Chapter 9 Wang Ping, the Young Man with Crew Cut

Lu Yao didn't finish copying his homework twice until after dark. It was eight o'clock in the evening.

The students had returned to the dormitory. At this time, only Lu Yao and Chu Minghui were still in the classroom.

"This is my workbook. Here you are!" After packing the schoolbag, Lu Yao walked to Chu Minghui and threw his workbook on his desk.

In the past, Lu Yao couldn't have been so mighty. But since he had a heart transplant, he had gotten into a whole new state of mind and his manner had changed a lot somehow.

Chu Minghui kept stirring up trouble. If Lu Yao had pretended that he was okay as usual, his mental state would have been affected.

Because Lin Jiayi glanced at Lu Yao earlier in the day, Chu Minghui silently cursed Lu Yao many times.

Chu Minghui picked up Lu Yao's workbook and looked at it carefully from beginning to end. When he couldn't find a single mistake, he stared at Lu Yao's receding figure with a scowl.

Let's wait and see!

...

...

In the evening, there were a lot of street food stalls near the No. 1 High School in Shuangta City. The vendors were peddling loudly to attract customers.

Lu Yao watched the people going by. The food smelt so delicious that Lu Yao's stomach growled.

Though the family which Lu Yiqian worked for recently didn't offer accommodation, he could have lunch and dinner there. At this time, Lu Yiqian would have arrived home.

So Lu Yao decided to find a food stall instead of going home to eat.

After walking around the block, Lu Yao finally stopped at a stall called "Jin's Wonton".

The vendors were a middle-aged couple about 40 years old. The husband was mainly responsible for attracting customers and making some simple snacks. And the wife was mainly responsible for making wontons. They cooperated well with each other and served the dishes very fast.

Jin's Wonton was also a well-known stall nearby. Lu Yao and his godfather had tried once before. The wontons were popular with the workers nearby because of their thin skin and rich meat filling as well as huge portions.

"Young man, what would you like to eat? Take a seat. I'll bring you the menu right away!" The vendor said warmly.

"I don't need the menu. I'd like a bowl of wonton and a white cake." Lu Yao replied with a smile.

"OK, a bowl of wonton and a white cake!" The vendor turned to yell back and went to greet other customers.

Lu Yao picked a seat close to the side of the road and sat down.

Last time, Lu Yao was full after eating a bowl of wonton. Perhaps because of practicing martial arts, he had a big appetite recently. So he ordered an extra white cake.

"Bro, would you mind me sitting here?"

While Lu Yao was sitting there waiting for wonton, a man came to him and asked politely.

"No, you can sit down!"

After the man sat down, Lu Yao glanced at him. The man was in his mid-20's. He had a crew cut and wore a neat gray casual suit, which made him look polished and friendly.

"Bro, you are a student of the No. 1 High School in Shuangta City, aren't you?" The crew-cut young man knew Lu Yao was looking at him, so he struck up a conversation with him.

"Yes." Lu Yao nodded and said.

"Well, you must be a good student!"

"Why do you think so?" Lu Yao quipped.

"Well, it's already dark. But you've just come out of school. So I think you must study very hard and have good grades!"

"Maybe it's just the opposite. Perhaps I was punished by the teacher because I didn't finish my homework."

"Ha-ha, I didn't expect you to be so humorous. My name is Wang Ping. Nice to meet you!" The crew-cut young man said with a smile.

"Young man, here is your wonton. The cake is still in the microwave oven. Just wait a moment. It will be ready soon!" The vendor came to Lu Yao's table with a bowl of steaming wonton.

"You came together?" The vendor asked when he saw another young man sitting at the table and talking with Lu Yao.

"We..."

"Oh, yes, we came together. I'd like to order the same, please!"

Lu Yao was about to say that they didn't know each other, but the young man named Wang Ping interrupted him and said excitedly.

"OK, a bowl of wonton and a white cake!" The vendor yelled and walked away.

Seeing Lu Yao start to eat, Wang Ping didn't strike up a conversation with him again.

