Chapter 21.1 – Meeting Acquaintances

translator: xiin
editor: butter

The billiards hall wasn’t big. It was a private area, so it wasn’t set up very formally.

There were eight billiard tables in the room, with many people gathered beneath the white lights. They were all gangsters with jackets and tattooed arms, sitting in every corner. Some were smoking, some were playing cards, and others were playing on their cell phones.

The only table really playing billiards was at the far right. It was surrounded by a crowd of people, and the sounds of their playing rang out noisily, non-stop. A haze of black smoke hovered over the area.

As soon as Ma Xiaoding arrived at the entrance and saw what was going on inside, he fiercely swallowed his words back into his stomach. His attitude of kicking open the doors to start a fight withered instantly.

“Brother Yu…” Ma Xiaoding turned back miserably, his face wrinkled like a bitter melon, “There’s, there’s a lot of people. Maybe we should wait until next time when we can catch him alone.”

You’ve already kicked the doors open. Is it even possible to leave?

Didn’t you check to see how many people were there when you decided to go up and beat people up?

The corner of Song Yu’s lips twitched. He directly kicked him in the buttocks from behind.

“How did you manage to be a junior high school bully like this?”

This was the lowest level high school bully he’d ever see.

Ma Xiaoding didn’t have a good hold on the door frame. He staggered forward as soon as he was kicked and ended up standing in front of the crowd.

His sudden appearance naturally attracted many people’s attention.

The gangsters held cigarettes in their hands, their eyelids hooded as they looked over. Their gazes weren’t very friendly.

There was a small music bar inside the billiards hall that was playing a gentle song scattering cold-toned colored lights over everyone’s face.

Ma Xiaoding wanted to cry. He was just a high school student; how could he dare pretend to be a big guy in front of this group of adult gangsters?

He looked back subconsciously, swallowing hard, his legs trembling.

… Was it possible to run away now?

A young man with a dirty ponytail stubbed out his cigarette. When he saw the boy’s panicked appearance, he whistled and laughed, “You ended up in the wrong place, little friend. The internet cafe is on the second floor, this isn’t a place that good students come to.”

Ma Xiaoding didn’t dare to answer him. He looked back at Song Yu frequently, asking for help.

Song Yu glanced at him and said lightly, “Promising.”

He took a step forward and replaced Ma Xiaoding as the center of public attention.

The teenager stood tall and straight, dressed in a white shirt and black trousers. His hair and pupils were light brown, and his eyelashes were curly and long. His skin was fair, and at first glance, he seemed mild and harmless. It was just that when he lifted his eyelids slightly, his temper and willfulness would unconsciously spread out, and the momentum of his aura was very strong.

“Little child, did you come looking for your mother?”

The man with the dirty ponytail didn’t think much of their group. His mouth was pulled up in a grin as he taunted them.

Song Yu was too lazy to pay attention to him. He tilted his head and asked Ma Xiaoding, “Where is Zhu Zhixing?”

Ma Xiaoding was still in a daze.

Song Yu repeated himself, “Where is Zhu Zhixing?”

Ma Xiaoding heard the chill in his tone. He shivered and stood up on tiptoe to look around, but there were too many people gathered and the environment was too noisy. He stretched his head out for a long time without finding Zhu Zhixing.

The man with the dirty ponytail tsk-ed. He was a little unhappy with being ignored, so he stood up and gave a superficial smile, “If you’re not here looking for your mother, then that’s great. I, your big brother, will help you look.”

His status amongst this group of thugs should be quite high. The people beside him didn’t dare to kick up a fuss when they saw his actions, and the noisy environment even grew quieter for a moment.

The man with the dirty ponytail yelled towards the depths of the room, “Zhu Zhixing, who is Zhu Zhixing! Quickly get the hell out here! Someone’s come looking for you!”

At this time, the group of people around the billiards table suddenly burst out into applause, cheers, and whistles. The sound of a strike was crisp and pleasant, and it seemed that a beautiful move had just been played.

The man with the dirty ponytail’s voice was very clear amidst the ruckus.

Several people by the table heard him and turned to look at the door. There was a bit of space between them, revealing the last black ball on the table that was unsteadily making its way along the green table, rolling towards the hole in the corner.

Ma Xiaoding’s eyesight finally grew sharp again. He pointed to a short and thin boy standing in the innermost corner, who’d been revealed in the gap, and shouted, “Brother Yu! That boy over there is Zhu Zhixing!”

Zhu Zhixing, who’d just been named, glared and looked over at them with wide eyes. When he saw that it was Ma Xiaoding, his expression grew extremely awkward.

Thump.

The black ball dropped into the bag.

The game was over.

At the front of the billiards table, a man in a plaid shirt who looked to be in his twenties stood up straight and slowly wiped a hand down the cue stick.

The man with the dirty ponytail clapped his hands and walked forward, “Old Chen, a group of little friends came here looking for someone. Why don’t you hurry and help them find who they’re looking for? These little friends will end up sniveling if they get too anxious from waiting.”

Plaid Shirt had single eyelids, thin lips, and a nose ring. His entire person looked like he wasn’t a good person to offend, and his speech was also very blunt. He glanced over, “F*ck looking for people, tell them to get the hell out!”

Dirty Ponytail had expected this and laughed, “Tsk, you’re really not interesting. Since they’ve already come, why not have them stay and play a bit.”

Ma Xiaoding was the type who would get worked up when seeing an enemy. He wished he could rush over, pull Zhu Zhixing out of the crowd and beat him up.

