Chapter Seventeen: To Do It or Not

“Ha! So you do have some skills, huh? When those guys were around, why didn’t you show yourself? Now you think you can take on a weak woman like me! Fine, you’re pretty tough, only picking fights with women!” The woman showed no intention of backing down.

“Get out of here! Don’t act like you don’t know the rules of our trade—never hit a woman!” Longzai grabbed Danzai and pulled him aside. Danzai was about to retort, but saw Longzai nudging his arm and winking vigorously.

“Hey, forget it! A real man doesn’t quarrel with women. Today, I’ll let you off—just this once!” Danzai grumbled, shook his sleeves, and sauntered off.

“I’m truly sorry. You helped us so much, and still had to put up with that.” Once Danzai had put some distance between them, Longzai quickly apologized, taking out two hundred yuan from his pocket. “Take this to calm your anger, please don’t mind. My buddy has some issues—when he was young, he fell off a roof and hit his head.” Longzai hurriedly fabricated a story to smooth things over.

After hearing Longzai’s explanation, the woman’s anger subsided considerably. She advised him to be careful in the future; who knows what trouble might lie ahead.

Seeing she no longer held a grudge, Longzai made his escape.

“What did you say just now?” Danzai asked as Longzai caught up. “If you hadn’t held me back, I would’ve shown them what Danzai is made of!”

“Enough already!” Longzai couldn’t help himself. “Even a dragon struggles against the local snake. Don’t act like you know nothing. You don’t realize these locals gang up on outsiders. If not for the woman, you might’ve ended up in the hospital or behind bars!”

“Let’s hurry back! Lord Nuo might need something!” Longzai urged.

The two quickened their pace, anxious to return and wash off their sweat and grime. Danzai kept muttering, “If I hadn’t been caught off guard, I could’ve taken all three of them. Damn it, if I see them again, I’ll have them eating dirt.”

He barely finished grumbling when someone shouted:

“There they are!” Yellow-hair was the first to spot Danzai. Clearly, these guys weren’t pushovers.

Longzai and Danzai turned around, surprised to see their pursuers had circled back and were now behind them.

“This mouth of yours!” Longzai glared at Danzai.

“Don’t be afraid! Just a few of them—watch me take care of it!” Danzai rolled up his sleeves, ready for action.

“I just said, and you already forgot! Run!” Longzai barked.

He grabbed the unwilling Danzai, and they took off. Youth and training gave them an edge, and after darting through several streets, they managed to shake their pursuers.

The two collapsed in front of the hotel, gasping for breath.

“Why run? Just beat them up and they’ll fall into line!” Danzai panted.

“If you beat them, they’ll call for reinforcements. Can you handle that? Bravery for its own sake is foolish.”

“There they are!” Leaning against the wall, catching their breath, they heard shouting from behind.

They turned to see Yellow-hair on a motorcycle, pointing at them.

“Damn, this never ends!” Danzai couldn’t take it anymore.

“Let’s get them!” Longzai was finally fed up. He’d hoped to avoid trouble, but their pursuers persisted.

“Alright! I was waiting for you to say that!”

Danzai strode forward. Among three motorcycles, Yellow-hair’s was the first to stop, five or six meters from Danzai.

“Let’s see where you run now!” Yellow-hair shouted.

He hadn’t finished when a dark blur flashed by—Yellow-hair clutched his head, yelling.

The others hadn’t even stopped before their motorcycles toppled, riders and all.

“Let me tell you! Strike first, gain the upper hand!” Danzai declared.

The group scrambled to their feet, their resentment now deeper than ever. Yellow-hair called, “Get the weapons!”

Suddenly, as if by magic, six of them brandished six gleaming watermelon knives.

“These guys are prepared. If I don’t teach you a lesson today, I’ll change my name!” Danzai showed no fear.

His bravado intimidated Yellow-hair’s group. Though each held a knife, none dared to advance, seeing only one man standing before them, utterly unafraid.

“Get him! Six against one—if we can’t win, how will we survive?” Yellow-hair yelled, and they all rushed forward.

Danzai, born into a military family, was all muscle and sinew. Facing six armed men, he showed no fear, but sheer numbers soon overwhelmed him. His arm was slashed, and he began to falter.

“Longzai, are you just going to watch? Aren’t you going to help?” Danzai finally called for aid. Two against six would have been manageable, but Longzai’s response only fueled Danzai’s anger.

“Gentlemen, I’m not involved. I’m just a tour guide, showing you around. Take your time, enjoy yourselves!” Longzai pulled out a cigarette and smoked leisurely.

Yellow-hair’s group gained confidence, pressing their advantage. Danzai was still holding his own, but against knives, he couldn’t withstand for long. Wounds multiplied, his sweat-soaked shirt stained with blood. Though none were fatal, his strength was waning; it seemed only a matter of time before he collapsed in a pool of blood.

“You—!” Yellow-hair started, but suddenly collapsed with a muffled groan.

Before anyone could react, two more dropped. The remaining four stepped back, not fearing Longzai, but wary of what he held.

“For outings, nothing’s safer than protection; for street fights, always carry a stun baton.” Longzai waved the baton in his hand.

“You really are something!” Danzai gave him a thumbs up, laden with meaning.

“Get out of here!” The words were quiet, but carried weight.

Two of them dragged a third, while the remaining two scrambled onto their motorcycles and sped off. In a flash, they were gone.

Danzai, finally realizing what had happened, stormed over and began pummeling Longzai.

“You bastard! You had that thing all along—why not use it sooner? You waited until I was hurt! What’s your game?!”

“I wanted to see how many you could handle. If you’d knocked down all six, you’d show your strength and give them something to think about—so they wouldn’t bother us again!” Longzai steadied Danzai, ready to hail a cab to their hotel. “Besides, if I’d jumped in too soon, we might really provoke these thugs, and trouble would follow us endlessly. As the saying goes: it’s easier to deal with the King of Hell than his little demons. We’d better be careful these next few days.”

Danzai considered Longzai’s words—it made sense. Strangers in a new place, stirring up trouble with no allies to back them up, could only lead to more problems. It was best to lay low for a few days and sort things out once they got back home.

Note: “Eating dirt” means beating someone so badly they’re left sprawled on the ground, utterly defeated.