Chapter 363: I like you like this!

Lin Yuan stopped his steps, hooked the corner of his mouth, but the smile didn't reach his eyes, his voice cold as if quenched with ice:

My name is... Lin Yuan. If you want revenge, come find me at Nvshenjiubaerdian — don't make me wait too long.

Gao Jiapo lay on the ground, cold sweat on his back instantly soaking his shirt, his voice trembling yet still tinged with disbelief: "Goddess Bar?? You're from Goddess Bar?!"

Lin Yuan lowered his eyes and glanced at him, his tone without the slightest fluctuation, yet it made Gao Jiapo's heart feel heavy: "Yes, my nickname is... Priest."

"God, Priest?!" Gao Jiapo's voice suddenly shot up, then went mute as if his throat were choked, his pupils shrinking to pinpoints!

How dare he provoke this person?

As a person of the jianghu, Gao Jiapo naturally had heard of Priest's fearsome reputation!!

The rumor had only gone wild on the streets a few months ago!

This newly risen killing god of Goddess Bar, Priest, single-handedly attacked Changsheng Group… brutally crippling Chang Jinghe and destroying the entire Changsheng Group!

Priest! This Priest is practically a killing god!!

This isn't just a tough character, this is a living King of Hell!

How is trying to steal the woman he's protecting any different from courting death?

A warm stream trickled down his pant leg, the smell of urine mixing with the oil on the ground—Gao Jiapo actually pissed himself!

Gao Jiapo didn't dare lift his forehead, knocking it "dong dong" against the concrete, blood beads bubbling up:

"Priest! It's my blindness, my foolish heart daring to tug your tiger's whiskers! Please give me a way out—I'll be your dog from now on, bite whoever you tell me to!"

"Spare me this once, and I'll immediately return the territory I took from Hong Wenyan—from now on, wherever you say east, I won't dare go west!"

The remaining lackeys who could still stand, seeing their boss smash his forehead, followed with a "plop" and knelt en masse, the leader's voice trembling:

"Priest, we're just trying to make a living, we truly didn't know you were involved… please spare us, we'll never dare to get involved with you again!"

"It was Boss Gao who forced us to come! We have no grudge against you—please don't hold it against us!"

Bai Lu stood where she was, eyes still blankly fixed on Lin Yuan's profile, her mind in a tangle. Her pretty face was full of shock??

Priest??

Does Lin Yuan have another identity?

What's the origin of this Priest's nickname? Gao Jiapo was just so arrogant—how could hearing those two words scare him like that, even to the point of pissing himself?

Lin Yuan usually looks gentle and soft-spoken, never raising his voice—how could he have such a fearsome reputation?

Only when Lin Yuan gently took her wrist did Bai Lu snap back to her senses, her fingertips involuntarily twitching, her palm still able to feel the warmth from his hand.

Lin Yuan whispered to Bai Lu: "Don't mind them, let's go."

Saying that, he pulled Bai Lu toward the barbecue shop's entrance, deliberately stepping around the scattered steel pipes and dried bloodstains on the ground, afraid to brush her shoes.

"Wait!"

Suddenly from behind came Hong Wenyan's voice, lacking its previous sharpness, instead carrying a hint of urgent reminder and a touch of helplessness.

Lin Yuan's steps halted, he turned to look at Hong Wenyan, his brows slightly furrowed.

Just now his mind was full of taking Bai Lu away, and he forgot she was still tied up.

Hong Wenyan lifted the arms bound behind her, the coarse rope biting her wrists red, with a few fine marks from her struggle:

"You're just taking her away like that? I can't stay tied up here forever—help me, help me untie the rope…"

Lin Yuan's steps halted, he didn't turn back, only letting out a cold laugh from his throat, his tone full of mockery:

"Why should I help you?"

As his words fell, he turned his face to glance at Hong Wenyan, his eyes icy cold: "Scumbag woman."

