DBTHDCAR Chapter 83

Fan Xia’s fist was about to land on the pervert’s head when the man ducked like a rat, narrowly avoiding it.

The punch missed, and Fan Xia reached out to grab him.

The bus was crowded and narrow. The pervert dodged a few times, making a quick dash to the rear exit. The bus had just stopped, and he shouted at the driver to open the door.

“Don’t open it! Don’t open it!”

Ning Xiaobei shouted loudly, “Don’t let that freak get away!”

Most of the passengers were students, and they joined in yelling. Some pulled out their phones, ready to call the police.

Cornered, the pervert even swung at anyone blocking the door. It was like a drop of water hitting boiling oil; the already tense bus exploded in chaos.

“Hit him! Beat him to death!”

“Don’t let him escape!”

Students were full of righteous fury, and the victim was such a beautiful girl. A few guys, maybe wanting to show off their manliness, started a full-on fight in the cramped bus. At first, Fan Xia and Ning Xiaobei, trying to catch the guy, were stuck behind, unable to push through the crowd.

By the time the police arrived, the pervert was beaten black and blue, a huge bruise around one eye, his lip split. His clothes and backpack were covered in shoe prints. Lying on the floor were his ID and library card, it turned out he was a university student too, a junior!

“It’s him, it’s them! They hit me! Officer, please help me!”

Before the girl could even speak, the pervert struck first with a false accusation. He’d been beaten to a pulp, his face barely recognizable, but his sleazy air gave him away. The police weren’t blind; they could already guess what had happened.

Ning Xiaobei, Fan Xia, the pretty girl, and the few kind-hearted heroes who had just stepped in with their fists were all taken to the police station near the school.

Sitting in the reception room, Ning Xiaobei appeared unusually calm compared to the other students, most of whom were there for the first time and visibly excited.

After so many ins and outs over the years, Ning Xiaobei had already come to terms with it. In the dream world, police stations all over Shanghai had practically become his second home; like checkpoints for missions. He had even once idly wondered if visiting every single police station in Shanghai would complete the revive Dad quest.

After a round of questioning, it turned out the pervert was from the Normal University, the victim was from J University, and the boys who had stepped in came from all kinds of schools.

As per usual, each school’s counselor was called in to take their students back.

Fan Xia called home to say they might be late getting back to the city. Zhao Jingwen told them to head straight to Xiaobei’s grandma’s place later and not bother going back to the Workers’ New Village. Today was the grand opening of the beauty salon jointly opened by Xiao Mei and Alan. They had missed the morning ceremony, but at least they could still make it for dinner.

Alan, who had gone all the way to Japan to work and pay off her debts, had finally returned to Shanghai and was starting over. This time, Grandma didn’t stop Xiao Mei. Instead, she even urged her to make something of herself.

Xiao Mei was already close to thirty. Grandma always felt that staying by her side all day had kept her from finding a partner and delayed her life. It was better for her to go out, work, and meet more people. The little shop could run just fine with the old lady alone; besides, she still had two big cats for company.

Azi the cat had suddenly disappeared during Xiaobei’s month of military training. This time, Grandma didn’t search for it anxiously like before. Everyone understood that when cats feel their time is coming, they leave their home and owners. They’re the kindest creatures; they can’t bear to let the humans they love cry for them, so they quietly return to Meow Planet.

Before the counselors arrived, someone familiar showed up—Tang Xin.

Carrying a huge backpack and with her hair even messier than when they’d seen her that afternoon, it was obvious she had rushed over in a panic.

As soon as Tang Xin entered the station, she stepped forward and wrapped an arm around the pretty girl’s shoulders.

The girl had been sitting there alone, pitiful, tears streaming endlessly from the corners of her eyes like a never-drying spring. She clutched tissue after tissue in her hands, crumpling them, looking lost and miserable; a scene heart-wrenching to see. The moment she saw Tang Xin, she was like a lone bird returning to the forest, throwing herself into her arms and sobbing as she poured out her grievances.

