The moment the call connected, a woman's furious roar came from the other end.
Lu Lin couldn't help laughing. Was this some new scam? They were even pretending to be the victim's girlfriend. But Lu Lin was a single guy through and through; he wasn't falling for that.
"Oh? Why should I answer your call? Who are you to me?"
"Sorry, are you supposed to be my girlfriend?"
"Heh. Next time you make a scam call, try finding out a little more first. I don't have a girlfriend."
"Click."
Lu Lin finished in one breath and hung up.
As far as he was concerned, there was no need to hesitate with scammers. You had to be firm.
That should stop that scammer from calling again, right?
To his surprise, the phone in his hand rang again. It was the same number as before.
"Are you done yet, you damn scammer?"
"Lu Lin!!!"
"It's Liu Weiran!!!"
Liu Weiran's furious voice came from the other end.
She was about ready to die of anger because of Lu Lin.
He'd injured her hand during their sparring that morning, then acted as if nothing had happened and paid her no mind. When she called him, he'd hung up on her more than ten times in a row. And when he finally answered, he called her a scammer!
The nerve.
"What? Liu Weiran?"
Listening to the somewhat familiar voice through the receiver, Lu Lin thought that maybe, possibly, it really was Liu Weiran after all.
"You're not trying to trick me, are you?"
"Trick your ass! Why would I trick you? You're unbelievable!"
"Lu Lin, you injured my hand, and you didn't even bother to ask how I was! I had to call you, and then you thought I was a scammer."
Hearing that, Lu Lin knew the person on the other end probably wasn't a scammer.
"Uh, so it really is Liu Weiran. Sorry, sorry. The anti-fraud app on my phone just warned me that your call was a scam."
"By the way, did you need something this late? I was just about to call you. How's your hand?"
Liu Weiran was left speechless by Lu Lin's string of words. So he was just going to pretend that hanging up on her over and over hadn't happened?
She forcibly suppressed her anger. The important thing came first.
"My hand's fine. I'm not dead yet. I heard you signed a contract with the Martial Arts School. You're officially a sparring partner now, right?"
"Right, right. From now on, I'll be working for you, Young Miss. Please take good care of me."
"Oh?"
Hearing how smoothly Lu Lin spoke, Liu Weiran's mood improved a little. She lifted the corner of her mouth. "Of course I'll take care of you. Lu Lin, since you chose to become an official sparring partner, you probably don't want the Martial Arts School to fire you over some little thing, right?"
That sounded... kind of familiar.
Lu Lin smiled. "Young Miss, just tell me what you need. If it's within my power, I'll walk through fire and climb a mountain of blades without hesitation."
"Good!"
"That's all I needed to hear. I'm out having barbecue. Come keep me company."
"Huh?"
Lu Lin froze. Was this really part of the job for a sparring partner at the Martial Arts School?
"What do you mean, 'huh'? I'll send you my location. Hurry up and get a taxi over here. That's that."
Afraid Lu Lin might change his mind, Liu Weiran hung up as soon as she finished speaking. Soon, after Lu Lin accepted her friend request, she sent him a location and a 200-yuan red packet.
The note on the red packet read, "Taxi fare."
Lu Lin was speechless, but he accepted the money and took a cab.
East City Old Wang's Barbecue.
It was like the street barbecue joints Lu Lin used to visit in his previous life: fragrant grilled meat, ice-cold beer, loud-talking Martial Artists, women laughing without a care, smoke billowing everywhere—a bustling, lively scene of everyday life.
Lu Lin got out of the cab and paid the fare. It was exactly 200 yuan, not a cent more or less.
As soon as he stepped out, he saw Liu Weiran waving to him. Beside her stood a mature-looking man.
He wore a dark blue, custom-tailored suit, and his hair was slicked down so meticulously that even a fly would slip right off. With gold-rimmed glasses, he looked refined and elegant, yet completely out of place at a barbecue stand.
Lu Lin's heart gave a thump. He knew Liu Weiran wouldn't have called him out this late for anything good. But since he was already there, and he'd still have to work at the Young Miss's family's Martial Arts School, he might as well grit his teeth and face it.
"Liu—"
"Brother Lu Lin, what took you so long?"
Lu Lin had just started to speak when Liu Weiran walked over, linked her arm through his, and spoke in a coquettish voice.
The thing was, as she spoke, she kept swaying back and forth, letting Lu Lin feel that soft touch that belonged to a young woman.
"Ahem."
Lu Lin said nothing, but the sharply dressed young man stood up. A trace of gloom flashed in his eyes, though he still asked with a smile, "Little Sister Weiran, who is this...?"
"Brother Tianhu, this is my boyfriend, Lu Lin. He works at our family's Martial Arts School."
Liu Weiran spoke softly, then turned to Lu Lin, her expression changing at once. "Brother Lu Lin, this is Ma Tianhu. You can call him Brother Tianhu, like I do."
"Brother Tianhu's father used to be in the same reclamation squad as my dad. Brother Tianhu is like an older brother to me, and he always looked after me."
If Liu Weiran had said nothing, it might have been fine. But the moment those words left her mouth, Ma Tianhu could no longer maintain his gentle expression.
"Lu Lin?"
Ma Tianhu sneered. At noon, four Martial Artists under him had gone to deal with Lu Lin, only to return empty-handed. And now this bitch Liu Weiran had called him over to act as a shield. It seemed Lu Lin did have a few tricks up his sleeve.
But he was just an ordinary person. He actually dared to compete with him for a woman? He was asking to die.
"What's your strength now? How much money do you have? Can you give Weiran a happy life in the future?"
"Don't worry, Brother Tianhu."
Before Lu Lin could say a word, Liu Weiran hurriedly answered, "Brother Tianhu, Lu Lin may not be a Martial Artist yet, but he's really hard. He signed a Martial Artist-grade sparring contract today. He'll definitely take good care of our relationship and our life together. After my dad's gone, Lu Lin will inherit Liu's Martial Arts School. Then he'll have made something of himself."
"Pfft—"
In the darkness some distance away, a certain middle-aged man who heard Liu Weiran say this nearly spat out a mouthful of blood.
Daughter, your old man is in the prime of his life, at the peak of a Martial Artist's strength, and you've already arranged what will happen a hundred years after he's gone. What a filial daughter you are.
"Oh, it seems Little Sister Weiran has someone to rely on now. She doesn't need me, Brother Tianhu, anymore."
"Fine, then. I hope you two will be happy together."
Ma Tianhu's face was ashen. In his heart, he had already sentenced Lu Lin to death.
Originally, Lu Lin had only been a pawn for him to use to pressure the Liu family. He hadn't expected Lu Lin to have such strong defenses. Now Liu Weiran was using him as a shield too. This man deserved to die.
After saying that, Ma Tianhu turned to leave. He had plenty of ways to deal with Lu Lin; there was no need to do it here. He could let him enjoy himself a little longer.
"Take care, Brother Tianhu. Lu Lin and I won't see you off."
Ma Tianhu paused, then quickened his pace.
"Take care, Brother Tianhu. Thanks for looking after Weiran all these years. You can leave her to me from now on."
Unwilling to be used as someone's shield just like that, Lu Lin put an arm around Liu Weiran's shoulders.
Ma Tianhu turned back. A chilling glint reflected off his glasses. He gave Lu Lin a long, heavy look, then got into a black car and quickly vanished from their sight.
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