Chapter One Hundred Twenty-Eight: Nothing at All

After watching the passionate Spanish lady dance the flamenco for a while, Yan Xu, feeling tired from wandering, stepped into a street-side bar. Having left the hotel, he had unknowingly been strolling for nearly two hours, and the camera hanging around his neck had already been swapped out three times for fresh rolls of film. At that moment, Yan Xu longed for his own DSLR — no need to change rolls, and he could see the results of his shots instantly. With such an old-fashioned camera, he had to take the film to a developing shop to see the pictures.

The bar was crowded and noisy. Yan Xu ordered a beer and casually found a seat. As he settled in, a song floated into his mind — the one he had heard in a bar in Taiwan, “A Single Flower.” Just ahead, at about three o’clock from his position, sat a figure with an enchanting silhouette.

Though he couldn’t see her face, the first impression from behind was that of a beauty — just like the lyrics, “Tonight, I want to go boom with you,” evoking a surge of desire.

The Spanish woman had the typical long, silky black hair cascading down her back. By estimation, she stood at least 1.7 meters tall. She wore a tight, short black dress adorned with black patterns, perfectly accentuating her graceful figure: a slender waist, full hips, and long, beautiful legs peeking from beneath the hem of the dress. On her feet were delicate, fair feet clad in golden high heels — a figure many women would dream of possessing.

That made four.

Yan Xu was now certain: the woman sitting before him was indeed a beauty. In just a few minutes, four men had attempted to strike up a conversation with her — all unsuccessful. Many other men kept stealing glances at her, and even those men accompanied by female friends found themselves quietly reprimanded for looking. If she were unattractive, such magnetic allure would never exist.

Although Yan Xu was tempted to approach her himself, the wish to share a flirtation in a foreign land was a common dream. Yet he knew his limits. Language was a barrier: while he was fluent in Mandarin and Cantonese and could manage some English, Spanish was utter alien to him, like Martian speech.

Thus, as alluring as she was, the beauty was to be admired from afar, untouchable.

After two drinks, Yan Xu’s attention gradually drifted from the woman to the bar’s musical performance. Although he couldn’t understand the lyrics, it did not diminish his enjoyment of the music.

Just as his focus shifted, a sudden ruckus caught his attention. Despite the bar’s usual noise, the laughter and shouting from a small group were strikingly harsh.

Looking in that direction, Yan Xu saw several men surrounding the woman he had been watching. There was some grabbing and pulling going on. The woman, now standing and facing Yan Xu, wore an angry expression as she confronted the drunken men.

The woman’s tall stature, already evident from her seated posture, became even more pronounced as she stood fully upright. At over 1.7 meters tall, plus the five-centimeter heels she wore, she was taller than many men.

Her face, now revealed to Yan Xu for the first time, was stunning: a high nose bridge, slightly dark eyebrows, and large, alluring eyes. Her pink lips curled in a faint smile, all exquisitely delicate. Her ample bosom, firmly shaped beneath the tight black dress, stood proudly — far too large to be held by a man’s hand. Such a figure, paired with her beauty, would make many women feel self-conscious.

With such looks and physique, it was no wonder so many men had tried to approach her.

Yet, Yan Xu was no hot-blooded youth rushing to rescue a damsel in distress without thought. In a strange country, it was better to avoid trouble. The drunken men looked like troublemakers; no one else in the bar had stepped in, and even the bartender’s eyes held a look of pity for the woman.

But trouble finds you whether you seek it or not.

Just as Yan Xu resolved not to interfere, a bottle suddenly flew toward him, crashing onto his table and splashing its contents all over his clothes.

The woman, surrounded and groped by the drunken men, had snapped. She grabbed a bottle from the table and hurled it at one of the brash men. But as a woman, she was overpowered: the man caught her wrist, wrestling the bottle away.

The bottle that had smashed on Yan Xu’s table was the one thrown by that same man.

If Yan Xu did nothing after being hit so openly, he would surely face scornful stares.

