WBAI Chapter 18.3

Lu Yang leaned in close, his face inches from Xie An’yu’s ear. “Why aren’t you calling? Is it because the other person can’t answer the phone?”

Xie An’yu remained silent, now certain that Yue Lai wasn’t in Lu Yang’s custody.

“Only just realizing it now,” Lu Yang’s tone was mocking. “Too late.”

No sooner had he spoken than Xie An’yu shoved Lu Yang away and turned to run. But three men suddenly emerged from both sides of the alley, blocking his path.

“Don’t hurt him,” Lu Yang called out from behind Xie An’yu.

“Brother Lu, he beat you up like that, and you’re still worried about him?” one of the men asked.
Lu Yang chuckled. “Worried? I’ll teach him a proper lesson later.”

But definitely not by hitting him.

The men closed in, and Xie An’yu, seeing they carried no knives or clubs, charged forward without hesitation and punched the leader in the face.

The men were caught completely off guard by Xie An’yu’s swift attack. Stunned by the blow, they cursed loudly, “Fuck! You wanna die, you little shit?!”

Xie An’yu had no intention of getting into a drawn-out fight with this group. He just wanted to take them down as quickly as possible and escape to a place where there were people.

Of the three men, two were knocked to the ground with a single punch and kick each, barely registering what had happened before they hit the ground. Lu Yang also hadn’t expected Xie An’yu to have such skills. Not only was he strong, but he was also incredibly agile and efficient, taking down two people with no wasted movements.

Still, this was only because the men were unprepared. In a true one-on-three fight, Xie An’yu would definitely be at a disadvantage.

The curly-haired man got up from the ground: “Brother Lu! There’s no way he won’t get hurt now! I’m going to kill this little bastard!”

Before Xie An’yu could turn to the third man, his shoulders were suddenly pinned by two powerful arms. The man was a hulking figure with astonishing strength, his arms pressing down on Xie An’yu’s chest with crushing force. Gasping for breath, Xie An’yu raised his elbow and slammed it into the man’s stomach.

The man grunted in pain but didn’t release his grip. When Xie An’yu looked up, he saw Lu Yang had walked in front of him. The other two men each held one of Xie An’yu’s arms. Xie An’yu was pinned from three directions, unable to move. He stared coldly at Lu Yang.

“Give me the water,” Lu Yang ordered. One of the men holding Xie An’yu handed him a bottle of mineral water.

Lu Yang twisted open the cap, clamped his fingers around Xie An’yu’s jaw, and forced his mouth open. Xie An’yu, unable to resist, could only let Lu Yang pour the contents of the bottle down his throat.

Xie An’yu was forced to tilt his head back, and the liquid flowed uncontrollably down his throat.
Lu Yang poured a little and then released his grip. Xie An’yu choked and coughed violently, immediately feeling dizzy. The scene before him wavered.

“You should calm down for a while,” Lu Yang said, watching Xie An’yu’s eyes gradually lose focus. After a moment, he prepared to pour more.

Just as Lu Yang raised his hand, someone shoved him hard from the side. He stumbled sideways, nearly falling, and the mineral water bottle slipped from his grasp. Burning with rage, Lu Yang whipped his head around to see who had pushed him.

***

Yu Feng glared back at Lu Yang, saying in a low voice, “Let him go.”

“Can’t you understand human language?” Yu Feng’s gaze swept coldly past Lu Yang to the other three men. “If you don’t release him immediately, I’m calling the police.”

“Damn it, it’s you again!” the curly-haired man shouted.

“Let him go!” Yu Feng barked, his breathing growing ragged. Intimidated by his fierce presence and genuinely worried he might call the police, the three men obediently released their grip.

Without support, Xie An’yu’s legs gave out, and he collapsed. Yu Feng stepped forward to catch him, wrapping his arms around his waist and pulling him closer.

Yu Feng had never left. He had followed Xie An’yu and Lu Yang the entire time, keeping a safe distance to avoid detection. He had nearly lost them halfway through their journey. Because Lu Yang and Xie An’yu had acted perfectly normal throughout their walk, Yu Feng didn’t dare to rush forward or call the police.

Later, when Xie An’yu and Lu Yang entered a narrow alley, the silence was so profound that every sound carried clearly. Knowing he risked being discovered if he got too close, Yu Feng maintained an even greater distance.

It was precisely because of this distance that by the time he realized Xie An’yu was being cornered and forced to drink something, it was already too late to stop them.

“What did you give him?” Yu Feng’s heart pounded wildly.

“Just something to calm him down. Don’t worry, it won’t harm him,” Lu Yang said, refraining from making any sudden moves. He raised an eyebrow and asked, “You didn’t call the police?”

“No.”

Yu Feng indeed hadn’t called the police. If he had, he risked provoking the group, and he knew he couldn’t handle them alone, especially with Xie An’yu half-conscious. Furthermore, if he did call the police, by the time they arrived, this men would have long been gone.

