Volume Two: Shadows of the Past Chapter Thirty-Six: The Legend of the Phoenix Man

Chen Jing and Ling Ruohan turned toward the sound and saw three men dressed in a somewhat disreputable manner—clearly the kind of small-time thugs who frequented bars and nightclubs. Although they were speaking as if inquiring politely, the three had already slid into the booth.

Chen Jing frowned, pulling Ling Ruohan’s hand to draw her closer to his side, preventing the men from crowding them.

He looked at the three thugs calmly and said, “Sorry, this booth is reserved. We don’t want to share it with anyone else, so please move aside.”

Ling Ruohan pressed herself against Chen Jing, her expression displeased as she glared at the three men, but she said nothing. Her identity was sensitive, and she feared being recognized.

“Hey, big guy, don’t be so cold-hearted,” the leader sneered arrogantly. “The booth’s big enough—what’s the harm in squeezing in with the three of us? Anyway, your girl’s just here to be picked up. We won’t bother you. Whatever you’re doing, we’ll just pretend we didn’t see it,” he added, deliberately emphasizing the vulgar word in a lewd tone.

The other two thugs chuckled creepily, “Yeah, yeah, do whatever you want. We’ll just look the other way. Hahaha.”

Ling Ruohan, pressed against Chen Jing, turned her head away in disgust and whispered, “So disgusting.”

“Hey, pretty lady, if you haven’t experienced it, how would you know? Want big brother to show you...” The leader was about to say something even more repugnant when suddenly a glass smashed against his head.

Bang!

The glass shattered instantly on impact, the drink inside splashing over the other two thugs.

The leader slumped limply in the booth, blood pouring from his head wound.

“Ah!” Ling Ruohan was startled and let out a small scream, then quickly covered her mouth.

Of course, it was Chen Jing who had thrown the glass. The lewd words spoken toward Ling Ruohan had long crossed his bottom line.

The sudden incident shattered the bar’s relaxed, romantic atmosphere. People nearby in the booths were alarmed and quickly left their seats as a crowd gathered, drawn by the commotion.

Seeing everyone’s attention focused on them, Ling Ruohan looked at Chen Jing anxiously. “Ah Jing...”

Chen Jing understood her worry. Although they both wore hats and masks, they still feared being recognized. After a moment’s thought, he pulled Ling Ruohan closer and whispered, “Ruohan, bury your face in my chest. Don’t let anyone see you.”

“Mm,” Ling Ruohan replied softly, a hint of shyness in her voice, then wrapped her arms around Chen Jing’s waist, pressing her entire body against him, not just her face.

Chen Jing: “...”
Is it really okay for you to be this close?

Meanwhile, the other two thugs finally recovered from their shock. One pointed at Chen Jing and cursed, “Damn it, kid, you dared to hit first. Just wait—you’re dead meat.”

The other also shouted threats to kill Chen Jing and Ling Ruohan. Chen Jing barely bothered with them; he had already spotted the hotel security arriving, led by the head of security, Ah Zhe.

“What happened here?” Ah Zhe asked as he approached, taking in the scene: a tall man holding a woman tightly on one side; three thugs on the other, one with a bleeding head wound, unconscious.

“The security’s here just in time. It was him who hit first. Catch him and rough him up!” one thug quickly shifted blame as the guards arrived.

Ah Zhe frowned. Though any clear-eyed person could see the three thugs had started the trouble, the fact that Chen Jing struck first complicated things. Usually, in bars, whoever hits first is considered at fault regardless of cause.

Ah Zhe looked at the couple. The tall man seemed familiar, but his face was mostly concealed by his hat and mask. Still, his attire suggested he didn’t want to be recognized—likely someone important. As the bar’s chief of security, Ah Zhe’s insight was sharp.

He was about to question the couple when Chen Jing beat him to it with a smile. “Brother Zhe, long time no see.”

Hearing this familiar voice, Ah Zhe froze, then exclaimed, “You’re... you’re Ah...”

Chen Jing quickly waved his hand, stopping him from saying his name. “Shh! Brother Zhe, don’t say my name—you know why.”

Ah Zhe immediately understood and stopped, nodding silently.

Since it was Ah Jing, this made handling the situation easier. Ah Zhe pointed at the three thugs and asked Chen Jing, “What do you want to do with these three?”