Having said that, he gave Hong Wenyan no chance to speak, instead gripping Bai Lu's wrist tightly, turning and striding toward the barbecue shop's exit, his steps even more hurried than before.

Hong Wenyan froze on the spot, the hands bound behind her clenching tight, knuckles whitening—

She hadn't expected Lin Yuan not only to refuse to untie her ropes, but to actually call her a scumbag woman?

A surge of anger instantly rose from her heart, scorching her mind into confusion, her previous calm gone, she snarled at Lin Yuan's back:

"You… you bastard dog! You've got the guts to say it again!"

Lin Yuan's icy voice drifted over again: "Scumbag woman."

"You! You dog, Lin Yuan, you wait for me! What are you even?!" Hong Wenyan shouted angrily.

Lin Yuan seemed not to hear her tirade, his steps unabated, about to pull Bai Lu out of the barbecue shop's door.

Bai Lu, her wrist gripped by him, took two steps then stopped, looked back at the trembling, furious Hong Wenyan, tugged at Lin Yuan's sleeve, and softened her voice:

"Lin Yuan, don't be like this… she's still tied up, we can't just leave her bound here, can we?"

Lin Yuan furrowed his brows, looked down at her: "Why do you care about her? This kind of person isn't worth helping."

"However you put it, she's never done us any harm," Bai Lu bit her lip, eyes full of reluctance, "and just now she protected me, letting me continue teaching drawing… let's help her untie the ropes, otherwise she'd be in too much danger alone here."

Lin Yuan looked at the pleading in Bai Lu's eyes, fell silent for a few seconds, then ultimately didn't rebut, merely releasing her hand, his tone still cold:

"If you want to help, do it yourself—I'll wait outside."

Bai Lu quickly nodded, she entered the barbecue shop and found a pair of scissors.

She approached Hong Wenyan, lowered her voice: "Don't be angry, I'll help you untie it."

Hong Wenyan was still fuming, but seeing it was Bai Lu and not Lin Yuan, her expression eased a little, yet she couldn't help but let out a humph.

"At least you have a conscience, unlike certain people whose mouths are more poisonous than a blade!"

Bai Lu didn't respond, merely carefully moving behind Hong Wenyan, aligning the scissors with the tightest part of the rope.

The scissors were a bit dull; Bai Lu had to exert some force to cut the first strand—with a "click", Hong Wenyan visibly relaxed, her tense shoulders slumping.

Bai Lu cut while saying: "Lin Yuan didn't do it on purpose, he just… didn't want to cause trouble."

Hong Wenyan snorted: "Not wanting trouble? Not wanting trouble yet still daring to call me a scumbag woman—what gives him the right?"

Bai Lu's hand paused, unsure how to explain, so she sped up and cut a few more strands.

When the last rope was finally cut, Hong Wenyan hastily moved her arms.

The red mark on her wrist became more obvious; she rubbed her arm and looked at Lin Yuan at the BBQ shop entrance, her eyes full of unwillingness, but she didn't scold out loud.

Hong Wenyan rubbed her newly freed wrist, pulled out her phone from her pocket, and dialed a number: "Old Lane Dasshu Shaokao, bring the brothers over! Right now!"

Gao Jiapo felt his scalp tingle, he struggled to move closer to Hong Wenyan's feet, his voice trembling with tears:

"Miss Hong! I was wrong! I don't want the territory anymore—I'll give it all to you! Please don't let them come! I'll never dare to oppose you again!"

Hong Wenyan didn't even lift her eyelids, she kicked him half a meter away, her voice full of disgust: "Begging for mercy now is too late."

But within five minutes, a dense sound of footsteps came from the lane entrance, followed immediately by dozens of black business vehicles parked side‑by‑side at the BBQ shop entrance!

The car doors flung open with a "clatter," and a sea of people poured out.

They were men in black short‑sleeves, tattoos showing on their forearms, pouring out; each was tall and straight, their movements uniform as if trained, instantly surrounding the BBQ shop in a half‑circle.

