Chapter 61: So You Really Have a Dragon Tattooed on You?

Gripping the solid wooden handle, Su Chunfeng walked into the dorm with a smile. He went straight to the bed of the tall boy and looked at him.

“Whoa there, what’s this? Trying to scare me with a stick?” The tall boy glared at Su Chunfeng disdainfully, his face fierce and full of contempt. He hadn’t taken Su Chunfeng seriously at all—just a pretty-boy who clearly lacked any fighting ability. Plus, earlier when he’d yelled at him, the kid hadn’t even dared to make a peep.

Under the watchful eyes of everyone!

The dorm was silent, as if time had frozen.

Su Chunfeng didn’t look angry at all. He leaned forward slightly, still smiling, and asked, “What’s your name?” As he spoke, he gripped the stick with both hands and raised it high to the side.

“What are you doing?” A flicker of panic crossed the tall boy’s face, and he started to push himself up.

Whoosh…

Thwack!

The wooden handle whistled through the air, slamming into the arm of the tall boy who was trying to rise. The sheer force knocked the half-seated boy sprawling sideways onto his bed, releasing a piercing shriek of pain: “Ahhh!”

Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!…

Su Chunfeng struck hard and fast, whacking the wooden handle at the tall boy’s thighs, calves, arms, waist, and back.

The tall boy roared in agony, “Screw you!”

He tried to struggle and get up, but the bed was too narrow for his large frame to maneuver. Each heavy blow of the stick landed with a bone-deep, excruciating pain that instantly robbed the struck muscles of all strength.

Thwack! Thwack!

Crack!

The wooden handle snapped.

Su Chunfeng tossed the broken pieces aside. He grabbed the metal pipes of the top bunk and bent down, staring with a smile at the tall boy below him, who was now covered in bruises, completely terrified, and unable to move. Still smiling, still silent, he lifted his foot and kicked hard at the boy’s head and face!

One kick, two kicks…

The other students in the dorm stared, dumbfounded.

The tall boy finally couldn’t take it. He choked out a plea, “Stop, stop hitting me, I won’t do it again…”

At the dorm door, Li Zhichao, who had just arrived, saw this scene and paused for a moment. Then, without a word, he charged forward. Grabbing one of the bed railings with one hand for support, he swung his foot and kicked the stranger who was wailing and pleading, “Screw you! What made you so damn tough, huh? Screw you, screw you… I’ll kill you!” Li Zhichao snarled.

This sudden, ferocious newcomer made the students even more wide-eyed and horrified.

Su Chunfeng had at least had a reason to hit him. But this guy who just showed up started kicking without even asking first. And that vicious look on his face was truly frightening to see…

“That’s enough.”

Su Chunfeng, who had been silently, relentlessly beating Han Qiang with a smile like he was crazy, finally stopped and spoke up.

Li Zhichao panted heavily and stopped immediately. He stepped back and spat on the floor, standing to the side looking fierce, glaring hatefully at the large boy on the bed. Han Qiang’s legs and arms were bruised black and blue, his t-shirt and shorts covered in footprints, his face so bruised and swollen he was barely recognizable.

Su Chunfeng sat down on the edge of the bed, smiling. He pulled Han Qiang’s hands and forearms away from where they were clutching his head, then gently patted his bruised and swollen face, asking mildly, “What’s your name?”

“Han Qiang,” The big boy choked out through sobs, answering honestly.

“Oh. My name is Su Chunfeng. Remember it?”

“I remember.”

Su Chunfeng stood up and looked at the other students in the dorm, still frozen with shock. He smiled and said, “Sorry about this happening on the first day of registration. Must have been quite a spectacle… We’ve all just met by chance, but being gathered here together is some kind of fate. I hope we can all get along peacefully in this dorm in the future.”

“Yes, yes, yes.”

“Right, fate, fate…”

“Hey, um, Su Chunfeng, how about I buy you lunch today?”

All the other dorm-mates chimed in nervously with forced smiles.

Just then, Li Zhichao, who had joined in the beating and seen this tall, imposing guy reduced to such a pitiful state, felt a surge of excited mischief. He stepped forward, leaned down, and shoved Han Qiang’s head roughly, “What made you so damn tough, eh? Did you have a fucking dragon tattooed on your back or something?”

Han Qiang flinched and turned his head away, instinctively covering his head with his hands again.

Coincidentally, Li Zhichao snatched roughly at the collar of Han Qiang’s t-shirt, pulling it aside. On the exposed part of Han Qiang’s back, a fierce, coiled dragon tattoo came into view.

“Holy shit!” Li Zhichao paused, stunned, then promptly slapped Han Qiang on the head. “You actually do have a damn dragon tattoo, you bastard! Does having a dragon tattoo make you so tough? Does it?!” As he yelled the repeated question, Li Zhichao kept slapping Han Qiang on the head, bizarrely amused by this coincidence.

Seeing this, the entire dorm, even Su Chunfeng, looked on with a mixture of disbelief and involuntary amusement.

“Stop, stop hitting… I dare not… I won’t…” Han Qiang wished the ground would swallow him, his shame momentarily outweighing his pain. It was just too humiliating.

“Alright, alright,” Su Chunfeng said, chuckling as he stepped forward and pulled Li Zhichao away.

Li Zhichao stopped hitting and turned, leaning against another bed. He burst out laughing, tears streaming down his face – the timing was just ridiculously perfect.

Normally, anyone seeing Han Qiang – a guy nearly six feet tall, broad-shouldered, with a face that looked way older than sixteen or seventeen, and with a fierce dragon tattooed across his back – would probably feel intimidated or scared off before even trying anything.

