The sweet, soft scent of her body wafted into his nostrils, and Shang Ziqian couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.
He tightened his grip around her arm, his tone lewd, "Little sister, you're so fragrant and soft. Forget about Yu Wenli, be with brother, okay? Brother will treat you well too."
His breath, mixed with the smell of smoke and alcohol, sprayed from above onto the young girl's face, making her eyes water.
She looked incredibly pitiable.
Especially those eyes, as clear as water, on the verge of tears, filled with fragility.
They easily ignited a destructive urge in one's heart.
Shang Ziqian narrowed his eyes, the fire rising in his abdomen quickly burning.
Wen Tingxue struggled unknowingly, her wrists turning red.
"You... let me go..." kuAiδugg
"Don't f*cking move!"
Shang Ziqian snarled through gritted teeth, his voice hoarse.
Wen Tingxue suddenly looked up, meeting his unusually red eyes, and her heart sank by more than half.
This situation... she had seen it before.
Buried memories crawled out from the cracks, coiling around her heart like vines, pulling her down, along with her dwindling strength.
"Get lost... get lost..."
The young girl instinctively pushed the man in front of her, her face as pale as a ghost.
Shang Ziqian impatiently raised his hand, intending to slap her.
But just a few centimeters from her cheek, he was forcefully pushed away.
Caught off guard, Shang Ziqian stumbled back a few steps, his grip loosening.
It was in this brief moment that Xie Jin yi snatched her away.
But it was too late to run.
The thugs, with menacing expressions, surrounded the two of them.
"You... if you have a problem, come at me. How much money do you want? I'll give it to you!"
Xie Jin yi, scared yet brave, shielded the young girl in her arms, her voice loud to bolster her courage.
But her tone was still shaky.
"Money?"
Shang Ziqian, steadying himself against the wall, sneered.
"How much do you have?"
Shang Ziqian walked over with his hands in his pockets, his gaze appraising, "How about this amount?"
He raised his hand and made a gesture of five.
Xie Jin yi frowned, "Five thousand?"
Shang Ziqian scoffed mercilessly, "That watch on your wrist is worth over two hundred thousand. Five thousand, are you trying to send away a beggar?"
"Fifty thousand?!"
Xie Jin yi understood, her voice rising.
"Why don't you just rob me!"
"Not giving it? That's fine too."
Shang Ziqian didn't dwell on it. He raised his hand and commanded, "Bring my little sister over to me. I need to put out some fire."
"No problem!"
The thugs surrounding them immediately rubbed their hands together, looking at the two like prey.
Xie Jin yi instantly thought of wolves, and trembling all over, she shouted, "I'll give it to you! Don't touch her! I'll give you fifty thousand!"
"One hundred thousand."
Shang Ziqian raised the price, advancing step by step, "Your Xie family isn't short of money anyway. One hundred thousand is not much, right?"
He stood in front of Xie Jin yi and smiled, a smile that sent shivers down Xie Jin yi's spine.
"One hundred thousand..."
Xie Jin yi frowned in difficulty, "I don't have it on me. I'll have to go back..."
"Slap—"
Almost without warning, a slap landed.
"If you don't have it, why are you f*cking talking so much nonsense! Do you think I'm an idiot? Let you go back so the police can arrest me?"
Xie Jin yi was slapped until she was dizzy, her ears ringing.
Half her face was already swollen.
Wen Tingxue, crying, hugged her, tears falling drop by drop.
"Damn it! You dare to play tricks on me... Ah!"
Shang Ziqian, enraged, reached out and yanked her hair. Wen Tingxue opened her mouth and bit down, with fierce force.
The next second, her scalp was pulled painfully, tears rolling down.
"F*ck your mother! Let go of me! Let go, do you hear me, damn it!"
Refusing to let go even in death, Shang Ziqian, in a fit of rage, grabbed a nearby stick.
He raised it to strike—
"Shang Ziqian!"
