Chapter 9

Gao Wei was so frightened by Zhang Yang's arrogant words that his face turned deathly pale. He had no idea how to deal with the situation tonight. This young punk, who didn't know the weight of the world, actually dared to speak to Chang Qijin like that.

Chang Qijin, being publicly scolded by a student, could not bear the humiliation. He gritted his teeth and cursed, "Little bastard, are you looking for death?" He pulled out the iron rod from his belt and charged at Zhang Yang. Since it was just a student he was dealing with, his gang did not rush in all at once. Chang Qijin had been in the underworld for many years, and dealing with a young punk should be a piece of cake.

However, things often turn out unexpectedly. Before Chang Qijin's iron rod could even touch Zhang Yang, Zhang Yang had already grabbed his wrist. With a seemingly casual tug and pull, Chang Qijin's elbow joint dislocated, and he screamed in pain. The iron rod slipped from his grasp and was caught by Zhang Yang, who then jabbed it into Chang Qijin's open mouth and roared, "In broad daylight, how can you ruffians be allowed to wreak havoc?"

Seeing Chang Qijin taken down by a medical intern, over a dozen gang members all charged forward with their sticks.

Zhang Yang twisted Chang Qijin's left hand, making him turn his back, and then kicked him in the back of the knee. Chang Qijin's legs buckled, and he knelt down. Zhang Yang aimed the iron rod at Chang Qijin's head and threatened, "Do you believe I can smash your head with one blow?"

Chang Qijin shouted, "Stop, stop..." He knew that the other person had dislocated his right arm with just one move, clearly a skilled fighter. Chang Qijin was not stupid and understood that a wise man does not seek to win a fight he cannot win.

The gang members, seeing Chang Qijin restrained, reluctantly stopped in their tracks.

Two patrol officers were walking over from a distance. Seeing the police, the gang members scattered in a panic.

Only then did Zhang Yang release Chang Qijin. The two patrol officers had already arrived and, seeing the situation, immediately understood what had happened. The county's public security was not good, and fights broke out almost every night, but they did not expect one of the parties to be a student.

The taller officer, Zhao Dongliang, had met Gao Wei a few times. After listening to Gao Wei's account, he went to Chang Qijin and pointed at him, "Chang Qijin, it's you causing trouble again. If you keep this up, I'll lock you up for a few days."

Chang Qijin, with his right arm hanging limply, groaned in pain, "Are you kidding? I'm the one who got beaten. My... right arm might be broken... This kid is guilty of assault... I'm going to report him..."

Only then did Zhao Dongliang notice Zhang Yang, who had already thrown away the iron rod and was standing with his arms crossed, pretending to be uninvolved.

Chang Qijin, using his left hand, pointed at Zhang Yang, "He's the one who beat me!"

Zhao Dongliang, of course, did not believe him. Zhang Yang walked over and lightly patted Chang Qijin's right arm, saying, "If you want to frame someone, you can always find a reason, but be careful, or you'll suffer the consequences later!"

Chang Qijin screamed in pain from the pat but was surprised to find that his right arm had returned to normal and could move freely. Realizing he had encountered a true expert, he dared not stay any longer and mumbled a few words before slinking away.

The two patrol officers gave Gao Wei a few instructions, advising them to go home early. Gao Wei, who was already deeply regretful about the incident, had even forgotten about his invitation to Zuo Xiaoqing for a movie the day after tomorrow. He parted ways with the other students.

Not only did Zuo Xiaoqing realize that Zhang Yang had martial arts skills, but the other students also began to reassess this medical student. Chen Guowei, who had lived with him for half a year, did not know that Zhang Yang had such skills and no longer spoke to him with the same condescension: "Zhang Yang, have you practiced martial arts?"

Zhang Yang chuckled, "A little bit."

Hong Ling, curious, leaned in, "What kind of martial arts?"

"Yi Jin Jing, the Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms, and so on..."

Everyone looked at each other, speechless...

Zhang Yang suddenly realized that in this era, telling the truth often made people less likely to believe you.

Zhang Yang's behavior of fighting and skipping work did not result in any criticism. The so-called threat by Director Zhou to contact the school was just talk. He was only an intern, far from being someone the hospital leadership would pay attention to.

Zhang Yang had a strong ability to adapt. He devoted almost all his time to reading books, newspapers, and watching TV. As a famous person once said, "I throw myself into books as a hungry man throws himself into bread," which perfectly described Zhang Yang's current state.

After lunch, Zhang Yang buried himself in the hospital's reading room, reading the newspapers there. His reading interests were very broad, and with the attitude of "the more, the better," he read everything with Chinese characters, except for English newspapers. However, digesting everything he read was not something that could be accomplished in a short time.

Zhang Yang, feeling a bit tired, rubbed his forehead and noticed that Zuo Xiaoqing was sitting opposite him. Her long black hair was braided into two cute braids, adding a touch of playfulness to her appearance. Zuo Xiaoqing had actually been there for half an hour and had already seen Zhang Yang, but she noticed that this strange guy was always buried in newspapers and had not paid attention to anything else around him.

Zuo Xiaoqing gave Zhang Yang a sweet smile, her cheeks showing two shallow dimples, which were very charming.

Zhang Yang also smiled and, with no one else in the reading room, whispered, "Not at work?"

Zuo Xiaoqing lowered her voice, "It's quiet here!" In fact, she had come here to avoid people. It was Friday, and it happened to be February 14th, Valentine's Day. Gao Wei had already invited her to a movie through Hong Ling the day before. Zuo Xiaoqing did not want to go but was afraid Gao Wei would come looking for her at the department, so she had hidden in the hospital reading room. She did not expect to run into Zhang Yang here.

Zhang Yang looked out the window and then at the wall clock. It was already 4:30 PM, and it was almost time to go home. After a few days of study, he had learned Arabic numerals and had smoothly transitioned from the traditional time system to the 24-hour clock.

Suddenly, Zuo Xiaoqing's pocket beeped. Under Zhang Yang's curious gaze, she pulled out a Motorola pager. In the early 1990s, this small black box was still a symbol of status. The message was from Gao Wei, which read: "Where are you? 7:00 PM tonight, at the entrance of Dawn Cinema, see you there—Gao Wei."

Zuo Xiaoqing smiled helplessly. Among her classmates, only Hong Ling knew her pager number, so it must have been her who had betrayed her.

Zhang Yang, always curious about new things, leaned in and saw the message: "What's this little box?"

Zuo Xiaoqing, not expecting him to suddenly lean in, panicked and turned off the screen, her face turning red as she scolded, "How impolite! Do you like to pry into other people's privacy?"

Zhang Yang snorted, "What privacy? Isn't it just that hypocritical Gao teacher?"