24: You can resist, but you'd better think carefully about the consequences.

The group of thugs was momentarily stunned. Who was this kid, and why was he so arrogant?

The young man, looking at Qin Yun standing in front of him, was also a bit slow to react.

Looking at the bruised and swollen young man, Qin Yun felt a wave of pity; someone who didn't know better might have thought he had stolen hundreds of thousands of dollars from them.

"How much money did you make from them?" Qin Yun asked.

"Two... two hundred dollars!" The young man lay on the ground, holding up two fingers toward Qin Yun.

Qin Yun was incredibly angry upon hearing this. Two hundred dollars wasn't even enough to win a storage unit, nor could it buy a single piece of designer clothing.

And yet here, it could cost a Xia Country person their life.

Hearing the youth's words and seeing Qin Yun's angry expression, the thugs' faces were filled with mocking smiles.

"What are you looking at? Is two hundred dollars a small amount? Your Xia Country Monkey lives are only worth that much! Hahaha!"

The burly bald man laughed arrogantly.

Fury burned in Qin Yun's eyes; he wanted nothing more than to wipe out this group of evildoers.

"He earned two hundred from you, right? I'll pay you four hundred on his behalf, but you must apologize to him! Apologize to the people of Xia Country!"

Qin Yun was awe-inspiringly righteous, ready at any moment to activate his Profound Vision Treasure Eye.

If these people dared to make a move, he would definitely deal with all of these thugs.

Hearing the person before him say this, a glimmer of light returned to the young man's numb eyes.

The thugs, however, burst into loud laughter, their eyes filled with disdain.

"Apologize? Is this Xia Country Monkey even worthy?"

"He relies on us to make money and eat; these Xia Country people come here to be parasites. If it weren't for us, this kid would have starved to death long ago!"

"I will never apologize to a lowly Xia Country Monkey!"

"Who do you think you are? I see you're just as delusional as this money-stealing monkey!"

Seeing the Xia Country person standing up for the youth, they viewed him as nothing more than an overconfident clown and found it quite amusing.

Hearing the thugs' mocking words, the youth gritted his teeth in hatred and clenched his fists, though he quickly let them go again.

He desperately wanted to teach these bastards who insulted Xia Country a lesson.

But this was America, and he didn't even have legal status.

If he resisted, the police wouldn't take his side, and he would only get another brutal beating from the thugs.

"I'm telling you to hit him. Do you dare to do it?"

Qin Yun looked at the youth by his feet and asked plainly.

He wanted the youth to reclaim his lost dignity himself; only then could he hold his head high again.

If he didn't have the courage, the shadow in his heart would cause him to live in fear of these people for the rest of his life.

Seeing this stranger from Xia Country standing up for the youth and even telling him to fight back, the thugs laughed even harder.

These Huaxia Monkeys were always submissive in the restaurant.

No matter how excessive their treatment was, these monkeys never dared to offer the slightest resistance.

They did a lot of work for very little money and were more well-behaved than monkeys in a circus; how could they possibly dare to lift a finger?

"Hahaha, you're killing me! Xia Country is full of Cowards of East Asia. You're expecting him to actually do something? Are you trying to make us die of laughter?"

"People from Xia Country come here to beg for food. Beggars should have the attitude of beggars. I'm standing right here; does he even dare to touch me?"

"This guy just needs discipline. Like other Xia Country people, he's only good for being beaten!"

"You people from Xia Country can only be obedient dogs..."

They doubled over with laughter, absolutely refusing to believe the youth on the ground would dare to hit anyone.

Hearing the persuasive words of the man before him, the youth felt very conflicted.

He didn't know if Qin Yun could settle things with these hateful guys, and he still relied on these people to survive in America.

However, their words had ignited the fire in the youth's heart. All the things they had done to him and his companions in the past flashed before his eyes, and he could no longer hold back.

He picked up a brick from the corner and smashed it right against the bald man's head.

The bald man, who had been laughing arrogantly just a moment ago, never expected the youth to actually have the courage to strike. Caught off guard, he was knocked straight to the ground.

Because the youth was physically weak and lacked strength, the strike looked impressive but didn't knock the bald man unconscious.

The thugs were stunned for a moment, having never expected the youth to actually dare to fight back.

Seeing the youth strike, Qin Yun felt a sense of joy.

He hadn't placed too much hope in the youth; someone who had been oppressed for so long would find it very difficult to break free.

The fact that the youth could bring himself to strike back showed he still had some backbone and wasn't a hopeless case.

