The day's competitions concluded, and the four finalists were selected. Everyone began to leave gradually.
Long Xiao and his companions waited until most people had departed before getting up to leave. Back at the hotel, just as Long Xiao finished showering and was preparing to go out for dinner with Xiao Ming, there was a knock on the door.
Long Xiao opened the door to find Xue Lianming, with Li Yufei, whom Long Xiao had defeated and knocked off the stage that day, standing beside him.
"Young Master Xue, why are you two together?" Long Xiao asked, surprised.
Xue Lianming smiled and said, "Yufei is my cousin. She wanted to treat you to dinner but felt too shy to come alone, so she brought me along."
Long Xiao looked at Li Yufei with a puzzled expression. "We don't know each other well. Why would you want to treat me to dinner?"
Li Yufei's face flushed slightly. "Brother Hu, I wanted to thank you for going easy on me today."
Long Xiao chuckled. "Whatever the reason, it's always good when someone invites you for a meal. Every meal saved is a meal earned."
Xue Lianming stared at Long Xiao as if he were an alien. "You rascal, how can you be so happy about saving a meal?"
Long Xiao sighed. "Migrant workers don't earn much. A day's work only brings in three to four hundred yuan. If I can save, I'll save."
As the three prepared to leave, Long Xiao said, "Beautiful Miss Yufei, could we add one more person? I have a little brother who hasn't eaten yet."
"Of course, we can add as many as you like."
"Just one, though he has a rather large appetite."
Before Long Xiao could call Xiao Ming, the door to Xiao Ming's room cracked open, and his head peeked out from the gap.
Seeing Xiao Ming, Long Xiao said, "Get ready, let's go."
Xiao Ming pulled the door open completely. He was already wearing his backpack and carrying two bags.
"Don't embarrass me. You can eat all you want, but no take-out," Long Xiao warned.
Seeing Xiao Ming's attire, Li Yufei chuckled. "Come out, little brother. Don't listen to him. I'm treating. You can pack whatever you like."
Xiao Ming walked out of his room, looked at Long Xiao, and then walked over to Li Yufei. "See, Miss beauty is so generous. Look at you, you're just a stingy migrant worker."
The four of them went downstairs, bantering with each other, and soon arrived at the Jingxi Restaurant.
The restaurant was crowded. A waitress led them into the last private room, remarking that they were lucky to get it, as they would have had to sit in the main hall if they had arrived any later.
Li Yufei handed the menu to Long Xiao, who immediately passed it to Xiao Ming.
"You order. Order whatever you want to eat."
With Long Xiao's permission, Xiao Ming did not hold back. He ordered over a dozen dishes and also requested two chickens.
"That's so much, can you finish it?" Xue Lianming asked Xiao Ming, looking surprised.
"It should be enough, barely. After dinner, we can order some late-night snacks to take back, otherwise, I'll get hungry later tonight."
"If you can't finish it, you can pack it. Wasting is shameful," Xue Lianming said with a smile.
Seeing that Xiao Ming enjoyed joking around, Xue Lianming felt at ease with him, chatting and laughing.
As they were talking and laughing, the door to the private room was pushed open with a clang.
"We want this private room. Everyone get out." The person who pushed open the door was a young man with slicked-back hair, dressed in a light pink high-end suit.
Long Xiao looked at Xue Lianming without saying anything. He was a guest, and this was something for the siblings to handle.
"Pei Yuqian, we were here first. This private room is ours."
"Xue Laosan, heh heh. Others might fear you, but I, Pei Yuqian, am not afraid of you. Hurry up and make way. I have esteemed guests today."
"Pei Yuqian, are you asking for a beating? How dare you snatch a private room from me!" Xue Lianming stood up and said.
Pei Yuqian sneered. "We'll see who's asking for a beating. Are you going to move or not? If you don't, I'll have Elder Han throw you out."
Pei Yuqian took two steps back, and a short, hunched old man appeared.
The old man was dressed in plain cloth, with a lecherous expression. A smile was squeezed onto his slightly dark, wrinkled face.
Seeing the old man, Xue Lianming's expression changed slightly. He looked at Long Xiao and said, "Elder Han, we were here first. I know you're formidable, but this is about fairness."
Elder Han's smile vanished, and he shook his head expressionlessly. "I don't like fairness. I like people to do as I say. You should leave immediately."
Xue Lianming leaned over to Long Xiao and whispered, "Brother Hu, maybe we should leave. Elder Han's strength is at the peak of the Earth realm, close to Great Completion."
Xiao Ming said with dissatisfaction, "No, we can't leave. I'm too lazy to move."
Seeing Xue Lianming's fear, Li Yufei also felt scared.
Xue Lianming was stronger than her. If he was afraid to provoke this old man, it meant the old man's strength was not inferior to Ming Tianya's.
"Xiao Ming, how about we change places? The main hall is fine too," Li Yufei said, standing up.
Li Yufei had been facing away from Pei Yuqian. As she stood up, Pei Yuqian got a clear view of her face.
"A beauty! Heh heh. Xue Laosan, you have good fortune to have such a beautiful woman accompanying you. You three can leave. This beautiful lady will stay to accompany our esteemed guest."
"Pei Yuqian, she's my cousin. Are you going too far?" Xue Lianming said sternly.
"So what if she's your cousin? Shouldn't she accompany my esteemed guest?"
Xue Lianming pulled Li Yufei up and said, "Let's go."
Elder Han, who was blocking the doorway, said, "The Second Young Master said the lady will stay, and the others are free to go."
Everyone knew what "the lady will stay" meant. Xue Lianming retreated, pulling out his phone to make a call.
Elder Han waved his right hand, and with a bang, the phone in Xue Lianming's hand was shattered.
Long Xiao had been watching the scene as a spectator. Seeing Elder Han make a move, he turned to look at him and said, "Old man, have you ever considered that offending someone from our Martial Alliance might cost you your life?"
"Hahaha." Xue Lianming burst into laughter. "Who are you trying to scare? Your Martial Alliance is nothing. The会长 (President) has already been beaten to a pulp."
Li Yufei's face paled with fear, and she looked nervously at Elder Han, appearing ready to fight.
Xiao Ming impatiently shouted, "Waiter, bring the food. I'm hungry."
Sensing the situation was dire, the waiter had already fled and was nowhere to be found.
"Brother, should I fight or should you? This old fellow is too ugly, it's putting me off my appetite," Xiao Ming said.
Elder Han's strength was not low, and he was a master from the Pei family. Xiao Ming attacking and crippling him might cause trouble. Long Xiao was currently using Hu Lei's face; he could simply change his appearance if necessary, so he was not afraid of trouble.
"I'll do it. You get a little injured, so your boss will think I didn't take good care of you."
Xiao Ming knew Long Xiao said this deliberately to create a fallback for future potential problems.
Elder Han, having been called an old fellow by Xiao Ming, became even more enraged, his face darkening. He raised his hand to grab Xiao Ming's neck.
Xiao Ming remained seated, confident that Long Xiao would not let him get hurt.
Long Xiao raised his right fist and punched towards Elder Han's head. The speed of this punch was no slower than Elder Han's movement.
Elder Han was startled and retreated rapidly. Long Xiao's punch missed, and his left fist followed.
This time, Elder Han did not dodge. He chose to meet the attack head-on, swinging his fist to meet Long Xiao's.
With a boom, the force dispersed. The door to the private room cracked open with a snap. Long Xiao and Elder Han quickly retreated.