Our Young Master Cao, the Greatest of Knights

"Let me tell you about Aunt Wang's eldest son-in-law—he's no ordinary man."

"With wide, glaring eyes, thick sideburns, and a full beard, he wears tight-fitting clothes year-round, showing off his bulging muscles… dude’s built like a tank."

One of the aunties frowned. "I’ve seen him—he’s definitely muscular, but I don’t recall a beard?"

Cao Cheng glared. What kind of habit was it to interrupt someone mid-sentence?

"Just because he didn’t have one before doesn’t mean he doesn’t now. It’s called performance art—super trendy these days. Ever heard of fashion?"

The aunties nodded in sudden understanding.

Made sense!

And it sounded so sophisticated—performance art, fashion…

Tsk tsk tsk.

Learned something new today!

"But the guy’s a thug," Cao Cheng added.

Gasps erupted around him.

Cao Cheng continued, "Think about it—if the brother-in-law’s like that, how could the younger brother turn out any better? At school, he was practically untouchable. Grades naturally tanked once he started running with that crowd."

Nods all around.

Logical.

Cause and effect.

No wonder he bombed the college entrance exams~~

Cao Cheng said, "Then last night—just last night—Little Zhou got into a fight at the internet café. Wrecked the place. All those computers? Expensive as hell."

"So this morning, Aunt Wang had to cough up a hefty compensation. Even the cops showed up."

"And today, during the day—did you all hear? Aunt Wang’s eldest daughter got into a brawl in the courtyard with some guy."

"Heard about it, heard about it," the crowd chimed in.

Cao Cheng slapped his thigh. "That’s the reason! The guy fighting her? Her boyfriend. I was there."

"See, as an older sister, Zhou really dotes on her little brother. So she went off on her boyfriend. But the guy’s no saint either—total thug. You think he’d back down? Nah. Smacked her right across the face—wham!"

Cao Cheng’s exaggerated gestures made the aunties wince in sympathy. Some even clutched their own cheeks.

Outraged murmurs rose: "What a piece of work, hitting a woman."

"Thugs are all scum."

"Why else would they be thugs?"

"Exactly."

Cao Cheng nodded. "So the siblings ganged up on him, but how could they take on a muscle-bound freak? Both got hurt… Now Aunt Wang’s lecturing her kids. Honestly, discipline’s fine, but she’s going too hard. Sigh. With Uncle Zhou gone, Aunt Wang’s running wild—no mercy beating her own son."

The crowd shook their heads, sighing.

Every family has its struggles.

Since it was Aunt Wang’s business, no one dared interfere.

And so.

The gossip feast was served.

Another juicy entry added to the courtyard’s rumor mill.

The discussion heated up.

Boisterous.

Accompanied by the crisp crack-crack of Cao Cheng munching sunflower seeds.

……

Before long,

A noisy group barged in through the gate.

Clearly outsiders.

Instantly drawing the attention of the courtyard’s intelligence network.

Leading the pack was a slick-backed hair guy, flanked by a bandage-wrapped head case, followed by nearly ten shaved-head thugs.

No weapons in sight, but the vibe screamed trouble.

Cao Cheng’s eyes lit up.

They’re here.

So soon.

He’d expected a two-day wait, but these thugs worked fast.

Same night?

Efficiency puts some government offices to shame.

Wasted talent being thugs.

"Oh dear."

"Everyone, check out the one with the bandaged head and busted face—that’s Aunt Wang’s son-in-law. Brought a whole crew. Looks like they’re here for Aunt Wang."

"After all, this morning, the siblings teamed up on him."

Cao Cheng explained.

One auntie squinted. "That’s him? I remember him—where’s the beard?"

Cao Cheng shot her a sidelong glance. Sharp memory, huh?

"Got injured today. Doctors shaved it off when treating the wounds," Cao Cheng said.

Nods all around.

Makes sense.

Then the aunties lost their cool.

Sure, they were women, but outsiders bullying their courtyard? Over their dead bodies…

"Hold it."

"What’s your business here?"

A tough-looking auntie stood, barking at them.

The lead thug, Kuang Long, shot her a dark look. "None of your damn business. Beat it."

"Well, well~~"

"Little punk, acting tough?"

"Scram, or we’re calling the cops."

The aunties rose as one.

