A Chao: “Don’t You Have a Misunderstanding About Ren?”

New York, Manhattan, Chinatown. In the gang hall, heavy with tension, Uncle Qing set something down with a grave expression. But when he looked at A Chao, his gaze shifted to Liu Ren. “Is what he said true?” “Uncle Qing, you know I barely went to school as a kid. I don’t know how to ‘destroy the opium’!” Spreading his hands, Liu Ren spoke. Even so, he hadn’t had the leisure to take it slow at the time. A problem a single match could solve—why make it so complicated? After all, as a delivery courier, Liu Ren hated nothing more than taking a detour, because the shortest distance between two points was always a straight line! Hearing Liu Ren’s explanation, Uncle Qing immediately furrowed his brow. “Do you fucking know what you did?” “Helped Madam Xiang and her daughter collect their debt! That’s all!” Shrugging, Liu Ren looked completely relaxed, then lit his cigarette with a match. Looking at Liu Ren before him, Uncle Qing fell silent for a long time. “A Chao, I told him to learn the rules from you. Is this how you teach him? Huh!” Angrily glaring at A Chao, Uncle Qing began to scold him. “Huh?” Stunned, staring at Uncle Qing, A Chao’s head was buzzing. What did this have to do with him? Liu Ren had charged in with an axe—he hadn’t even had time to stop him. By the time he rushed in, they were already “splitting up” in the alley. He couldn’t possibly go fight them, could he? “You’re an elder, after all. A Ren acted so recklessly today—it’s all because you didn’t teach him properly!” Scolding A Chao, Uncle Qing could see that Liu Ren before him was a fearless young bull. But what could Uncle Qing do against such a reckless junior? Liu Ren had done it to protect his own people—should he really be punished? So A Chao naturally became the scapegoat! Facing Uncle Qing’s nonstop scolding, A Chao lowered his head, wronged. “I’m sorry, Uncle Qing. I was wrong!” “Glad you know. If he causes any more trouble in the future, I’ll blame it all on you. Understood?” Looking at A Chao with a stern face, Uncle Qing grew serious. A Chao looked at Uncle Qing bitterly, turning his head to stare wordlessly at Liu Ren. Walking out of the gang hall, A Chao sighed, lost in spirit. “A Ren…” “Brother Chao, what’s wrong?” Liu Ren blinked, looking at him in confusion. “Next time, don’t use the axe, okay? That thing is too brutal! We can use clubs!” Reaching out to pat Liu Ren’s shoulder, A Chao stared at him seriously. But hearing this, Liu Ren looked doubtful. “But if I don’t use an axe, I can’t show my benevolence and righteousness!” “What the hell? Benevolence and righteousness!” Shocked, A Chao’s eyes widened. “You fucking call splitting someone in half benevolence and righteousness? Don’t you have a misunderstanding about Ren?” “You know, Brother Chao, I didn’t go to school much!” Embarrassed, Liu Ren quickly explained. “I’ll take you to school tomorrow. Our Chinatown has its own private school. Don’t worry, I’ll pay the tuition, I’ll pay!” Looking at Liu Ren seriously, A Chao was panicking. Since when did any normal person interpret benevolence as “splitting someone in half”? Wasn’t that a butcher with blood on his hands? Looking at A Chao like an old man on the subway, Liu Ren felt something was off—he was misinterpreting his own “wise words”! A Chao: “Do you want to listen to what you’re saying?” Returning to the temporary apartment, Liu Ren looked at the room with only a bed and muttered to himself. After all, he’d been here about half a month, and his thoughts were starting to get active—because who normal didn’t want to get rich? What’s more, it was the early twentieth century! In the not-too-distant future, World War I was about to break out, and after that, a century of blood and tears would be reenacted! His yellow-brown eyes kept flashing with light. Liu Ren slowly struck a match. When a spark illuminated the room, his gaze gradually grew firm. “King of Europe” was itself a vague mission, but if he didn’t struggle step by step, how could he prove in the future that he had once strived for his distant homeland? “People really have to rely on themselves!” He slowly spoke the words, then tossed the extinguished match into the can beside him. The next morning, sunlight once again fell on the earth. Seeing Liu Ren come down from upstairs, somewhat changed, A Chao immediately said, “You’re a little off today!” “Is that so, Brother Chao?” Liu Ren showed a brilliant smile, narrowing his eyes. It seemed that rubbing shoulders with society had taught him to hide his true thoughts, so Liu Ren showed a smile to everyone he met. But if you really took him for a smiling tiger who only stabbed in the back, you’d be mistaken. Because Liu Ren was, in some ways, more savage than Chusheng Zhang—because he would never allow anything threatening his safety to exist! Liu Ren: “Talking about kindness to a parentless orphan—don’t you think that’s too hypocritical?” Lu Yan: “I’m a madman, he is Chusheng, and you are a ‘beast’!” “Wait a minute!” Looking at Liu Ren, A Chao immediately stepped forward and patted him all over. Seeing that Liu Ren wasn’t carrying the axe, he let out a sigh of relief. “Brother Chao, what are you doing?” Liu Ren blinked curiously at A Chao. “I was afraid you brat would bring an axe!” Looking at Liu Ren in annoyance, A Chao said, “Come on, today I’m taking you to meet Head Coach Han. Be polite—he was a Boxer Rebellion boxer!” “A boxer?” Liu Ren looked at A Chao in surprise, immediately interested. “What do you think? But it’s a pity!” Thinking of the Boxers fighting the Allied forces back then, A Chao fell silent. Hearing A Chao’s words, Liu Ren became interested in Head Coach Han. Arriving at a martial arts hall at the end of the Chinatown street, the sound of unified angry shouts came from inside. When an old man with graying hair walked among the people with his hands behind his back, his whole body was like a lion, and his eyes were chilling. Looking at him, Liu Ren immediately narrowed his eyes. After seeing Head Coach Han, he had a strange feeling. “A Chao, you brought a new student today?” Looking at A Chao, Head Coach Han asked curiously. “Yeah, Head Coach Han. This is Liu Ren! He’s new to the gang. Uncle Qing asked me to bring him to learn a couple of moves from you!” Saying this, A Chao patted Liu Ren’s shoulder. “Bow to Head Coach Han!” “Head Coach Han!” Liu Ren hurriedly clasped his hands in a bow, looking curiously at the other man. Stepping forward, Head Coach Han touched Liu Ren’s shoulder and hand bones. “Not bad. Your body is solid. What do you want to learn?” “I want to learn your killing techniques!” Liu Ren lifted his head to look at Head Coach Han, unable to help but smile. Narrowing his eyes, Head Coach Han heard this and immediately chuckled. “These days, no matter how well you practice kung fu, you can’t stop the foreigners’ guns…” “But didn’t you also fight foreigners with your own two fists back then? I want to learn that!” Hearing Head Coach Han’s words, Liu Ren immediately lifted his head, his face full of determination. Kung fu, in short, was just a technique, but its true use was killing! Gazing at Liu Ren, Head Coach Han didn’t speak. He smiled, turned, and said, “Start learning first. If I think you can make it, I’ll teach you the kung fu in my hands!” Watching Head Coach Han turn and leave, a light shone in Liu Ren’s eyes.