Xie An’yu’s entire body felt weak, and his consciousness was fading. His breath, hot and ragged, brushed against Yu Feng’s neck in waves.

Yu Feng looked at Lu Yang and said, “I won’t call the police, but I’m taking him with me.”

“What’s your relationship with him?”

“None of your business.”

“Why do you think I’d let you take him?”

“You can refuse, if you want to make this a bigger deal.”

Not calling the police was essentially the other party’s attempt to protect himself by making a concession. Taking a step back was indeed better for both sides, and Lu Yang understood this.

He glanced at Xie An’yu in Yu Feng’s arms.

Today’s incident—if no one had witnessed it, it could have been brushed aside. But with a witness, the situation became complicated. Getting involved with the police just to satisfy a whim was truly unnecessary.

“See the injuries on my face?” Lu Yang pointed at Xie An’yu. “He did this. There needs to be an explanation, right? And what about my brothers here, they all have cuts and bruises on their faces. What about that?”

Yu Feng pulled out all the cash from his wallet and handed it to Lu Yang: “Medical expenses. This should be enough.”

Lu Yang glanced at the money. Since the other party had shown his attitude; pressing the issue further would be pointless. He couldn’t exactly punch the unconscious Xie An’yu in the face.

Lu Yang remained silent for a moment, his expression cold. He took the money from Yu Feng and told the few men behind him, “Let’s go.”

***

Yu Feng cradled the back of Xie An’yu’s head as he asked softly, “How are you feeling?”

He turned his head slightly and saw that Xie An’yu hadn’t completely lost consciousness.

Xie An’yu’s body was completely limp, making it difficult for Yu Feng to support him. When a person loses consciousness, they can’t control their center of gravity or muscle tension, meaning Xie An’yu’s entire weight was now pressing down on Yu Feng. Standing like this for long was exhausting, so Yu Feng crouched down, still holding Xie An’yu.

He turned around, squatted, and hoisted Xie An’yu onto his back. Then he pulled out his phone and called Zhou Yi.

“Are you home yet?”

“No, I was just about to leave. Where are you?”

“I’ll send you my location. Come pick me up. Hurry.”

“What’s wrong? What happened?”

“I’ll explain when you get here.”

Yu Feng hung up. He heard Xie An’yu’s weak voice beside him: “Thank you…”

Yu Feng tilted his head slightly and said softly, “It’s alright. Get some sleep for now.”

Carrying Xie An’yu on his back, Yu Feng walked out of the alley and sent Zhou Yi his location by the main road.

Zhou Yi arrived quickly. When he saw Yu Feng carrying someone on his back, he was startled and immediately turned on his hazard lights and got out of the car.

“What’s going on?”

“Give me a hand,” Yu Feng said, setting Xie An’yu down.

Zhou Yi quickly helped, and together with Yu Feng, they assisted the person into the car.
Yu Feng got into the passenger seat and said, “To the hospital.”

“What happened?” Zhou Yi started the car and searched for the nearest hospital on the navigation system.

“This kid got into trouble, and I happened to run into it.”

“Why is he unconscious?”

“He was probably forced to drink water laced with a sedative.”

Zhou Yi’s face twisted in shock. “What the hell? Is there no law anymore? Did you see who did it?”

“I did.”

“Where are they? Why didn’t you call the police?”

“There were too many of them. I couldn’t handle it alone, and if I called the police, they would have been long gone by the time the police arrived.”

Xie An’yu lay in the back seat, his black baseball cap askew, revealing his handsome features, spirited eyebrows and eyes. Zhou Yi glanced at the rearview mirror several times, feeling increasingly uneasy: “Why do I feel like I’ve seen this person somewhere before…”

“Student Xiao Dao,” Yu Feng said.

Zhou Yi froze, startled. “It’s him?! No wonder he looked so familiar!”

“What’s going on? Did you arrange to meet him?”

“We just ran into each other on the road.”

Zhou Yi turned to look at him: “What kind of strange fate is this… What happened to him? How did he get drugged?”

“I’ll explain later.” Yu Feng wasn’t in the mood to recount what had just happened. Although Zhou Yi drove steadily, he was a bit slow. Yu Feng frowned slightly and urged, “Zhou Yi, drive faster.”

Yu Feng took Xie An’yu to the hospital for a routine blood test. Fortunately, all indicators were normal, and his body was fine.

“He just needs to sleep it off; no need to worry too much. The water he drank probably contained sedatives such as □□,” the doctor said. “He might feel unwell for a few days after waking up—dizzines, fatigue, that’s all normal. Just make sure he gets plenty of rest, and he’ll recover gradually.”

Yu Feng nodded. “Thank you, Doctor.”

Zhou Yi had rushed over without even removing his makeup, dressed in his usual punk-inspired, somewhat unconventional style. The doctor couldn’t help but glance at him, his expression complex, assuming he had taken Xie An’yu to some shady entertainment venue.

