Having three people hanging around at my place and not treating them to anything felt kinda wrong. We couldn't exactly live off that one box of instant noodles in my cabinet.

I watched as Long-ge burned through all her dungeon fatigue in DNF, then came out of my room clutching her chest, looking thoughtful. She sat down with Old Chu, and the two of them stayed silent, both seeming lost in thought.

Sitting there beside them gave me the creeps. I happened to be heading downstairs to buy malatang anyway, so I brought Long-ge with me. I also planned to stop by the pharmacy and get her some medicine. Baidu was unreliable as hell. Lung cancer sounded like total nonsense to me. She probably just smoked too much. I figured I'd get her checked at the pharmacy and buy her a box of Golden Throat lozenges too.

I went straight to the malatang shop and ordered four takeout portions. I knew the girl who ran the place pretty well. Her name was Zhang Hanxiu, and she was from Shanghai.

Last time the shop had been empty, so I ate there alone and got to chatting with her. After a few back-and-forths, we got pretty familiar.

She'd just graduated from S University and couldn't find a job. Her dad happened to be getting into real estate, so he wasn't in a rush for her to work. He just let her run this little shop herself.

The malatang here was pretty good. The location just sucked, so not many people came. Xiaoxiu was hardworking, though. Most customers who did come became regulars, so business was doing okay, more or less.

The moment Xiaoxiu saw me walk in with a scruffy little girl, she froze for a second. Then she heard me ask for four portions to go, covered her mouth, and laughed for a bit before heading into the kitchen. She poked her head out and said, "Lu, you've got a pretty good appetite. Eat a little more, put on some weight. It'd be easier to find a girlfriend."

I led Long-ge to an empty table. She couldn't sit still in the chair. She frowned and looked around like some little delinquent girl. I replied, "Who even cares about fat or skinny these days? Being chubby doesn't mean you're well-off anymore. Don't girls now like that bad-boy type? Tall, skinny, kinda rough-looking?"

Long-ge slapped the table. No clue what she'd suddenly figured out, but she gave me an approving look and shouted, "Exactly!"

Xiaoxiu covered her mouth and snickered. The malatang still needed some time to cook. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, opened the fridge, took out four glass bottles of cola, and set them on our table before sitting down with us.

I gave her a questioning look.

She smiled. "You come here all the time, so these four are on the house. Next time you want some, though, I'm charging you."

Small businesses had it rough. Giving away four bottles of cola was already generous. I thanked her, calling her Sister Xiu.

She suddenly pretended to get annoyed and flicked me on the forehead. "You boys really do love lying. You used to come eat here alone, and half the time you'd waste half your food and throw it out. Now all of a sudden you're packing four portions? Don't tell me you've got four pretty little girls hidden at home."

"How did you know?!" I blurted out in shock.

Xiaoxiu froze. "You really do have them hidden?!"

"No, no, no..." I waved my hands frantically.

She looked at me suspiciously for a moment. Then customers came in. She sighed and went back into the kitchen. Not long after, she came out carrying four plastic bags and handed them to me.

I called out to Long-ge and got up to leave. Xiaoxiu wiped the fine sweat from her forehead and said, "Come by more often when you've got time."

I nodded and headed out.

She shouted after me, "Don't forget to bring the glass bottles back!"

So there I was again, carrying four bags, taking Long-ge to a nearby pharmacy. The place was half Western medicine, half traditional Chinese medicine. The moment we stepped inside, I saw a bunch of Western meds lined up in the glass counter, and behind it stood an old Chinese doctor with dyed hair and glasses.

The old doctor first used a tongue depressor to check Long-ge's throat, then told me it was a little inflamed. He prescribed some anti-inflammatory medicine. I struggled to dig out enough change, then bought a box of Golden Throat lozenges too. I stuffed both boxes into a black plastic bag and started heading home.

The pharmacy was diagonally across from an internet café. Long-ge had worked there before as a net café attendant.

