Chapter 9: Xu Fugui Protects His Own

He Yuzhu curled his lip and mocked, "Dad, yesterday, when you asked me for money, didn't you say it was to buy milk powder for Yushui? Why are you being so vague about it today?"

"You little bastard! You dare to start bossing your old man around!" He Daqing couldn't keep his composure, and a surge of wicked fire shot straight to the top of his head! He grabbed the bald broomstick from the kang and swung it down at He Yuzhu's back.

He Yuzhu had been prepared, and before the broom could land, he had already bolted out of the house!

He hadn't taken more than a few steps out the door when He Yuzhu collided head-on with someone who had just darted out from the corner of the Houyuan!

"Ouch!" He Yuzhu was knocked onto his backside on the ground. He looked up, his heart skipped a beat—the person who had come was none other than Xu Damao's father, Xu Fugui!

Xu Fugui stared at He Yuzhu on the ground, his horse-like face pulled long, his triangular eyes glinting with a sinister light. He squeezed words through his teeth: "You little bastard! Why are you running so fast for no reason? Just in time! I was looking for you anyway! Speak! Did you bully my son?"

He Yuzhu slowly stood up, patted the snow off his body, and retorted with his neck stiffened: "Xu Fugui, you old bastard! You bump into someone and don't even know how to apologize. You've lived all these years in vain!"

"You, you little bastard, you dare to curse your old man? See if I don't beat you to death!"

"Come and hit me then! If you dare to hit me, my dad will beat you to death!"

"Oh! You've really gone too far!" Xu Fugui was so angry he was fuming! He grabbed a bamboo broom from the base of the wall, swung it around, and swept it fiercely at He Yuzhu! "You little brat! Let's see if I don't teach you a lesson on your father's behalf today!"

He Yuzhu was like a slippery loach; he tucked his neck in, and the broom whistled as it swept right over his head!

He took off running toward home, shouting at the top of his lungs as he ran. His voice was sharp and bright, piercing through the entire Zhongyuan: "Help! Xu Fugui is beating a child! He Daqing! He Daqing! Your son is going to be beaten to death! If you don't come out now, get ready to collect my corpse!"

Just as he reached his own doorway, he slipped on a patch of ice, and with a "thud," he fell hard, face-planting into the mud!

In the instant he hit the ground, he moved his mind, and a small puddle of viscous, dark red "demon blood" appeared out of thin air in his palm, which he quickly smeared onto his forehead, cheeks, and knees.

In an instant, He Yuzhu was covered in "blood." Anyone who didn't know better would have thought he had just crawled out of a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood.

Hearing He Yuzhu's cries, He Daqing rushed out of the house. Seeing his son covered in "blood" from head to toe, the usually kind-hearted He Daqing lost his temper.

At this moment, Xu Fugui was chasing right up to them, brandishing the broom aggressively!

A surge of protective instinct for his own flesh and blood rushed to He Daqing's head! His eyes turned red instantly!

"Xu Fugui! I'll screw your ancestors!" He Daqing let out a beast-like roar, like a furious lion! He lunged forward, his left hand lightning-fast as he grabbed Xu Fugui's wrist, and his right hand delivered a heavy punch deep into his ribs!

Xu Fugui let out a miserable shriek, and the broom slipped from his hand!

He Daqing followed through with a kick, sending Xu Fugui to the ground.

Xu Fugui tried to struggle, but He Daqing had already pounced like a tiger, pinning him down.

"Smack! Smack! Smack!" He Daqing began swinging both hands, slapping Xu Fugui across the face several times.

"Ouch! You're killing me! He Daqing, you're fucking crazy! How dare you hit me!" Xu Fugui wailed like a slaughtered pig.

By now, the residents living in the Zhongyuan and the front and back courtyards had all been startled by the earth-shattering commotion!

Yi Zhonghai, Liu Haizhong, Yan Bugui, and other men and women poured out of their houses to watch the spectacle.

