After the breakup, I was taken in by a group of trendy young women.

Tsk tsk.

The scarred man slammed the cards down on the table and licked his lips.

A middle-aged man with tattooed arms next to him followed his gaze and nudged the scarred man with his elbow.

"Third Brother, you've taken a liking to him?"

"This is top-notch."

The scarred man squinted, his gaze sweeping over Shen Qing.

"I've never seen a body like this in my forty-plus years of life."

The bald, fat man next to him also looked over.

"Little sister, you're not very old, are you? Are you twenty or not?"

"Who cares how old she is."

The scarred man stood up and pulled his shorts up a bit.

He stuffed the change on the table into his pocket, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and walked towards Shen Qing.

He walks very slowly.

Shen Qing was unaware of the danger.

She turned around and walked back, just as she came face to face with the scarred man.

The scarred man stopped two steps away from her, his hands in the pockets of his shorts, tilting his head as he looked Shen Qing up and down again.

He swallowed hard.

"Little sister, are you all alone?"

Shen Qing took half a step back without saying a word, and subconsciously tightened her grip on the straps of her backpack.

"Don't be afraid, don't be afraid, I'm not a bad person."

The scarred man took a step forward.

"I own a billiards hall, the one at the corner. It's called 'Third Brother Billiards,' the facilities are great, and the air conditioning is strong. I'll treat you to a game."

Shen Qing took another step back.

"No need, I'm with a friend."

"With friends?"

The scarred man looked in the direction she had come from and saw several colorful heads squatting in front of the milk tea shop. Bai Xiaojing was stretching on the steps, Zhang Jingjing was playing games, and the green-haired and pink-haired people were huddled together looking at their phones.

His lips curled down.

"Those few young girls? What future do you have hanging out with them? Come with me, I'll take you to eat and drink the good life."

As he spoke, he reached out and grabbed Shen Qing's arm.

Five fingers gripped Shen Qing's slender arm, leaving a red mark on her fair skin.

Shen Qing cried out in surprise and tried to shake her arm off, but couldn't. Her backpack slipped off her shoulder and fell to the ground, and her eyes instantly reddened.

"Let me go!"

"What are you yelling about? Is it really necessary to make such a fuss over a little touch?"

The scarred man chuckled, and his grip tightened even more.

At that moment, his wrist was grabbed by a hand.

The scarred man's smile froze on his face. He turned his head and met a pair of eyes.

Lin Ye's other hand was still in the pocket of his athletic shorts, and he had an unlit cigarette dangling from his mouth.

"Let go."

The scarred man had been in the underworld for twenty years, but the posture of the man in front of him made his heart skip a beat, though he refused to admit defeat.

"Who are you? I'm talking to my sister, it's none of your business—"

Before he could finish speaking, Lin Ye tightened his grip on his wrist and pressed down.

The scarred man felt a tightness on his wrist, and his fingers involuntarily loosened their grip on Shen Qing's arm.

He was bent over by the force, his knees dropping halfway down.

He staggered back two steps, rubbing his wrist, where a ring of deep red finger marks had appeared.

Bai Xiaojing was the first to react.

She was squatting on the steps stretching when she saw the scarred man grab Shen Qing's arm. She threw the cigarette she was holding to the ground and darted away.

"Fuck your mother! Try touching her and see what happens!"

Zhang Jingjing put her phone on the ground and rushed over. She rolled up her sleeves to her shoulders.

"Shen Qing! Where did he touch you?"

Green Hair and Pink Hair stood up at the same time and stuffed Wangcai into their backpacks. Everyone was running towards Shen Qing.

The scarred man steadied himself and stood up straight again.

He rubbed his wrist, his expression shifting from shock to anger. He turned and yelled at the Pai Gow table.

"Damn it, what are you still looking at!"

At the dominoes table, four middle-aged men stood up simultaneously. Two plastic stools were kicked over, and dominoes were scattered all over the floor.

The old man selling watermelons at the supermarket entrance quickly moved his watermelon stall to the side, and passersby who were buying water also stepped back.

Bai Xiaojing had already rushed to Lin Ye's side. She spread her arms to block Shen Qing, glaring up at the scarred man and the several burly men behind him.

"Old man! You're fucking tired of living!"

Zhang Jingjing arrived, stood next to Bai Xiaojing, pushed Shen Qing behind her, and then faced the scarred man directly.

"Did the people who attacked us ask us beforehand?"

