Chapter 164: Storm of Cuckoldry (Part 2)

Upon seeing the ugly man's naked body, Xiao Lin's expression instantly turned stern. He swept a fierce, menacing gaze over the ugly man.

"What kind of thing do you think you are?" Xiao Lin spat out the words.

Xiao Lin's words caused the ugly man to fly into a rage. Not only had this punk ruined his good time, but he was also speaking with such arrogance—he must not even know how the character for "death" was written. The ugly man was just about to erupt when Xiao Lin shot him a single glare, causing him to involuntarily shudder. Good heavens, those were not human eyes at all; they were the eyes of a beast—bloodthirsty and violently savage. The ugly man had once encountered a prison boss with eyes just like that during his time behind bars, and that same boss had beaten him mercilessly. The experience had left a deep impression on him. Seeing that terrifying gaze once again now, the ugly man was suddenly gripped by fear.

Xiao Lin ignored the ugly man and looked straight at Ma Yunrou. It was not that Xiao Lin felt no anger; on the contrary, his heart was already completely flooded with fury. In Xiao Lin's eyes, this ugly man was already a dead man. The only reason Xiao Lin did not strike immediately was because he wanted to see how Ma Yunrou would explain herself. Although the situation was as obvious as a bald man's fly—blatantly clear—Xiao Lin still wanted to hear what Ma Yunrou had to say, and what reason she could possibly give. This was also the last shred of respect Xiao Lin would ever show her.

"Why?" Xiao Lin suppressed the raging fire in his chest, clenching his fists so tightly that his fingernails dug deep into his flesh. The veins on his forehead throbbed violently, looking terrifying.

Ma Yunrou had already slipped into a bathrobe, covering her body's exposed beauty. Hearing Xiao Lin's question, she cast a guilty glance at him. She was afraid—truly, deeply terrified. How she wished she could throw herself into Xiao Lin's arms right now, put on a pitiful performance, and claim that this ugly man had forced himself upon her. Yet Ma Yunrou also knew that the moment she said such a thing, Lin Mei would never let her off. She remembered what Lin Mei had said in the study that day, ordering her to use venomous words to humiliate Xiao Lin.

"Why? Hmph, because you are useless. Not only are you incompetent in bed, but you also lack family background and status. You cannot satisfy me, while he has the ability to make me satisfied. I, Ma Yunrou, do not need a useless man. So, Xiao Lin, we are breaking up right now." Ma Yunrou began to spin wild lies, ultimately choosing the path of wealth and status. As she spoke these words, a clear trace of panic flickered in her eyes. She was gambling—gambling that Xiao Lin would not hit her.

"Hahahahaha!" Ma Yunrou's words caused Xiao Lin to throw his head back in wild, echoing laughter, a sound laced with profound sorrow and boiling rage. After his maniacal laughter subsided, a few trails of bloody tears actually leaked from the corners of his eyes. This was the appearance of someone driven to the absolute pinnacle of fury. Xiao Lin had originally expected Ma Yunrou to point out some of his own flaws so that his heart might feel slightly better, but every single sentence Ma Yunrou spoke pierced straight into his core. Incompetent in bed? What an absolute joke! No matter what, Xiao Lin was certainly much more capable than this old man. Furthermore, Ma Yunrou claimed he was useless, yet this ugly man clearly looked like a wretched scumbag—the kind of trash who was a parasite upon society. Therefore, everything Ma Yunrou said was a complete lie.

"What are you laughing at?" Seeing Xiao Lin's wild laughter, Ma Yunrou asked with a trembling heart. Right at that moment, she was cursing Lin Mei internally: Where on earth was the person who had promised to protect her?

"What am I laughing at? Hehe. Ma Yunrou, do you have any idea how much my heart aches? If I, Xiao Lin, did anything wrong, you could have confronted me face to face. But I never expected—I truly never expected—that you would sink so low." Xiao Lin's gaze, sharp as a blade, fixed straight onto Ma Yunrou as he spoke every single word with chilling clarity.