“Smash!” With a heavy fist, Yan Xu struck the man in the face. The blow was strong and caught the man completely off guard. He staggered back several steps until he collided with a nearby table, blood instantly flowing from his nose.

The drunken men were stunned by Yan Xu’s sudden intervention. After a brief pause, they shouted in Spanish — words Yan Xu could not comprehend — and launched a wild barrage of fists at him.

It had been a long time since Yan Xu had fought anyone, but his physique was formidable. Back in the day, he had been one of the three top lieutenants under the Bald Strong leader, and much of his response was instinctive.

Though he took many hits, Yan Xu’s body soon became bruised and battered. He guarded his face carefully — he was due to attend a film festival award ceremony in a few days, and a bruised face would be shameful. Fortunately, the men were drunk and slow; otherwise, Yan Xu would have been at a greater disadvantage.

Despite his injuries, he managed to strike back effectively. While protecting his face, he aimed punches at the attackers’ faces, breaking several noses. Their bloodied faces looked far worse than his own.

“Smash!” The sound of shattering glass rang out again. When Yan Xu turned around, a drunken man lunged at him with a broken bottle.

These men, drunk and reckless, had lost all reason. Known as local thugs who ran wild, now they were even more careless. Seeing their comrades bloodied, their only thought was to eliminate this meddlesome outsider.

As the broken bottle came toward him, fear surged through Yan Xu’s heart. A stab like that would mean at least a hospital stay — or worse, the end of the line for him.

“Aah!” A scream rang out. Yan Xu, who had instinctively closed his eyes, opened them abruptly. He felt no pain.

The scream came from the man wielding the broken bottle, who now had the bottle fall to the floor. A beautiful, delicate foot clad in high heels was stomping down on his face, contorting it. That foot was extending from behind Yan Xu.

Yan Xu turned to see a long, slender leg stretched beside his cheek. The woman had somehow climbed atop a bar table, delivering a powerful kick from above to the man’s face. The vantage point afforded Yan Xu an unobstructed view beneath the black, tight dress — a sight both shocking and captivating.

In that moment, Yan Xu felt dazed, a stirring deep within him. The woman was not only beautiful but bold. Beneath the dress, she wore nothing at all — not a thread — and, astonishingly, the most private parts were completely bare, unadorned by even the slightest fabric.

She quickly withdrew her leg, and Yan Xu’s gaze lingered reluctantly. Such a bare image, he had only seen in art films or online photo shoots — never in real life. The smoothness was surprising; even the normally alluring pink hue was but a faint glimpse, too subtle to form a clear image in his mind.

“Quick, let’s go!” The woman jumped down from the table, grabbed Yan Xu’s hand, and spoke in English — a language Yan Xu could barely understand.

Together, they dashed out of the bar, weaving through the crowd and slipping down two alleyways before shaking off their drunken pursuers.

“Hahaha!” In a dimly lit alley, both panting, they suddenly burst into laughter.

She was truly beautiful. Yan Xu had not seen her clearly in the bar, but up close, under the streetlights beyond the alley, he admired her delicate face. The woman was tall, and with her heels, standing nearly 1.78 meters, Yan Xu had to tilt his gaze slightly upward. Such a statuesque beauty exuded an undeniable aura of dominance.

“Thank you!” The woman spoke quickly in English, offering a long string of words. Given Yan Xu’s limited grasp of the language, he caught only the gist — gratitude, calling him a hero.

“No need to thank me. Anyone would help a beautiful lady in trouble,” Yan Xu replied in halting English. When speaking with foreign women, it was best to be direct and straightforward.

Hearing Yan Xu compliment her beauty, her smile blossomed even brighter. Suddenly, she stepped forward, embracing him and planting a gentle kiss on his cheek.

“Ah…” Yan Xu reveled in the warmth of her embrace and the enchanting scent she carried. Yet, the sudden movement tugged at his injuries, causing him to gasp sharply.

(to be continued…)