ADTCP Ch44

The final round of the match began.

The Siamese Leopard stepped back into the center of the cage. His steps were light, his face expressionless, but his eyes were locked onto Zhu Wensheng’s forearm, his heart pounding wildly.

Zhu Wensheng’s deficit in the earlier rounds wasn’t that great. Although the Leopard was slightly behind, if he could turn the tables in this last round, the championship was still within reach.

What’s more, Zhu Wensheng was now injured. Whether physically or mentally, he wouldn’t be as fierce as before. The Leopard could even seize this chance to directly KO Zhu Wensheng—

The thought alone made him almost tremble with excitement, as if the championship was already in his pocket.

He clenched his fists and quickly lunged forward a few steps, feinting toward Zhu Wensheng’s lower leg while his elbow lifted slightly, aiming at Zhu Wensheng’s arm…

Success! The Leopard rejoiced inwardly. The moment his strike connected with Zhu Wensheng’s forearm, he planned to put all his strength into it. But the next instant, the world spun violently, his head buzzing.

His entire body lost balance—like a sack of flour, he was hoisted up and then slammed down hard onto the mat by Zhu Wensheng.

His head hit the ground.

In that instant, dizziness engulfed him, his vision blurred as he stared helplessly at the dazzling spotlights above.

“Move! Get up, move!!”

“Don’t let him stay down!!”

The coaching team shouted frantically from below. The Leopard snapped back to his senses, instinctively trying to use his side-roll technique to escape. But Zhu Wensheng gave him no chance,pinning him with a guillotine, then transitioning seamlessly into a rear naked choke, pressing him firmly against the mat.

The Leopard felt his breath slipping away. For the first time, he realized so vividly the terror before him, like being trapped by a wild beast in the jungle, oxygen growing thinner and thinner. Just as his vision began to whiten, his gaze caught the face of the young man before him, astonishingly handsome.

Zhu Wensheng’s cheeks were flushed with a faint sickly red, his brows furrowed, eyes dark and burning with a frenzy that defied words.

“Ugh… guh…”

Before losing consciousness completely, the Leopard slapped the mat in desperation. The referee rushed forward, pried them apart, and shouted:

“TKO—!”

He won.

Zhu Wensheng won.

He was now the VCC Men’s Middleweight Champion!

The crowd erupted like a tidal wave, cheers and screams shaking the arena. Lights blazed overhead, magnificent and overwhelming, as if only golden confetti was missing from the sky. The commentators went wild, rapid-firing their recap of the match’s highlights.

Tao Zhen felt dizzy.

His heart thumped madly, his legs weak, and after a long struggle he finally stumbled out of his seat, rushing straight toward Zhu Wensheng, who was just stepping off the stage.

A nearby staff member instinctively tried to block him, but Li Min quickly spotted him and said a few words. Only then was Tao Zhen allowed through. Stumbling, he squeezed in, unable to hold back a laugh:
“You won?”

“You really won, didn’t you?”

“Yeah!!”
Even Li Min couldn’t help but shout with a smile, calling toward Zhu Wensheng, who was bare-chested and walking over: “Ah-Sheng, congratulations! Later Lao Liu and I will take you to the medical team first…”

Before she could finish, Zhu Wensheng passed the group, nodded briefly to her and the coaches, then suddenly bent down and wrapped Tao Zhen in a fierce embrace.

Tao Zhen froze for a moment before awkwardly returning the hug.

The young man’s body was searing hot, like molten lava, brimming with power impossible to ignore. His chest, his abs, the serratus muscles along his ribs, all visibly flexing with his heartbeat, firm and sculpted, radiating blood and vigor.

Moments ago in the cage, he was terrifying and ruthless, yet now his embrace was careful, as though afraid of hurting the person in his arms.

“Ah-Sheng,” Tao Zhen finally snapped out of it, smiling with crescent eyes, “congratulations, you’re the champion.”

Zhu Wensheng lowered his gaze, his voice barely audible: “Because you’re here.”

The arena was deafening, Tao Zhen didn’t catch it, and asked with a smile, “Hm?”

The nearby coaches and assistants were already dumbfounded. Fortunately, the lighting here
was dim, or else the relentless media would have captured it all.

Li Min was the first to recover, coughing twice loudly: “Don’t forget the medical checkup later, and the post-match procedures!”

Zhu Wensheng’s Adam’s apple bobbed. He forced down the urge to kiss Tao Zhen, not asking how or when he’d come, only saying:
“Go backstage with them and rest. Wait for me.”

Held tightly in his arms, Tao Zhen’s body felt ablaze. After a long pause, he nodded clumsily: “O-okay. I got it…”

The next bout was about to start, the arena roaring once again. Zhu Wensheng cast one last glance at Tao Zhen, who was leaving with Li Min through the staff tunnel, before following the post-match staff through the fighters’ exit.

As the adrenaline ebbed, waves of pain surged back, his hand, forearm, bicep, all so sore he could barely lift his arm. Yet his expression stayed calm, striding quickly as if rushing somewhere. The staff behind had to jog to keep up. At last they reached the lounge, where the medical team with full equipment began complex examinations, while reporters queued on the other side.

