A Scare at the Alley Entrance and "Villains" Dealing with Villains
The continuous running around, anxiety, anger, and mental exhaustion on the internet pushed Monkey's already tense nerves, which were already strained because of his sister's illness, to the brink of collapse.
He dragged his heavy steps out of the inpatient building of the provincial tertiary hospital. The slightly chilly air outside hit him, but it could not dispel the gloom and exhaustion in his heart.
I just settled my parents in taking turns looking after me, and I'm going back to wash up and rest a bit, and think about what to do next.
However, as soon as he stepped down the hospital entrance steps, before he even reached the main road, he was blocked by seven or eight hooligans.
These people were wearing tight pants and loafers, their hair dyed in various colors, cigarettes dangling from their mouths, their eyes scanning the Monkey up and down with unfriendly smirks, and their faces wearing malicious grins.
Instead of attacking immediately, they cleverly spread out like a moving human wall, blocking all of the Monkey's paths and encircling him in a semicircle.
The Monkey's heart sank, and he immediately understood. Ankang Hospital's methods were indeed not limited to online smear campaigns and online trolls.
"Gentlemen, what do you mean?" The Monkey stopped, forcing himself to calm down, and asked in a deep voice. He didn't want to cause trouble at the hospital entrance, fearing it would affect his parents and sister inside.
"Nothing much, buddy." The leader was a burly young man with a buzz cut and a twisted scorpion tattooed on his neck. He leaned forward with a grin, almost touching the Monkey's face, and a strong smell of cigarette smoke hit him. "This is the main road, can't we guys just stand here, have a smoke, and get some fresh air?"
"Please move aside, I need to get through." The Monkey tried to keep his tone calm, but his clenched fists betrayed his inner tension and anger.
"Going to the past? Where are you going?" another tall, thin man chimed in sarcastically, "Did you build this road? You're allowed to walk on it, but we're not allowed to stand here?"
They were clearly instructed, and their behavior operated in an extremely cunning gray area—they didn't strike first, didn't use overtly insulting language, but instead used their numbers to surround and harass, creating psychological pressure and practical obstacles to their actions. This tactic was disgusting and difficult to deal with, and even calling the police made it hard to immediately determine the nature of their actions.
Looking at their shameless faces, the Monkey felt a surge of anger rising in his head, but he suppressed it, pulled out his phone, and shouted, "I'll ask you one last time, are you going to move aside or I'll call the police!"
"Call the police?" The crew-cut youth seemed to have heard something amusing, spreading his hands exaggeratedly and laughing at his companions, "Hey guys, did you hear that? He's going to call the police! What did we do? Did we hit him or yell at him? Do you think this street belongs to you? What can the police do when they come? Invite us back for tea?"
The thugs behind him burst into laughter and pushed forward even more brazenly, bumping into the Monkey slightly with their bodies, doing everything they could to provoke him.
The Monkey trembled with rage, his fingers hovering over the dial button, yet he felt utterly powerless. Just as the other party had said, their current behavior made it difficult for the police to take immediate action. The nausea and oppression of having a toad crawling on his feet made him feel like he was suffocating.
Just as the stalemate reached its limit, and the Monkey's patience and reason were about to run out, a deep, slightly hoarse, and undeniably authoritative voice suddenly rang out from behind the group of thugs:
"Bro, you're pretty bold, huh?"
The sound wasn't loud, but it seemed to possess some strange magic, instantly drowning out the clamor of the group of thugs.
The thugs were all stunned and instinctively turned around to look.
A middle-aged man, not particularly tall but exceptionally lean, wearing a black leather jacket, had somehow appeared behind them.
A clear Scar ran across his face, slanting from his brow bone across his cheek, making his already expressionless face even more ferocious. What was most chilling were his eyes, sharp as a hawk's, their icy gaze sending a shiver down the spines of the previously arrogant thugs.
Behind the Scar man stood a dozen or so burly men, all dressed in black tracksuits and with buzz cuts. Each of them had sharp eyes and a steady stance. Although they made no move, the oppressive aura they exuded was as if it were a tangible presence, forming a stark contrast with the few thugs.
The crew-cut young man's heart skipped a beat; he knew he'd run into a tough opponent. He forced himself to remain calm, but his tone was stern and he asked, "Who... who are you? What do you want? I don't know you!"
The Scar man was Li Jun. The scar on his face looked somewhat ferocious in the dim light. He didn't answer the other person's question, but slowly walked forward, stretched out his rough palm, and lightly patted the cheek of the crew-cut youth, making a soft "slap slap" sound.
The gesture was extremely insulting, but the crew-cut youth was intimidated by the aura of the man and the group behind him and didn't dare to move.
Li Jun grinned, revealing gleaming white teeth. There was no warmth in his smile, only the cruelty of a predator sizing up its prey. "Don't be nervous, brother." He paused, his tone calm yet chilling, "We're not good people."
As soon as he finished speaking, the smile on his face vanished abruptly, and his eyes instantly turned icy cold, like the Siberia chill.
He ignored the pale-faced thugs and casually waved his hand, giving orders to his silent, black-reef-like subordinates behind him:
"Drag him to that alley and beat him up."
"Don't block the hospital entrance, you're an eyesore."
The command was concise, direct, and exuded undeniable power.
"Yes, Brother Jun!" the group of burly men in black replied in unison, their voices deep yet carrying a terrifying aura.
The next moment, they pounced like cheetahs, their movements swift and professional. Two by two, they precisely subdued one of the thugs, covering his mouth and binding his hands behind his back, giving him no chance to resist or cry for help. Like dragging dead dogs, they swiftly and decisively dragged the seven or eight previously arrogant thugs into a dimly lit, narrow alleyway on the side of the hospital, piled with garbage cans.
The whole process was as fast as lightning; apart from the initial few short gasps that were covered up, it hardly attracted the attention of passersby.
The Monkey stared dumbfounded at everything that had happened in the blink of an eye, its mind momentarily unable to process what was happening.
Soon, dull thuds, suppressed screams, and painful whimpers echoed from the depths of the alley, interspersed with a few cold, low growls: "Still dare to cause trouble?", "Who sent you? Speak!"
The sound was intermittent and not intense, yet it instilled a deep-seated fear in the listener.
Li Jun acted as if nothing had happened, took out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket, lit one, took a deep drag, and then turned to the still somewhat dazed Monkey. His expression softened a little, but the Scar still looked menacing.
With the crisis averted, the Monkey breathed a long sigh of relief and gratefully said to Li Jun, "Brother Jun, thank you so much! If you hadn't arrived in time, I really wouldn't know what to do."
Li Jun finally lit the cigarette he'd been holding, took a deep drag, and waved his hand. "Brother Feng told us to keep an eye on you and the family these next few days. Those bastards deserve to be taught a lesson." He glanced in the direction the thugs had fled, a hint of malice flashing in his eyes. "Don't worry, they won't dare come back."
He paused, then said to the Monkey, "Go back to the hospital or home first. We'll handle things here. Call me anytime if anything happens." He emphasized his contact information again.
"Okay, I understand, Brother Jun!" Monkey felt much more at ease. With Lin Feng and Li Jun behind him, he felt much more secure. He thanked them again before turning to leave.
Watching the Monkey walk away, Li Jun turned to one of his men and whispered, "Go with two brothers and 'ask' those kids who ordered them. Find out who did it, give them a 'deep' lesson, and teach them a lesson they won't forget."
"Understood, Brother Jun." The subordinate nodded and immediately led two men to follow the direction the thugs had fled.
Li Jun stood still, exhaling a smoke ring, the Scar on his face faintly visible in the smoke.