The scarred man stared at the group of young girls in front of him for a moment, then laughed.

He raised his finger and pointed it at Zhang Jingjing's nose. He had just said "You little brat" when a canvas shoe flew over and hit him in the face.

The shoe was thrown by Green Hair. She was standing three meters away, barefoot on one foot, clutching the other shoe in her other hand.

"Try pointing to another one!"

The scarred man wiped his face, and the smile on his face vanished completely.

The four shirtless men behind him had already moved behind him, and the five of them stood in a row.

"You little brat," the scarred man pointed at Lin Ye, "who do you think you are? Who on this street doesn't know my Third Brother? If you kneel down and apologize now, and have those girls behind you have a drink with me, this matter will be over."

Lin Ye took the unlit cigarette out of his mouth and flicked it.

He spoke, but his voice was soft.

"You touched her with this hand just now, didn't you?"

Shen Qing stood behind Zhang Jingjing, clutching the strap of her backpack, her eyes red-rimmed.

She looked at Lin Ye's back as he stood in front of the five shirtless men, and it looked exactly like the one she had seen at the barbecue stand the night she was kicked out by her landlord.

The scarred man's wrist was still trembling.

It wasn't from being scared; it's from when Lin Ye pinched me earlier, and my bones still haven't recovered.

He'd been around for twenty years, but when that hand reached out to pinch him just now, only one thought flashed through his mind: this person's grip was off.

But his four brothers were standing behind him, and there were neighbors at the dominoes table. He couldn't afford to lose face for his third brother on this street.

"Kid," the scarred man hid his still-numb hand behind his back, puffed out his belly, and raised his chin, "you're her boyfriend, huh?"

Lin Ye did not answer.

He turned his head and looked at the girl behind Zhang Jingjing who was clutching the strap of her backpack.

Shen Qing stood behind Zhang Jingjing, with half of her body hidden by Zhang Jingjing's arm.

Her eyes were still red, and so was the tip of her nose. The red mark on her arm where the scarred man had pinched her hadn't faded yet. She was clutching the straps of her backpack tightly, still in a state of shock.

"come over."

Lin Ye said.

Upon hearing those two words, Shen Qing loosened her grip on the straps of her backpack.

She walked past Zhang Jingjing, passed between Bai Xiaojing and Lv Mao, and stood in front of Lin Ye, looking up at him.

Lin Ye reached out and put his arm around her waist.

When his hand pressed down, through the white T-shirt fabric, he could feel the curve of her waist tightening inwards and her warm body temperature.

Lin Ye pulled her into his arms, and Shen Qing pressed herself against him.

Her shoulder bumped against his chest, her dark hair brushing against his chin. Her breath hit his collarbone, light and quick.

Then her body trembled slightly in his arms; the oversized white T-shirt was very thin.

Lin Ye raised his head and looked at the scarred man.

His right arm was around Shen Qing's waist, while his left hand was still in the pocket of his athletic shorts.

"You're right."

He said.

"She is my woman."

Shen Qing suddenly raised her head in his arms.

Her eyes were still red, and there were still tear stains on her eyelashes, but her eyes were full of surprise.

Then her ears turned red, and the redness spread from her neck down to her cheeks.

She didn't pull away, but lowered her head and buried her face in his shoulder, her fingers unconsciously gripping the hem of his T-shirt.

The scarred man's expression froze on his face.

The bald, fat man behind him opened his mouth as if to say something, but then swallowed his words. The two tattooed men next to him exchanged glances. The tall, thin man who had kicked over the plastic stool earlier was quietly righting it.

The scarred man gritted his teeth, and the muscles in his cheek twitched.

He took half a step forward and poked Lin Ye's chest with his finger.

"you--"

Before he could finish speaking, Lin Ye didn't loosen his grip on Shen Qing's hand, and with his other hand, he grabbed the scarred man's finger that was poking at him and twisted it upwards.

The scarred man's fingers were bent at an angle with the joint reversed, and he was bent over in pain.

"What?"

Lin Ye looked down at him.

"I've thought about it, and it seems there's no need to reason with you."

He let go, and the scarred man staggered back several steps before being caught by the bald, fat man behind him to prevent him from falling.

Then Lin Ye added another sentence.

The scarred man clutched his finger, which had been twisted and was now a deep purplish-red.

The bald, fat man behind him whispered, "Third Brother, maybe we should just forget about it," before he shoved him aside.

But he did not go any further.