As we passed by, I saw seven or eight guys with brightly dyed hair. The one in front was blond. He leaned against the wall on one foot, casually looking at his phone. Every single one of them had a telescopic baton tucked in their pocket, with the handle deliberately sticking out like they were trying to look cool. About half of them were squatting on the ground smoking.

We just happened to walk right in front of them. Half of them were squatting there, leisurely watching us. Long-ge stared at them curiously. I quickly looked away, afraid of stirring up trouble. The ones squatting gradually stopped smoking, and their eyes started moving along with Long-ge.

I got anxious and pulled Long-ge to walk faster.

Just then, one black-haired guy with a face full of acne stood up. He wobbled a little when he got up, probably from squatting too long. With a miserable look, he walked over to the blond leader, handed him a cigarette, and said with a fawning smile in a low voice,

"Brother Feng, let's stop waiting. That Little White Dragon's scared of you. We've been waiting two days already. We asked the internet café owner, and he said Little White Dragon quit ages ago. Why are we still waiting here?"

My chest sank. I hurriedly glanced at Long-ge beside me, only to find her still looking like a curious little delinquent girl. She only turned her head a little when she heard the name Little White Dragon. The guys squatting on the ground all looked at her again. Long-ge, though, looked away. It was like she'd decided those squatting guys weren't as handsome as him, so she got bored and started staring at the shop signs by the street.

Honestly, I was terrified she'd suddenly roar, "Fuck your mother! Pearl River Little White Dragon is right here!" and then kick someone on the spot. Didn't matter who won or lost. Though conservatively speaking, Long-ge would probably win. But the medical bill would definitely land on me. Long-ge never had money in her pockets. She had to save up for two days just to buy a pack of Hongjinlong cigarettes.

Behind me, I heard that blond guy slowly chewing out the acne-faced one, cursing nonstop. "Look at you. Why the fuck are you in such a hurry? Rooster said Little White Dragon always hangs around this internet café. Wait two or three days and we'll get news. Then we'll stab that little bastard once, make him stay in the hospital for half a month. Maybe when he gets out, he'll learn to behave and stop causing trouble for Young Master Feng and the others every damn day."

The moment I heard that, I let out a breath of relief. I even felt a little lucky. We'd almost walked right into these bastards' trap.

Good thing Long-ge had suddenly changed sex overnight and dodged this disaster perfectly. I hadn't said it out loud, but I honestly felt like Long-ge turning into a woman was a huge blessing.

She was almost twenty this year. Same age as me. We'd just graduated high school. If this kind of sudden sex change happened to anyone else, it'd probably be a complete disaster.

But Long-ge only had a middle school education to begin with. She'd probably have spent her whole life working as a net café attendant. With her education, she'd probably struggle even to get a job shining shoes. Now that she'd turned into a girl, she could start a new life. She could stay far away from this kind of social trash who wanted to stab people at the drop of a hat. Maybe she'd even hook a rich husband someday and never have to worry about food or clothes again...

I was still thinking about all that when I realized carrying five plastic bags felt awkward, so I switched hands. Then I turned my head and saw Long-ge was gone.

I was so scared I whipped around at once, and my soul practically left my body.

Long-ge, looking all loose and swaggering, was walking straight toward those seven or eight little punks.

By the time I reacted, she'd already swaggered right up to them. The three or four squatting on the ground had been staring at her for a while already. Now they all looked up at her strangely, like a row of toads gazing at the stars.

Long-ge looked at them for a moment, then held out her hand. "Got a cigarette?"

The row of toads looked at each other. One of the rainbow-haired toads was just about to say something—

Long-ge didn't bother being polite. She reached out and snatched the cigarette he'd just lit right out of his hand.

The whole group instantly let out a noise, and several of the ones standing rushed over.

The blond guy frowned, touched the baton in his pocket, and slowly walked over too.

One little toad nearby still hadn't figured out what was going on and asked his buddy in confusion, "Who is she?"