Kuang Long hadn’t expected such unity.

He jabbed a finger. "Last warning. Stay out of it. I’m here for someone. Back off if you wanna live."

Cao Cheng, hidden behind the crowd, smirked.

The thugs pointed menacingly, trying to intimidate the aunties.

Honestly?

It kinda worked.

The aunties wavered.

Ten-odd men versus them?

A brawl would mean getting swarmed.

Their husbands weren’t around—all at home, too far to help.

Nerves set in.

Time for Cao Cheng to shine.

A shadow darted past the aunties.

Cao Cheng launched a flying kick.

His foot connected with Brother Meng Hu’s face.

Too fast to react.

Brother Meng Hu howled, flying backward.

Cao Cheng spat, "Dare cause trouble in our Cotton Mill Compound? You’re begging for a beating."

"Damn it! Get him!" Kuang Long roared, watching his brother crash, bloodied, teeth scattered. He yanked out a knife.

Cao Cheng, powered up since afternoon, moved like a blur.

Close combat?

Child’s play.

Every strike—fist or foot—sent a thug crumpling. Non-lethal, but out cold.

Precision hits.

A chop disarmed Kuang Long. Another to the neck. Kuang Long clutched his throat, face purpling, knees hitting dirt.

……

Blink.

Ten seconds flat.

A dozen thugs littered the ground.

The aunties snapped out of it, grabbing stools, sticks, fans, even sunflower seeds—

Thwack! Bam! Crack!

A frenzied beatdown.

Neighbors poured in to watch—men and women alike.

Cao Cheng’s mind buzzed with notifications. Negative emotions skyrocketed—600 and climbing.

After his opening salvo, he leaned back, snacking on seeds, calculating how to milk this.

Such precious negativity shouldn’t go to waste.

Gotta squeeze these thugs dry.

Mostly for justice’s sake.

In ancient times, Cao Cheng would’ve been a chivalrous hero—protecting the people!

So, marrying Huang Rong? No objections, right?

……

Soon.

The ground was a writhing mess—thugs moaning, covering heads.

The aunties? Radiant. Nothing like a good thrashing to lift spirits.

"Call the cops!"

"Lock these punks up!"

"Daring to mess with our compound? Delusional!"

"Didn’t know you had moves, Xiao Cao."

Cao Cheng smiled and waved his hand. "I know a bit of basic martial arts, but dealing with a few thugs is easy enough. Oh, and everyone, don’t touch their knives—those are evidence. Let the police take them later."

Cao Cheng began organizing everyone to secure the scene.

Soon enough, the police arrived.

The aunties swarmed around the officers, chattering nonstop, their voices overlapping in a chaotic uproar…

Cao Cheng watched as the officers’ expressions shifted—from neutral to shocked, then to pained, and finally to ghostly pale.

Three women make a thousand ducks.

Three old women make five thousand ducks.

And here, there were over a dozen of them…

Surrounding the officers, pelting them with words.

Just imagining the scene—those officers seemed to be under some kind of magical attack, their faces growing paler by the second.

For a brief moment, the officers looked like they wanted to pull out their guns and fire into the air, just to make them all shut up.

It was so damn loud!

Not just loud—impossible to understand a single word.

"Enough! Stop shouting!"

"One at a time!"

"Just shut up—"

A young officer finally snapped, his face red as he barked out the words.

The aunties froze.

Silence—for exactly one second.

Then…

The noise erupted even louder.

"What’s wrong with you, young man? We’re trying to report a crime, and this is your attitude? These thugs blah blah blah—"

"Blah blah blah—"

"…@#!&a;…$)(%&a;%!"

"……"

Now, all the aunties turned their scolding onto the young officer.

He looked like he was about to pass out.

Cao Cheng nearly laughed out loud.

"Alright, everyone, quiet down."

"Step back, all of you!"

Cao Cheng sighed. Seems like he had to step in after all.

Well, what could he do?

A true hero’s duty, and all that.

This neighborhood would have to rely on him from now on.

The moment Cao Cheng spoke, the aunties fell silent, parting to make way for him.

The officers exhaled in relief. Quiet. Finally, quiet.

No voices screaming in their ears… bliss!

As Cao Cheng approached, their eyes filled with gratitude.

And in that moment, they sensed something emanating from him—an unmistakable aura of leadership.