The lingering warmth of the blond youth in his arms was soon replaced by the chill of medical instruments. The raging heat in his chest gradually faded. Closing his eyes briefly to steady his breath, Zhu Wensheng pulled on a black hoodie.

As he leaned back on the sofa, resting, sudden commotion erupted at the door. Two young staff members stumbled back as they tried to block someone forcing their way in:
“Sorry! You can’t just come in here! Please wait outside! Security—”

The next moment, a woman’s wail pierced through:
“You heartless people! Help! The Jiangzhou Red Club crippled my underage son! Who will give us justice?!”

Zhu Wensheng lifted his eyes.

Instantly, the reporters waiting for interviews gasped and rushed toward the door.
“Madam, are you referring to Jiangzhou RED Club? Are you saying your son was crippled by them? What exactly happened?”

“Our boy’s about to start high school this fall. He insisted on joining matches, but we didn’t allow it. He ran away from home, went to sign with that Red Club. They made him pay just to fight matches… They’re monsters! Forcing a kid that small to fight! His leg was broken, he hid it from us, and now it’s so bad I don’t know if it needs to be amputated… wuuuu!”

Crying, the woman pulled out a photo of her son in a wheelchair. Flashes lit up all around.

The staff nearly collapsed with despair, hurriedly pushing her out:
“Auntie, please! None of their club members are here. Shouting here won’t help. How about this, you come with us outside first, and then…”

The arena was in utter chaos. The medical staff’s movements slowed, and Zhu Wensheng simply stood up, stepping past the crowd to the crying woman’s side. He blocked the media cameras for the moment and signaled to his assistant to help calm the situation.

Only then did he take the photo from the woman’s hand. To his surprise, he recognized the boy in the picture, it was the same school-uniformed teenager who had tried to sign with Light at the entrance some time ago.

The woman wept bitterly, her face twisted with pain. She seemed to sense his status among the crowd and looked at him with pleading, humbled eyes.

Zhu Wensheng lowered his gaze, silent for a moment, then gave her the number of his personal lawyer. “If anything happens, contact him. I’ll cover all the legal fees.”

The woman was stunned, tears welling up as she hurriedly expressed her gratitude.
Guided by staff, she went off to find her husband, and the commotion gradually died down.

The medical team resumed checking Zhu Wensheng, confirming that aside from his arm, the rest of his body was fine, though he needed to take special care with it.

“This forearm fracture must have happened years ago, right? At least three or four?” the doctor asked, clearly surprised. He hadn’t expected an old injury. “Normally it wouldn’t affect daily life or training much, but after today… you really must get proper therapy!”

Zhu Wensheng nodded lightly and clenched his fist.

A sharp ache shot through his forearm, tingling upward until it reached his heart.

Yes, the fracture was from three or four years ago.

He had broken his arm while taking the youth jiu-jitsu championship. Not during the match itself, but off the mat, shoved maliciously by someone’s hand, leaving behind the old wound.

But unlike this boy, no mother had cried out for him, no family had cared for him.

No one had cared about his injury.

No one had cared about him.

His elders had only thought him arrogant, reckless, and unworthy of a proper career. They had barred him from chasing his dream, erased all his match records, and with a single wave of their hands, wiped away everything he had worked for.

He sat in silence for a while before finally standing and heading to his lounge.
The atmosphere inside was far more relaxed and lively than outside,the coaches laughed heartily, Li Min was animatedly discussing details of signing Zhu Wensheng with the UFC.

Tao Zhen sat among them, cupping his cheeks with a bright smile, almond eyes curved, golden hair dazzling.
The moment he saw Zhu Wensheng enter, he shot up like a little cannonball, throwing his arms around his waist, tilting up his flushed face to gaze at him with shining devotion.

“Ah Sheng!”

Zhu Wensheng immediately raised a hand to support him, answering lowly. Those around them exchanged knowing smiles and tactfully filed out, leaving the two of them alone.

“Did the doctor say anything just now? Are you in pain anywhere?”

Like a little puppy wagging its tail, Tao Zhen nuzzled back and forth against Zhu Wensheng’s chest, sniffing the faint scent of medicinal ointment. Following it, he lifted his sleeve, and when he saw the swollen, reddened forearm, his eyes went wide.

“Li-jie and the others said you were fine! How can it look this bad? Quick, let me—”

Zhu Wensheng froze.

His gaze locked onto Tao Zhen, emotions flickering in the depths of his dark eyes, his lips a shade too pale.

Hoarsely, he said: “I’m fine—”

“Fine? Where is this fine?!”

Tao Zhen held his arm tenderly, blowing on it with heartache, completely unaware how ruthlessly Zhu Wensheng had just beaten his opponent. Frowning stubbornly, he muttered,

“This makes me so mad. He knew you were hurt there and still targeted it? I’m going to get back at him! Sure, I can’t beat him head-on… but I’ll wait until he leaves, sneak up with a sack, then—left hook! Right hook—”

He hadn’t even finished his “right hook” when suddenly the world before him went dark, a wave of scorching heat enveloping him.

Zhu Wensheng had bent down, hand gripping the back of his neck, and kissed him deeply.