Chapter Twenty-Three: Utterly Baffling!

Tang Zhen flipped through the notebook in his hand, drawing lines through the items he had already purchased. He had so many things to buy this time that relying on memory alone would inevitably lead to omissions, so he had recorded each item one by one. A dull pencil is better than a sharp mind.

After glancing at the remaining items, Tang Zhen tore the page from his notebook, set it alight, and watched it crumble into ash. Once he had flushed the remains down the toilet, he prepared to head back to the market to continue his shopping. In truth, his purchases followed no particular pattern; he was simply buying a little of everything to see which goods sold best, which would allow him to stock his inventory more accurately in the future.

As soon as he stepped out of his courtyard and reached the end of the street, he saw a woman he had once been infatuated with standing on the roadside. It was Fang Yujia, the girl next door he had harbored a secret crush on for years. Tang Zhen’s heart gave an involuntary tremor; perhaps because he had loved her, seeing her always felt like such a beautiful experience.

It was late autumn, and the air held a slight chill. Yellow leaves drifted down from time to time, and the long street was filled with a sense of desolation. Tang Zhen took a long, deep look at Fang Yujia in her beige windbreaker before walking past her in silence.

Fang Yujia, who was waiting for a ride, was slightly startled to see Tang Zhen. She quickly greeted him with a bright, pleasant smile. "Oh, Tang Zhen! Long time no see!"

She was as radiant as ever, yet to Tang Zhen, there was a sense of detachment, as if they were worlds apart.

"It has been a long time. How have you been?" Tang Zhen smiled, his gaze as calm as still water.

"I'm doing alright. How about you?" Fang Yujia sensed that Tang Zhen’s demeanor was a bit strange, different from how he used to be. Being a sharp person, she immediately realized something. She sighed inwardly but kept her composure and asked with a smile, "And you?"

"I'm doing just fine." The smile at the corners of Tang Zhen’s mouth deepened, signaling that he was truly doing well.

This exchange, as bland as plain water, made it seem as though they were nothing more than the most casual of acquaintances. *If I gain it, it is my luck; if I lose it, it is my fate. Why force it? Why let it weigh on my heart?*

With a quiet sigh to himself, Tang Zhen felt an instant sense of relief. He gazed deeply at the woman before him, offered one final, faint smile, and said softly, "Goodbye."

"Uh... goodbye..." Fang Yujia replied. She watched his tall, retreating figure disappear at the end of the street, and for reasons she could not name, a wave of emotion stirred in the depths of her heart. Perhaps some things had left her forever.

Tang Zhen spent the afternoon selecting and purchasing goods, but his mood remained oppressive. There was more than one reason for this; Fang Yujia was merely one of them. The greater weight came from the secret he carried, which kept his mind in a constant state of tension—a stress too great to be effectively relieved. When walking the streets, he was hyper-sensitive to the gazes of others, harboring a hidden fear that someone might discover his secret. He knew this clearly, yet he was helpless to change it.

After eating dinner at a small restaurant, Tang Zhen walked slowly along the street and inadvertently spotted a newly opened entertainment complex.

The decor was luxurious, shimmering with brilliant light. Handsome men and beautiful women moved in and out, and from time to time, bursts of uninhibited laughter drifted out. The sense of abandon in those laughs made Tang Zhen pause. After a moment of hesitation, he stepped inside.

The atmosphere inside was a world apart from the street outside. Under the dazzling lights, deafening rhythms filled his ears. Only here and now could one release the emotions suppressed in daily life. The music made it easy to surrender to the rhythm and let the wilder side of human nature emerge.

After watching from the entrance for a while, Tang Zhen walked in. He ordered a few bottles of beer and sat down at a corner table. Sipping his drink, he watched the kaleidoscope of people on the dance floor, yet felt that his own world was worlds away from theirs. Traversing two different worlds and struggling between life and death—the experiences in between were enough to completely transform a person. This was exactly how Tang Zhen felt now.

Perhaps it was his low mood, but he drank quickly. Soon, the table was covered in empty bottles, and a hazy sense of intoxication began to wash over him. Still, he did not leave, instead ordering more. *A good drunk can wash away a thousand sorrows,* he thought; perhaps he really needed to get drunk for once. Then, waking up the next morning, he would cast aside the past and strive for the life he truly wanted.

Unfortunately, things rarely go as planned. Tang Zhen only wanted to get drunk, but trouble came looking for him instead.

At a nearby table, a dozen men and women were gathered, reveling without restraint. Among them, a heavily made-up woman caught sight of Tang Zhen drinking alone. A flicker of hatred crossed her blurred, drunken eyes. She glared at him, her flushed face twisting and twitching. She leaned over to whisper to the people around her, and soon, they all turned their eyes toward Tang Zhen.