Ning Xiaobei had watched everything clearly from the side. Officers came and went, but only one female officer had brought her a cup of water. The male students wanted to step forward and comfort her, but since they didn’t know her, they felt awkward about speaking. The only one who might have dared, Fan Xia, was busy worrying about why their teacher hadn’t arrived yet. If the teacher didn’t come, how were they supposed to leave for dinner? He could handle being hungry, but Xiaobei couldn’t.

At last, the counselors arrived one after another. Everyone except the pervert let out a long breath of relief.

“Ning Xiaobei? It’s you?”

Tang Xin came out of the restroom and stood in front of the mirror fixing her hair. Ning Xiaobei happened to be washing his hands, and the two exchanged a smile through the mirror.

When she heard that it was Ning Xiaobei and Fan Xia who had discovered the pervert, her eyes lit up.

“So that’s Fan Xia? He really does have that chivalrous knight vibe! Was he the one who beat that guy up? That’s awesome! A real man should be like that.”

No matter how Ning Xiaobei tried to explain that Fan Xia hadn’t really done much, she remained convinced that Zhou Yunjun had been rescued single-handedly by him. As for the other boys, haven’t you seen TV dramas? When the male lead acts heroically, there’s always a bunch of background extras behind him. Those are just supporting roles, no need to pay attention.

As for how she distinguished the main character from the extras; what a joke, of course it was based on looks.

That pretty girl, Zhou Yunjun, was Tang Xin’s dormmate. Although they had different majors, they got along extremely well; basically best friends.

“That guy? This isn’t his first time. He’s already on record at this police station; kind of a celebrity over at the Normal University.”

Tang Xin crossed her arms and lifted her chin, gesturing toward the noisy office inside with a look of disdain.

Ning Xiaobei noticed that she was really tall; only a few inches shorter than him, at least around 1.76 meters. At that height, she could easily look down on not just girls, but a large portion of Shanghai’s male population too.

For example, that pervert inside.

In the next twenty years, Tang Xin would be what people online call someone with social butterfly syndrome; fearless in social situations. She frequented university forums, BBS boards¹Bulletin Board System (BBS) , chatrooms, and QQ groups, and there wasn’t a single piece of gossip about Shanghai’s universities she didn’t know. She was basically the Bai Xiaosheng²Bai Xiaosheng (百晓生, literally “Know-it-All” or “Hundred-Truths Man”): A  fictional character type, or sometimes a specific character, in wuxia literature renowned for having comprehensive knowledge in the martial arts world (Jianghu), including weapons, techniques, and secrets of the campus world.

Oh, and besides QQ, which students commonly used, there was also an instant messaging tool called MSN. Its white icon showed two little green and blue figures, leaning shoulder to shoulder. Business people, especially those communicating with foreigners, preferred using it, thinking it looked more stylish and streamlined than QQ. Looking back now, it’s practically a relic of its time; the tears of an era.

According to this Know-it-All, that pervert’s reputation among the girls at the Normal University was utterly rotten. Not to mention older incidents, just this semester, not long after it started, he had sneaked into a girls’ QQ group. When he was caught, they found at least several thousand candid (secretly taken) photos in his digital camera; shots from all kinds of angles, with too many victims to even count.

Going further back, last year a sophomore girl had been hanging laundry at night when she vaguely saw a man lying on the railing, peering inside, holding something in his hand. The shocking part? It was the third floor; no one knew how he had climbed up. She immediately used a laundry pole to poke him down.

Several girls rushed downstairs, but the bushes were in chaos and they didn’t catch him. However, the next day when he showed up to class, his head was injured and his knee was hurt. When teachers and counselors questioned him, he naturally denied everything.

But later, when his camera was checked, it contained hundreds of close-up photos taken into girls’ dorm rooms; especially of them changing clothes. No need to think twice; the same pervert who had been climbing windows and taking photos last semester was definitely him.

“And for trash like that, his school is still recommending him for postgraduate admission.”

Tang Xin was furious.

“What? Not expelling someone like that is bad enough…they’re even recommending him for grad school?”

Halfway through, Fan Xia had walked over, already burning with anger.

“How come we’ve never heard about this?”

They were all in the same university town, so close, and yet not a single rumor had spread. If they’d known earlier, the moment he got on the bus, everyone would’ve recognized him. There would’ve been no chance for him to harass anyone.