The two conscious thugs were stunned—they hadn’t expected Chen Jing to know someone from the bar. Fear crept into their hearts.

Chen Jing shrugged. “Forget it. They’ve been beaten enough. Just patch up that guy and throw them out.”

Ling Ruohan noticed how casually Chen Jing spoke and felt curious—he didn’t seem like someone new to such troubles.

Ah Zhe nodded, understanding the instructions. Chen Jing’s calm demeanor wasn’t surprising. When Chen Jing was a resident singer here, rival bars jealous of Fengxi Bar would send people to cause trouble, picking fights with him. No matter what they said, Chen Jing never got angry. Later, when Ah Zhe arrived with his men and chased the troublemakers off, they taunted Chen Jing, saying, “Pfft, just a pretty boy who climbed into Wang Menglan’s bed, a total coward.”

After leaving the bar, Chen Jing said he was going out for some air and strolled away casually. When Ah Zhe tried to find him shortly after, Chen Jing had already returned unscathed to the bar. Ah Zhe breathed a sigh of relief, thinking Chen Jing had merely stepped out briefly. But the next day, Ah Zhe heard those troublemakers were beaten black and blue that night. Since then, Ah Zhe never underestimated the handsome, talented singer again.

Snapping back to the present, Ah Zhe pointed at the three thugs and ordered his men, “Use some napkins to clean the blood, then toss them out. Make it quick—don’t disrupt business.”

“No, Brother Zhe, you can’t do this! They started it!” the two conscious thugs panicked, trying to protest.

Ah Zhe narrowed his eyes, his tone fierce. “If you talk back again, you’ll get beaten before being thrown out.”

That shut them up instantly.

Chen Jing ignored them and tightened his arm around Ling Ruohan’s waist, feeling the softness of her delicate body. After a moment’s thought, he asked, “Has Menglan come tonight?”

“She’s here. Menglan is upstairs on the second floor,” Ah Zhe hesitated before adding, “My big brother is also here with Menglan.”

Chen Jing raised an eyebrow. Of course he knew who Ah Zhe’s big brother was—Zhang Tianzhi, the ex-husband of Wang Menglan and biological father of Wang Youxuan.

Indeed, Zhang Tianzhi had a shady past. Now a top figure in the underworld of Xiang City, he was one of its most influential men.

Zhang Tianzhi’s story was legendary. Chen Jing had researched him and found his life could fill a saga.

Born poor, Zhang Tianzhi dropped out young and came to Xiang City alone, joining the largest underground gang. He quickly married the gang leader’s daughter and rose to power within a year. Then suddenly divorced and married the daughter of a high-ranking official, consolidating power over both the underworld and the government.

He then cleaned up his image and amassed wealth. Today, the media portrayed him as a successful business magnate.

In just over a decade, Zhang Tianzhi rose from a penniless nobody to a major powerbroker—a true legend.

Chen Jing had no illusions about Zhang Tianzhi. He wasn’t interested in such men. Ruthless and unprincipled, Zhang Tianzhi measured everything by profit, discarding anything that didn’t serve him.

So Chen Jing felt uneasy knowing Zhang Tianzhi was meeting with Wang Menglan.

After a moment, Chen Jing smiled at Ah Zhe. “I’ll go upstairs to see Menglan.”

Ah Zhe hesitated but nodded. Though Zhang Tianzhi was his older brother, Ah Zhe now answered only to Wang Menglan.

Years ago, both he and Zhang Tianzhi had served as trusted lieutenants to Wang Menglan’s father. When her father was murdered, they helped Zhang Tianzhi consolidate the gang’s power, making Ah Zhe second-in-command.

But when Zhang Tianzhi abandoned Wang Menglan, Ah Zhe severed ties with him. Afterward, when Wang Menglan opened this bar, Ah Zhe took the job of overseeing it.

Ah Zhe had seen through his brother’s ruthless pursuit of self-interest and did not want Zhang Tianzhi to come back to trouble Wang Menglan.

Since Menglan valued Chen Jing, and Chen Jing wanted to see her, Ah Zhe had no objection. Besides, Chen Jing had a young woman with him, so it was unlikely anything would go wrong.

Chen Jing patted the waist of Ling Ruohan in his arms. “Let’s go find Menglan.”

Ling Ruohan, reluctantly leaving his embrace, quickly followed Chen Jing upstairs.