Since Wei Zhao already had a target in mind, then by all means let him have his wish — and it would make things all the easier for a man to work his own scheme!

"Brother Lin, rest easy — leave this to me! Here in Songshan City, I still carry a little weight!" An Jianwen said coolly, and shot Manager Yang a look. "Manager Yang, don't tell me you're refusing to give me any face?"

"Young Master An, it isn't that I won't — it's that I can't drag people back out of another man's private room!" Manager Yang said with a bitter smile. "They're not the sort to be trifled with either..."

"Oh? Then you're saying we are the sort to be trifled with?" Su Taizao flew into a rage; he very nearly slapped the man across the face. He and Brother An were two of the Four Young Masters of Songshan — was there anyone left who dared deny them face?

"This..." Manager Yang could afford to offend neither of them, and could only smile bitterly.

"Brother An, seems your name doesn't carry quite the weight it once did. Maybe we'd best let it go? I'm afraid this could blow up into something big..." Wei Zhao said meekly, looking at An Jianwen, trying to talk him down.

"It's nothing!" Stung by Wei Zhao's words, An Jianwen sprang to his feet at once and demanded of Manager Yang, "Never mind you — just tell me which private room they're in, and I'll go myself! In all of Songshan City, apart from my brother Chen, there's not a man alive who dares snatch a woman from me!"

"Room four-one-eight," Manager Yang said. "Young Master An, I'll be off then — whatever you do, don't say it was me who told you..."

"Go on, then." An Jianwen waved him away impatiently, cursing him inwardly as a coward. Then he turned to Su Taizao. "Come on — let's go snatch some women with Brother An!"

"Heh — you bet!" Su Taizao rose to his feet as well, itching for action. In years past they had done plenty of this kind of bullying and strong-arming, so they cared nothing for it, nor feared any fallout; the moment ordinary folk heard the name of the Four Young Masters of Songshan, they would smooth things over of their own accord — no one ever stood up to them or made trouble for them.

"Brother Lin, are you coming?" An Jianwen glanced at Wei Zhao, still seated in his chair. "A man has to have some fire in his blood. Even if you don't lay a hand on anyone, come and watch."

"Then... I'll come along and watch." A flicker of excitement in him, Wei Zhao rose to his feet. "Truth be told, I've always rather looked forward to scenes like that — it's just that I never dared before..."

"Ha — no problem. You just watch in a moment!" Su Taizao laughed heartily. "Watch how we Four Young Masters of Songshan trample people!"

Su Taizao, too, put on a show of righteous indignation; only thus could they make Wei Zhao lower his guard, so that in a moment they might easily film him in his most humiliating state.

"All right, then I'll play the fox borrowing the tiger's might for once!" Wei Zhao stood, took two steps, then turned back and picked up a wine bottle from the table. "I'd better take a weapon to defend myself..."

"Ha — with us along, that sort of thing is trash!" Su Taizao curled his lip. The name of the Four Young Masters of Songshan was worth far more than a wine bottle!

Wei Zhao walked out in front, borrowing the tiger's might, like a pathbreaker clearing the way — but An Jianwen and Su Taizao laughed inwardly. Sure enough, the fellow's brains had gone straight to his loins; he must be mad with wanting those twin headliners, or he would never be this worked up.

Wei Zhao reached the door of Room 418, but did not move; he waited for An Jianwen and Su Taizao to catch up, and once they had, he kicked the door open with one fierce shove, his voice gone shrill with excitement: "Listen up in there! If you know what's good for you, send Xuexue and Huahua out to our young master — or you'll be sorry!"

With that, he hurled the wine bottle in with a "bang"; it struck Li Cihua square in the face and set his nose bleeding at once. In truth, Wei Zhao had made his voice shrill on purpose, for fear that Li Cihua might recognize it.

The instant he had thrown the bottle, Wei Zhao slipped swiftly behind An Jianwen and Su Taizao. Neither of them minded his behavior in the least; they took it that he wanted to put on airs but lacked the nerve, and so was borrowing their strength to play the fox.

An Jianwen and Su Taizao walked into the private room. Thanks to the fine start Wei Zhao had made, An Jianwen pointed with great swagger at the twin girls inside: "These two are coming with me tonight! Any objections?"

An Jianwen had said such things often enough years ago, and it rolled off the tongue just as smoothly now. He glanced at the so-called Xuexue and Huahua — sweet and lovely indeed, in no way inferior to the three girls Manager Yang had brought later. No wonder Wei Zhao had named them specifically; even An Jianwen's heart stirred at the sight. Were it not for the need to film Wei Zhao in his disgrace, he would have loved nothing better than to take the two girls home himself.

Li Cihua had been stunned by Wei Zhao's wine bottle. In Songshan City, was there anyone who dared strike him, Li Cihua? Did the fool not want to live? The shouting voice had sounded a little familiar, but Li Cihua had no time to think it over; when he raised his head toward the door, he saw An Jianwen and Su Taizao coming in.

Li Cihua assumed the bottle had been thrown by those two, and flew into a towering rage. So there were still people in this world so reckless as to snatch a woman from him?

"Beat them to death! Beat them until they're dead!" Li Cihua, clutching his streaming nose, jabbed a finger at An Jianwen and Su Taizao and snarled in furious shame, "Beat them until they don't even recognize each other!"

Though the two Yellow-rank experts at his side had been killed by Wei Zhao, Li Cihua was hardly short of other thugs; their strength might not reach Yellow rank, but they were more than enough to beat two young masters who knew no martial arts at all.

At the order, the two bodyguards beside Li Cihua pounced like ravening wolves, each seizing one man, and without a word began to beat them.

An Jianwen and Su Taizao were somewhat stunned. They were used to trampling people, and never considered the consequences; the moment they announced their names, the other party's only thought was to smooth things over. But today, the people in this room had asked not a single question before attacking. Were they some hotheaded fools who didn't know the rules — not even afraid of the trouble they'd stir up, or of a mess they couldn't swallow?

They had thought only of themselves, never stopping to consider that the whole business had been provoked by Wei Zhao. If Wei Zhao had not first hurled a wine bottle and left Li Cihua's face streaming with blood, would Li Cihua have given the order for his bodyguards to strike?

Ordinarily, when An Jianwen and Su Taizao went out, they brought along an able fighter as a lackey — the effeminate man from the other day, for instance, had been Su Taizao's thug, quite capable of taking on three men alone. But today, since the dinner was for Wei Zhao, An Jianwen had brought no one who wasn't needed, and only when blows were about to be traded did it strike him that their side had no fighter at all.

"Do you know who I am?" An Jianwen panicked and tried to announce his name, but the bodyguard gave him no chance to speak another word; a fist landed on his mouth and sent his teeth scattering across the floor, so that he could not utter a sound...

For the fastest updates, please read without pop-up windows.