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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter Sixty-Two: Adding Insult to Injury
The air in March in the North is still quite chilly, and barbecues typically don't start operating until June. Grills are set up along the roadside, with glowing charcoal and skewers of meat sizzling and oozing oil, neatly arranged on the racks. Bottles of chilled beer are sweating, and bare-chested people with flushed faces are calling out to each other. This lively scene continues for an entire street, lasting nearly two to three months.
In contrast, the East City Barbecue Restaurant across from Beiluan High School operates whenever students are in school. A large number of students create a unique advantage for this street; after school, they love to buy a few skewers. While each student may not buy much at once, the sheer number adds up quickly, resulting in a significant influx of money. Each barbecue restaurant earns even more than during peak season.
Zhang Qiu and Yang Yu sit at a window-side table, ordering a large amount of food along with two bottles of beer. The first items served are a mix of peanuts and edamame. As Yang Yu shells the edamame, he asks, "Brother Qiu, what's going on today?"
Zhang Qiu shakes his head and replies, "I think it's someone arranged by Liu Xiaolong. Before this, a guy named Song Weidong caused me some trouble, but I managed to bluff him with a magic prop." With that, Zhang Qiu pulls out a playing card from his pocket and places it on the table.
Yang Yu picks up the playing card, feels it with his hand, then flicks it lightly while looking at Zhang Qiu with interest. "Is it iron? How did you bluff him?"
Zhang Qiu laughs and says, "I learned from Hong Kong movies and threw the card into the door frame. That scared them off, so they didn't make a move."
"Impressive," Yang Yu laughs heartily after hearing this.
"Have you heard of Zeng Fan?" Zhang Qiu asks.
Yang Yu responds seriously, "I know him. His family has connections in the Education Bureau; that's why people follow him. In terms of fighting, he wouldn't stand a chance against me even if there were ten of him. But when it comes to connections, I couldn't compete with him even if there were a hundred of me."
Zhang Qiu nods as Yang Yu continues, "Isn't that how it is? Those with power use their power; those with money throw money around; those without power or money who refuse to settle for mediocrity are left with nothing but to risk everything."
Zhang Qiu chuckles at Yang Yu's words but realizes there's truth in them.
Yang Yu adds, "I also know about Song Weidong; his family is in real estate. He doesn't have much influence at Beiluan High School, but he's still not as powerful as Zeng Fan. What I don't understand is why these two rivals are both causing you trouble at the same time?"
"I don't know either," Zhang Qiu shakes his head. Liu Xiaolong is just his guess; neither Song Weidong nor Wang Zhen has explicitly told Zhang Qiu who is targeting him.
Yang Yu falls into deep thought and after a while says, "How about this, Brother Qiu? I'll arrange for a few people to escort you to and from school so you won't be alone and get into trouble. I won't feel secure about you until we figure this out."
"Alright." Zhang Qiu was not being pretentious; he indeed needed manpower.
"Let's have a drink." Yang Yu raised his glass, and Zhang Qiu clinked his glass with Yang Yu's before downing the contents in one go.
After putting down the glass, his throat felt fiery. Zhang Qiu casually grabbed a piece of bacon to eat, which eased the sensation a bit, and said, "I plan to develop my influence at No. 1 High School."
"Are those four guys your candidates?" Yang Yu looked at Zhang Qiu calmly, as if he had seen through everything, though there was a hint of disdain in his tone.
"Yes." Zhang Qiu understood Yang Yu's implication. When it came to fighting, aside from Gao Zhi, who looked tall and strong, the others did not appear very imposing. But No. 1 High School was not a vocational school; most students were quite honest.
"Alright." Yang Yu nodded. "What are you planning to do about Liu Xiaolong?"
"Just wait and see." Zhang Qiu lifted the bottle again and clinked it with Yang Yu's before drinking.
Zhang Qiu and Yang Yu chatted about the future while eating skewers. The immediate priority was to quickly organize their own influence at No. 1 High School and always be wary of Liu Xiaolong. They needed to act swiftly to bring Wang Guodong down. As for Zeng Fan, Zhang Qiu's first task was to figure out why he was targeting him and whether it was indeed because of Liu Xiaolong.
As their conversation progressed, both Zhang Qiu and Yang Yu relaxed. One bite of skewers, one sip of beer, reminiscing about those good old days. Occasionally, they boasted about their past exploits, enjoying themselves thoroughly.
…
At that moment, in a hotel in Beilan County, Liu Xiaolong leaned back on the bed, smoking a cigarette with an ashtray beside him filled with discarded butts.
Earlier, Liu Xiaolong had called Song Weidong from No. 1 High School in Beiluan, asking him to teach that reckless Zhang Qiu a lesson. The son of a real estate developer was not closely related to him, but his father's construction workers needed help from Wang Guodong during fights. He thought everything would be taken care of without his involvement, but Song Weidong actually told him he had failed.
This was infuriating; fortunately, he still had Zeng Fan as a card to play. Moreover, there was a beautiful woman waiting for him in the bathroom. That beauty was the sister of one of Liu Xiaolong's subordinates—a genuine high school student. A lewd smile appeared on Liu Xiaolong's face as he rubbed his hands together in anticipation.
Suddenly, his phone rang, and a cold smile spread across Liu Xiaolong's face; things seemed to have gone well.
Li Long answered the call, saying, "Hello?"
Suddenly, Liu Xiaolong's expression changed. After putting down his phone, he said fiercely, "Zhang Qiu, you are really hard to deal with."
The person he had just called was Zeng Fan, the so-called big shot from the first high school, as mentioned by Wang Zhen. Both of them had connections—one with the Public Security Bureau and the other with the Education Bureau. Unlike Song Weidong, who only had a bit of money at home.
If Song Weidong failed, Zeng Fan would be foolproof. This time, when Liu Xiaolong made a call, Zeng Fan immediately assured him that everything would be fine. However, unexpectedly, a group of tough characters suddenly appeared to help Zhang Qiu. Without saying a word, they came in swinging baseball bats and knocked out Wang Zhen's people, catching them completely off guard.
It seemed that Zhang Qiu was not as ordinary as he appeared. Liu Xiaolong sneered; although Zhang Qiu had narrowly escaped this time, he would face consequences due to his luck turning into misfortune. With Zeng Fan's temper, how could he let Zhang Qiu off? In the future, without needing to say anything himself, Zhang Qiu's days at the first high school would not be easy.
This time, Zhang Qiu was truly in deep trouble. Thinking of this made Liu Xiaolong's mood suddenly improve. He shouted towards the bathroom, "Yu, hurry up! Are you done washing?"
"Brother Long, don't rush me; I'm coming right now..." Just as she finished speaking, the bathroom door opened, and a girl who looked about sixteen or seventeen years old wrapped in a towel walked out.
Liu Xiaolong instantly sat up straight on the bed, staring intently at the girl. Although she had not fully developed yet, she had fair skin and a cute doll-like face. More importantly, her admiration for him reached a point of complete obedience—wasn't that wonderful?
Girls at this age often idolize heroes and equate violence and competition with heroism. This phenomenon is particularly prominent in middle schools—especially junior high schools—where you often see boys with dyed hair surrounded by sweet-looking girls with great figures. While the boys are out fighting in groups during the day, at night, nearby hotels become their battlegrounds.
And Liu Xiaolong was extending his claws toward another innocent girl. He stepped forward and untied the towel wrapped around her. As the towel fell away, the girl's face turned bright red and her mind went blank. Held in Liu Xiaolong's embrace, she was completely immersed in shyness and happiness...
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