Chapter 147: Showing One’s Hand

After hearing the waiter’s report, Li Wenhao froze for a moment. Once he came to his senses, he abruptly shoved away the girl clinging to his arms, stood up, and slapped the waiter hard across the face.

“How dare you curse at Young Master Li? Are you tired of living?”

The waiter’s eyes filled with grievance. Covering his injured cheek, he said, “Young Master, I wasn’t cursing you. That man was. You’ve wronged me.”

“You still dare argue? I told you to repeat what he said, not curse at me!” Li Wenhao roared furiously. Being bullied by Ling Tian was one thing. He had no choice but to endure it temporarily since he could not beat him. But now even a lowly waiter dared insult him. If he did not teach the man a lesson, where would that leave his dignity?

Afraid that Li Wenhao might strike him again, the waiter quietly retreated two steps before speaking. “Young Master, you were the one who told me to repeat his exact words. I asked you several times just now, and you confirmed it yourself. Now you’re changing your tune. You’re the one in the wrong, and I refuse to accept it.”

A mere waiter actually dared talk back to him. Li Wenhao was so furious he nearly fainted on the spot.

“Well, look at you! You’ve really grown bold, haven’t you? You even know how to talk back now. Are you rebelling against me?”

The waiter had already thrown caution to the wind. At worst, he could leave Yunhai City and disappear somewhere far away. Having made up his mind, he immediately retorted, “Li Wenhao, you should at least be reasonable. Don’t think that just because you’re the eldest young master of the Li family, I’m afraid to offend you. Even a cornered rabbit will bite. If you push me too far, I’ll kill you!”

The waiter, driven to the limit of his resentment, finally exploded. He seized the tray in his hands and prepared to strike Li Wenhao.

Honest people were the most dangerous to provoke. You might bully them once, perhaps even twice, and maybe they would tolerate a third time. But once you pushed an honest man too far, you would be close to your own doom, because he would be ready to stake his life against yours.

The waiter was exactly that kind of man. He had already decided to fight as though his life depended on it.

Li Wenhao blinked and stared blankly at the enraged waiter. Even a lowly waiter dared lose his temper now. Where had he found the courage? Could it be Ling Tian?

At the thought, Li Wenhao felt a headache coming on.

Damn it, just who was Ling Tian? Why did everything and everyone connected to him immediately become so troublesome?

It was not only Li Wenhao who had developed a headache at the mention of Ling Tian. The Li and Gu families, two of Yunhai City’s four great clans, practically went into convulsions whenever they heard his name. Ling Tian was not only immensely powerful but also exceptionally intelligent. After clashing with him repeatedly, neither family had managed to gain the slightest advantage.

“Boy, it seems you really are tired of living. I may not be able to deal with Ling Tian, but do you really think I can’t deal with you?”

Li Wenhao glared coldly at the waiter, then suddenly turned toward the bodyguards behind him.

“Drag this brat outside and teach him a thorough lesson. And spread the word: if any company in Yunhai City hires him, it will be declaring itself an enemy of the Li family.”

Those words exploded beside the waiter’s ears like thunder. His eyes reddened.

He knew he was finished. Even if Li Wenhao did not kill him today, he would be crippled. And after this, he would never be able to establish himself in Yunhai City again. No family or company in the city would risk offending the mighty Li family for an insignificant nobody like him.

“You… You’re going too far!”

This time, the waiter was truly driven to desperation. Before Li Wenhao’s bodyguards could make a move, he raised the tray and smashed it down on Li Wenhao’s head.

The hard plastic tray struck Li Wenhao squarely on the unguarded head and shattered into pieces.

Li Wenhao and his two bodyguards had never imagined that a mere waiter would dare attack first, so none of them were prepared. They were caught completely off guard.

Li Wenhao suffered the worst of it. A huge lump rose on his head, and the sudden assault frightened him so badly that he nearly wet himself.

“Damn it! He actually hit me! Kill him!”

Clutching the lump on his head, Li Wenhao shrieked like a stray dog.

The bodyguards had no courage to attack Ling Tian, but they did not take the waiter seriously at all. The two of them charged forward together, intending to teach him an unforgettable lesson and show off in front of Li Wenhao.

The waiter had already prepared himself mentally. He immediately raised both hands to shield his head and crouched down, ready to endure the beating.

If he was going to die, then so be it. At least he had acted like a man today. He had given the eldest young master of the Li family a giant lump on the head. Even if he died and became a ghost, he would have something worth boasting about when chatting with the other spirits.

The waiter squeezed his eyes shut and covered his head, waiting for the brutal assault. But after a long while, nothing happened.

What was going on? Had they become afraid?

Impossible. Li Wenhao’s lackeys might fear Ling Tian, but they certainly would not fear a lowly waiter like him.

Puzzled, the waiter slowly lowered his hands and cautiously exposed his head. He opened his eyes a little at a time, wanting to see what had happened.

When he saw the scene before him, he was so astonished that he could not speak.

Ling Tian stood proudly nearby, one hand gripping each bodyguard by the collarbone and completely immobilizing them.

