But just as Ling Chuse was about to grab Xiao Lao, he got stopped.
Not by Xiao Lao herself, though. A young, broad man stepped in between the two.
"Leave the woman alone," he said while holding Ling Chuse back.
Both Yi and Xiao Lao were surprised by the sudden intervention of the other party, but the most out of sorts was Ling Chuse.
"Let me go, before you regret it!" he shouted while struggling against the firm grip.
The young man, though, just shook his head, ready to protect Xiao Lao from this drunkard.
"Security!" Ling Chuse screamed while trying to hit the young man with his other hand.
The other party, though, swiftly dodged his swing and put Ling Chuse to the ground, ready to explain the situation to the approaching security.
"Hey! What are you doing? Let go of Mr. Ling now, before we take you down," the security guards said.
"This is a misunderstanding," the young man said in hope of convincing the security guards. "This man just tried to molest and keep this woman by force, so I had to step in. Please deal with him accordingly."
He let go of Ling Chuse, thinking the situation was over, and turned around to check on Xiao Lao, but as soon as Ling Chuse got up, the security guards flocked close to him and checked if everything was alright with their most important customer.
"Young master, are you ok?"
"Young master, what should we do with this brute?"
"Young master, what about this girl? Did she upset you?"
"Silence," Ling Chuse just said, nearly breaking out in loud laughter. This was it; this was the power he desired.
"Deal with the man first. Beat him up good and throw him out, and then we will see what to do next," he said.
To the young man's surprise, the security guards followed his instructions about this molester without any questioning. "Hey! I did nothing wrong. Why are you coming after me now?" He asked in shock and with fear in his voice.
He couldn't understand what was happening. Yes, the customer bought an expensive table in the club, but why was the fault on him now? He just stopped an assault.
"You dare to injure the young master," one of the guards just sneered. "Now you have to face the consequences. And girl, don't even think of running; this incident needs to be investigated afterwards."
"Are you serious?" The young man couldn't believe it. "I will call the police now," he said, but as soon as he took it out, the security guards attacked.
"Do you need help?" Xiao Lao asked the young man.
She just listened to the conversation without much emotion. The higher status was right. This world didn't seem too different; well, it wasn't a surprise.
"No, just hide. Today I will not back down."
The young man didn't know if it was the alcohol, the adrenaline, or something else, but he knew today he wouldn't let these bullies have it their way.
He himself was 18 years old and still attended school. A school where he was one of the targets to be bullied. Yes, he had a broad body and was trained in judo, but he never quite had the courage to hit someone. In the end he was known as strong but useless.
Today, he got invited to this club but got left behind by his "friends" and drank at the bar for some time before seeing Xiao Lao's predicament. Today it would be different.
The first security guard threw a heavy punch towards the young man's stomach, but instead of hurting him, the young man used the momentum of the punch, grabbing the security guard's arm and flipping him over, letting him land on the hard ground.
The security guards came in a group, but the young man continued fighting. Even though he was hit, he would not go down. One security guard after the next got dealt with but wasn't seriously hurt.
The young man couldn't throw punches. Yes, his technique helped him defend himself, but the security could get up and come again. In the end, the fight looked hopeless.
"What are you doing?" Ling Chuse, but also Xiao Lao said for different reasons.
"Don't worry, young master, we will capture him soon," one security guard answered.
"Can I finally help?" Xiao Lao asked again.
"Hey! Run! Why are you still here?" The young man shouted in panic. He had hoped that even if he got beaten in the end, the woman would be gone and safe by then. But here she stood, seemingly without even fear in her eyes.
The young man could no longer hold back anything. He started to fight with the intent to injure.
Yi, meanwhile, still watched the scene with more and more interest. This young man was quite something.
His movement and techniques, they were not bad at all. Yes, he lacked force and sharpness, but his movement was fluent, and he seemed talented in terms of fighting.
That was the reason he decided to tell Xiao Lao to not help out for now. He needed to see how this young man would handle the situation. He, now after her question, transmitted his voice into Xiao Lao's head once again.
"Don't help. I want to see how this would end without us."
Xiao Lao just nodded her head, not really sure why her master was interested in common people fighting.
The young man, now desperate, had taken down half of the guards by now. And these wouldn't stand up anytime soon.
He himself, though, suffered injuries himself. Marks and bruises all over his body, it felt like his whole body was about to collapse, but he still kept going. Once you stand up, you can't lie down again.
The fight continued, and the club by now was evacuated, while the music still played, and the young men finally fell down.
It's over, he thought. In the moment he fell, the young man realized that this one action, of saving the woman, was fatal. It would brand him as a hooligan to the police, and his life would be done.
But he didn't regret his decision. He stood up and fought; to him, this was what mattered most. He looked up as he hit the floor.
He expected to be hit many times before the police arrived, but as he looked at the few security guards that remained standing, he suddenly saw the woman he tried to protect and a man he never saw before step between him and the security guards.