Chapter 11 – A Slap for You

After going upstairs and opening one of the rooms, Ling Mo was surprised to find that more than just Xia Na and one other person lived here.

About a dozen young men and women simultaneously turned their gaze toward the door. A quick glance revealed that they were all under twenty years old. One girl, dressed in a school uniform, excitedly rushed over as soon as she heard the door open, exclaiming, “Sis, you’re back!”

“Oh, you brought two more people?” The schoolgirl looked past Xia Na at Ye Lian and Ling Mo, casually asking before turning her attention to Liu Yuhao’s backpack. “How was today’s haul?”

“Not bad! We just looted the big supermarket on South Street. There’s still a lot left that we couldn’t bring back, but I’ve hidden it. We’ll get it after we finish what we have.” Liu Yuhao smiled proudly, not mentioning how they had been in a life-threatening situation.

“Right, let me introduce you to two people. This is… sorry, man, I forgot to ask your name…”

Liu Yuhao’s warm introduction came to an awkward halt as he realized his mistake.

“Ling Mo. This is my girlfriend, Ye Lian,” Ling Mo said with a sigh, introducing himself.

“Ah, so it’s Ling Mo!” Liu Yuhao quickly recovered, throwing an arm around Ling Mo’s shoulder and pushing him toward the center of the living room. “Everyone, pay attention! This guy helped us a lot today, so we’ve decided to treat him to dinner and drinks!”

The group of young men and women, who were either sitting on the couch or on the floor, hadn’t paid much attention to Ling Mo and Ye Lian’s arrival. But upon hearing Liu Yuhao’s words, they all turned to look at Ling Mo in surprise.

A man lying on the couch sat up, scrutinizing Ling Mo with suspicion. “How is that possible? With Xia Na around, he wouldn’t need to help.”

“Exactly, with Xia Na here, why would we need outside help?” another person chimed in, emphasizing the word “outside.”

The schoolgirl from earlier walked over, waving her hand dismissively. “It’s just a meal. You guys don’t need to be like this.”

“Using dinner as an excuse to bring in outsiders. Liu Yuhao, you’re too much of a nice guy. We barely have enough to eat as it is,” the first man who had spoken sneered, adding his own complaint.

Liu Yuhao’s expression turned awkward again. He glanced at Ling Mo, only to find that the sarcastic remarks hadn’t visibly affected him.

“I’m telling the truth. You have no idea—once Xia Na starts fighting, she gets carried away and completely ignores her surroundings…” Liu Yuhao, clearly not adept at handling such situations, tried to explain, but the group of young men and women remained skeptical.

At this moment, Xia Na also walked over, holding Ye Lian’s hand. However, she didn’t seem inclined to help with the explanation. Instead, she looked at Ling Mo with a slightly mocking smile, her eyes clearly saying: Let’s see how you handle this.

Grudge holder! This girl holds grudges!

Obviously, though she had lowered her guard earlier, she hadn’t forgotten that Ling Mo had snapped at her.

But she was clearly mistaken. For Ling Mo, these parasites who only knew how to enjoy the fruits of others’ labor and were extremely xenophobic weren’t worth the effort. He simply sneered, turned around, grabbed Ye Lian’s hand, and headed toward the door. “Sorry, I have no intention of freeloading. Enjoy your meal.”

“Wow, acting all high and mighty!”

Both Xia Na and Liu Yuhao were taken aback, while the young man’s face darkened, feeling humiliated. He sneered and said, “This kind of guy bringing a girl along—can he even support her? You should be grateful for a meal, and yet you act all high and mighty…”

This was beyond tolerable! Thinking I came to mooch off them, worrying their food would run out, and now still insulting me when I’m about to leave—do they think I’m made of clay?

Ling Mo’s pupils constricted, and in the blink of an eye, he was right in front of the young man. During this process, Xia Na was the first to notice Ling Mo’s intent. Just as she reached out to stop him, Ling Mo had already brushed past her. It was then that Xia Na truly realized that although her speed was fast, her reflexes were far inferior to this seemingly ordinary man.

