Chapter 7 Underdog

• “You, your name is Zhang Chao right? Since you came, I guess that makes you one of my guests. Here, drink.”
• Still sitting down, I looked up into her face. Beautiful, refined, and full of unfriendliness behind her eyes.
• I sneered silently inside, and prepared myself to see what she has in store for me. I took the cup she offered, gulped it down in one go, and dunked the empty cup upside down on the table.
• The crowd cheered, and Chu Xiaoxiao smiled and filled the cup again, “Oh, a bold and daring one. Good, then I'll say it out in the open. You, hanging out and pestering around my girlfriend, you just want to get into her pants aren't you?”
• If I haven’t swallowed the drink down in one go already, this would have made me choking on my own drink. Just what sort of mind does this girl have? Or do all girls talk just as bluntly as she does these days?
• Lin Fang quickly called out to her, “Xiaoxiao, don't, that's not it,”
• Xiaoxiao continued regardless, “My girlfriend here isn't as thick skinned as you, so I'll say it in her stead. She's just too nice to reject you outright. My Fang Fang and Chen Yuzhou has always been good together. They don't need a third wheel like you meddling between them. Don't you feel ashamed at all? And you call yourself a man? And a word of advice, you should know who Chen Yuzhou is. Nothing good can come to you if you pester his people. Here, if you're even half of a man as you try to make yourself to be, take this drink and let the past be past, and stay away from Fang Fang from now on.”
• Lin Fang pulled Chu Xiaoxiao back to her, her face red with anger, “Xiaoxiao, what are you even saying? That's not what's happening between me and Chen Yuzhou! And you're wrong about Zhang Chou too!”
• “Wrong? I don't think so, I think what Chu Xiaoxiao said was pretty spot on.”
• In the midst of surprised gasps, Chen Yuzhou stood.
• Seeing this, just as I wondered when did he suddenly grew a pair of balls, the door burst open and four large men came in. Chen Yuzhou gave them a nod, and the four of them came and cornered me on my seat.
• As they moved, something about the way they walked seemed odd. And sure enough, when they came near, I saw that they were all equipped with thick steel pipes buckled to their belt around their waist.
• Looks like they were hired hitters. They stood towering over me, waiting for Chen Yuzhou to signal them to start doing their job.
• Though he knew that I was difficult to deal with, Chen Yuzhou probably didn't know that I also served five years in the armed forces. He probably thought that these four that he hired would be enough to handle me.
• With the drink Chu Xiaoxiao put in front of me, and the four men that surrounded me menacingly, all others in the room finally began to realize what is going to happen.
• Lin Fang panicked and tugged at Chen Yuzhou, but he ignored her. Instead, he put a hand around her waist, pulled her body in pressing against his and cornered her against the wall. Looking at what he was doing with his hand to her, my hand tightened around my cup in anger.
• “Zhang Chou, let me put it this way. Since Fang Fang was nice enough to invite you here, we'll be civil about this. Here, drink it up, get out of here and never come into our sight again, and nothing will happen to you. Either that, or you won't have a leg to walk out of that door again.”
• I kept my head down in silence, and continued my game of Tetris. It was one of my favorites when I was in the force. Since we're usually forbidden from all forms of communication to the outside, and this game doesn't require connections to any servers to play.
• The crowd looked on, astonished, in the sight that I was able to keep my calm even when surrounded by so many thugs.
• Finishing my game off, I looked up and smiled, “Sorry. No.”
• Chu Xiaoxiao’s face was darker than mud. Holding back onto her outburst, “Don't be unreasonable. Drink, and let it be. Don't assume that we’ll always be this nice and patient.”
• “Patient and nice? Threatening violence and telling me to stay away from Lin Fang is your definition of being patient and nice? Look, the two of them aren't even girlfriend and boyfriend.”
• Chen Yuzhou’s face darkened in silence. Then suddenly, someone from the crowd exclaimed, “Oh, I finally remembered, aren’t you Zhang Chou the little piss drinker? I remember making you drink from the urinal back then, good times!”