"I never liked you in the first place! Xiao Lin, stop pestering me. We are broken up!" Staring under Xiao Lin's piercing gaze, Ma Yunrou took a few steps back before screaming at the top of her lungs. The sheer force with which she yelled was merely an attempt to mask the panic churning within her heart.

"Hehe. Breaking up... Ma Yunrou, do you know what it is that truly breaks my heart? It isn't your betrayal, but your utter degradation. I never imagined you would turn into this kind of person. I, Xiao Lin, may have owed you in the past, but what you've done today has turned my heart to ice. From this moment on, we are even; we owe each other nothing. I never want to see you again for the rest of my life. I am leaving Kyoto, and wherever you are, I, Xiao Lin, will never set foot." A profound expression of grief and heartbreak lingered on Xiao Lin's face.

***

After hearing Xiao Lin's words, a wave of regret inevitably stirred within Ma Yunrou's heart. Perhaps giving up on Xiao Lin would turn out to be the greatest mistake of her life. Yet an arrow drawn from a bow could not be called back; what was done could not be undone. Besides, judging by Xiao Lin's words, he had no intention of hitting her. The boulder that had been weighing heavily on Ma Yunrou's heart finally lifted.

"Hehe, little brother, since you've broken up anyway, look..." The ugly man finally understood the situation now. So these two were a couple! No wonder the young man had looked at him with such a terrifying gaze just moments ago. Upon learning that the youth was the girl's boyfriend, the ugly man's first instinct had been to run away—the people who had hired him never mentioned that the girl had a boyfriend; he had simply assumed Ma Yunrou was a common hooker. However, he no longer wanted to run. Judging by the current scene, the youth would likely leave in a fit of rage, allowing him to continue enjoying Ma Yunrou.

The moment the ugly man uttered those words, both Xiao Lin and Ma Yunrou glared at him with murderous rage. Ma Yunrou already despised this man to the core; had it not been for Lin Mei's orders, she would never have let this filthy creature lay a hand on her. Now that her goal had been achieved, this bastard still harbored lingering desires, treating her as if she were a common streetwalker. Ma Yunrou looked at the ugly man with venomous hatred, wishing she could tear off his flesh and drink his blood.

Gazing at this fat, hideously ugly old man, Xiao Lin's mind conjured the image of this very body pressing down on top of Ma Yunrou. Xiao Lin's heart instantly turned glacial. He had a stomach full of unvented fire burning within him. While Xiao Lin would not hit Ma Yunrou, that did not mean he would let this ugly man off the hook. Xiao Lin cast a sidelong glance down at the ugly man's groin, spotting that limp, flaccid "little worm."

"Hmph." Xiao Lin let out a cold snort. With a sharp twist of his body, he unleashed a fierce roundhouse kick straight toward the ugly man's most vital spot. That region was a man's lifeline; the agony of a direct strike there was enough to tear a person's soul apart. The ugly man was still lost in his own fantasies and never expected Xiao Lin to strike without warning, let alone deliver such a vicious, family-line-ending blow. The ugly man only felt as though something had shattered in his lower body, followed instantly by a wave of blinding, excruciating pain. He clutched his groin with both hands, his face contorting and twisting beyond recognition from the agony.

"You... you..." The ugly man managed to squeeze a few words out from between his clenched teeth.

After delivering that kick, Xiao Lin did not continue his assault. He knew in his heart that the blow he had just landed would leave a permanent, indelible impression; the bastard would likely never be able to touch a woman again for the rest of his life.

"Take care of yourself." Xiao Lin cast one final look at Ma Yunrou, his eyes as distant as if he were looking at a complete stranger. Then, he turned and strode toward the exit; he still had to hurry to the examination hall. However, the moment his front foot stepped out of the room, a fist suddenly came hurtling toward his face. The suddenness of the attack left Xiao Lin with zero time to react. The fist struck him squarely on the right eye, sending him stumbling back a few paces. Even for Xiao Lin, the agonizing pain radiating from his eye socket was almost unbearable, causing him to double over slightly. Before he could recover his wits, however, Xiao Lin felt another sharp impact at the back of his head, followed immediately by total blackness as his consciousness vanished into an abyss.

