Chapter Sixteen: The Bandits on Wheels

When he arrived at Gong Xiang’s house, the guy hadn’t gone out yet, just sitting at home waiting. Jiang Xiuwen let out a long sigh of relief. The moment Gong Xiang opened the door and saw Jiang Xiuwen, he scanned him up and down for a long while without saying a word.

“What’s with that look of admiration again? We’re buddies, you know—don’t embarrass me,” Jiang Xiuwen joked, breaking the tension. “Let’s go, I’ll accompany you the whole way today.”

“You sure you’re not running a fever? You’re acting strange,” Gong Xiang said, reaching out to feel Jiang Xiuwen’s forehead.

“Heh, don’t get me wrong. I’m just acting out a brotherhood scene from my new novel. This time it’s more than twenty or thirty thousand words. Want to be the first to read it? It’s absolutely thrilling.” Knowing Gong Xiang always liked to “act out” his stories, Jiang Xiuwen made up a story on the spot.

Sure enough, Gong Xiang was interested. “What genre is it? Martial arts or immortals?”

“Have you ever heard of cultivation? It’s an entirely new system—really fascinating,” Jiang Xiuwen boasted shamelessly. After all, no one had written cultivation novels yet in this era, so borrowing the idea didn’t seem wrong.

Gong Xiang was intrigued. “Then after we fix the game console, let’s go to your place. I want a sneak peek.”

“I’m right at the turning point. Why don’t I finish this part first and bring it to you tomorrow? Otherwise you’ll be tormented, desperate for the next chapter with nothing to read.”

“Uh…” Gong Xiang agreed wholeheartedly. Every time Jiang Xiuwen’s stories of twenty or thirty thousand words stopped abruptly, he would spend days pining for more. “Deal. If you don’t bring it tomorrow, I’ll wait for you in the computer lab!”

Jiang Xiuwen laughed. “All right, let’s go.”

They caught the bus, and after getting off, arrived at the big roundabout in the city square. Jiang Xiuwen looked around warily; fortunately, nothing happened. He remembered that when the police investigated later, the last witness to see Gong Xiang was found at this roundabout.

Before long, they reached Luliang Road. In 1993, in Yangjiang, there were very few home game console players, especially for the 16-bit Sega, so most of them knew each other. The shop owner was a young man in his twenties, on friendly terms with both Jiang Xiuwen and Gong Xiang. The console had no major issues and was fixed with a little adjustment, so he didn’t charge them.

On the way back, Jiang Xiuwen felt much more at ease, laughing and chatting with Gong Xiang. When Gong Xiang invited him to play games at his house, Jiang Xiuwen, planning to escort him all the way home, agreed immediately.

Back at the roundabout, Jiang Xiuwen grew alert once more. Noticing his distracted air, Gong Xiang chuckled, “Dude, what’s with you today? You’re acting like a secret agent…”

Just as he spoke, a white van parked by the roadside suddenly roared to life, swerving sharply toward them before screeching to a halt a few yards away, the sound piercingly shrill, drawing stares from passersby.

Two men leapt out. Before Jiang Xiuwen and Gong Xiang could react, two fists slammed toward their waists.

Gong Xiang took a solid blow, the pain making him cry out, clutching his stomach and squatting down. At the same moment, a flash of inspiration hit Jiang Xiuwen, and he kicked hard at the attacker’s knee.

It was one of the three moves he’d just learned from Wang Wu—indeed, vicious and effective.

The kick landed true and heavy. The man’s howl was miserable. The big fellow who’d hit Gong Xiang paused, but ignored his partner’s pain and lunged to grab Gong Xiang, intending to lift him. Standing six foot tall and powerfully built, lifting the shorter Gong Xiang was nothing for him.

A kidnapping? But Gong Xiang’s family wasn’t rich! The thought had barely formed when Jiang Xiuwen charged forward, aiming a kick at the big guy’s knee. But this one was quicker than his companion, dodging aside and yanking the still-doubled-over Gong Xiang toward the van.

“Seventh Brother, what are you doing?” At that critical moment, a passerby dashed over like a whirlwind, ramming the big man in the waist. The surprise sent him staggering back and crashing to the ground, with Gong Xiang tumbling down as well.

Jiang Xiuwen reacted swiftly, darting up to help Gong Xiang, then shouting at the top of his lungs, “Help! Thugs are kidnapping and killing people!” He’d learned this “wail” from the formidable Miss Miejue, and it worked wonders. A crowd quickly gathered, and someone called out, “How can two adults bully kids? Call the police!”

The big man scrambled up, growling at his assailant, “Kid, you’ve got guts.” Then, ignoring his partner’s groans, he hauled him up, shoved him into the van, and climbed in himself. The van peeled away, tires screeching, and sped off.

The onlookers, seeing the van flee, didn’t want trouble and quickly dispersed, going back to their own business.

“Gong Xiang, are you all right?” Jiang Xiuwen let out a deep breath and asked in concern.

“I’m fine, it’s just a scratch…” Gong Xiang forced a smile. “When did you get so tough? I bet that guy won’t be walking right after your kick.” Saying this, he gritted his teeth and stood up.

“You rascal…” Jiang Xiuwen clapped Gong Xiang on the shoulder, then turned to the young man who’d tackled the thug and was now staring dazedly at the departing van. “Thanks, man. You really saved us.”

The young man turned, face expressionless. “You’d better stay away from those people. Seventh Brother isn’t your average street thug.”

“Zhao Fei?” Only then did Jiang Xiuwen and Gong Xiang recognize him, speaking in unison.

“Yeah, you’re students in my dad’s class, right?” Zhao Fei’s voice was cold.

Zhao Fei was notorious at school for fighting—he was also Teacher Zhao Gang’s son. Zhao Gang was well-respected and kind, but his wife had passed away early, and he’d devoted himself to his students, neglecting his son. That was why Zhao Fei had become so rebellious.

Out of respect for Teacher Zhao, Jiang Xiuwen remembered many things about him. The only time Zhao Fei had ever been praised at school was when he represented the school in a computer competition and advanced to the national finals. But on the day he was supposed to board the train to Beijing, he got into another fight and was badly injured—Jiang Xiuwen recalled that day was the first time Teacher Zhao ever took a day off. Zhao Fei became even more rebellious afterward, eventually abandoning computers, committing serious crimes as an adult, and ending up in prison.

Gong Xiang had never liked Zhao Fei, but having just been rescued by him, didn’t know what to say.

Because of Teacher Zhao, Jiang Xiuwen and others felt differently about Zhao Fei. Even the old Jiang Xiuwen would have spoken to this notorious “fight king.” “Yeah, we’re in Class Four, Grade Three. Who’s this ‘Seventh Brother’? We’ve never heard of him.”

Zhao Fei frowned. “That’s odd. Seventh Brother and his crew don’t usually bother students unless there’s a serious reason.”

“Stole a book and trying to run, are you!” Suddenly, a thunderous shout rang out. A tall man rushed over from across the street, spreading his long arms to block Zhao Fei.

The moment Zhao Fei saw him, his face turned vicious, and he snapped, “Damn, are you nuts? It’s just a book! You chased me for miles!”

“If you steal a book, you must be punished. Hand it over!” the tall man declared righteously, seizing Zhao Fei by the throat with one hand while pulling a book from his clothes with the other.