Chapter 36

Chapter 36

Is he going to deal with me later?

Yan Bubu, bathed and no longer dirty, transformed back into a fair-skinned, big-eyed handsome little boy, his heart still fluttering with unease.

Feng Chen inspected him thoroughly, finding two scratch marks on his ear and several abrasions on the back of his hand and elbow. Though none were serious, he applied some medicine to prevent infection.

Having escaped scolding, Yan Bubu grew bolder and began to vividly recount the earlier incident.

"Like this, he was holding Binunu, and I tried to snatch it, then he pushed me away." He mimicked the actions of struggling with the chubby boy. "I didn't fight back, nor did I cast any spells. After all, even though he's annoying and bad, he's not... not..."

Yan Bubu struggled to find the right words, then continued, "He's just a kid. If I had cast a spell, he probably would have died, so I didn't."

Feng Chen opened the lunchbox and handed Yan Bubu the spoon: "Eat up, after you finish, I'll teach you some self-defense techniques."

"Ah? What are self-defense techniques?"

Feng Chen thought for a moment, then said, "I'll teach you how to fight that chubby boy and how to win."

"Wh-what? Teach me to fight?" Yan Bubu was so shocked that his spoon nearly dropped, his mouth gaping in disbelief.

Feng Chen glanced at him: "Don't you want to beat him?"

"I do," Yan Bubu nodded vigorously, then asked hesitantly, "But if I fight with kids, won't you get angry?"

"I'd be angry if you were bullied and couldn't fight back," Feng Chen replied.

Yan Bubu, observing Feng Chen's expression and assuring himself that he was serious, became so thrilled that he was nearly moved to tears: "Big brother, you're the best, I really like you so much, I swear to serve you for life—"

"Shut up! If you continue, I won't teach you."

"Okay, I'll be quiet, I'll be quiet."

A moment later.

Feng Chen tapped his spoon on the lunchbox: "Being quiet means not talking, not stopping eating as well."

"Oh, got it."

After dinner, Feng Chen began teaching Yan Bubu self-defense techniques. Although Yan Bubu was young and not very strong, making the techniques less effective when executed by him, they should still work against other kids.

"If he grabs your chest, duck under his armpit and trip his legs with your foot. Pay attention to this move, don't get distracted."

After demonstrating a few times, Feng Chen had Yan Bubu practice the moves on him.

Yan Bubu kept failing to master the turn and kick, and while Feng Chen was patient at first, his tolerance eventually ran out, leading to loud reprimands.

"I just told you to duck and then trip, what's the point of tripping first and then ducking? Given the strength difference, if he sees your move coming, how can it be successful?"

"Stay focused, stop scratching your face."

"Don't look at me with those pitiful eyes, it's useless, I'm telling you, it's useless."

"Wrong again, I want to crack open your head and see what's really inside."

Yan Bubu practiced earnestly but his body was somewhat clumsy. Eventually, seeing his hard work, Feng Chen relented a bit and let him succeed.

"I did it, I did it!" Yan Bubu, his forehead sweaty, was so joyful that he jumped around.

A faint smile appeared on Feng Chen's face: "That's enough for today. Continue practicing, and if that kid troubles you again, handle him like this."

Yan Bubu, brimming with confidence, took a big bite of his remaining corn cob: "If he dares to mess with me again, I'll knock all his teeth out and pull his ears, calling him gap-toothed, hahaha... Ah—"

His laughter abruptly stopped, and he froze with his mouth open.

"What's wrong now?" Feng Chen asked.

Yan Bubu stared at him in horror, pointing at his own mouth.

Feng Chen leaned in for a closer look and hissed softly, "Lost another tooth, huh? One of your lower teeth. Don't worry, your upper ones are almost fully grown in."

The next day, Yan Bubu didn't sleep in. He got up when Feng Chen did and followed him to the washroom to freshen up.

Feng Chen was working at the plantation today, where he could get breakfast and lunch, so Yan Bubu bid him a reluctant farewell. Watching his figure disappear into the elevator, Yan Bubu then headed alone to the cafeteria.

To his dismay, right upon entering the cafeteria, he saw the last person he wanted to encounter.

