Unbridled 20

"He can really lend you money?" Liu Jinpeng chattered as he followed Ding Ji. "He's just a high school student, where did he get a hundred thousand? Is he involved in some criminal activity? Did he find a buyer to sell you…"

"If he said a hundred thousand, does that mean that he really does have a hundred thousand? Who knows how much money he has? Besides, why do you care where he got a hundred thousand from? I'm not borrowing a hundred thousand from him," Ding Ji scolded. "Stop blabbering. Any of those people you borrow money from are more troublesome than Lin Wuyu! Where do you get the nerve? I'm asking you!"

"For whom am I doing this?" Liu Jinpeng protested.

"If you weren't doing it for me, I would have beaten you long ago!" Ding Ji glared at him.

After glaring back for a moment, Ding Ji put his arm around Liu Jinpeng's shoulder and said, "Thanks, Pengpeng, really."

"Let's not talk about this," Liu Jinpeng shook his head. "Damn it, Da Dong is so unreliable. He had to spill the beans to you! I'll get him sooner or later."

"If you can't repay him, he can only come to me! Don't go behind my back for this kind of thing in the future," Ding Ji said. "Whatever the problem is, we can solve it together."

Liu Jinpeng grunted in agreement but still seemed displeased.

Ding Ji arranged to meet Lin Wuyu at the milk tea shop next to Xinja. There was still some time before the agreed time, so they each got a cup of milk tea and stood by the street.

Liu Jinpeng didn't participate in the meeting but insisted on waiting nearby for Ding Ji.

"Be careful this time. We've been here for so many years without any problems, who would've thought that Old Liu would suddenly pull such a stunt," Liu Jinpeng frowned. "He seemed like such a nice guy at first, but when it came to borrowing money, he didn’t hesitate at all. It makes me uneasy."

"He's forced to snag first place in the college entrance exam! Not preparing to snag first place!" Ding Ji said with some exasperation.

"Preparing to snag first place," Liu Jinpeng insisted on putting it this way. "I still can't trust him."

"You are incorrigible," Ding Ji said. "You're even more anxious than my grandma. Stop standing here, it's a busy street, and this is a milk tea shop we're meeting at. What can happen?"

"I don't know," Liu Jinpeng shrugged nonchalantly. "I have nowhere else to go."

"Well then… Holy shit!" Ding Ji suddenly stopped mid-sentence as he spotted Old Liu walking over from the plaza. He nudged Liu Jinpeng with his elbow, "Don't stop me!"

"I'm fucking going to get him!" Liu Jinpeng saw Old Liu too and forcefully placed his milk tea on a nearby table. "Wait for me behind the milk tea shop."

Ding Ji turned and walked towards the back of the milk tea shop.

Old Liu was bold, but if he had done this to Ding Ji, he wouldn't have dared to show his face in the plaza for at least a year. Perhaps, having narrowly escaped trouble, he was feeling cocky and confident.

When Ding Ji dragged him to the back of the milk tea shop and pushed him down, Old Liu still had a defiant expression on his face.

Only when he saw Ding Ji did his expression change.

"I…" Old Liu quickly tried to push himself up from the ground.

"You might as well die here!" Ding Ji flew over and his knee struck Old Liu's chin. "I'll have you know what it means to overstep your boundaries without me even touching you!"

Old Liu was overturned by him, and there was still a look of defiance on his face. When he saw Ding Ji, his expression changed.

"I…" Old Liu quickly tried to prop himself up from the ground.

"You better stay down here!" Ding Ji used his shoulder to nudge him back.

Old Liu landed on the ground again and kept yelling, "Ding-Ding-Ding-Ding… listen to my explanation, I had no choice, I really…"

"Ding, you damn!" Ding Ji charged forward and his knee hit Old Liu's chin. "I don't even need to hit you to make you understand what boundaries are!"

Old Liu was knocked back to the ground. Ding Ji continued to hold him by the collar, pressing him down, his knee pinning Old Liu's stomach.

He then swung his fist and smashed it on Old Liu's face. "You dare to cheat me, your dad Ding!"

"I had no choice at the time!" Old Liu protected his head. "If I couldn't produce that money, they would have beaten me up!"

"It's none of my business if you get beaten up! The money wasn't taken by me!" Ding Ji slapped him. "You're afraid I'll beat you to death, right?"