I sprinted over in a panic, bowing and apologizing to each of them as I grabbed Long-ge by the arm and tried to pull her away.

"Sorry, big bros, sorry, big bros. This is my little sister. She's had mental problems since she was a kid. Luckily she took her medicine today. Otherwise she'd drool all over you guys, and that's hard to wash out. Please, make way..."

The row of toads looked into the black plastic bag I was carrying. There were two neat little medicine boxes inside. They looked a bit dazed, but they believed me a little.

And since every one of them was wearing fake designer brands, the moment they heard Long-ge might drool on them, they all jumped back in perfect sync.

I almost couldn't keep a straight face. I hurriedly put on a kindly expression and said, "Let's go home, little sis. Don't make trouble. We've got your favorite breakfast milk at home..."

One little toad seemed to know his stuff. "You should hurry and take her to the hospital. If it's pathological, get a CT scan and check if there's a tumor in her brain. If there isn't, that's fine. If there is, that's hard to treat."

I kept nodding and bowing, like some rookie office worker in a Japanese drama. "Thank you, big bro. Thank you, everyone. I'll take her to the hospital in a couple days. Long— little sis, let's go home. Mom's gonna get mad soon. Then she won't take you to see the Pleasant Goat movie..."

One of the little toads suddenly looked uncertain and said, "Hey... look at her. Doesn't she kinda look like Little White Dragon?"

My heart jolted hard.

The second he said that, the whole group stretched their necks and stared at Long-ge's face in suspicion.

Long-ge stood there all loose and swaggering, looking at each of them one by one, like some gang boss inspecting her underlings.

She didn't move at all. I couldn't pull her even a little. I panicked and shouted, "Little sis, Gray Wolf's gonna come catch you in a minute!"

Long-ge casually dragged me along as she walked up to the blond guy. She had the stolen Furongwang cigarette in her mouth. She was a whole head shorter than him, but her presence didn't lose out in the slightest.

I was hopping around anxiously beside her when Long-ge smiled and asked, "Rooster sent you here to block me?"

The whole bunch of scene kids froze for a second. Seeing the smile on Long-ge's face, they all reached for the batons at their waists.

One of them asked, "You know Little White Dragon?"

Long-ge grinned. "Know him? I did more than know him. I even touched his little little white dragon yesterday."

The whole bunch stared at Long-ge. One of the toads glanced at her, like he wanted to throw out a taunt or two. He opened his mouth, then seemed to remember some painful memory and forcibly swallowed the words back down.

Long-ge stood there with the cigarette in her mouth, chuckling.

Cut the crap. Long-ge's girl had come alone, scouting for intel and delivering a challenge.

A thousand mythical beasts stampeded through my mind. I'd already given up trying to drag Long-ge away. I dumped all five plastic bags on the ground and started looking around for a brick.

One little toad still hadn't caught on. He was grinning from ear to ear. "Damn, this psycho says she knows Rooster! She even knows Little White Dragon!"

I didn't know whether that guy was Iron Rooster or Old Hen, but I vaguely remembered Long-ge mentioning him before. I think he was one of Long-ge's childhood friends.

At that moment, the guy with the acne-covered face stepped out from the group. He had a messy head of hair and walked straight up to Long-ge in a daze. He was at least a head taller than her, looking down at her with their faces almost level.

This guy looked unfamiliar. He probably hadn't seen Long-ge before. Right now he was probably wondering how these badass street big shots could be scared of a woman.

He stared at Long-ge for a long while, then suddenly raised his hand and slapped her hard across the face.

The air froze.

It happened too suddenly. I was stunned. Even the blond leader froze. His mouth hung open for a while, and a few of the toads instinctively took a step back.

There was probably no peaceful ending to this now. I'd already found a brick and was walking straight toward Acne-face.

