Chapter 76 Can't Afford to Provoke

After leaving the hospital, Yang Chen felt somewhat stifled. It wasn't until he had been driving on the highway for a while that he began to feel more comfortable.

It was already around eleven or twelve at night, and many places in the suburbs of Zhonghai were illuminated by various colorful lights. A month ago, Yang Chen might have been interested in those pink lights of the hair salons, but now, if he wanted to indulge a bit, going to Rose to find Qiangwei would obviously be more appropriate for him.

Occasionally, he thought that his actions were somewhat inexplicable. Qiangwei, who had always treated him wholeheartedly well, was rarely cared for by him on weekdays. On the other hand, even just seeing that girl, Li Jingjing, would make him happy for quite a while. He didn't usually care much about such women. Instead, he found himself thinking about buying glutinous rice balls from a snack shop for Lin Ruoxi in the middle of the night.

Perhaps it was because she resembled the woman deep in his memories... Or perhaps, what you can't obtain is always the best. This saying really seemed to apply to everyone. With a slight sense of guilt towards Qiangwei, Yang Chen decided not to go find her. When he drove to a late-night snack area in the western district, he got out of the car and planned to find a noodle stall to have some beer and noodles.

At midnight, in the streets and alleys of Zhonghai, as long as they weren't main roads, all kinds of unlicensed vendors would start selling late-night snacks. If you were lucky, nobody would bother to regulate them. If luck wasn't on your side, they might be completely demolished by the urban management officers and the police.

After casually finding a relatively quiet noodle stall and sitting down, Yang Chen shouted to the stall owner who was preparing noodles, "Boss, a bowl of shredded pork noodles and two bottles of beer."

The boss was a middle-aged man. After hearing Yang Chen's order, he obediently smiled and replied, "Alright, I'll bring it to you soon."

Upon hearing this, Yang Chen suddenly felt the voice was somewhat familiar. He took a closer look and couldn't help but laugh, "How come it's you?!"

The noodle stall owner looked up in confusion, carefully looked at Yang Chen, and finally recognized him. He almost collapsed to the ground with his legs weak, his face as bitter as bitter gourd, "Oh... it's you, hehe... hehe... what a coincidence."

The noodle stall owner in front of him turned out to be an acquaintance from before - Captain Feng Biao, who had brought Yang Chen to the police station. Feng Biao, who used to wear a police uniform and give orders at the Western District Police Station, was now wearing dirty clothes and an apron, selling noodles on the side of the street, becoming an unlicensed vendor.

After pondering for a moment, Yang Chen asked uncertainly, "Did you switch careers, or were you fired?"

Feng Biao blushed, awkwardly saying, "I... I was fired."

"What goes around comes around," Yang Chen chuckled and shook his head, "But don't worry, I didn't take it to heart about what happened before. You can continue making noodles, just don't let them get mushy."

Thinking that Yang Chen was going to kick him while he was down, Feng Biao's face lit up with joy. He knew well that if things got ugly, he wouldn't stand a chance in a fight, and with his stall being unlicensed, he'd definitely lose out. Just as he was worrying about this, the other party didn't seem to care about their past grievances at all, which made Feng Biao ecstatic. "Thank you! Thank you, little brother!" Feng Biao was almost moved to tears. "I'm in this situation because I had no other choice. I know I made many mistakes before. Thank you, big brother, for not holding a grudge against me."

Yang Chen shrugged indifferently. "Just make your noodles."

"Sure, let me treat you to this meal, little brother. It's on the house," Feng Biao continued busying himself as if granted clemency.

Yang Chen couldn't help but smile. This old guy had really fallen on hard times. When Cai Yan had mentioned punishment, he had thought it was just talk, but he hadn't expected her to actually fire Feng Biao. This wasn't just about rank; Cai Yan must have a powerful background to have such authority, which had landed Feng Biao in this predicament.

Thinking about what Cai Yan had said in Lin Ruoxi's hospital room that day, as well as the matter regarding Lin Ruoxi's grandfather, Yang Chen couldn't help but wonder. Since the two women had known each other since childhood, could his own wife also have an official background? Why did Lin Ruoxi hate her grandfather so much?

Lost in these perplexing thoughts, Yang Chen was brought back to reality by Feng Biao, who had already mixed the noodles and was coming over with two bottles of Qingdao beer, smiling warmly. "Enjoy your meal, little brother. Let me know if you need anything else."

Seeing Feng Biao looking so accustomed to being a street vendor, Yang Chen couldn't help but feel that this guy wasn't too bad. At least he understood his place and could adapt to circumstances, so he probably wouldn't end up too badly.

As Yang Chen took a few bites of noodles and drank some beer, feeling refreshed, suddenly, from a nearby alleyway came the sounds of commotion...

"Kid, don't run!" "Stop!" "If you run again, I'll beat you to death!" "Stop right there!"

Several shouting men suddenly rushed out from the other end of the alley, angrily yelling as they chased after a relatively slender figure.

With keen eyesight, Yang Chen slightly discerned and couldn't help but doubt if he was seeing things, because the figure being chased, wearing a white short-sleeved shirt with snow-white skin, was none other than another male colleague from the office - Chen Bo!

