Chapter 217
Chapter 217
Waiting until Zhao Ming turned around, Zhao Fei carried his soup over and pretended to bump into him by accident.
“Ow!”
“Ah!”
Both cried out at the same time.
Half the bowl of soup in Zhao Fei’s hand spilled all over Zhao Ming.
The surrounding students stared blankly at this sudden scene, mainly because one of the “parties involved” was Zhao Fei, the worst of the Three Great Villains.
(The Three Great Villains were Zhao Fei, Li Jinlong, and Chen Daji, ranked in that order according to how obnoxious they were.)
Children from poor families learned to shoulder responsibility early.
Zhao Ming already did his best to avoid trouble, and now he was facing the infamous Fatty Zhao. He hurriedly apologized.
“I’m sorry, Zhao Boss. I wasn’t watching and didn’t see you.”
Without daring to lift his head, he picked up the half bun that had fallen onto the floor, gently wiped it off, and started to leave.
Zhao Ming’s reaction left Zhao Fei at a complete loss.
Why wasn’t he following the script?!
Wasn’t he supposed to argue with Zhao Fei and blame him for the collision?!
Watching Zhao Ming walk away, Chen Daji, who had been observing from hiding, grew anxious.
“Zhao Ming, stop right there!”
When the other students saw a second member of the Three Great Villains appear, they silently mourned for Zhao Ming.
Of all the people he could have offended, why did it have to be this partnership of “money and power”? He was finished now!
Completely unaware that he had made the entrance of a villain, Chen Daji tried to put on what he considered a friendly smile.
“Zhao Ming, Fatty Zhao bumped into you and got your clothes dirty. Why didn’t you curse him?”
Zhao Fei looked equally confused.
“Exactly! Even if you don’t curse me, you should at least make me buy you a new set of clothes! Or does everyone already know that I’ve become poor…?”
An honest mountain boy like Zhao Ming did not dare become entangled with the “Two Great Villains.” He hurriedly said in a quiet voice,
“My clothes aren’t worth anything. It doesn’t matter if they’re dirty. There’s no need to compensate me.
“If the two bosses don’t need anything else, I’ll go eat now…”
“Wait!” Chen Daji hurriedly grabbed him.
He had not done his good deed yet. How could he let Zhao Ming leave so easily?
“This isn’t over. What’s your hurry? Will eating a little later kill you?”
Seeing Chen Daji and Zhao Fei relentlessly “bullying” Zhao Ming, several of his roommates could stand it no longer. Fueled by anger, they stepped forward.
“You two have gone too far! Zhao Fei was clearly the one who bumped into Zhao Ming!
“He didn’t even dare complain. What more do you want from him?”
Wonderful!
Someone had finally joined the performance. Chen Daji’s face immediately lit up with excitement.
He hurriedly took the outspoken Li Nan by the arm and “patiently guided” him.
“You’re absolutely right! Fatty Zhao was the one who bumped into Zhao Ming. So how do you think this should be settled?”
Looking at Chen Daji’s “sinister grin,” Li Nan began to regret speaking.
What rotten luck! Why had he dragged the conflict onto himself when it had nothing to do with him?
Yet this land of theirs had never lacked hot-blooded men willing to roar at injustice.
Li Nan gritted his teeth, stamped his foot, and shouted defiantly,
“Fine, I’ll say it! What can you two do to me? Zhao Fei should buy Zhao Ming a new set of clothes!”
At last, someone had spoken the crucial “line.” Chen Daji felt as relieved as if years of constipation had cleared in an instant.
No longer needing anyone else to join the “performance,” he began playing off Zhao Fei, who knew the script.
“Fatty Zhao, do you think you should compensate him?”
Zhao Fei nodded repeatedly, the fat on his face quivering.
“Of course I should!”
“How much do you think you should pay him, Fatty?”
Pretending to appraise the outfit, Zhao Fei circled the anxious Zhao Ming and looked him up and down.
“This student’s clothes combine refinement with antiquity, yet lose none of their elegance.
“However you look at them, they’re antiques! At current market prices, they must be worth at least eight hundred yuan!”
Chen Daji chuckled and continued his “performance.”
“Then that settles the price of the clothes.
“I just noticed that your soup scalded Zhao Ming’s hand red, Fatty Zhao! Don’t you need to pay some medical expenses too?!”
As he spoke, Chen Daji glanced at Zhao Ming’s completely uninjured hands and looked rather embarrassed.
Pretending to examine him with concern, he simply squeezed hard enough to leave a red handprint.
Hehe. Perfect!
Zhao Fei nodded repeatedly once more and pulled a pre-counted wad of cash from his trouser pocket.
“Little Chick, I’ll show you some respect today! There’s twelve hundred yuan here. Eight hundred for the clothes, and the rest for medical expenses and emotional distress!”
Zhao Fei handed the money to Chen Daji.
The brute ignored Zhao Ming’s stunned expression and stuffed it straight into his hand. Taking advantage of the moment, he whispered too softly for anyone else to hear,
“You know how to buy yourself something good to eat, right?! Stop fucking eating nothing but cabbage. You’re not a rabbit!
“What nutrition does that stuff have? Don’t you know poor nutrition will interfere with your studies?
“Eat as much as you want! If you run out of money, just bump into me on purpose next time…”
Their good deed complete, Chen Daji and Zhao Fei slung their arms around each other’s shoulders.
Under the astonished gazes of the surrounding students, they wandered off with foolish grins to find the next target for their staged collision.
Zhao Ming watched their rather disreputable-looking backs. His lips moved soundlessly, forming two words:
Thank you.
In China during the 1990s, twelve hundred yuan was enough to cover every expense a village high school student incurred for an entire semester.