He probably figured they had the numbers, everyone was armed, and after waiting two days for nothing, he'd convinced himself that Little White Dragon was just some cowardly little bitch. And now that same guy had sent out a pretty girl with curves in all the right places as the vanguard. It rubbed him the wrong way.

He looked suspiciously at the stunned crowd around him, then fired off a string of questions at Long-ge like machine-gun fire.

"Didn't your bitch mother ever tell you not to sleep with someone carrying an STD? Didn't your blind-ass mom teach you anything? Did she or didn't she?!"

Long-ge touched the spit on her face. That slap was like it hadn't even landed. She said cheerfully, "My blind-ass mom died right after giving birth to me. My dog father raised me. Old Lu, throw the brick away. It's filthy."

That last part was to me.

The acne-faced guy turned his head when he heard that and saw me walking toward him with a brick in hand. He gave a cocky shout, flicked out the baton from his pocket, and strode toward me.

I walked toward him too, my steps getting faster. I was still deciding whether to crack open his skull or smash his balls when he was already in front of me. He swung his arm in a full arc, and the blunt-headed baton came whistling through the air straight at my head.

I didn't even have time to dodge.

Then, from the side, a beat-up sneaker with a hole in it stamped itself right onto his acne-covered cheek. The kick burst several half-grown pimples on the spot.

Acne-face only had time to let out a muffled grunt. Using his neck as an axis, his whole head spun in a circle. The baton flew from his hand, and his whole body went sailing more than two meters away, landing on his right arm.

That move left even me dumbfounded. I stood there holding the brick, completely stunned.

The moment Acne-face got back up, he clutched his bloody face and let out a loud, miserable scream. His right arm hung limp at his side. It was probably broken.

Brother Long glanced at the pimple-faced guy who’d been sent flying. The whole group went dead silent, eyes bulging so hard they looked ready to pop out.

The air went still. Only Pimple Boy’s wailing remained. Brother Long looked over the line of them and asked, “So who was gonna stab Little White Dragon?”

By now, people were already gathering to watch. They crowded over in a noisy swell and formed a huge circle, about twenty meters across. Not one of them called the cops. They all just held up their phones and started taking pictures and videos.

Seeing more and more people show up, the yellow-haired leader finally lost it. He roared, “Fuck your mother! Don’t push us too far! Get him!”

As he shouted, he pulled a gleaming knife from behind his waist. The crowd cried out in alarm. A few of the punks also whipped out batons and charged Brother Long together.

I jumped in shock and hurriedly grabbed a brick, roaring as I rushed at them and cursed, “Fuck you!” Whether I lived or died today was up to heaven.

Before I could even reach them, some bastard who’d had his eye on me smashed a baton into my forehead from the side. Stars exploded in my vision. I felt a warm little stream run down my forehead, and everything in front of me went black for a second.

That hit pissed me off too. I started roaring like a madman, swinging my damn brick nonstop, going all out with the aura of Sword Saint casting Phantom Sword Dance. I heard two toads cry out in pain, one after the other. I quit while I was ahead, backed out of the fight with my clothes all messed up, glared fiercely on the surface, and secretly caught my breath.

Brother Long happened to turn her head. She saw I’d taken a baton to the forehead and even narrowed her eyes like she didn’t quite believe it. Then she saw the blood running down and snapped her head back around.

She looked at the people charging over. Her eyes shone bright, like two cold stars in the night.

That yellow-hair was screaming as he slashed a knife at Brother Long’s other eye, the one without the scar. He was clearly trying to ruin her face!

I was too far away from Brother Long. I only had time to let out a roar. Brother Long had finally finished that Furongwang cigarette. With a cold face, she flicked the cigarette butt straight into his eye. Yellow-hair howled and instinctively threw up a hand to shield his head.

Then, damn, Brother Long launched straight off the ground, jumping more than half a meter high, and slammed a kick into his chest with a bang. Yellow-hair flew backward several meters, toppled at the edge of the human wall, and landed flat on his back with all four limbs up. The crowd instantly surged backward with a shout.

