Chapter 160: Xiao Rou's Helplessness

Chapter 160: Xiao Rou's Helplessness

Although Chu Dong was wearing sunglasses and had appeared so abruptly, Xiao Rou knew his voice inside out. Her cherry lips parted in a startled "O" shape, utterly disbelieving that she would run into him here. Xiao Rou could not tell whether she felt shocked or joyful, but she was certainly filled with anxiety, feeling exceptionally grieved especially when Chu Dong did not even spare her a single glance.

By this time, Qian Feng had already crawled up from the floor. Wiping the numb corner of his mouth, he discovered his hand was covered in fresh blood. Dazed and dizzy, he lunged at Chu Dong, never expecting that his ferocious "move" would be met with a swift kick from Chu Dong that sent him flying right back. He staggered sideways, crashing into a large chair and failing to get up for a long time.

"With that puny little frame, you still dare to stir up trouble? You really think you're some kind of Calabash Brother." Chu Dong removed his sunglasses, tossed them onto the long dining table, and arrogantly wiped his nose. "Are you an idiot? What were you doing beforehand?"

When had Qian Feng ever been so humiliated and manhandled? Normally, he was flanked by no fewer than three bodyguards. Whenever he swaggered down the street, it was all about majesty and dominance. Today, he had simply wanted to share a private world with Xiao Rou, and to avoid putting too much pressure on her, he had given his bodyguards the day off, never expecting to run into someone who feared nothing. Before he could even make a move, the guy had stepped up and beaten him first, almost making him vomit blood from sheer rage. Struggling to sit up, he steadied himself against the fallen chair, glaring viciously at Chu Dong with his beady eyes.

"What kind of person are you? Tired of living?"

Hearing Qian Feng say this, Chu Dong chuckled. "Oh, you still don't know who I am? And I don't know who you are either. What, beating you up means I'm tired of living? Oh, you scared me to death."

"Good heavens, what on earth is going on here? Second Young Master, you..." Wang Hai rushed in at that moment, looking back and forth between Qian Feng and Chu Dong. "Brother, you didn't do this, did you?" Hearing someone say there was trouble upstairs, Wang Hai had hurried back, only to find Young Master Qian sitting on the floor with blood at the corner of his mouth while Chu Dong was mocking him. He closed his eyes and began reciting the names of God, the Buddha, and every deity he could think of, stopping just short of dropping to his knees before Chu Dong.

As he was heading out, he had heard the sound of the piano. After waiting a few minutes and hearing nothing besides the music, he had felt relieved, having considerable confidence in Chu Dong's craftsmanship, so he had left. Who could have imagined that within two short minutes, a fight would break out upstairs? Others might not know, but he was well aware of how ruthless this Second Young Master Qian was. Last year, a young man staying here was rumored to have merely bumped into him by accident with a slight verbal conflict, only to have both his legs broken by thugs the very next day. Wang Hai thought to himself that Chu Dong had truly run headfirst into a brick wall this time.

In stark contrast to Wang Hai's nervousness and fear, Chu Dong remained thoroughly composed. He pulled out the handkerchief from his left breast pocket, lifted the leg he had used to kick Qian Feng, rested his foot on the table, and used the handkerchief to wipe away invisible specks of dust from his shoe. Then, he tossed the handkerchief onto Qian Feng's face, clapped his hands as if he had just performed an ordinary chore, returned to the piano, and pocketed the several thousand US dollars in tips he had just earned.

"I know you want revenge and probably hate me into little pieces right now. Unfortunately, I'm leaving tomorrow, and thanks to your tip, otherwise I'd still have to do ten days of hard labor. If you want to find trouble with me, I can't leave you completely without a chance. Here, whenever you want to find me, just give me a call. She knows." With that, Chu Dong patted Wang Hai on the shoulder and strode away.

"Chu, Brother Chu," Xiao Rou called out when she saw Chu Dong walking away. Suddenly remembering something, she turned back, picked up the sunglasses from the table, and chased after him.

Witnessing this scene, Qian Feng felt a genuine urge to commit murder. He cursed vehemently at Wang Hai, who was trembling inwardly as he stepped forward to help him up: "If you let that bastard get away, I'll tear this place down, and you won't have a good day either..."

Wang Hai almost had a stroke. Exactly what he feared most was happening. He had originally introduced Chu Dong for his wonderful voice, and who could have foreseen it turning into this mess? Hearing Qian Feng's words, he scurried toward the door, terrified that if Chu Dong truly left, he wouldn't be able to wash his hands of the matter. However, releasing his grip prematurely sent Qian Feng crashing back down to the floor. After running a couple of steps, Wang Hai rushed back to hoist Qian Feng into a chair before sprinting out again to track down Chu Dong.

Chu Dong had barely walked a short distance before Xiao Rou caught up with him. To be honest, if he had wanted to hide, there was no way Xiao Rou could have caught up, but facing Xiao Rou directly, Chu Dong now felt entirely at a loss for words. He stopped at the elevator doors without turning around.

"Go back and look after your friend. If anything comes up, just give me a call." The moment the elevator doors slid open, Chu Dong stepped inside.

"Brother Chu, it's not what you think. I—we're just classmates." Had it been anyone else, Xiao Rou's thin skin would have surely prevented her from chasing after him to explain. But Chu Dong was different; he could be considered her life-saver. Therefore, despite her face burning red, she rushed forward and followed Chu Dong into the elevator.