Qin Yun was very satisfied with this and decided to help him to the end.

Seeing the thugs snap out of it and prepare to use lethal force, he stepped forward to meet them.

He took out four hundred dollars and threw it on the ground.

"Two hundred is to pay back the money for him, and the other two hundred is for your medical bills!"

Qin Yun was very satisfied with the youth and would never allow these people to strike him again.

The leader wasn't seriously injured, but he was momentarily dazed from the shock of the youth actually fighting back.

He then came to his senses and shouted at the youth in a rage.

"You—you monkey dare to lay a hand on me? Are you tired of living?"

"Just wait to be deported! When the time comes and you can't pay back the smuggling fees, your whole family will be finished!"

He pointed his finger at Qin Yun: "And you, you dare to encourage him to hit me? Just wait, I'll deal with you as well!"

The thugs rubbed their hands together, preparing to give this Xia Country Monkey a thorough beating.

After all, he was an illegal resident; no one would look into it even if he were beaten half to death.

Seeing the group about to make their move, Qin Yun only gave a faint smile.

These thugs were only good for bullying people; they were completely outmatched by him.

He was already prepared to make them pay the price.

Julia felt a sense of relief seeing the youth teach those arrogant guys a lesson.

Seeing the thugs actually moving against Qin Yun, she quickly spoke up to reprimand them.

"You can try, but you'd better think through the consequences!"

"America is a land of laws. I am Qin Yun's private lawyer. If you have the guts, I'll see you in court!"

After speaking, she took out a lawyer's business card from her wallet and displayed it before the thugs.

Hearing that she was a private lawyer, the thugs' desire to fight immediately fizzled out.

Private lawyers weren't something ordinary people could afford; they absolutely couldn't afford to provoke such a person.

The leader stared at the youth with a face full of resentment.

He planned to teach the youth a lesson after the lawyer left.

He'd let this kid who didn't know his place see exactly whose territory Chinatown was!

"You'd better not have any unrealistic ideas."

"You employ illegal immigrants; their wages probably don't reach the minimum standard, do they?"

"Beating, exploitation, imprisonment... you've probably done plenty of that, haven't you?"

"Your shop's taxes aren't exactly clean either, are they?"

Julia saw the leader's defiance and stepped forward to issue a warning.

The thugs were all dumbfounded, completely unsure of what to do.

If they were targeted by a lawyer over such a trivial matter, their boss would never let them off the hook.

The onlookers hadn't expected this Xia Country man who stepped in to help to have a private lawyer, and they began whispering among themselves.

Perhaps the youth could escape this den of iniquity and live a normal life.

Qin Yun saw the thugs cowering and losing the courage to step forward.

"Xia Country people aren't ones you can mess with. If there's a next time, I'll make sure you rot in jail!"

After Qin Yun finished speaking, he turned to the youth and said, "Let's go."

The youth followed silently behind Qin Yun, his heart filled with complex emotions.

This man had saved him from the thugs of the shady restaurant and even given him a chance for revenge.

He had always been someone who clearly distinguished between favors and grudges; he would definitely repay this man's kindness today.

"I am Li Qiang. Thank you for acting so bravely, otherwise I really wouldn't have known what to do."

Qin Yun smiled: "Are you willing to work for me?"

"I could never fully repay your kindness even if I worked like an ox or a horse for you. As long as you have instructions, I will give it my all!"

Li Qiang's answer was very blunt and decisive.

"I don't need you to work like an ox or a horse; just doing your job well is enough."

Qin Yun's request was very simple.

Although the trip to Chinatown was a bit of a disappointment, finding an employee like Li Qiang, who cared for his compatriots and had the courage to act, was quite a harvest.

Li Qiang was even more excited upon hearing this.

"I will definitely work hard."

After speaking, he bowed deeply, his eyes growing a bit moist.

He had thought his fellow countryman was involved in something shady, but it turned out to be a normal job with the same wages as regular employees.

They had suffered greatly in that black-hearted restaurant and had no hope for the future. This man was rescuing them from a living hell, so he was extremely grateful.

Qin Yun gave the address to Li Qiang and told him to pack his things and go directly to the Secondhand Store.

With Li Qiang joining, along with the previous Black employee, the staffing issue for the Secondhand Store was resolved.

Having rescued a compatriot from a black-hearted restaurant, Qin Yun felt incredibly happy. Just then, his phone suddenly rang.

Answering the phone, the voice of the used car boss, Ross, came through.

"Is that Qin Yun? I'm Ross, I've finally managed to get in touch with you."