Chen Bo looked extremely disheveled, his face full of panic as he ran towards the direction of the noodle stall. Behind him, there were at least seven or eight men relentlessly chasing him, and they were noticeably faster. It looked like they were about to catch him.

Although Yang Chen didn't understand what was happening, he was sure to help Chen Bo. So, he picked up a stool nearby and threw it with force!

The stool spun and hit the thighs of the two men in the front with a loud thud. They screamed and fell down, causing the rest of the group to stop in surprise and look towards Yang Chen.

Many customers at the noodle stall saw this scene and felt uneasy, quickly retreating to the side and not daring to approach.

Suddenly seeing Yang Chen, Chen Bo was also astonished. Due to fear, he didn't care about anything else and ran behind Yang Chen, trembling and unable to face the group of men.

"Chen Bo, what's going on?" Yang Chen turned around and asked with a smile.

Chen Bo, whether out of shyness or exhaustion from running, blushed deeply and stammered, "Th-they... they want to arrest me, I... I don't want to go..."

"Arrest you? What for?"

Before Yang Chen could ask further, the angry group of men started cursing furiously.

"Do you have a death wish?! Do you even know who we are?!"

"He's my colleague. Until I know why you're arresting him, I have to protect him," Yang Chen said.

Hearing this, Chen Bo's eyes turned red, evidently moved.

"You brat also wants to die! Then we'll grant your wish!"

Several thugs, already at the brink of exploding with rage, rushed forward without hesitation. However, their chaotic and uncoordinated punches and kicks were nothing in Yang Chen's eyes.

With ease, he slapped a few of them and kicked a few others in their stomachs, causing the aggressive group to taste the bitter consequences as they tumbled to the ground.

Chen Bo stared in astonishment as Yang Chen effortlessly dealt with such a big trouble, looking at Yang Chen with awe.

"You've got guts, kid! Wait till our boss comes; he'll deal with you!" a thug wearing a silver chain shouted.

Before he could finish, another thug yelled, "The boss is here! The boss is here!"

Sure enough, from the direction where they had come chasing, another group of people started walking towards them. At the forefront was a man wearing a white shirt, hands casually in his pockets, a look of arrogance on his face - their so-called boss.

Some of the thugs quickly straightened up, smiling eagerly as they approached their boss, hoping he would teach Yang Chen a lesson. But before they could even reach him, their "boss" had already taken the initiative to come forward.

"Mr. Yang! Long time no see! Here we are again!" he said with a smirk.

"Good evening, Mr. Guo. Didn't expect to see you here," Yang Chen almost burst into laughter. It turned out their boss was none other than Guo Ziheng, the head of that shady company who had once tried to bribe him with money, only to be completely defeated by him.

"Fate brings us together from afar. It seems Mr. Yang and I have quite the destiny," Guo Ziheng said, as if forgetting past grievances, extending his hand to shake Yang Chen's.

Yang Chen shook his hand generously, as if they were old friends who hadn't seen each other for days, unaware of the vast difference in their minds.

"Since we have such an old friend like Mr. Guo, I suppose there's no need to say much about this matter," Yang Chen said casually.

The thugs who had been arrogant just moments ago were now dumbfounded. How could their boss be so friendly with this stranger, leaving them speechless?

Guo Ziheng's face froze for a moment, then he forced a smile and said, "Mr. Yang, you may not know, but we're also acting on someone else's behalf. We've been entrusted to bring this person behind you back. Otherwise... I, Guo, wouldn't know how to explain myself."

Yang Chen was somewhat surprised. Guo Ziheng probably had some understanding of his capabilities; he should know that it wouldn't be to his advantage to resort to violence. Yet, he was still insistent on taking Chen Bo away. Who exactly was Chen Bo?

"Mr. Guo, did my friend offend someone in the underworld? Or does he owe you money?" Yang Chen asked, puzzled.

Guo Ziheng smiled nervously, sighed, and said, "Mr. Yang, why don't you ask your friend what's going on?"

Yang Chen nodded and looked at Chen Bo again.

Chen Bo's legs were trembling, sweat drenching his back. When he saw Yang Chen's questioning gaze, he stammered, "I... they... they want me to entertain a client..."

"Entertain?" Yang Chen furrowed his brow.

Chen Bo's face turned as red as an apple, he lowered his head, his voice barely audible, "They want me to serve a man."

Yang Chen was taken aback for a moment before he understood Chen Bo's meaning. To be honest, he felt somewhat strange about it. He hadn't expected that despite Chen Bo's feminine demeanor, he would be sought after by men.

But laughing about it wouldn't be appropriate. Fortunately, having encountered similar situations abroad, Yang Chen wasn't too uncomfortable. He turned to Guo Ziheng and said, "This isn't right. Since my friend isn't interested, you shouldn't force him."

Guo Ziheng smiled wryly, "Mr. Yang, with you here, how could I dare to force him? It's just... the person over there, he's not someone we can afford to provoke..."

Yang Chen understood the implications. Guo Ziheng was hinting that they were acting on behalf of someone powerful and influential, someone they couldn't afford to offend.