Evan Lin hung up the phone, stood up, and headed back—ready to force-feed Henry Zhang every drop of beer he hadn’t finished.
Just as he turned around, Evan spotted Summer Mu coming down from the floor above, only a short distance away.
Summer Mu saw Evan, paused in surprise, then his face broke into a grin. He strode over in three steps and stopped in front of Evan. "Remember me? SK Bar."
"I remember. Thanks for the drink." Evan nodded at Summer Mu, acknowledging him.
"You here to have some fun?" Summer Mu looked at Evan, genuine happiness on his face.
Ever since witnessing Evan single-handedly flatten Sunny Zhou and his men at SK Bar, Summer Mu kept replaying that scene in his mind—the image of that fearless, lone figure refusing to back down just wouldn’t go away.
Sometimes he even regretted not getting Evan’s contact info back then.
"Yeah, I came with some others. You here for fun too?" Evan glanced curiously at Summer Mu.
"Sort of. Just needed to clear my head."
Summer Mu sighed. After Evan tossed Sunny Zhou off the second floor at SK Bar and walked out, his tablemate Howard Zhou had watched his own cousin get beaten senseless—and naturally, he wasn’t happy about it.
As for Renee Qiu, she dumped all the blame on Summer Mu, leaving him seriously annoyed. Just then, his dad called asking him to come out to White Dragon Mountain Resort Hotel, so he took the chance to get away and clear his head.
He didn’t bother calling up any friends. It was a bit dull, but he never expected to run into Evan Lin here.
Just then, on the other side of the lobby, five or six burly men swaggered in—all big, rough types.
"Henry, who’s the idiot that messed with you? We’ll make sure he learns his lesson today!" A man with a nasty look and a scar on his shoulder stuck close behind Henry Zhang.
"Just some clueless punk. When you go at him, make it quick—don’t make a big scene." Henry Zhang snorted coldly.
He’d been lobby manager here for ages, and nobody had ever dared force drinks on him before.
Getting humiliated in front of a whole table of people—Henry felt like this time he’d lost all his face.
He led his crew, storming toward the private room. As they passed through the lobby, his eyes locked onto Evan Lin standing there.
Across from Evan, Summer Mu was partly hidden by a lobby pillar, which blocked both his and Henry’s view—so Henry didn’t notice Summer Mu standing there.
"Well, well, I was about to come into the private room and drag you out, but here you are." Henry Zhang stopped, glared at Evan Lin, and licked his lips, full of menace. "Let’s see how cocky you are now. You wouldn’t drink when I toasted you, so now you’ll drink the hard way. I’ll personally make sure you finish every drop."
"If you don’t end up wetting your pants from all this drinking, don’t even think about leaving this room."
"Actually, scratch that—even if you do wet your pants, you’re still not getting out. I’ll show you what real regret feels like."
With all these guys backing him up, Henry Zhang felt unstoppable.
Just thinking about those three beers Evan Lin had rammed down his throat made Henry Zhang furious.
"You think you can take me with this bunch of nobodies?" Evan raised an eyebrow. "I could flatten all of you with one hand."
"But if each of you breaks an arm, and you break one arm and one leg, we’ll call it even." Evan said calmly.
"What did he just say?" someone blinked, confused.
"Is this kid nuts? Wants each of us to break an arm? Ha!" another guy couldn’t help but laugh.
Evan looked skinny and fragile, like he’d break in a stiff wind.
Every one of these guys had seen real fights—out on the street, they were used to taking on ten at a time.
Otherwise, they wouldn’t have landed security jobs here at White Dragon Mountain Resort Hotel.
"You must be crazy, kid—think you can take my arm and leg? Let’s see what you’ve got." Henry Zhang sneered. "This is my turf. Even if the King of Heaven showed up, he couldn’t save you now!"
"Henry, why waste time talking? Let’s beat him up and toss him in the lake, then go grab some drinks and meat!" someone suggested, and the whole crew chimed in.
Henry Zhang stepped forward—then suddenly noticed someone emerging from beside the pillar.
"Whose turf did you say this was?"
Summer Mu’s face darkened. He frowned and locked eyes with Henry Zhang.
Henry’s sneer froze. He stared at Summer Mu, stunned. "Uh, M-Mr. Summer? What are you doing here?"
Henry quickly composed himself and changed his tone. "Mr. Summer, this kid’s here to smash up our place. I need to teach him a lesson."
"This kid’s got a screw loose, Mr. Summer. You’d better stay clear—if he hurts you, that’d be a problem."
"Mr. Summer?" Evan raised an eyebrow, looking at Summer Mu.
"Sigh, this is just my dad’s property—I only got here today. I’m not some ‘Mr. Summer,’ just call me Summer Mu." Summer Mu sighed and reached out to Evan. "Last time we met was way too rushed. I still don’t know your name."
"You can call me Evan ‘Nine Mysteries’ Lin." Evan shook Summer Mu’s hand.
That handshake made Henry Zhang and all his thugs freeze in their tracks.
White Dragon Mountain Resort Hotel belonged to the Summer Family, and today the family’s young master had just taken over. Everyone at the resort knew it.
A lot of people hadn’t met Summer Mu yet, but hearing Henry’s words now, it was obvious—the fresh-faced guy standing here was the real new owner of White Dragon Mountain Resort Hotel.
"Mr. Summer... Are you sure about this?" Henry Zhang stammered, tongue almost tied in knots.
How could a shabby-looking kid like that possibly know the Summer Family’s heir from River City?
Henry had heard stories about Summer Mu—not some stuck-up rich kid, but someone who actually liked hanging out and joking with people his own age.
He might not act all high and mighty, but how could he know a kid this shabby, who supposedly came from some rural Whitewood County?
In the end, Henry Zhang was just riding on the Summer Family’s coattails. Strip away that halo, and he knew he was nothing.
Connections and status only matter while you’re on top. Once you lose your position, people’s respect dries up fast.
"He’s my friend."
Summer Mu glanced at Henry Zhang and spoke slowly.
Just three words, but they hit like a ton of bricks.
Henry Zhang’s face went rigid, and his heart sank.
Seeing Evan Lin’s calm, steady gaze, Henry felt a bitter lump in his throat.
PS: Long live grilled fish!