Three men and two women stood up and swayed toward his table. One of the men—a sturdy, bald fellow in a tank top with tattooed arms—sat down in front of Tang Zhen and stared straight at him. The others stood around, grinning as they watched, looking as if they were about to enjoy a show.

Tang Zhen raised his eyelids, glanced at the man, leaned back, and took another slow sip of his beer. Seeing Tang Zhen ignore him, the tattooed man’s expression darkened. "Hey, you're pretty good at acting cool, aren't you?"

"Heh... who are you?" Tang Zhen placed his bottle on the table and stared at the man, his tone laced with disdain.

His tone seemed to provoke the man, who jumped up and reached out to grab him. Tang Zhen dodged the movement with a slight shift of his body and, with a cold sneer, grabbed the man by the back of his collar. All the pent-up frustration within him erupted in that moment, contorting his features into a ferocious mask.

When the man's companions moved to intervene, Tang Zhen pushed them aside with a flick of his arm and began dragging the tattooed man toward the exit. No matter how the man struggled or cursed, he couldn't break free; Tang Zhen’s arm felt like an iron bar, striking a cold fear into the struggling man. The companions rushed forward, trying to stop him, but they were pushed to the ground one by one.

Within minutes, Tang Zhen had dragged the man outside and, ignoring his fearful curses, turned into a nearby alleyway.

A dozen men and women followed close behind, along with a crowd of curious onlookers. Tang Zhen tossed the man aside and looked at the group, who were still spewing profanities, as if he were watching a group of clowns.

"Motherf—" A short-haired man cursed, waving a beer bottle he had been clutching and swinging it toward Tang Zhen. Several others followed, surrounding him. But before they could land a blow, the man in front let out a muffled grunt and was sent flying backward by a kick.

Although Tang Zhen’s injuries hadn't fully healed, he was still far beyond what these thugs could handle. He could unleash the entirety of his body's strength in an instant, making his attacks terrifyingly lethal.

As soon as the skirmish began, several men were knocked to the ground, unable to rise. Tang Zhen fought as if venting his frustrations—a punch here, a kick there—and no one could withstand a single blow. In less than a minute, every man was on the ground, groaning in pain. This was only because Tang Zhen had held back; otherwise, they would have been corpses.

Tang Zhen exhaled, looking at the writhing figures on the ground, and felt a sense of relief. Ignoring the shocked onlookers, he walked up to one of the women and looked at her with a mocking expression. As she tried to avert her eyes, Tang Zhen reached out and pinched her cheek. "Your name is... Xiaofei, right? Don't do this kind of thing again, or I won't be so polite next time."

"Remember to take your friends to the hospital."

With a faint smirk, Tang Zhen pushed through the crowd and strode away.

The next morning, waking from his sleep, Tang Zhen recalled the events of the previous night and couldn't help but offer a bitter smile. He had been determined to keep a low profile, but alcohol had ruined his plans. Now, a low profile was out of the question. He hoped those bastards wouldn't make a big deal out of it and draw unwanted attention to his oddities. Tang Zhen made up his mind: if anyone truly discovered his secret, he would have no choice but to ensure they remained silent forever.

Rubbing his numb forehead, Tang Zhen washed his face with cold water and, after a moment of hesitation, took out his phone. He contacted Xu Feng; there was no other choice, as that guy had connections in both the underworld and the legitimate world, and Tang Zhen truly needed his help for many things.

At the time Tang Zhen called, Xu Feng was busy discussing the effectiveness of car shock absorbers with a graceful young woman; the two were in the midst of an "in-depth exchange" when the phone rang. Seeing it was Tang Zhen, Xu Feng answered casually, "Hey, what is it now? I'm busy!"

Tang Zhen curled his lip and said, "I got into a fight in front of that new entertainment complex last night. Help me look into it. If there's trouble, try to smooth it over for me. Just tell me if money is needed."

"Damn, so that was you? You're a beast! You took down eight people by yourself? Did you eat a bucket of tiger pills?" Xu Feng’s raspy voice came through the phone, sounding both surprised and teasing.

Tang Zhen sighed. *Damn, word travels fast.*

Xu Feng paused and continued, "One of those rotten eggs is my subordinate—he usually just likes to act tough in front of normal people, but he knows to behave when he hits a wall. I'll make a call and it'll be fine. But one of the guys you broke a bone in is the son of a deputy police chief in one of our federation's cities. His family has some pull; I'm afraid there might be some trouble there."

Tang Zhen froze. He had a premonition that this matter would not end easily.