After Xiao Lin collapsed into unconsciousness, a burly, thick-set middle-aged man strode into the room. He first glanced down at the fallen Xiao Lin, crouched to check his breathing, and—once certain the youth was fully unconscious—lifted his head to look at Ma Yunrou.

"Your part in this is done. The remaining balance has already been transferred to your account. You can leave now. Also, the Madam asked me to pass along a message: keep your mouth shut." The middle-aged man spoke in a slow, deliberate tone, the final sentence carrying an unmistakable undercurrent of warning.

Upon hearing the middle-aged man's words, Ma Yunrou hurriedly nodded in acknowledgment. She immediately changed back into her clothes, refusing to spare even a glance at the ugly man who was still whimpering and groaning in agony off to the side, and rushed out of the room in a flurry. However, as she passed by Xiao Lin's limp body, Ma Yunrou could not help asking, "What are you planning to do to him?"

"That is none of your concern," the middle-aged man replied with a touch of impatience.

***

Ma Yunrou dared not ask any further. *Xiao Lin, I'm sorry.* Ma Yunrou whispered an apology in her heart as she bolted in haste out of the Banxia Hotel.

Meanwhile, the middle-aged man frowned in utter disgust as he looked down at the ugly man rolling around and wailing on the floor. He pulled out his cell phone and made a quick call. Before long, several more men entered the room. Without a word, they grabbed a bedsheet, wrapped the ugly man up inside it, and hauled him straight out. After they left, the middle-aged man carefully inspected Xiao Lin. "He should remain unconscious for a few hours," the middle-aged man muttered to himself before standing up and departing the room as well.

This middle-aged man was a subordinate sent by Lin Mei—to be precise, a true martial arts expert, which was why he had been able to subdue and knock out Xiao Lin so cleanly and efficiently. Lin Mei's assignment for him was simple: render Xiao Lin unconscious so he would miss his final examination. Lin Mei firmly believed that the dual blows of heartbreak and academic ruin would cause Xiao Lin to completely collapse. As for the owner of the Banxia Hotel, he had originally intended to come upstairs to check on the situation, but after the middle-aged man tossed a thick stack of hundred-yuan bills his feet, he wisely chose to keep his mouth shut.

Meanwhile, inside an examination hall at Innovation High School, the proctor looked with bewilderment at an empty seat in the third row. For a student to skip a crucial college entrance examination was truly a bizarre occurrence. Lin Xudong had also noticed that Xiao Lin's seat remained vacant, and a heavy sense of doubt gnawed at him. Why hadn't Xiao Lin arrived yet? Had something happened? Lin Xudong and Xiao Lin were assigned to the same room for the exams, and Xiao Lin had always arrived right on time for every previous test. Yet today, five minutes had already passed since the exam commenced, and Xiao Lin was still nowhere to be seen.

*What on earth is Xiao Lin trying to pull? Doesn't he know that being fifteen minutes late bars you from entering the examination hall?* Lin Xudong muttered anxiously to himself.

Another ten-odd minutes ticked away, and still, Xiao Lin did not show up. Panic began to grip Lin Xudong, but there was nothing he could do except seethe with helpless anxiety; his cell phone and all his belongings were stored outside, and leaving the room to call Xiao Lin was strictly forbidden.

*Xiao Lin, oh Xiao Lin, you really are something else. You actually dared to skip the college entrance exam!* In the end, Lin Xudong could only manage a bitter, helpless smile.

***

Author's Note:
Thank you to Zhong Youhui, Xie Xueshi, and Riceball-Faced Chubby Meow for your daily recommendation votes and support!