Amidst the chaotic brawl, everyone bore varying degrees of bruises on their faces.
They were heavily outnumbered.
The tall, slender boy hooked the corners of his lips upward, raised a hand to lightly touch the bruise on his jaw, and narrowed his eyes into a sharp, dangerous gaze.
Reacting with razor-sharp agility to a rush of wind behind him, he spun around with swift precision and threw a punch. The ambushers' boy was sent flying sideways, letting out a sharp cry of pain before collapsing heavily onto the ground to wail.
Jiang Zhi stood frozen, staring at his empty, swung-out fist, then turned his head toward the girl who had suddenly appeared.
In her hands, the girl held a half-meter-long wooden stick—more accurately, a split piece of firewood. Her exquisitely delicate face still retained the taut intensity of her recent heavy strike. Aside from a slight furrow between her brows, her unadorned, pretty face was unnervingly calm.
"You—" Jiang Zhi managed just one word of surprise before he saw the girl grip the stick with both hands and swing it fiercely toward his side, cutting through the air with a whistling sound.
"Damn it, what the hell, where did this stinking brat come from—" Li Nan clutched his battered arm, where a swollen red welt instantly bloomed across his tanned forearm.
"Catch." The girl's voice was cold as she shoved the stick into Jiang Zhi's hands.
Jiang Zhi had no time to spare for anything else; this was hardly the moment for shock or curiosity. He quickly caught the weapon and pulled the girl behind him.
Armed with a tool, Jiang Zhi instantly seized the upper hand, making it nearly impossible for the others to close in on him. Seeing this, his opponents began scanning the surroundings for weapons, but Jiang Zhi blocked those attempting to break out of the alley.
"What's this? Want to run now? The lackeys you recruited, Li Nan, are completely useless—just as good-for-nothing as you are," Jiang Zhi taunted with a smirk.
Driven mad with rage, Li Nan cursed furiously, "Fuck, your entire family is useless and good-for-nothing! I'm going to fight you to the death today!"
Fueled by intense fury, they rushed forward wave after wave, only to be beaten back each time. Fewer and fewer men remained standing.
When Yan Xu arrived, he found his good brother and best pal standing with one foot planted squarely on Li Nan's back, using the tip of his stick to lift the guy's chin, looking precisely like an arrogant bully.
He felt as though he had arrived a bit late—or perhaps that he was entirely redundant. He had known all along that this mob of ragtag scum would be child's play for his older brother, more than easily handled alone.
"Azhi," he called out tentatively.
The boy turned his head, but only glanced at him briefly before looking away. His dark eyes swept the surroundings as if searching for something.
Puzzled, Yan Xu scratched the back of his head and followed his gaze, looking behind himself.
It was completely empty; there was nothing there at all.
Baffled, he asked, "Brother, what are you looking for?"
Jiang Zhi pressed his lips together and replied indifferently, "Nothing."
He lowered his gaze back to the person beneath his feet, picked up the slightly splintered piece of firewood, and gently tapped the guy's face with it.
"I said you were useless and you refused to accept it. You don't even have an ounce of self-awareness. What? Are you going to ambush me again next time?"
Li Nan felt as though every joint in his body had been dislocated, and his face was swollen to the point where speech was impossible; the mere twitch of his lips drew in sharp, agonizing breaths.
The rest of the accompanying lackeys were either sprawled out or flat on their backs, completely out of commission.
Receiving no reply, Jiang Zhi raised the corners of his lips in a wide, viciously mocking smile. "Cat got your tongue? Oh, I forgot—your face is swollen up like a toad's, so you can only croak now."
"Come on, keep croaking! Isn't that your favorite thing to do? Today I'll let you croak until your throat gives out, until you're completely satisfied."
Watching the boy who was having way too much fun, Yan Xu bared his teeth and silently stepped back to serve as human scenery, never letting his guard down as he scanned the perimeter in case any stray fish tried to launch a sneak attack.
He couldn't help mentally complaining.
To dare provoke Jiang Zhi, this tyrannical dragon—he didn't know whether to praise the guy's misplaced courage or laugh at his sheer ignorance of death, fearless as a newborn calf.
At Jinshi Normal University Affiliated High School, everyone knew Jiang Zhi was the unattainable flower on the high peak in the eyes of the girls. He possessed a devastatingly handsome face, but was chillingly ruthless and indifferent, keeping everyone at a safe distance where they dared only admire him from afar.
In the eyes of the boys, however, he was the undisputed campus tyrant who ruled the entire school—cross him, and your luck ran out.
Yet, leave aside the fact that no one dared provoke him at the Affiliated High School; even in the entire city of Jinshi, very few people dared to cross Jiang Zhi—with the sole exception of that toxic green tea from the Qin family. Who in Jinshi didn't know real estate tycoon Jiang Yu? And Jiang Yu happened to have a rebellious, unruly, good-for-nothing son named Jiang Zhi.
Jiang Yu, who moved effortlessly through political and business circles and whose word was absolute, was utterly helpless against his own son. The father and son never occupied the same space without trading barbed insults.
Yan Xu had once concluded that Jiang Zhi's venomous tongue was a skill honed entirely through sparring with his old man.
With another casual kick, as if brushing aside some filthy trash, Jiang Zhi cast one final glance at the curled-up, wailing Li Nan.
He sneered disdainfully, "Go back and tell your master: this time I beat his dog, but next time, I'll be hitting his face."
Li Nan's hands, which were clutched over his stomach, froze for a fraction of a second before he resumed rolling back and forth, pretending he hadn't heard a word.