When enemies meet, their eyes blaze with hostility. The chubby boy and Yan Bubu, in their respective lines, glared fiercely at each other.

Since both had lost teeth and thought they had lost more than the other, neither resorted to verbal insults, avoiding a situation where they would hurt themselves more than the enemy. They just stared in silence, filling the air with palpable tension.

Only when it was time to get food did Yan Bubu look away, handing over his lunchbox to swipe his credit card. The credits from yesterday's Lishi stone collection had been credited, and seeing the extra five points in his balance, he turned, smiling broadly at the chubby boy's back.

However, when he went back to the Lishi mine to continue working, he ran into the chubby boy again.

Yan Bubu clutched his bag containing Binunu, but the chubby boy didn't pay him any attention, just shaking his bamboo sieve in search of Lishi stones.

Yan Bubu eyed him suspiciously several times, finally convinced that he was not there to cause trouble, but to work as well.

Since they were both workers, Yan Bubu decided to leave him alone. He got a bamboo sieve from the supervisor and chose a spot farthest from the chubby boy, with a pile of ore in between, to start sifting for Lishi stones.

Although he didn’t place Binunu in front of him today, his luck was still good. In just over an hour, he found a Lishi stone in the broken ore and another one before lunch.

Meanwhile, the chubby boy sifted through the ore all morning and found nothing.

After lunch, Yan Bubu continued his focused search for Lishi stones. His luck wasn't as good in the afternoon, but just as the supervisor announced the end of work, he caught a fleeting glimmer in the broken ore.

Yan Bubu excitedly fiddled with the crushed ore, not noticing a chubby boy passing by. When the boy saw the glint in the bamboo sieve, his eyes lit up.

As Yan Bubu carefully picked up the Lishi stone and was about to stand up, a hand reached out from the side and snatched the stone from his grasp.

He turned in shock to see the chubby boy holding his Lishi stone and attempting to leave.

"It's you again, you bully!" Yan Bubu, infuriated, yelled and lunged at him.

The chubby boy raised the Lishi stone high in one hand and pushed Yan Bubu away with the other. Being taller and stronger, he kept Yan Bubu at bay, who couldn't reach his hand and was pushed away.

"This is the Lishi stone I just found, why are you trying to steal it?" the chubby boy continued to act shamelessly, just like yesterday.

Unable to reach the Li stone, Yan Bubu decided to use the self-defense technique Feng Chen taught him the night before and shouted angrily, "You’ve messed with me, now you’re in trouble."

As soon as he finished speaking, he swiftly dodged to the side, quickly circling behind the chubby boy, and extended his foot to hook the boy’s leg.

After practicing all night and mentally rehearsing during the day, Yan Bubu executed the move with remarkable agility. The chubby boy only felt a blur before him as Yan Bubu vanished, and then pain shot through his leg.

Yan Bubu hooked the chubby boy's thick left leg, expecting him to fall, but to his surprise, the boy stood firm, legs rooted to the ground like they were part of it. He didn’t budge, not even slightly.

Huh?

Try again.

No use.

One more time.

The chubby boy slowly looked down at the small, round foot in a sneaker and gritted his teeth, “You kicked me. You’ve messed with me, now you’re in trouble.”

In the next moment, the two were entangled in a scuffle, rolling on the ground. Yan Bubu’s self-defense moves proved futile.

At 6 PM, as usual, Feng Chen removed his thermal suit in the elevator and immediately looked through the iron bars at the large rock, finally spotting the awaited small figure.

However, as the elevator descended, the figure didn’t look up as usual, searching behind the bars. Instead, he hung his head, his whole body radiating disappointment.

Yan Bubu heard the elevator stop but didn’t raise his head or move until he saw the familiar black outdoor shoes in his line of sight.

"What's wrong?" Feng Chen's voice rang out.

Yan Bubu slowly raised her head to look at Feng Chen, her eyes brimming with grievance: "I'm sorry, I lost again."

Feng Chen paused, then asked, "Did you use the move I taught you?"

"I did, but he's too heavy, I couldn't trip him." Tears rolled down Yan Bubu's cheeks as she sobbed and gestured, "Look, I tried to hook like this, but I couldn't move him..."

