Chapter 54: Hu Ben Follows, the Heart of a Thief Never Dies
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“What’s the matter?” Jiang Fuyue got straight to the point.
Hu Ben’s prepared opening line was stuck in his throat, and he had to swallow it back.
“Um… there’s something I want to talk to you about,” he said.
“Speak.”
“How about I invite you for a meal? We can talk over dinner?”
Jiang Fuyue glanced at him, a smile playing at the corners of her lips. “Do you think that’s appropriate?”
Hu Ben looked her up and down, taking in her school uniform and overly youthful face. It didn’t seem quite right…
“Tonight at eight o’clock, Chunfeng Street, Niu Sao’s food stall.” With that, Jiang Fuyue turned and left.
Hu Ben didn’t follow her.
…
Night, eight o’clock.
Chunfeng Street was packed with people, and food stalls were everywhere, attracting people from all walks of life.
Hu Ben sat on a plastic chair, a small square table in front of him with a dish of boiled peanuts on it.
“What time is it now?” He peeled one and popped it into his mouth.
“7:50. Hu Ben, do you think she’s playing us?” Little Six checked his phone.
“I don’t think so.”
“But it’s already this late and she still hasn’t shown up…”
“What’s the rush? Just wait a little longer.”
A few more minutes passed, but Jiang Fuyue still hadn’t appeared.
Little Six sneered. Women talk like they’re farting.
Hu Ben frowned, his face darkening.
Just as the two of them were about to leave, a pair of long legs stopped next to them, and the girl looked up with the cool, expressionless eyes under the duckbill cap.
Hu Ben was startled and almost stumbled backward. Little Six lowered his head to check his phone, and it was exactly 8 o’clock!
“Co, come, sit down…” Hu Ben forced a smirk and gestured for Little Six to give up his seat for Jiang Fuyue.
“No need to bother.” She sat down across from them.
Hu Ben called out for food and when it came time for alcohol, Jiang Fuyue said she didn’t drink.
“…that’s fine, owner please bring a bottle of non-alcoholic drinks!”
This time, Jiang Fuyue was not wearing a school uniform, but a solid color cotton T-shirt paired with cropped jeans, revealing her snow-white and slender ankles.
She blended into the surrounding environment perfectly, and at first glance, she was not conspicuous. But from Hu Ben’s perspective, he could still see her straight back, which was unlike an ordinary person, and even though her hat covered most of her face, her skin that was exposed outside was as white as snow.
Regardless of her physique, temperament, or behavior, she did not seem like a high school student.
“You have only twenty minutes.” Jiang Fuyue spoke calmly, “Speak your mind.”
Hu Ben hastily withdrew his gaze when she raised her eyebrows. “Um, about the last time…my brother and I were both manipulated by you.”
Jiang Fuyue arched an eyebrow and leaned back in her chair. “So, you’re here to settle scores with me?”
“Don’t be so hostile, we’re not enemies…”
Jiang Fuyue didn’t respond to this.
Hu Ben continued shamelessly, “If we can meet, it must be fate! As the saying goes, ‘A hundred years of cultivation brings a boatload of blessings, a thousand years…”
Uh-oh!
Jiang Fuyue’s expression cooled.
“That’s not what I meant… I was just giving an example,” Hu Ben tried to explain.
“You have fifteen minutes left,” she reminded him.
“You’re so powerful, you wouldn’t mind showing my brothers a way to get rich, right?” Hu Ben asked.
“What do you mean?” Jiang Fuyue asked.
“My men were beaten because of you, and two of them are still lying in bed,” Hu Ben’s tone suddenly became serious. “How do you plan to resolve this matter?”
Jiang Fuyue understood what he meant.
The so-called “way to get rich” was nothing more than extortion.
And unfortunately, she was being set up.
“How do you want to resolve it?” she asked.
Hu Ben looked into her clear eyes and felt a sense of guilt and unease. “You should at least give us some compensation for medical expenses….”
“Indeed!” Jiang Fuyue retorted. “If you and your men were injured while fighting someone, would the other party pay for your medical expenses?”
“…”
“I’m afraid that there is no such rule in the world! How about you start your own martial arts sect instead?”
Hu Ben’s face twitched.
“You can be a sect leader if you want, but it’s not a good idea to mess with me.”
“What…what do you mean?”
Jiang Fuyue stood up and said, “You’ll regret it.”
“!”
Little Six also stood up and said, “What kind of woman are you? How…”
But he lost his voice the next second when he met Jiang Fuyue’s cold and sharp gaze, as if an invisible hand was choking his neck.
Jiang Fuyue continued, “We agreed that no matter who wins or loses, neither side should look for trouble afterwards. You made a promise and even swore an oath. Going back on your word will bring divine retribution. Think carefully.”
“It doesn’t count! You deliberately set a trap for me!”
“Did you fall for it?” Jiang Fuyue asked.
“…”
“You’re the one who’s foolish, yet you blame others for being too clever. Can’t argue with that, can you?”
The Hu Ben that was pinned down by the “foolish” label remained silent.
Oh my god, she’s too good at humiliating people!
“Well,” Jiang Fuyue raised her hand, “it’s been exactly twenty minutes. I won’t see you again.”
“Stop right there!” Little Six rushed forward, his tone becoming fierce.
Hu Ben didn’t say anything and allowed Little Six’s behavior.
Jiang Fuyue turned around, and a mysterious smile appeared on her face in the darkness. “What? Do you want to use force?”
Little Six’s gaze flickered, and he did want to do so.
Two big men were afraid they couldn’t handle a little girl?
“You can try,” Jiang Fuyue stood still and faced the two men, with a three-meter distance between them. “But please be prepared to bear the consequences.”
As for what consequences…
She didn’t say anything, but the two men listened with horror.
Thinking back to how she had previously designed the two sides to fight against each other and benefited from it, how she had managed to get them out of custody with just a few words of advice, and how she had used him to trap the other side’s men in a bag, the fate of those bodyguards was unknown; Hu Ben was scared.
And she dared to go to the meeting alone in the middle of the night, most likely she left a backup plan.
“Little Six, let her go.”
“Brother Hu!”
In the end, the two could only watch as Jiang Fuyue left.
“Brother! Is that it?!”
“What else can we do?”
“Anyway, we just want the money, why don’t we go find her parents?”
Hu Ben fell into thought, apparently tempted by the suggestion.
They were just a group of small hooligans, fighting and brawling for money in the end.
“I’ll think about it…let’s talk about it tomorrow.”
The next morning, Little Six ran excitedly to find Hu Ben: “Brother, we can go now!”
Hu Ben had just woken up and his brain was still a bit slow to react: “What?”
“Let’s go to the pancake stall and ask for money from that stinky girl’s parents! I’m all prepared, and if they don’t give it to us, we’ll just smash their shop!”
Hu Ben frowned, showing hesitation.
“Brother, the medical expenses at the clinic can’t be delayed anymore, otherwise, Ah Cai and Ah Zhuang will be kicked out!”
“…. Alright! I’ll go! Only bring what’s handy, no sharp blades.”
“I know, we’re only after money, not lives.”
After leaving, the two didn’t go straight to the pancake shop but had breakfast at a noodle stand downstairs. The morning paper was on the table, and Hu Ben picked it up and read it while eating.
Then…
The more he read, the slower he chewed, and his eyes grew wider and wider.
“Brother? Brother?!”
“… Look at this. Is the Li Xue and Li family written here the same group of people we dealt with that day?!”
Little Six paused: “I remember it was Li Xue, and the bodyguards called her Miss…”
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