The leading man walked up to Hong Wenyan and gave a slight nod: "Sister Yan, the people are here—what should we do with them?"

"Take him away," Hong Wenyan lifted her chin, pointing at Gao Jiapo on the ground, her voice icy: "Deal with him properly!"

Gao Jiapo had just been groaning, but seeing this scene he was terrified out of his wits, crawling and rolling toward the space under the table, shouting at the top of his lungs:

"Miss Hong! I was wrong! I don't want my territory anymore! Please spare me! Just treat me like a fart and let me go!"

A group of black‑clothed men gave him no chance to struggle, grabbing his arms left and right, their iron‑like grip holding him immobile.

Gao Jiapo kicked wildly with his legs, one shoe flying off, yet he was still dragged forcefully toward the business vehicle; his cries for mercy were cut off as the car door slammed shut with a "bang," instantly isolating him inside.

At the same time, the combat expert Boyika was also lifted onto the vehicle.

As Boyika was lifted onto the car, Hong Wenyan's men brutally kicked him dozens of times, making him vomit blood repeatedly from the pain.

All of Gao Jiapo's other underlings were also arrested and taken away.

The remaining black‑clothed men didn't linger; some bent to pick up the steel pipes from the ground, others rinsed away the blood with water, and within two minutes they had cleaned the spot spotless—not a single skewer from the scattered kebabs was left.

Then the group unanimously nodded farewell to Hong Wenyan, turned and slipped into the cars; the business vehicles quickly vanished into the night, as if they had never come.

Only then did Hong Wenyan turn to Bai Lu, her tone easing a little: "Teacher Bai, thank you just now for untying my ropes."

Lin Yuan snorted coldly at the side, "That scummy woman—she should obviously be thanking me, right?"

If Lin Yuan hadn't stepped in and defeated Boyika, Hong Wenyan couldn't have been saved.

But Hong Wenyan didn't even glance at Lin Yuan, let alone speak to him.

Bai Lu, still feeling uneasy, couldn't help whispering: "Miss Hong, couldn't you stop fighting? It's too dangerous—when you were tied up just now, I was sweating for you."

Hong Wenyan stared for a moment, twitched the corner of her mouth, and said nothing——

Affairs in this line of work aren't something you can just stop whenever you want.

Lin Yuan walked over then, reached out and touched Bai Lu's arm, speaking gently: "It's late; let me take you home. Tomorrow I can teach XiaoRui to draw as well."

"No way, no way!" Before Bai Lu could speak, XiaoRui, who had been hiding behind DaShu, ran out, grabbed the hem of Bai Lu's shirt, lifted his little face and whined, "Bai Lu sis, you promised to teach me how to draw a little car today—you can't go back on your word!"

DaShu also hurried forward, rubbing his hands embarrassedly: "Mr. Lin, how about… letting Miss Bai Lu stay a bit longer? XiaoRui has been eager to learn drawing for days, and the fight just now didn't scare him—he's still waiting."

Bai Lu lowered her head to look at XiaoRui's expectant eyes; the lingering fear in her heart mostly faded, she tugged at Lin Yuan's hand and whispered:

"How about you wait a moment? I'll finish teaching him to draw a little dog, then I'll leave—it'll be quick."

Lin Yuan looked at the softness in her eyes, then glanced at XiaoRui's small hand clutching her shirt hem, and sighed helplessly: "All right."

Bai Lu smiled and nodded, took XiaoRui to the small table in the corner of the BBQ shop, pulled out a sketchbook and colored pens from her bag; XiaoRui immediately came over, his eyes shining bright, the earlier chaos seemingly leaving no trace in his mind.

DaShu hurriedly brought out the freshly grilled skewers for Lin Yuan and the others to eat, making it their dinner.

