Era: Rise from the Wilderness

One of the tall, thin men, taking advantage of a sudden stop, pretended to lose his balance and "accidentally" brushed his elbow against Lü Ruoxi's waist.

"Ah~~"

Lu Ruoxi was startled and instinctively hid behind Li Yunjing, her face turning pale.

Li Yunjing's eyes instantly turned cold.

He was looking out the window, planning his next steps, when he sensed Lü Ruoxi's unusual movements and those two malicious gazes, and immediately understood what was going on.

Just as the tall, thin man's elbow was about to touch Lü Ruoxi, Li Yunjing suddenly raised his hand and grabbed the other man's wrist like an iron clamp!

"Ouch!"

The tall, thin man hadn't expected the seemingly refined and fair-skinned boy to have such a strong grip; caught off guard, he cried out in pain.

"What the hell are you doing?"

The tall, thin man's companion, a shorter, stockier thug, immediately glared and stepped forward.

The attention of everyone else in the carriage was drawn to it.

"What are you doing?"

Li Yunjing's voice wasn't loud, but it carried a chilling ferocity. His fingers tightened like steel clamps, causing the tall, thin man to grimace in pain. "Where are you putting your hands? Are you blind from being squeezed on the bus?"

"Damn it! Let go!"

The tall, thin man struggled to pull his hand back, but couldn't move, his face contorted with pain and embarrassment.

"You little brat, looking for trouble, huh?"

Seeing his companion being taken advantage of, the short, stocky thug cursed and reached out to grab Li Yunjing's collar.

Before Li Yunjing could even touch him, he grabbed the tall, thin man's wrist and twisted it downwards, while simultaneously tripping him without making a sound.

The tall, thin man immediately lost his balance, cried out in pain, and half-knelt on the ground, his wrist still firmly gripped by Li Yunjing, looking utterly disheveled.

"Oh shit!"

Seeing this, the short, stocky thug threw a punch at Li Yunjing's face.

Li Yunjing dodged to the side, his movements so fast they were almost invisible. His free left hand shot out like lightning, grabbing the opponent's wrist as it swung out, and twisting it just as forcefully!

The short, stocky thug hadn't expected the boy to be so agile, and hissed in pain.

"You're so young, why aren't you learning good things? Instead, you're acting like a hooligan?"

Li Yunjing's gaze swept over the two of them. His voice wasn't loud, but it carried clearly throughout half the carriage, "With so many uncles and aunties watching, have you no shame?"

His shout immediately sparked a flurry of discussion among the passengers who had initially just been watching the commotion.

"Exactly! What the hell! Pushing that young girl!"

"It looks like something bad!"

"Driver! Stop at the police station ahead and take these two thugs there!"

"Good job, young man! People like this need to be taught a lesson!"

Several middle-aged women began to indignantly criticize, and a middle-aged man in work clothes even stepped forward, subtly blocking the two thugs' retreat.

The driver also noticed the commotion in the rearview mirror, honked twice, and shouted in a gruff voice, "What's all that noise in the back? Quiet down! If you keep this up, you're all getting off at the next stop!"

Under the watchful eyes of the public, the crowd was filled with indignation.

The two thugs were just street thugs who bullied the weak and feared the strong. When they saw that things were not going well, they panicked.

Li Yunjing was still twisting her wrist, causing her excruciating pain and making her lose face completely.

"Relax...let go!"

"We...we'll get off now!"

The tall, thin guy chickened out first, enduring the pain and begging for mercy.

Li Yunjing gave them a cold look before releasing his grip.

The two thugs, feeling like they'd been granted a pardon, rubbed their red and aching wrists and, amidst the scornful stares and whispered curses of the passengers, scrambled toward the back door, looking utterly dejected. Just then, the bus arrived at the station, and with a "whoosh," the door opened. The two jumped off without looking back, not even bothering to utter a single harsh word.

The doors closed, and the bus continued its journey.

The carriage gradually returned to calm, but many people still cast approving glances at Li Yunjing.

"Good job, young man!"

The middle-aged man in overalls patted Li Yunjing on the shoulder. "Trained? You've got some skills!"

"It's nothing, it's just that the thugs are incompetent."

Li Yunjing smiled, didn't say anything more, and just nodded slightly.

He turned to look at Lü Ruoxi beside him and asked in a low voice, "Are you alright?"

Lu Ruoxi's face was still a little pale, but her eyes were bright as she looked at Li Yunjing and shook her head vigorously: "It's nothing."

Just now, when Li Yunjing stood in front of her, his swift and decisive action and his cold and intimidating gaze made her heart pound, but not out of fear. Instead, she felt an unprecedented sense of security and protection, and... a kind of indescribable thrill.

He usually seems so calm, even a bit aloof, but I never expected him to be so... formidable when he gets into a fight.

Subconsciously, she moved closer to Li Yunjing again, their arms gently touching once more.

This time, it wasn't an accidental touch in the crowd.

Li Yunjing sensed her approach and did not move away.

His gaze returned to the window, but his tense shoulders relaxed slightly.

The bus rattled along, passing through unfamiliar streets.

Sunlight streamed through the car window, illuminating the shoulders of the two people who were sitting close together.

Ahead, the somewhat old-fashioned European-style building of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China is already faintly visible in the field of vision.

The bus came to a stop at the bus stop with a hiss.

The car door opened, and the heat and noise rushed in again.

Li Yunjing protected Lü Ruoxi as they got off the car with the flow of people.

Their feet touched the scorching concrete again, and their first target was right in front of them.

Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, Bincheng City.

It was an old-fashioned four-story building with gray-yellow terrazzo exterior walls and tall, narrow windows, giving it a distinctly European style that made it feel heavy and somewhat oppressive.

Above the lintel, the large golden characters of "Industrial and Commercial Bank of China" faded slightly in the sunlight.

People came and went at the bank entrance. There were officials who hurried in and out with briefcases, elderly people who carried cloth bags carefully, and young people dressed in ordinary clothes like them.

Li Yunjing did not go in immediately.

He stood under the shade of a tree across the street, his sharp eyes scanning the bank entrance and the surrounding area.

Just as he expected, besides ordinary people coming and going to conduct business, there were several seemingly idle people squatting or standing in the shadows beside the steps and the door.

Some people were smoking, lazily glancing at passersby; others seemed to be waiting for someone, but their eyes kept glancing at people entering and leaving the bank, holding passbooks or packages.

"See that guy over there in the gray t-shirt, squatting by the pillar?"

Li Yunjing tilted his head slightly and whispered to Lü Ruoxi, "And that one leaning against the bicycle, wearing a straw hat. Something's off about his eyes."

Lü Ruoxi looked in the direction he indicated, and her heart began to beat faster.

"Shall we... go there now?"

She asked in a low voice.

"No, let's follow the proper procedures first."

Li Yunjing shook his head. "Go in, queue up, and ask the counter. First, let's get a feel for the official channels and the specific procedures, so we'll be on the right track; second, if we ask, those 'interested people' at the door will naturally notice us. It's better than us actively approaching them."

Lü Ruoxi understood his intention and nodded.