"I think so," Liu Jinpeng, leaning against the back wall of the nearby milk tea shop, nodded while drinking his milk tea. "You truly don't dare to finish him off, and you can't. After all, we are still upright young men."

"Yes, yes!" Old Liu raised his arm, but couldn't stop Ding Ji's flurry of blows raining down on his face and fists. "Yes, yes! Mr. Ding, you have never caused trouble; everyone knows that…"

"Who gives a damn, you cheated me!" Ding Ji jumped up and started kicking him. "You cheated me! Let me tell you! If I don't see the money by the end of this month, I'll make you kneel whenever you hear my name!"

"Ding," Liu Jinpeng called him again.

"Dare to cheat me!" Ding Ji continued to kick and punch. "Just because I don't cause trouble doesn't mean you can mess with me!"

"Ding," Liu Jinpeng called him once more.

"Money!" Ding Ji ignored Liu Jinpeng and stomped on Old Liu's backside.

"I promise to return the money!" Old Liu hugged his head and finally found an opportunity to get up from the ground. He staggered and tried to run towards the street.

Ding Ji kicked him again from behind.

Old Liu knelt on the ground, but quickly got up again and shouted while running forward, "I promise! Mr. Ding! I promise!"

"Ding Ji!" Liu Jinpeng called him again.

Ding Ji's anger was still burning, and he didn't even look at him, chasing after Old Liu outside.

Old Liu ran a few steps and reached the street, then turned right and ran towards Xinjia.

Ding Ji reached the corner, took a wrong step, and accidentally bumped into someone standing there.

The strong recoil almost made him vomit. Before he could react, the person had already used his arm to hold him by the waist and pushed him back.

"Do you wanna die?" Ding Ji roared.

"If I am dead, then who will give you the money?" the person retorted.

"… Lin Wuyu?" Ding Ji was stunned when he looked over. "What are you doing here?"

"Aren't we meeting here?" Lin Wuyu gestured to the nearby milk tea shop.

"Damn." Ding Ji felt somewhat embarrassed; this scene was damaging to his image as the top student at No. 3 High. He turned his head and looked at Liu Jinpeng.

Liu Jinpeng shrugged and mouthed, "I called you."

"I'll have a milk tea like the one on that table," Lin Wuyu pointed to a table by the entrance of the milk tea shop.

Sitting by the table were two girls and a boy. They had witnessed the brutal beating of Old Liu. When Lin Wuyu pointed at them, they all stood up, took their cups, and hurriedly left.

"That one is ice cream, the bottom is milk, and the top is a scoop of ice cream. What milk tea is that?" Ding Ji walked to the cashier of the milk tea shop. "Where's the tea?"

"Where's Liu Fork and Plate¹?" Lin Wuyu sat down at the table.

"I don't know. He's wandering around nearby. Don't mind him," Ding Ji said while standing in front of the cashier. "Give it to me…"

"No, I won't." The cashier, Liang Chun, a young woman who was his elementary school classmate, was usually lenient and didn't take his money. Today, however, she was unusually fierce.

"I didn't offend you somehow, did I?" Ding Ji was somewhat puzzled.

"You actually fought someone behind my shop? Isn't there any camaraderie left between classmates?" Liang Chun said. "Those three customers were scared away by you!"

"They ran away, so what?" Ding Ji said. "Didn't they already buy their milk tea?"

"They just ordered three bowls of fermented rice dumplings! They haven't paid yet and ran away," Liang Chun said. "I already prepared them!"

"Give it to me," Ding Ji said.

"Drink my milk tea for free and give you three bowls of dumplings for free too? Ding Ji, are you a debt collector or something?" Liang Chun looked at him.

"I'll pay!" Ding Ji glared at her.

"Fine, one cup of pearl milk tea, one cup of ice cream, and three bowls of fermented rice dumplings," Liang Chun said promptly. "Anything else?"

"The egg waffles we used to have with Pengpeng, the ones with cheese filling and red bean filling. Do you have them?" Ding Ji asked.

"We have them. Do you want one?" Liang Chun asked.

Ding Ji thought for a moment, hesitated, and said, "Give me five for now."

"Are you joking with me?" Liang Chun asked. "If you can't finish them, I won't refund you."

"As an afternoon snack… I'm afraid it won't be enough." Ding Ji scanned the QR code and paid.

