Chapter 845 - 847: Dealing with the Bully_1
The burly man choked for a moment, struggling to save face, but quickly stretched his neck and said, "What’s it to you if I don’t want someone to sing? Why do a bunch of outsiders, bumpkins at that, meddle in business that’s not theirs? Believe me, I could beat you so bad, you’d be searching the floor for your teeth."
Because the soldiers did not enter and Jiang Yichun had arranged for them to be stationed outside the city in advance, he only brought a team of dark guards with him, while the Study Palace people, looking like scholars and old men, were looked down upon by the burly man.
Tu Ying couldn’t help but laugh out loud, and Bai Ruozhu couldn’t help but join in. She placed Dengdeng in Jiang Yichun’s arms, stood up, and walked towards the young girl sprawled on the ground who had been singing.
"What are you doing? I don’t like hitting women, so don’t provoke me," the burly man shouted.
Without turning her head, Bai Ruozhu replied, "Isn’t she a woman? Didn’t you just hit a woman?"
As she spoke, she reached out to take the young girl’s hand, saying softly, "Don’t be afraid, I’ll see to your injuries."
The young girl, with tears clogging her voice, worriedly said, "Please go, don’t offend him for my sake."
Infuriated by Bai Ruozhu’s disregard for him, the bully bared his teeth and reached for her shoulder, but as soon as he stretched out his arm, Tu Ying twisted it into an unnatural angle, causing him to howl like a slaughtered pig, "Ah, let me go! Do you know who I am? You won’t be able to get by in Jiuzi City anymore!"
As Tu Ying exerted more force, the bully’s cries became even more pitiful. Tu Ying smirked, "Why would I need to know who you are? We’re just outsiders, bumpkins, remember? It’s only normal not to know you. We don’t plan to stick around Jiuzi City anyway, so taking care of you before we leave isn’t such a bad idea."
On the other side, Bai Ruozhu, who was checking the pulse of the young girl, couldn’t help but laugh upon hearing Tu Ying’s words.
The young girl had suffered some internal injuries, but thankfully they were not too severe, aside from some bruises on her body.
Bai Ruozhu pulled out a medicine bottle from her sleeve and handed a pill to the young girl, saying, "You’ve sustained internal injuries. Take this and rest well so you don’t develop a severe fever come nighttime."
The young girl took the pill without a second thought and swallowed it. Bai Ruozhu handed her a small bottle of Trauma Medicine, adding, "Rub this on when you get back. It should speed up the healing process."
"I will never forget the grace of your lifesaving kindness, Miss," the young girl said, bowing deeply.
Bai Ruozhu thought to herself that Jiangnan was indeed different, even an ordinary young girl had a way with words, no wonder fruits of poetic and literary culture shone through her.
"No need for thanks, just hurry on your way. And from now on, be wary and don’t let yourself be mistreated," Bai Ruozhu said before returning to her seat.
The bully’s subordinates, seeing their boss caught, kept shouting for Tu Ying to let him go and looked ready to charge in, but with a little more pressure from Tu Ying, the bully’s screams turned even more miserable.
"Don’t move rashly, or his arm will really be done for," Tu Ying said with a laugh, a sight that his subordinates found terrifying.
"Don’t move, stop, I feel like I’m going to die of pain," the bully, who previously looked intimidating, now turned into a complete coward.
Tu Ying turned to Bai Ruozhu and asked, "Madame, how should we deal with him?"
"Since it’s our first meeting, let’s give him a chance. Just dislocate one of his arms, that’ll do," Bai Ruozhu said with a smile on her face, but as she finished, everyone in the restaurant couldn’t help but inhale sharply.
The restaurant shopkeeper hurried over and said with an apologetic smile, "Gentlemen, please calm your anger, don’t provoke the people from the Chen Family. You are foreigners who do not know our ways; it’s best not to make enemies if you can avoid it." He was also furiously hinting with his eyes that Bai Ruozhu and the others must not harm the bully.
Bai Ruozhu replied nonchalantly with a smile, "It’s no big deal, he can still go to the Clinic to have his arm put back in place if I dislocate it. If he apologizes nicely, I might even put it back in place for him."
The shopkeeper let out a huge sigh of relief when he realized that the "dislocating an arm" mentioned by the lady from out of town meant just a dislocation, not an amputation. All was well.
But the shopkeeper quickly realized that this was no good either, as it seemed as though he was agreeing with their actions. Cold sweat appeared on his forehead, as if he could feel Chen Qiang’s glaring eyes on him.
Bai Ruozhu gave Tu Ying a look, and with one forceful move, the bully screamed like a slaughtered pig. When she let go, the bully’s right arm hung unnaturally at his side, visibly longer than the other.
Seeing their boss being released, the others wanted to rush over, but Tu Ying threw them a fierce glance, "What? Don’t want your arms either? Hurry up and take him to the Clinic. Though a dislocation is not a big deal, I can’t guarantee that his shoulder will be the same as before if you delay."
The subordinates exchanged glances, each intimidated by Tu Ying, and eventually supported the ceaselessly screaming bully and left.
The shopkeeper wiped the cold sweat off his forehead, mumbling repeatedly, "It’s over, it’s over, you should not have injured him."
Bai Ruozhu gave the shopkeeper a sidelong glance, finding him too cold-blooded and selfish. He would deserve it if the bully took revenge on him in the future.
The young girl Xiaoru looked at Bai Ruozhu and her group worriedly and said, "You are just passing through, right? You should leave quickly. Chen Qiang is not someone to be trifled with."
Tu Bai gave his sister a look and said, "Before our parents left, they told us not to act impulsively and not to fight casually. Even a strong dragon cannot suppress a local snake. Look, you’ve forgotten again."
Tu Ying rolled her eyes at her brother, "I don’t have your cold-bloodedness, standing by idly when a young girl is being beaten without lifting a finger to help."
"How could I, a man, help so easily? Mother said we shouldn’t randomly save women because we’d then be responsible for them. She doesn’t want me bringing just any girl home to her as a daughter-in-law," Tu Bai declared nonchalantly.
"Please, who would fancy you?" Tu Ying was completely unsparing.
The siblings’ banter lightened the atmosphere, even Bai Ruozhu couldn’t help but laugh. She broke in, "Alright, alright, stop arguing. We’ve finished eating; it’s time to leave."
Jiang Yichun stood up from his seat and handed Dengdeng back to Bai Ruozhu, whispered into her ear while using the motion as cover, "Tu Bai is right, don’t go saving someone and have them follow us."
Bai Ruozhu’s mouth twitched. What was with these men? Did they have to be so nervous? But then she thought of her brother’s past troubles and she understood why Jiang Yichun was so resistant to the idea.
Yet not everyone was like Xiaoning, right? Just because of one Xiaoning, they couldn’t lose their kindness and stop caring about innocent people’s lives, could they?
Xiaoru wanted to say something as Bai Ruozhu’s group prepared to leave but stopped herself. Tu Bai’s words had embarrassed her greatly. The request she wanted to make had to be swallowed back down.
Bai Ruozhu saw it all and knew that Xiaoru wanted to ask them to take her away. She had to pretend not to notice because this trip was not for her own pleasure. Her main task was to ensure the safety of the delegation members, which meant she could not allow someone of unknown identity to join them. All she could do was pray that Xiaoru could escape the clutches of Chen Qiang.