"What are you grinning about? Get out of my way!"
The man shoved Chen Tao aside, then turned his head to glare at Ren Yuanhao, who wore a cold expression. He pointed a finger, sneering, "Hey, no matter who you are, I advise you not to cooperate with this pauper. If you have to choose, pick someone as high-quality as me. Picking him will only lead to your utter ruin."
Chen Tao slowly got up from the ground, showing no intention of arguing. He even bowed to the man who had pushed him.
Shen Lanni, who had a famously fiery temper, was about to step out from behind Ren Yuanhao, but Ren Yuanhao stopped her with a smile.
"Hey, kid, what the hell are you laughing at?" The speaker's index finger was practically poking Ren Yuanhao's nose.
"I'll give you two seconds to take your finger away from my face."
Ren Yuanhao maintained his smile, but only the three women present understood what that smile truly meant.
"Heh, what are you going to do if I don't take it away? You outsider?"
Ren Yuanhao's tone suddenly dropped like frost on a freezing sky, chilling to the bone!
"If you don't take it away, a hospital will likely have a new patient needing bone setting."
"Damn it, you're pretty arrogant!"
Ren Yuanhao extended two fingers and snapped off one of the man's fingers. "One second left."
"I'm pointing at you, what can you—"
Before the man could finish his sentence, Ren Yuanhao's hand flashed out like lightning, grabbing the man's finger. Chen Tao, his face pale, was about to intervene when he heard a sickening crunch of bone. The man's index finger folded backward against his hand like a wilted weed, a sight painful enough to behold.
The man clutched his broken finger, his scream caught in his throat, only managing a choked hiss. The pain, which shot through his entire hand, nearly made him faint. His companions, equally stunned, hadn't expected this stranger to be so bold!
"Apologies, I might have been a bit too rough," Ren Yuanhao said, glancing at his watch with a hint of amusement. "You have 24 hours to get that finger set. Every minute you waste here will reduce the success rate of the bone setting by one percent."
Ren Yuanhao leaned close to the man's ear and whispered, "Don't dawdle. If you delay further and it doesn't heal properly, you'll be using your left hand for everything from now on, even for... personal matters."
With grim faces, the two men retreated towards the parking lot, their reluctance palpable. Ten meters away, they finally snarled, "Bastard, you son of a bitch, I'll remember your face!"
"Yes, you should remember it well. At least it might help you understand a bit of proper conduct the next time you see me."
After Ren Yuanhao finished his boastful words as if to himself, Chen Tao watched the two men stumble away, his face ashen. He stared blankly, his expression quickly shifting to one of fear.
"Brother Ren, that guy is from the head office. The one whose finger you just broke was a major shareholder of the head office."
"Are you implying I've caused a huge problem?" Ren Yuanhao remained unconcerned, unwilling to let a mere bumpkin spoil his mood. "Let's go. For some good atmosphere, we should head somewhere crowded, noisy, where the beer is sweet and the cumin scent dances in the steam."
"Are you suggesting we go to a food stall?"
Yang Lingxue snapped her fingers and nodded repeatedly. The group then left the hotel.
Meanwhile, a woman at the hotel bar had witnessed the entire scene. A faint smile played on her lips as she rested her rather seductive mouth on the rim of her whiskey glass and downed the drink. She then made a phone call.
"Hello, Sister Rui? Who are you looking for?"
"I don't know his name, can you still check?"
"Theoretically, if you provide appearance and characteristics, there's a fifty percent chance of finding him."
"Hmm, he's about 1.8 meters tall, with sharp features, bright eyes, and a handsome, imposing presence. I think his surname is Ren, and he's a stranger. His build is slightly more muscular than average, overall very well-proportioned."
Before Sister Rui could finish, the person on the other end cut her off.
"Uh, wait. All that just tells me he's handsome, maybe the type who looks slim in clothes but muscular underneath. But those aren't really identifying features."
"Oh, forget it. I doubt you can find him with just this information. However, he's currently with that guy from your subsidiary, Chen Tao. You can question him thoroughly then."
"Sister Rui, are you looking for him so urgently because he owes you money?"
"No, he stole something from me. I need to get it back."
"How dare he! Stealing something from you, Sister Rui? What important thing did he steal?"
Sister Rui brushed her long, fair hair aside with her slender fingers. Her red lips parted slightly as she said, "He stole my heart. Tell me, shouldn't I get it back?"
The person on the other end was silent for a long moment, as if hearing the most unbelievable thing of the year. After a pause, she stammered, "N-no way, Sister Rui, you... you're saying someone stole your heart? Stop joking. Everyone knows how high your standards are! Last year, the gifts from your suitors on your birthday filled a whole truckload, and you didn't even spare them a glance, making everyone think you were... a lesbian!"
"Get lost, you little brat. Take this seriously. If you get any news, notify me immediately."
Sister Rui hung up and quickly left the hotel. By this time, Ren Yuanhao and the others were already seated at a very busy barbecue restaurant.
"Wow, the business is this good at this hour! It must be unbelievably delicious! I can vaguely smell a flavor that will send my stomach and tongue soaring!"
Yang Lingxue, like a mouse spotting a pile of white rice, squeaked and rushed to the young man grilling skewers.
"Miss, how many?" The busy young man asked casually, only glancing at Yang Lingxue's lower half.
Yang Lingxue glanced back at the others and held up five fingers to the young man.
"Five skewers?"
"No."
"Fifty skewers?" The young man eyed Yang Lingxue's figure with suspicion.
To his surprise, Yang Lingxue shook her head again.
"Five hundred skewers?"
The young man couldn't believe he had uttered the number.
"Yes, let's start with that many," Yang Lingxue said, unconcerned by the young man's stunned expression.
"Miss, how many people are in your party?"
"Six, thank you. Please make it a bit quicker. My friends haven't eaten for three days. If you're a bit slow, with so many people here, they might just eat them up, hehe~"
—Holy crap? Cannibals?
The skewer-grilling young man was utterly bewildered. Then, the wind blew Yang Lingxue's veil, and for a moment, the young man felt as though summer hadn't yet departed, and romance was close at hand.