Chapter 28: On Politeness

Trailing behind Zhou the Skinscraper were the same hundred or so thugs from before. They clenched their fists, brandished their weapons, and moved forward in a dark, dense mass, like a storm cloud rolling in. The onlookers once again broke out in a cold sweat for Zeng Xiaofan.

“Kid! Earlier, that slut surnamed Fan was covering for you. Let’s see who’s going to protect you now!” Zhou the Skinscraper drew out a butterfly knife, twirling it menacingly as he sneered. “Are you ready to admit your mistake?”

“Hurry up and get on your knees and kowtow to your master!”

“If you kneel down and lick my feet clean, I’ll spare your life today. Otherwise—heh heh…”

Zeng Xiaofan snorted coldly, his voice calm and detached. “Otherwise, what?”

The moment his words fell, he raised his hand and slapped Zhou the Skinscraper’s face!

Smack!

A crisp sound rang out—the slap was firm and merciless. The harm was small, but the humiliation was immense. In an instant, the crowd was stunned.

Zhou the Skinscraper stood there, dumbfounded. “What the hell…”

“Again!?”

“Are you kidding me? I’ve got over a hundred men here!”

“No kidding. I’m slapping you!” Zeng Xiaofan reversed his hand and delivered another resounding slap.

“Damn it! Kill him! Kill him!” Zhou the Skinscraper screamed hysterically. “Whoever chops off his hands for me gets two hundred thousand!”

The thugs, fired up by the reward, charged Zeng Xiaofan without a second thought. At this moment, in their eyes, Zeng Xiaofan was no longer a man—he was two hundred thousand in walking flesh!

Whoosh!

A machete flashed through the air, striking toward Zeng Xiaofan. The well-endowed fruit vendor beside him shrieked in terror.

“Mother! He’s going to kill someone!”

“There’s going to be blood—oh heavens…”

Others turned away, afraid of being splattered by the gore.

But at that moment, Zeng Xiaofan, one hand in his pocket, simply raised his other hand and gave a light smack.

The machete flew from the thug’s grip and, with a whoosh, embedded itself straight into the nearby concrete utility pole. The blade sank in all the way to the hilt, still quivering.

A collective gasp swept through the crowd.

“What… what’s happening?”

“This… this is impossible…”

The thug stared in disbelief at his machete buried deep in cement. Before he could recover, a powerful roundhouse kick struck out!

Crack!

Zeng Xiaofan’s leg whipped across the thug’s thigh, sending him spinning a full one-eighty before crashing heavily to the ground, raising clouds of dust that stung everyone’s eyes.

“What are you all standing there for?” Zeng Xiaofan stood tall and proud, enunciating each word. “All—of—you—come—at—me—together!”

The instant he finished, a wave of domineering energy swept over the scene. Everyone suddenly felt as if a boulder was pressing on their chests, making it hard to breathe.

“S-such a powerful aura…”

“So… so overwhelming…”

“Who in the world… is this guy…”

“Such terrifying kingly presence!”

Zhou the Skinscraper and his hundred-odd men were stunned. In all their years roaming the underworld, never had they seen anyone with such an overpowering presence.

But the challenge had been issued—there was no turning back now. After all, they had the numbers. If they backed down now, they’d never live it down.

Steeling himself, Zhou the Skinscraper called out, “Brothers, I don’t believe he’s a monster! No matter how tough he is, can he take on all hundred of us alone? Charge! Kill him!”

At Zhou’s command, all reason was abandoned. The throng of thugs surged toward Zeng Xiaofan.

Yet, one after another, anguished screams rose from the crowd.

“Ahhh!”

“My hand! My hand’s broken!”

“Aaah! My leg! My leg’s snapped!”

“Mercy, boss! Please don’t crush my balls! I just got married!”

The place became a wailing battlefield. Thugs tumbled, bounced, flew, crashed—anyone who came within five meters of Zeng Xiaofan was sent flying with a scream.

Within minutes, all hundred-plus thugs were sprawled on the ground—none left standing.

Zeng Xiaofan stood in their midst, hands in pockets, his clothes slightly soiled, upright as a god among men.

The crowd was dumbstruck. Even the young milk tea girl’s eyes sparkled as she hugged her chest, breath quickening, voice trembling as she swallowed hard.

“Oh… oh my god! So… so handsome!”

“He’s incredible!”

“I adore him! I want—no, I need a man like this!”

Nearby, even the old vegetable vendor felt her heart flutter.

“What a fine young lad!”

“So heroic! I can’t stand it anymore!”

“Oh, I’m fainting… he’s too handsome, I’m swooning…”

“Me too! I can barely breathe—handsome, can you give me mouth-to-mouth?”

“Handsome, I love you!”

Several women couldn’t help but scream, and the rest of the crowd quickly joined in with wild cheers and applause that thundered on and on.

Zeng Xiaofan strode calmly over to Zhou the Skinscraper, who was lying on the ground battered and bruised, and spoke coldly, “Well? Do you submit now?”

“If you want to call for backup, go right ahead.”

“I’ll be here all day.”

“No, no! Boss, I was wrong! I’ll never dare again—please spare my worthless life! Please… I have a family to feed, please have mercy…”

All of Zhou’s bravado was gone; he wept openly, snot and tears streaming down his face, leaving the local vendors dumbfounded. After all, this man had only ever bullied others—never had anyone seen him groveling for mercy before.

Zeng Xiaofan snorted coldly and said, “If your teacher never taught you manners, I’ll teach you today. Are you still going to spew filth when you see people from now on?”

“No, never again!” Zhou shook his head so hard it was a blur. “Please, boss, I swear I’ll be polite from now on…”

Zeng Xiaofan couldn’t help but chuckle at the sight of this sly brute uttering such words.

“Enough! You can scram now.”

“Thank you, boss… Yes, boss… I’m leaving right now…”

“Goodbye, boss… Goodbye, good morning, good evening, goodbye…”

Zhou the Skinscraper was so terrified he blurted out every polite phrase he could think of in his life.

Zeng Xiaofan smirked coldly. “Goodbye?”

“You still dare say goodbye?”

“Listen to me—if I ever see you again, I’ll beat you again!”

“Yes, yes…” Zhou scrambled away on all fours, not daring to look back.