Ding Ji came back with the milk tea and ice cream, placing them on the table. "There's something to eat; she'll bring it over later."

"You can't eat that much," Lin Wuyu said.

"You’re one to talk, don’t you feel guilty?" Ding Ji sat down.

Lin Wuyu didn't say anything, just smiled and took out a few adhesive bandages from his pocket and threw them in front of Ding Ji. "Your hand is injured; put these on."

"Huh?" Ding Ji looked at his hand, where the knuckles had several cuts, probably from hitting Old Liu. Two of the cuts were quite large, right in the middle of the knuckles. He didn't feel the pain at first, due to the adrenaline rush from the violent beating, and then the embarrassment of his loss of control being witnessed by Lin Wuyu. Now, after Lin Wuyu's reminder, he suddenly felt as if two large ants were biting him.

"Thanks." Ding Ji took the adhesive bandages and put them on the cuts. "Why do you carry these around?"

"Leftovers," Lin Wuyu pointed to his face. "I got them from the school clinic."

Only then did Ding Ji carefully look at the injuries on Lin Wuyu's face. They were mostly healed, with one that looked a little deep, indicating it hadn't fully recovered, so Lin Wuyu used the adhesive bandages to protect it.

"Tell me." Lin Wuyu took a sip of the ice-cold milk tea and used a small spoon to stir the cup slowly.

"That guy from earlier, remember? Old Liu," Ding Ji frowned. "He helps Baldie collect debts. He collected money from people but couldn't hand it over to Baldie. Baldie wanted to deal with him, but he said he gave the money to me."

"Huh?" Lin Wuyu raised an eyebrow, somewhat surprised. Could such a nonsensical reason actually exist?

"Are you kidding me?" Ding Ji said. "Right after that incident, I stopped coming to this side of the plaza. I was afraid Baldie would cause trouble. But, as a result, Baldie really thought I took the money."

"So you want to give the money to him?" Lin Wuyu asked.

"I'll give him nothing!" Ding Ji said, pausing for a moment before sighing. "He went to Peng Peng. Baldie's people are like sticky taffy. Pengpeng was afraid that this matter would affect my studying, so he hurriedly pooled the money to give to Baldie. He only had three thousand on hand; the rest was borrowed, and the people he borrowed from aren't exactly good characters. So, I thought I should repay the money first. I don't want to wait until after my college entrance exams and find out that Pengpeng was beaten to death by debt collectors."

"For just 28,000 yuan², is it necessary?" Lin Wuyu smiled. "So, what are your plans with the money?"

"I'll keep an eye on Old Liu. Every time I see him, I'll beat him; every time I see him, I'll search him. If he has money, I'll take it; if he doesn't, I'll strip him naked and pawn everything," Ding Ji gritted his teeth.

"But with a person like him, even if you beat him to death, he probably won't come up with enough money," Lin Wuyu said.

"There's one last resort. I know where his dad works. If I really have to, his dad might be able to come up with it…" Ding Ji said, struggling a bit, his eyebrows furrowing into a knot. "But his dad's legs aren't good, and he carries gas tanks for a living. If I really take the money…"

Lin Wuyu remained silent, resting his forehead on his hand as he looked at Ding Ji.

"Darn it," Ding Ji tapped the table with some frustration, then looked up at Lin Wuyu. "That's the situation. Ultimately, I might end up beating up Old Liu while working to pay you back. I definitely can't tell my family; I'm afraid my grandparents would be worried."

Lin Wuyu still didn't say anything or move, and he just stared at him.

"Is your risk assessment done yet?" Ding Ji asked. "Is the situation so that… I can't borrow money?"

Lin Wuyu smiled, took out his phone, and tapped it a few times.

Ding Ji felt the phone vibrate and took it out, seeing a money transfer notification.

30,000 yuan³.

"No, no, I wanted to borrow 20,000 yuan⁴," Ding Ji said. "I still have a few thousand on hand."

"Forget it," Lin Wuyu said dismissively. "I like round numbers, not odd amounts. Besides, I won't come chasing after you to collect the debt and beat you to death after your college entrance exams."

Ding Ji smiled.

After collecting the money, he suddenly felt like crying.

He raised his hand and rubbed his eyes.

"Don't cry," Lin Wuyu sat up straight. "I really don't know how to comfort someone."

"Get lost," Ding Ji sniffed and said with a smile. "I'm just thanking you as a formality."

