Chapter Twenty-Two: The End of the Martial World

Zhou Third was not intimidated at all; he told Li Yanchao directly about how he'd stabbed someone.

“Li, this really wasn't me looking for trouble. That bastard just said something too infuriating!”

Hearing this, Li Yanchao nearly laughed out of anger himself. If this isn't picking a fight, then what is?

Still, Li Yanchao felt obliged to try and rescue Zhou Third—after all, he had a beautiful sister, and Li Yanchao was more than a little interested in her.

“Chen Liang, this was my brother’s mistake. You name the terms, and I’ll take the responsibility,” Li Yanchao replied, forthright and without hesitation.

“No problem. This is a matter of the streets, and it’ll be settled on the streets. Your brother showed restraint and didn’t hit any vital spots, so I’ll be merciful too—just break his arms. How does that sound?” Chen Liang stated bluntly.

“Li, a man must answer for his own actions. This is my mess, I’ll clean it up myself!” Zhou Third, enraged by Chen Liang’s words, drew the short knife from his belt, ready to fight.

“Good! Like a real man. Today I’ll break your two arms, and after that, we’ll go our separate ways. All debts cleared!” Chen Liang nodded.

“Wait, Chen Liang, don’t move yet!” Li Yanchao, still hoping to win over the sister, couldn’t just stand by and let his future brother-in-law get his arms broken.

He grabbed Zhou Third’s knife-wielding hand, squeezed hard, and Zhou Third, unable to hold the knife, let it drop.

“Chen Liang, here’s my offer: I’ll pay your friend’s medical bills and throw in two hundred yuan for nutrition. Will that do?” Ignoring Zhou Third’s struggling, Li Yanchao laid out his terms.

Chen Liang shook his head. “Li Yanchao, that doesn’t fit your reputation as Little Mengchang. Are you really set on favoring your own?”

He paused, then continued, “Medical bills, we can manage ourselves. As for the nutrition money, keep it for your brother. Matters of the street must be settled by the street. No one can change that.”

Chen Liang’s words left Li Yanchao feeling awkward. He knew blood would have to be spilled before this would be resolved.

“Chen Liang, what if I add a job placement to the deal? Will that settle things?”

---

“Li, you…” Zhou Third grew anxious at these words. How could he let Li Yanchao pay such a steep price for him?

A job placement was precious, and even the children of the compound worried about employment. Otherwise, why were there so many bored veterans hanging around?

Now, Li Yanchao was willing to bleed for Zhou Third’s sake, and Zhou Third was deeply moved.

If Li Yanchao asked him to help abduct his sister now, Zhou Third would probably grit his teeth and do it!

“Shut up! Do you know who he is? That’s Chen Liang—the very idol you worship, the one who fought ten men under the bridge!” Li Yanchao, seeing Zhou Third’s defiance, kicked him hard, sending him staggering backward.

“Ah! This…” Zhou Third was stunned silent by Li Yanchao’s words.

Li Yanchao was referring to Chen Liang’s legendary fight when Chen Second Fool took on over ten men single-handedly, including trained fighters and veterans, and defeated them all. Li Yanchao had witnessed it himself and had total respect for Chen Liang’s strength.

Since then, Chen Second Fool’s fame spread throughout the city, making him a notable figure.

“So, Chen Liang, what do you think of my offer? Will this settle it?” Li Yanchao’s heart was bleeding. That job placement had taken him ages to secure—he’d planned to use it to impress his goddess, but now it would be spent cleaning up her brother’s mess.

What a waste! It made him furious.

Li Yanchao’s offer surprised Chen Liang as well. A job placement! Were all compound kids so generous?

Honestly, breaking an arm wasn’t much; it would heal in a few months, and Chen Liang wouldn’t have seriously crippled Zhou Third out of respect for Li Yanchao. It was Li Yanchao who was anxious.

“Alright! Li Yanchao, if you can really deliver a job placement, I’ll settle this matter right here.” Such a bargain was rare—only a fool wouldn’t take it.

“Deal! I’ll go home now to fetch the money and the referral letter for the job placement,” Li Yanchao said, and without hesitation, ran home to get the cash.

Two hundred yuan was a fortune at this time—only an idiot would carry that much around.

---

In no time, Li Yanchao returned on his bicycle, handed over an envelope and a wad of cash. “Chen Liang, we’re square now! Count the money if you like.”

Chen Liang took the envelope and cash without even looking at them, stuffing them in his pocket. “Your reputation as Little Mengchang, I trust it.”

He glanced at Zhou Third, then kicked up a solid iron rod lying on the ground. With a sudden burst of strength and a grating metallic noise, he bent both ends of the rod into a circle.

The entire crowd was stunned—including Li Yanchao. Chen Liang tossed the bent rod at Zhou Third’s feet with a clang.

“Kid, you got lucky today. Li Yanchao took the hit for you. Next time, I’ll twist your head off and play soccer with it!” With that, he left with the equally dumbfounded Cao Kui and the others.

Once Chen Liang and his group were gone, Zhou Third swallowed hard, picked up the iron rod, tried to bend it, and his face went red with effort, but the rod didn’t budge.

He tossed it aside, then looked at Li Yanchao as if he were his own father. “Li, I really owe you. If not for you, I…”

“Enough. You said you’re my brother, how could I not help you? Sigh, is Chen Liang even human?” Li Yanchao patted Zhou Third’s shoulder, relieved he hadn’t gone out to mess around that day—otherwise, Zhou Third’s arms would surely be done for.

Really, was Chen Liang even human? He could rival the brute Zhang Fei of old! Absolutely terrifying!

After returning, Chen Liang handed out packs of Red Pagoda Hill cigarettes, sent off the others, and then said to Cao Kui, “Da Wu, do you know which hospital Xiao Liuzi is at? Let’s go together and bring him the money.”

When the two arrived at the hospital, they found Xiao Liuzi’s mother scolding him for loafing around, which made Chen Liang and Cao Kui awkward—they were loafers themselves.

Pushing open the door to the ward, “Auntie, we’re here to visit Xiao Liuzi!” No matter how awkward, they had to face it head-on.