Chapter 15: Stunned
Xu Yang immediately recognized the voice—it belonged to the woman who had been sitting in front of him on the bus.
Startled, he paused for a moment.
And in that very instant of distraction, the antique shop owner’s hand suddenly slipped.
Crash!
The celadon jar fell to the ground and shattered into countless fragments.
Since he hadn’t even touched the jar, Xu Yang felt no panic at all. He turned his head and saw a woman with skin as smooth as jade, a flawless figure, and long hair cascading like a waterfall.
Her figure, bearing, and beauty were in no way inferior to Su Yanran, the most beautiful woman in Jiangcheng. Especially her eyes—calm yet clear, bright with an agile and enchanting charm, captivating beyond words.
For a moment, Xu Yang stared at this young woman, momentarily lost.
The young woman wrinkled her delicate nose and spoke in a melodious voice:
“You’re about to lose money.”
“What?” Xu Yang was confused; he knew nothing about the world of antiques.
At that moment, the antique dealer suddenly raised his voice and cried out loudly:
“Oh my! My Ming dynasty celadon jar! How could you be so careless? You’ve ruined my treasure!”
“This celadon jar cost me a whole house to acquire. You must compensate me for my treasure!”
Watching the shop owner wail as if he’d lost his mother, Xu Yang froze for a moment before finally understanding the young woman’s earlier warning.
Instantly, Xu Yang’s expression turned cold. In a low voice, he said,
“Boss, I advise you not to invite trouble upon yourself. I’m not someone you can extort at will.”
At these words, the dealer sneered coldly, then raised his voice even further and shouted:
“Everyone, come and look! It’s him—he broke my treasure! And now he refuses to admit it! Come here and judge for me!”
The neighboring stall owners, clearly in cahoots with the fat shopkeeper, all sneered and began to chime in.
“Young man, since you broke his property, you should pay for it! We all saw it—trying to deny it won’t work.”
“Exactly, the police station is right next door. If you try anything funny, we’ll call the police at once!”
“Fatty’s celadon jar is his pride and joy. He traded a million-yuan house for it.”
“That’s right, and nowadays the price of celadon is soaring. That jar is worth far more than a million now.”
“Hurry up and pay, don’t try to weasel out!”
Listening to the clamor, Xu Yang’s expression grew steadily colder.
It was obvious these people had pulled this scam on many before—their routine was all too smooth.
“I’ll say it again: I’m not someone you can extort. If you don’t want trouble, get out of my sight!”
His voice now icy, Xu Yang swept the crowd with a stern gaze.
Sensing that Xu Yang wasn’t an ordinary mark, the stall owners fell silent and hung their heads, not daring to say another word.
However, seeing this, the fat dealer only sneered more.
“Kid, you’re quite bold! But don’t think I’m a pushover. If you want to play rough with me, you’ll be the one who pays!”
“Men!”
At his shout, several burly, fierce-looking men appeared by his side.
They surrounded Xu Yang with hostile intent, clearly ready to use force at the slightest provocation.
Seeing this, Xu Yang’s lips curled into a cold smile.
He was just about to make a move when the stunning woman who had spoken earlier hurried to his side.
“They have numbers on their side. If you insist on standing your ground, just pay three or five thousand and let this go. Take it as a lesson. The antique trade is full of traps—be more careful in the future.”
“Thank you.”
Xu Yang smiled in gratitude at her well-meaning advice.
At this, the fat dealer and his goons visibly relaxed.
In their line of work, threats and intimidation were their main tactics, not actual violence.
If things really got out of hand, not only would they make no money, they’d attract all kinds of trouble.
“Come on, kid, pay up,” the fat shopkeeper said confidently.
“I’m not giving you a single cent,” Xu Yang replied coolly.
The beautiful woman at his side looked surprised.
The fat dealer’s face darkened abruptly.
He glared coldly at Xu Yang and said icily,
“Kid, if you won’t take the easy way, you’ll have to take the hard one. If you don’t pay up now, don’t blame me for what happens next!”
As he spoke, the thugs closed in again.
“It’s not worth it to stand your ground—just compromise,” the kind woman whispered urgently.
“No need. But thank you for your concern.”
Xu Yang smiled faintly, declining her suggestion.
Seeing this, the woman shook her head helplessly.
This young man, for all his good looks, was being far too reckless. Things had already gone this far, and he was still stubbornly refusing to yield.
Forget it. I’ve already warned him—what happens next is his own business.
With that, she turned to leave.
But just then, Xu Yang sprang into action.
In a flash, his tall and handsome figure moved with the agility of a leopard, leaving afterimages in the air.
Then came the muffled thuds—one after another.
To her astonishment, the woman saw the thugs who had surrounded Xu Yang flying back, clutching their stomachs and doubled over like boiled prawns, collapsing in disarray.
“Ow! That hurts!”
“My stomach! Oh my god, it hurts!”
“Ugh!”
In the blink of an eye, the hired muscle was rolling on the ground in pain, wailing in agony.
The woman was stunned. She had thought Xu Yang was just a hotheaded youth, never imagining he possessed such formidable skill.
No wonder he’d remained so calm—he had the strength to back it up.
As for the fat shopkeeper, his mocking grin vanished in disbelief. He stared at Xu Yang in shock, completely dumbstruck.
It wasn’t until Xu Yang strode over that the fat dealer snapped out of his daze, shrank his neck, and tried to flee.
But Xu Yang was faster. He clamped a hand on the dealer’s shoulder, his strength rendering the man unable to move an inch.
“What are you going to do?” the fat man asked, his face draining of color and his voice trembling.
Smack!
Xu Yang’s answer was a solid slap.
With that one blow, the fat dealer was knocked to the ground, two bloodied teeth flying from his mouth.