Xie Fangzhu’s gaze fell upon the pale, chubby face. His eyes narrowed slightly as he raised a brow, signaling for the fat man to look at his companion, the burly man who was still kneeling in front of Shen Yingying with a look of complete panic.
“The other one was you, wasn’t it?”
His voice remained as calm as ever, yet to the fat man, it sounded even more terrifying than the furious howls of demons from hell.
The fat man regretted it so much his insides seemed to turn green. He cursed his own loose tongue for recklessly speaking ill of Xie Fangzhu’s wife right in front of him. It was no different from crying for help while hugging a tiger. He had practically been courting death!
His face was as white as paper as he hurriedly begged for mercy. “Brother Xie, Brother Xie, I was wrong! I spoke out of turn! Please, you’re a great man, don’t stoop to my level. Please spare me!”
Xie Fangzhu let out a cold snort. “Why didn’t you know that when you were talking?”
As soon as he finished speaking, he threw a swift, clean punch straight into the fat man’s stomach, causing the man’s expression to twist in agony.
The fat man no longer had even the slightest shred of courage left. Terrified that Xie Fangzhu would stomp on his face and grind it into the ground the same way he had done to his companion, he trembled with fear.
He knew very well that if he wanted Xie Fangzhu to spare him, Shen Yingying had to be the one to speak.
Ignoring the cold sweat pouring from the pain in his stomach, he struggled to straighten himself before dropping to his knees and sliding all the way over to Shen Yingying.
“Sister-in-law… I’m truly sorry! I was talking complete nonsense just now. Please be magnanimous and ask Brother Xie to let me go! I swear I’ll never dare do it again! If I ever spout nonsense again, I’ll cut off this filthy mouth of mine!”
After saying that, he immediately began slapping himself across the face, left and right, one slap after another, crying as he begged for mercy.
Shen Yingying: “…”
His display was even more exaggerated than that of the burly man earlier. He showed no mercy whatsoever when hitting himself. After only two slaps, distinct handprints had already appeared on his chubby face.
Seeing him weeping bitterly, Shen Yingying clicked her tongue. She had vented enough of her anger and was just about to speak to Xie Fangzhu.
Without warning, a booming, rough voice suddenly rang out beside her ears like thunder. “Damn, it really is my brother!”
She looked toward the source of the voice and saw a man around twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old craning his neck from within the crowd to look at Xie Fangzhu, his broad, square face filled with astonishment.
He roughly shoved the people aside and strode out from the crowd.
The moment he emerged, his enormous physique was revealed in full.
He was slightly shorter than Xie Fangzhu. Xie Fangzhu had the kind of perfect physique that looked lean in clothes but was packed with solid muscle underneath. He could never be mistaken for one of those frail, stick-thin men.
Yet standing beside this giant, even the tall and well-built Xie Fangzhu appeared somewhat slim.
The giant standing before them was twice as broad as Xie Fangzhu, and that extra width was not fat, it was pure muscle.
Every bulging muscle on his body was even more exaggerated than those of bodybuilding champions from Shen Yingying’s own era.
Standing there, he looked like a small mountain.
The original owner’s memories contained little impression of this man. She did not even know his name, only that he was always following behind Xie Fangzhu.
However, Shen Yingying had read the novel. Combined with the author’s descriptions, she recognized at a glance that this giant was Xie Fangzhu’s trusted little brother, Han Wei.
Han Wei had first met Xie Fangzhu through a fight. At that time, Han Wei had only recently arrived at the mining area. Before coming there, he had been a street thug.
After arriving at the mining area, he had heard all about Xie Fangzhu and Shen Yingying. He felt that Xie Fangzhu had been toyed with so badly by a woman that he had disgraced all men.
So he had stopped Xie Fangzhu, intending to teach this coward, who had disgraced the dignity of all men, a proper lesson on behalf of his fellow men.
In the end, however, not only did he fail to teach Xie Fangzhu a lesson, he was thoroughly beaten by Xie Fangzhu instead.
