Meeting again

Li Xian started his touring-cum-mission around 3 pm in the afternoon. He visited many places as he walked, noting the stark differences in living standards.

He observed that life in southern Auckland was kind of poor compared to other parts of the city. Of course, Li Xian didn't walk the entire city by himself; he used transportation to reach respective areas before exploring them.

He went to see some of the beaches and enjoyed the evening there.

'Life anywhere is not equal at all.'

After witnessing the richer areas in the city and returning to the Howick suburb again, Li Xian couldn't help but sigh. He couldn't help but comment, as their situation in Guiyang was similar to this.

By the time Li Xian reached Howick, it was already 11:50 pm. He slowly walked towards the hotel, but the traffic or the density of people had already reduced significantly.

He saw a lot of drunkards drinking and smoking. He avoided them as much as possible, not wanting any interactions this time.

"Stop it right now! I have already informed the police; they are on their way."

Just as Li Xian was about a kilo-meter from the hotel, he heard a man's voice threatening someone in a dark alley that he was walking by.

Even though his English was proficient, Li Xian instantly caught the accent unique to Chinese people, and most importantly, he felt like he had heard this voice somewhere before.

He stopped walking away instantly, as he couldn't ignore someone from his country, not to mention he found the voice familiar. Even if it was someone from his country, he would have tried not to meddle with others' affairs.

"Hmm..." "Hmm..."

As he stepped closer to the scene, he heard mumbled voices, as though the person who had just spoken couldn't speak anymore.

"Police? By the time they come back, we will be done here, hehe! Also, don't make noise, or else this won't end as simply as it requires anymore."

By the time Li Xian reached around 50 meters from their location, he again heard a person talking while he saw two others holding a person against a wall, one with a knife pressed against the victim's mouth.

Li Xian still couldn't see who that person exactly was, as the lighting here was quite dim. But he felt that he had seen him somewhere.

"Now I will remove my hand! If you try to raise your voice, even a bit, I will directly stab this knife in your gut."

Li Xian knew that the person who was speaking was a local, judging by his accent.

"You too! If you make any noise, your friend here will get a stab. So, it is better that you cooperate with us for a short moment."

The guy then turned back and spoke again, stunning Li Xian a bit. Li Xian thought he was talking to him for a moment, which instantly alerted him.

But soon he noticed another guy holding onto a lean figure with a hand pressed against that figure's mouth. Observing it carefully, Li Xian understood that the figure was a woman with a lean build.

"Please let us go! We will give you all the money we have."

The male figure spoke again, but this time he didn't shout like last time, as he knew they were in a very precarious situation. He understood that these guys were under the influence of drugs and alcohol, completely losing their sanity.

If he were to threaten them again, they would probably comply with what they said. He just hoped that they could be bought with money.

"Hehe! Of course, we will be taking all your money and valuables. But this miss here needs to give us a deep kiss, or at least let us fondle her assets for a minute, willingly, as I asked before. Oh! She needs to do it willingly, hehe."

The shady guy moved towards the woman, a wicked smile on his face. He gestured to the other guy to remove his hand from her mouth, seemingly confident that the woman wouldn't scream anymore, given her male friend had a knife at his neck.

As expected, the woman didn't scream, observing the dangerous situation. Li Xian, who had finally approached within ten meters of the scene without alerting them, couldn't help but glance at the situation in disbelief.

In better lighting or during the morning, they would have easily spotted Li Xian. However, due to the current dim circumstances and everyone being under the influence, they were oblivious to the guy who had silently approached them.

Li Xian hadn't walked straight out; he stayed under the shadows, minimizing his noise.

'Is that Xiao Zhan, and that's... Ziyi?'

Li Xian was even more shocked when he recognised the woman as his classmate. Although Chen Dong had wanted to ask her to help Li Xian earlier, he had declined.

Soon, he understood why they were together. Xiao Zhan had introduced himself as a cinematographer, and Li Xian already knew Zhang Ziyi was an actress.

'Well! The first priority is to dismantle the guy holding the knife to Xiao Zhan's neck! The distance is around ten meters, which will only take half a second for me to reach him. Let's wait for the appropriate moment.'

While Li Xian could dismantle both of them, it would alert the other two closer to Ziyi, about five meters away from Xiao Zhan's face.

Li Xian was confident that he could reach her in 1/4th of a second, but he didn't want to risk it. He just hoped Ziyi would cooperate with them for a short moment, reducing their alertness completely.

