No Fight? Bad Review

Noon.

The employer's daughter was ready. Her name was Wang Yi, and she came out and looked timidly at Lu Xing and Chen Shu.

"Let's go."

"Okay."

Lu Xing glanced at the father and daughter, then thought for a moment. "Miss Wang, ride with us. Your dad can follow in his car."

"Mm."

They went down to the first floor and out of the building.

Several young men were squatting downstairs with nothing to do. Two uniformed security guards were telling them to leave, but they were thick-skinned and pretended not to hear. The guards were helpless. They made only a few thousand a month, nowhere near enough to start hitting people.

When Lu Xing spotted them, he asked the father and daughter to wait by the stairwell. He walked over, offered each young man a cigarette, and spoke humbly.

"Come on, brothers, let's leave it at that. It's cold out. Go home and get some rest."

One of the young men glanced at him and Chen Shu behind him. He took the cigarette and spread his hands.

"I'd love to rest, but the job's not done. I'll get chewed out if I go back!"

"That's usually how it goes. We're all just trying to put food on the table, so let's give each other some room and save face. If there's still a problem later, have your boss contact our company. Our manager will host a dinner and apologize to him." Lu Xing added, "What do you say, brother?"

"I just asked the boss. He said either she agrees to his terms today, or we make sure her interview goes down the drain."

"Well..."

Lu Xing looked troubled. "Honestly, you're in the wrong to begin with. The court's already ruled on it. This is going a bit too far outside the rules."

"Who cares about right and wrong!"

"You've got a point there, brother." Lu Xing went along with him. "But at the end of the day, aren't we all out here to make money? The authorities are cracking down harder on this sort of thing, too. If it blows up, the people above us will have made their money, while working guys like us take the blame. We'll earn nothing and end up buried in trouble. Honestly, it's not worth it."

"If I listen to you, I'm the one who'll be in trouble today!"

"I'm in a tight spot too..." Lu Xing let out a long sigh. "The company took the commission and insisted I handle it. If I'd had any choice, I wouldn't have come."

"Then what do you want us to do? Tell them to pay up! We're not even asking for much. Three million will do!"

"That's too much."

"Won't pay three million? Fine, make it eight million! If they don't pay, just watch the number climb!"

"Then there's nothing for it. I've taken the commission, and you and I both have to find a way to answer to our bosses." Lu Xing kept his tone gentle. "Let's do this by the rules. All I can say is, if you're tougher than us today, no matter how badly you beat me, as long as I'm not dead or crippled, I won't give you any trouble. I'll say I fell."

"..."

The young men looked at one another.

How had the conversation taken this turn? All they meant was that if they didn't get the money today, they would follow Wang Yi to her interview and ruin it.

Who said anything about fighting you?

By then, Lu Xing had already rolled up his sleeves.

The young man who had been speaking glanced at Lu Xing's arm. Its thick muscles had a brass sheen unlike normal skin. It looked hard at a glance.

They looked at one another again.

Come to think of it, people from a commission company who took jobs like this were probably professional fighters, right?

We're amateurs...

Just then, Lu Xing paused. As though he had lost his nerve, he said, "How about we forget it? I don't want to fight either. You never know who'll win, and getting beaten up feels awful. There's really no point. Why don't you go back and tell your bosses that the May Commission Company sent people to stop you? Let them take it up with the company!"

"The May Commission Company? I've heard of it."

"It's a pretty big outfit. We've taken jobs like this before, and usually giving the name settles it. Everyone makes their own money. No need to sour things over something so small, right? You're collecting debts. You can do that today, tomorrow, any day. Once we leave, carry on as usual. It won't make much difference, and we'll owe you one."

"What's your name?"

"Wang Yang. And what should I call you, brother? I'll buy you a drink next time we meet."

"The brothers call me Thunder Tiger."

"What a coincidence. My mother's surname is Lei too..."

"My real surname is Huang."

"Even more of a coincidence! My wife's surname is Huang. May my son be born without a butthole if I'm lying." Lu Xing held out a red envelope. "I'd hate for your bosses to be unhappy and leave you brothers out of pocket. Please bear with us, and have a drink tonight."

"All right..."

The young men opened the red envelope on the spot.

Lu Xing quietly went back with Chen Shu to collect the father and daughter.

The young men did not stop them as they walked past. Instead, they crowded around to peek at the money in the envelope. Their expressions were peculiar: pleased, but too embarrassed to show it in front of Lu Xing for fear of being laughed at, so they forced themselves to look calm.

They got into the company car.

Chen Shu asked, "Brother Lu, how much did you put in?"

"Eight hundred."

"Not much, but it was still generous of you."

"In a society governed by law, it's best not to fight if we can avoid it. Even if they must have records, and we insist they threw the first punch, we'd still have to go in and deal with it at the very least," Lu Xing said as he drove. "That money's only enough for a meal or two. What really pleased them was feeling respected. That's rare for them."

"They won't come cause trouble when we get to the company, will they?" Wang Yi asked.

"We'll stay on guard the whole time."