Han Wei had relied on his size ever since childhood and had been practically unbeatable in fights. Aside from his mother, who could beat him by playing the emotional card,
there had never been anyone capable of putting him at a disadvantage, let alone beating him until his face was bruised and swollen.
Xie Fangzhu had been the very first!
From that day onward, Han Wei admired Xie Fangzhu with complete devotion and became his little brother, sticking to him like a piece of chewing gum.
Han Wei lived by one principle: it was fine if someone called Han Wei a coward, but if anyone dared call Xie Fangzhu a coward, he would beat that person until even their own mother would not recognize them.
Because of his intimidating mountain-like physique and his unwavering loyalty, even though he was not particularly bright, Xie Fangzhu had always kept him by his side as a trusted confidant.
Han Wei’s gaze landed on the fat man kneeling before Shen Yingying and slapping himself. He immediately pounded his chest and stamped his feet in frustration. “Damn, I’m too late!”
He had only just arrived at the canteen when someone told him that his brother, Xie Fangzhu, had gotten into a fight. The news had excited him beyond measure.
He had not fought anyone in a long time, and his hands had been itching for action. At long last, he had thought he would finally get the chance. He wanted to see which fool had dared provoke his brother so that he could beat the person until even their mother would not recognize them!
Yet he had never expected Xie Fangzhu to move so decisively. By the time he arrived, everything had already been settled.
Han Wei looked at Xie Fangzhu with unmistakable grievance in his eyes. “Brother, why didn’t you call me when you got into a fight?”
Xie Fangzhu ignored him. He glanced at the two men who were still honestly kneeling before Shen Yingying, let out a mocking laugh, then swept his icy gaze across the crowd. Raising his voice slightly, he spoke.
“From now on, take care of your own family’s affairs. Stay out of other people’s business, especially mine. No one needs to interfere in my family’s matters!”
His face was shrouded in gloom, and his voice was as cold as frost, completely devoid of his usual easygoing manner. “Shen Yingying is my woman. No one has the right to gossip about her! If anyone dares to overstep again, this won’t be settled with just one or two punches. When that time comes, don’t blame me, Xie Fangzhu, for disregarding the neighborly bond between us!”
No one in the canteen even dared breathe too loudly, afraid of provoking the furious man before them.
Most of the people present had witnessed Xie Fangzhu dealing with the local tyrant from the neighboring village back then.
They knew that although Xie Fangzhu was friendly and helpful in the mine, anyone who offended him would never find him easy to deal with.
Standing behind Xie Fangzhu, Han Wei became excited. It had been a long time since he had seen his brother lose his temper. Sure enough, he was just as impressive as ever!
Han Wei had heard about Shen Yingying’s reputation and knew she was not considered a good woman. He disliked her very much and felt she was unworthy of his elder brother.
But as long as his elder brother wanted to protect her, then in front of outsiders, he would protect her as well for his brother’s sake.
Thinking of this, Han Wei swept a fierce glare across the crowd and shouted viciously,
“You all heard my brother loud and clear today! Mind your own family’s business and stop sticking your noses into other people’s affairs! If you’re really so bored that you can’t stand it, then go carry buckets of manure at the mine and make yourselves useful! Stop running your mouths about my sister-in-law every chance you get!”
“If I hear it again in the future, not only will my brother refuse to let it slide, but I won’t let that person off easy either!”
As he spoke, he snorted twice and flexed his arms, fully displaying his outrageously massive biceps to everyone present. “I always keep my word! If anyone isn’t convinced, come over and try me!”
Xie Fangzhu alone was enough to make people lose a layer of skin. Now that there was also this giant beside him, who would dare refuse to submit?
The already crowded canteen became even quieter, making the sharp sounds of the fat man repeatedly slapping himself all the more distinct.
Only after seeing that not a single person dared utter a word did Xie Fangzhu finally relax his expression and walk toward Shen Yingying.
He walked over to her as though nothing had happened. Glancing at the fat man who was still continuously slapping himself across the face, he asked: “Do you still want me to keep going?”