...

"Boss, your wonton is high in protein!"

While Lu Yao was eating the wonton happily, a man in the next booth suddenly yelled. Lu Yao turned around and saw four or five bald men with tattoos, who didn't wear shirts.

"Bro, you must be kidding. How come the wonton is..."

"D*mn it. Don't play dumb! Look at your wonton stuffing. There are so many flies in it. It's so disgusting!"

Hearing the yells, the vendor rushed to ask. But before he finished speaking, the bald man broke out into curses.

"Bro, sorry. It's all my fault. Well, you can order whatever you want. It's my treat today."

The vendor had been selling wonton here for decades and had met all kinds of people. He immediately realized that it had nothing to do with the flies. They were just trying to stir up trouble.

The vendor was afraid of causing trouble for himself, so he wanted this to be over as soon as possible.

"In your dreams! You think you can get away with it so easily? There are flies in your wonton. And we feel under the weather after eating your food. Do you want us to go to the doctor ourselves or wait for the officers of the Industry and Commerce Bureau to take us to the hospital?" The rest of the bald men began to yell.

"Well, bro, we are in business on a small scale. We only earn a little money though we work from dawn till dusk. I can give it to you and you can buy some cigarettes or beers for your bros. Is that OK?"

The vendor was a little flustered when they said they would call the Industry and Commerce Bureau. After all, catering operators were all afraid of the intervention of the Industry and Commerce Bureau. He quickly took out all the money in his apron pocket to earn forgiveness from the bald men.

"What? Five hundred yuan? Are you kidding me?"

"We ate something bad. You should pay for not only our medical expenses but also our mental damage compensation. We won't let you go unless you give us ten thousand yuan!"

"But I can't make so much money in a month. Bro, are these things negotiable..." The vendor was anxious because they asked too much.

"There is no need to negotiate. Do you know who we are? We pity you so we don't ask for too much money. Cut the crap! Give us the money or we'll call the police!"

Other customers heard the noise and looked towards them. Even some customers from other stalls followed the noise and gathered around them.

Seeing more and more people gathering around, those bald men were also more arrogant. They circled the vendor and shouted.

"Are they underlings of Mr. Pal, the gang boss in the south of the city? Why did they come here?" Some people recognized these bald men.

Hearing that, some people who intended to put in a good word for the vendor were too frightened to speak. They just hoped these guys wouldn't go too far.

"I beg for your mercy. Please!" A middle-aged woman, whose clothes were soaked with sweat, ran out of the back room. She hurried to beg for mercy without washing her hands, which were covered with flour.

Those bald men became more aggressive. Because the couple just begged for mercy and refused to give them money, a bald man with a black scorpion tattooed on his neck directly threw away the bowl of the wonton with flies in it on the vendor's face.

The vendor couldn't avoid it and was showered straight on the head. The hot soup ran down his hair, and his face was burning.

Seeing that, the vendor's wife intended to wipe the soup from her husband's face. But another bald man flung her to the ground. That man pushed her so hard that she just fell in front of Lu Yao's table.

Lu Yao happened to witness this happening. Due to his highly acute senses, he saw these bald men putting the prepared flies into the bowl of wonton after a few bites. They mixed them with chopsticks and then began to stir up trouble.

Seeing so many strong men bullying two poor vendors, Lu Yao felt very uncomfortable. Just as he was about to get up, Wang Ping, who was sitting next to him, suddenly stood up and said angrily, "How could you bully a woman?"

"Uh-huh, people still like to meddle in other people's business these days?" The bald man with a black scorpion tattooed on his neck said sarcastically.

"Get out of here. It's none of your business. Don't have a finger in every pie!" Another bald man echoed, "B*tch, we won't let you go today unless you give us ten thousand yuan!"

"I'll just meddle in your business today!" Wang Ping seemed to take a step forward casually, protecting the woman behind.

"Well, you'll be sorry!"

The bald man with a terrible tiger's head tattooed on his chest, who seemed to be the leader, simply sat there and didn't say a word when his fellows stirred up trouble just now. But now, he picked up an iron stool in front of him and threw it towards Wang Ping's head.