“Don’t take kids to those disreputable places. How old is he? It’s a good thing you two were there. If he were alone, he might have ended up with his kidneys harvested without even realizing it.”

Zhou Yi paused, then realized what the doctor meant. He found the doctor’s words quite humorous and explained with a smile, “Doctor, you’ve misunderstood. We didn’t take this kid to any disreputable place. This is my stage outfit, not clubbing attire—we’re just two passersby; we don’t even know this young man. We saw an injustice and brought him to the hospital.”

“Oh, I see…” The doctor lowered his head and smiled. “My mistake. Sorry about that.”

Zhou Yi laughed. “It’s fine.”

Yu Feng and Zhou Yi left the doctor’s office.

“You can take me back; my car is still parked in the square over there,” Yu Feng said.

Zhou Yi nodded. “Sure. But what about Student Xiao Dao…? Is it okay to leave him here alone? Should we contact his family?”

“I’ll come back later. You can just drop me off at the square and go home; it’s quite late.”

“Alright.”

Yu Feng briefly recounted what had happened to Zhou Yi, who was driving. Zhou Yi, gripping the steering wheel, asked him, “How much did you give them?”

“I don’t know exactly, probably around three or four thousand[mfn]T/N: Around 420-560 USD. Crazy amount of money to carry around, especially since nowadays practically no one carry cash. You can even buy vegetable at the traditional market with WeChat/Ali pay.[/mfn]. I gave them cash, didn’t count it.”

Zhou Yi’s focus shifted. “You carry that much cash with you?”

“A friend’s kid had their full-moon celebration[mfn]滿月酒 (mǎn yuè jiǔ): lit. full moon wine; feast that celebrates a baby turning one month old. The full moon banquet refers to a banquet held one month after the birth of a baby. In ancient times, the Han people believed that if a baby survived one month after birth, it had passed a difficult time. In modern time, parents usually hold a full-month ceremony to celebrate their child’s survival and wish the newborn a healthy growth. It’s also known as a “red egg and ginger party” and marks the baby’s survival through the crucial first month. Modern celebrations often involve a banquet-style party at a restaurant, where guests bring gifts like money in red envelopes or jewelry, and in return, the family provides a feast and treats like red eggs and pickled ginger. More information: Link.[/mfn] a few days ago. I got an invitation but couldn’t make it, so they returned the red envelope I sent. I’ve used some of it these past two days, but there’s still some left.”

“Good thing you gave them cash. If they’d made you scan a payment code, they might have tried to extort ten or twenty thousand[mfn]T/N: Around 1,400-2,800 USD.[/mfn] from you. Still, they were surprisingly easy to deal with, not even trying to squeeze more out of you.”

“Those people weren’t originally trying to extort money. They just couldn’t swallow their humiliation after being beaten up, and they didn’t really want to cause a scene and involve the police either. I gave them a token gesture, and they knew when to quit; both sides backing down. Even if I’d offered to transfer money, they probably wouldn’t have accepted a digital transfer anyway—a transfer record would change the nature of things. They’re not stupid; otherwise, they would have asked for a transfer right away.”

“Those bastards got off easy, pulling off something so despicable and still walking away with three thousand yuan. Why didn’t you call me back then?”

“I barely had time to rush over and rescue him, let alone call you.”

Zhou Yi clicked his tongue. “Forget it. Consider it money well spent to avert a greater disaster. As long as everyone’s safe, that’s what matters.”

Gosh, that harvesting kidney line… That’s just so wrong. This world has gone crazy…

Btw… the new idioms showing up in this chapter is 27 idioms… More if you count the one already shows up in earlier chapters. 😬😬

[dropdown title=”List of Idiom in Chapter 18.3″]
怒火中燒 (nù huǒ zhōng shāo): to burn with anger; to be furious; simmer with rage; fiery wrath; steamed up; be burning with wrath; be seething with rage; be simmering with extreme anger; boil with rage; be ablaze with fury; one’s anger smoulders; one’s heart kindles with rage; anger is burning in one’s heart.

輕舉妄動 (qīng jǔ wàng dòng): to act blindly without thinking (idiom); to act rashly and blindly; take reckless action; be impetuous and imprudent; Refers to actions taken carelessly without careful consideration.

不依不饒 (bù yī bù ráo): to not stop pestering (in order to achieve one’s goal); unforgiving; unwilling to pardon; not to overlook, nor spare (idiom); to treat severely without listening to excuses; wouldn’t let sb off; be hard on sb; describes someone who will pester you endlessly if your request is not met.

路見不平 (lù jiàn bù píng): to stand up for the truth and fight for justice; see the road; witness injustice; see unfairness; encounter wrongdoing; observe inequity; standing up and upholding justice when seeing injustice.

見好就收 (jiàn hǎo jiù shōu): to quit while one is ahead (idiom); to know when to stop; stop before going too far; leave while the going is good; have a sense of proportion, to stop in moderation, and not to be greedy.
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