Ch52 Seriously? Are They Treating Him Like a Fool?
"Bang bang bang!"
"Who's in there? Come out now!"
"We need you! Where are you?"
"Come out or we're breaking down the door!"
It wasn't until noon that Meng Ci finally dragged himself out of bed.
The main reason was the bitter cold outside.
He pulled out his thermometer and saw the temperature had dropped to six or seven degrees Celsius.
It wouldn't be long before it hit below zero.
Meng Ci had no idea how he'd survive without air conditioning or heating.
He could enter his storage space, but there was a time limit!
Sigh.
If it weren't for needing to process the soil he'd brought back yesterday, Meng Ci felt he could stay in bed forever.
After getting up, he retrieved a steaming bowl of noodle soup from his spatial pocket and ate it. Then he pulled out a portable alcohol stove.
Despite the cold, Meng Ci had been burning coal on the balcony.
Sometimes he'd also place a fully charged desk lamp out there. Thanks to this, after over twenty days, the greens were finally ready to eat.
Meng Ci thought it was perfect timing-since it was freezing outside, he could invite Shen Que over for a hotpot meal.
But just as he moved the flower pots onto the balcony, he heard frantic knocking outside, accompanied by the incessant shrieking of the alarm.
Meng Ci hesitated briefly before tucking a pistol into his waistband.
The noise outside suggested multiple intruders-this was likely to be a fierce battle.
Gripping his long knife, he opened the door just as Shen Que was prying open the two security doors.
Hearing the noise, Shen Que turned. "Together?"
"Mm." Meng Ci nodded.
A couple days prior, Meng Ci had Shen Que repositioned the outermost security door, then installed the iron pull door from his own room onto the newly constructed entrance.
Though opening the two inner security doors this way was more cumbersome, it offered greater security.
Moreover, the sliding gate allowed communication while maintaining physical separation, further enhancing safety.
After opening both security doors, they faced the group outside through the sliding gate.
The leader turned out to be Deng Yang, flanked by two women.
He was about to order his men to cut the door with a chainsaw when he saw Meng Ci and the others open it. He waved his hand, signaling his men to stop.
"Perfect timing. Since you opened the door yourselves, I won't have to waste diesel."
"What's the matter?" Meng Ci stepped forward.
He thought to himself, with this iron sliding door, it felt like being visited in prison.
Deng Yang immediately made an outrageous demand, treating them like fools.
"I hear you two have plenty of food at home. Why not hand it over as your initiation tribute?"
"As for these two rooms, consider them your welcome gift for joining us."
Zhang Mingtian had mentioned that Deng Yang had somehow gotten involved with an outside gang.
Leveraging his backers, he'd rallied most of the building's residents, quietly asserting dominance.
But he'd never caused trouble before.
Seeing the two women beside Deng Yang-Li Ping and Li Xiaoya -made everything clear.
Naturally, among this group were several individuals previously dealt with by Meng Ci and Shen Que. Now with a patron, they were eager to settle old scores.
Meng Ci said nothing, simply pulling open the metal sliding door.
Deng Yang smirked, convinced they'd accepted his terms.
"Good for you two for knowing your place."
"Rest assured, under my command, you won't suffer a thing."
Meng Ci frowned. Why are so many people treating others like fools these days?
Or had they been cooped up too long, turning themselves into idiots?
Meng Ci opened the iron sliding door, and Shen Que followed closely behind.
The two security doors behind them, no longer supported, slammed shut with a loud thud.
"Enough talk. If you want what we have, you'll have to kill us first."
Both men gripped their knives, determined to strike first.
Talking to fools was a waste of breath.
Meng Ci swung his blade at a buzz-cut man beside him, while Shen Que charged straight for Deng Yang.
Deng Yang, a cowardly man, shoved Li Xiaoya to his left forward.
Shen Que's blade sliced cleanly into Li Xiaoya's shoulder, sending her into a shrieking fit of pain.
"Ow! That hurts like hell!"
"Waaah! Brother Yang, save me!"
Deng Yang's group-over twenty men and women-swarmed forward.
Deng Yang hid behind his crowd, spitting on the ground.
"You two are stubborn as mules. Fine, die right here!"
Though Deng Yang's group outnumbered them, none possessed real fighting skills. They were no match for Shen Que and Meng Ci alone.
But their sheer numbers and relentless, rotating attacks began to wear the pair down.
Seeing Li Xiaoya wailing nearby only fueled Deng Yang's already boiling frustration. He kicked her hard to the ground.
"Stop whining and get back in the fight!"
"Keep crying like that, and I'll kill you right now!"
Seeing Deng Yang's knife pointed at her, Li Xiaoya had no choice but to pick up a discarded blade from the ground and charge forward, gritting her teeth.
Li Ping, who had been favored by Deng Yang these past days, cowered behind him, her eyes filled with venom as she glared at Meng Ci and Shen Que.
If they killed him, it would at least justify all the days she'd spent bowing to others.
At this critical moment, Deng Yang had no room for romantic sentiment. He ordered her to join the fight.
Li Ping took the knife from Deng Yang's hand. The memory of her husband Zhao Ze's gruesome death flashed through her mind -it was all these two men's fault!
To slay her enemies with her own hands would be a worthy price to pay for joining Zhao Ze in hell.
After all, if they hadn't stubbornly told Zhang Mingtian to refuse them, Zhao Ze would never have died!
Li Ping was ruthless, not as timid as Li Xiaoya. She waited nearby, eyeing her chance to deliver a fatal blow.
Li Xiaoya stumbled through the crowd, too afraid to step forward and attack, yet hesitant to retreat.
Because retreating would only lead to a more miserable fate.
Deng Yang had colluded with many in the building to keep women caged like pets, allowing other men to abuse them at will.
Outside bandits could enter and choose women for
entertainment by offering Deng Yang half a pack of instant noodles, a handful of rice, or a single potato.
Why go searching for women elsewhere when a mere morsel of food could satisfy their lust?
"Ugh!"
Li Xiaoya clutched her stomach, staring down at the knife embedded in her belly, disbelief washing over her.
Amidst the chaotic crowd, someone behind her bumped into Li Xiaoya, sending her stumbling forward into the knife of the man in front.
The man holding the knife, seeing Li Xiaoya wounded by his own blade, immediately let go.
After all, she had collided with it herself he hadn't intended to kill her.
Losing her support, Li Xiaoya clutched her stomach and slowly collapsed to the ground, blood trickling out steadily.
Even in her final moments, Li Xiaoya's gaze remained filled with hatred as she looked at Meng Ci.
Why was he born with both parents, blessed with such a privileged background?
Why was she an illegitimate child, doomed to a life of hardship?
Why, even after days of relentless rain, did Meng Ci look more vibrant than her?
And she? She was just a ball to be kicked around.
Li Xiaoya refused to accept it.
But when she saw the knife behind Meng Ci, poised to strike him, Li Xiaoya closed her eyes with satisfaction.