“The posts on the BBS were all deleted. The counselors forbade it from spreading, so only girls passed it around privately. From last year until now, not even a single disciplinary action has been issued. Not just that, he hasn’t even apologized. The higher-ups at the Normal University say their school already has fewer male students. If the matter is blown up, it wouldn’t be good for the school, and fewer boys would apply in the future. This guy usually gets good grades, so they can’t ruin his future over such a small matter.”

Ning Xiaobei and Fan Xia exchanged looks, completely stunned; then so angry they almost laughed at the shameless, bandit-like logic.

There were fewer male students at the Normal University, so they needed extra protection, so even breaking the law had to be protected too? Then who was supposed to protect the girls’ rights? And that guy was studying education, wasn’t he? If someone like him got into the education system in the future… Ah, now it all made sense, so this was where those so-called leaders who tried to silence girls came from.

“This time the incident’s blown up. It happened in a public place and involves so many schools. I’d like to see how they clean this up. When I get back, I’m posting this on the BBS. If they delete it once, I’ll post it again. I’m also going to submit it to newspapers and radio stations.”

As Tang Xin spoke, she slung her clattering backpack over her shoulder and headed back toward the office. Right now, she was Zhou Yunjun’s pillar of support, and she still had to stand up for her.

“This girl’s pretty something.”

“She’s got a bit of that chivalrous spirit.”

The two young men commented as they watched her walk away.

“Oh right, Fan Xia.”

The two of them hurried back to Pudong. Xiao Mei and Alan’s opening banquet was already halfway through. They were starving; once seated, they tore into the food like a whirlwind, leaving Ning Jianguo no chance to even pick up his chopsticks.

“Are you free next Wednesday evening?”

Before Fan Xia had come over earlier at the police station, Tang Xin had slipped Ning Xiaobei an important bulletin.

There was a mixer next Wednesday. with four guys and four girls, at a newly opened place called VANNY on the bar street east of the university town.

You had to pay before attending: 100 yuan for each guy, while girls were free. Tang Xin guaranteed that everyone coming had been carefully screened by her—handsome guys, pretty girls, and at least a college-level education or above. More reliable than those matchmaking shows on TV.

On the spot, Ning Xiaobei handed over 200 yuan in cash and signed both himself and Fan Xia up. Of course, he was just going along as a supporting participant.

“What are we doing that night? Asking me to hang out?”

Fan Xia gnawed on a rib, looking pleasantly surprised.

Wasn’t that his birthday? So the boss really did remember.

“Going to a bar?”

Watching Ning Jianguo chatting with Xiao Mei across the table, and with Uncle Zhao nowhere to be seen, Ning Xiaobei leaned in close to Fan Xia’s ear and asked in a low voice,

“Going?”

“Yeah! Of course… yeah, yeah, yeah… I’ve never been before.”

Don’t be fooled by how open Fan Xia seemed, deep down, he was still a kid. Since enrolling, he had passed by the bar street countless times, yet had never once gone inside. On the other hand, he had practically eaten his way through every single shop in the food court next door.

“Then it’s settled. After dinner, wait for me at the east gate.”

“No need. I’ll come find you after lunch. That class in the afternoon is boring anyway, I’ll just skip it.”

“Fan Xia, are you looking for death? You’re telling me you’re going to skip class right in front of me?”

“No, no, no, I wouldn’t dare, wouldn’t dare… hehe.”

Fan Xia grinned, completely satisfied.

He felt like there was something wrong with him; he especially liked the way Ning Xiaobei scolded him with his brows raised. And after the scolding, that helpless smile on Ning Xiaobei’s face only made him look even better.

Scold me more, Ning Xiaobei.

………………

Author’s Note:

Fan Xia’s got a bit of a screw loose.

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• 1
  Bulletin Board System (BBS)
• 2
  Bai Xiaosheng (百晓生, literally “Know-it-All” or “Hundred-Truths Man”): A  fictional character type, or sometimes a specific character, in wuxia literature renowned for having comprehensive knowledge in the martial arts world (Jianghu), including weapons, techniques, and secrets