That kick probably wasn’t strong enough to break his ribs. But this yellow-hair was a crafty one. He probably figured he wouldn’t get anything good out of fighting on, so he copied Pimple Boy and just plopped down on the ground. Hair disheveled, he sat there like Zhang Jiao possessed him, clutching his chest and wailing nonstop.

I’d gotten sucker-smashed with a vicious baton hit, so I was in a pretty foul mood. Seeing him putting on that act, groaning like he had a toothache, I held down the evil fire in my chest and crept up behind him on tiptoe. I’d originally wanted to smash the back of his head with a brick, but I was afraid I’d really cause trouble. So I raised the square brick high and suddenly bellowed, “Behold my magic treasure!!!”

If someone had a weak heart, that scare alone might’ve sent them straight to the afterlife. Anyway, he jolted like he’d been electrocuted.

He whipped his head around. I followed through and slammed the brick right into his face. This time his grunt was nice and clean. He rolled his eyes back and dropped to the ground.

The pimple-faced guy nearby saw that and instantly threw up both hands, squealing like a pig being slaughtered. He kept shielding his face up and down, looking exactly like some little girl about to get assaulted.

I leisurely wiped the blood off my forehead and stood beside him in exhaustion, weighing the brick in my hand. He hunched his head and fumbled around wildly in every direction like a turtle hiding in its shell. I wasn’t in a hurry. I just waited there with the brick in one hand.

After a long while, he finally raised his head and sneaked a glance at me with his little eyes. The moment I saw that, I smacked a brick onto the crown of his head. Pimple Boy dropped without a sound too. The two of them were weirdly harmonious, lying side by side with their eyes rolled back. Now that was brotherly love.

Brother Long’s side had a winner too. Right now she was scratching her butt in a totally unglamorous way while grinning at me. She’d probably seen me standing there with the brick, waiting for Pimple Boy to look up.

At this point, a whole bunch of rainbow-haired punks were sprawled on the ground. They’d all been baptized by Brother Long’s front-tooth-kicking feet and White Dragon Face-Breaking Fist. Now every one of them was groaning with blood at the corners of their mouths, and some were even spitting bloody saliva. The scene looked scary, sure, but the ones coughing blood had at worst just lost a tooth and bled a little from the gums. Aside from Pimple Boy, who had it rough, the others were basically fine.

The onlookers were simple, honest folk. Not one of them called the police. Some held their phones high in the air, and some even started clapping on their own. I even heard one chaos-loving spectator yell, “Kick his balls in! Let’s see how he lives after that!”

The second I heard that, I thought, damn, that’s a blood feud right there. I held my brick and looked into the crowd. But I was probably pretty scary myself right now, with blood running down my forehead. With just that one glance, I only saw one head in the crowd quickly duck back into the sea of people.

The takeout mala tang for four that I’d bought earlier had also gotten stomped to pieces in the fight. Soup had spilled all over the ground.

I tossed the brick aside and crouched down, feeling pretty bad about it. That stuff had cost over thirty yuan.

The two boxes of throat lozenges I’d bought had been crushed flat too, but they were vacuum-sealed, so dirt didn’t matter. I picked them up, looked them over, and stuffed them into my pocket.

Brother Long turned around with a lazy sway. One of the toads lying on the ground tripped her a little, and she spat on the ground on the spot. I saw the crowd getting bigger and bigger, and things were starting to look bad. Most of them were still filming with their phones, but some were already holding phones to their ears, heads lowered, saying something.

The moment I saw people making calls, I knew this was bad too. If the police showed up, Brother Long and I would be looking at disciplinary punishment and fines. The medical bills for this whole field of toads might even get pinned on me.

Behind us, one of the toads with a bloodied, broken head screamed hysterically, “You’re fucking done! I remember your faces now! If you’ve got guts, then never leave your house again!”

I sighed to myself, grabbed Brother Long, pushed a path through the crowd, and headed straight home.