Chapter 174: I’m Here
“Everyone, look, is this counterfeit money? You’re so young, and you’re already out here trying to scam people. Don’t you know that using counterfeit money is illegal?” the middle-aged stall owner shouted loudly, waving the money in his hand.
“I didn’t…” the girl cried, defending herself, “You switched it! You’re the one who swapped my real money for fake money!”
“This girl is really something. Look at her clothes, all designer brands, and she’s still trying to scam people with counterfeit money!”
“The world is going downhill. There are all sorts of people, so many who want to get rich without working.”
“You can’t judge a book by its cover. Maybe she bought those designer clothes with counterfeit money too. Tsk tsk tsk, so young, and already so crooked.”
……
The onlookers accused the girl one after another, their faces full of disdain.
Xia Chenge frowned slightly, stepped forward, and shoved away the person who was grabbing the girl. She said coldly, “Are you all ganging up to bully a girl from out of town?”
“Chenge, save me! I didn’t use counterfeit money, he switched it,” the girl said, hugging Xia Chenge and crying.
This girl was none other than Jiang Feifei, the cheerful girl in the film crew.
“Who are you? How dare you help this female scammer? Oh, I get it, you must be accomplices!” The stall owner was stunned for a moment. Seeing that Xia Chenge looked like a middle school student, his eyes darted, and malice filled his heart.
In recent years, he had relied on being a local to take advantage of tourists who preferred to avoid trouble, making a lot of black-hearted money by swapping counterfeit bills. His boldness had grown, and he was swapping counterfeit money with the same tourist more and more often.
“Scammer? What makes you say her money is fake?” Xia Chenge gripped Jiang Feifei’s hand. Jiang Feifei was already shivering all over from fear. “All ten bills are fake?”
“See for yourself!” The stall owner threw the counterfeit money in his hand at them.
“Chenge, I didn’t,” Jiang Feifei said, her face pale.
“It’s okay,” Xia Chenge patted her on the shoulder. “Don’t be afraid, I’m here.”
“It’s just a few dozen yuan worth of stuff. If you can’t afford it, I could have given it to you. Why would you resort to using counterfeit money to scam people? Don’t you know that using counterfeit money is illegal?” The stall owner became more and more righteous as he spoke.
“That’s right, young lady. If you don’t have money, can’t you ask your parents? Why would you do something like this?”
“You look like a middle school student. Tsk tsk tsk, this is terrible. Do your parents know you’re out here scamming people like this?”
“Boss, don’t say so much. Let’s call the police and let them handle this. We can also notify their parents to discipline them properly.”
The onlookers, who enjoyed the commotion, egged them on righteously.
“Calling the police might not be good. They’re both young girls. How about we pay the money and compensate the boss to settle this privately? Getting a criminal record at the police station wouldn’t be good for them.” Just then, a young man nearby ‘kindly’ stepped in to mediate.
“Impossible, we must call the police,” the stall owner insisted.
“Boss, give these young girls a chance. A criminal record would be bad for their future. They look like first-time offenders, so it’s best to be lenient.”
“This… sigh, since this brother has said so, let’s do it this way. Pay 1000 yuan, and we’ll let this matter go.”
Xia Chenge watched the two of them sing and dance in unison, remaining unmoved.
“Young lady, for your future, just pay some money as a lesson learned, and don’t do this again.” The young man earnestly advised her.
“Do I look like a three-year-old?” Xia Chenge asked coolly. “Or am I easy to bully?”
“What do you mean?” The young man glared. “I’m trying to help you out of kindness, what are you saying? It’s like a dog biting a kind benefactor. I shouldn’t have meddled.”
“Brother, you see? They won’t shed tears until they see the coffin. I’m calling the police,” the stall owner sneered.
“Then let’s resolve this by calling the police. Don’t touch the counterfeit money on the ground, everyone. When the police arrive, we’ll examine the fingerprints properly.” Xia Chenge’s gaze was cold, then she turned to Jiang Feifei and asked, “Give me your wallet.”
Jiang Feifei was already so scared she didn’t know what to do, seeing Xia Chenge as her only lifeline. She quickly handed over her wallet.
Xia Chenge took out all the money from her wallet and counted it: “There’s 3200 yuan in here, all real money. I’d like to see how she managed to produce this counterfeit money. Boss, don’t move either. We’ll have the police check if all the money on you is real later!”
The stall owner probably didn’t expect Xia Chenge, so young, to be so difficult. He immediately changed his tune: “Damn it, you brat, you dare to cause trouble with me when I’m being nice to you. I’ll make sure you don’t leave this town today!”
He turned and pulled an iron rod from his stall. The people nearby screamed and fled.
In an instant, the surroundings became chaotic.
“I’ll let you know what happens when you cause trouble in someone else’s town,” the stall owner said, swinging the iron rod at Xia Chenge.
“Ah…” Jiang Feifei was terrified.
However, a hand reached out from behind Xia Chenge and grabbed the iron rod, which immediately stopped in mid-air, unable to move any further down.
Seeing that it was a young man, the stall owner felt emboldened.
However, he was horrified to find that he couldn’t budge the iron rod no matter how hard he tried, let alone snatch it from the young man’s hand.
Xia Chenge helped Jiang Feifei up and carefully brushed the dust off her clothes. “Feifei, don’t be afraid, we’re here!”
“Chenge, you guys hurry and leave,” Jiang Feifei said tearfully. “It’s all my fault. You guys leave quickly and find someone.”
“Damn it, you brat, let go!” the stall owner shouted.
Ling Hanmu finally looked up, his sharp gaze sending a chill down one’s spine.
“Alright!” Ling Hanmu released his grip, and at the same time, kicked the stall owner over, smashing his stall.
“Ah, this hurts so much!” the stall owner cried out. “Brothers, beat this brat to death!”
As soon as he finished speaking, several ruffians immediately stepped out and surrounded Xia Chenge and the other two.
The stall owner got up, his face extremely ugly. “Brat, you dare to cause trouble in my territory? I’ll beat you to death today!”
Ling Hanmu said contemptuously, “When this Young Master was fighting, you were probably still squatting in some trash heap!”
“Beat him to death!” The stall owner rushed forward first.
“Stop fighting!” Jiang Feifei’s legs went weak from the sight. She anxiously said to Xia Chenge, “Chenge, quickly let Young Master Ling go! You can’t beat them, there are too many of them.”
“Let’s see. Our Young Master Ling has never lost a fight!” Xia Chenge said calmly, showing no sign of worry.
Ling Hanmu had already started fighting with the ruffians. Jiang Feifei closed her eyes, unable to watch.
However, only screams were heard. In a short while, all four or five of them were knocked to the ground by Ling Hanmu.
They were all rolling on the ground, clutching their injuries, and groaning incessantly.
“Still want to fight?” Ling Hanmu asked condescendingly, stepping on the stall owner’s chest and slowly applying pressure. “Do you want another chance to fight this Young Master?”