He even forgot to be afraid and said to Song Yu, “Brother Yu, it’s this grandson¹grandson – derogatory. if you call someone ‘daddy’ out of respect, then being someone’s ‘son’ means you’re inferior/lesser. grandson is one step beyond that! He scolded you and Xie Sui! And he even came up with those insidious and disgusting ideas.”

Zhu Zhixing was following behind a youth who looked similar to Plaid Shirt. He glared fiercely at Ma Xiaoding, then stood up on tiptoe and said something into the youth’s ear.

The youth was wearing a school uniform, and his hair was dyed a variety of colors. There was a high probability that he was the No.1 High’s second year school bully.

Zhu Zhixing grew up looking very sleazy, and his gaze was as insidious as a snake’s when he looked at Ma Xiaoding.

Chen Zhijie raised his eyebrows. His gaze fell disdainfully on Ma Xiaoding, and he asked, “Is this the person who’s been troubling you?”

Zhu Zhixing immediately sucked up and added fuel to the fire, “That’s him. This kid was a thorn in our sides in junior high, and he’s used to being lawless and unruly. He even said that he wants to take your position as the school bully after entering No.1 High.”

Chen Zhijie sneered. The disdain in his eyes was practically overflowing, “What does he think he is.”

He went over to Plaid Shirt, “Big brother, don’t be in a hurry to drive them out. These people are my schoolmates.”

His gaze landed on their group, a sinister smile unfolding at the corners of his lips.

“They’re here to pick a fight. Since they’ve already come in, how could it be so easy for them to leave.”

The atmosphere in the room dropped to the freezing point in a flash.

Dirty Ponytail followed suit and egged them on, “Old Chen, you see, your brother is more clear about what should be done than you are.”

The gangsters all laughed and jeered.

“Students who came to pick a fight?”

“Hahahahaha they actually came here.”

“I’m afraid they’re here as a joke.”

“I’ll close the door first.”

A gangster who was sitting at the door gloated and laughed. He stubbed out his cigarette with his foot, kicked the door closed, then stood there and said, “Little children, don’t leave so quickly today.”

Ma Xiaoding’s younger brothers instantly turned pale.

In the final analysis, they were just a group of 15 year old high school students who hadn’t yet come out of their ivory towers. They were subconsciously afraid when faced with these people, and now that they’d been forced to this point, they’d fallen into a stunned daze.

Dirty Ponytail smiled like a fox, his expression sinister.

Plaid Shirt’s small eyes narrowed slowly.

Chen Zhijie was still talking, “You followed all the way to this place. You probably really want to have a friendly fight with us. I heard that you’re looking for Zhu Zhixing?”

Ma Xiaoding gritted his teeth and simply went all out.

In this situation, if even he started acting scared, it was all over.

Ma Xiaoding, who felt a sense of responsibility, put on a tough act despite his inner timidity, “Yes! Zhu Zhixing and I have a personal grudge. Hand him over to us and we’ll leave immediately!”

Song Yu: “……”

This idiot.

After a moment, they unsurprisingly received the unbridled ridicule of everyone in the room.

Dirty Ponytail laughed in an exaggerated manner, holding onto the billiards table and wiping the corner of his eyes, “Little friend, you haven’t figured out the situation yet––it’s not a question of whether or not you leave, but whether or not you and your little brothers can leave.”

Ma Xiaoding was really scared now. He really regretted his initial behavior; why had he dragged Brother Yu into this?

His palms were sweating and his voice trembled, “I…”

Chen Zhijie was also laughing, but his laughter wasn’t as exaggerated.

He said, “How about this. At the end of the day, you’re a fellow student, and I won’t embarrass you. Let’s play a game tonight.”

“If you win against me, I’ll let you go and hand Zhu Zhixing over to you. If you lose, run out and learn to bark under the national flag when the flag is raised up at school on Monday. What do you say?”

Song Yu couldn’t watch on anymore. He wanted to pull Ma Xiaoding down and go up himself. It was just that an extra hand suddenly landed on his shoulder; Xie Sui’s.

Song Yu was surprised and tilted his head.

Xie Sui’s expression hadn’t changed, and his delicate facial features seemed remote and disconnected from the world in the cold lights.

Learn to bark when raising the flag.

That would be like sweeping the floor with his dignity in front of the whole school. Not to mention, Ma Xiaoding had been a major figure in junior high.

For a fifteen year old youth, this was a very huge insult.

Ma Xiaoding’s face turned red, and he clenched his fists tightly. He was blaming himself for his recklessness, for dragging others with him to this point. He gritted his teeth and glared.

“What’s the game?”

Chen Zhijie spoke to Plaid Shirt, “Big brother, lend me your space.”

To Plaid Shirt, watching them fight was like watching primary school students scuffle. He crossed his hands over his chest, took a step back, and raised his chin.

“Use it.”

Chen Zhijie pulled off his school uniform jacket, picked up a cue, and smirked at Ma Xiaoding, “Snooker. Can you play?”

The gangsters in the room all looked like they were watching a play. This billiards hall was run by Chen Zhijie’s big brother, and Chen Zhijie had been influenced by him and followed suit, learning how to play. He couldn’t be considered a high level player, but he had more than enough skill to bully novices. This was clearly an unfair competition, but that unfortunate little brat, he had to play even if he didn’t know how to.

—

Butter’s THoughts:
I think MX has a special skill for digging pits! Even worse than xiin! And more deadly!
xiin: … i protest that. i see no pits… 

• 1
  grandson – derogatory. if you call someone ‘daddy’ out of respect, then being someone’s ‘son’ means you’re inferior/lesser. grandson is one step beyond that