Dragon Raja: The Divine Man Lu Mingfei

"No, who are you? Watch your mouth!" As soon as that sarcastic tone drifted over, Xia Mi couldn't stand it anymore. Her face, which was still wrinkled from rinsing her mouth, instantly lifted up. She took a step forward, put her hands on her hips, and stared directly at the middle-aged man who had spoken.

The middle-aged man strolled over, glanced at the four of them sideways, and raised his chin, exuding an innate sense of superiority: "Who am I? I'm not afraid to tell you, my surname is Niu, and my ancestors were genuine members of the Plain Yellow Banner from the old capital! Ever since Emperor Shunzhi entered the pass, my family has been rooted in the capital, with impeccable revolutionary credentials, which is something you bunch of stinking outsiders can't compare to!"

He moved closer to the trash can, pointing to a tissue still stained with remnants of fermented soybean juice, and began to speak with spittle flying: "I just happened to be passing by today, and I couldn't stand your behavior of wasting such good things! I had to stand up and tell you what to do! What is this fermented soybean juice? It's a delicacy from the imperial kitchen that even Emperor Qianlong couldn't forget after his trip to the south! We've been drinking this treasure for hundreds of years, and you're just spitting it out like this! As a true descendant of the Eight Banners, I can't stand this, and I have to teach you country bumpkins a lesson, so you'll understand the rules and know what cultural refinement is!"

The man who was speaking looked to be in his early forties, with a slightly protruding belly. He was wearing a faded blue T-shirt, loose jeans, and a pair of plastic flip-flops with a small tear in them. Yet, the way he spoke was more imposing than that of a prince or bannerman attending court in his prime.

"Where did this Manchu remnant come from? The Qing Dynasty has been gone for over a hundred years and you're still running wild? The emperor has been retired for over a century and has long been buried in the imperial mausoleum, rotting into bones. Not to mention your so-called Eight Banners descendants. What? Do you also want to break away from the masses and restore the imperial system to become a prince? If so, I'll have to find someone to give you a good scolding." Lu Mingfei could tell at a glance that this was a rich man with an excessive sense of superiority, looking for attention. There was no need to talk about culture and etiquette with this kind of person. He started with the old-fashioned way of labeling and beating people, hitting his sore spot with just one sentence.

"You...you better not talk nonsense! Let me tell you, if you mess with me, you'll be in big trouble! My brother-in-law is..." The middle-aged man had never seen such a direct accusation. He only knew how to use his family's dirty laundry as a selling point, and he couldn't say a word when it came to reasoning. He became flustered and his face turned red. He could only bring up his relatives to back him up, intending to use his status to intimidate the other party. But before he could finish speaking, two tall men in black, both wearing crisply pressed dark suits, suddenly rushed out from the shade of the trees across the street. Without saying a word, they grabbed the middle-aged man's arms on either side and led him to the car parked on the side of the street. The middle-aged man, wearing slippers, had his feet off the ground, leaving only his wailing voice fading into the distance.

Lu Mingfei looked at Su Enxi, who waved her phone to indicate that it was her bodyguards who had taken action. As for why a Dragon King and a target far surpassing the Dragon King would need bodyguards while shopping, Su Enxi could only say that bodyguards are actually there to protect passersby. If these two big shots were in a bad mood one day and suddenly started fighting in the street, the bodyguards could at least help to disperse the crowd and reduce casualties.

Xia Mi stood by the roadside, watching the car turn the corner and disappear from sight, before clicking her tongue and shaking her head in dismay: "These people are really a mess. They don't do anything productive all day long, just clinging to their ancestors' worthless almanacs like treasures, thinking that just because their ancestors were princes, they're superior in reality. They enjoy the great resources of the capital yet still engage in regional discrimination. Tsk tsk tsk, they have absolutely no intention of integrating into a normal group of people."