He hadn't cried during the fight, but now that he saw Feng Chen, he could no longer hold back his sorrow.

Feng Chen stepped forward, smoothing his disheveled hair from the fight with his fingers, and asked, "Did he pull your hair too?"

"Yes, he did," nodded Yan Bubu.

"And you didn't pull his?"

"I did, but his hair was too short, I... I couldn't grab it." Yan Bubu's sobs grew louder.

Yan Bubu looked even more disheveled today than yesterday, with not only scratches on his ears but also several dark bruises on his neck. Holding a cloth bag that seemed to embody all his efforts, he appeared incredibly pitiful.

Feng Chen touched the bruises with his fingertip, his dark eyes burning with a hidden fire. But seeing Yan Bubu so heartbroken, he simply said, "It's okay, losing is part of the game. I'll teach you a new move today, and tomorrow you'll definitely beat him."

"Really? But today's move didn't seem to work well," Yan Bubu said, lacking confidence.

Feng Chen picked him up and started walking back, his voice deep and serious, "Really."

After bathing and having dinner, Feng Chen said he needed to talk to Wu You about something. Yan Bubu wanted to go along but was stopped.

"The matter I'm discussing is work-related and confidential, you can't come and listen."

Now a worker himself, Yan Bubu understood and said, "Okay, if it's about work, then I won't go. But you must come back soon."

"Yes, I'll be back quickly."

Feng Chen left the house, but instead of going to see Wu You, he headed straight to the elevator and pressed the button for the 69th floor.

The 69th floor was much more chaotic than the 65th. Children chased and played in the corridors, a couple fought from inside their home to the outside, and Feng Chen almost got hit by a shoe that flew out as he passed an open door.

Dodging a group of elderly people dancing in the hallway, he walked straight to a tightly closed door and knocked on it neither too lightly nor too heavily.

"Who's there?" a coarse, breathy voice called out from inside the house.

Feng Chen replied, "I'm looking for Chen Wenzhao's parents."

He had inquired about this during his work at the plantation today. The chubby boy was named Chen Wenzhao. His family was somewhat notorious in Hive C Area, as on the day they moved into the underground settlement, his mother got into a fierce fight over a spacious room. The conflict escalated to the point where she was detained by the Western Alliance Army and had been in custody for almost a month, with about half a month to go before her release.

There was silence from inside, and no one came to open the door. Feng Chen raised his hand and knocked again.

After his persistent knocking for almost half a minute, the door finally opened. A burly, middle-aged man stood at the doorway, eyeing Feng Chen with a hostile glare, and asked impatiently, "What do you want?"

"Hello, I'm looking for Chen Wenzhao's parents," Feng Chen said, calm despite being a head shorter than the man.

His gaze had already moved past the burly man's shoulder, spotting the chubby boy eating at the table.

"I'm his father, what about it?" the father, Chen, replied.

Feng Chen got straight to the point: "I'm Fan Renjing's parent. Your son keeps bullying my child, taking his things, and hitting him. Today, he left several bruises on his neck and other injuries."

"Don't listen to him, I didn't bully anyone. That kid with the missing tooth lost the fight to me," Chen Wenzhao suddenly jumped up, scurrying behind his father.

Chen Wenzhao was a habitual troublemaker, and his father had faced complaints before, always deflecting the blame. Seeing Feng Chen as just a young man, he didn't take him seriously and arrogantly said, "Did you hear that? My son says he didn't bully anyone. Isn't it normal for kids to fight each other? It's just play, nothing serious."

As Chen's father was about to close the door, Feng Chen put his hand against it, "Your son is lying. Otherwise, I can bring the person in charge of the Li Stone Mine to testify. Yesterday, he saw Chen Wenzhao taking my child's toy and hitting him."

"Dad, I'm not lying. That toy was just lying on the ground, unwanted," Chen Wenzhao said from behind his father, his small eyes peeking out from his chubby face, staring at Feng Chen.

Chen's father, trying to dismiss Feng Chen, said, "Go away, don't block the door, we're eating."

