C3 What Are You Doing as a Man?

Ling Chuchu hobbled away from the breakfast joint, her hair in disarray and her knees scraped from a fall. Her arms were smeared with the black soot from burnt ritual paper and the greasy filth from the ground. The stench was so overpowering it made her gag, leaving her in a state of utter dishevelment.

She climbed into her car and set off directly for Lee Ming's villa.

Twenty minutes later, Ling Chuchu pulled up to a secluded mountain villa. The opulence of the place was unmistakable, clearly the residence of someone wealthy or of high status.

Stumbling out of the car, Ling Chuchu pressed the doorbell.

"Who's there?"

An impatient voice called out from within as the doorbell echoed.

"Hubby, it's me!" Ling Chuchu's voice softened into a coo upon hearing Lee Ming's voice.

The door swung open to reveal Lee Ming's reasonably handsome face.

"Hubby!" Ling Chuchu feigned a lunge for his embrace.

"Stay back! You reek!" Lee Ming recoiled, pinching his nose with a look of disgust.

"Did you get the ring?"

"No," Ling Chuchu replied, her voice faltering as she shook her head.

"No?! I asked you for one simple thing—a ring—and you couldn't even manage that. You're useless! You've made yourself look like a beggar, dirtying up my doorstep!" Lee Ming's displeasure was palpable.

"Hubby, it's not my fault. And Liu Changqing, he..." Ling Chuchu's voice trailed off, the memory of the eerie encounter still haunting her.

"What about Liu Changqing? He's dead, isn't he? What harm could a dead man do?" Lee Ming dismissed her concerns with a wave of his hand.

"No... He's not dead at all!" Ling Chuchu's revelation left even Lee Ming taken aback.

"What did you say? Repeat that!" Lee Ming demanded, seeking clarity.

"Liu Changqing isn't dead. He was faking it the whole time! And he attacked me!" Ling Chuchu broke down into tears.

"That scoundrel! How could he not be dead? The hospital issued a death certificate, didn't they? How could a fall from such a height not kill him? It's true what they say—the meaner the person, the tougher they are to kill!"

Lee Ming willfully ignored Ling Chuchu's beating, his mind consumed by the fact that Liu Changqing was still alive. In a fit of rage, he slammed his fist into the door.

"All you do is cry! It's all because of you, you wretched woman! If not for your incompetence, I wouldn't have to step in. But make no mistake, Liu Changqing has to die. I need that ring he's holding, and he knows far too much. If my father finds out, we're all doomed!"

A sinister sneer crept across Lee Ming's face as he contemplated the situation.

"Liu Changqing, you've already died once. I wouldn't hesitate to kill you again!"

He reached for his phone, intent on arranging Liu Changqing's demise, but to his shock, Liu Changqing was suddenly there!

Vengeance waits for no one. Now that he was Liu Changqing, he would have his revenge today!

"Liu Changqing!"

Lee Ming's heart raced at the sight, as if he'd seen a ghost.

At first, he thought Ling Chuchu was just making excuses for her failure, but now, with Liu Changqing actually standing before him, Lee Ming's voice shook with fear.

"Heh."

Liu Changqing's cold laugh echoed, his eyes devoid of any warmth.

Initially frightened, Lee Ming quickly regained his composure. This was his villa, with bodyguards on hand. Liu Changqing's presence was nothing short of suicidal.

You bypass the path to heaven and choose the gateless way to hell.

I was about to send someone after you, and here you are, knocking at my door! Are you that eager to die?

"Liu Changqing, your audacity knows no bounds! Ling Chuchu is with me now, yet you still cling to her!"

Lee Ming's eyes dripped with scorn as he faced Liu Changqing.

"Idiot!"

Liu Changqing dismissed Lee Ming's contempt with a single word.

"Today, I'm here to settle our account!"

He faced Lee Ming with an unflappable calm.

"Ha! Settle the score with me? Liu Changqing, that's the funniest thing I've heard all year! Who do you think you are? Have you forgotten how you groveled before me like a dying dog? Come on, beat this man down but don't kill him! I want to savor this."

Lee Ming addressed the bodyguards who had hurried to the scene.

"Yes, Mr. Lee!"

The villa boasted over ten bodyguards, a testament to Lee Ming's luxurious lifestyle.

These bodyguards were all seasoned ex-mercenaries, each with a history of violence. They exuded a palpable aura of menace and moved with lightning speed.

In a flash, they had encircled Liu Changqing.

"Humph!"

With a disdainful snort from Liu Changqing, the bodyguards hadn't even laid a finger on him before they were sent flying. Their faces swelled up like balloons, teeth shattered, they lay on the ground, completely immobilized.

Yet Liu Changqing stood calmly in the center, unfazed.

"What?!"

Lee Ming, who had been watching with his arms crossed, anticipating a spectacle, was now frozen in shock. The bodyguards lay defeated without even touching Liu Changqing.

This seemed too staged! Damn, whose side are they on? They looked as if they were actors Liu Changqing had brought in himself!

But the sight of blood and scattered teeth on the ground snapped Lee Ming back to the grim reality.

"Impossible! You can't be Liu Changqing! Who are you really? How could that spineless Liu Changqing have such prowess?!"

Lee Ming's eyes bulged with fear, and he stumbled backward.

Had Liu Changqing possessed such abilities, he never would have been duped into faking his own suicide!

"If I'm not Liu Changqing, then who am I? Lee Ming, you wished for my death, didn't you? Today, I'm going to give you a taste of what death feels like!"

Liu Changqing advanced, his presence alone exerting an overwhelming pressure on Lee Ming.

Overcome with panic and the weight of Liu Changqing's aura, Lee Ming's knees buckled, and he found himself kneeling on the ground.

"No... please, don't kill me!"

Lee Ming, engulfed by fear and sensing Liu Changqing's intent to kill, shook his head desperately, pleading for his life.

"Do you remember? You forced me to kneel before you just like this!"

The memories of the humiliation he had suffered fueled Liu Changqing's thirst for vengeance.

"I was wrong! It's all her fault, that wretched woman! She's the one who told me about your antique ring, and she's the one who convinced me to kill you. It's all because of her! Every wrong has its perpetrator, every debt its debtor. If you're going to kill someone, take her life instead!"

In a state of panic, Lee Ming pointed accusingly at Ling Chuchu.

"Lee Ming! What are you spouting?"

Ling Chuchu was taken aback, utterly shocked that in this life-or-death moment, Lee Ming was willing to sacrifice her to save his own skin.

"What am I saying? How can your worthless life compare to mine? Just one lowly life; if you die in my place, I'll give your parents a million yuan!"

Lee Ming spat out the words, his voice thick with desperation.

"Lee Ming, you scoundrel!"

Ling Chuchu could hardly believe that Lee Ming would stoop so low.

"Ha! Look at you, turning on each other like dogs! Lee Ming, you call yourself a man? Making a woman take your place in death—I'm embarrassed for you! You're no man at all!"

With that, Liu Changqing's foot shot out in a swift kick, striking Lee Ming's groin and effectively emasculating him.

Lee Ming doubled over from the impact, his body rigid with shock. His face turned beet red, and he was in so much pain that he couldn't even muster the strength to cry out.

"Now, let's see what kind of 'man' you are!"

Liu Changqing snorted with disdain, his face a mask of indifference.