"Tch—truly a dog takes after its master!" Jiang Zhi said, carrying the piece of firewood as he walked toward the mouth of the alley.
Yan Xu hurried after him, asking with nervous tension, "Azhi, does this business have to do with that toxic green tea from the Qin family?"
Jiang Zhi shot him a sidelong glance and said calmly, "Move aside."
"Huh?" Yan Xu froze in a daze.
Jiang Zhi simply raised his hand and tossed the piece of firewood he had been holding for so long neatly onto a stack of firewood, then shoved his hands into his pockets and strolled away with a leisurely gait.
Yan Xu jogged a couple of steps to match his stride. "Azhi, aren't we going to the martial arts gym?"
"Not going. Heading back to catch up on sleep." With that, Jiang Zhi let out a yawn.
"You went to the internet cafe to pull an all-nighter again."
"Brother, let me put some medicine on that when we get back. The skin on your hand is scraped raw—damn, the skin on those thugs is really tough." Yan Xu darted from side to side, showing his concern.
Meanwhile, in another alley just a wall away, Chi Wan raised her head slightly to look at the dilapidated, swaying plaque above, pausing for a moment. Then she took a couple of steps to the side to avoid the center and knocked on the interior-locked security iron gate.
After a long while, a male voice filled with impatience drifted out from within. "Coming, coming! What are you knocking for like you're calling a soul? I already said the rent will be handed over next Monday."
A sturdy young man with well-developed muscles emerged, cursing as he adjusted his traditional vest without even raising his head.
It wasn't until he reached the iron gate that Zhang Lei finally looked up, freezing instantly. It wasn't the landlord dunning him for rent as he had expected, but a strange young girl wearing faded jeans and a slightly oversized white T-shirt. She was so slender that the clothes barely hung on her frame.
Zhang Lei squeezed out a benevolent smile and asked in astonishment, "Little girl, were you the one knocking just now?"
Chi Wan merely nodded.
"Is something the matter?" Zhang Lei stood inside the threshold, gazing at her through the iron bars.
Her voice was cool and detached as she asked, "Does this martial arts gym still hire people?"
"Huh?" Zhang Lei was stunned once more, but he quickly recovered, his smile growing significantly brighter and more genuine as he blurted out, "Hiring, we're hiring!"
With that, he reached out to unhook the security chain, pushing the main gate wide open.
Displaying eager hospitality, Zhang Lei welcomed her inside. "Little girl, what are you looking to learn? In our gym, we have taekwondo, sanda combat, martial arts, and self-defense. If you can think of it, there's nothing I can't teach."
Chi Wan's gaze swept across the interior, observing the layout and environment, including a pile of rusted sabers, spears, swords, and halberds in the corner. Interrupting the man's sales pitch, she asked directly, "Which kind of fighting is the most practical?"
"Fighting?" Zhang Lei stopped in his tracks, dumbfounded.
"Mmm." Chi Wan turned to look at him.
Zhang Lei looked the delicate-featured, pretty girl up and down from head to toe. With her fragile frame, she looked in every way like an obedient, innocent, and sheltered honors student.
Yet, meeting her dead-serious gaze, Zhang Lei hesitated for a moment before slapping his thigh and declaring, "Sanda."
"Alright, then I'll sign up for that one." Chi Wan made her decision with extreme speed and decisiveness.
"Great, great, great! Then let's settle the tuition fee and I'll fill you in on the class schedule." Beaming with joy, Zhang Lei led her deeper into the inner hall.
This time it was Chi Wan who stopped in her tracks, causing Zhang Lei to turn back with a smile when he realized she wasn't following.
Hesitating for a moment, Chi Wan asked, "Excuse me, how much is the tuition?"
She watched as he raised three fingers and explained, "Our gym charges by class hours. Each class session is three hours long, and it costs three hundred yuan."
He quickly added, "However, since you're the very first student to sign up this summer, I'll give you a discount. Each session will only cost you two hundred and twenty. But we do require a minimum purchase of ten sessions."
"Any questions?" Zhang Lei stepped back to her side and asked.
Chi Wan nodded and asked, "Can I pay for the sessions one by one?"
She saw the man's expression change instantly, though he smoothed it back out just as quickly. With a smiling facade, he asked, "Did you come here to learn martial arts without telling your family, little girl?"
"Yes. I can't afford that much money all at once, but as long as you let me learn, I will definitely pay the tuition. Is that alright?" Chi Wan felt a pang of nervousness, terrified of being rejected.
She watched the man for a long while, secretly monitoring his expression. Only when he finally nodded did she let out a sigh of relief.
Realizing they would be seeing each other often, a soft smile bloomed on Chi Wan's face, revealing a dimple on her right cheek. She asked, "What is your honorable surname, Master? How should I address you from now on?"
"Oh, my surname is Zhang, Zhang Lei. You can call me Brother Zhang—no, Uncle Zhang." Zhang Lei corrected himself midway, feeling that at over thirty years old, taking advantage of a young girl like that made his face burn with embarrassment.
"Hello, Brother Zhang. My name is Chi Wan—'Chi' as in pool of water, 'Wan' as in rescue." Choosing the former, Chi Wan addressed him with gentle politeness.
Zhang Lei rarely interacted with girls; his world was usually filled with stinky brats. Hearing a young girl address him so smoothly and sweetly as "Brother Zhang" for the very first time, he was instantly so delighted that he lopped another forty yuan off the hourly tuition rate.