My hometown is far away in Moscow.

022 Preemptive strike

The houses in the area were old, the roads narrow, and there were few pedestrians. The three kept walking, with the provocative whistles and curses of the skinheads coming from behind them from time to time. Lu Tao was not familiar with the area and could only lead the way by instinct, hoping to get rid of them as soon as possible or reach a more populated place.

As Li Baoqing turned the corner, he glanced back again and saw that the six guys were following them at a leisurely pace about twenty meters behind. Two of them had their heads shaved, and the other four were wearing woolen hats, so they must also be bald.

The six men were dressed just like the skinheads Yan Zhiwen had described: black leather jackets with large and small metal buckles, high-waisted lace-up leather boots, five of them wearing black leather pants, and only one tall, thin man wearing camouflage pants with drawstring cuffs, and carrying a baseball bat.

Taking the opportunity, Peng Song also got a clear look at the situation behind him and, panting heavily, said, "Could it be that they... they're just traveling the same route as us?"

"I don't think so. They're probably after us." Li Baoqing looked anxious as he walked, gazing ahead. "There are police everywhere in the city, but why can't we see any around here? Brother Tao, where's the subway station?"

Lu Tao remained silent. Given the current situation, even if they saw the subway station, they couldn't go in. Once inside that enclosed space, the skinheads would definitely attack without hesitation, so staying on the open streets was safer for now. He led the two men through several quiet streets, turning left and right, but the cursing behind them grew increasingly fierce, leaving him at a loss for what to do.

A fierce battle seemed inevitable. The enemy outnumbered them, were physically strong, and were armed; the odds were against them. If he and Li Baoqing turned tail and ran, they might be able to shake off those skinheads, but Peng Song would most likely not escape.

Just as they were hesitating, another intersection appeared ahead. Lu Tao faintly heard the sounds of many vehicles in the distance, indicating that there seemed to be a main road nearby. Overjoyed, he said to Li Baoqing and Peng Song, "After turning right ahead, run immediately to the side of the road and flag down a car."

"And what about you?"

Lu Tao didn't answer. Just as the three of them turned the corner, he handed the things he had bought at the market to Peng Song: "Run! I'll hold them off. You two call for a car and then call me."

Li Baoqing and Peng Song didn't even bother to agree; they grabbed their things and ran off. Lu Tao slowly walked a few steps forward, stopped at a roadside kiosk, and bought a bottle of beer. He had just opened the bottle and taken a sip when he caught a glimpse of six skinheads turning around, less than ten meters away from him.

Lu Tao turned and walked forward again. The skinheads, seeing that Li Baoqing and Peng Song had already run far away, didn't chase after them, but just slowly approached Lu Tao with smirks. When Lu Tao quickened his pace, they followed faster; when Lu Tao slowed down, they weren't in a hurry to catch up, but kept cursing him.

Lu Tao ignored them, judging from the sound that they were still some distance away. But as he got closer to the intersection ahead, he figured Li Baoqing and his companion hadn't managed to flag down a car yet, and he grew increasingly anxious. Just then, a bald man behind him shouted, "Hey! Are you Chinese?"

Lu Tao pretended not to hear, and another person said, "No, he's too short, he must be Vietnamese."

"Is there a difference? They all look like skinny little monkeys anyway."

"That's right! Hahahaha!"

The provocative shouts continued, and Lu Tao controlled his pace, neither walking too fast nor daring to let them get too close. Just as he was in a dilemma, he suddenly saw a small alley ahead. Lu Tao casually turned into it, only to find halfway there that it was a dead end. As he turned to retreat hastily, the six bald men were already walking towards him.

Lu Tao's heart sank, and he stopped in his tracks. The alley wasn't too narrow, and the six men spread out like fans, blocking his way. One of them, who looked like a leader, walked towards him, grinning maliciously as he went, "Ha, Vietnamese, you can't escape now."

The tall, skinny guy in camouflage pants, carrying the baseball bat, seemed quite excited. He wiggled his hips like a shrimp next to the leader, forcefully swinging the bat a couple of times in the air. Chong Lutao, beaming, flashed a buck-toothed grin: "New bat! Perfect for practicing with this little monkey!"

"You son of a bitch," Lu Tao cursed coldly, smashing the bottle against the wall. Holding the broken glass, he pointed at the leader, forcing him to stop. After a brief standoff, Lu Tao flicked his forearm and threw the bottle at the tall, thin man in camouflage pants beside him.

The tall, thin man reacted very quickly. Although he was less than three meters away from Lu Tao, he still managed to raise his arm and block the broken bottle.

While they were all looking at the tall, thin man, Lu Tao lunged at a short, bald man who was unarmed. In those few seconds, he had already assessed the situation: he was too short and would definitely be at a disadvantage against those who were tall and had long arms, so he decided to start with the easier targets. The more he took down, the easier it would be to escape.

The reason Russian skinheads are so feared is simply because they are numerous, strong, and ruthless. Those skinheads who roam the streets daily are mostly young men in their early twenties. They like to attack lone foreigners, often swarming them and overwhelming them with numbers, rarely encountering any real resistance. Therefore, most of them are simply driven by bravado and lack any real combat experience, let alone fighting skills.

Seeing Lu Tao lunge at him, the short man took a half step back and threw a punch. Just as the fist was about to land, Lu Tao swiftly sidestepped and bent over to dodge, while simultaneously throwing a right straight punch diagonally upwards, striking the short man hard in the chin.

He was confident he could knock his opponent down with a single punch, but the short man was surprisingly strong. Stunned by the blow, he stared blankly at Lu Tao. Lu Tao immediately followed up with two more heavy punches, a left hook to the opponent's ribs and a right swing to the same spot. The short man groaned, staggered back two steps, and collapsed to the ground.

The movements were swift and clean; the others didn't even have time to help. By the time they reacted, the short man was already unconscious. The other burly, bald man beside him was both shocked and furious. He released a thumb-thick iron chain from his hand, cursed, and raised his arm to strike Lu Tao.

While the iron chain was still in the air, Lu Tao quickly stepped forward, stretched out his left arm to catch the falling arm, and then suddenly flipped and pressed down, tightly pinning the arm under his armpit. He then twisted his body forcefully, trying to break the arm by reversing the joint.

This was supposed to be a move that would defeat the enemy in one strike, but the bald man had thick arms and wore thick clothes. Lu Tao was much weaker and less powerful than his opponent, and it was already very difficult for him to hold onto the man's arm. This twisting move did not achieve the desired effect.

The bald man tilted his head back in pain, his face twitching twice. His arm was already immobile, but he still gripped the iron chain and swung his wrist violently. Fortunately, his arm was restrained, and he had lost all strength in his hand. Lu Tao was also dressed thickly enough, so the iron chain struck his back weakly and didn't hurt much.

Although the chains weren't very strong, his wild swinging made it difficult for his companions to get close. Lu Tao clenched his right fist and punched the man's face several times, causing blood to immediately gush from his nose.

This guy was even more resilient than the smaller one from before, enduring several blows without losing his spirit. However, the iron chain in his hand finally fell to the ground. Immediately, two bald men rushed up from the side, shouting and cursing as they punched and kicked Lu Tao from behind. Lu Tao stood firm, neither dodging nor flinching, determined to kill this guy in front of him no matter what.