From humble beginnings to the pinnacle of life

Xiaxi Road is more than ten kilometers away from the express delivery station.

Even when I twist the accelerator to the floor and sprint at full speed, I'm still incredibly nervous.

They were afraid that arriving even a moment too late would lead to disaster.

Human life is at stake; I dare not gamble.

I immediately slammed on the brakes, quickly pulled out my phone, opened the local food delivery rider group with hundreds of members, and sent a hurried voice message.

"Any brothers on Xiaxi Road? If so, please help me out. A female friend of mine was being harassed by some thugs at the Xiaxi Road bus stop. I'm on my way there now. If any brothers are there, please go and help me out."

The message was sent out and people in the group responded quickly.

"Brother Ye, I'm just here to pick up my takeout. I'll be right there."

"I just finished delivering an order near the bus stop. I'll go keep an eye on things there!"

Several messages popped up in succession, all from fellow delivery guys in the same city.

This feeling of being able to get so many people to respond to my call truly moved me.

We are just ordinary people at the bottom of society, with no one to back us up. In this big city, this is the only way we can stick together for warmth.

Without any delay, I put away my phone, twisted the accelerator, and sped towards Xiaxi Road.

I don't know why I was so anxious, it felt like it was happening to a family member.

Su Qing and I weren't very close. She was usually aloof and looked down on ordinary people like me who worked as errand boys, and she always had a sense of superiority about her.

Logically speaking, her misfortune and loss tonight might not be a bad thing for her, and I could simply stand by and watch.

But this was entirely instinctive; I didn't hesitate at all.

It took me a full twenty minutes to finally arrive at the Xiaxi Road area.

This is the back alley of an old night market, where streetlights are only a few far apart, and the dark areas are full of piles of clutter.

I really can't understand why Su Qing, a pampered girl, would come to such a remote and chaotic place in the middle of the night.

As soon as she turned the corner, she saw several thugs surrounding her near the bus stop.

Fortunately, four or five delivery riders in their uniforms stepped in front of Su Qing to protect her.

"Get out of my way! Mind your own business! Go deliver your takeout!"

The leader, a blond thug, held a retractable baton and arrogantly threatened the group of riders.

But none of these brothers showed any fear; they all stood firmly in place, protecting Su Qing behind them.

Seeing this, the blond-haired man became even more arrogant. He stepped forward, gritting his teeth and cursing, "I'll say it one last time, get lost! Don't push your luck!"

His accomplices behind him chimed in, "A bunch of losers delivering food! Instead of making money, they want to play the hero and save the damsel in distress?"

"Pah! Look at yourself! Get out of here, or you'll force us to fight."

Although Su Qing, who was being protected behind him, was still in shock, she couldn't shake her arrogant nature.

Having been pampered since childhood, and with the support of her fellow riders, she instantly became much more assertive.

He looked up at the three thugs and shouted angrily, "You dare touch me?! Do you know who I am?"

These words not only failed to intimidate the thugs, but instead piqued the interest of the blond-haired man, who revealed a lewd and wicked grin:

"Wow, you're pretty tough. I like people with strong personalities."

Another thug struck up a conversation, grinning and teasing, "Hey beautiful, don't be so rude. Come have a couple of drinks with us, you'll get your share of the benefits. Why be so stubborn?"

Seeing that a conflict between the two sides was about to break out and that a fight could break out at any moment, I suddenly accelerated forward.

The motorcycle braked sideways and came to a stop, blocking the way between the two groups of people.

He turned off the engine and got out of the car with swift and decisive movements.

I picked up a stone from the roadside and took two steps forward.

"Want to fight? Anyone who takes another step forward, just try!"

The thug holding the baton squinted at me, then sneered.

The blond thug squinted and looked me up and down with disdain.

Upon seeing that I was dressed in ordinary clothes, he immediately sneered, his face full of disdain.

"Another delivery guy? Are you guys just bored? You're all lowly laborers, and you dare to meddle in other people's business?"

"You'd better get lost, or I'll take care of you too!"

When Su Qing saw that it was me, she instantly felt like she had found a backer, and shouted with a hint of grievance:

"Lin Ye! You've finally arrived!"

The riders blocking the way turned around and respectfully greeted, "Brother Ye!"

The simple greeting only emboldened the blond-haired man on the other side, making him even more arrogant.

He stared at me, his tone sarcastic and mocking: "Not bad, kid. A food delivery guy like you manages to know such a stunningly beautiful woman. You've got some skills!"

His foul language made my stomach churn, and I completely lost my patience.

I've never backed down when thugs come to my door to extort money from me. These few street thugs who only bully girls are no match for me.

I couldn't be bothered to waste words with them, so I slightly raised the stone in my hand.

"I'm saying this for the last time, get lost! Don't cause trouble!"

At the same time, several riders in front of me stepped forward and stood beside me.

The blond-haired man's face turned pale and then red. He paused for a moment, then uttered a vicious threat:

"Fine! You outnumber me, huh! I'll remember you. Don't let me run into you again!"

After saying that, he quickly grabbed his accomplices and disappeared into the dark alley in a flash.

I threw away the stone and turned to look at Su Qing.

Then he looked at the group of riders who were helping him, took out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket, and handed them to them one by one.

"Brothers, thank you so much tonight. If you hadn't come, the consequences would have been unimaginable."

"Those of you with orders, hurry up and deliver them. Don't be late and you'll get fined. I'll treat everyone to drinks later!"

The brothers waved and laughed as they accepted the cigarettes, glancing at the strikingly beautiful Su Qing beside them.

They all teased me, saying, "Brother Ye, you're amazing! You've been hiding your talent; you even have such a beautiful girlfriend!"

I smiled helplessly: "We're not really friends. Alright, everyone get back to work, don't delay your orders."

The group didn't joke around much, but said goodbye with smiles and rode away on their electric bikes.

After the crowd dispersed, Su Qing asked with some surprise, "Did you call all these people?"

I lit a cigarette and replied casually, "What else? I'm more than ten kilometers away. Even if I flew here, I wouldn't make it in time. If no one comes to help you first, you'll have been taken away by the time I get there."

Su Qing muttered to herself, "You're so popular? You called so many people here all at once?"

I didn't explain any of that to her, but instead asked, "Let's not talk about that anymore, are you hurt?"

Su Qing shook her head, still somewhat shaken, and said:

"Luckily they arrived in time. Those guys had been drinking and were incredibly bold; they had already reached out to stop me."

I took a deep drag of my cigarette and said, "You always think we errand runners are just peasants, incompetent. The fact that you're safe and sound today is precisely because you were saved by these peasants you look down on."

Upon hearing this, she pursed her lips and muttered something under her breath, but surprisingly, she didn't refute my words.

I looked around, frowned, and asked, "Why are you in a place like this in the middle of the night?"