Chapter 31: Turning Against Each Other
Chapter 31: Turning Against Each Other
The dormitory immediately fell silent. All the students looked over.
In school, incidents where some stronger students aggressively forced classmates to buy them meals were not uncommon. It was like bully students demanding classmates buy them cigarettes.
For over two years from first grade to third grade of junior high, most students in this dormitory had experienced it—sometimes from domineering, bullying classmates in the same class, sometimes from the strong, troublesome students in other grades; also, some younger local ruffians from outside the school would occasionally come to the school out of boredom to bully the boarding students, gaining a sense of vanity and satisfaction.
Su Chunfeng had also been bullied like this a few times before.
It wasn’t a matter of being cowardly or not. Even someone with the toughest, boldest, and fiercest temperament—how could they stand against the local troublemakers when in a different place?
If they just resisted stiffly, the only result was being beaten up by a group…
Now, some students in the dormitory felt sympathy for Su Chunfeng, some gloated, and some sighed helplessly. However, none dared to show it, afraid of bringing trouble upon themselves.
Wang Liqiu’s group had six people. Besides him, Xu Zhijun, Zhang Hai, and Zhao Mingfeng, there was also Dong Chuliang—the former School Bully King from the previous grade who had already graduated and left Dongwangzhuang Township Middle School. Dong Chuliang also brought along a thin young man who looked about seventeen or eighteen, with a sinister and vicious expression.
Before Su Chunfeng could answer, Li Zhichao stood up first. He said casually with a smile, “Sure, it’s just a meal for the brothers! I’ll treat!” In the past, he had always had this straightforward and neither humble nor pushy personality. Coupled with his smooth and tactful nature, he managed to get along well at Dongwangzhuang Township Middle School, maintaining relatively good relations with various student gangs, and was never criticized or resented for it.
But this time, Wang Liqiu was clearly here to cause trouble for Su Chunfeng. He pushed Li Zhichao aside, his slanted triangular eyes glaring fiercely. “I was asking Su Chunfeng to buy the meal! What are you butting in for?”
“Liqiu, what do you mean by that?” Li Zhichao smiled awkwardly.
Wang Liqiu ignored him. He looked at Su Chunfeng, who was still squatting on the ground, and said, “Su Chunfeng, are you deaf? Didn’t you hear what I said? Damn it!”
Su Chunfeng glanced at Dong Chuliang, then turned his head calmly as if nothing had happened, ignoring Wang Liqiu and the others. Holding a steamed bun in one hand, he took a bite. With the other hand, he picked up some potato shreds with his chopsticks and stuffed them into his mouth, chewing indistinctly. “No.”
No.
A very straightforward reply!
Everyone in the dormitory felt a jolt in their hearts—was Su Chunfeng crazy?
Even if he wasn’t afraid of getting beaten, even if he didn’t want to spend the money and meal tickets, he could have tactfully made excuses like “I don’t have enough meal tickets” or “I’m out of money…”
Such a blunt refusal was a strong stance!
It was almost equivalent to slapping Wang Liqiu hard in the face in front of many students, especially Wang Liqiu’s close buddies, Dong Chuliang, and another outsider!
No one noticed that before firmly refusing, Su Chunfeng had glanced at Dong Chuliang.
Even fewer noticed that Dong Chuliang frowned, a flicker of hesitation in his eyes. Just as Wang Liqiu was furious and thought he had found an excuse to explode, Dong Chuliang grabbed Wang Liqiu’s arm from behind and said, “Liqiu, let it go. Let’s go back to eat. It’s just a few steps anyway.”
Everyone was surprised.
Dong Chuliang, known for being fierce and domineering, could be considered a senior figure among the current student factions at school, the undisputed former School Bully King!
Today, he came with Wang Liqiu, but after encountering such a direct and firm refusal, he chose to drop the matter and keep the peace!
Was this still Dong Chuliang?
Wang Liqiu was momentarily stunned, then realized that Dong Chuliang must be secretly mocking his status and prestige at school. If he couldn’t even get a free meal, how could he think of being the king at school? Moreover, his three close friends Xu Zhijun, Zhang Hai, and Zhao Mingfeng were right there. If he couldn’t establish his authority this time, how could he lead and intimidate them, who were also fond of fighting? And with so many third-year boys in the dormitory, who in the third grade would respect him in the future?
“Damn it!” Wang Liqiu’s expression turned fierce as he shook off Dong Chuliang’s hand and strode forward. “Su Chunfeng, you’ve really grown some attitude, huh?”
Li Zhichao quickly blocked Wang Liqiu, forcing a smile. “Liqiu, don’t get mad. I’ll treat for the meal today, okay? Give me some face!”
“What the hell is your face worth?” Wang Liqiu shoved Li Zhichao, making him fall onto the edge of the kang.
Li Zhichao immediately got angry. He jumped up from the kang edge and glared furiously at Wang Liqiu, but Xu Zhijun and Zhang Hai stepped forward to block him. Xu Zhijun, who was a full 1.75 meters tall, grabbed Li Zhichao’s collar and sneered, “Zhichao, what do you think you’re doing?”
“Zhijun, Liqiu, what are you guys trying to do?” Li Zhichao ultimately didn’t dare to explode. He could only advise with a dark expression.
Just as Li Zhichao was pushed onto the kang edge, Su Chunfeng suddenly stood up. Now seeing Li Zhichao being restrained and threatened, he immediately turned his head to look at Dong Chuliang. His expression was cold, his gaze sharp like electricity. He said calmly, “Dong Chuliang, you and Wang Liqiu are together, right?”
