Chapter 162: Night Battle

Xiao Rou's small hand was pulled by Chu Dong as she followed him out of the hotel. Her heart fluttered like a startled fawn, and the strength and warmth transmitted through his large hand gave her a unique sense of security, making her wish they could just keep walking like this forever.

Once outside, Chu Dong faced a bit of a dilemma. Where were they supposed to go now? Qian Feng would definitely not let this go easily, and the subsequent retaliation could be as fierce as a storm. If he just took Xiao Rou away with him, it certainly wouldn't be very safe. For himself, any situation was fine, but Xiao Rou had a younger brother currently lying in a hospital bed waiting for medical treatment, whom she couldn't just abandon. Yet, the moment they returned to the hospital, they would be exposed. Qian Feng probably wouldn't torment Xiao Rou directly, which should be fine, and as for himself, he could generally handle whatever came his way.

However, turning back to look at Xiao Rou, Chu Dong found it difficult to tell her to go off by herself. He was left momentarily speechless.

"Brother Chu, I'll be fine." Xiao Rou was perceptive and intelligent; how could she not understand the look in Chu Dong's eyes? "He won't do anything to me. Don't worry, you should go hide somewhere."

Looking into Xiao Rou's concerned and anxious eyes, a surge of heroic spirit suddenly welled up in Chu Dong. One should enjoy the pleasures of life to the fullest while they can; some matters cannot be avoided. Since they had already clashed, retreating would only make the opponent even more arrogant. A clingy pest that refuses to tear away is always annoying; if there's going to be trouble, they might as well turn the world upside down. Hurting an enemy isn't as effective as terrifying them—a light punch would never strike fear into a foe's heart.

"Heh, what is there to be afraid of? It's fine. Since I dared to mess with him, I never took him seriously. Let's go to the hospital; I haven't seen Xiao Feng in a long time." Chu Dong led Xiao Rou over and hailed a taxi.

"Which hospital is Xiao Feng in?" As soon as he got into the car and sat in the front passenger seat, Chu Dong turned around to ask Xiao Rou, who was sitting in the back.

"Peking Union Medical College Hospital. They have a specialized kidney transplant diagnosis and treatment center, and the comprehensive medical conditions are also much better, so..." Xiao Rou didn't finish, but her meaning was obvious—all of this had been arranged by Qian Feng.

"Then let's go to Union Hospital," Chu Dong instructed the driver.

The distance wasn't too far, and after a ten-minute drive, they arrived. Once they stepped out of the cab, Xiao Rou grabbed Chu Dong's sleeve.

"Brother Chu, they know this place. You should leave quickly. We can find another chance to meet later. I'm afraid..."

"Afraid of what? Should we stop farming just because the mole crickets are chirping? Don't worry, I know what I'm doing. Let's go." Chu Dong helped Xiao Rou pull her down jacket tighter, his movements as natural as if she were his own younger sister.

Xiao Rou had no choice but to follow Chu Dong into the hospital. Guided by her, the two of them reached the inpatient department and found Xiao Xiaofeng's hospital room.

"Brother Chu?" Xiao Xiaofeng looked surprised to see Chu Dong and struggled to sit up from his hospital bed.

"Lie back down, why stand on ceremony? It's not our first time meeting." Chu Dong pulled a chair over, sat down by Xiao Xiaofeng's bedside, and rested a hand on his frail shoulder. "Have you had dinner yet?"

"Yeah, I ate. My sister fed me before she left. Brother Chu, why are you here?" Xiao Xiaofeng had a very favorable impression of Chu Dong and was exceptionally happy to see him, setting the book in his hand aside.

"Brother Chu came here for a meeting and heard you were here, so he insisted on coming to check on you. What kind of book are you reading? I'll tutor you once you're feeling better." Afraid that her younger brother might get anxious, Xiao Rou cut in before Chu Dong could speak. However, she was evidently unaccustomed to lying; her face turned as red as an apple, and she quickly tried to mask her embarrassment.

"Haha, I came too in a hurry and didn't bring you anything. We'll make up for it when you're discharged." Chu Dong casually helped tuck the blanket around Xiao Xiaofeng. "I heard the surgery is coming up soon. Let go of any mental burdens; what you need right now is to recover your health as quickly as possible. You'll have to treat your sister well in the future."

"I know, Brother Chu, I will." Xiao Xiaofeng was also a sensible boy and naturally saw how well his sister treated him. "After I graduate, I'll definitely take good care of my older sister. Oh, Brother Chu, if you ever need people to work for you in the future, can you hire me? I'll definitely work hard."

"No problem. As soon as you graduate, I'll personally come looking for you to sign a contract." Chu Dong chatted idly with Xiao Xiaofeng while Xiao Rou busied herself tidying up her brother's clothes. In this moment, everything seemed so warm and peaceful.

Suddenly remembering that Xiao Rou hadn't eaten dinner yet—having had their meal interrupted right before the dishes were served just as they reached the restaurant—Chu Dong stood up and smiled apologetically at Xiao Rou. "I'm going out to get some food. Wait for me here for a moment."

Hearing him say this, Xiao Rou actually felt a pang of hunger. She had been too nervous earlier to even remember this. She nodded with a blushing face, but as Chu Dong headed for the door, she still hurried after him. "Brother Chu, be careful..."

"I know." He turned back, smiled, and waved his hand before heading downstairs.

Of course, Qian Feng would not let go of a place like the hospital. Xiao Rou leaving with Chu Dong had angered him, but hoping in his heart that Xiao Rou would have a change of heart, he still instructed his subordinates not to barge into the hospital. However, the moment Chu Dong and Xiao Rou arrived at Union Hospital, he received a report.

