Chapter 37 Punishing Evil

  Ji Dong looked at me with a gentle gaze, pulling me down to sit: "Alright, I've told you everything truthfully. Whatever questions you have, I'll answer them for you, so from now on, don't go asking others... Can we eat now? I'm starving."

  I flashed him a brilliant smile and gave an OK gesture: "No problem!"

  After dinner, I helped Ji Dong tidy up the kitchen. With two "big mothers" at home, I had long been trained to be quick and nimble, carefully washing and wiping the utensils and bowls until they shone brightly.

  "By the way, I have to remind you that Li Xiaoyan and Yuge's family relationship is not ordinary, specifically I'm not clear either. In short, she's not easy to deal with, you need to be careful in the future. This time if it wasn't for Yuge stopping me, I would have taken those people who bullied you out and slaughtered them along with that woman!" Ji Dong clenched his fist and said fiercely.

  "Whatever, Li Xiaoran is a girl after all. I'll settle the score with her later." I furrowed my brow, my voice laced with a hint of helplessness. Maybe I couldn't gain an advantage from being straightforward, and if we were to play dirty tricks, I probably wouldn't be able to outdo her. For now, I could only adapt to the situation.

  The abandoned industrial park on the east outskirts of the city is desolate and barren.

  Under the bright sunshine, a boy with an evil look on his face stood in front of me, behind him was a group of people, each with their hands behind their backs and legs open.

  "Brother Yu, I've brought MiMi." Led the way, Ji Dong bowed his head respectfully and retreated to Yu's side on his own initiative.

  He raised the corner of his mouth, his eyes staring at me without blinking. I was stunned for a moment, lowered my head to take a light breath, then lifted my head and chest, facing the gaze of the crowd with a smile, walking slowly to him.

  "Thank you. Big literary." Eyes staring straight into his dark pupils, politely uttering two words.

  His face changed and then recovered, he stretched out his hand to me and said faintly: "Come over."

  I looked at the big hand stretched out to me, and still obediently put my hand on it lightly, letting him clench it in his palm. Then I was led by him, and the sound of footsteps echoed behind me, the scene sounded quite grand. I turned sideways to glance at Ji Dong walking on the other side, his eyebrows were slightly furrowed, as if he sensed my gaze, looked back at me, slightly curled up the corners of his mouth, then turned away.

  It wound its way past four or five dilapidated concrete houses, finally stopping in front of a secluded grey-white factory building. The paint on the solid iron gate had completely peeled off, revealing black and grey overlapping steel plates. In the middle of the gate was a small door about one person high, with two guards standing beside it. When they saw us approaching, they all came forward to greet us.

  "Is anyone there?" Yu asked faintly.

  "Don't worry, Brother Yu! With the two of us keeping watch, not even a fly can get in, let alone someone trying to escape!" One of the robust men patted his chest and hastily spoke up.

  Another person quickly retreated, opened the lock and pulled open the large iron gate. The rusty iron gate emitted a sharp friction sound, and I couldn't help but cover my ears. Frowning as I looked inside, it wasn't as dark as I had imagined, with plenty of light illuminating a concrete floor inside, and no signs of life within sight.

  In this desolate wilderness, there are only a few withered trees scattered about, devoid of any vitality. Being imprisoned here is indeed not a bad choice.

  Yu Yiyu still pulled me, walking in big strides, looking around the surroundings. The roof of this house was hollowed out, and several horizontal bars that had been corroded beyond recognition hung from the top of the moldy walls, without any windproof or rainproof function, no wonder the brightness inside and outside the house was not much different.

  A vast and empty literary space, with only a pile of half-meter-high bricks in the left corner. Next to it, several people were tied up with their backs against each other, their hands and feet bound, and cloth stuffed into their mouths. Seeing us enter, they kept making humming noises, struggling hard to break free from the ropes.

  The temperature soared to 40 degrees Celsius in the afternoon, and I felt a hot and humid sensation in my palms. Sweat beads formed on my forehead, and my chest felt stuffy. But when I saw those dreamlike faces, the scene from that night was instantly rekindled, and I was furious, my anger boiling over. Suppressing my rage, I followed Yu to approach them, only to discover that each person's face had already begun to swell, their dark skin unable to conceal the exposed redness. The four of them furrowed their brows, their eyes still shining with resentment, as if they were not afraid of Yu. One of the muscular men, whose legs were already bound, kicked at Yu, who easily dodged the attack by taking a step back.

  Yu raised his right hand and swung it with force, his voice fierce: "Get up!"

  A gust of wind whizzed by, and in an instant, the four were surrounded. Amidst the punching and kicking, they let out continuous groans. The gang that followed Ze Yu didn't hold back, and looking at those faces twisted in pain, my anger dissipated by half. I couldn't bear to look, lowering my head in discomfort.