Following the voice, a shower of money rained down like snowflakes, instantly capturing everyone's attention.
The snack street was crowded, but no one dared to make a move.
Shang Ziqian was a notorious local bully; anyone who crossed him wouldn't have a good time.
They had learned enough lessons over the years.
So, they were all secretly praying for someone to come quickly.
But upon seeing that the person who arrived was a girl, their hopes dwindled.
More and more people were sending messages and calling the police, but no one dared to say anything openly.
The scene fell silent for a moment.
Xu Kexin took out another handful of money from her backpack and threw it at him as she walked, her movements fierce, but her face was icy.
"I'll give you the money. Let them go."
The situation developed too suddenly. Wen Tingxue stared blankly at Xu Kexin, who was approaching, and subconsciously loosened her bite.
Shang Ziqian looked at his wound with a ferocious expression, then waved away the money on him, his expression gloomy.
"What right do you have to negotiate with me?! You were supposed to give me this money!
"How long have I been chasing you?! And now you're throwing money around? Why were you crying poor to me yesterday!"
Xu Kexin, expressionless, pulled up Xie Jin yi, who had fallen to the ground, and Wen Tingxue, saying calmly,
"I only got paid today. I didn't have money yesterday. You can ask my part-time job if you don't believe me."
After speaking, she shielded the two behind her, her expression softening slightly.
"Brother Shang, I know I don't have much standing with you, but if I get injured, I won't be able to repay the money on time."
"You're threatening me?"
Shang Ziqian laughed angrily.
"I wouldn't dare."
Xu Kexin forced a smile, ephemeral like a fleeting flower, but beautiful.
Shang Ziqian was dazed for a few seconds, then asked curiously,
"I remember your relationship with Xie Jin yi isn't that good. What madness is this today? Overcome with a saintly heart?"
He then seemed to realize something and glanced at the pale-faced Wen Tingxue.
"So it's because of little sister again. Yu Wenli really has good taste, even you are rushing to help her."
Having interacted with her for a while, Shang Ziqian knew Xu Kexin to some extent.
She was usually very aloof and rarely meddled in other people's affairs, let alone such troublesome matters.
She always avoided them.
Xu Kexin smiled without speaking, as if acknowledging, or perhaps not.
Shang Ziqian didn't bother to guess her thoughts. He pointed to the bite on his hand and said in a hostile tone,
"How much face do you think you have to make me calm down?"
In his entire life, no woman had dared to bite him like this!
She was indeed someone Yu Wenli valued, giving him such a "gift" right away!
His predatory gaze fell on Wen Tingxue, who forced herself to meet his eyes.
But upon closer inspection, her shoulders were still trembling.
Shang Ziqian sneered.
Xu Kexin felt uneasy by the ferocity on his face.
Especially the wound on his hand, flesh and skin torn, bleeding profusely.
Given his personality, he would surely not let this go.
The brief silence was broken by Shang Ziqian.
"How about this, you call Yu Wenli to come over, and I'll have a good talk with him."
Shang Ziqian handed Wen Tingxue's phone back to her.
Wen Tingxue instinctively reached for it, but the moment her fingers touched the phone, she saw the anticipation and calculation in his eyes.
"No need."
The young girl instantly withdrew her hand, saying fearlessly,
"If you want to kill me or skin me, just do it."
He wouldn't be so kind, and he had mentioned Yu Wenli multiple times before.
She suspected he was targeting Yu Wenli. She had already burdened him too much; she couldn't cause him more trouble.
The young girl's pride was shattered by Shang Ziqian's light words.
"You're not afraid, but what about your friends? Do you want to watch them get played by me? Hmm?"
He suddenly reached out and provocatively hooked the young girl's delicate chin.
The next second, a mobile phone accurately hit his freshly bandaged wound.
He gasped in pain.
But the people in the alley instantly breathed a sigh of relief.
Someone had finally arrived.
Use your fingers to throw your precious gold and silver notes, thank you!