As she extended her hand, Ling Mo seemed to anticipate her move. He maneuvered around her with ease and appeared directly in front of the young man.

The young man felt a shadow fall over him, and then his collar was seized, his feet leaving the ground.

“You son of a—”

Smack!

A crisp, resounding slap echoed through the room, leaving everyone stunned.

“This is called a slap in the face. If you dare say one more thing to piss me off, I’ll give you another,” Ling Mo said coldly. His icy gaze made the young man’s cheeks redden instantly. The young man didn’t even dare to cry out. Humiliated and furious, he didn’t dare to struggle or retort. In Ling Mo’s eyes, he could clearly sense undisguised menace, and just from Ling Mo’s swift movements, he knew this wasn’t a bluff.

“Xia Na!” the young man mumbled, his voice garbled. He tried to keep a stern face, not wanting to show his fear of Ling Mo, but his panicked eyes betrayed him.

Ling Mo’s merciless action shocked everyone, including Xia Na. Despite the young man’s call, although a flash of disgust crossed her eyes, she stepped forward and said, “Ling Mo, let him go.”

“Apologize,” Ling Mo said icily.

Xia Na frowned, “You already hit him…”

“That’s a separate issue. Apologize.”

“Why should I!” the young man started to say, but before he could finish, another resounding slap landed on his face.

Xia Na looked at Ling Mo with a complex expression, then glanced at the young man whose cheeks were now swollen on both sides. She said, “Lu Xin, apologize. It’s your own fault for having a foul mouth.”

“我……” Lu Xin had hoped Xia Na would stand up for him, but instead, he got another slap. Everyone in the room was staring at him, each gaze feeling like a needle prickling his skin. His expression was like he had swallowed a fly, filled with anger.

“I was only trying to make sure we had more food! And now I’m getting called foul-mouthed and no one is standing up for me!”

But under Ling Mo’s gaze, Lu Xin could only swallow his words and squeeze out, “I’m sorry,” through gritted teeth. As soon as he said it, his face felt like it was on fire, as if Ling Mo had slapped him ten times in a row.

Ling Mo scoffed disdainfully, throwing Lu Xin to the ground and then, without hesitation, grabbed Ye Lian’s hand and headed towards the door.

“Wait!”

Liu Yuhao finally reacted and hurried after them. He pulled two cans of beer and a few packs of chocolate from his backpack and shoved them into Ling Mo’s hands, his face full of apology. “I’m really sorry, truly sorry…”

“Who are these people anyway? Is it just you and Xia Na going out to find food?” Despite Liu Yuhao having tricked him, Ling Mo didn’t really have much against him and couldn’t help but ask.

“They’re all classmates… We went to the same boarding school,” Liu Yuhao said helplessly, shaking his head. “That guy Lu Xin comes from a wealthy family and is used to getting his way. Don’t hold it against him. Besides, if we sent them out to find food, they’d just cause more trouble. You saw it yourself; Xia Na is the most capable among us. I was hoping you could join us…”

“I don’t have the energy to feed parasites,” Ling Mo interrupted Liu Yuhao bluntly.

“I see… Well, thanks for today anyway…”

Liu Yuhao hadn’t finished when Xia Na also approached.

She gave Ling Mo a long, deep look, then cast a sympathetic glance at Ye Lian before finally speaking in a low voice, “It’s getting dark soon. You should stay the night. Even if you can handle it, your sister might not… Don’t worry about Lu Xin; he won’t dare to bother you.”

Xia Na’s tone was sincere, but Ling Mo had no intention of staying with this group. “No need. We can find a place to stay in the city.”

“Don’t go!” Just as Ling Mo turned to leave, he felt someone tug at his sleeve. Looking back, it was Xia Na.

Seeing Ling Mo’s questioning look, Xia Na’s face showed a rare hint of shyness. It wasn’t until Ling Mo’s impatience began to show that she seemed to make a significant decision and spoke, “I see you’re strong and not afraid of trouble. I want to ask for your help!”