Chapter Five: Scum

Ye Feng followed Han Shanshan into the Beiguo Xiantiantian Shopping Center, and as expected of the largest mall in BD City, the moment he entered, he was struck by its upscale atmosphere. Glancing at the elevator directory, Ye Feng saw that the third floor was the women’s clothing section. Han Shanshan, clearly familiar with the place, headed straight to the third floor without a second thought.

From time to time, Han Shanshan picked up some particularly racy outfits and showed them to Ye Feng. “If Sister Ling’er wore these, I guarantee you’d get a nosebleed just looking at her.”

Ye Feng stammered, “Well… I do rather like them. But let’s stick to something a bit more regular.” Though he found them appealing, they didn’t suit Xia Ling’s style.

“Uncle, are you fantasizing?”

“Get lost! And stop calling me uncle—I’m only nineteen!”

After browsing for a while, Ye Feng finally chose a pair of white shorts and a yellow T-shirt.

“Uncle, these are pretty short too!” Han Shanshan teased.

“They’re a few millimeters longer than the ones you picked,” Ye Feng shot back.

“…”

“These clothes are outrageously expensive, though. Just these two cost over two thousand. There’s less fabric here than in one of my shirts. Isn’t this daylight robbery?” Ye Feng frowned.

“Uncle, these are all designer brands. You have to be willing to spend on your woman!” Han Shanshan tried to enlighten him, her eyes shining with admiration.

As they were about to pay and leave, a man in sunglasses appeared on the same floor. He wore casual pants, his shirt half unbuttoned to reveal most of his chest. Beside him was a flamboyantly dressed woman; her thighs were almost bare, and her miniskirt barely covered her at all. The top made no effort to conceal her curves. The man groped her from time to time, while the woman feigned shyness. Men tend to like a hint of coyness in women, and for someone dressed like that to act shy—it was clearly an act.

“Pick anything you like here!” the man said with a pleased grin, his hand tightening around her.

“Brother Chen, you’re so naughty,” the woman cooed, brushing aside his hand as she picked out clothes. Everything here was pricey.

The man waited, bored, for her to finish; later tonight, she’d have to make it worth his while. As he idly scanned the store, his gaze landed on Han Shanshan.

Though he was never short of beautiful women, most were heavily made up. Han Shanshan, with her pure and innocent look, caught him off guard. He swallowed hard and strode toward her.

The woman with him noticed the direction he was heading and, seeing Han Shanshan, cursed under her breath, “Shameless!” before trailing after him.

“Hey, beautiful! I’m Chen Da. Pleased to meet you,” the man greeted politely.

Han Shanshan realized he was addressing her. She turned and saw a face even more lecherous than Ye Feng’s, the very picture of a street thug.

“Sorry, I don’t want to know you. I already have a boyfriend, so I don’t associate with other men,” Han Shanshan said, linking arms with Ye Feng.

Normally, a man would apologize and walk away upon hearing she had a boyfriend. But Chen Da only grew more interested after Han Shanshan spoke.

First, she had that sweet, youthful voice of a maiden, and then there was her loyalty—avoiding contact with other men just to avoid suspicion. Not many women could do that.

“Chen, she has a boyfriend. Leave her alone. Feeling frustrated? Take it out on me tonight,” the woman beside him purred, caressing his stomach.

But after seeing Han Shanshan, Chen Da lost all interest in the woman with him and pushed her away.

Chen Da glanced at Ye Feng, noting his shabby clothes. “This country bumpkin is your boyfriend? If you’re with me, I’ll treat you to the finest life.”

With that, he pulled out several stacks of hundreds from his bag and waved them in front of Han Shanshan, then slapped them heavily against Ye Feng’s chest.

Ye Feng eyed the cash and thought, “Who still carries cash these days? Everyone uses WeChat or Alipay. Carrying this much cash—he must be some nouveau riche.”

“You’ll never make this much money in your whole life!”

Noticing Ye Feng holding branded shopping bags, Chen Da sneered, “Well, well, pauper. Bet you saved for months to buy these few clothes. Haha…”

Han Shanshan, blushing furiously at Chen Da’s arrogance, retorted, “Money isn’t everything. My boyfriend is amazing—he can go ten rounds a night. You…” She glanced shyly at Chen Da, “You’re not up to it!” Then she buried her face in Ye Feng’s chest.

Chen Da’s woman stared in shock, unable to believe such men existed. Thinking of how Chen Da barely lasted ten minutes, she couldn’t help but cast Ye Feng a longing look.

Ye Feng was speechless. Not only had he been roped in as a human shield, now the girl was teasing him too. But Han Shanshan’s blush was convincing—she was quite the actress.

“Who are you calling incapable, you brat!” No man could stand being accused of impotence—it was a matter of pride.

