Chapter Forty-Seven: Is Anyone Hurt?

"Brother Liu, I'm here."
Xu Fei emerged from the edge of the woods, carrying the handle of a shovel.
His arrival immediately drew a barrage of curses from Peng Yu’s group.
"Shit, this idiot actually dared to show up?"
"He’s even brought a shovel handle. Do you even know how to use it, kid?"
The fat man was even more aggressive—he pulled down his pants and urinated in Xu Fei’s direction.
Old Liu glared at him. "That’s getting way too cocky."
"Fourth, is it just us?"
Wang Yiming glanced at the opposing group, his tone tinged with worry.
Peng Yu’s reputation as a fighter was well-known among them.
The other side had more than twenty men.
The numbers were simply too lopsided.
They only had five, and that included Old Liu, an old comrade.
"Second Brother, are you scared?"
"Shit, Fourth, when I was brawling, you were still playing in the mud."
As he spoke, Wang Yiming pulled out a bicycle chain from his pocket.
"Nice, Second Brother. You haven’t used that in years, have you? I’ll keep my distance—you might hit me instead."
"Don’t worry. If I can’t handle this, these years have been wasted."
Wang Yiming swung the chain a few times in his hand.
That swing startled everyone.
"Shit, Second Brother, are you planning to knock us out before the fight even starts?" Zhang Mingyang joked.
Wang Yiming’s arm twinged as he swung, causing him to grimace and clutch it.
"Damn, it’s really been years since I last used this. Rusty, rusty, haha..."
Just then, Peng Yu strode forward. His men followed, weapons in hand.
Steel plates, bike chains, shovel handles—some even carried machetes without sharpened edges.
Though those knives weren’t lethal, they could still tear flesh.
Seeing the others approach, Xu Fei stepped up, shovel handle ready.
Old Liu and Chen Da followed closely behind.
When Peng Yu and Xu Fei stood just a few meters apart, Peng Yu looked Xu Fei up and down. "Just a handful?"
"Enough."
"Acting tough, huh?"
Peng Yu pointed at him, smirking. "You even brought an old man—is he your father?"
"I’m your father!"
Old Liu pointed right back at Peng Yu.
"Shit! Who are you talking to?"
Peng Yu’s men pointed at Old Liu.
"I know you—you’re from Workshop One. Not bad, didn’t expect you to have friends at the sugar factory."
"Cut the crap," Xu Fei interrupted, his voice sharp.

"Tell me, who sent you after me?"
"Money," Peng Yu replied coldly. "Someone paid me to teach you a lesson."
Xu Fei nodded.
"Understood."
Peng Yu’s expression changed. "Xu Fei, today you’re going to pay the price!"
With that, he straightened, pouncing at Xu Fei like a leopard.
The move caught Xu Fei off guard, but he had no time to think.
He swung the shovel handle with all his might.
Bang!
Peng Yu blocked it with his arm, and the shovel handle snapped.
Peng Yu’s fist smashed into Xu Fei’s stomach.
The blow made Xu Fei’s body jolt violently, his stomach cramping with pain. As it radiated out, Peng Yu’s fist struck his back again.
"Shit!"
Chen Da and the others rushed forward.
A chaotic fight broke out.
But Xu Fei’s side was hopelessly outnumbered.
Just five of them against over twenty.
They were quickly overwhelmed.
All five were beaten to the ground.
Peng Yu planted his foot on Xu Fei’s chest.
"Listen up, bastard. Today I’m breaking your arm, just to show the boss I did my job."
He signaled the fat man, who grabbed Xu Fei’s arm. Someone handed Peng Yu a shovel handle.
As Peng Yu raised it, ready to break Xu Fei’s arm—

"Stop right there!"
Old Third An charged into the woods.
He was followed by about forty men, all around Old Liu’s age, but their eyes were fierce and murderous, and each held gleaming machetes.
These blades were sharpened.
"Shit!"
Peng Yu glared at Old Third An.
"Who the hell are you?"
Old Third An wore a leather jacket and a cloth cap, the brim pulled low to give him a menacing look.
He approached Peng Yu, running his fingers along the back of his blade. "The An family of Donghai."

"An!"
Peng Yu wasn’t stupid.
He’d been in the game long enough to know what the An name meant in Donghai.
"You…you’re Third Brother An?"
"Enough. Don’t call me brother—you’re not qualified."
Peng Yu was stunned by Old Third An’s rebuke.
"Brother Yu, who is this guy? Who does he think he’s talking to?"
The fat man and the others weren’t convinced.
They stepped forward, pointing at Old Third An and shouting.
"Shut up!"
Peng Yu knew Old Third An’s background—and what those forty men had done before.
Every single one had served time.
Maybe not killers, but certainly notorious thugs.
"Third… Are you getting involved?"
"Involved? Haha, he’s my brother. Don’t waste my time—get lost, or you won’t have any face left!"
Old Third An shoved Peng Yu aside.
Peng Yu stumbled back several steps, his temper nowhere to be seen. The fat man and the others held him back.
"Brother Yu, we…"
"Move!"
Peng Yu pulled his men and left the woods.

As they disappeared, Old Third An stepped forward to help Xu Fei up.
"Fei, why didn’t you wait for me?"
Xu Fei forced a bitter smile. "Third Brother An, I couldn’t wait—they struck first."
"Well done. The five of you held out against those punks—you did well. Anyone hurt?"
Xu Fei looked at the others. Seeing they were fine, he said, "Third Brother An, could you take my brothers back first?"
"What are you going to do?"
"I want to find out who really sent them."
Xu Fei, enduring the pain, chased after Peng Yu’s group.

When he left the woods, he glimpsed their figures in the distance.
Not wanting to alert them, Xu Fei followed from afar.
On the main road, the group split up—about ten went elsewhere.
Peng Yu, the fat man, and another headed to a street near the sugar factory.
Xu Fei waited behind.
He watched as they entered a restaurant.
Hiding in the shadows, Xu Fei peered through the window, seeing them sit by the glass and order several dishes.
Seeing Peng Yu glance outside, Xu Fei guessed they were waiting for someone.
Just as he suspected.
Peng Yu was about to meet the man who hired him.