Chapter 4

Liu Ying'er dropped her basket with a yelp, her slender, delicate hands quickly clasping together to protect her buttocks. Her movements were graceful and charming, making her look like a cute and adorable girl from the future. Liu Ying'er was extremely frightened, then suddenly furious, her pretty face cold with anger. She picked up her basket and turned around to look for the culprit, her beautiful big eyes already glistening with tears.

Turning around, she saw the bicycle of the little hooligan leader. It seemed that he had used the wheel to invade her, Liu Ying'er thought with resentment. Xue Xiang sat on the seat, his legs straddling the ground, the protruding front of the bicycle extending from his crotch, inevitably evoking thoughts of a certain evil object. Although Liu Ying'er was innocent, her work had made her aware of the matters between men and women at an early age, unlike most young women of her time who were still naive about such issues. The more she thought about it, the more embarrassed and angry she became, her eyes gradually misting over as she glared at Xue Xiang with hatred. The moment Liu Ying'er covered her buttocks, Xue Xiang quickly turned his head, pretending to be looking for someone.

"Hmm, what is he looking at? Could it be that he didn't know the bike hit me? This must be an accident. No, he must be pretending. He did it on purpose, afraid I would cause trouble, so he's pretending not to know. No, it must be an accident..." She wanted to give Xue Xiang a good scolding to vent her anger, but at the same time, she dreamed of her beautiful buttocks not being maliciously invaded. Her heart was in turmoil.

Seeing that Xue Xiang didn't turn his head, as if he was still looking for someone, Liu Ying'er reluctantly gave up. Could she really go up to him, grab his collar, and ask angrily if he had hit her there? After all, women were naturally shy, and the place that had been invaded was the most private and embarrassing part of her body. How could she bring herself to speak?

No matter what, Liu Ying'er had already categorized Xue Xiang as one of the lecherous and despicable men. Worried that her buttocks would be invaded again, Liu Ying'er didn't turn her body back, but stood sideways, keeping a close eye on Xue Xiang's every move.

Xue Xiang kept his head turned, pretending to be looking for someone, but he was actually embarrassed, fearing that the girl would make a big fuss, which would be extremely awkward. After a while, seeing no commotion behind him, he relaxed a bit but still didn't dare to turn his head. Xue Xiang took off his wristwatch, a plum blossom watch, and used its smooth, reflective back as a rearview mirror. Adjusting the angle, he saw Liu Ying'er standing sideways, her eyes occasionally glancing at him, realizing that she was suspicious.

He couldn't keep his head turned forever; he needed to think of a strategy. Just as Xue Xiang was thinking, a commotion broke out behind his line. A dozen or so young men were riding their bicycles at high speed towards the queue, not slowing down even as they approached people, causing a great disturbance. The originally crowded queue was cut into several segments, and they used these segments as props to show off their skills, performing various bizarre stunts, sometimes quickly passing by young women and snatching their scarves, sniffing them, and then discarding them, provoking the girls to chase after them and laughing arrogantly.

Xue Xiang knew these were the notorious motorcycle gang from the North City, who often rode in groups to rob passersby and cause trouble, but rarely came to the East City.

Xue Xiang frowned. He could understand the minor mischief of someone like Hao Yunlai, but he detested the habit of these people who considered boredom as a personality trait and took pleasure in provoking others. The motorcycle gang seemed to have noticed Liu Ying'er behind Xue Xiang, their eyes gleaming with lust, and they all grinned lecherously as they sped towards Xue Xiang. The leader was a bald, fat man whose heavy body made his "Big Phoenix" bicycle creak from a distance. It was quite a feat to be so fat in those times.

The fat man's bike was already in front of Xue Xiang, who stood firm. However, the old lady behind him, carrying a basket and holding a five or six-year-old granddaughter, was so frightened that she hurriedly retreated. Unfortunately, she stepped on a stone and fell, pulling the little girl down with her. The basket of about thirty eggs rolled and broke on the ground, the yolk spreading out. The little girl cried, shouting that her schoolbag was gone. The old lady, ignoring her own injuries, crawled on the ground to pick up the eggs. Liu Ying'er, no longer concerned with monitoring Xue Xiang, rushed forward to help collect the eggs.

Xue Xiang's blood boiled at the sight of the little girl's helpless cries, which deeply wounded his sensitive heart, as if it were Xiao Shi crying for his mother. He got off his bike, pushed it aside, and it fell to the ground with a thud. The fat man's bike was already beside him, his greasy, fat face shining in the sunlight.

