Chapter 255: Payback?

Qi Xia's mouth curved up in a smile, and he slowly walked over.

Qin Dingdong and the man from Chuan Yu in front of her were clearly stuck, needing just one more push.

"Big brother, I'm really sorry about this, but you don't have any choice," Qi Xia said to the Chuan Yu man. "If you don't do as she says, I'll start fighting you right here."

"You think you can beat me, you fool?" the man growled through gritted teeth, glaring at Qi Xia.

"I don't even need to beat you," Qi Xia replied with a cold laugh. "Do you believe that once I make a move, a endless stream of allies will come to help me?"

The man felt a chill run down his spine at those words, knowing Qi Xia was speaking the truth.

Right now, he was like an overturned truck on the roadside—if someone started looting it first, it would attract countless others to join in.

After thinking it over for a long time and weighing the pros and cons, the man finally sighed and said:

"Forget it..."

He lowered his head, pulled two fans from his bag, and handed them over. "Little sister, I'm warning you upfront—if you go back on your word after taking these two fans, I'll throw my life away to kill you both."

Qin Dingdong's face darkened at that, and she turned to look at Qi Xia.

In her mind, she had planned to carry the scam through to the end, but was it really going to fall apart at the second round?

"Of course, big brother," Qi Xia nodded. "If you don't get out this time, I'll stand here and let you beat me to death."

The Chuan Yu man didn't react much to that, but Qin Dingdong couldn't hold back:

"You..."

"Come over here—I need to talk to you," Qi Xia said to her.

Qin Dingdong thought for a moment, then nodded and walked over to him in three steps.

Qi Xia pulled her aside and whispered:

"You should go."

"Ah?" Qin Dingdong lowered her voice too. "What do you mean?"

"You've already failed," Qi Xia said. "Leaving now is your best option."

"You're telling me to escape right now?"

"Qin Dingdong, have you ever played this game before?" Qi Xia asked.

"No," she shook her head. "I've just heard about it."

"I don't think you'll get a better chance to escape later," Qi Xia said after thinking for a bit. "Getting out now will maximize your benefits."

Qin Dingdong calculated her gains: after using the two fans for pairing, she'd still have four left, which meant twenty Dao. It was already a great haul, but people never know when to be satisfied when they see the possibility of more.

"Qi Xia, I don't want to leave," Qin Dingdong said. "I think I can get a few more..."

"You should value your life," Qi Xia replied. "Your scamming skills are not only clumsy but also bound to make you enemies left and right. If you take all this man's fans and stay here, you'll become the new 'rich one,' and everyone will turn on you—what will you do then?"

"I—I can have you protect me."

"There are dozens of people here," Qi Xia said. "Do you really think I'd risk my life to protect you?"

Qin Dingdong fell silent.

"Besides... I can't pair up and leave with you," Qi Xia said, carefully scanning their surroundings. "I want more than you do."

"What...?"

"So take this chance to get out," Qi Xia said. "As a thank-you for the three Dao you gave me, I'll help you one more time."

Qin Dingdong carefully considered Qi Xia's words and realized he was right. But for some reason, she still felt like it might be part of his scheme.

After thinking it over, she went back to the Chuan Yu man and said:

"Big brother, I need to be honest with you about something."

The man's face darkened. "Little sister... think this through before you speak."

"I have," Qin Dingdong nodded. "Originally, I was planning to scam you one more time, but I've changed my mind. This time, I'm just going to use the fans."

The man eyed her cautiously. "Then why not use them?"

"I've decided I want three fans," Qin Dingdong said seriously. "Two aren't enough for me anymore. Just give me three, and I promise..."

Before she could finish, the man lunged forward and grabbed her by the throat:

"You damn idiot... you're asking for it..."

"Hey!" Qi Xia's eyes turned cold, and he quickly stepped in, grabbing the man's arm. For a moment, he didn't know what to do next.

Though he had spoken confidently earlier, a fight would be a lose-lose situation.

Whether Qi Xia tried to snatch the fans or the man killed Qin Dingdong right there, the participants would definitely lose control.

"Qin Dingdong, what are you doing...?" Qi Xia asked, confused. "Why not just take the two fans and go?"

"No..." Qin Dingdong gritted her teeth. "I want three..."

Qi Xia never imagined the girl in front of him could be so greedy—he had already laid out the perfect plan for her, so why was she suddenly changing course?

"In that case..." Qi Xia turned his attention back to the Chuan Yu man. "Brother, if you don't let go, I'll really have to take your fans."

"What... you..."

"I'll count to three..." Qi Xia frowned. "After three seconds, one of us has to go down."

The man's face twisted in anger, as if he was sizing up Qi Xia.

"One, two..."

Before "three" could leave his lips, the man released his grip.

As the saying goes, the barefoot man fears no one in shoes—Qi Xia only had three fans, so he could afford to lose, but this man couldn't.

"Three... fans..." the man snarled. "You two are really pushing it too far."

"Deal or not?" Qi Xia cut in immediately. "I don't want to hear any complaints."

The man thought for a moment and said, "Fine... but this is the last time."

Hearing that, Qi Xia breathed a sigh of relief.

The man roughly tossed three fans into Qin Dingdong's arms.

Though he had eleven fans originally, this pairing had cost him five.

After taking the fans, Qin Dingdong smiled slightly and inserted two into the machine.

"Scanning..."

"Pairing successful."

As those words appeared, all three of them relaxed.

"Qin Dingdong, what were you even thinking?" Qi Xia asked, puzzled. "You could have just..."

Before he finished, Qin Dingdong held out a fan to him.

"Here, for you."

"Uh?" Qi Xia was taken aback.

The man nearby was also stunned.

"For me?" Qi Xia confirmed.

"You helped me out several times, so this fan is for you," Qin Dingdong said, rubbing her neck. "With this, we're even."

Qi Xia incredulously took the fan. He had thought she was just being greedy and added that extra fan on a whim, but now it seemed... she was repaying a favor?

Didn't she realize he had been scamming her?

"Okay then," Qin Dingdong smiled. "If you ever feel lonely, remember to tell your sister. I'm off now."

She waved at Qi Xia, then playfully linked arms with the Chuan Yu man. "Big brother, let's go!"

As he watched the two walk away, Qi Xia didn't pay them any more attention. Instead, he opened the fan and glanced at it.

His own stroke of "good luck" had arrived.

This one was still "Ai."

He looked up to say something, but suddenly saw an old man charging toward Qin Dingdong. Before she could react, the old man punched her to the ground.