The Sickly Villain Only Wants to Survive

45

The once neatly arranged tables in the bar's main hall were now in disarray, knocked over by the brawl. Most of the patrons had fled in fear.

Lu Zheyu withdrew his foot from a man's face, expressionless, and said flatly, "Let's go."

Zhu Tong watched him walk away without a second glance, marveling at how calm and collected he seemed after such a brutal fight. This guy really is the strong and silent type, Zhu Tong thought.

He glanced at Shao Ming, who smiled and said, "Let's go."

With the fight over and the anger vented, there was nothing left to do. It was clear that the other group had deliberately provoked them.

During the fight, Zhu Tong had overheard some of the surrounding chatter. The guys who had picked the fight seemed to be part of a band—a group of dropouts. From what they were saying, they had been competitors with Lu Zheyu in the bar's theme music competition.

Unhappy with their loss, they had come to cause trouble.

Not in the mood to deal with sore losers, Zhu Tong was about to head back to the private room when one of the beaten men, his face bruised and swollen, struggled to his feet and sneered, "Lu Zheyu, mad that you've been exposed? You're nothing but a plaything who got kicked out! How dare you go back to school? Do your friends even know the dirt on you?"

Lu Zheyu paused mid-step, his face impassive as he turned back, clearly prepared to hit the guy again.

The man, inexplicably emboldened, seemed excited. "What's wrong? Lost for words? All you can do is throw punches? Go ahead, beat me up! But even if you kill me, I'll say it—you're a fraud who doesn't deserve that prize!"

"You ever consider," Zhu Tong suddenly interjected, "that maybe the reason he's hitting you is simply because you deserve it?"

The guy with the earring froze.

Shao Ming looked down at Zhu Tong, surprised as he stepped forward. Luo Su, startled, was about to pull Zhu Tong back, but Shao Ming held him back with a raised hand, an amused smile on his face.

"?"

Zhu Tong looked directly at the guy with the earring and said, "Because people like you just look like you deserve a beating."

"..."

The earring guy sneered, sizing up Zhu Tong. He hadn't seen this person during the fight and thought he looked weak. "Oh? You're standing up for Lu Zheyu? With that face, are you his—"

"Only people with filthy minds would think in such filthy ways," Zhu Tong interrupted.

The earring guy was momentarily taken aback before erupting in anger, "Who are you calling filthy? Everything I said is the truth! Everyone knows Lu Zheyu—"

"I don't know," Zhu Tong said, cutting him off. "I know him because of his academic achievements. And according to you, if a student scoring over 700 isn't worthy of returning to school, then someone like you who dropped out as a minor should just hang yourself the moment you see a school, right?"

Having dreams as a teenager is admirable, but smearing others to achieve those dreams is just wrong.

There was a burst of laughter from the crowd.

Even Zhu Xin looked surprised. Was her brother always this sharp-tongued?

The earring guy's face flushed with rage.

"He's shameless! So what if he has good grades? His family is dirt poor. There's no way he could afford music lessons! If he didn't cozy up to some rich sponsor, how else could he have gotten into an entertainment company or written a full song?!"