Supreme Warrior in the City

Chapter 23: 23 Chapters of life, two brothers!

Su Yang and Zhao Qiu Peng sat down in a nearby small shop, where they finally had time to talk about the past three years.

Struck by curiosity, Zhao Qiu Peng had many questions about Su Yang’s experiences. After not seeing him for three years, the changes in Su Yang were simply too great, and hard for him to believe.

When he heard that Su Yang had served in the military for three years, Zhao Qiu Peng immediately slapped the table, clamoring to enlist himself. Fortunately, Su Yang cut off this train of thought. Su Yang had indeed served, but his skill in combat wasn’t due to military service; it was because of ”Destiny’s Tome.”

”By the way, where’s Fatty?” Su Yang asked this question again. Fatty was his best brother, the person he wanted to see the most upon his return.

Zhao Qiu Peng’s initially excited expression suddenly turned to one of sorrow. He let out a heavy sigh and said, ”Come with me, I’ll take you to him.”

Su Yang frowned. From Zhao Qiu Peng’s expression, it didn’t look good. Could something have happened to Fatty?

Fatty had grown up with Su Yang since childhood. Fatty’s father was a shrewd businessman and had made a fortune, but Fatty had never looked down on Su Yang. He respected Su Yang as the boss, just as when they were kids.

In the brawl three years ago, Fatty had taken a knife for Su Yang. Seeing Fatty bleeding, Su Yang, in a fit of rage, had dealt a heavy blow. For Su Yang, Zhao Qiu Peng could only be counted as a friend, but Fatty was his absolute brother!

Zhao Qiu Peng took Su Yang to the Peking University Campus, an area Su Yang was somewhat familiar with, as it was a hub for universities in Nanluo City.

There was a small square in the middle of Peking University Campus, a recreational spot for the university students. Not only was it brimming with various snacks, but there were also internet cafes and hotels one after another.

Zhao Qiu Peng led Su Yang to a trash can on the edge of the square, looked around, and then pointed towards a barbecue stall in the distance, whispering, ”Over there.”

Following the direction Zhao Qiu Peng pointed, Su Yang saw a man with a limp, ragged clothes, carefully picking up bottles and cans from the ground.

Standing slightly taller than average, the man was hunching over, making him appear shorter than others. He held a large Snake Skin bag filled with bottles. Clearly, he was someone who collected recyclables for a living.

However, upon seeing this man, Su Yang was stunned. Because he clearly recognized him—it was none other than his best brother—Fatty Lü Dong!

Fatty had already weighed over 200 pounds three years ago, but now he looked emaciated, with only about 110 or 120 pounds left on him. His beard was unkempt, his hair a mess, looking as if he hadn’t taken care of himself for a long time.

What on earth had he gone through to end up like this?

Su Yang felt as if his heart had twisted up. How could his best brother have fallen so far?

”What exactly happened?” Su Yang asked through gritted teeth. ”Wasn’t Fatty’s family very rich? What happened to him now?”

Zhao Qiu Peng let out a sigh and answered, ”It’s all because of the incident three years ago. After you left, Fatty took the fall for everything, claiming he was the one responsible. Initially, Fatty’s dad thought to settle it with some compensation, offering three million to make peace.”

”But the other party wouldn’t take the money; they insisted on pressing charges. Moreover, it seemed like their family had some connections behind them. The city government cracked down hard on the case, dredging up some minor old accounts related to Fatty’s father’s business, and ended up sending his dad to prison. Their entire family assets were confiscated too.”

”Fatty refused to accept this and kept appealing. Then one night on his way home from school, he was ambushed and beaten by a gang. He didn’t die, but one of his legs was completely ruined. Moreover, there was a fire at Fatty’s home, and in it, his grandparents died tragically. His mother suffered severe burns over most of her body; she narrowly survived but now depends on machines to stay alive every day.”

”With no choice left, Fatty had to drop out of school and make a living with his crippled leg. A lot can happen in three years. But through these three years, the one who suffered the most has always been Fatty.”

As Zhao Qiu Peng spoke, he was constantly sighing. He had a pretty good relationship with Fatty, but after all, he was just an ordinary person. What could he change in the face of such a situation?

Su Yang’s fists tightened. He knew someone must be manipulating this from behind the scenes, and that Fatty must have been broken by that person pulling the strings.

Coming back this time, Su Yang had intended to fully investigate the incident and seek justice for himself. But now, his thoughts had changed. He was determined to root out the person behind it all. He wanted to make that person wish they were dead, to make everyone involved in this suffer immeasurably!

Suddenly, a voice filled with fury came from the barbecue stall, ”To hell with you! I’m here eating, and you, a stinking beggar, dare to linger around? You’re disturbing me, do you fucking want a beating?”

Looking up, Su Yang saw a young man with a dragon tattoo on his bare upper body, stepping on Fatty and cursing at him.

Fatty lay on the ground, covered in footprints, his head bowed, silent. Once full of ambition, these three years had beaten him into submission.

”Hit him, hit him. Damn it, he’s been loitering around all night, annoying the hell out of me. Beat him up for me!”

”You filthy beggar, you didn’t even ask who I am. You dare disturb my meal? Are you itching for a beating?”