Dong Chuliang was taken aback. He stepped forward, blocking Su Chunfeng, and pushed Wang Liqiu back hard with one hand. Turning his head to Su Chunfeng, he showed a somewhat apologetic smile. “Don’t get the wrong idea. I just came to school to hang out today and happened to run into Wang Liqiu, so…” At this point, he didn’t know how to continue explaining, since they had already come to the boys’ dormitory, and Wang Liqiu had just clearly stated their purpose.
All the students in the dormitory looked puzzled.
In this situation, it was obvious even to a fool that Dong Chuliang and Su Chunfeng knew each other and probably had a good relationship. And… it seemed like Dong Chuliang was even a bit afraid of Su Chunfeng?
However, Wang Liqiu, blinded by anger at this moment, acted as if he hadn’t heard the conversation between Su Chunfeng and Dong Chuliang at all. Struggling angrily against Dong Chuliang’s attempts to stop him, he said viciously, “Chuliang, don’t stop me! I’m going to kill him today!”
Li Zhichao, quick-witted, noticed the astonishment on Xu Zhijun and Zhang Hai’s faces. Dong Chuliang’s behavior was indeed strange. He immediately realized something. Gritting his teeth, as if throwing caution to the wind, he waved away Xu Zhijun’s hand, which was gripping his collar but had loosened considerably. He turned, stepped onto the kang edge, and stood tall, pointing down at Wang Liqiu and the others. Adopting the fierce stance of a man willing to risk his life for his brother, he shouted angrily, “Damn it! I’d like to see who dares to touch Chunfeng and me today! I’ll fight you to the death!”
Such behavior was nothing less than adding fuel to the fire!
Xu Zhijun, Zhang Hai, and Zhao Mingfeng all showed anger, eager to fight, but their eyes turned to Wang Liqiu, waiting for him to make the first move.
Wang Liqiu never expected to face such repeated provocations today. He was so angry he lost his head. He forcefully shook off Dong Chuliang, who was trying to stop him, and almost roared, “Chuliang, don’t stop me… if you’re a brother, come with me, or just stand aside!”
This roar was originally just to show off his own toughness.
Nothing more.
But in this situation, from Dong Chuliang’s perspective, it seemed Wang Liqiu was being disrespectful and not taking him seriously.
Dong Chuliang flew into a rage. He swung his hand and slapped Wang Liqiu hard across the face—smack! Without pause, he grabbed Wang Liqiu’s hair and yanked it down, smashing his head hard against the brick-and-cement edge of the kang. Then he kneed Wang Liqiu’s face several times fiercely. Amid Wang Liqiu’s continuous cries of pain, he threw him onto the narrow aisle and stomped on him hard.
Truly the former School Bully King—his strikes were fast, ruthless, and accurate!
In the blink of an eye, Wang Liqiu was already bleeding from his head!
Seeing Wang Liqiu getting beaten up, Xu Zhijun, Zhang Hai, and Zhao Mingfeng were dumbfounded. As his brothers, they should have immediately stepped in to help. But facing the fierce Dong Chuliang… they were all somewhat afraid, hesitating and unsure what to do.
At that moment, they heard Wang Liqiu roar, “All of you, get him! Damn it!”
Zhao Mingfeng gritted his teeth and charged forward!
Xu Zhijun and Zhang Hai hesitated, stepping forward but then pulling back.
Zhao Mingfeng, who charged forward, was blocked by the thin, sinister-looking young man who had come with Dong Chuliang. After a few exchanges, he was thrown onto the kang.
The thin young man grabbed Zhao Mingfeng’s hair, pressed him against the kang edge, and rained punches down on him like hail, with a force reminiscent of Wu Song beating the tiger. While beating him fiercely, he cursed foully, “Damn it, you dare fight back? Damn it! I’ll kill you today!”
Wang Liqiu, unable to get up from the floor, saw that two of his men didn’t dare to act, and the one who loyally charged forward was already being pinned down and beaten savagely. Cupping his head, he begged for mercy, “Chuliang, I won’t dare anymore, I won’t…”
Dong Chuliang finally stopped. “Dongzi, that’s enough.”
The young man called Dongzi stopped hitting, then spat hard on Zhao Mingfeng’s already swollen, bleeding face. “Damn it!”
Wang Liqiu and Zhao Mingfeng, battered and covered in blood, scrambled up and hurried out of the dormitory.
Xu Zhijun and Zhang Hai saw this and quickly followed.
After reaching the dormitory doorway, Wang Liqiu, still unwilling, stopped. He turned his head and glared viciously at Su Chunfeng, Li Zhichao, Dong Chuliang, and the young man called Dongzi at the far end of the dormitory. Pointing at them, he gritted his teeth and nodded, saying, “Fine, you’re tough. We’ll see!”
“We’ll see your mother!” Dong Chuliang, like a rabid wolf, grabbed an empty rice bowl from the kang edge nearby and hurled it hard.
Wang Liqiu quickly ducked and slunk away with Xu Zhijun and the other two, leaving the dormitory.
After they left, Dong Chuliang turned to look at Su Chunfeng, his expression awkward and apologetic. He was about to say something, but Su Chunfeng, who had been coldly watching the fight without moving or speaking a word, raised his left hand, still holding chopsticks, to stop him. Smiling, he said, “Chuliang, don’t say anything… I’ll remember this favor today!”
“Don’t mention it. It’s nothing. If you ever need anything later, just come find me at Tunbing Camp!” Dong Chuliang smiled and shook his head, then led the young man called Dongzi out.