You're Asking for Death

“Hmm, why isn't he answering? It's past noon, should be lunchtime. My dad and his crew usually rest during lunch when they're doing renovations. He should be picking up,” Luo Feng mused, tapping the 'phone location tracking function' on his screen. The screen quickly displayed a map of Yangzhou City, with a small red dot marking Luo Feng's current position and a green dot showing his father's phone location. “Not too far from me.” Luo Feng instantly pinpointed his father's whereabouts, a smile spreading across his face. “I'll go to Dad and tell him in person that I've become a Prospective Warrior.” Immediately, Luo Feng followed the map on his phone and rushed over. ... In Yian District, Tiandu Garden Residential District. “Hurry up, move your things faster so you can go rest and eat lunch. We need to eat too,” Zhang Haobai, dressed in a white T-shirt and white trousers, impatiently urged in the private courtyard of one of the townhouses. Beside him stood three stern-faced bodyguards. “Sir, no rush. This furniture is valuable, we can't be careless. Brothers, put some more effort into it!” Outside the private courtyard, on the residential district road, a truck was parked, loaded with well-packaged wooden furniture. Wooden furniture was extremely expensive in this era, a luxury item for the privileged few. This was because humans lived within Base Cities, where areas for planting trees were scarce, mostly for beautification. While there were indeed vast forests outside the human Base Cities, these areas were also infested with monsters. The cost of felling and transporting wood, battling monsters along the way, was astronomical! Most homes now had plastic furniture, with glass items being a step up. Wooden products were beyond the means of ordinary families. “Be careful.” The decoration company's employees carefully moved the heavy furniture from the truck to the ground. Then, three employees cautiously carried the furniture into the private courtyard. “You guys be careful,” Zhang Haobai reminded them with a frown. “This is solid wood furniture, all top-grade timber. If you damage it, your boss will definitely come after you.” “Huff, huff.” The three employees moved with extreme caution. The furniture was made of excellent material and was incredibly heavy, weighing over a thousand catties. It was a struggle for the three of them. “Brothers, let's stop and rest for a bit. We'll carry it inside in one go later,” said the employee leading the way. “Let's put the furniture down here, slowly, gently.” The three employees carefully placed the furniture on the courtyard ground, then straightened up, letting out a long sigh. “Old Luo, my stomach's rumbling,” a tall decoration company employee said, stretching. “After this set, there are two more. Once they're all moved, we'll all go eat,” Luo Hongguo said with a chuckle to his two colleagues. He casually wiped the sweat from his brow with his shirt. It was July, almost one in the afternoon, the hottest time of the day. Three men moving over a thousand catties of valuable furniture was indeed back-breaking labor. “Hurry up!” Zhang Haobai urged, growing impatient. “Alright!” Luo Hongguo bent down and grabbed the furniture. “Brothers, put some muscle into it, let's get this set inside.” “One, two, three, lift!” Luo Hongguo and his two colleagues exerted themselves, lifted the furniture, and carefully ascended the steps, entering the house. Moments later, they emerged. As Luo Hongguo and his two colleagues walked past Zhang Haobai and his group, the smell of their sweat permeated the air, causing Zhang Haobai to frown. “Poor people are just poor people. Doing this kind of hard labor, they're destined for a life of toil,” Zhang Haobai thought to himself. His father was a wealthy man, and Zhang Haobai, born into an affluent family, naturally harbored a prejudice against those at the bottom of society who did manual labor. In his eyes, these people who willingly engaged in such work lacked ambition and deserved their hard lives. “Be careful not to hit the main door.” Luo Hongguo and his two colleagues carefully carried the furniture step by step. Their clothes were completely soaked with sweat, and beads of perspiration trickled from their foreheads, rolling down into their necks. “Let's rest outside,” Luo Hongguo and his two colleagues set the furniture down again, taking a brief break to catch their breath. “Go, one, two, three, lift!” Though tired, Luo Hongguo and his two colleagues had been doing this kind of work for twenty or thirty years and were used to it. They knew their limits, so they rarely made mistakes when moving things. A moment later, Luo Hongguo and his colleagues went to move the last set of furniture. “It's really hot,” Zhang Haobai said, looking up at the sky. “Brother Wang, later, let's go to the restaurant next door and grab a bite.” “Thank you, Young Master,” the three bodyguards replied with smiles. Zhang Haobai glanced at the three renovation workers who were moving the last set of furniture, letting out a low snort. He naturally detested these 'mud-legged' laborers. Suddenly, Zhang Haobai's gaze fell upon a marble slab in the courtyard paving, which had a crack. This crack had appeared a few days ago when he accidentally damaged it during a sparring session with his bodyguards. “Hmm?” Zhang Haobai's eyes lit up. “I haven't had much pocket money lately, this is a good way to get some!” At this moment, Luo Hongguo and his two colleagues were moving the third set of furniture. Suddenly— A phone ringtone sounded. Luo Hongguo, who was moving furniture, felt a surge of joy. “It must be Xiao Feng's call.” However, Luo Hongguo was in the middle of moving