Outside the courtyard.
The pickpockets, including the one nicknamed "Mouse," swallowed hard, their throats choked with fear, not daring to make a sound.
They had always considered themselves ruthless in the underworld, but the agonized screams coming from inside made them realize—their so-called cruelty was nothing compared to this.
Compared to that woman, their viciousness paled in comparison.
No wonder the saying went, "Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned." When a woman turned ruthless, men had no chance.
They weren’t strangers to punishing those who broke the rules—their usual method was cutting off a pinky finger. Painful, yes, but temporary. After a while, the wound would heal.
But now? Over ten minutes had passed, and the two men inside were still screaming, their cries gnawing at everyone’s nerves.
This was beyond cruel.
This wasn’t punishment—it was pure, inhuman torture.
They wanted to run, but the perimeter was sealed. Escape was impossible.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity—twenty excruciating minutes—the girl approached with a sweet, devilish smile.
"Bring the rest of them inside," she said.
Mouse and the other pickpockets trembled uncontrollably.
"W-what do you want from us?"
"You know killing is illegal, right?"
"Who said anything about killing?" Yu Xin pulled out a lip balm from her pocket and applied it leisurely, her lips slightly chapped. "I’ve heard your hands are quite skilled. So, I’m giving you a chance to prove it. Do well, and we’ll let you go."
"What do you mean?"
Were they being forced to teach their thieving techniques?
But this didn’t seem like a lesson.
"Simple."
Yu Xin’s smile widened, yet it carried no warmth. "Pair up. Take a knife and shave each other clean—every single hair on your bodies, from top to bottom."
"???"
"Of course, if anyone refuses, they’ll be taken away to a… safe place for disposal," she added casually, as if discussing the weather.
Mouse and the others gulped. They didn’t know what "safe place" meant, but it was clear—once you went there, you might never come back.
Given the choice between humiliation and survival, was there even a choice?
"So… if we do this, you’ll really let us go?" Mouse asked cautiously.
"Of course! I always keep my word," Yu Xin assured, patting her chest.
"Fine. Bring the knives." Mouse knew this was degrading, but survival came first.
If they refused, they’d likely disappear—just like those two earlier.
And conveniently, there was an uncovered sewer nearby.
"Oh, what bad luck." Yu Xin wore an expression of frustration. "Your knives were thrown away by them. Maybe we should switch to using hands? I bet your hand skills are just as impressive. Let's just go with bare hands."
The thieves and their gang: "???"
"What do you mean? Just yank them out barehanded?!"
"Damn it, you can kill us but you can't humiliate us! There's no way we're plucking by hand... Actually, now that I think about it, hands are safer than knives. What do you guys think?"
Yun Cheng and his crew turned off their blazing lighters.
A moment later.
What followed could only be described as a scene of pure human tragedy.
A dozen grown men wailed and howled as they plucked each other's hair, screams rising and falling in waves.
"Damn it, even the eyelashes?! I make a living with these peach-blossom eyes! Ow~~ ow~~"
"Bro, your armpit hair is all tangled up. When was the last time you washed? It reeks!"
"Bullshit! It's naturally curly! Oww—be gentle! That's not hair you're pulling, that's skin! Skin!!"
"Wait! The 'king' character I paid 800 bucks to tattoo on my tiger-head design?!"
"Uh... maybe... it reincarnated? Turned into... a cat?"
"Heh heh, bet you didn't expect this—I'm bald! No hair here!"
"Screw you, you might not have hair, but what about those two tufts under your nose? Pluck 'em!!"
"Damn y—OWWWW!! Take it easy!!"
"AHHHHHH!!!!"
"........."
An hour later.
Yun Cheng and Yu Xin drove off, leaving behind a field of... feathers.
Yun Cheng sat in the driver's seat, his gaze occasionally flickering toward Yu Xin, who was reviewing photos on her camera. The cold glow of the screen illuminated her delicate profile, and the faint smirk at the corner of her lips sent an eerie chill down his spine.
This girl had changed so much. That "poisonous" punishment she came up with—most people wouldn’t even think of something like that.
Xiao Hu, sitting in the passenger seat, finally burst into laughter. "Sis Yu Xin, that was genius! Once we hang their photos up on the supermarket walls, I bet those thieves will think twice before stealing again. Hell, they might even run away at the sight of them!"
"The resolution isn’t sharp enough. Next time, we’ll need professional equipment."
Yu Xin turned to Yun Cheng, her eyes curving into crescents. "Brother Yun, don’t you think my idea was pretty good too?"
Yun Cheng held it in for a long moment before finally cracking up. "Yeah... way worse than just chopping off their fingers like those pickpockets do."
The scene was just too beautiful—he didn’t even want to think about it now.
Basically, Yu Xin had done three things:
First, she paired them up and made them pluck each other’s hair.
Second, she had someone take photos and videos of the whole ordeal.
Third, she had Zhao Tianyi send over a dozen contracts—portrait rights release forms.
Yang Xin and the others were currently dealing with two major headaches: constant theft in the supermarket, and an excessive number of unreasonable returns that had surpassed the store’s acceptable threshold.
Yu Xin came up with this idea—she would display the videos and photos with portrait rights authorization in the after-sales section, just briefly. For example, showing what a legitimate after-sales case looks like versus a fraudulent one. That way, the malicious refund scammers might think twice before trying to exploit the system.
A single move with multiple gains.
.............
Old Wang’s Appliance Repair.
"The coupler’s broken. Just needs a replacement."
"The water pump’s faulty."
"The fuse is blown..."
Cripple Wang, as usual, went about repairing appliances for his customers just like any other day. No matter what kind of device it was, there was almost nothing he couldn’t fix.
His craftsmanship was well-known in the neighborhood, and whenever residents had appliance troubles, he was the first person they thought of.
Just as he was about to see off his last customer for the day, a young stranger walked into the shop.
The young man was dressed in a black leather jacket, his face carrying the rough, menacing aura of a street thug.
"You’re the Ghost Lord?"
"What do you need fixed?" Cripple Wang didn’t even look up, continuing to tidy his tools.
"Not here for repairs. Heard you’re the top hand in this area. I came to introduce myself and propose a partnership," the young man said.
Cripple Wang glanced at the unfriendly stranger and replied slowly, "Our kind has never had any dealings with your sort, nor do we want any. Please leave."
"Oh? Then you better think carefully. If you refuse, there won’t be any room left for your kind here—Ghost Lord or not."
"Honestly, I didn’t want to work with shady rats like you either, but my boss needs your skills for a job."
"Besides, old man, times have changed. Stealing is so outdated. You’ve got to keep up with the times—like the internet. Scams online? Way safer than pickpocketing, and way more profitable too."
"Think about it… You’ve got three days to give me an answer. Otherwise—" The young man made an exploding gesture with his hands, then burst into laughter before walking out.
After the young man left, Cripple Wang—who usually never showed any emotion—gripped his screwdriver so tightly it creaked, his face twisting with anger for the first time.
He then pulled out a whetstone from under the counter and began sharpening the rusted screwdriver, the grating sound of metal piercing the quiet shop.
When he was nearly done, he instinctively lifted the screwdriver to check its smoothness—
Suddenly, his eyes were blinded by a series of bright flashes, nearly searing his vision.
Then, he saw a dozen bald men standing at the shop’s entrance.
.............