Wang Ping stood still and easily pushed aside the stool with a wave of his hand.

"Uh-huh, no wonder you dare to meddle in my business. You're a martial artist!" Seeing Wang Ping dodging his attack easily, the bald man with a terrible tiger's head tattooed on his chest exclaimed.

Seeing that, the rest of the bald men were instantly on the alert. They picked up the beer bottles on the table and pounced on Wang Ping.

Although Wang Ping dodged the first attack easily, the onlookers still thought that this brave young man was too impulsive because these bald men were so strong that they would knock him out later.

However, to everyone's surprise, Wang Ping flattened these bald men with a few punches before they gathered together.

A common proverb went, "The dilettante watch the scene of bustle while the adept guard the entrance." Though Lu Yao was inexperienced, he found that this young man named Wang Ping could control his actions perfectly.

He could find the opponent's weakness each time he punched or kicked him. And the strength was also well controlled. He didn't maim the opponent, but he could make him lose the ability to fight back for a short time.

Therefore, Lu Yao started to watch Wang Ping's movements carefully, hoping to learn something from him.

...

The bald men felt embarrassed. They gnashed their teeth and struggled to get up.

The bald man with a tiger's head tattooed on his chest took out a sharp folding knife from his trouser pocket.

Several timid onlookers even couldn't help screaming.

Though they had seen people fighting in the night market, they had never seen anyone taking out the sharp knife under the watchful eyes of the people.

Seeing that, the rest of the bald men were also stunned. And then they lifted the tables and benches and lunged at Wang Ping again.

The bald man with a tiger's head tattooed on his chest stood a little far away from Wang Ping, gripping the knife and waiting for the right opportunity.

As the saying went, “A few were no match for the many.” Just as Wang Ping received a severe blow, there was nobody behind him.

The bald man with a tiger's head tattooed on his chest was not an ordinary person. He took this opportunity to pounce on Wang Ping and stab at his back.

"No!"

Lu Yao was shocked at the scene. He didn't hesitate to lunge at the bald man, grabbing his wrist accurately.

"How dare you!" Seeing that his sneak attack was interrupted by a boy who was about sixteen or seventeen years old, the bald man yelled angrily.

Lu Yao was so strong that the bald man immediately lost strength and dropped the knife.

Unfortunately, the bald man managed to squirm free due to Lu Yao's lack of experience in fighting.

Wang Ping also overpowered the rest of the bald men. This time, he punched them much harder. After being knocked down, they tried a few times but couldn't get up again.

The bald man with a tiger's head tattooed on his chest was the only one who was still standing. But he was awed by Wang Ping's strength, so he didn't dare to move again.

Someone in the crowd started to clap.

Because they made too much noise, the police officers on patrol also came here after receiving reports.

Maybe it was because there were a lot of onlookers, or maybe it was because the police officers were upright, they put all the bald men in a police van after speaking to a series of people.

Wang Ping also needed to go to the police station to give a statement. Because Lu Yao tried to stop the fight, the police officers allowed him to leave on his own.

After getting permission from the police officers, Wang Ping came to Lu Yao and put a calling card in his hand. He said politely, "Bro, thank you. You're good. But you still lack experience, so the bald man just broke away from you. You will stand to lose if you meet people like them alone in the future. So if you want, you can find me in Tianxin martial arts school. We can practice martial arts together!"

"You're welcome, Mr. Wang. I believe you could have subdued these guys easily even without my help!"

After taking the calling card from Wang Ping, Lu Yao recognized that he was the wrestling head coach of Tianxin martial arts school, which was well-known in Shuangta City. No wonder he was so powerful.

"If I have time, I will come to you and ask you for advice!" Lu Yao said politely.

Because the police officer hurried them, they just made small talk for a while and said goodbye.

After returning home, Lu Yao reviewed all the knowledge he had learned during the day and went to bed.

As for the calling card, he kept it carefully in his drawer.