The tattooed young man’s tablemates were all making a ruckus, egging him on to hit Fatty as if all they wanted was chaos. Among them were a few girls, laughing heartily as if enjoying a show.

The more the crowd cheered him on, the prouder the tattooed young man became. He picked up a liquor bottle from the table, pointing it at Fatty, saying, ”Come on, little beggar, call me grandpa. If you do it well, this bottle is yours. If not, I’ll smash it on your head!”

Fatty kept his head down and his teeth clenched, not speaking, not resisting—seemingly resigned to his fate.

”Not talking, eh? Motherfucker, if you don’t talk, I’ll just...”

The tattooed young man’s tirade abruptly ended because a hand had grabbed his neck and lifted him completely off the ground.

The person who made the move was Su Yang, and everyone around was stunned as well. The tattooed youth probably weighed about a hundred and thirty pounds, yet Su Yang picked him up entirely with one hand—how strong must he be?

Su Yang didn’t pay attention to the tattooed youth or the people around him; instead, he looked at Fatty with teary eyes and trembled, ”Brother...”

Fatty also saw Su Yang. At first, he was startled, but then he couldn’t hold back anymore, and tears streamed down his face. He clenched his fists, trying hard to suppress his emotions, not to cry out loud, but his throat kept choking up.

All the grievances and sorrows of these years seemed to surge into his heart at this moment!

Only then did the people by the table react, and several youths immediately rushed over.

”Kid, you motherf...” one of them was about to curse out loud, but Su Yang had already turned his head fiercely, his eyes red as though he were a wild beast, causing all of them to shudder.

Without a word, Su Yang threw the youth he was holding up into the air. The youth, who weighed over a hundred pounds, was thrown more than three meters high. Then, Su Yang swiftly executed an upward kick, hitting the youth squarely in the chest and sending him flying away.

The youth lay on the ground, spitting out blood, his breath as thin as a thread, on the brink of death.

The several youths shuddered with fear, finally realizing that they had provoked someone they could not afford to mess with. They turned to run immediately, but Su Yang bellowed, ”Stop!”

The youths stopped instantly, Su Yang’s command like an Imperial Edict they dared not disobey.

”Kneel down!” Su Yang shouted again.

The youths hesitated, and one of them turned around, smiling sheepishly, ”Big brother, actually this matter...”

Before he could finish, Su Yang had already charged in front of him, kicking him and sending him flying. Like the previous one, he collapsed, spitting out blood.

The remaining few didn’t hesitate and immediately knelt down.

A few girls by the table were thinking of leaving, but they too were so frightened that they stood still, not daring to run.

Su Yang didn’t pay attention to them and turned to walk towards Fatty, reaching out one hand.

Fatty stared at Su Yang for a long time, then reached out and firmly grasped Su Yang’s hand.

In a lifetime, two brothers!

No need for more words; both knew what was in the other’s heart!

”Fatty, I’m sorry for all these years!” Su Yang’s voice was somewhat choked up.

”We’re brothers, why say things like that?” Fatty hugged Su Yang’s shoulder, trying to laugh it off, ”Aren’t I fine? You always told me to lose weight. I suppose I finally made it happen this time, right?”

Su Yang’s eyes were blurred with tears. He patted Fatty’s shoulder and forced a smile, ”You’re just too skinny!”

”Hahaha...” Fatty laughed heartily, but then suddenly embraced Su Yang and broke into sobs, unable to hold back after so many years of pent-up emotions.

Su Yang’s heart trembled as well. From childhood, Fatty had always been the most optimistic of them, and he had never seen him cry before. What kinds of injustices had Fatty endured over these three years?

After a long while, Fatty stopped. He clumsily wiped the tears from his face and laughed, ”Ah, I forgot. Su Yang, you just got back, right? Come on, I’m treating you tonight. Boss, bring me the menu and some bottles of wine.”

”I’ll do it,” Su Yang said softly.

”Nonsense!” Fatty immediately blocked Su Yang, ”What? Don’t think of me as your brother? You just came back; should I welcome you, or should you welcome me?”

Su Yang smiled gently, knowing Fatty’s character well over the years. Although Fatty regarded him as the leader, he was stubborn, and once he had made up his mind, no one could change it.

Fatty ordered a lot of dishes and sat down with Su Yang and Zhao Qiu Peng. After a few bottles of wine, the grilled skewers were finally served.

”Come, Fatty.” Su Yang picked the fattiest skewer for Fatty, knowing it was his favorite.

Fatty looked a bit reluctant, took the skewer, took a bite, but suddenly turned around and vomited.

”What’s wrong?” Su Yang asked quickly, supporting Fatty.

”It’s... it’s nothing...” Fatty waved his hand, placed the skewer down, and said in a low voice, ”It just reminded me of my grandparents. The night our house caught fire, there was this smell of roasted meat everywhere. I haven’t been able to eat meat for years, every time I taste it, I vomit!”

Su Yang’s heart clenched. Fatty’s favorite thing to eat in his entire life had been meat, yet now he vomited at the sight of it?

”Fatty!” Su Yang looked at Fatty and said firmly, ”I swear, no matter who it is that harmed your family, I will make them repay it a hundredfold, a thousandfold!”