Feng Chen kept his hand on the door, his dark eyes emotionless, "Chen Wenzhao's parent, you don't want to admit that your son is bullying my child, do you?"

Finally losing his temper, Chen's father shouted furiously, "Who the hell are you? Are you deaf? Didn't you hear my son? He didn't hit anyone. Whoever hit your kid, go find them. Stealing toys? What toys hasn't my son seen? Trying to frame us? It seems you're just itching for a beating, aren't you?"

While cursing, Chen's father tried to close the door again, but Feng Chen kept it open. After failing to shut the door twice, a flicker of doubt crossed Chen's father's mind, and he reached out to push Feng Chen.

But before his hand reached him, Feng Chen swiftly moved behind Chen's father, hooking his left leg.

He used the same move he taught Yan Bubu the previous night, but the effect was entirely different. Chen's father, caught off guard, stumbled forward, unable to keep his balance, and fell into the hallway with a thud.

Dazed from the fall, Chen's father lay on the ground for a few seconds before regaining his senses. His face turned red with rage as he leapt up, throwing a punch at Feng Chen, "I'm going to kill you, you little brat."

The punch, fueled by fury, was fast and powerful, aimed to knock Feng Chen down. He imagined his fist colliding with Feng Chen's slender frame, sending him flying and crashing down in the middle of the room.

The expected collision never came; the punch missed its mark. A moment of confusion flashed through his mind as he tried to regain his footing, only to be met with sudden darkness and a sharp pain on his face, accompanied by the muffled sound of flesh striking flesh.

"Dad!" Chen Wenzhao cried out in shock upon seeing his father struck hard in the face.

Chen's father shook his dizzy head and looked at the young man standing opposite him, uncertain if he was the one who had landed the punch.

The young man, only reaching up to his chin, appeared upright but still had the slender build of someone not fully grown. Chen's father thought he could easily knock him away with a single slap. Yet, there he stood inside the house, calm and collected, with a cold gaze, as if nothing had happened.

"You dare hit my dad!" Chen Wenzhao's face reddened with rage as he pointed at Feng Chen and yelled, "You actually dared to hit my dad!"

Finally convinced that the young man was the assailant, Chen's father was both shocked and furious, raising his fist again, "I'm going to kill you now."

But just as he shouted these words and before he could move, the figure opposite him darted about. With two thuds, Chen's father's face was hit by two more punches.

Now completely enraged, Chen's father attacked Feng Chen like a wild beast, throwing punches recklessly.

His only thought was to smash the young man to the ground, to beat him senseless, to leave him as helpless as a dying stray dog.

Inside the house, a wooden cabinet was knocked over, a chair used as a weapon smashed against the wall into pieces, leaving the room in complete disarray.

Yet, even so, he didn’t manage to touch even the hem of Feng Chen’s clothes.

Feng Chen slightly arched his back, his eyes keenly following Chen's father, anticipating his every move. He dodged gracefully around the room like an agile springbok weaving through the jungle, seizing opportunities to strike, each punch landing on Chen's father's face.

Before long, Chen's father's eyes were blackened, his nose bleeding, and one side of his face swollen.

To Feng Chen, Chen's father's punches were disorderly and his movements comically clumsy, relying solely on brute strength, making his punches seem fierce.

Lacking professional training, his punches seemed fierce but were slow and lacked explosive power. Even the untrained opponents Feng Chen had faced in training were stronger than this grown man.

The sound of chaos filled the room.

Bangs and crashes echoed through the air.

The room was filled with the sounds of Chen's father's roars and Chen Wenzhao's cries of terror.

After dodging for a while, Feng Chen seized an opportunity and delivered a direct punch to Chen's father's face.

Each of his punches targeted the face, yet he controlled his strength to avoid breaking any bones. With a scream, Chen's father covered his nose, staggered back a few steps, and then collapsed onto the floor, his face a mess of tears and blood.

Feng Chen stood over him, then stepped forward and leaned down to grab his collar.

Terror finally appeared in Chen's father's swollen eyes, "Don't mess around, please, don’t."

Feng Chen spoke slowly and clearly, "I won't hit your son, so you need to keep him in line. If you can't, and he bullies my child again, I'll beat you like this every time."