But this fearsome dragon, revealed only after he’d been beaten into submission…

Was less impressive than a caterpillar.

Han Qiang was utterly humiliated, feeling afraid, aggrieved, and deeply ashamed. Though he had the build of a grown man, he was still just a sixteen or seventeen-year-old kid. Under this crushing embarrassment, he couldn’t hold back anymore; he covered his face and sobbed miserably.

Watching this, Su Chunfeng, mature beyond his years, shook his head with a wry smile.

He truly had no desire to get into fights and bully his teenage peers. But he knew perfectly well that bullies like this needed to be disciplined properly, otherwise they’d definitely cause more trouble. Especially since Han Qiang had not only picked on him but had also cursed him out? Still, Su Chunfeng had been careful. Though the beating looked savage, he hadn’t inflicted serious injury, just ensured Han Qiang suffered enough pain to stay weak for the next three to five days.

Thinking this over, Su Chunfeng sat down beside Han Qiang with a gentle expression and patted his sturdy shoulder lightly. “So, learned your lesson?”

“Ye… yes…”

“Making mistakes and correcting them, that’s how you become a better person,” Su Chunfeng said with a kind smile, sounding like a father or an older brother offering comfort. “Come on now, big guy. It’s just one beating, right? Crying? That only makes people look down on you. Look, it’s almost noon. Get up. All ten of us will be sharing this room from now on. We’re friends. Let’s all chip in for lunch today. Celebrate us getting to know each other.”

His tone was as if he hadn’t been the person who beat Han Qiang into such a pitiful state mere moments ago.

“Up!” Su Chunfeng’s voice was sharper now.

“Oh, o-ok,” Han Qiang quickly, painfully rolled to sit up. Tears streaked through the bruises swelling his face. He kept his head down, casting fearful, furtive glances at Su Chunfeng and Li Zhichao.

Su Chunfeng reached over and ruffled Han Qiang’s messy hair. Then he turned back to the other students, his expression friendly. “What do you say, guys? Chip in for a group meal? Agreed?”

“Yes!”

“Good!”

“Okay!”

Everyone answered with nervous smiles.

Some genuinely thought sharing a meal on the first day as dorm-mates was a nice idea. Others were reluctant but, intimidated by Su Chunfeng’s smiling, crazy brutality just now, felt they had no choice but to agree.

“One more thing.” Su Chunfeng stood up, his expression smiling but his tone allowing no argument. “They say meeting through conflict brings people closer. From now on, living in this dorm, we aren’t just classmates, we’re buddies. Friends. So today’s little incident? No one breathes a word about it outside this room. We need to save Han Qiang’s reputation. I’m saying this upfront: if anyone runs their mouth outside and embarrasses a friend? I won’t stand for it.”

Han Qiang, sitting on the edge of the bed, listened. Tears poured down his face. He couldn’t believe Su Chunfeng would act like such an older brother, protecting his face like this… This was…

The other students quickly voiced their agreement. In their hearts, they respected Su Chunfeng even more: So generous, didn’t hold grudges, stood up for his friends!

Of course, kids this age couldn’t grasp the deeper layer. It was only because Su Chunfeng had demonstrated such overwhelming dominance, utterly defeating Han Qiang and making him cry, submit, and fear him, that his current posture of magnanimity worked. If Su Chunfeng had lost, or even just drawn, this same kindly behavior would only have made Han Qiang and everyone else think he was a coward trying to curry favor.

Such was human nature: strength commanded respect.

Li Zhichao, standing to the side, inwardly admired Su Chunfeng. Not for his magnanimity, but for the simple fact that when he had burst in, the huge Han Qiang was already helplessly taking a beating from Su Chunfeng and begging for mercy.

“Alright then, you guys go eat. I need to get back to my own dorm,” Li Zhichao said cheerfully. “Chunfeng, I’m in Class 13, Grade One. Building Four, Dorm 323.”

“Got it. I’ll find you after lunch,” Su Chunfeng replied simply.

“Later.”

…

It was called a group meal, but it was just a few of them grabbing a couple of tables at an off-campus hole-in-the-wall. They ordered some simple dishes, a few bottles of beer, and a bowl of rice each.

Cost them thirty or forty yuan.

Introductions flew around, and they quickly got acquainted.

In Dorm 211, Grade One, Class 1 had Su Chunfeng, Liu Yue, Hao Zhipeng, Shen Lin, Shi Guoqing, and Liu Kai. Class 2 had Xue Xiaoliang and Zhou Haitao. Han Qiang was from Class 8.

After polishing off a beer, Han Qiang, spurred by the alcohol, started showing faint resentment and hatred in his expression. Su Chunfeng noticed this. He smiled and spoke up, like it was just casual chat. “Han Qiang, since we got to know each other through fists today… let’s be straight about something. Don’t get nervous or scared.” Here, his eyes narrowed slightly, a menacing grin appearing. “If you think today wasn’t fair, because I had a stick and attacked first before you were up… well, find a chance later. We can have a rematch, just the two of us.”

Han Qiang froze.

Su Chunfeng had already turned away. He picked up some food with his chopsticks as he added, “Also… don’t play tricks around me. That pisses me off the most.”

“Chunfeng-ge, come on, what are you talking about?” Han Qiang forced an awkward, flattering smile. He suddenly felt like Su Chunfeng could see right through his every thought. A cold dread washed over his back, and his legs under the table trembled uncontrollably.