It's not like Li Yang is pretending; it's mainly because that girl's identity is so complicated it's mind-boggling.
Seems like she's Wang Manqi's best friend, yet also Feng Ping's girlfriend? And then she goes and takes the initiative to ask me out?
Even though he's not really a good guy, after he completely broke up with Wang Manqi in a previous life, he went through quite a few girlfriends on and off.
But he has his own three no-touch rules.
Friends' girlfriends happen to be one of them.
As time passed, midnight was approaching.
People by the river naturally began to decrease in number.
Usually, even if people came to hang out by the river, it would only be around this one kilometer stretch.
Adding the opposite bank, it totals about two kilometers in range.
Tonight, he should take a few orders to boost his WeChat steps.
After patrolling once, he bought a bowl of noodles.
The riverbanks were almost deserted.
As he leaned against the railing by the riverbank eating noodles, a woman wearing a camisole slowly walked to the riverbank.
Even though her features weren't clear in the dark, the hazy light from afar allowed him to feel the visual impact of her tall and slender figure.
Unlike Jiang Banxia, who likes to hide her figure, this woman in front of him is very generous.
Generous enough to make someone's dopamine go into overdrive with just a glance.
He placed the noodles on the stone pillar of the railing, walked over slowly, and said, "Hey beautiful, I'm a street magician; could you help me perform a trick?"
The woman couldn't see Li Yang clearly either, only responded with a laugh, "Are domestic guys' pickup lines really this basic now?"
Li Yang keenly caught the keyword: domestic.
This indicated that the woman had just returned from abroad.
And the person he was waiting for also happened to have just returned from abroad.
By now, Li Yang had already walked up to the woman, and the hazy light from afar started to work its magic, allowing them to see each other's faces clearly.
The woman immediately changed her tone and said, "Oh, turns out you're a handsome guy, huh? You said you wanted to perform magic for me?"
"Yes, are you interested in helping out? I have a deck of cards here and each card has fifty surnames written on it. If you draw the card with your surname on it, I can immediately know what your surname is."
Li Yang smiled warmly at her stunning face, very beautiful, very sexy.
Normally, when appreciating a beauty, one starts from the bottom and scans all the way up before eventually pausing mid-upper.
But this woman in front of him drew all the attention to her face.
Even though her body curves were the most enticing he'd seen in real life, her eyes still captivated him.
Charming?
Wang Manqi was charming too, but nowhere near as enticing as this.
The woman smiled casually, "Why don't I show you a magic trick first?"
"Hmm? Are we birds of a feather?"
"Giggle, let's see if you, handsome guy, have the skill; look over there..."
The woman pointed behind Li Yang, and three men somehow appeared in front of them.
The woman said, "How's that? My 'vanishing act' is pretty amazing, right?"
These three men looked to be in their forties, of varying heights and builds.
Before Li Yang could say anything, one man spoke up, "Hey buddy, this lady here was someone we booked, but she took our money and ditched us. Could you cut us some slack?"
But the woman immediately leaned against Li Yang, clutching his arm, whining playfully, "Honey, I don't even know these guys; they're trying to bully me. You have to help me. I just wanna stick with you..."
Li Yang ignored the three men and asked the woman, "I have a question—is your surname Bai?"
The woman's coy expression was initially natural, but upon hearing this, it momentarily froze as if the record skipped.
Quickly recovering, she continued charmingly, "Whatever surname hubby wants me to have, that's the surname I'll use, even if it's Jiao."
As she whispered by Li Yang's ear, he could even feel her tongue tip grazing his earlobe.
That warm sensation...
Li Yang's frame looked unassuming, neither skinny nor chubby, and his looks felt somewhat scholarly, yet his body exuded strength; when he took off his T-shirt, his muscles showed defined.
On the basketball court, he could play as a power forward and seamlessly transition to center.
Without strong power, he would easily get pushed around in the paint.
Standing at only 180 cm, he could box out and rebound facing centers above 185 cm.
Li Yang knew the question he posed was problematic.
He couldn't explain why he wanted her surname to be Bai.
From the woman's pause earlier, he sensed he was probably right.
Twenty thousand yuan isn't really a lot, completely not worth the risk.
But the twenty thousand comes with leverage.
At least for now, there's no risk in saying a few words, until the other party is determined to act, then he would make a break for it.
Just to err on the side of caution, he still took out his phone and asked, "Where did you guys buy the services? I know every place big or small in Jiang City and have been there; I've never seen such a wild girl?"
Li Yang's words threw the three men into silence.
Despite Li Yang's youthful look, he spoke with a certain flair.
Even Bai Qing was taken aback, wondering if she had inadvertently found a big shot?
The leading man among the three asked, "Hey buddy, what's your moniker?"
Li Yang chuckled, "Thank you for the compliment. I'm the No. 1 on Aviation Road. Out of respect for me, let's call it off. Anytime you visit Aviation Road, feel free to name-drop me."
The three men whispered among themselves, as if none had heard of Li Yang's supposed reputation.
Of course, there's also a reason: who dares go to Aviation Road?
It's home to esteemed high schools, local authorities, and all major companies' Jiang City branches.
Another key reason is they're not locals and don't know Jiang City well.
Things aren't the same as before when places had more communication. After years of crackdowns, sketchy places already went kaput; thugs like them weren't organized.
Seeing the trio remain silent, Li Yang quickly dialed a number.
Better call some reinforcements; few real thugs are left nowadays—when you're out, all you can do is pretend.
The call was promptly answered, "Old Feng, bring some guys to the south side of Xiaoqing River, behind Huang Country Hotel."
"What's going on? C'mon, in the middle of a battle!
Boys, charge, cut them down!
Damn! That berserk's swipe hurts real bad...
If I die, I'm taking someone down with me! Aargh!"
Li Yang hadn't put the call on speaker, yet in the silent night, with no sound from the surroundings, the shouting on the phone still echoed out.
The three men were bewildered.
Damn...this brutal?
They only heard the woman had money and wanted some quick cash.
Plus, the woman's figure was really enticing; they got carried away; otherwise, seeing someone else around, they would never have dared.
And then suddenly...
This young, seemingly fragile guy, was backed by such ruthless people?
Too bloody!
Too violent!
One of them awkwardly said, "Sorry sorry, interrupted. The girl's all yours… haha..."
With forced laughter, the trio took a few steps back, before next second, taking off running.
Bai Qing clung excitedly to Li Yang's arm, exclaiming, "Honey, you're amazing!"
Li Yang, now calming the urge to flee, replied, "Heh, you doubt the golden reputation of Aviation Road's No. 1?"
"Hehe, someday hubby will also witness the Berkeley Wildcat's precision..."