Chapter 382: Huo Xiuxiu

After saying that, Fatty swung the root-carved table, directly swinging it left and right. The two men didn't react in time and were immediately knocked out by Fatty. The sound of the table hitting their bodies was terrifying. The two rolled to the ground and immediately fell silent.

I remembered the scene in the underwater tomb where Fatty swatted away the sea monkeys. Sea monkeys have thick skin and can't be killed by swatting, but humans are different. I immediately became worried that he might kill someone and shouted at Fatty, "Go easy!" But Fatty couldn't hear me anymore. He charged almost directly at the security guards. Those guards had strong mental fortitude and swung their batons at him. Fatty didn't dodge at all. Gritting his teeth, he took six or seven blows to the head and knocked them down one by one. Soon they were all down. The root-carved table had even cracked from the blows.

After the commotion, the scene suddenly quieted down. Fatty, panting heavily, looked at the Huo family members he had just surrounded. Everyone stepped back a few paces and huddled against the wall. He glanced at the broken dishes and chopsticks on the floor, picked out half a bottle of the Maotai they had been drinking. The bottle was shattered but there was still a bit left in the bottom. He took a sip, spat out the glass shards, then waved at me and said, "Let's go!"

I picked up a stool, and Fatty put the root-carved table on his shoulder. I nodded to the old lady next to us and said, "Grandma, I'm leaving. I'll visit another day." Then, following Fatty, I kicked aside the groaning people on the floor and walked out of the private room, heading downstairs.

To be honest, I had never known the thrill of fighting before, but knocking everyone down and swaggering away under the terrified gazes of the crowd was indeed exciting. Suddenly I understood why so many people enjoy being bad guys.

When we got downstairs, the glass cabinet containing the jade seal where the Poker-face had been had already been smashed, and the seal had been taken out. The Poker-face was carefully examining the jade seal, showing no sign of leaving. The guy in the pink shirt was getting up from the floor, holding

However, as we passed by him, we saw that while coughing, he was also laughing. He glanced at us, looking quite pleased. I went up to the stage and called to Poker-face to grab the thing and move quickly. Just as I turned around, I saw the pink shirt following me, saying, "Bro."

Fatty and I looked at him. Fatty lifted the table, and the man immediately waved his hands: "Wait, wait!" He then pulled a business card from his pocket, handed it to us, and pointed at the jade seal. "I won't stop you. Here's a way to contact me. When you want to unload the goods, give me a call."

Damn, I thought, this guy really isn't on the up-and-up. Fatty actually went up and took the card. The pink shirt made a "go ahead" gesture. I was frantic, pushing them as we rushed out.

When we got outside the restaurant, the place was packed with people—staff and security guards, even the parking lot attendants had come. We pretended we were going to smash the jade seal, and they cleared a path, letting us escape.

We were already somewhat exhausted. After running several blocks, we were gasping for breath, our legs like jelly. But we could still see people following from a distance. These guys were street-smart, used to the underworld. Fatty said there were definitely more of them. Liu Li Sun and his crew weren't easy to deal with either. They hadn't made a move yet, probably waiting to ambush us when the chance came.

We rested in front of a newsstand. Fatty suggested we split up and run. I said no—I wasn't familiar with Beijing, and the little guy was, well, no need to even mention him. If we split up, I'd probably have to find him at a homeless shelter in a few days. And right now, they didn't dare touch us only because we had the goods. If we split up, the ones without the goods would definitely get screwed.

"Then what do we do?" Fatty frowned. He had calmed down now and was starting to have second thoughts. "Your fatty here is a big target in Beijing. Plenty of people know about me. My shop is a lost cause. Looks like I have no choice but to head south."

"We need to find a place to hole up and rest first, figure out how bad things really are," I said. "We could find a hotel."

"Hell, a hotel? That's just asking to get caught. A run-down temple would be a luxury. When you're on the run, the best you can hope for is a bridge underpass," Fatty said.

I looked at Poker-face, wanting to ask his opinion. But then I thought, asking him was useless. That guy was only sharp in tombs; on the surface, he was a grade-nine invalid when it came to life skills.

While I was hesitating, we suddenly heard a car horn. Turning around, we saw a Hongqi car parked by the roadside. The window rolled down, and inside was the little girl who had been with Old Mrs. Huo. She made a funny face at us and told us to get in quickly.

Fatty and I exchanged glances, immediately realizing there was a chance. We steeled ourselves and said, "Get in first, talk later."

The three of us climbed over the railing and got into the Hongqi. No sooner had the door closed than the car started moving. The little girl said to the driver, "Back to the compound at Princess Tomb."

Squeezed next to the girl, Fatty said, "Little sister, we're in hot water right now. Can we go somewhere farther?"

The girl replied, "Relax. That place—even if they had ten times the guts, they wouldn't dare come in." Then she looked at me and smiled. "Brother Wu Xie, first time properly introducing myself. I'm Huo Xiuxiu. Long time no see! You're still as clueless as ever."

"Have we met?" I asked, puzzled.

"Of course! Oh, come on, you still can't remember who I am?"

I examined her again, but I had no memory of her at all. I thought about the name Huo Xiuxiu—it was obvious she was a descendant of the Huo family. But why was she surnamed Huo? Did all the men in the Huo family marry into the family? Given their background, that seemed unlikely. I racked my brains but came up blank. I had no choice but to honestly shake my head.