"Let her go! She won't be running anywhere, unless she wants her buddy here to get a deep cut on his neck."

The shady guy warned the one holding onto Ziyi with a wicked grin.

Xiao Zhan struggled, agitated by the guy's threat, but the hand on him tightened, preventing any movement.

Zhang Ziyi, filled with tears, chose not to run or scream, gazing at Xiao Zhan with regret for involving him in this mess. She anticipated the forthcoming humiliation but steeled herself to endure it for Xiao Zhan's sake.

Closing her eyes, she prepared for the inevitable.

"Sister Yi! Don't bother about me, please run away now."

Xiao Zhan pleaded, urging her to escape.

In response, he earned a punch on his face, causing his nose to bleed.

"Stop shouting if you want to live."

The aggressor threatened, pressing the knife back to Xiao Zhan's neck.

Li Xian cursed Xiao Zhan for his recklessness but admired his courage. Meanwhile, the shady guy moved closer to Ziyi with malicious intent.

'Now or never'

Li Xian said to himself, launching forward like a cheetah spotting its prey. Surprising even himself, Li Xian reached Xiao Zhan in a third of a second.

Startled, the attackers had little time to react. Li Xian swiftly incapacitated the one holding the knife, breaking his hand and rendering him unconscious. He then dealt a heavy blow to the stomach of another.

Without a second glance, Li Xian turned to the remaining two. One gasped for air on the ground, unable to scream due to the severe pain. The shady guy, lost in his fantasies, remained unaware of the unfolding events.

As Li Xian approached, the third guy raised his hand to say something, but Li Xian swiftly dealt a kick to the groin. The guy collapsed, holding onto his injured area.

Ignoring their pleas, Li Xian disfigured the face of the last assailant and made sure he fainted. Satisfied, he turned back to see Zhang Ziyi, who still had her eyes closed.

Shaking his head at her naivety, Li Xian patted her shoulder, making her shiver with fear.

"Don't worry! Open your eyes now!"

Li Xian reassured her before moving towards the still-bleeding Xiao Zhan.

Surprised by the Mandarin words, which clearly weren't from Xiao Zhan—she'd often teased him about his feminine voice—Zhang Ziyi opened her eyes, expressing suspicion, relief, amazement, worry, and wonder.

Before her stood the back of someone walking toward Xiao Zhan.

'Ah!'

As Li Xian took two steps forward, the shady guy finally cried out after gasping all along. Startled by the sudden cry, Li Xian lifted his leg and decisively kicked the guy's face. The kick was strong enough to make the guy roll three times before falling unconscious.

Both Zhang Ziyi and Xiao Zhan, looking at Li Xian holding his bloodied nose, couldn't help but shiver at the ruthless kick.

They imagined what would happen if that kick had landed on them, sending shivers and goosebumps through their bodies.

Xiao Zhan, now seeing the face of their rescuer, stuttered.

"Y-you, You..."

Zhang Ziyi also took a step toward Xiao Zhan, relieved that this guy who saved them was someone Xiao Zhan knew. She couldn't help but feel a sense of gratitude, as if a god had come to their rescue in their desperate time of need.

"What? I'm not You, I'm Li. I didn't know that you are this forgetful, Zhan. Also, can you please hold your nose? It's absolutely disgusting to see the blood flowing like that."

Li Xian joked, handing Xiao Zhan his handkerchief.

Xiao Zhan expressed his gratitude, while Zhang Ziyi observed Li Xian for the first time.

'He isn't that handsome, but his temperament and his strong back that anyone can rely on...'

Unaware of her thoughts, Li Xian cut her off.

"It's alright, Ziyi! But we need to get away from here quickly, or else once the police come, it will be troublesome to deal with."

Li Xian lifted Xiao Zhan and started walking. Stunned for a moment, Zhang Ziyi, hearing the guy address her so intimately, wondered how he recognized her but remembered her celebrity status.

"Hey, Brother Li! You can't take advantage of Sister Ziyi like that."

Xiao Zhan, sensing Zhang Ziyi might be troubled by the address, playfully reminded Li Xian.

"No! Don't talk nonsense, little Zhan! I don't mind it, Mr. Li."

Zhang Ziyi said, catching up to Li Xian, who was already walking ahead supporting Xiao Zhan.

Xiao Zhan's words made sense, but she felt okay about it since this person saved them in a dangerous situation.