Han Shanshan stuck out her tongue at him. “Feng, let’s go!”

“You brat, do you know who I am?” Chen Da snapped, shoving his companion aside and clenching his fists, ready for a fight.

“And who might you be?”

“I’m Shen Gang’s nephew! Know who that is? He runs the police department. Scared now?”

“I’m terrified,” Han Shanshan feigned fear.

“Uncle, he’s way creepier than you.”

“Don’t lump me in with him.”

“Then let’s go.”

“Alright,” Ye Feng nodded.

Hearing this exchange, Chen Da realized they didn’t take him seriously at all. Usually, women would throw themselves at him after learning his identity.

“If I don’t teach you both a lesson, you’ll never learn to be afraid,” Chen Da growled, swinging a punch at them.

“Here, let me hold that,” Ye Feng said, taking Han Shanshan’s bags and signaling her to handle it herself.

“Uncle, you’re not a real man! Shame on you!”

Ye Feng knew Han Shanshan could handle herself. He’d easily blocked her attacks before, but he could tell she was strong. Anyone could see her actions were provoking Chen Da, but she was bold because she had the skills to back it up.

Han Shanshan stepped forward, caught Chen Da’s fist, spun around, and threw him over her shoulder in a perfect judo toss.

“Nice throw!” Even though Chen Da was a burly man, around five foot nine and far from light, he was effortlessly flipped by a petite girl.

“Now, can we go?” Han Shanshan asked sweetly.

Seeing Chen Da sprawled on the floor, his companion rushed to help him. As she bent over, her already short skirt rode up, revealing lace thong underwear right in Ye Feng’s line of sight. “Chen, are you alright?”

“She’s shameless,” Ye Feng muttered, licking his lips.

Chen Da scrambled to his feet, clutching his waist. “You’ve got some moves, brat, but let me tell you, no woman I set my sights on ever gets away!”

He pulled out an iPhone X, quickly tapped a few buttons, and barked into the phone.

“You’ve messed with someone you can’t afford to offend!” he snarled.

Within minutes, a dozen men in black came up the escalator, each holding an iron rod, heading straight for Chen Da.

“Boss, what do you need us to do?” the leader asked.

“Ruin the man, but don’t hurt the woman. Let the brothers have their fun with her after!” Chen Da shouted in fury.

The men stared at Han Shanshan, their eyes lighting up at the prospect of their boss sharing.

“Don’t worry, boss. Let’s get them!”

“Uncle, maybe I should hold my stuff after all,” Han Shanshan said, a touch of fear in her voice as she saw the crowd.

“Aren’t you tough?” Ye Feng refused to let go.

“A couple I can handle, but this is too many… heh…” Han Shanshan grinned sheepishly.

“Is there a reward in it for me?” Ye Feng teased.

Without warning, Han Shanshan tiptoed and planted a kiss on his cheek.

Ye Feng had only been joking, already letting go of the bags, but didn’t expect her to be so bold. “What a little minx,” he thought.

“Hehe… Uncle, go get them!” Han Shanshan cheered, having witnessed Ye Feng’s prowess firsthand—these thugs would be no problem.

The black-clad men charged at Ye Feng with their clubs. Han Shanshan hid behind him, sticking out her tongue at Chen Da in mockery.

“You little brat, go on and gloat. In a moment, you’ll be too weak to speak,” Chen Da snarled.

Bang! Bang!

A dozen sharp sounds rang out in quick succession, and the black-clad men were sent flying in all directions.

Chen Da hadn’t even seen what happened before his men were all down.

“Uncle, you’re amazing! No wonder Sister Ling’er likes you so much,” Han Shanshan shouted, exhilarated as if she hadn’t had such a good fight in ages.

Chen Da hurriedly made another call. “Just you wait!” he shouted at Ye Feng from a safe distance.

Suddenly, the wail of police sirens echoed outside the shopping center.

Hearing the sirens, Chen Da regained his confidence. “I told you, my uncle is not someone you can mess with. So what if you’re tough? Tonight, she’s mine!”

“Scum!”

In a flash, Ye Feng appeared before Chen Da and kicked him hard in the chest.

Bang!

Chen Da was sent sprawling.

Moments later, the police surrounded them. “We’ve had a report of a disturbance here. All of you, come with us to the station! Take them away!”

A pair of handcuffs clicked shut around Ye Feng’s wrists. “Damn, the police got here fast,” he muttered.

Han Shanshan, having never worn handcuffs before, tried to act cute to the officers. Seeing she was harmless, they didn’t cuff her.

As for Chen Da and his group, after a few words with the police, they weren’t cuffed either.

“Why am I the only one in handcuffs?” Ye Feng asked Han Shanshan.

“Uncle, it’s because you’re so fierce!”