'Wang Long found me?'
Qin Fang instantly darted away from the crack in the door, his back pressed against the wall, his expression grim.
He hadn't dared to forget Wang Long for a single moment. A major reason for training so hard… was Wang Long!
But since leaving Huichun Hall, his master had only mentioned Wang Long and his men's situation once… His master told him they had left long ago.
And there was no follow-up after that.
For the past month, Qin Fang had stayed in this courtyard, never once stepping outside.
His master hadn't mentioned the Iron Tiger Gang again either.
So he had no idea what they were up to.
He had almost forgotten about them.
But he never expected…
'That they would actually show up at my door today?'
Qin Fang's expression darkened. He held his breath, no longer daring to peek through the crack in the door, and instead listened intently to the sounds outside.
'How did they find this place?'
'Who would have revealed my whereabouts?'
His master's face flashed through his mind for an instant, but he immediately dismissed the thought…
'My master would never betray me.'
'If he was really going to sell me out, why would he have spent so much money and effort on me? He could have just ignored me back then, couldn't he?'
'So where did things go wrong?'
Thoughts flashed through Qin Fang's mind like lightning.
At the same time, the knocking on the door outside grew louder and louder, a clear sign of their impatience.
Then, Qin Fang heard a voice.
"Brother Long, is that kid really in here?"
The voice held a hint of doubt, but it sounded very familiar to Qin Fang.
An image of a sleazy face with a mole by its mouth immediately popped into his mind.
"Damn it, we've been looking for that brat for almost a month, and we finally have a lead. I don't care if it's him or not… let's check it out first."
Wang Long's voice was grim and laced with venom.
"It better not be. Otherwise… I might just have to kill someone today."
Qin Fang's heart sank. 'They really are after me.'
'But how did they know I'm here?'
Qin Fang's mind raced.
Not many people knew he was here. Besides his master, there was the young man who had delivered goods a few times, those few plasterers and carpenters, and… the neighbors.
But besides his master, no one else knew about his connection to the Iron Tiger Gang.
'And my master would never sell me out.'
'So where did the breakdown happen?'
As he was thinking, a shout came from outside: "Damn it, open the door! If you don't open up, I'm breaking it down!"
"He's not opening up after all that knocking. Looks like something's fishy!"
"Bald Li said this vagrant disciple Old Wu took in stays home almost every day, but now he won't open the door when we knock… Brother Long, should we send a few guys to watch the back so he doesn't get away?"
The voice from outside rang out.
Qin Fang's heart sank. Those words seemed to answer one of his questions…
'So it really wasn't my master who betrayed me.'
'It was that Bald Li.'
'Who is Bald Li?'
'I don't know him at all.'
But it wasn't hard to figure out.
Judging by the nickname, he sounded like a street ruffian, so it couldn't be the honest young man or those plasterers and craftsmen.
That only left one of the neighbors…
But as for why this Bald Li would mention him to Wang Long and his men… that was still a huge question.
But regardless of the reason, the fact was that Wang Long and his men were at his door, and he had to find a way to save himself.
"Right, send two men to block the back door. Don't let him escape. This courtyard wall doesn't look too high… you, climb over and take a look."
Wang Long's voice drifted in from outside.
Qin Fang's face was cold and hard. Without hesitation, he moved, running quickly back into the house…
'My Darts are all in the house.'
He rushed into the room, quickly shut the door, and dashed to the target to grab the Darts, holding them tight in his hand.
The cold Darts in his hand brought him a sliver of security.
Then he heard a THUD from the courtyard.
Clutching the Darts, Qin Fang quickly moved to the door and peered outside through the window lattice.
They really had climbed the wall. A figure vaulted over, glanced casually at the house, then walked to the gate and removed the bolt. Wang Long and the others filed in from outside.
"Brat, get out here! I've come to collect your debt."
The brutish-faced Wang Long scanned the courtyard with a vicious look in his eyes, then fixed his gaze on the tightly shut door of the house.
As he spoke, he and his men started walking toward the house.
Qin Fang's face was grim.
'This all happened so suddenly. I'm completely unprepared.'
'What do I do now?'
'They've already sent people to block the back door. I most likely can't escape.'
'And now Wang Long and his men are in the courtyard.'
'A wolf at the front door, a tiger at the back.'
Now he was caught with no way to advance or retreat.
It felt as if he had been driven into a desperate situation once again.
Qin Fang's expression grew cold and hard, a vicious glint appearing in his eyes.
But he quickly took a deep breath, suppressing the feeling for the time being.
Watching Wang Long and his men enter the courtyard and head for the front door, he decided to just throw the door open with a BANG.
'The Gang Leader of the Iron Tiger Gang is an Anjin Martial Artist, and he's Wang Long's younger brother. I have to remember that.'
He remembered that fact.
When the door was suddenly thrown open, revealing a stone-faced Qin Fang standing in the doorway, Wang Long and his men subconsciously froze in place for a moment.
The man with the mole on his face scrutinized Qin Fang, then suddenly sneered after a moment, "Brother Long, we found him! It's him!"
He spoke with absolute certainty.
Wang Long was also sizing up Qin Fang, but to be honest… the Qin Fang of today and the vagrant from over a month ago looked like two completely different people.
Back then, Qin Fang had been disheveled and filthy, his face caked with layers of dirt, and he had been half-dead and barely breathing.
But the Qin Fang of this moment wore clean robes and had a tall figure. Although he was still pitifully thin, his face was clean and fresh, with sword-like eyebrows and star-like eyes. The high cheekbones slightly marred the aesthetic… but he was indeed a completely different person from the vagrant a month ago.
Wang Long actually wasn't sure if it was the same person.
So when he heard his subordinate's confident tone, he was taken aback for a moment.
But he quickly chose to trust his subordinate.
He narrowed his eyes, looking at Qin Fang. "Brat, remember me?"
Standing in the doorway, Qin Fang took in everyone's expressions.
Except for the one with the mole by his mouth, who insisted it was him, the others clearly had some hesitation in their eyes.
But after that ruffian with the mole spoke up, they also immediately decided that Qin Fang was the vagrant from a month ago.
Qin Fang's gaze fell on the face of the ruffian with the mole. 'A month ago, this was the same guy who first guessed that I might have run out of money.'
Qin Fang was not one to hold a grudge.
But this mole-faced man was an exception.
After the thoughts flashed through his mind, Qin Fang slowly exhaled and began to speak, "Brother Long, of course I remember you. If it weren't for you, Brother Long, I would have died a month ago, and I never would have met my current master… I would never dare to forget your great kindness."
With those words, Qin Fang confirmed his own identity.
Wang Long's eyes instantly hardened, and a vicious expression appeared on his face. "Good, very good. Since you remember, that makes things easy… So, brat, don't you think what you did was a little dishonorable? I saved your life, but as soon as you got better, you just up and left without a word… You really made me look for you this past month."
A murderous glint appeared in his eyes.