• I was calm, but hearing that blew away all my restraint. This was my one taboo, whoever that would dare to touch, dies.
• I turned my head towards the direction of the voice. When they walked in, the light was a little dim so I wasn't able to recognize him straight away, but now I did. Liu Hu, one of the few that I had a personal score to settle with.
• Chen Yuzhou’s mouth curled into a vicious smile, and I understood completely just what is going on here. Simply put, he knew that I’d be here, so he called Liu Hu here to humiliate me.
• “For those of you who might have forgotten, let me refresh your memory. Here is the walking legend of the Tong City High School. Zhang Chao the piss drinker. Remembering now? The school idiot of the year, who loves to drink from the urinal. No wonder he doesn't want your drink, Chu Xiaoxiao. His taste and preference is a little bit different than us usual folks.”
• The entire room roared into laughter, among chatters and whispers discussing and asking about the incident.
• I didn't know most of these people, but they all know who was. Back then, the entire school knew about the incident where Liu Hu beat me to the point where I had no choice but to withdraw from going to school entirely.
• Chen Yuzhou said, in pretend innocence, “Oh, I didn't know that. In that case, Zhang Chao, if you're not in a hurry to go, why don't you stay and we can have a nice long talk about that? I just realized that, for all the years that we've been school together, I don't actually know a lot about you.”
• “Oh, so that's who he is, that one retard that didn't know how to talk properly!”
• “Oh, the urine superman. I remember now. He used to be so poor that he was still wearing clothes from his junior high when he was in our class in high school. I used to think that he just have a thing for three quarter pants.”
• “Hah! Now that you mention it, I think I remembered too. Seriously, that poor, and he is after Lin Fang? Is he crazy or just dumb?”
• “Fang Fang, you didn't get tricked by him, did you? Losers like him these days always go for the pure and innocent type like you. Open your eyes, and for once see him for who he truly is.”
• Ridicules and jests of all kinds pierced my ears, as my knuckles turned white from clenching my hands hard into fist.
• Lin Fang pushed at Chen Yuzhou, trying to stop him from saying these things. In response, Chen Yuzhou only growled at Lin Fang, “Aren’t you such a kind and caring friend to him. One more word out of you, and I’ll make sure that he won’t have a leg to walk out of here.”
• “Don’t, don’t do this, he has done nothing to you, let him go. Let’s keep what happened between you and me to ourselves.” Lin Fang pleaded.
• Hearing that, I stood up, a whole head taller than Chu Xiaoxiao. As expected of that outgoing personality of hers, she was bold and daring enough to stare right into my eyes, without even taking a step back.
• “Now now, though everyone’s words were a bit harsh, they’re all true nonetheless. You’re not in the same league as us, and staying here any longer would only bring more trouble upon yourself. Drink up, and leave. After this, you go your way, and we go ours. You don’t bother us, and we won’t bother you either.”
• I was so moved by her words that I think I might puke in disgust. I snorted, “Thank you, I never took you for the considerate type before. Don’t you even feel a little bit ashamed of that so called ‘kindness’ of yours?”
• Chu Xiaoxiao glared at me, “I know, you poor people have your honor and pride and whatnot, but they have nothing to do with me. I can swear to God, I’m not one to discriminate anyone just by how much money they have, but leave my dearest girlfriend out of this. If this had been any other girl that you’re after, you can bet that I won’t give a rat’s ass about whatever you do.”
• “That’s right, Zhang Chou, since you’re probably too poor to even afford a mirror, pee a puddle and take a look at yourself. You, and Lin Fang? How could you possibly think that you could match up to her? Really, even the greatest matchmaker in the world won’t be able to find a match for you. Oh, that’s right, you’re too poor to even afford to see a matchmaker, I’m so sorry for hurting your little pride!” Liu Hu joked, roaring in laughter.
• Chen Yuzhou immediately followed up, “Or a shrink, since something’s definitely not right in your head if you think you’re actually somebody!”