Chapter Twenty-Four: Brothers

Chapter 24: Brothers

When Da Fei and his men appeared and seemed to recognize A-Qing’s group, Shen Peng had feared that a real fight was about to break out. After all, these bouncers were different from A-Qing and his crowd, who were merely looking for trouble while drunk; if a fight started, his side would likely suffer. He was already hesitating about whether to call the police. He never expected that Da Fei would actually know Yang Qi—and, judging by his expression, seem somewhat afraid of him.

As one of the most active students in their class, Shen Peng knew the general situation of most of his peers. Yang Qi was just an ordinary college student; how could he possibly intimidate a hoodlum like Da Fei?

"Welcome? Your friend certainly welcomed us warmly, even planning to drag my friend inside to drink with them. That’s quite a unique way to welcome someone. Would you like me to return the favor?" Yang Qi said calmly.

What?

Da Fei felt his world go dark. He had only heard that someone was causing trouble at the club; he hadn't realized that the person involved had tried to force this "god of death’s" friend to drink. And looking at the situation, it seemed that A-Qing was the one responsible. Hadn't he even told A-Qing that he would back him up when he arrived?

"Brother Da Fei, it’s these losers! They actually dared to hit me—you have to help me!" A-Qing, still clearly deep in his drunken stupor, failed to notice Da Fei’s fear and continued to bluster from the sofa.

*Are you trying to get me killed?*

Hearing this, Da Fei’s face drained of color. He was already scrambling to think of an excuse, and this idiot was still digging his own grave—and dragging him into the fire with him.

"Who the hell are you? I don't know you at all," Da Fei quickly snapped at his bald subordinate, A-Biao. "Boys, take this A-Qing and his friends to the back and have a little chat."

"Yes, sir!" A-Biao and the others responded immediately.

Seven or eight men stepped forward, grabbing A-Qing and dragging him away without giving him a chance to speak.

"Brother Da Fei... ah!" A-Qing tried to protest, but A-Biao punched him hard in the stomach, drawing a pained shriek from him.

"You aren't worthy of calling him Brother Da Fei," A-Biao sneered.

"Brother, please enjoy yourselves. I’ll take my leave now," Da Fei said to Yang Qi, his tone cautious and respectful.

Only after seeing Yang Qi nod did Da Fei breathe a sigh of relief. He hurried away, as if fleeing from something terrifying.

"Brother Qi, that was amazing! You even know tough guys like that," Shi Dong said, looking at Yang Qi with astonishment.

Although people like that weren't exactly respectable, having a classmate who knew such people could be useful for settling certain matters. After all, they weren't children anymore and had gained a much deeper understanding of how the world worked.

***

After that disturbance, the mood was ruined. After less than an hour, everyone began to prepare to leave. Chen Chao, who had been responsible for the bill, returned with a bitter smile.

"Brother Qi, the bill has already been paid. It was that guy A-Qing; he said it was an apology," Chen Chao said, glancing at Yang Qi.

Hearing this, Shi Dong and the others looked at Yang Qi in disbelief. It was clear that A-Qing must have been given a severe lesson by Da Fei; otherwise, he never would have paid for their bill.

"I saved you some money this time. When we come back for graduation, the drinks are on me," Yang Qi said with a smile.

"It's a deal," Chen Chao nodded.

"Those guys like Zhang Yang are really something. When you were handling things earlier, they just stood there and didn't even move," Shi Dong whispered, looking at a few male classmates ahead of them.

"Everyone has their own choices. At worst, we’ll just hang out with them less in the future," Yang Qi replied indifferently.

As the saying goes, friendship has many levels: colleagues, classmates, friends, close friends, and brothers. If Shi Dong and Yang Qi were brothers, then Zhang Yang and the others were merely at the level of classmates—they didn't even qualify as friends.

"They have jobs to worry about. Unlike us, it doesn't matter if there's a stain on our records," Shen Peng added.

"That's just you being nice. If it were me, I wouldn't even bother with them," Shi Dong said coldly.

"Don't say that. We’re all classmates. Who knows? You might need them for something in the future. Keeping ties makes things easier," Shen Peng said.

"That may be true, but I’m curious—why didn't you invite them to your birthday party last time?" Yang Qi suddenly asked with a smile.

Shen Peng just smiled and didn't offer an explanation, but everyone understood.

Although Shen Peng appeared to have a good relationship with the entire class, he was far too socially adept to be a poor judge of character. Even among the guys, while they all got along on the surface, there were certain things he would never involve Zhang Yang and his ilk in. Shen Peng knew full well that they were just classmates who had spent four years together in college, and their paths would diverge completely in the future.

However, compared to Shi Dong, Shen Peng was simply more tactful in how he handled such things.

"Anyway, look at you, playing the hero tonight—did Wang Xin have any reaction?" Yang Qi turned to look at Shi Dong. As soon as he said this, Chen Chao and the others also looked at Shi Dong with curiosity.

The fact that Shi Dong had rescued Wang Xin from several men and even taken a slap for her was obvious to anyone with a brain.

"What kind of reaction would she have?" Shi Dong gave a bitter laugh. "Wang Xin landed a formal position at a bank right after graduation. And me? I haven't even found a job yet."

***

Hearing this, the others fell silent. They were all academic underachievers; there was no hope for civil service or government positions. Those with better family backgrounds might have help getting a job, but most had to rely on themselves. In this day and age, with no car and no house, who would want to talk about romance?

"Shi Dong, what are your plans after graduation? Are you staying in Qingzhou or going back home?" Yang Qi asked.

"I’ll just take it one step at a time. There are too many college graduates these days. Qingzhou has more opportunities, so if I can find a stable job, I’d like to stay," Shi Dong said after a moment of thought.

Yang Qi knew that Shi Dong wanted to stay not only to make a name for himself in Qingzhou but also because of Wang Xin, who was working there.

*If this guy really intends to stay, I should talk to Shen Yuxuan and help him out when the time comes,* Yang Qi thought. *But for now, I'll let him try on his own.*

If Shi Dong really decided to stay, Yang Qi would naturally help him as a brother. He hadn't had the capability before, but now, fixing a job for Shi Dong was no problem. However, he didn't plan to tell him in advance; after all, if Shi Dong didn't curb his habits of gaming and gambling, he would likely run into trouble sooner or later.

"By the way, Brother Qi, you’ve moved out—have you found a job yet?" Shi Dong asked suddenly.

"I have. I'm working at a jewelry company."

"Heh heh, jewelry companies are full of beauties. It looks like your girlfriend is going to have to worry," Shi Dong chuckled.

"We broke up," Yang Qi said calmly.

"You broke up?" Shi Dong and the others were stunned. Yang Qi and Luo Rong had been together for quite a while; they hadn't expected them to split up right before graduation.

"It's fine. Besides, there are plenty of beauties at a jewelry company. Are you really worried about not having a girlfriend, Brother Qi?" Shi Dong laughed.

"Exactly, Brother Qi. What’s a man afraid of? The only thing to fear is having no money. Once you have a job, the girlfriend situation will sort itself out," Shen Peng added.

Chen Chao and the others chimed in with their own advice. Yang Qi found it a bit amusing, but he felt a warmth in his heart. These were his brothers.