  "That's enough." After a few minutes, Yu finally spoke up to stop it, pulling me forward, and the crowd parted to let us through. He then personally went over and gave each of them a hard kick, before pulling me to his side, raising an eyebrow, indicating that I should also vent my emotions.

  I frowned and bit my lip, looking at the four people on the ground who were on their last breath, with blood flowing from their noses and mouths. Their skin was also covered in bruises, even if they were men, they weren't made of iron.

  At this moment, I don't have the motivation to take revenge anymore. Even if I didn't personally give them a beating, the lesson they received should be enough.

  "Never mind, Yu, that's enough. If we keep fighting, someone will get killed. Just teach them a lesson and let it go." I looked calmly at Yu, then turned to Ji Dong, "Let them promise not to cause trouble again in the future, and we'll spare their lives."

  "Let them go? You're too soft! They're not so easily killed, and don't say I didn't warn you. Have you forgotten how they treated you? This is your chance for revenge."

  Ji Dong walked up to me, his tone full of incomprehension: "You're going to let them off? Don't be so timid, okay? They're bullying you because they think you're weak! You have to show them some color! We've already spared their lives, if you don't want to take action, I'll do it for you!" He then tried to charge forward.

  I quickly pulled him back, Ji Dong's move was possibly even more ruthless than Yu's, and if someone really got killed, it would be too late for regrets. The four people on the ground had a hint of fear in their eyes, but they still struggled with all their might, making pleading hums from their mouths. It seemed that this kind of person indeed needed to be taught a lesson, otherwise they would remain arrogant. At least I had to put up a show, or else I would really be looked down upon by them, and who knows if I would be able to escape next time. After all, Yu and Ji Dong couldn't always be there to protect me.

  "Never mind! I'll do it! Who's afraid of who?" I glared at Ji Dong, he had struck a sore spot in me. Actually, I'm still quite weak-willed, so I've always looked down on people who bully the weak, but now that I'm being bullied myself, it's really hard to stand up for myself and demand justice.

  I walked up to the little punk who had been the first to knock me down, slightly furrowing my brow as I observed him. His eyes were already so swollen that you couldn't see his eyeballs, just a slit of an opening, and from that small gap, a fierce light shone through. He stopped struggling, holding his head high in an attempt to glare at me with wide eyes. Those little eyes, even though they had changed shape, still radiated the light of a hungry wolf, making me feel disgusted. I quickly slapped him across the face, and his head swung to one side, that already swollen face hitting my palm with a dull thud, a burning sensation like fire. My heart softened, was this considered bullying the weak?

  I finally couldn't bear to do it, took two steps back, glanced over the crowd, and cast my eyes on the orange-red bricks. I raised my voice: "Listen up! Today I'm showing great mercy, as long as you guarantee not to cause any more trouble in the future, I can let you all go right now!"

  "You..."

  "Xī yǔ, dōng guā, xièxiè nǐmen. Búguò, yǐjiàn wǒ shì shòu hài zhě, qǐng nǐ ràng wǒ lái chǔlǐ, kěyǐ ma?" Dǎ duàn xī yǔ hái wèi chūkǒu de huà, nèixīn tíqǐ le bǎifēn zhī èr bǎi de yǒngqì.

  They all furrowed their brows, exchanged a glance, and ultimately didn't stop me again. My hanging heart was put down, and I responded with a grateful smile.

  Under the bewildered expressions of Ze Yu and his classmates, I personally went to pull out the cloth balls stuffed in their mouths. The faces of the four people stiffened, and they convulsed for a long time before recovering. Along the solidified bloodstains on the corners of their mouths flowed thick saliva, making anyone who looked at it feel extremely nauseous.

  "We... we promise, hurry up... untie us!" The small-eyed man replied weakly after a brief discussion.

  "Don't be in a hurry, we must make things clear first. If you go back on your word, next time I get my hands on you, I won't let you off!" As I spoke, I quickly walked towards the brick and kicked it with great force. The bricks fell down in front of the four people with a loud "thud", stunning one group and leaving another group dazed, the effect was quite good.

  After sending away those disgusting men, Ji Yu let out a soft hum from his nose, wrapped his hand around my neck and pulled me into his arms. His warm breath touched the top of my head: "You're really an idiot, but your courage is commendable."

  My heart skipped a beat again, and I broke out in sweat, but having enjoyed this treatment many times before, I've become somewhat numb to it. My surface acting skills have improved with each passing day. I slipped out of his arm and glared at him: "You're the one who's addicted to bullying people! You might as well be my arch-nemesis..." As soon as I finished speaking, I realized I had spoken too quickly, and before he could explode in anger, I hastily retreated behind Ji Dong.