The playground was crowded that day, with everyone coming to watch the spectacle.
Duan Xiu and Zhang Qi each led a team for a PK match.
It was normal at first, with them exchanging blows. Duan Xiu was trying his best to shoot, though he missed every shot.
As the game was nearing its end, Zhang Qi suddenly launched an attack. Duan Xiu's teammates, as if on cue, all dropped the ball in unison.
What started as a 5v5 game eventually devolved into Duan Xiu playing alone.
And to make matters worse, it was a bright, sunny day, with the temperature soaring to thirty-nine degrees Celsius, making the ground feel like it was about to ignite.
Duan Xiu was panting, drenched in sweat. Zhang Qi toyed with him like a dog, holding him entirely in his grasp.
Duan Xiu endured, clenching his jaw tightly.
In the crowd, he distantly saw his mother's figure.
His mother looked worried and heartbroken.
Duan Xiu felt as if he were filled with renewed strength. He quickly snatched the basketball, lifted off the ground, and with all his might, threw it into the air.
The ball soared, tracing a perfect parabola, and landed precisely in the hoop. The entire crowd erupted in cheers.
Only Zhang Qi's face soured considerably.
Ge Baitao came out to congratulate Duan Xiu, and everyone surrounded him, cheering.
Zhang Qi glared fiercely at Duan Xiu's face, then, in a fit of rage, violently threw the basketball.
His movements were fierce and brutal, as if he intended to smash Duan Xiu to death with the ball.
Duan Xiu wasn't paying attention at the time. It wasn't until he heard a shout of "Careful!" and turned around that he saw his mother had fallen to the ground protecting him.
The crowd quickly dispersed. Duan Xiu saw the blood slowly seeping from beneath his mother, and a string snapped in his mind.
"Mom!"
Ge Baitao was the first to react, immediately pulling out her phone and dialing 120.
Meanwhile, Zhang Qi, the perpetrator, stood frozen, a flicker of panic crossing his face.
It turned out the good news his mother had mentioned that day was that she was pregnant, with a baby girl. This had been confirmed a long time ago, but she had wanted to surprise Duan Xiu, so the entire family had kept it a secret.
Who would have thought...
The incident caused a huge stir, but Madam Zhang instructed Lou Yumíng to cover up all information and silenced everyone present.
To protect Zhang Qi, Madam Zhang claimed to the Duan family that Zhang Qi was confined to his room. However, everyone knew the truth.
Duan Xiu's father was furious, but after Lou Yumíng arrived and they spent half an hour in the study, Duan Xiu's father's expression became grave. In the end, he agreed to a settlement.
All of this was witnessed by Duan Xiu from the corner.
As Lou Yumíng was about to leave, Duan Xiu mustered his courage and rushed forward.
He had been crying, his eyes swollen. Children usually couldn't hide their feelings, but Duan Xiu was an exception.
His whole body trembled, and he gritted his teeth, yet he still politely asked, "Uncle Lou, Zhang Qi did something like this, and there's no punishment? You're covering for him!"
Lou Yumíng was surprised by his reaction. He had expected Duan Xiu to rush forward and curse him out, but he didn't.
Lou Yumíng walked over, unfolded a handkerchief he carried, and placed it over Duan Xiu's bowed head.
"When God created Ares, what do you think he was thinking?"
The man's voice was faint, deep and cold, as if it had drifted from a cellar.
Duan Xiu remembered this sentence to this day.
Ares, the "God of War" in ancient Greek mythology, represented slaughter, bloodshed, and disaster.
...
Zhang Qi, confined to his room, couldn't stand it for more than two days.
That night, he sneaked out over the wall to go clubbing.
Lou Yumíng received a call from the security guard at the gate.
"Mr. Lou, Young Master Zhang has run out. Should I stop him?"
Lou Yumíng's eyes were icy. He looked up at the ink-black night sky and said in a chilling tone, "Let him go. Wrongdoing must be punished."
The bar was noisy. Zhang Qi, who was dancing intimately with beautiful women, had no idea that danger was quietly approaching.
People around him were saying, "Young Master Zhang, your Zhang family is truly capable!"
"Of course. With Lou Yumíng around, even if Young Master Zhang broke the sky, someone would fix it."
Zhang Qi sneered, mockingly saying, "What does he have to do with it? He's just a messenger! I rely on our Zhang family, not on the Lou family!"
"That's right, that's right!"
They had drunk several bottles of whiskey and were already talking nonsense.
"By the way, has Duan Xiu caused you any trouble?"
"Him?" Zhang Qi scoffed, "He wouldn't dare even if you gave him ten times the courage. He's a coward! His family is lucky to have a son like him. I feel sorry for his unborn sister, to have such a brother, hahaha!"