"Ah, forget it." The little girl pouted and suddenly fell silent. "How disappointing." I looked at Fatty, a bit baffled. Fatty was about to crack a joke when suddenly there was a loud crash. The car lurched violently, nearly coming to a sudden stop, and in an instant, all the glass on Fatty's side shattered.

My head slammed into the window frame, nearly knocking me out. Before I could react, there was another hit from behind. The car's rear end was lifted off the ground, bounced a few times, and then settled. The rear window shattered, raining glass all over me.

"What the hell? How do you drive?" Fatty had a small cut on his face, from his jaw to the corner of his mouth—just a scrape, but it smarted plenty.

I rubbed my head and looked behind us. The vehicle that had rear-ended us was a minivan; the one that had hit us from the side was a Crown. People were already getting out of the cars. The Crown's driver was furious, cursing in Hebei dialect.

My head was ringing. I tried to push open the door to get out and check the damage, but found it locked. Then I saw the people who had gotten out start pulling steel pipes from behind their backs.

"Uh-oh. Looks like they really love their cars," I said, stunned.

"No, it's Liu Li Sun's guys. Damn, they're fast." Fatty pointed behind us, and I saw Liu Li Sun standing among the crowd further back. "Looks like the auction isn't over yet—someone still wants to make a bid." He slapped the driver's seat and yelled, "Can this thing still move?"

Before he finished, the car started up. Obviously the driver wasn't stupid either. The people surrounding us saw this and immediately charged. One guy jumped onto the crumpled trunk, grabbed me by the back of the neck from behind, and tried to pull me out—just like a thug in a movie.

But that unlucky bastard was dragged halfway into the back seat by Fatty. The car knocked over a few people as it plowed through the crowd. By then, the guy had been beaten so badly his own mother wouldn't recognize him, and then he was tossed out onto the street. Unfortunately, almost at the same time, the car crashed into a median barrier. This time, the hood popped up.

"Damn it, does your driver not have a license, or did he used to drive a tank?" Fatty roared.

"The wheel axle got bent from the collision," the driver said bitterly. "Can't control the steering." He tried to back the car out of the barrier, but it was no use.

The people behind charged forward. Seeing no way out, Fatty cursed loudly and kicked open the doors on his side. He and Poker-face got out. Huo Xiuxiu and I followed. Fatty asked her, "Any weapons in the car? Like a cavalry saber?"

"What kind of family do you take us for?"

Fatty slapped his forehead. "Why did your fatty here have to get into your lousy car?" But before he could finish, the people rushing up from behind were already there. There was no time to complain. Fatty blocked a steel pipe with both hands, headbutted the first guy and sent him flying, then grabbed the pipe, stomped on the guy's hand, and snatched it away. Then the others swarmed in.

There were seven or eight people from the minivan and five from the Crown—over a dozen in total. Our fighting force consisted of only three. The driver was still desperately trying to start the car. Huo Xiuxiu was huddled behind us, calm but just dialing on her phone; it didn't look like she could help much.

I'd been in a group fight back in middle school, but that was too childish—basically all bluster and intimidation. I had kept my cool when facing the security guards earlier, but now, seeing those steel pipes swinging with a whoosh, my whole body tensed up and I involuntarily took a step back.

Then I saw two people heading toward Poker-face. One of them wound up and swung a steel pipe at Poker-face's head. If that hit, it would surely crack his skull, but in almost an instant, the steel pipe was caught by Poker-face, and without any buffer, the pipe, falling at high speed, was suddenly grabbed and came to a complete stop. That guy must have felt like he hit a steel bar. Then Poker-face pulled the pipe downward, causing the man to stumble forward. At the same time, Poker-face flipped his elbow forward, and the man's head slammed into his elbow, sending him sprawling.

Another person swung a steel pipe at his waist from the side. Poker-face pulled out the previous guy's pipe and blocked it directly. Sparks flew from the impact of the pipes, and that person was sent staggering back, his pipe falling to the ground.

The scene was chaotic. Normally, seeing such a display would make nobody dare to go forward, but everything happened too fast. The people behind had no idea what was going on, and another three charged up. One of them rushed straight towards me. Without a word, he swung his steel pipe at me. Reacting almost by reflex, I managed to dodge—the pipe grazed right past my nose—but my foot hit the bushes in the median strip, and I fell headlong into the shrubbery. I scrambled up immediately and saw that guy charging at Huo Xiuxiu. My heart leaped—if this girl got dragged into our trouble, I'd have no excuse in front of Old Madam Huo. I yelled and charged after him. Just as I finished shouting, I got hit in the back with a pipe. I didn't know who hit me. My chest shuddered, and I nearly passed out from the pain.

Meanwhile, I heard Huo Xiuxiu scream. I immediately covered my head, knowing the next blow would be to the back of my head. Damn, these guys were desperados. Unexpectedly, I heard a scream from behind me. I turned and saw Fatty, holding a steel rod in each hand, his face already bloodied, pounding the head of the guy who had just hit me like a drum. As he pounded, he yelled at Poker-face: "Xiao Ge, to catch bandits, first catch the ringleader. I'll hold them off; you fight your way through. In the midst of chaos, take the enemy commander's head!"

At least six people were surrounding Poker-face. When Fatty said that, Poker-face directly looked at Liuli Sun, who was watching from a distance.

I thought I would see Poker-face carve a bloody path to rush over and stop Liuli Sun. Unexpectedly, he did something that left us all stunned.