Chapter 41: A Youth’s Desire

Wang Han had a feeling: she and Song Ye were definitely arch-nemesis; otherwise, why would Song Ye always be around to make things difficult for her? The former had broken one of her fingernails in the ladies’ room yesterday. Wang Han could feel her finger getting a spasm when she recalled the memory now. Song Ye actually dared to have her arms around Xu Zihang, Wang Han’s crush, during their match. It was obviously to show her momentum of fighting for the boy.

Hatred from the past and present burnt in Wang Han’s heart. Just when she was thinking of how she could fight for her own happiness, a cute and petite girl tucked at her sleeve meekly. “Senior, do you know Song Ye? Can you help me to call out for her? I’m her sister.”

Sister? Shocked, Wang Han turned sideways to look at the girl as she asked doubtfully, “If you are Song Ye’s younger sister, why isn’t there any resemblance between the both of you?” The girl might look adorable. However, when compared to Song Ye who looked like a fairy from heaven, this girl was a mere mortal from earth.

“M-my… my name is Song Meimei. Song Ye is my older sister. I’m telling the truth. I know she has just been transferred from the fifth class to the first, and she has left home.” Song Meimei hastily explained. Her head was low, but there was an extremely fierce expression on her face. The thing she loathed most was the look of suspicion on other’s faces. It was a constant reminder to herself that she wasn’t as good-looking as Song Ye.

“You said Song Ye left home?” Wang Han didn’t care about the relationship between the girl and Song Ye. What interested her the most at the moment was how she was going to get back at Song Ye after she was defeated the last time.

Song Meimei rolled her eyes. She pulled Wang Han to a corner so she could exaggerate her story—turning Song Ye into an incorrigible, abusive youth who beat her parents, abandoned her home, and had improper relationships with older men. Wang Han’s eyes shone as she listened. She couldn’t wait to tell Xu Zihang what she had just heard. Very quickly, she turned and left to plot her scheme.

A sneer appeared on Song Meimei’s adorable face as she watched Wang Han’s departing silhouette. “Stupid woman. Let’s see how much trouble you’re going to stir. Song Ye… hahaha. Don’t think you can have all the fame to yourself.”

Song Ye was preoccupied with the friendly match on the basketball court. She was clueless that someone had been talking about her. Everyone was covered with sweat after the match. Before the group of girls could flock over to hand them towels and water, she led her team back to the training ground.

After training for a whole week, everyone had lost considerable weight. However, their stamina and spirit had also improved. They became more tolerable to being hit and thrown down.

Yun Hua had more freedom after school hours. She spent most of her time at the training ground, pushing herself during training. As a result of her hard work, her stamina was much better than Xu Zihang and the dozens of others in the group.

One afternoon, Song Ye was walking towards the school gate after she finished her routine of playing basketball. The cell phone in her pocket suddenly rang.

She grabbed the phone and saw Yun Hua’s name on display. What could be the matter at this time of the day?

Puzzled, she answered the call; but all she could hear was the chaotic background. She could vaguely hear the sound of things being broken. “Sister Yun, where are you?” Song Ye paused in her steps. Suddenly, her expression became somber.

She finally heard Yun Hua’s breathless voice from the other end after a long time. It was filled with anxiety. “Song Ye, I’m at the bar on Number four, Cloud Street. Some people are here to find trouble with our night helpers. I became their target the instant I arrived.”

After these periods of training, Yun Hua was very skilled and calm when she handled things. The situation must be extremely critical for her to behave so anxiously.

“Find a place and hide. I’ll be there right away.” Song Ye ordered. She hung up and promptly rushed over to the bar on Cloud Street.

…

Song Ye explained the situation on her way there. Xu Zihang and a few others could not hold themselves back. They started cursing and reached for their guns.

“The situation has been tense lately; we must not use any guns. Our priority is to save people.” Song Ye knew they would attract the military attention if there was a shooting incident. Should that be the case, she might not be able to escape because her foundation was weak.

Fortunately for her—over this period, Xu Zihang and the rest had looked up to her as their leader and followed her lead. Since Song Ye had made her point, they had to prioritize their mission no matter how angry they were.

There were only two hooligans at the entrance of the bar on Cloud Street. Regardless of day or night and no matter what happened inside—as long as it was contained within the bar, things would appear to be peaceful outside. That would also explain why Zhou Zheng dared to conduct business transactions for heroin.

Song Ye left Wang Tiechuan at the entrance to deal with the two hooligans while she led Xu Zihang and the rest, and sneaked in through the back. Once they entered the dimly lit bar, they were slammed by the loud music. It sent a deafening sensation to their eardrums, and they could feel their heads pounding and hearts slamming against their chests. It took a while for them to accustom themselves to the music before they could hear the crashing sound at the front dance floor.

“Bring a few men with you and search every room. Sister Yun should be hiding somewhere nearby.” Song Ye roughly deduced Yun Hua’s location from the sound of their telephone conversation earlier and immediately began to instruct Xu Zihang who was beside her. However, after a long time, she didn’t see anyone responding even though she was done talking. Frowning, Song Ye looked up and stared directly at the other person.

Being the recipient of a frosty glare caused Xu Zihang to retreat a step after he came to his senses. Then, came his belated reply. “Oh… okay. Be careful.”

Song Ye felt that Xu Zihang’s reaction was a bit weird, but she didn’t have the time to find out what was the cause of it. She sped towards the front hall right after she had assigned the tasks.

Xu Zihang placed a hand on his chest. He could clearly hear his heart pumping under the colorful and dim lights. The music surrounding them was so deafening; they had to lean close to each other when they speak; that was the only way they could hear each other. The instant when Song Ye’s body leaned over to him, Xu Zihang happened to look down: her smooth forehead, those pair of eyes that shined like amber from the light reflection, and her slightly thin lips when she talked. Everything was too perfect. All of a sudden, his heart skipped a beat.

At that moment, it became apparent to him that the person who was standing before him was just a girl. No matter how awesome or mighty she might be, she was still a teenage girl like him.

This excitement and emotions came so abruptly for the youth. As a fifteen- or sixteen-year-old teenager, he was completely unprepared.

Nevertheless, he knew deep down that a considerable distance still separated him and Song Ye.

To a thirty-year-old woman who had not had the opportunity to experience love, it was impossible for Song Ye to detect a teenager’s worries. Within seconds, she had cast the thought to the back of her mind as she rushed to rescue Yun Hua.

She could hear the commotion as she approached closer to the front hall. There must be more than a few troublemakers.

Song Ye sneaked into the lounge and changed into the service staffs’ uniform. She even managed to find a baseball cap that she put on. After she had completed her disguise, she swaggered into the front hall.

More than a dozen people holding melon knives came to smash the place. They were interrogating the few men, who were guarding the bar, and stepping on their faces.

“Was that bitch a member of the Night Gang? Where did she go? Speak!” The few hooligans stomped on the man who was laying on the floor to vent their anger probably because they couldn’t find Yun Hua. “Bah! It should be our turn to run the show now that Zhou Zheng, that old geezer, is dead. What is Night Gang? You can’t even compare yourselves to those guys at the West Street.”

“That’s right. Members of the Night Gang are cowards. You don’t even dare to show yourselves. If the Night Gang doesn’t show up, Cloud Street might be better off being managed by West Street.” The men chipped in one after another in provocation.

While they were getting ahead of themselves, they heard a sudden loud bang. Bam! The glass broke, and shards littered the floor. One of the cocky hooligans, who had been laughing earlier, closed his eyes as he fell onto the floor like a fallen tree.