Bai Lu held the colored pen, hand‑in‑hand teaching XiaoRui to color the little car on the paper blue; XiaoRui studied earnestly, not noticing the red paint smudge on his nose tip, until the final stroke landed—he jumped up holding his sketchbook:

"Bai Lu sis! I can draw little dogs now!"

DaShu happened to be carrying two plates of freshly grilled skewers over, looked at XiaoRui's drawing, and smiled, his eyes crinkling: "Thanks to Miss Bai Lu, this kid XiaoRui is better behaved today than ever."

He put the skewers on the table, then turned to busy himself at the grill: "Don't just stand there—sit down! I've grilled plenty: lamb skewers, chicken wings, corn, all fresh off the fire!"

The skewers on the iron rack were still sizzling, fat dripping onto the charcoal and spitting tiny sparks; the meat aroma mixed with cumin and chili filled the whole little shop.

Lin Yuan pulled Bai Lu to sit at the table's edge, handed her a pair of clean chopsticks on the way; Hong Wenyan also found an empty seat and sat down, no longer wearing her earlier cold expression.

XiaoRui sat beside Bai Lu holding his sketchbook, chewing on a stick of grilled corn until his face was covered in crumbs.

DaShu then brought over several bottles of chilled soda, handing them out one by one: "Mr. Lin, Miss Hong, don't stand on ceremony—make yourselves at home."

Bai Lu bit into a grilled chicken wing—crispy outside, juicy inside—her eyes lit up, and she whispered to Lin Yuan: "DaShu's grilling is really delicious, better than anything I've had before."

Lin Yuan saw the chili powder on the corner of her mouth, reached out to wipe it off, and said with a smile: "If you like it, eat more; if it's not enough, just have DaShu grill some more."

Hong Wenyan picked up a lamb skewer, chewed slowly, said little, but didn't refuse the second skewer DaShu offered.

The atmosphere in the shop was much more relaxed than before; only XiaoRui's occasional laughter and the sizzle of the skewers could be heard, the earlier chaos seeming to be quietly washed away by this lively, smoky ambience.

After XiaoRui let out a satisfied burp and leaned back in his chair, DaShu was clearing the dishes when Bai Lu finally took out her phone to check the time—the screen showed it was already 9 p. m.

She startled, then quickly stood up: "Oh, it's so late—I should head back."

However, Bai Lu had drunk a bit of beer earlier, so she couldn't drive.

Lin Yuan also rose, about to say "I'll give you a ride," when Hong Wenyan spoke first: "I drove here myself—I'll take you home; it's not easy to get a cab at this hour."

Her tone was flat, lacking much emotion, yet it didn't sound like a suggestion.

Lin Yuan frowned, about to refuse, but Bai Lu tugged his arm: "It's fine—Miss Hong means well, and it's so late that if you drove me you'd have to take a detour."

Hong Wenyan had already picked up the car keys lying on the table edge and walked toward the door: "Come on, the car's outside."

The three followed her out of the BBQ shop; a black BMW 7 Series sedan was parked under the streetlight.

Hong Wenyan opened the passenger and rear doors: "Bai Lu, sit in the front—better view."

Bai Lu nodded, got into the passenger seat, while Lin Yuan opened the rear‑door and climbed in.

The car drove smoothly out of the old lane; there wasn't much traffic, only streetlights gliding past the windows in streaks of light and shadow.

Hong Wenyan occasionally glanced at Lin Yuan in the rearview mirror, but said nothing.

Bai Lu leaned back against the seat, watching the nightscape flash by outside the window, and whispered her thanks to Hong Wenyan: "Miss Hong, thank you for giving us a ride today… and also… thank you for protecting me before."

Hong Wenyan stared straight ahead, her tone even: "No need to thank me—it was just a small effort."

Twenty minutes later, the car stopped at the entrance of Bai Lu's residential compound.

The security guard's booth at the community gate was lit; Bai Lu unfastened her seatbelt, turned to Lin Yuan and said, "I'm heading up now, be careful on your way home." She then nodded at Hong Wenyan: "Miss Hong, thank you for the trouble."

