Chapter 121: It Is Necessary to Provide You with Close Protection

Song Kai was startled. He turned his head and saw three burly men running out of a small alley. One of them was holding a handgun. Not far from their taxi, a Chinese man lay on the ground, his leg covered in blood. One of the men ran over and kicked the Chinese man in his injured leg. The man let out a miserable scream and began begging for mercy in English.

"Go! Go quickly!" Lin Hao shouted, slamming his foot on the accelerator.

"Wait! Xu Ling, call the police. I’m going to check it out," Song Kai said. He pulled a wire barbecue grill from his backpack, which was made of individual steel rods. He quickly snapped the rods off, broke them into two sections, and prepared to get out of the car.

"Are you crazy?" Lin Hao yelled. "Those people have guns! They are—oh, young man, this is America, this is Arkansas, not China. Sit down and don’t go looking for trouble."

Song Kai ignored him and said to Xu Ling, "You call the police. I’m going to take a look. Damn it, you can't just bully people like this!"

With that, Song Kai pushed the door open and jumped out of the moving taxi. Lin Hao was speechless, continuing to drive forward without stopping.

Xu Ling said, "Slow down, don't worry, he'll be fine."

"I... I'm not just worried about him, I'm worried about myself!" Lin Hao said urgently. "My taxi has a license plate. If I get into trouble, not only will the police come for me, but they will too! God, is this your first time here?"

By then, Xu Ling had already dialed the emergency number.

Song Kai ran toward the scene, shouting in broken English, "Hey! Stop! The police are coming! Get away, you big black guys!"

The three men looked up and were stunned to see Song Kai approaching. The leader gave a signal with his head, and the other two ran toward Song Kai. Truth be told, these guys were incredibly muscular; it was as if they did nothing but work out all day. Their muscles were rock-hard.

However, Song Kai didn't care. Seeing a fellow countryman lying on the ground, he couldn't just stand by and watch him get killed, even in America.

"Fuck, kid, you're looking for death!" one of the men said in a thick accent, throwing a punch at Song Kai’s head.

Song Kai dodged, and when the move proved too fast to fully evade, he kicked the man right in the crotch.

"Awoo!"

The massive man collapsed to the ground, nearly passing out. Song Kai didn't hold back; that kick had likely shattered at least one of the guy's testicles. The other man reflexively crossed his legs. Song Kai let out a sharp cry, channeling his inner Bruce Lee, and delivered a flying kick. The man's jaw cracked, and he crumpled to the ground.

The third man spat on the floor. "Damn it, it's Chinese Kung Fu! Die!" He raised his pistol to fire at Song Kai's chest.

Song Kai flicked his wrist, sending two steel rods flying. Although they weren't sharpened, Song Kai had imbued them with his internal energy, making their speed rival that of a bullet. With a sharp hiss, one rod pierced the man’s wrist, and the other embedded itself in his shoulder.

"Clatter." The pistol dropped to the ground.

Just then, sirens wailed in the distance. The man screamed in pain, trying to crawl away. Song Kai charged over and knocked him to the ground with a kick.

"Trying to run, huh? Three against one, and you’re still this arrogant!" Song Kai clapped his hands and walked over to the injured man. He knelt down and asked in Chinese, "Hey, buddy, are you okay?"

The man on the ground shook his head and patted Song Kai’s leg to show his gratitude. He said weakly, "Leave... leave quickly. The police are coming, and you’ll be in... in a lot of trouble. Is this your first time in America? Don’t... don’t stick your nose in other people's business. Go now."

"Ah? Then... what about you?" Song Kai asked, feeling helpless.

"Once the police arrive, I’ll be safe. Thank you, brother." The man smiled at Song Kai. His face was pale from blood loss. He looked young, only about thirty.

Song Kai nodded. "Alright then, I’m off."

He stood up, gestured toward the three men, and walked away quickly. Two police motorcycles arrived, and the officers approached with their guns drawn, looking as if they were facing a major threat, before calling for reinforcements. Song Kai glanced back, satisfied that the man was safe, and hurried toward the Black Emperor Hotel.

After running for two kilometers, he found Lin Hao’s taxi parked on the side of the road. Lin Hao was inspecting his side mirror with a pained expression.

Song Kai walked over. "Hey, it's handled. See? I told you it would be fine, and I even saved a countryman’s life. When we're abroad, we have to stick together."

Lin Hao gave him a thumbs up, then sighed while touching the broken mirror. "Sigh, what a pain. Another hundred dollars down the drain."

"A hundred dollars for a mirror? That’s seven hundred yuan! You could just buy one on Taobao for twenty, and that’s in RMB!" Song Kai said.

Lin Hao was speechless. "You think Taobao is everywhere? Forget it, forget it. Get in. The Black Emperor Hotel is just ahead."

When they got out, Xu Ling paid an extra hundred dollars and said, "Go get the mirror fixed. If the traffic police catch you, it’ll cost more than a hundred dollars."

"Thank you, thank you."

Xu Ling waved, and she and Song Kai took their luggage into the hotel. The back entrance of Harvard University was not far across from the hotel.

Like many new university campuses built in the suburbs, this new Harvard campus was a bit isolated. When Song Kai and Xu Ling checked in, the receptionist politely warned them not to go out at night and gave them a map. It wasn't for sightseeing, but marked with areas known for high crime rates, advising the two to be cautious.

Song Kai thanked them, took their bags, and joined Xu Ling in the elevator.

"Tsk, tsk, they really have a high awareness of safety here," Song Kai said, shaking the map.

Xu Ling, wearing simple jeans and a knit sweater, looked at him. "These are lessons learned in blood, so of course they are cautious. When I first came here for college, there weren't any warnings like this. After the US election last year, things got chaotic, so they started issuing these. Not only are hotels required to provide them, but schools and professors also have a duty to warn students. Anyway, let’s just not go out tonight."

Song Kai nodded, his eyes darting around. He said earnestly, "Xu Ling, I feel like it's really dangerous here, so I think it's necessary for me to provide you with close protection. What do you think?"

"What does that mean?" Xu Ling wrinkled her nose.

"Well, I mean, why don't we share a room tonight? How about it? Hehehe..."

"Dream on!" Xu Ling crossed her arms. "Get some sleep. If everything goes well, I’ll have my documents the day after tomorrow, and we can fly back that night."

"Aiya, why the rush? It’s not easy to come here; we should at least enjoy ourselves in America."

...

Song Kai spent the rest of the night dreaming of ways to use this time alone to win Xu Ling over.

Meanwhile, an ambulance rushed the injured Liao Jie to the hospital. The three men were taken to the police station, but ten minutes later, they were released on bail. The three of them climbed into a black pickup truck, looking dejected.

"Smack!"

A white American man in a trench coat slapped the leader across the face.

"I’m sorry, Mr. Harrison. We didn't expect a little Chinese guy to pop up, and he knew Kung Fu. Chinese Kung Fu is truly powerful." The man dared not mention his own injuries, only trying to defend himself.

Harrison narrowed his eyes and sneered. "Trash! The three of you were beaten by one Chinese man, and you had a gun! Are you eating shit?"

"He was really strong," the man insisted.

"Smack!"

He received another slap.

Harrison’s eyes burned with rage. He turned to the driver. "Go to the hospital. Now. Hurry. Find Liao Jie and find the goods, or we’re all dead..."

"Yes!"

The pickup truck sped toward the nearby hospital.