Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Li Du thought that the golden-haired beauty was making a joke. However, the way she tilted her head and the confused look on her face did not seem like she was faking it. She looked like she was seriously contemplating the matter.
Very soon, she gave up on trying to figure it out and extended her hand with a bright smile. “Hello, Du Li, I’m Barbara Bryan. Hans got me to look you up to tell you that everything is fine and that you don’t have to worry.”
Li Du shook her hand and said, “What exactly happened to him? He was arrested for harassing you, right?”
Barbara was surprised, “Harassing me? Arrested? Nope, he is a guest on our farm. My dad needed someone to help take care of the cows and Hans said that he’d be happy to do that.”
Li Du blinked. Is she insane? How did we go from Hans being kidnapped to him staying on her family farm?
Li Du said, “Can you bring me to Hans? I have some things that I have to ask him face to face.”
Barbara nodded. “Sure, that’s not a problem. Just don’t provoke my dad and grandpa like he did. They have a bad temper.”
Li Du asked hurriedly, “How did he provoke your family?”
Barbara smiled and then shook her head. “I’m not telling you. That’s our secret to keep.”
Li Du didn’t know what to think. From what she said, it seemed like she had a real relationship with Hans. That was unexpected.
Bringing along Brother Wolf and the rest, Li Du started the car towards the Bryan farm.
The farm was located on the outskirts of the small town, not far away. They arrived after a ten-minute ride in the car.
Once the car door was opened, Castro rushed out excitedly, wagging his tail and rolling in the grass.
Li Du got down and a well-built youth came to meet him. He asked warily, “Who are you? Why are you here?”
Barbara got down from the car and said, “Brother, this is Du Li, he’s a friend of Hans’s. He’s here to meet Hans.”
The young man approached and motioned for her to get away. He smiled and said, “You go home first, and I will show this guy around.”
Barbara shrugged her shoulders and turned to leave. She waved to Li Du and said, “See you later, I will brew some coffee for you.”
Li Du started to walk towards the farm but Castro jumped in front of him and started barking. Woof, woof, woof, woof!
The well-muscled young man crossed his arms and said coolly, “Hey, dude, why are you really here?”
Li Du could tell that he was suspicious. He said, “I’m here to see my friend, Hans Fox. He’s here, right?”
The bulky young man said lazily, “Hans Fox? Who’s that? Never heard of him. You’re at the wrong place.”
Li Du frowned and said, “Buddy, I don’t know what happened, but I know that Hans Fox can be very provoking. However, he’s not a bad guy. Was there some misunderstanding between you guys?”
“He’s a douche,” the young man said in contempt.
“So you do know him after all?”
The young man realized that the cat was out of the bag and went silent. He stood with his arms folded, blocking their path.
Li Du said, “I’m here as a friend…”
“That friendship of yours can go to hell,” The youth interrupted him mockingly.
Li Du took a deep breath and said, “Please let Hans Fox come out so that we can all understand what happened here, okay?”
The young man said, “I have already told you, you’re at the wrong place. That friend of yours isn’t here.”
The dog started to bark as if backing up the young man. Li Du regretted not bringing his pets along. They would have been able to make a deep impression on these rustics.
The youth obviously took the stance of refusing to cooperate peacefully. Li Du’s well-meaning words were of no use and he could only choose another way to get around the youth.
He walked aside and Brother Wolf walked forward, shoving the young man, who immediately retaliated and threw out a punch.
Brother Wolf easily avoided the punch and, after grabbing both of the young man’s arms, he kneed him in the stomach. With a groan, the guy toppled sideways and nearly fell down.
Madman and Firecracker ran forward and caught him before he hit the ground. The youth wanted to struggle, but Madman hit him in the small of his back, which took the remainder of the fighting spirit out of him.
Seeing that its master was defeated, the dog turned to run off, no longer menacing.
“What a scaredy-cat,” Li Du remarked. The Castro was a brave, aggressive breed. It was rare to see one so meek.
Li Du brought a few men with him and walked towards the farm. Very soon, the dog returned. Two middle-aged men followed behind it, and one of them was on the phone. Then, more men appeared around the farm and rushed towards Li Du.
The two middle-aged men bore some resemblance to Barbara and her brother. They were obviously related.
Li Du jumped in to speak first. “I’m here to look for my friend Hans Fox. Gentlemen, if we are disturbing you, please excuse me. I have no intentions of…”
“Let go of my son! What have you done to him?” A middle-aged man asked anxiously.
Li Du said, “Nothing much. He wanted to hit me and my friend stopped him.”
The middle-aged man pointed at him and said, “Let go of my son, I tell you again! You are now trespassing on private property and is attacking its owner. We have the right to shoot you on the spot, do you understand?”
Li Du turned and pointed at the Rolls-Royce and the Ferrari outside. He said, “See that? Those are my cars. Do you understand my net worth now? You should know what the repercussions of shooting someone like me would be.”
The middle-aged man laughed derisively. “Are you threatening me? Think you’re so great just because you have some money? Sorry, this is Riverdale. We Bryans have nothing to fear here!”
Li Du said, “I don’t understand what’s wrong with you all. We are not here to make trouble and have absolutely nothing against you. We just want to ask what happened to my friend. Why must you guys get violent?”
The middle-aged man said ferociously, “I can only tell you it’s none of your business. Now get off my property!”
Li Du huffed and said, “I’m not leaving without my friend. How about this, you can make the rules. Tell me how you want to resolve this, and I will cooperate!”
The middle-aged man waved his hands impatiently and said, “Get away from here right now. I’m busy and have no time to deal with you! D*mn it, let me warn you, I’m going to call the County Patrol in a minute, so don’t make trouble, you…”
They were still fighting when a woman appeared at the entrance to the farmhouse. She was holding a child in her arms and looked harassed. She said, “Dad, come take a look quickly, there’s something wrong with the child, I’m afraid he has to go to the hospital!”
There was a baby in the woman’s arms. His small arms were waving in the air, and his face was red. His head was tilted to one side, and as his mother spoke, he burped, bringing forth a jet of milk.
The middle-aged man said impatiently, “Nothing’s wrong with the child. Didn’t the doctor say so? Just a fever, perhaps a cold. Give him some medicine…”
Sophie, who has been silent until now, jumped in. She looked at the baby and said quickly, “A cold? God! It looks like neonatal bacterial meningitis, and it has entered the second phase, with symptoms of neck stiffness, photophobia, jet vomiting, irritability, and convulsions. He has to go to a big hospital. Contact the Phoenix Children’s Hospital right now, he is in critical condition!”