The server brought the dumplings and egg waffles, laying them out on the table.

"Eating like a pig," Lin Wuyu picked up an egg waffle, tore off a piece, and put it into his mouth.

"They're all yours," Ding Ji immediately piled several portions of the egg waffles onto two plates and pushed them in front of Lin Wuyu.

"Ding Ji," Lin Wuyu looked at him.

"Hmm?" Ding Ji replied.

"I've never lent money to anyone before," Lin Wuyu said. "Of course, I don't have many friends, and they've never asked me to borrow money. But I know that, under normal circumstances, I wouldn’t lend money; I'm afraid of trouble and complications."

"Hmm," Ding Ji nodded.

"I'm lending you money because I trust you, and you really need it. Liu… Old Liu is too reckless," Lin Wuyu said. "But if you do this again, I won't lend you any more money."

Ding Ji stared at him for a while, then nodded, "Got it."

"That's it for this matter. We'll talk after the exams," Lin Wuyu said.

"Alright." Ding Ji fell into silence for a while, hesitated, and asked, "Do you really not have a boyfriend… or girlfriend?"

"No," Lin Wuyu smirked. "Why, are you volunteering?"

"Get lost!" Ding Ji tapped the table with his milk tea, thought momentarily, and then smiled, "I just feel that someone like you should have… well, under normal circumstances, if you like girls, you should have many girlfriends."

"It's not urgent," Lin Wuyu said. "Good things come to those who wait."

"What are you talking about," Ding Ji laughed and reached out to grab an egg waffle.

"Aren't they all mine?" Lin Wuyu quickly flicked his fingers on Ding Ji's hand, and the egg waffle fell back into the plate.

"What the heck?" Ding Ji stared at him. "Who are you?"

"Someone who should have many boyfriends," Lin Wuyu said.

Ding Ji choked and laughed for a while.

"I'm asking you," Lin Wuyu picked up the cup and poured the remaining half cup of ice cream into his mouth. "How did you come up with the idea to borrow money from me?"

"I really had no one else to borrow from. When I looked around, there were only ordinary high school students and the half-hooligans I usually hang out with," Ding Ji said. "Who could readily come up with 20 to 30 thousand yuan? I remembered you said you were financially independent since middle school."

"You have a good memory," Lin Wuyu chuckled.

"As soon as I thought about it, it was you. You have money, and you're soft-hearted," Ding Ji said.

"Am I soft-hearted?" Lin Wuyu wondered.

"Soft-hearted," Ding Ji nodded. "When I first read your palm, I knew it, and later, as I got to know you better, I became even more sure. I'm quite accurate in reading people… But I really felt embarrassed when I had to come to you."

"Yeah, you went around in circles and made me ask you," Lin Wuyu said.

Ding Ji smirked twice, "It's a good thing it was you. If it was Pengpeng, he might have found me a job somewhere."

"Invite me to dinner later," Lin Wuyu said while eating the egg waffle.

"Of course," Ding Ji said. "First, I'll transfer the money to Pengpeng and let him return it quickly."

Lin Wuyu nodded.

"There's something I'm really curious about," Ding Ji swiped on his phone, "but I'm not sure if it's convenient for you to tell me."

"Then don't ask," Lin Wuyu said.

"Do you really have the ability to lend me 100,000 yuan?" Ding Ji asked.

"Regretting it now? Should've asked for 100,000 yuan earlier," Lin Wuyu teased.

"Am I crazy? How would I repay 100,000 yuan?" Ding Ji clicked his tongue.

Lin Wuyu smiled but remained silent.

Ding Ji leaned on the table, behind a pile of egg waffles, and asked in a low voice, "Where did you get so much money from?"

"Some of it is New Year money; my parents are generous during the New Year," Lin Wuyu said, "and some of it is money I saved from part-time jobs. I don't have many expenses in my daily life."

"What kind of part-time jobs?" Ding Ji couldn't help but continue in a hushed voice.

"Keep it a secret," Lin Wuyu also lowered his voice, leaned on the table, and moved the pile of egg waffles aside. "It's prostitution."

Ding Ji looked at him in shock. "Can you act even a bit like a top student?"

Lin Wuyu laughed for a while, straightened up, composed himself, and said, "Have you flown a drone?"

"No," Ding Ji shook his head.

"After the exams, I'll take you to play with one," Lin Wuyu said.