Sam was actually a little scared himself, even though he was the one doing the hitting. “Pour it for me!” he shouted, and with all his strength, Sam threw a punch at William Carter. William Carter’s trembling body suddenly crouched down, causing Sam’s punch to miss and his body to lunge forward. William Carter, who had seemed on the verge of collapse, suddenly became agile, quickly drew the knife tucked at his waist, and stabbed it into Sam’s soft side. The tip of the blade stopped as soon as it pierced the muscle. William Carter pulled the knife back, pointed the tip at Sam, and said, “You were already dead just now.”

Sam touched the wound on his side, leaned against the wall, and lowered his head in frustration. William Carter stood there quietly, waiting for his response. Sarah Thompson looked excited and whispered to George Miller beside him, “Hehe, Dong-ge won!” George Miller nodded, his hand resting on the hilt of the knife at his waist, slowly moving toward the center of the field. Sam had lost, but that didn’t mean he was out of the fight. George Miller was worried Sam couldn’t accept defeat and might try to ambush William Carter.

After a while, Sam raised his head, looked at William Carter, and said, “I’m a little unconvinced. But a man’s word is his bond. I lost! From now on, you’re my boss. As long as you say the word, I’d even give you my life.” With that, he bowed respectfully.

William Carter chuckled, then everything went black and he fainted. Sam reacted quickly, catching William Carter and shouting, “All of you, get the hell out there and flag down a car!” Before he finished speaking, Sarah Thompson had already dashed out to find a ride...

Sam and the others took William Carter to the hospital, where he was diagnosed with multiple cartilage injuries, some internal bleeding, and a mild concussion. He needed to be hospitalized. Sarah Thompson called William Carter’s family, telling them he’d been in a car accident and was now in the hospital. After hearing which hospital, William Carter’s parents rushed over in a panic. When they arrived, Sarah Thompson and the others comforted and explained things to them until they were reassured. To make the story more believable, Sarah Thompson grabbed Sam—who had just had gauze applied to his side—and said, “Uncle, Auntie, he’s the one who hit Dong-ge with his car!” George Miller and a few other brothers nodded vigorously at the side. Sam blushed, scratched his head, and grinned awkwardly.

Half a month later, William Carter had basically recovered, and the doctor said he’d be fine after a bit more rest. That day, only his parents came to pick him up from the hospital. Sam and the others had already said in advance they wouldn’t come. William Carter didn’t want his parents to meet those people anyway.

Back home, his parents made a big meal to celebrate his discharge. Looking at the table full of dishes, William Carter felt a pang of guilt. If his parents knew he was hospitalized because of a fight, who knows what they’d think. Right now, William Carter felt sorry for his parents, but at the same time, he couldn’t give up his current life. In these days of passionate indulgence, he felt he finally knew what happiness was. Nothing in the world was more joyful than being respected by others! At least, that’s what he believed now.

He didn’t know if what he was doing was right, but one thing was certain: he liked this life. Maybe he was just born to be a bad seed. William Carter temporarily put his worries aside and happily finished the meal with his parents.

The next day, William Carter slung his backpack over his shoulder and headed to school. From a distance, he saw more than fifty people standing across the street from the school gate. The corners of William Carter’s mouth curled up. He saw Sam and George Miller squatting on the ground, cigarettes in hand, chatting. Sarah Thompson’s chubby body couldn’t squat, so he stood nearby, gesturing animatedly and talking loudly—so loudly that even William Carter, still far away, could hear him. When the three of them saw William Carter approaching, they tossed their cigarette butts and stood up. George Miller shouted, “Everyone stand straight, stand straight! Dong-ge is here!”

The scattered underlings quickly lined up in two rows. As William Carter approached, they all shouted in unison, “Hello, Dong-ge!” Passing students instinctively kept their distance, and pedestrians on the street turned to look, thinking to themselves: Is this the mafia or what!?

Sam scratched his head, looking at William Carter apologetically. “Dong-ge, I’m really sorry about last time. Thanks for not stabbing me all the way through— the doctor said the wound was near my liver.”

William Carter laughed and said, “If I’d really stabbed you, would I still have such a good brother?” With that, he reached out his hand to Sam. A trace of emotion flashed in Sam’s eyes as he gripped William Carter’s hand tightly. Sarah Thompson and George Miller also came over and put their hands on top. The four of them clasped their hands together tightly, just like their intertwined fates—inseparable, tangled together. None of them spoke, hoping to keep this moment of excitement in their hearts forever. Right now, in the eyes of the younger guys, William Carter was a true hero. They felt that as long as Dong-ge was there, no difficulty could defeat them. A hero isn’t someone you talk about—it’s someone you prove yourself to be through action.

After a long while, the four finally let go. Sarah Thompson took a bulging envelope from his pocket and handed it to William Carter, saying, “Dong-ge, this is the money we collected this week. It’s a lot more than before!”

William Carter opened it, glanced inside, nodded, and handed it back to Sarah Thompson, saying, “Use this money to treat everyone to dinner tonight, so everyone can get together and get to know each other.”

Sarah Thompson was overjoyed—eating and drinking was his favorite thing. His eyes narrowed into slits as he said, “Thank you, Dong-ge!” Then he turned and shouted to the younger guys around, “Everyone gather at the gate tonight, Dong-ge is treating us to dinner!”

“YE! Long live~!” Everyone cheered loudly, once again drawing frowns from the passing pedestrians.