"Liang Feng." Cao Yang called out his name.
Liang Feng froze for a moment when he saw Cao Yang.
Then he forced a smile, a greeting of sorts. But with two front teeth missing, his grin looked oddly comical.
"What are you doing here?" Cao Yang asked, handing him a cigarette.
They had fought before in boxing matches, but there was no personal grudge between them.
"I'm at the hospital — obviously to see a doctor," Liang Feng said, accepting the cigarette and lighting it. "Thanks."
"Where are you hurt?"
Liang Feng glanced at him, thinking silently: it's all your fault. Two of my front teeth got knocked out, now I can barely speak properly.
He handed Cao Yang the medical record. Cao Yang glanced at it and was dumbfounded.
"This… all of this?" he exclaimed. "How are you even standing here if all this is true?"
"You hit me yourself, shouldn't you know?" Liang Feng replied.
"Hey… don't blame me. I only caused a few injuries. All these injuries, you want to pin on me?"
Liang Feng fell silent. After years of boxing, his body was full of old injuries. Before, he could manage them. But after the fight with Cao Yang, new injuries triggered the old ones — everything erupted at once.
Seeing Liang Feng silent, Cao Yang also fell quiet. The two smoked in companionable silence.
After a while, Liang Feng stubbed out his cigarette and asked, "What are you doing here? Hurt yourself too?"
Cao Yang shook his head. "Just accompanying a friend."
"I heard you killed Liu Yilong, and even Liu Zhenhu?"
Cao Yang nodded. That was indeed the case.
"I wish I could be as carefree as you," Liang Feng sighed. "I once lost to Liu Yilong, not because I was weaker, but because I knew he couldn't afford to lose — his brother was strong."
Cao Yang nodded in agreement. He had fought both of them. Liu Yilong was only slightly stronger in strength; otherwise, he was no match.
Not just Liu Yilong, even Du Hao might not be Liang Feng's opponent. Liang Feng was the only person who had ever injured Cao Yang.
Though his moves were a bit crude and cost him two teeth, a wound is a wound.
"Are you still boxing?"
"No. Ever since you defeated me, I haven't fought. That match cost my boss a lot of money, and with my old injuries flaring up, I probably won't fight again."
"Why did you even choose boxing?"
Liang Feng rolled his eyes. "Of course for money. Why else?"
"I don't mean that. With your skills, you could easily become a top leader in the Guangxi gang. The pay would be higher than boxing, right?"
"I'm not part of the Guangxi gang."
Cao Yang was surprised. He remembered Tie Xiong saying Liang Feng was the Guangxi gang's top fighter.
"I'm from Guangxi and fought for them sometimes, but I never officially joined."
"Why not?"
"Because I don't want to oppress the weak or force people into misery."
"You're quite righteous then."
"Of course."
Another silence fell. Words had dried up.
"I'm leaving. If fate allows, we'll meet again." Liang Feng stood and waved goodbye.
Cao Yang nodded, watching him leave.
Two minutes later, Liang Feng returned.
Seeing Cao Yang, he feigned surprise. "Meeting again so soon! Fate really is strange!"
Cao Yang blinked. What is this guy up to?
"In the spirit of this fateful meeting, could you lend me some money?"
Wait, what? Are we that close?
All this preamble just to borrow money?
"How much?" Cao Yang asked, seeing his embarrassed expression. He must really be in trouble.
"Twenty thousand."
A few days ago, he might have lent the money. But now, all of Cao Yang's cash was tied up with Leidian for the game arcade.
"What do you need it for?"
"For medical treatment," Liang Feng said.
"What about the money you earned from boxing?"
Liang Feng began to recount his story: His father died young, his mother was chronically ill, and his younger sister was in university. The family relied on him to earn a living.
His mother's illness was severe, requiring over ten thousand yuan of medication each month. They even sold their house back home to cover her treatment.
A couple of years ago, he heard treatment here could help. With his sister attending university in Guangzhou, he brought his mother here for treatment.
To support them, he fought underground boxing matches. All his earnings over the years went to his mother's treatment.
Cao Yang, hearing the story, felt it sounded familiar: father dead early, sick mother, young sister at home.
This wasn't just the story of troubled girls — even a grown man could share such misfortune.
Joking aside, Liang Feng clearly wasn't lying.
Cao Yang nodded. "Alright, but I don't have cash on me. Come with me and get it."
"Thank you," Liang Feng said gratefully. He had hesitated before speaking — after only one meeting, could someone be trusted with a loan?
Ordinary people would refuse, but in the martial world, trust is earned differently. One or two meetings, a shared drink, a single fight — that's enough to become a brother.
Cao Yang brought Liang Feng to the arcade. As for Xia Dongdong, let her stay in the hospital a while longer.
Entering the arcade, he saw that the machines were already delivered — over a dozen brand-new units.
A dozen young girls in short skirts were cleaning and polishing the machines.
Leidian rushed over as he entered.
"These?" Cao Yang pointed at the girls, asking Leidian what was going on.
"They're the staff I hired. Young girls, right?" Leidian winked, his expression lewd.
"I asked you to hire some young people, not girls!" Cao Yang thought. He had envisioned hiring a group of tough kids, acting as his underlings — making him look formidable while also keeping an eye on the arcade.
Even though both black and white sides were informed, and there shouldn't be trouble, players losing money might still act up. Were these girls supposed to handle that?
"Ah, you don't get it. Competition in the arcade business is fierce. We're new, so we need something unique."
"Other places have scruffy kids. Our arcade has long-legged girls. Where would the players rather go?"
"Most of our clients are ordinary workers, not shady hustlers. They're intimidated by other arcades full of thugs. Ours is different."
Leidian's confidence seemed reasonable, but Cao Yang noticed the lustful glint in his eyes. Was this guy using the job as an excuse to build a harem?
"What if trouble comes?" Cao Yang asked, the key question.
"Aren't you here? Who would dare offend you?"
Cao Yang thought: don't count on me; I don't have time to stay in the arcade.
He looked at Liang Feng, anxiously waiting for him to lend money. An idea struck. Smiling, he asked, "You working these days?"
Liang Feng shook his head.
"This arcade is mine. How about you come help me run it?"
Liang Feng paused. "How much per month?"