Urban Martial Saint

”Xiao Zheng, is this your brother?”

”He’s really amazing!”

”Yeah, he just knocked Er Gou down in an instant!”

A few students whispered nearby, and Yuan Xiaozheng suddenly felt a sense of pride. After today’s events spread throughout the school, surely no one would dare to bully him again!

Ye Qing looked at the remaining thugs, and they immediately shuddered.

”It... it’s got nothing to do with us...” the one named Chen Hu said, trembling.

Ye Qing slowly walked over and said in a deep voice, ”I’ll give you a chance, come at me all at once!”

Everyone was startled, but seeing the power Ye Qing had just displayed, who would dare to make a move?

Ye Qing coldly swept his gaze over the crowd and said firmly, ”Whether you fight or not, today, I’m going to make you crawl out of here!”

Hearing this, the gang of thugs was taken aback. Chen Hu clenched his teeth and suddenly pulled a dagger from his body, roaring, ”Motherfucker, kill him!”

About two dozen thugs instantly rushed over. The scene looked like a mass brawl.

Yuan Xiaozheng became anxious. He was afraid that Ye Qing wouldn’t be able to handle such a situation.

Ye Qing, however, was very calm. To someone like him, any Special Forces soldier could take down a dozen of these street thugs by themselves. In the military, he could fight three elite Special Forces soldiers on his own, so these twenty-plus thugs were nothing more than a piece of cake to him.

Ye Qing strode forward, suddenly leaping up and delivering a flying kick, hitting Chen Hu squarely.

Chen Hu was sent flying backward, knocking down two more people in the process.

Without pausing, Ye Qing continued forward, snatched a steel pipe from one of them, and like a tiger entering a flock of sheep, knocked them down one by one. In less than three minutes, more than twenty thugs lay on the ground. Some were severely injured with bloody heads, and others couldn’t even stand up. Ye Qing truly fulfilled his word; these thugs had to crawl out today!

A dozen students in the alley were completely stunned, and Yuan Xiaozheng was so excited that his whole body trembled. He used to look down on this brother, but today he suddenly realized that this brother was like a great man!

Ye Qing usually was reluctant to take action, but he knew that if he didn’t teach these people a lesson today, they would only become more brazen in the future. So, Ye Qing wanted to thoroughly subdue them, to terrify them completely so that they wouldn’t dare to come here and bully students ever again!

Having knocked everyone down, Ye Qing finally threw away the steel pipe and walked out of the alley to make a phone call to Lin Peng.

It wasn’t long before Lin Peng arrived with a group of police officers. Following last night’s incident, Zhou Hongbin wanted to take the credit, but Old Fifth Yang was angry about him causing trouble for Ye Qing, so he intervened a bit, and the credit ended up going to Lin Peng.

As this was a major case, Lin Peng receiving such a huge credit meant that his promotion was inevitable. Therefore, he now had some influence in the police force, and bringing people over was no problem at all.

Lin Peng was also very grateful to Ye Qing, considering the credit was essentially given by Ye Qing. So, after receiving Ye Qing’s call, he rushed over immediately.

Upon seeing the situation in the alley, Lin Peng was shocked once more. He knew Ye Qing could fight, but not that he could fight to this extent. He gestured for the police to go in and round up the thugs, while chatting with Ye Qing.

”Officer, I’m also a victim here!” Chen Hu complained as he came out, having been kicked by Ye Qing and suffering several broken ribs, sweating all over from the pain.

”A victim?” Lin Peng walked over, slapped him across the face, and angrily said, ”Motherfucker, bullying students near the school, and you still have the nerve to say you’re a victim? Don’t take them back yet, take them out and give them a good ’greeting’ before we do, then send them back!”

The ”greeting” Lin Peng was talking about referred to some unofficial rules within their police department. For old slickers or victims who had connections asking for a favor, they would find a place to beat them up properly before taking them to the police station for interrogation. Normally, this was something everyone feared.

These thugs were already badly beaten and now they were going to be thrashed by the police, so they all went soft immediately.

The students surrounded Yuan Xiaozheng as he walked out of the alley. Now seeing Ye Qing as a godlike figure, they naturally followed Yuan Xiaozheng closely.

Lin Peng glanced at Yuan Xiaozheng and asked, ”Is this your brother?”

”Yes,” Ye Qing replied, waving his hand. ”Xiao Zheng, come here.”

In the past, Yuan Xiaozheng would completely ignore Ye Qing. But at this moment, upon hearing Ye Qing’s words, he ran over as fast as he could, dashing towards him immediately.

Ye Qing said, ”This is your brother Lin Peng. I’ll be heading to the South for a while. If someone bullies you again, call your brother Lin Peng!”

Lin Peng waved his hand and said, ”Don’t worry. In a little while, I’ll make it clear to those bastards that Xiao Zheng is my little brother. Motherfucker, I want to see who dares to bully you again; I’ll send him off to squat in the mountains!”

These young ruffians, although they acted tough in front of students, were no different from grandsons in front of the police. Lin Peng wasn’t bragging at all—after all, it was his position that lent him authority.

”Thank you, Brother Lin Peng,” Yuan Xiaozheng said.

Lin Peng smiled and said, ”Alright, Qingzi and I have been classmates for so many years, there’s no need for thanks between us. Qingzi’s younger brother is my brother too; if you need anything, come to me and you won’t be wrong!”