"All of you keep watch wherever you are, I'm almost there." Qian Feng possessed a ruthless streak. He pushed away the person applying red safflower oil to his chest, put on his clothes, and walked out with his short-haired bodyguard and another tall, thin fellow to get into a car, heading straight for Union Hospital. He simply could not swallow this insult.

Seven or eight cars had gathered at the entrance of Union Hospital, with dozens of men taking turns watching the hospital gates. Although the lights and streetlamps illuminated the entrance brightly, they were still afraid Chu Dong would slip away unnoticed at some point.

The moonlight was hazy, and it was nearly impossible to see stars in the urban night sky. Neon lights flashed everywhere, and the flow of traffic was like an endless stream of water. Walking out onto the avenue, Chu Dong spotted those hooligans waiting on the side and smiled with detached amusement. Qian Feng wasn't around; otherwise, they would have made a move long ago. With his hands buried in his pockets, Chu Dong leisurely crossed the street, entered a restaurant across the way, sat by a glass window, and ordered a few dishes to go. Catching someone following him out of the corner of his eye, Chu Dong paid no heed, lighting a cigarette and smoking it quietly. Once he finished the cigarette, he noticed a change in the person tailing him at the entrance. Chu Dong knew that Qian Feng must have arrived. He called the waiter over, paid the bill, wrote an address on a piece of paper, handed it to her, and told her to deliver the food to the address on the note. Only then did he stretch and stand up.

Qian Feng arrived quickly, probably running countless red lights, but someone like him simply didn't care about rules; minor penalties were completely insignificant to him.

Just as Qian Feng's car arrived, a short, chubby young man ran over as the car window rolled down to report the situation. "Second Young Master, the target is in the restaurant across the street. Several brothers are watching; that woman hasn't come out since she went in. What should we do? Just say the word, the brothers are all ready."

"Just him alone?" Qian Feng narrowed his eagle-like eyes and looked in the direction pointed out by the young man.

"Just him alone, no one else spotted." The chubby young man was extremely certain.

"Damn it, courting death, and quite bold at that. Pass the word down—make a move as soon as he comes out." Qian Feng slowly rolled up the car window as the vehicle turned to the side.

Instead of rushing out immediately, Chu Dong waited until he saw the delivery waiter cross the street and enter the hospital gates before loosening his neck muscles and walking toward the entrance.

The attendant helped open the sliding door, humbly wishing him a pleasant next visit, and Chu Dong even nodded with a smile. The moment he stepped outside, a north wind howled like a blade, and arriving right along with it were over a hundred thugs brandishing machetes.

At some point, the seven or eight white vans had increased to more than a dozen. The previously extinguished headlights were all switched on at the exact same time, beams fixing directly on Chu Dong as nearly a hundred men wielding machetes shouted frantically and charged toward Chu Dong, who had just stepped out of the restaurant's doors.

The scene shocked the passersby. The restaurant attendant was utterly terrified—just who had this man offended to warrant such a massive turnout to deal with a single person? From the looks of it, the fellow who had just walked outside was as good as dead.

At the same time, the person assigned to tail and monitor Chu Dong's movements also dialed Li Tianming's phone. "This is bad, a fight has broken out! It feels like hundreds of people are charging over, and Mr. Chu is all by himself..."

Not far away, battle cries shook the heavens, and the watcher shouted at the top of his lungs against the biting north wind.

"I told you to send people to protect him, how did it end up like this? Go save him quickly!" Li Tianming also realized the severity of the situation. Knowing that Qian Feng wouldn't let this go, he had instructed his subordinates early on to have over thirty security guards secretly tailing Chu Dong to rescue him at a moment's notice. This was the man his daughter had brought home; if any mishap befell him, Li Tianming couldn't imagine how severe the consequences would be.

"I can't get close, there are people everywhere holding weapons, it's total chaos, the people we called in have all run away..." The monitor didn't dare approach either; if one of those blind thugs happened to swing a weapon at him, he'd be crippled if not killed outright.

Chu Dong wasn't the least bit surprised by this sudden turn of events, but he hadn't truly expected Qian Feng to mobilize so many people to deal with him. Squinting his eyes to minimize the blinding glare of the headlights, Chu Dong took large strides forward to meet them.

Every single person charging toward him slowed down to slow-motion in his eyes. Dodging a downward slash aimed at his head, he threw a punch into an attacker's armpit, smoothly snatched the machete away, grabbed the man by the hair, and effortlessly hurled his bulky frame forward, knocking several others over. With his right-hand blade, he blocked an incoming strike from the front, reached out to grab the attacker's sleeve, and then sent him flying with a kick, leaving him holding a severed suit sleeve.

After these few swift movements, men had already filled the space entirely both in front and behind him, forming a tight perimeter that trapped Chu Dong securely in the center.

The two men injured in his surprise attack had already lost the ability to move and were dragged away by their comrades. The others were startled by Chu Dong's overwhelming ferocity, but licking blood from blade edges was their livelihood—they would never be terrified into backing down. Not a single person retreated, yet without receiving an order, no one dared to strike again.

Without even sparing them a glance, Chu Dong wrapped the torn sleeve around his hand a few times and securely bound the seized machete to his wrist. Standing completely straight all by himself, he cut an imposing figure resembling a towering mountain.

"Who you are, I don't know, but I do know who called you here. If you get hurt, don't blame me—blame that piece of trash who doesn't care about your lives." Speaking in a clear, ringing voice, Chu Dong suddenly halved his height as his upright posture coiled like a fully drawn powerful bow. With a fierce roar, he charged straight into the crowd.

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