After listening, Lu Mingfei stroked his chin, nodded, and said seriously, "You're right, but there's nothing we can do about it. There's always a thick barrier between people's hearts, and we'll have to rely on the Human Instrumentality Project to completely eliminate it."

"Huh? Senior, you mean the Human Instrumentality Project from *Neon Genesis Evangelion*?" Xia Mi realized what she meant and waved her hands frantically. "You're not really planning to melt everyone in the world into orange juice, are you? No way! That's too terrifying! I still want to be a pretty girl strolling through the food street!"

Lu Mingfei rolled his eyes at her: "I didn't say I was going to do it right now, why are you so nervous? You're just throwing around the label of a world destroyer right off the bat. By the way, what was the name of that anime you mentioned? I didn't hear you clearly."

"Neon Genesis Evangelion? What's wrong? Did I remember it wrong?" Xia Mi blinked and asked blankly.

"Wrong, wrong, that's not how it's called at all." Lu Mingfei frowned and shook his head in disdain.

"Impossible! I've watched that anime several times, from the old TV version to the new movie. How could I possibly forget the name!" Xia Mi retorted, hands on her hips.

"What I mean is, the name you gave is too ordinary. You should call it EVA, so that you can become a noble two-dimensional Brahmin like me!" Lu Mingfei corrected.

"Huh? What do you mean? I know about Brahmins, the Indian caste system, but what the hell is a two-dimensional Brahmin? What nonsense are you spouting, senior brother?" Xia Mi couldn't understand Lu Mingfei's meaning at all.

Lu Mingfei didn't answer her question, but instead put his hand on her shoulder and said solemnly, "Xia Mi, I've already decided your future. I plan to train you into a qualified 'two-dimensional Brahman.' From now on, just follow me and watch and learn carefully."

"No, senior brother, who are you? Do you think you can decide my future like that? Besides, I don't want to be some weird ghost Brahman like you!" Xia Mi shook her shoulders, trying to break free from Lu Mingfei's hand, but Lu Mingfei's hand seemed to be glued to her, and she couldn't shake it off at all.

At this moment, Mai Shude, who had been standing by watching the commotion, stepped in to defuse the situation. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and said calmly, "Boss, it's almost time. Our dinner appointment is about to start. Shall we go now?"

Xia Mi's eyes lit up immediately upon hearing this, and the dissatisfaction that had been on her face vanished instantly: "Great! I'm really hungry from all this torment, let's go, let's go!"

"Alright." Lu Mingfei glanced at the glass of green liquid that Xia Mi was still holding and nodded.

Xia Mi noticed Lu Mingfei's gaze, seemed to realize something, and suddenly shouted, "Ah! Senior brother, are you trying to cheat me?! I've already drunk it, don't think you can just slip away like that!"

Hearing Xia Mi's words, Su Enxi, who had just finished rinsing her mouth and was wiping it, also realized what was happening. She immediately turned around and glared menacingly at Jiu De Mai, who was standing at the very edge trying to sneak away...

Dinner was at a traditional private restaurant that Su Enxi frequented. The chef prepared authentic Beijing cuisine, and the taste was indeed impeccable. However, after dinner, Lu Mingfei and Jiu Demai couldn't escape the fate of having to drink some douzhi (fermented mung bean juice). Lu Mingfei couldn't resist Xia Mi and Su Enxi's persistent pleading and finally, after suppressing his sense of taste, he pretended to take a sip. Jiu Demai, seeing that she was the only one of the four who hadn't drunk any, knew she couldn't avoid it and had no choice but to accompany them.

After dinner, the four of them strolled along the old street and explored the night market for a while, returning to the hotel only after it was completely dark.

In the middle of the night, there was a knock on Lu Mingfei's door. Lu Mingfei seemed to know who it was, and simply said, "Come in, the door is unlocked."

No sooner had she finished speaking than a figure crept in through the crack in the door, sneaking in and closing the door behind her—it was Su Enxi.