The scorching July sun blazed like fire.
At two in the afternoon, outside the Nanling High-Speed Railway Station.
Shen Lang, with a blade of grass dangling from his lips and wearing a pair of size 46 flip-flops, stared at the towering buildings before him with a nonchalant air.
"My god, is this Nanling after fifteen years? It's so prosperous, so beautiful."
As he spoke, Shen Lang's eyes suddenly darted around, scanning the crowd.
Finally, Shen Lang's gaze settled on a few girls in short skirts by the roadside. He slapped his chest and cried out in feigned outrage, "This is terrible! How can the girls in Nanling city be wearing so little?"
"Damn it, demons, showing off their bare legs and chests, trying to test a gentleman?"
"Son of a bitch, what gentleman can withstand such a test?"
Shen Lang's outburst immediately drew contemptuous glances from passersby.
But upon seeing Shen Lang, who was a towering 1.9 meters tall and built like a wall, the passersby quickly swallowed the words "idiot" that were on the tip of their tongues.
Yet, in their hearts, everyone who passed by considered Shen Lang an unworldly bumpkin, harboring disdain and doing their best to avoid him.
"You bastard—"
Seeing the contemptuous looks on everyone's faces, Shen Lang wished he could go up and kick them all away.
But remembering he had important matters to attend to, he suppressed his anger and pulled out his phone to use a wicked map app to find the Wang family's location.
Three years ago, Wang Yunchuan, the patriarch of the Wang family in Nanling, had gone to Prisoner Dragon Mountain to propose marriage.
For some unknown reason, the old man had agreed without a second word.
Shen Lang had strongly opposed being engaged to a woman he had never met.
But faced with Shen Lang's fierce opposition, Wang Yunchuan had only offered two points:
First, his granddaughter Wang Yuyan would turn eighteen in three years.
Second, his granddaughter Wang Yuyan looked remarkably similar to the popular actresses Li Ruobing and Zhao Jiuceng, possessing a pure and lovely beauty that was simply divine.
A man is eighteen at heart until he dies, and a man's love for eighteen-year-olds lasts till his old age.
In this world, which man could refuse an eighteen-year-old girl?
In this world, which man could refuse the pure and enchanting Li Ruobing?
Alright, Shen Lang admitted, he was a lecher. He compromised.
Three years had passed in the blink of an eye, and there was only one month left until Shen Lang's official wedding to Wang Yuyan.
Shen Lang's curiosity about his unseen wife grew with each passing day.
Driven by intense curiosity, last week Shen Lang had secretly sent his junior disciple down the mountain to infiltrate the Wang family and get a glimpse of his future wife, Wang Yuyan, to see if she was truly as beautiful as a celestial being.
The result was that Wang Yuyan was less than 1.3 meters tall but weighed over 380 jin, with a bloated figure, a double chin, and a face full of pockmarks. To top it off, she even had stubble – a true monster.
He had been tricked, thoroughly tricked.
Son of a bitch, Wang Yunchuan, that old scoundrel, was clearly attempting a fraudulent marriage.
Break off the engagement, damn him, break off the engagement.
The more he thought about it, the angrier Shen Lang became. He wished he could rush to the Wang family and deal with that pockmarked woman right now.
However, just as Shen Lang had walked a dozen meters, a gentle breeze blew, carrying a refreshing fragrance that involuntarily tickled his nose.
Shen Lang looked up and saw a Jianbing (savory crepe) stall about fifty meters ahead by the roadside. His stomach rumbled at that very moment.
Shen Lang realized that after six hours on the high-speed train, he hadn't had a drop of water or a grain of rice, and he was indeed quite hungry.
"I'll buy a Jianbing to eat. It won't take much time anyway."
Muttering to himself, Shen Lang strode forward, reached the Jianbing stall, and said, "Boss, one Jianbing Guozi, please."
"Of... of course... please wait a moment."
As Shen Lang finished speaking, the boss, who was busy tidying up, replied.
Her voice was like the sweet and melodious song of an oriole in the early morning, making Shen Lang freeze.
Shen Lang felt as if the season was no longer the scorching July sun, but the gentle spring breeze, a cool and comfortable sensation washing over him.
Before her voice had even faded, a face appeared before Shen Lang's eyes, causing his breath to quicken.
It was a clean and innocent face, pure and moving.
Shen Lang looked up into her eyes and in that instant, his heart was utterly lost.
Those eyes were as clear as the spring water of a heavenly lake, devoid of any impurities, full of vitality.
Beautiful, so beautiful.
Shen Lang remembered the top-tier fortune he had drawn that morning in the great hall of Prisoner Dragon Mountain.
Today's fortune: Favorable to descend to Nanling and meet a beautiful woman.
His ancestor had not deceived him.
However, Shen Lang's contemplation was cut short as a van screeched to a halt by the roadside.
"Huala!"
As the car door opened, seven or eight burly men with rough faces rushed out and immediately surrounded the Jianbing stall.
A palpable killing intent filled the air!
Seeing this, the pure girl selling Jianbing turned deathly pale. "Who... who are you people? What do you want?"
"Your name is Yu Xiao, right?"
Upon hearing the pure girl's words, a man with a full beard and a long scar across his forehead stepped forward, sneering, "I am Wang Long from the Baima Club. My brothers in the underworld call me Brother Long out of respect."
"Your father, Old Dog Yu, gambled at the Baima Club and owes our boss 1.2 million. He's already sold you to us to settle the debt."
"From today onwards, you are our Baima Club's princess."
"Alright, stop selling your Jianbing. Pack up and come to the Baima Club to work."
"What?"
At this, the pure girl's face turned ashen.
She knew her father, Old Dog Yu, was a gambler, and a habitual one at that. But she never imagined he would dare to gamble at the Baima Club, accumulate over a million in debt, and ultimately sell her off.
"No, I won't go. This is what Old Dog Yu promised you. You deal with him yourselves; it has nothing to do with me."
Yu Xiao knew that a "club princess" was akin to a prostitute, and once she entered such a place, her life would be ruined.
Therefore, without a second thought, Yu Xiao directly refused them.
"You won't go? That's not up to you."
Wang Long sneered and casually said to his subordinates, "Grab her and take her back to the club."
As Wang Long's words fell, a group of subordinates quickly moved forward.
"No... don't."
Faced with a group of strong men, Yu Xiao, a frail girl, was powerless to resist. Soon, she was seized by the arms and legs, her mouth covered, and she was dragged towards the van.
"Damn it, you villains! Daring to force a good woman into prostitution in broad daylight! This is unbearable!"
A righteous middle school student, seeing this, was filled with righteous indignation and fury. He rolled up his sleeves and shouted, "I'm going to save this girl!"
As soon as he spoke, Shen Lang grabbed him by the shoulder and said, "Kid, don't be rash."
The other party thought Shen Lang was worried about his safety and, touched, patted his chest and assured him, "Brother, don't worry about me. I've trained in the sixteen-style military fist during my school's military training. I can handle these few thugs."
"No—"
Shen Lang looked at the boy and said earnestly, "Kid, listen to me, this hero saving the beauty business is complicated. You're still young; you really can't handle it."
With that, Shen Lang strode forward, "Let me handle it."