Before Chu Dong could say anything else, Wang Hai also charged in with a face full of despair. "Brother, I—I, sigh..." He hardly knew what to say. Keep Chu Dong here? That would be walking into a dead end, as Qian Feng would never let him go. Let Chu Dong leave? That was something he didn't even dare to imagine; if Chu Dong walked out, whether the hotel got demolished was one thing, but whether his own small life could be preserved was a major issue. For a moment, he was choked with anxiety and unable to speak.

"Don't worry. Since I started this trouble, I never intended to run away. It's inconvenient for you if things kick off here. How about this: I'll go outside and wait for him. Resolving it all at once is better, and if it can't be resolved, I'll figure something out." Seeing Wang Hai chase after him, Chu Dong knew precisely what was on his mind and, instead of letting him speak, offered words of comfort.

"But, but that Second Young Master is no ordinary character. You, you better mentally prepare yourself." Wang Hai almost blurted out that Chu Dong should just leave, but the words ultimately stayed trapped in his throat.

"I know, don't worry," Chu Dong said nonchalantly.

The elevator doors had closed long ago. All the way down to the first floor, Chu Dong stepped out first, with Xiao Rou and Wang Hai following closely behind.

Meanwhile, after Wang Hai left, Qian Feng reached for his phone, only to find his pocket empty. After searching for a long time, he discovered his phone was actually on the floor with the battery knocked out. Crawling around on the ground and huffing and puffing through a frantic search, he finally found it near a table leg, reassembled the battery, turned it on, and dialed his bodyguard's number from the contact list.

"Are you breathing or not? Get your asses over here right now!" His bravado returning, he furiously berated the bodyguards, who had no idea what had happened.

Although Qian Feng had given his bodyguards the day off, they didn't dare lower their guard in the slightest and followed at a distance, careful not to be spotted by him. The moment Qian Feng stepped onto the second floor, they followed right behind, simply taking seats at the open-area tables on the first floor. The second Qian Feng's call came through, the two bodyguards scrambled upstairs as if unleashed.

Having just hung up, Qian Feng patted the large footprint left by Chu Dong's boot on his chest, plotting in his mind how to deal with him later, when the bodyguards walked in.

Without time to bicker about them tailing him, Qian Feng shouted for them to follow him and led the way to find Chu Dong.

Watching Xiao Rou trailing behind him like a little tail, Chu Dong suddenly felt that he was a complete bastard. She was an unmarried young woman, and she had never claimed to have any romantic ties to him. What kind of jealous fit was he throwing? He was acting far too unmanly. With this thought, he couldn't help but chuckle. "Xiao Rou, I'm sorry. Look at me, I couldn't even control my temper over a trivial matter and ended up causing you trouble."

"Brother Chu..." Hearing him say this, Xiao Rou was on the verge of tears. If Chu Dong had thrown a tantrum, it might have been easier to handle, but this apology made her feel as though the distance between them had grown even greater.

"Brother Chu, listen to me." Setting aside her bashfulness, Xiao Rou pulled Chu Dong aside to sit down. "I know you must be surprised by how I came to Beijing, and why I'm with him. You know my younger brother's illness has dragged on for a long time. If we can't find a suitable kidney donor soon, even with continuous treatment like this, he won't last much longer..." Xiao Rou lowered her head, her voice trailing off, before suddenly looking up at Chu Dong with tear-filled eyes. "Brother Chu, Qian Feng called me saying he found a suitable kidney donor in Beijing and asked me to bring my brother here. I had no other choice. As long as there is a glimmer of hope, I have to fight for it. I can't just watch my brother pass away..." Tears streamed down continuously, welling up in Xiao Rou's eyes and breaking Chu Dong's heart. He felt a deep ache in his chest, yet he had no idea how to comfort her.

"I arrived in Beijing today and just got my brother settled. He wanted to come here to eat, and I... Brother Chu, there really is nothing between him and me. Qian Feng is my college classmate. As you heard just now, he offered to help me repay my debts, but I refused. I..."

Xiao Rou sobbed, feeling wronged and terrified...

Without letting her continue, Chu Dong pulled the tear-stained Xiao Rou tightly into his arms, gently stroking her beautiful long hair. "Xiao Rou, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!"

Chu Dong had always considered himself calm, rarely encountering anything that could rattle him. He never expected that such a minor incident today would cause him to act so irrationally.

He didn't regret beating up Qian Feng; rather, he felt terrible for wronging the innocent Xiao Rou. A young girl stranded in a strange city with a severely ill younger brother already had it hard enough. When facing such hardship, what she truly needed was understanding and comfort, yet he had pulled a stunt like that. It was completely unacceptable. Right now, Chu Dong was filled with remorse. Seeing Xiao Rou's tears once more, he felt as though his heart was melting.

Standing off to the side, Wang Hai finally figured out what was going on. So this was a squabble out of jealousy! No wonder things had blown up so quickly; every stream had a source and every tree had roots—Chu Dong had a reason for throwing punches. Before he could ponder any further, Wang Hai noticed the elevator doors opening. Although looking somewhat disheveled, Qian Feng aggressively stormed out, radiating hostility.

With messy hair, wrinkled clothes, un-dried blood at the corner of his mouth, and a faint large footprint on his chest, accompanied by two bodyguards, Qian Feng spotted Chu Dong holding the weeping Xiao Rou the moment he stepped out of the elevator. His anger, already blazing, now rushed straight to his head, making his entire body tremble. Pointing a finger at Chu Dong, Qian Feng issued a command to the bodyguards behind him:

"That's him—beat him to death!"