Without a word, Xue Xiang lifted his military coat and kicked out with a powerful kick. With a "boom," the fat man flew into the air, landing a few meters away. The sturdy "Big Phoenix" bicycle bent into a bow shape. The flying fat man and his bike collided with the motorcycles behind him, causing a pile-up of about ten bikes.

The fat man, covered in dirt, groaned for a long time before standing up, showing that fat indeed had shock-absorbing properties. Since the other party had already attacked, the fat man no longer wasted words and immediately pounced on Xue Xiang.

Xue Xiang didn't say a word, blocking the fat man's hands with his left hand and punching his chin with his right hand. A clean and swift right hook sent the fat man flying, and he collapsed, unable to get up. Xue Xiang always believed in efficient and decisive attacks, unwilling to make any unnecessary movements.

As soon as the fat man fell, two more dirty, long-haired young men pounced. One wore a dark blue military uniform, and the other a Zhongshan suit, both covered in dust, clearly having just gotten up and rushed over without cleaning up. The one in the military uniform pulled out a two-inch military dagger from his neck bag and shouted, "Brat, today I'll use this dagger to bleed you out." In the old Beijing slang, knives and daggers were called "chazi."

Xue Xiang didn't respond, believing that actions were always stronger than words. He struck first, swinging his arms and delivering several powerful slaps to each of them, saying, "Water flows, flowers fall, both indifferent; the sound of slaps sends the autumn wind away."

Xue Xiang's attacks were lightning-fast, and the two men were stunned by the sudden barrage of slaps, their mouths bleeding and several teeth flying out.

Xue Xiang still wasn't satisfied. He grabbed the long-haired man with the dagger, yanked his hair, and swiftly raised his knee, striking the man's face. The man's face was a mess, his hand loosened, and he fell to the ground. The vicious knee strike was both violent and visually impressive, causing the onlookers to gasp in shock at the brutality.

Xue Xiang was always decisive and ruthless, making his opponents remember the encounter for a lifetime.

In an instant, Xue Xiang had taken down three men, shocking the six or seven motorcycle gang members who were about to pounce. They hesitated, unsure whether to attack or not. After exchanging glances, they regrouped and surrounded Xue Xiang, realizing they had no choice but to fight. First, they didn't believe that seven of them, working together, couldn't take down one person if they didn't let him attack them one by one. Second, with so many people watching, if they fled, they would lose face and be unable to survive in Beijing.

Xue Xiang, undaunted, stepped forward. Suddenly, the two leading motorcycle gang members were pulled back by a tall, slender young man, who whispered a few words in their ears. He then turned to the others, and their faces changed instantly. They stopped in their tracks, looking at Xue Xiang with fear, as if they had encountered a ferocious beast.

"Why aren't you moving forward? Do you still want to fight? Haha, looks like you've recognized me. Didn't I tell Kang Xiaoba to stay out of the East City? You know it's not safe here, and it's for your own good. Why don't you listen? I'll have to go and teach Kang Xiaoba a lesson, to strengthen his ideological education," Xue Xiang said, crossing his arms and smiling warmly.

"Brother Three, Brother Three, please be merciful, forgive us this time. We were just itching for trouble. We won't, no, we won't come to the East City again without your permission," the slender young man said, his voice trembling, his nose running, and his forehead sweating, unsure if it was from the cold or the heat.

The East City is really dangerous! The motorcycle gang members truly agreed with Xue Xiang's words.

"An itchy leg is easy to treat. I have a family secret recipe, specifically for itchy legs. One treatment, a lifetime of relief. How about it, want to try?" Xue Xiang said with a playful smile.

The crowd couldn't help but laugh at Xue Xiang's words, but they didn't dare to laugh too openly, fearing that the motorcycle gang members might take it out on them. However, to the motorcycle gang members, Xue Xiang's words were like a bolt of lightning, and they wished they could bite the man who had spoken. They cursed him in their hearts: "Damn Shuishé, if you said your leg was itchy, why did you add 'we' at the end? Who gave you the right to speak for me? If Brother Three really 'treats' my leg, I'll 'treat' your whole body."

"No, no, how could we dare to trouble Brother Three? We'll treat ourselves, thank you, Brother Three, thank you..." Shuishé's face turned pale, and his voice was tinged with tears.

Xue Xiang didn't want to waste time with him and walked over to the three men he had just taken down. The three unfortunate men had just stood up, leaning on each other and gasping for breath. The fat man's double chin was now a single, round ball, and the man with the dagger was in even worse shape, with black and blue eyes, swollen cheeks, and a crooked mouth. The last man was almost the same, except his eyes were normal.

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