"Go ahead," Lin Yuan said, looking at her with a gentle gaze, "remember to lock the door."

Bai Lu responded, opened the car door, and walked into the community.

Only after watching her silhouette disappear at the stairwell entrance did Hong Wenyan restart the car and drive toward Lin Yuan's home...

A BMW 7 Series drove slowly along the midnight highway.

After a brief silence in the cabin, Hong Wenyan suddenly said, "I'll take care of Gao Jiapo's side cleanly; I won't let him cause trouble for Bai Lu."

Lin Yuan leaned back in the rear seat, his fingers resting on his knees, and replied calmly with a single word: "Oh."

Hong Wenyan unconsciously rubbed the edge of the steering wheel with her fingertips, her tone solemn: "Bai Lu is a good girl; don't bring her harm. Let her go."

Lin Yuan, who had been leaning against the seatback with his eyes closed to rest, instantly opened his eyes at those words, his gaze turning colder, his voice full of impatience:

"What's it to you? Just look after yourself. Besides, I never had that kind of intention toward Bai Lu."

"If you don't have that intention, you should stay even farther away from her," Hong Wenyan said, lightly tapping the brake, then accelerated again after passing the intersection.

Her voice sank even lower: "Delete her contact information; from now on, don't have any involvement with her. She's an ordinary girl who should live a peaceful life—not be dragged into our kind of martial world."

Lin Yuan snorted, looking at Hong Wenyan through the rearview mirror:

"You sure can talk. Tonight at the barbecue restaurant, when you were fighting Gao Jiapo and Boyika, she stood nearby watching and almost got caught in the crossfire—why didn't you tell her to stay away from the martial world then?"

The silence in the cabin didn't last long; Hong Wenyan suddenly turned her head, looking at Lin Yuan in the rear seat through the rearview mirror, her tone tinged with probing:

"So what's going on between you and Zhao Yuyan? You're awfully close—how can you say there's nothing? If you're together with Zhao Yuyan, stop entangling Bai Lu; don't leave her in an ambiguous situation."

Lin Yuan's fingers, which had been resting on his knees, paused; he lifted his eyes to the rearview mirror and said, "I have no relation with Zhao Yuyan."

Hong Wenyan raised an eyebrow, lightly tapped the brake, slowing the car a bit, and said, "Everyone on the road knows Zhao Yuyan likes you—how can you claim there's nothing?"

Hearing that, Lin Yuan sighed helplessly, leaned back against the seat, closed his eyes, and rubbed his forehead:

"Her liking me is her own business; I can't help it. I've never given her any hints, nor accepted anything from her—I have a clear conscience about that."

Hong Wenyan looked at his weary reflection in the rearview mirror, didn't press further, just pressed the accelerator again; the cabin fell silent once more, save for the soft rustle of tires on the road.

Soon the car stopped in front of Lin Yuan's building, Shidai Gongyu.

Lin Yuan opened the car door, just as one foot stepped outside, Hong Wenyan's voice came from behind, solemn:

"Lin Yuan, I'll remind you once more: Bai Lu is a good girl with a simple heart; she doesn't belong in our circle. If you just like pure women, I know plenty of clean-background ones I could set you up with—but don't touch Bai Lu."

Lin Yuan's steps halted; he turned around and bent down to look at Hong Wenyan in the driver's seat.

The streetlight's glow streamed through the window onto her face, revealing her tightened jawline and the earnestness she couldn't hide in her eyes.

Lin Yuan stared at her for a few seconds, then curled the corner of his lip; the earlier coldness in his tone faded, replaced by something hard to put into words.

"I don't like pure girls."

Hong Wenyan blinked, then instinctively asked, "Then what do you like?"

She had expected Lin Yuan to say he had no particular type, or simply not answer…

But she hadn't expected Lin Yuan to lean in, lower his voice, and say clearly into her ear: "I like you just like this."