan Hongpeng had been hassled and pressured by underlings of "Hunter", and it was driving him crazy. He was in search of a strong backer and, spotting Fang Bai, he suddenly thought that if Fang Bai were to look out for him, he wouldn’t have to fear those hooligans anymore.
Seeing someone about to strike Fang Bai, Ruan Hongpeng saw an opportunity. Without even seeing clearly who was about to attack, he immediately yelled and charged forward, unleashing a kick at the man.
Although Abiao was quite a fighter, his attention was entirely fixed on Fang Bai. He was caught unawares by the unexpectedly charging Ruan Hongpeng, who kicked him in the left waist. Abiao stumbled and fell to the ground, face full of dirt.
"Master Fang, are you alright?"
After kicking Abiao down, Ruan Hongpeng bowed and scraped towards Fang Bai, his face a picture of fawning flattery.
While speaking, Ruan Hongpeng’s roving gaze also fell on Xia Chenyu and Ye Wumei sitting across from Fang Bai. Though he didn’t get a clear look at their faces, their stunning figures and presence immediately struck him with awe.
However, Ruan Hongpeng’s glance at the two women was brief, and he quickly averted his eyes, not daring to take another look.
Kidding me? Dare to ogle Master Fang’s women? That’s just begging for a beating!
"Master Hong, it’s been a while!"
Fang Bai gave Ruan Hongpeng a nonchalant look and said indifferently.
Hearing Fang Bai call him "Master Hong", even though he knew it was a jest, Ruan Hongpeng was startled nonetheless, and waved his hands saying, "I wouldn’t dare! I wouldn’t dare! Master Fang, you can just call me by my name, or Xiao Ruan."
In Ruan Hongpeng’s eyes, for someone like Fang Bai to call him "Xiao Ruan" was an honor in itself.
"Alright then... Xiao Ruan, how did you get so skinny? Don’t tell me it’s from partying every night, being drained by your girlfriend here?"
Fang Bai threw a playful joke at Ruan Hongpeng who looked flattered and frightened by the attention.
Hearing this, Xia Chenyu and Ye Wumei, sitting across from Fang Bai, both discreetly spat in disdain.
And as for Ruan Hongpeng’s girlfriend Xiao Yan, her face turned tomato red with embarrassment.
"No... no... it’s not Xiao Yan’s fault..."
Ruan Hongpeng, unable to take offense at Fang Bai’s teasing, let out an awkward laugh and was about to say more when suddenly he heard a roar from behind; Abiao had gotten up from the ground and was throwing a punch at him.
Caught off guard, Ruan Hongpeng was struck in the back with a fist, causing him to grimace in pain.
"Damn, dare to hit Master Hong!"
Master Hong’s underlings, seeing their boss beaten, rushed forward howling and began to swarm Abiao.
Although Abiao was tough, he couldn’t fight off multiple attackers and was soon beaten to the ground by Master Hong’s gang, his face swollen and bruised, as he loudly called for help from his companions.
The nearby customers, fearing they might get caught up in the fight, scrambled away, while some of the braver ones stood at a distance to watch the excitement; only Fang Bai, along with Xia Chenyu and Ye Wumei, remained seated, seemingly indifferent to the chaos around them.
The commotion quickly alerted Brother Wolf’s table, and seeing Abiao being attacked, a cold light flashed in Brother Wolf’s narrow eyes. He grunted angrily and stood up to walk over to the fight, followed by several other thuggish-looking men.
Brother Wolf and his group were now "Hunter’s" men, and "Hunter" was already the ruler of Zhongzhou City’s underworld. To mess with "Hunter" was akin to courting death.
So, including Brother Wolf himself, his gang looked at Ruan Hongpeng and company as if they were staring at dead men.
"Master Hong, it’s... it’s Brother... Brother Wolf..."
Brother Wolf had a fearsome reputation in this area, and those who frequented the underworld almost invariably knew him. One of Ruan Hongpeng’s underlings, who had seen Brother Wolf once before, went weak at the knees upon seeing the formidable group approach and tugged at Ruan Hongpeng’s clothes, warning him with a trembling voice.
Hearing the name "Brother Wolf," Ruan Hongpeng shuddered, turned around sharply, and met Brother Wolf’s chilling gaze.
"Brother Wolf, you..."
Until now, Ruan Hongpeng had not realized that the person his men had beaten was one of Brother Wolf’s. Seeing Brother Wolf approaching, he hurried forward to greet him.
Despite Ruan Hongpeng’s formidable presence in the West Suburb, compared to "Hunter’s" man Brother Wolf, he was nothing but a small fry.
Ruan Hongpeng controlled a few bars and KTVs in the West Suburb of Zhongzhou City, collecting protection money to maintain his group of underlings, and life had been quite good. However, ten days ago, one of "Hunter’s" underbosses had come knocking, demanding that Ruan hand over his business dealings within ten days.
If he gave up the "business," he and his underlings wouldn’t be able to carry on, but angering "Hunter" would be even more terrifying.
It was this dilemma that had Ruan Hongpeng on edge, growing increasingly agitated and losing weight over the past few days.
Although Brother Wolf didn’t recognize Ruan Hongpeng, Ruan certainly knew Brother Wolf. Seeing Brother Wolf heading his way, Ruan immediately put on a big smile and went up to him, hoping to curry favor with Brother Wolf and have him put in a good word so he could keep his "business," even if it meant paying "Hunter" a portion of the earnings every month.
But as they came face to face, Brother Wolf raised his hand and struck Ruan Hongpeng with a slap that made him stagger, nearly causing him to fall.
"Brother Wolf, why... why did you hit me?"
Ruan Hongpeng, covering his stinging face, asked with wide eyes.
"Shit! Hitting you... I feel like ****ing killing you right now!"
Brother Wolf pointed at Abiao, whose face was swollen from the beating, and said angrily, "Daring to hit my brother, are you tired of living or something?"
"Sorry Brother Wolf, I didn’t know he was..."
Realizing that Abiao was Brother Wolf’s man, Ruan Hongpeng understood the gravity of the situation and, breaking out in a cold sweat, began to apologize profusely, nodding and bowing.