Yuan Xiaozheng looked at Ye Qing excitedly, his eyes sparkling with little stars. He was at the age of rebellion, and at school, he was often bullied by those young ruffians, assuming they were the most powerful. But today, he learned that the ones who made the loudest threats were often the biggest cowards, while those who stayed quiet were truly formidable!

Lin Peng drove Ye Qing and him back, and when they reached the entrance to the village, Yuan Xiaozheng grabbed Ye Qing’s sleeve and asked in a whisper, ”Brother, can we... can we not tell the family about what happened today?”

Ye Qing glanced at him and said softly, ”In one’s life, who can never make mistakes? But after making a mistake, whether you can take responsibility and stand up again—that’s what’s really crucial!”

Yuan Xiaozheng hung his head and said in a low voice, ”Brother, I know I did wrong before, but... if my mom finds out about this, she’ll... she’ll definitely be even angrier.”

Ye Qing fell silent for a moment, then gently nodded. Yuan Xiaozheng couldn’t help but be overjoyed and grabbed Ye Qing’s arm, saying excitedly, ”Brother, thank you.”

Seeing Yuan Xiaozheng affectionately pulling Ye Qing home, both Ye Changwen and Zhou Hongxia looked on in astonishment. Yuan Xiaozheng had been coming to the Ye family for quite some time and had never shown Ye Qing a pleasant face. What had changed his habit today?

After Yuan Xiaozheng went back to his room to do homework, Zhou Hongxia was in the kitchen cooking, now filled with joy. Her daughter, Yuan Xiaoyu, had a bright future with a salary doubled, and their family’s life was about to change dramatically. This was indeed a great joy sent from heaven.

Ye Qing sat down beside Ye Changwen and rolled a cigarette for him. Ye Changwen’s heart was filled with even more joy. He had always hoped for harmony in the family. And now, not only did they get along well together, but the days ahead would become much easier to live through. If only they could find Ye Jun and reunite the family, then there would be no regrets at all.

Thinking of Ye Jun, Ye Changwen’s eyes reddened, and he said softly, ”Qingzi, am I useless? Have I let you and your brother down?”

Ye Qing gently patted Ye Changwen’s shoulder and said, ”Dad, you’ve raised us. That means you haven’t let us down at all!”

Ye Changwen sighed and said, ”If only Xiao Jun were as obedient as you. You know his temper. After the last argument at home, he ran off in a fit of rage. He was only seventeen then—what could he possibly do out there? I never expected him to turn out like this. These past two years, I have often dreamt of your mother, but...

but I don’t know how to face her...”

”Dad, don’t blame yourself!” Ye Qing said, ”Rest assured, I’m going to Shenchuan City this time, and I will bring my brother back. Then, our family will reunite and never part again!”

”Qingzi, promise me, no matter what, you must bring your brother back!” Ye Changwen grabbed Ye Qing’s hand, pleading tearfully, ”I’m incapable of it; several times I failed to find Xiao Jun. You are the eldest brother; you must take care of Xiao Jun no matter what.”

”I will,” Ye Qing nodded.

Seeing Ye Qing’s firm gaze, Ye Changwen finally slowly let go of his hand and wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes.

Suddenly, Yuan Xiaozheng ran out of the room and said, ”Brother, sister called and said she wants to treat you to dinner.”

”Dinner?” Ye Qing was surprised, and Ye Changwen was also startled before saying, ”Why isn’t she coming home for dinner tonight?”

”Sister got a promotion today, and a bunch of her girlfriends want to celebrate for her, so she didn’t come back. She said to have you go over and sit with them, and also to introduce you to a few friends.”

Yuan Xiaozheng winked at Ye Changwen, who was initially taken aback but then understood Yuan Xiaozheng’s meaning. It must be a group of girls at Yuan Xiaoyu’s place. Saying that they wanted Ye Qing to come over for dinner and meet some friends was actually about introducing him to girls. Didn’t Yuan Xiaoyu hint today about introducing a girlfriend for Ye Qing? It must be happening tonight.

Ye Changwen, who was also anxious about Ye Qing’s lifelong matters, immediately nodded and said, ”Qingzi, then you better go quickly, don’t keep Xiao Yu waiting too long.”

”But Dad, shouldn’t I eat at home tonight?” Ye Qing asked, puzzled.

Ye Changwen shook his head and waved his hands, saying, ”There’s plenty of time to eat at home. You’re an adult now, and you should have the social life of one. Hurry over, don’t make Xiao Yu and the others wait too long!”

Unable to persuade his father, Ye Qing could only take a taxi to the address Yuan Xiaoyu had mentioned and head for Junhua Restaurant.

Junhua Restaurant was only considered mid-level in Jiuchuan County, but it did good business because the prices were mid-range too. As Ye Qing arrived, Yuan Xiaoyu, dressed in her professional outfit, was standing at the entrance, her makeup adding a bit of glamor and attracting the attention of many nearby people.

Seeing Ye Qing from a distance, Yuan Xiaoyu immediately came over and said, ”Brother, why did you take so long? The dishes are almost all served inside, let’s go, let’s hurry up. In a bit, I’ll introduce you to a few girls to meet.”

Ye Qing felt a bit constrained, and said, ”Xiao Yu, this... I... I don’t know them, wouldn’t it be awkward to go up there?”

”What’s awkward about it? You’re not a child anymore, what’s there to be shy about!”

Yuan Xiaoyu, saying this, dragged Ye Qing up the stairs without further discussion.