Volume One, Chapter Fourteen: Awakening the Strength of the Hand

"Xiaoyu, are you alright?"

Lin Hu rushed over in a few strides and pulled Shen Youyu, her clothes in disarray, out of the water.

"Lin Hu?"

Seeing it was Lin Hu, Shen Youyu froze for a moment. She had no fondness for him either, and she shook off his arm, shrinking away.

"Lin Hu!"

"You bastard, how dare you ruin my plans and even shoot me with a slingshot!" Wang Ergou, seeing the slingshot in Lin Hu’s hand, immediately realized what had happened and glared furiously.

Lin Hu stiffened, his eyes wide with rage as he shouted, "Watch your mouth! Keep running it and I’ll make you regret it!"

Wang Ergou was momentarily stunned.

Earlier in the day, he’d heard the village women gossiping at the supply cooperative, boasting about how capable Lin Hu had become. First, he’d dealt with Ma Dalu, then handled several of Da Maitai’s cousins as well. Could it all be true?

He’d been stuck at the supply cooperative and hadn’t seen anything firsthand, only heard the rumors. He never believed them. He knew the kind of man Lin Hu was; he assumed it was just idle chatter from those old women.

"Could it really be true?" This guy really did seem different.

But so what?

"Paying your debts is only right!" Wang Ergou declared. "Lin Hu, even if you’re playing the hero, you need to be reasonable, don’t you? When Shen Youyu came to the supply cooperative to buy on credit, she wept and played coy. Now she can’t pay back the money, so I’m asking her to settle the debt with her body—what’s wrong with that?"

Lin Hu didn’t argue. In these times, many women did what they had to just to get a bite to eat.

"But you can’t force her. She never said she wouldn’t pay. Didn’t she say she’d pay by the end of the year?" Lin Hu turned to Shen Youyu. "Isn’t that right?"

"Y-yes," Shen Youyu replied timidly, protecting herself, her voice weak, clearly lacking confidence.

"Pay the debt?" Wang Ergou scoffed. "She’s so poor she’s still wearing split-crotch pants, and you’re telling me she’ll pay? With what?" He pointed at Shen Youyu, who was doing her best to endure the humiliation. The patched-up pants she wore had been torn even further by his rough handling, now barely covering her.

"Here’s the deal, Hu. Help me hold her down. When your second brother’s had his turn, you can have a go too. And I’ll wipe your debt with me clean—how about that?"

It was obvious Wang Ergou was offering Lin Hu a hefty reward, trying to win him over so together they could finally take what they’d repeatedly failed to get from Shen Youyu, unleashing his long-suppressed beastly desires.

"Ah..." When Shen Youyu heard this, a wave of terror crashed over her. She collapsed in the grass, trembling violently. Faced with two village ruffians joining forces, a weak woman like her knew there was little hope for escape today.

She was filled with hatred, but utterly powerless.

Just then—

"You beast!"

Smack—

Lin Hu could no longer contain the fury inside him. He suddenly grabbed Wang Ergou by the throat.

"Ah... cough, cough..." Wang Ergou’s eyes bulged like copper bells, his face flushed crimson, gasping for breath. He flailed his hands against Lin Hu, pleading, "Let...let go..."

"Ah... Help..." Seeing Lin Hu had no intention of letting go, Wang Ergou turned his desperate gaze to Shen Youyu.

Shen Youyu was frightened too. She never wanted Wang Ergou to get away with this, but she had never wished for anyone to die.

"Let go!" she cried out, rushing forward to latch onto Lin Hu’s arm. "Let go, Lin Hu, you’ll kill him! He’s already rolling his eyes!"

She pulled and begged, sobbing, for several seconds before Lin Hu, lost in his rage, finally regained his senses.

But just then, a familiar prompt sounded in his mind.

[You stepped forward and single-handedly subdued the bully. This act of justice has awakened your innate skill: Grip Strength.]

Immediately after, another window appeared before his eyes.

[Skill: Grip Strength (Untrained)]
[Proficiency: 5/100]
[Effect: None]

"What...?"

"This works too?"

"I thought I already awakened Arm Strength?"

After releasing Wang Ergou, Lin Hu stared intently at his own fist, clenching and unclenching it, feeling the power in his grip and fingers.

"So arm strength and grip strength are separate? What a pleasant surprise!"

...

Meanwhile, Wang Ergou lay by the ditch for a long time before scrambling up, dazed and clutching his throat.

In his eyes, Lin Hu was always a selfish, lust-driven scoundrel. How could he pass up an opportunity like this? Usually, if anyone teased him, Lin Hu never fought back or even talked back! Besides, Lin Hu owed him 369 yuan at the supply cooperative—Wang Ergou was clearly the one holding the upper hand.

And yet Lin Hu dared to choke him? And not just choke, but nearly strangle him to death? Just now he’d felt as though he was watching his own soul leave his body!

He simply couldn’t understand it.

How dare Lin Hu?

"Lin Hu! Have you lost your mind? You dare hit me? Haven’t I treated you well enough? I offer you women to play with, I write off your debt! You ungrateful bastard, I’ll—"

He had just raised his hand when he met Lin Hu’s icy, bone-chilling stare. The veins on Lin Hu’s arms stood out in the sunlight, glaringly prominent.

"Die—" Wang Ergou immediately lowered his voice, recalling the village rumors that Lin Hu had gone mad. Suddenly, fear took hold.

"You... Pay the money!" In the end, he could only swallow hard and muster his courage to demand payment.

Shen Youyu had also calmed down by now. Seeing such a dramatic change in Lin Hu, she was a bit shocked.

To her, Lin Hu was always someone who fawned over the powerful and was no better than the likes of Wang Ergou and Ma Dalu—a scoundrel among scoundrels.

Why was he suddenly turning against his own kind and helping her today? Shouldn’t he be joining Wang Ergou in bullying her?

What on earth was going on?

Could he really have lost his mind? First offending Ma Dalu’s gang, now Wang Ergou—how was he supposed to survive in the village after this?

At that moment, Lin Hu, barely restraining his excitement, regained his usual air and pointed at Wang Ergou, scolding him.

"Paying back a debt is one thing! But what’s with all the grabbing and groping? Try laying a hand on Xiaoyu again, and I’ll beat you senseless, you hear me?"

"You..." Wang Ergou, seeing Lin Hu’s stance, was terrified and instinctively stepped back, protecting his throat. After suffering a slingshot and a near-strangling, he knew he was no match for Lin Hu right now.

This damn Lin Hu had suddenly grown a spine and was even bold enough to talk about repaying debts.

"Fine. Fine, Hu, you’re something else."

"We’ve always been brothers, the best of friends, and now you’re willing to turn against me for a woman? Feeling tough now that you’ve handled Ma Dalu and his lot? Feeling bold, are you?"

"Then your debt comes due as well!"

"You owe 369, Shen Youyu owes 152, that’s 521 yuan in total."

Wang Ergou held out his hand, chest puffed with pride. "Pay up!"