Chapter 116: Intense Fame and Fierce Violence

Seeing the diners, who far outnumbered the lone waiter, sit by without a single person stepping forward, Liu Yunfei could not help but feel a wave of sorrow. How times had changed; when had standing up for justice become such an expensive luxury? If everyone possessed even a shred of courage and compassion, could a villain truly be this rampant?

The room grew increasingly silent, save for the soft sobbing of Zhang Xiaoli. Zhou Jinbao looked around at the cowed crowd, feeling even more triumphant. "You, a mere waiter, a common laborer, daring to covet the boss's daughter? If I don't teach you a lesson today, you won't know the height of the heavens or the depth of the earth."

"What a large, stinking maggot." Liu Yunfei stood up and spoke softly. The entire room turned to look at him; their gazes held admiration and worry. Only Zhou Jinbao did not turn. He hadn't noticed; he was still busy contemplating which of the waiter's three legs to break. What? Humans only have two legs? Zhou Jinbao chuckled—wasn't the one between the legs the third?

"What a large, stinking maggot." Liu Yunfei walked two steps closer and repeated himself. When he spoke the first time, Zhang Xiaoli was still sobbing and missed it, but this time she heard him. The voice was so familiar, so longed-for—a voice that had echoed in her dreams countless times, a voice she had wished would speak to her more often. She snapped her head up. It was really him. He walked over with effortless grace, a calm smile on his handsome face, as if no difficulty in the world could bother him. In this moment, he was the angel who had descended from heaven to save her. *No, this is Zhou Jinbao! He’s courting death! I have to stop him—even if I’m ruined by Zhou today, I cannot let the person I love come to harm.*

But it was too late to stop him. Liu Yunfei was already standing behind Zhou Jinbao, speaking clearly: "I said, what a large, stinking maggot." The first time, Zhou hadn't heard; the second, he thought he’d misheard—surely, the person daring to interrupt his fun hadn't even been born yet. This time, he heard clearly. He let go of the waiter and turned around, momentarily stunned. He hadn't expected anyone to actually dare to touch a tiger’s backside. He hadn't seen this kid before; he was just a pretty boy, surely not one to withstand a beating. But if he dared to be this arrogant, could he have some sort of backing?

Liu Yunfei didn't give him time to ponder. He poked his finger against the man’s shaved head. "I asked, are you fucking stupid from being in the underworld? I said you are a stinking maggot! A maggot that makes it impossible for everyone to eat in peace!"

A roar of laughter erupted from the crowd—not because the line was particularly witty, but because it was cathartic; it voiced exactly what they were thinking. However, the moment Zhou Jinbao regained his composure, the laughter cut off instantly. Liu Yunfei could almost hear the screech of their silence.

Zhou Jinbao had collected his thoughts. *I’m arrogant, but this kid is even more arrogant—he must have connections.* Having spent plenty of time in the underworld, Zhou had seen all sorts of characters. He wasn't like the hot-headed youths; while the criminal world claimed not to fear the law, they didn't have the guts to go head-to-head with the authorities either.

Zhou decided to test the waters. "Little brother, which side are you from? I’m Zhou Jinbao of the Sihe Association. If I’ve offended you..." Before he could finish, Zhang Xiaogang shouted from the side, "Brother-in-law, that’s just the classmate my sister likes! He’s a poor kid."

Zhou Jinbao’s rage flared instantly. "So, another toad trying to eat swan meat. I almost let you fool me. If I don't break your three legs today, I won't be surnamed Zhou!" Before the words left his mouth, he raised a fist the size of a spittoon and swung it toward Liu Yunfei’s temple. In his experience, one hit would leave the boy either a vegetable or an idiot. Seeing the tragedy about to unfold, the soft-hearted in the room screamed and closed their eyes, unable to bear the sight.

Zhang Xiaoli also closed her eyes, tears streaming down her face. It was all her fault—if not for her, Liu Yunfei would never have met Zhou Jinbao or faced such disaster. She made a silent vow: whether Liu Yunfei became a vegetable or an idiot, she would spend the rest of her life caring for him.

Liu Yunfei, of course, did not become a vegetable. Zhou Jinbao, however, showed signs of becoming one. He was stunned; the boy before him hadn't even swayed, simply raising his hand to catch the massive fist. Zhou had put the full force of his left arm into that blow. He had once tested his strength on a boxing machine at an arcade, and his full-force strike measured 180 kilograms—enough to instantly floor a 180-kilogram man.