"Thank you. This interview really matters to me," Wang Yi said quickly. "My teacher put a lot of effort into getting me this chance. She has high hopes for me. If I pass, I'll enter six months of closed training, and I won't have to go to school and put up with their harassment."

"It's our job."

The car left the residential complex. Only after a glance behind showed that no one was following did they head toward the company.

The Royal Song and Dance Troupe was an umbrella name. It encompassed many art forms and the artists who practiced them. Dance alone covered major styles from past and present, both domestic and foreign. Alongside its renowned older artists, fresh talent continued to join.

The Royal Song and Dance Troupe no longer performed solely for the royal family. It appeared at major official occasions, such as the Martial Games gala, New Year's Eve celebrations, and state banquets. It also often traveled abroad to show foreign barbarians what authentic Celestial Empire aesthetics looked like.

In recent years, as the internet age arrived, the Royal Song and Dance Troupe had even set up an official account and often performed songs and dances for its many online viewers.

It had even evolved into a company.

The company belonged to the royal family, of course.

In this world, there was no saying that the Son of Heaven should not compete with the people for profit. The royal family owned many businesses across a wide range of fields. They valued their reputation, so the public trusted them.

Wang Yi was interviewing for the Underwater Dance Troupe.

Underwater dance was performed beneath the water. The dancers wore traditional clothes, their ribbons drifting as they moved. It was beautiful and ethereal, much like flying apsara dance, yet distinct from it.

Sitting in the passenger seat, Chen Shu added, "You still need to settle this as soon as possible. Otherwise, even if you pass the interview, they could keep harassing you whenever they find out where you live. I'd suggest making reasonable use of the media and the internet."

"I know." Wang Yi sounded worried and helpless. "If I perform well at the company, maybe I can use its connections to scare them off."

"That's one way."

The car gradually approached the company entrance.

Lu Xing parked across the road from the company. Chen Shu walked Wang Yi over, then returned. The two waited outside in case the debt collectors came to make a scene and hurt Wang Yi's chances at the interview. It would be bad if their pay got docked.

"Haah..."

Chen Shu yawned and looked around.

Time passed little by little.

Nothing unexpected happened.

By the time Wang Yi came out, it was nearly evening.

Chen Shu got out and opened the car door for her.

"Did it go smoothly?"

"I have to wait to hear back." Wang Yi seemed happy. "I think it went pretty well."

"Let's head back, then."

"Thank you both. Once you take me home, the commission is complete, and we'll transfer the remaining payment right away," Wang Yi said. "I never want them harassing me again. I'll have my parents change their phone numbers as soon as we get back, and we'll move tonight. Let me save one of your numbers. If anything happens again, I won't post a commission. I'll contact you directly."

"Sure."

"Sure."

Both of them agreed.

That was today's commission completed.

They had barely done a thing, and six thousand was coming in.

Lu Xing had taught Chen Shu a lesson, too.

Chen Shu had thought a commission like this meant confronting the debt collectors head-on and dragging those bastards out for a thorough beating, with no other way around it. Apparently not.

To sum up his impression of the debt collectors—

That's it?

No wonder the group chat doesn't take you seriously. You're not even in their league.

Yujing University, Building 6, Locust Court.

As Chen Shu went upstairs, he opened Feixin—

Supervisor Wang had asked two hours ago whether things were going smoothly.

Half an hour ago, Chen Banxia had sent him a picture and told him the dumplings were delicious. She had eaten some earlier, then kept saving the rest until she finally finished them today. On the surface, she was praising him. In truth, she was urging him to make good on his promise and fill her fridge soon.

Qingqing had been quiet all along.

Chen Shu replied to Supervisor Wang first—

Chen Shu: Completed successfully

Then he replied to Chen Banxia—

Chen Shu: I know, I know

Only then did he tap Qingqing's avatar.

Just looking at the chat made him feel at ease. A row of green message bubbles filled the screen, all sent by him to her, averaging one a day.

The last one was from yesterday. He had called her an idiot.

What should he say today?

Chen Shu thought for a moment and sent a sticker—

Chen Shu: /You ugly thing

He would keep shaking her Dao heart.

He would be a proper stumbling block.

Then he checked his stocks.

They had closed down 0.03% today.

He would leave them alone for the next few days and let them do as they pleased.

He reached the fifth floor in the blink of an eye.

Chen Shu swiped open the door to Room 504. The smell of food drifted out. Jiang Lai had brought his meal back to the dorm to eat.

"Having dinner?"

Chen Shu went over for a look—

Cold chicken salad, steamed egg custard, cold dressed vegetables, a duck leg, a big metal basin of rice, and seven or eight boiled eggs.

It was hardly a meager meal. A pure Martial Artist could not afford to skimp on food; nutrition directly determined the results of training. But for a Martial Artist with excellent results who also fought in the ring, Jiang Lai's meal today was rather plain. It might not even be enough for his body's needs.

Jiang Lai usually relied on supplements for most of his nutrition because he thought meat was too expensive.

"Smells great," Chen Shu said.

Jiang Lai raised his head, swallowed the rice in his mouth, and asked, "Where did you go today?"

"Making money."

"There's a pretty good match next week. Want me to take you all to see it?"

"Sure."