When had he arrived?

The waiter turned to look toward the place where Ling Tian had been standing moments earlier. It was not very far away, but it was at least thirty feet. Could he have flown over?

“Get lost.”

Ling Tian’s cold voice rang out as he released the two men.

Having already experienced this once before, the bodyguards immediately bowed and scraped before him.

“Young Master Ling, we’re leaving right now.”

With that, and under the astonished gazes of everyone around them, the two men dropped to the floor and began rolling away bit by bit. They looked no different from lazy donkeys rolling in the dirt.

The waiter stared in disbelief.

Just who was Ling Tian? How could he be so formidable? He had said only one word, and the two lackeys who usually strutted around like arrogant fools had actually obeyed him.

They had really rolled away on the floor.

The waiter looked at Ling Tian with worship in his eyes.

This was what true dominance looked like. This was what it meant to be a real man.

Compared with Ling Tian, Li Wenhao was nothing but scum.

Ling Tian turned his cold gaze on Li Wenhao.

“I heard you say that anyone who dares take in this waiter would be declaring themselves an enemy of the Li family. Let me tell you this clearly: from today onward, he is my employee. If I ever find so much as a single hair missing from his head, I will flatten the Li family.”

Flatten the Li family?

Across the entire city of Yunhai, not a single person dared say those words. Even the other three great clans lacked the courage and power to make such a declaration.

Yet Ling Tian had said it, and he had said it with overwhelming authority.

The waiter excitedly moved behind Ling Tian. With such a powerful man protecting him, Li Wenhao would never dare do anything to him.

At the same time, the waiter swore to himself that he would work hard for Ling Tian and repay him for saving his life.

“You can get lost now.”

Ling Tian cast a disdainful glance at Li Wenhao, who had already been frightened senseless. Then the aura around him suddenly erupted like a howling storm.

The tremendous pressure bore down on Li Wenhao until he could barely breathe. The force released by Ling Tian’s formidable spiritual awareness struck directly at his nerves.

Under that double pressure, it was not only an ordinary man like Li Wenhao who would be unable to breathe. Even an expert who had only just crossed the threshold and become a true practitioner of internal energy would have been crushed beneath Ling Tian’s might.

Physical and mental attacks together were more than any ordinary person could withstand.

Ling Tian’s confrontation with the eldest young master of the Li family had long since attracted a crowd. Even the cooks had rushed out of the kitchen to watch the spectacle.

Yet beneath the eyes of so many people, the dignified eldest young master of the Li family, Li Wenhao, inexplicably dropped to the floor and began rolling across it. He completely ignored the astonished gazes around him, as if he had forgotten that he was the eldest young master of the Li family.

The waiter stared blankly at Li Wenhao rolling on the floor, then looked at Ling Tian with undisguised admiration.

“Big brother, how did you do that? Why are they so obedient?”

Ling Tian rather liked this young man, who had shown such courage and refused to yield. He said, “It’s simple. I’ve beaten them before. You seem like a decent fellow. Come work for me from now on. Report to Paradise Bar tomorrow. Once you arrive, just give them my name—Ling Tian.”

“Thank you, Big Brother!”

The waiter was so excited that he nearly cried. The rise and fall of life happened far too quickly. Moments ago, he had been prepared for the worst, but in the blink of an eye everything had turned around.

Not only had he enjoyed the thrill of beating up a rich heir, he had also gained the opportunity to follow Ling Tian.

The waiter swiftly stripped off his uniform, grabbed a chair, and charged toward the two bodyguards still rolling across the floor. Gritting his teeth, he swung the chair down on them again and again.

After beating them until their faces were swollen and bruised, leaving them sprawled on the floor like dead pigs, he rushed toward Li Wenhao next.

Ling Tian returned to his seat and said to An Qi, “You saw it yourself. I didn’t do anything. Li Wenhao has simply lost the support of everyone around him. Even his own employee couldn’t stand him anymore. This is a perfect example of bringing ruin upon oneself.”

An Qi was speechless.

Ling Tian was clearly taking advantage of the situation while pretending to be innocent. Still, his strategy of using someone else to do the dirty work had been excellent. He had not only given Li Wenhao a brutal lesson but had also kept himself out of it.

“What are you planning to do about the waiter? If the Li family retaliates, he probably won’t survive,” An Qi asked. Because she had been sitting too far away, she did not know that Ling Tian had already decided to take the waiter in.

Ling Tian replied calmly, “I’ve arranged for him to work at Paradise Bar. With me protecting him, the Li family probably won’t dare retaliate. Besides, I intend to confront the Li family openly soon.”

“Confront them openly?”

Though it was only a few simple words, An Qi’s heart trembled when she heard them. In Yunhai City, anyone who dared say that to the Li family needed more than courage.

“Don’t worry. I never do anything unless I’m sure of success.”

Ling Tian took An Qi’s delicate hand and spoke with absolute confidence.

An Qi still looked uneasy.

“I don’t want anything to happen to you.”