Watching the angry man in front of him, Xiu Nuo knew that the boss was in the right, but...
"I understand that you didn't dare to stop those black guys, but I didn't see you calling the police either."
Just as Xiu Nuo was about to do something, a voice suddenly rang out from the side, "Hehe, calm down, boss. My friend here looks like he's new in town, right?"
Xiu Nuo saw a short Asian man run over, his face wearing an affable smile, though he was dirty all over. His speech was somewhat stammering.
"Pay up."
The shorty quickly asked Xiu Nuo, "Do you have money? This bastard is a Korean; he's conned a lot of the newcomers around here, especially the ones who don't understand English. He's sent quite a few into the Border Prison."
This was said in their native language.
The boss's brows instantly furrowed, "What are you saying?"
Xiu Nuo took out money from his pocket, but instead of giving it directly to the boss, he walked into the shop and placed the items on the counter.
Seeing that Xiu Nuo had money, the boss's expression immediately changed.
Then, he saw Xiu Nuo put the money back.
"Sorry, I really thought this was a rescue station."
Having said that, Xiu Nuo was about to leave.
Then, he was grabbed by the boss again, "You think you can leave without paying?"
Xiu Nuo's expression became playful, "I put the things down, and you still want money?"
"You've already taken them!"
Xiu Nuo looked at the short man, "Does the United States have a rule that if you pick something up, you have to buy it?"
The shorty pursed his lips, "Of course not, I told you, he's a bastard."
With a quick shake of his arm, Xiu Nuo broke free, then, raising his hand, he slammed the boss's head onto the counter with a loud clang and calmly said, "I'll give you two choices, either shut up now, or I'll make you shut up forever. Which will it be?"
The boss tried several times to struggle up, but he felt as if a mountain was pressing down on his head!
"I'm sorry, sir! I'm sorry!" the boss panicked, feeling like his head was about to burst, "Please forgive me, can you? I'm just a miserable guy, I was just robbed by that group of black thugs."
Xiu Nuo let go and walked straight out, the shorty quickly followed.
Then, a loud bang of a door shutting came from behind them.
Xiu Nuo looked back and saw that the boss was now standing behind the door, shouting, "Eastern robbers! I hope you don't see tomorrow's sun!"
Xiu Nuo looked at the shorty, "What's with this guy, like a dog, starts barking as soon as the door's shut?"
"That's how he is." The shorty snorted, "He only dares to bully Asians. Bring a black guy here and he wouldn't dare say two words. Look at me!"
With that, the shorty pulled out a cell phone.
"You going to call the police?"
"No." The shorty shook his head, "Can't speak the language, so I'm getting a translation app. I only know a little, learned it in two months."
"No worries, you say it, I'll do it."
"Alright, then tell him this."
After hearing what to say, Xiu Nuo, although filled with question marks, still shouted at the Korean boss, "Thanks, but don't you want to go home and check? I heard the soldiers stationed at your place have taken a fancy to your mom!"
In an instant, the boss, who had been howling, was suddenly choked with a red face.
The shorty smacked his lips, then said, "Can't believe he didn't burst out the door; guess we need a white person to come to really tick him off, huh?"
"What do you mean?"
"Bring a white guy over, who says 'the United States is preparing to withdraw their troops from their side,' and this dude would definitely rush out to argue with that guy, as if he's got a death wish."
Even though Xiu Nuo didn't understand what was going on, he still laughed along.
The shorty then introduced himself, "Li Yang, been here for three months."
"Xiu Nuo, just arrived."
"I can tell," Li Yang said, standing next to Xiu Nuo. "Otherwise, you definitely wouldn't have gone in there."
"That's what I'm puzzled about," Xiu Nuo asked the question that was on his mind, "Were those black guys gang members?"
"No, gang members wouldn't care about them, they're just a bunch of homeless people. Homeless from the poor areas, even the gang members despise them."
"Isn't this the city center? How come it's a poor area?"
"This place isn't like our home." Li Yang spoke as if he was used to it, "Rich people either live inside some skyscraper or, well, in the suburbs. This is indeed the center, but who says there can't be homeless people in the city center? At least business here is pretty developed."
"I see, so, those black guys are quite dangerous?"
"No, this is thanks to the laws of the United States," said Li Yang, sitting down by the roadside, "They've just passed a law, something about theft under a certain amount of US dollars being a misdemeanor, and community service suffices. If you stop them and cause any of those robbers to get injured, not only do they not have to take responsibility, but they can also sue you for a big sum of money!"
Xiu Nuo's eyes widened slightly, "Legalized robbery?"
"There's still the 'misdemeanor' part, isn't there?"
"Don't tell me this is specially made for black people?"
"In fact, the law is for everyone, but no one wants to deal with these black people. They steal and leave, and the cops are too lazy to bother because they've got too many pending cases. Plus, the prisons in the United States are already bursting at the seams. You came from the south, right?"
"Of course."
"Then you should be well aware of the situation in the prisons. It's not just the Border Prison; every prison in the United States is overcrowded. So, it's all about not spending the money. If they really clamped down and locked up these people, exhausting the police would be a minor issue. The real problem is there aren't enough beds in prison, and they're underfunded. Oh, and a lot of prisons here are privately run; they have to think about profitability."
"It's my first time hearing that prisons can be privately run!" Xiu Nuo found it hard to believe.
"You'll get used to it. The United States has many magical places," Li Yang said.
"But, if that's how it is, why did that guy use that as a threat against me?"
Li Yang cracked a smile, "Because the police will really catch us. Those zero-dollar deals are honestly exclusive to old blacks, old Mexicans, and some white trash. Asians? Especially those from our side, if you dare to do it, just wait to get caught and thrown into prison."
"Wasn't it about community service?"
"We don't have the right skin color. If you dare, they might just throw you in for 'espionage destroying public security.' This is a free democratic country, so free that the law can be freely adjusted based on your skin color. How about that, free enough for you?"
A twitch formed at the corner of Xiu Nuo's mouth, "That's certainly free enough."
"It's about to be completely dark," Li Yang remarked, glancing at the sky, "We should hurry up and find a place to stay. You're not going to... Damn it! Let's get moving!"
Xiu Nuo followed Li Yang's gaze and saw a group of older black men looking their way from a short distance.
"They're after us."
"You shouldn't have taken out your cash earlier," Li Yang said in a low voice, "You better get moving quickly, best shake them off. You've got money, hail a car and leave this place."
"What about you?" Xiu Nuo looked at Li Yang.
"Me?" Li Yang said indifferently, "I'm just a penniless homeless man. If they rob me, maybe I can give them a piece of leftover fried chicken from lunch and a bottle of juice."
After saying that, it seemed Li Yang remembered something, "Oh right, if it's convenient, let's add each other on green bubble? Or, if you have one, we can add each other on Facebook. Have you registered?"
"I'll give you my phone number instead," Xiu Nuo said, standing up and after reciting a series of numbers, he added, "Wait for me a bit, I'll come find you after I deal with the trouble."
As Xiu Nuo left and watched his retreating figure being chased by a few black men, Li Yang was a bit stunned.
"Wait for you a bit? You're not planning to fight them, are you? Expecting me to wait and collect your corpse?"