Yi Zhonghai rushed over to break up the fight: "Old He! Old He! Stop! You're all neighbors living in the same courtyard; you see each other every day! Let's talk this out! Stop hitting him!"

With his arms held tightly by Yi Zhonghai, He Daqing couldn't continue the beating.

He panted heavily, pointed at He Yuzhu, who looked like a "blood gourd," and roared with uncontrollable rage: "Neighbors, take a good look at what this old bastard has done to my son! Xu Fugui! Do you even count as an elder?! You're a beast! To lay such a heavy hand on a child!"

After He Daqing finished speaking, he tried to continue beating Xu Fugui, but his hands were already being held back by several men.

Xu Fugui took the opportunity to scramble up from the ground, clutching his burning face and bleeding nose, and threatened: "He Daqing, you just wait. I'll finish you off sooner or later."

"Aren't you just a dog for the Lou Family? I don't believe Boss Lou will stand up for a lackey like you. From now on, if you ever hit my son again, I'll fucking kill you too!"

"He Daqing, you're full of shit! I didn't even hit him! That little bastard fell on his own!"

"Go to hell with your bullshit!" He Daqing pointed at the glaring "bloodstains" on He Yuzhu, trembling with rage. "Is this blood fake? Are these wounds painted on? Xu Fugui! Do you think everyone in this courtyard is blind?"

Everyone's eyes turned toward He Yuzhu. They saw his little face and hands covered in blood, and his torn knees were also bloody; he was still sobbing incessantly.

In truth, it wasn't that He Yuzhu was acting; the fall had actually been quite painful, and the tears were falling against his will.

Seeing He Yuzhu looking so pitiful, the women also whispered curses about how sinister Xu Fugui was.

Undoubtedly, even though He Daqing had hit Xu Fugui, everyone was on his side.

Liu Haizhong puffed out his chest and scolded with a stern face: "Fugui! This is where you're wrong! There's a little conflict between the kids, why are you, an elder, getting involved? Look at how you beat Zhuzi! You went way too far! It's disgraceful!"

Yi Zhonghai also chimed in with a dark face: "Fugui, hurry up and apologize to Daqing! You went too far this time! That's not how you protect your own! How old is Zhuzi, anyway?"

The surrounding neighbors also began to chatter, their eyes filled with disdain and condemnation as they looked at Xu Fugui.

Under the watchful eyes and unanimous condemnation of the crowd, Xu Fugui was speechless, his face turning the color of a pig's liver.

He Daqing saw that it was getting late and prepared to go home, but he heard Xu Fugui still explaining that he hadn't hit He Yuzhu.

He Daqing was truly getting impatient. He said, word by word: "Xu Fugui! You listen well to your old man! I've noted down today's incident! You can hit me, He Daqing, and I might forgive you, but if you dare to touch a single hair on anyone in my family again! I'll throw my life away if I have to, but I will fight you to the death!"

Xu Fugui clutched his swollen, painful cheek, glared venomously at He Daqing and the "pitiful" He Yuzhu, and under the pointing fingers of the crowd, he slunk away, pushing through the crowd and diving back into his own house.

"Bang!" As soon as Xu Fugui entered the room, he swept a coarse ceramic teapot off the table, smashing it to pieces!

Like a wounded beast, he paced back and forth in the cramped room, cursing incessantly: "He Daqing! He Yuzhu! You bastard father and son! Just you wait! This isn't over!"

Xu Damao looked at the clear slap marks and nosebleed on his father's face, both shocked and afraid. He leaned in and whispered a suggestion: "Dad! I heard that 'Xiao Erduo' in Nancheng... let's spend some money and have him bring some men... find a chance to break He Daqing's legs! Let's see how he acts tough after that!"

Xu Fugui backhanded Xu Damao with a loud slap, sending him staggering, and cursed angrily: "You idiot! Are those thugs good people? Once you get involved with them, they're like dog-skin plasters! You can't shake them off! Money? That's a bottomless pit!"

Xu Damao clutched his face and said unwillingly: "Then... then we're just going to let it go? I can't swallow this anger!"