furniture and couldn't answer, so he decided to wait until he put the furniture down to call back. “Let's rest outside first, gently, slowly.” Luo Hongguo and his two colleagues carefully set the furniture down. Luo Hongguo pulled out his phone from his pocket, saw the caller ID, and smiled, preparing to call his son back. “What's wrong with you guys?” “Ah, I told you to be careful, what did you do?” A furious shout suddenly erupted. Luo Hongguo and the two decoration company employees were startled and turned to look. Zhang Haobai's face was grim, and he angrily pointed at the marble paving under the furniture. “What kind of work are you doing? So careless! Look, my courtyard paving is cracked because of you. This is Nanshan marble, which can only be obtained from outside the Base City. One slab costs over a hundred thousand yuan, can you afford to pay for it? Huh!!!” Luo Hongguo and his two colleagues looked down— Indeed, there was a small crack in one of the marble slabs under the furniture. “Hmph, I'll ask your company's boss what's going on,” Zhang Haobai fumed. “Brother Wang, you have their renovation company's number, right? Call them, call their renovation company. Tell their boss to come over! It's useless talking more to these people.” “I have their renovation company's number,” the bodyguard named Wang immediately took out his phone and started dialing. Luo Hongguo and his two colleagues exchanged glances. “That's not right,” the tall decoration company employee immediately said. “This crack in the marble was already there. I saw it before.” “Still trying to argue? What's the point of arguing?” Zhang Haobai sneered. Luo Hongguo frowned. As an experienced veteran, he knew that such disputes were the most troublesome. Moreover, companies generally valued their reputation. If they were truly extorted, and the company had no evidence to prove that the marble crack was not caused by their employees, the usual outcome was that the company would have to pay. If the company paid, then the three employees responsible for moving would definitely have their wages docked. “Brothers, let's move the furniture inside first,” Luo Hongguo said, moving to lift the furniture. “Move it inside?” Zhang Haobai took two steps forward and shoved Luo Hongguo, then glared at the three employees and shouted, “Don't try any tricks! This furniture pressing on the marble is evidence! You want to move the furniture inside and then deny everything? Hmph, I've seen your petty tricks too many times. Wait until your boss gets here.” “Old Luo, Old Luo.” The other two colleagues quickly helped Luo Hongguo, who had been pushed and fallen to the ground, back up. “I'm fine,” Luo Hongguo rubbed his shoulder. “Why did you push him?” “It's not clear if we damaged this marble, why are you pushing people?” The other two colleagues immediately glared and shouted. These laborers were fearless; if truly provoked, they wouldn't hesitate to fight. Even if they were arrested and taken to the police station, these people had nothing to lose but their lives, and the police usually had no choice but to release them. “Don't try to act tough with me!” Zhang Haobai swiftly delivered two kicks to the stomachs of the two men. Poof! Poof! The two colleagues were sent flying backward, falling to the ground. “Hmph, trying to act tough without knowing your place,” Zhang Haobai sneered. His Zhang family had extensive connections in Yian District; beating up a few ordinary laborers was nothing. “Old Tian, Big Monkey. Are you alright?” Luo Hongguo was anxious. “You young man, how could you do this?” Luo Hongguo roared. Zhang Haobai, smelling Luo Hongguo's sweat, frowned and waved his hand. “Brother Wang, you guys teach them a lesson, make them quiet.” “Young Master, it's the decoration company,” the bodyguard named Wang handed over his phone. “Hmm,” Zhang Haobai waved his hand, and the three bodyguards immediately went to 'teach a lesson' to the three workers. Zhang Haobai took the phone. “Yes, I'm from Tiandu Garden Residential District. Get your General Manager Hou on the phone. Manager Hou, what's wrong with your delivery people today? They're so clumsy, they cracked my courtyard's marble paving. Send someone over quickly and deal with this! If this isn't resolved, don't even think about getting the final payment for the furniture!” Before his words had even finished— “Stop!” A furious roar came from outside the courtyard. At this moment, Luo Hongguo and his two colleagues were cornered by the three burly bodyguards, their clothes covered in footprints. “Huh?” The three bodyguards and Zhang Haobai all turned to look. A blurry figure instantly rushed into the courtyard. Zhang Haobai recognized him at a glance and roared, “Luo Feng, you actually came to my house, beat him up!” “Son of a bitch!” Luo Feng's eyes turned red as he saw his father, soaked in sweat and covered in footprints, hunched over, clutching his stomach in the corner of the courtyard. His father had endured such hard labor for so many years, often facing disdain, and now he was suffering this. One of the three bodyguards, a slightly short and stout man, sneered and stepped forward. “Get out of my way!!!” Luo Feng roared, delivering a lightning-fast, heavy kick. The stout bodyguard tried to block with his right arm. “Thud!” The heavy kick sent the stout bodyguard's eyes wide. He was sent flying four or five meters through the air before crashing down. The other two bodyguards nearby were startled. “Luo Feng, you actually came to my house and hit my people!” Zhang Haobai glared, roaring, “You're asking for death.” “You're asking for death!!!” Luo Feng's eyes blazed with ferocity as he gritted his teeth and roared back.