Liu Yunfei clearly didn't weigh 180 kilograms, or he wouldn't be the heartthrob of the girls at Huangjiang High. Yet, with a casual flick of his hand, he had caught Zhou’s fist. Those who hadn't closed their eyes felt the movement was indescribably elegant, like a refined gentleman in a period drama waving a folding fan—effortless and relaxed.

Zhou Jinbao finally realized this kid was no pushover; he truly had backing. His fist was not only stopped but could not even be retracted. He held his breath and strained, his face turning beet-red, but he couldn't pull his hand away from the grip that felt like a tiger’s vice.

Liu Yunfei, meanwhile, looked as relaxed as ever, his smile growing even brighter. He didn't even look like he was exerting effort. In the eyes of everyone watching, the disparity was clear. Some courageous soul led the way, and soon, everyone in the yurt—except for the Zhang family—began to applaud with excitement. Liu Yunfei had become their hero.

Zhang Xiaoli, still eyes-closed, had run through every possible scenario, yet she heard no screams, no thuds, no moaning. After a long wait, she heard only wave after wave of thunderous applause and the cheers of the waiter beside her. Opening her eyes, she saw Liu Yunfei standing tall, while it was Zhou Jinbao who looked like he’d been beaten. She saw Liu Yunfei nod at her with a gentle smile, signaling her not to worry—the same look he’d worn when he’d helped her pay for her phone in the classroom. *Am I dreaming? Did I faint?*

"Your fist is quite something," Liu Yunfei said, his free hand gesturing grandly as if pointing across a landscape. "It’s not that I’m strong; it’s that your punch has no power at all. If I were to hit any of the others here, they would be picking their teeth up off the floor."

In truth, Liu Yunfei knew that if he had hit any of them, they would have been laid out cold. But he felt he needed to inspire courage in everyone, to give them the strength to fight against evil. Sure enough, as soon as he spoke, the crowd’s hearts were filled with righteous fervor; their long-dormant sense of justice surged. Several young men began shouting, "Hit him! Hit him!"

Having achieved his goal, Liu Yunfei stopped wasting words. He twisted and swung the arm he was holding. He had intended to throw Zhou Jinbao toward the wall, but he remembered this was a makeshift yurt—there were no real walls, and with Zhou’s bulk, the structure would collapse and injure the diners.

Instead, Liu Yunfei swung him in the opposite direction. Can you throw a man head-first by his fist? Liu Yunfei had clearly watched too many action movies. Knowing Zhou was heavy, he used significant force. With a twist and a swing, a pig-like shriek tore through the air, and everyone present witnessed the most violent scene of their lives.

Later, someone described it to a reporter: "I saw the young man shift his upper body, just a simple, effortless tug. We all thought Zhou Jinbao would fly through the air like on TV and crash into a table full of bowls and dishes. Instead, I saw nothing but blood—severed limbs flying everywhere, blood everywhere! Zhou Jinbao was covered in it. The scene was so horrific we all forgot to scream. I still have nightmares about it. It was too violent, too terrifying, but also so satisfying. But Zhou Jinbao's arm came off too easily. If I had been the one holding his fist, maybe the same thing would have happened." The witness seemed to have come to view Zhou Jinbao’s arm as a cooked frog’s leg that anyone could pull off.

Zhou Jinbao felt a massive force, and suddenly his left arm felt light. A surge of agony numbed half his body. He saw his entire arm, hand included, ripped clean off by Liu Yunfei. Blood spurted out, his shoulder joint mangled, red blood, white bone, and yellow tendons exposed in a gruesome display. Zhou Jinbao wailed, desperately trying to press his hand against the gushing wound, sweat the size of beans pouring down his face.

Liu Yunfei hadn't expected this and didn't want a murder case on his hands. He tossed the severed arm in front of Zhou. "Take it and get to a hospital to stop the bleeding."

Zhou Jinbao finally displayed the speed of a leopard. He snatched up his severed arm and fled without looking back. Between the blood loss, the blinding pain, and his lack of balance, he stumbled along his path, leaving a trail of screams and blood. Bystanders immediately called the police, while some of the Zhou family's cronies outside rushed to call their masters to curry favor.