George laughed heartily at Su Yang's words, then looked at him with disdain.
"Just you?" George scrutinized Su Yang from head to toe. "You're wearing cheap clothes from a street stall. Aside from somehow beating me just now, and having a bit of good looks, what else do you have? What skills do you possess that would make me pay a price for you?"
Su Yang didn't say another word. He turned and took Anna and Mary's luggage, then said to them, "Let's go."
Seeing Su Yang about to leave, George became even more outrageous with his words.
"Oh~ I know why you're trying so hard to win against me, and acting like nothing's wrong. In reality, your body is already exhausted, isn't it? You just want my money. There's a segment later where you'll have dinner with the female guests. With your financial situation, I doubt you could even afford to buy a hot dog for a female guest here..."
The unbearable, demeaning words continuously entered Su Yang's ears, but he paid George no mind. He carried the luggage for Anna and Mary and walked towards the villa.
No matter what George behind him said, Su Yang completely ignored him. He knew George was probably going a bit mad.
As Su Yang didn't respond, George's insults grew louder. But Su Yang continued to ignore him. It wasn't until they reached the villa area that George's voice disappeared, and Su Yang finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"Su Yang..."
As they walked, the villa in sight, a hesitant voice called from behind. Anna and Mary had already recovered from their shock at Su Yang carrying so much weight. What shocked them even more was that Su Yang could endure such insults from George without reacting.
Hearing the voice, Su Yang turned to Anna and asked, "What is it?" The anger within Su Yang had subsided when he faced Anna. Su Yang had heard enough taunts and ridicule to get to where he was today. He knew that most of those who had mocked him had met the same end. George was no different.
Anna and Mary exchanged a look, then turned to Su Yang, their expressions somewhat hesitant.
Anna continued, "With so much strength, it would be easy for you to beat George up. Why did you just stand there when he was saying those things about you?"
Su Yang smiled faintly and replied, "If a dog bites you, do you bite it back?"
Anna and Mary didn't quite understand his words.
"Huh?" Anna looked at Su Yang, still hesitant. "I'm sorry, I didn't understand..." Previously, Anna had been hesitant around Su Yang because she had a good first impression of him and felt shy. Now, her hesitation stemmed from the immense strength Su Yang had displayed, making her feel a little afraid of him. Su Yang noticed this shift in emotion.
Looking at Anna, Su Yang smiled. "There's no need to apologize. It's a saying from our Dragon Country. It's okay if you don't understand. Also, I consider you all my friends now, so you don't need to be afraid of me. I believe you can feel that I had no choice but to act this way today because George forced me. If George hadn't pushed me so hard, I would never have exploded."
Su Yang pursed his lips and added, "You can talk to me freely, even joke around occasionally, as long as it's not too much. I won't get angry. I have a pretty good temper." He smiled at the two women.
Anna and Mary were touched by Su Yang's words. Mary was the first to react. She looked at Su Yang and said, "From the moment I first saw you, I thought you were great. When I first saw George, I felt he wasn't a good person. I've always been good at judging people." Mary extended her hand to Su Yang. "It's a pleasure to be your friend, Su Yang."
Seeing Mary's gesture, Su Yang smiled faintly and extended his hand. "It's my pleasure to be your friend too, Mary."
Anna, seeing them shake hands, finally returned to her usual demeanor. Blushing, she extended her hand to Su Yang. Su Yang looked at Anna's hand and smiled, "It's a pleasure to be your friend, Anna." Anna returned the sentiment.
The three of them walked into the villa, chatting and laughing.
"Su Yang, I never imagined you had such incredible strength!" Mary exclaimed. "From your appearance, no one would guess you're so strong."
Su Yang smiled faintly. "Truly strong people don't easily show how strong they are. It's the less capable who constantly compare themselves and flaunt their strength." Su Yang chuckled, and Anna and Mary exchanged knowing glances, both thinking of George. It was clear George was exactly that kind of person.
"But Su Yang, you've hidden it too well."
"We have a saying in our Dragon Country: humility. It's a good quality. Humility can win you many friends. But people like George clearly don't see humility as a sign of strength. On the contrary, the more humble we are, the less we display our strength, the more they'll see us as weak and try to bully us."
Anna and Mary nodded at Su Yang's words. "That's true, but you're perhaps too humble. You should show your true strength occasionally so they don't keep bullying you."
Su Yang smiled. "We people of the Dragon Country are not afraid when faced with trouble, but if others don't provoke us, we won't provoke them. So, as long as they don't go too far, I won't take action against them."
With that, Su Yang carried the luggage and opened the villa door. The two villas were not far apart, about a minute's walk. Su Yang thought the program team might have done this to make it easier for the guests to visit each other and foster relationships. This was likely the best and largest villa area in America. It was evident the program team had invested a significant amount of money. While they wanted to play a trick on the guests by setting up two different environments, the program team was also genuinely short on funds. Su Yang had previously asked Jiang Hei to investigate the program's investment. While the initial investment was substantial, the program was very expensive, and the funds were only enough for the initial phase. Since the program involved travel and subsequent locations were unconfirmed, investors were hesitant to commit to uncertain ventures. After the initial half-month period, the program team would need to seek new investors. Su Yang had some ideas about this, but they were just ideas for now.
The villa they were staying in was truly enormous, with a garden of over a thousand square meters. It also had a huge swimming pool. The luxury was comparable to the villa Su Yang had bought previously, though there were still minor differences. Land in Dragon Country was scarce, making it incredibly valuable, especially in first-tier cities like Songhai. Even though Su Yang was not short of money, his villa's area was not excessively large. Su Yang's villa had a backyard, but no swimming pool. Looking around, Su Yang recalled that from his balcony, he could directly jump into the swimming pool.