C23 The Date

Ethan was shocked when Secretary Ma fainted. He immediately stopped hitting Niu Huang, who was now unrecognizable. Dana stared at Ethan like he was crazy—there seemed to be nothing this man wouldn’t do. She quickly called an ambulance.

As they carried Ma away, Ethan clearly saw the secretary open one eye, then close it again.

“Damn,” Ethan muttered. “Old fox. He faked it to escape the mess.”

With Ma playing sick, the whole incident would be buried as a private family matter. The public would soon forget.

Only Ethan and Dana remained in the office.

“Chief Dana, can I leave now? Everyone else ran away. Oh, and we still have our date tonight,” Ethan grinned.

“You never change, do you? You’re going to get yourself into serious trouble one day,” Dana sighed. “You can go. But your driver’s license is probably gone. I’ll pick you up in a police car. I don’t trust your driving.”

“Fine,” Ethan shrugged.

Just then, a female officer rushed in. “Chief! We just arrested a con man pretending to be Hong Kong director Wong Jing! He scammed over four million yuan!”

Ethan froze. “Wait—pretending to be Wong Jing? That’s the guy who helped us at the film studio!”

Dana and the officer both stared at him.

“Yeah, he owes me medical fees. I guess his investment is gone forever,” Ethan laughed. He’d actually fooled a professional liar.

Dana shook her head, embarrassed. “Get out of here before you make more of a scene.”

When Ethan got home, Howard and Han Tao were gone—only a note remained.

They’d been called back to Dragon Clan base. They congratulated him on becoming mayor and said the Clan would leave him be for now—his only mission was to be mayor.

Ethan crumpled the note. “Great. I’m a bait mayor.”

His phone rang. It was the hospital.

“Mr. Ethan? Li Yizhu’s body is missing.”

Ethan exploded. “Missing? You can’t even guard a dead man? Don’t call me again!”

He slammed the phone down. Today just kept getting worse.

To calm down, Ethan dug through his closet. He tried on a fancy Italian suit—but it felt wrong. He finally pulled out a top-of-the-line military camouflage uniform, custom-made from a special forces unit.

He figured Dana, as a police officer, would love the tough soldier look.

He called Dana over and over, begging her to come early. He was so nervous he thought the clock was broken.

At seven o’clock, Dana arrived—still in her police uniform.

Ethan in camo, Dana in police blue. They looked like a joint military-police task force, not a couple on a date.

They went to Dream Bar, a new place Ethan had never seen. The atmosphere was calm, even amid the noise.

Ethan told Dana everything about the Moon Rabbit Kingdom, the female empire, the wars, and his strange powers. Dana was spellbound.

But when she began asking excited questions about the female-ruled world, Ethan regretted telling her.

Then Dana’s tone turned serious. “The bomber who took Secretary Ma hostage—he escaped. He killed five guards and swore to make you suffer. He’s vanished.”

Ethan didn’t care. “People have been trying to kill me for years. I’m still here.”

“You can’t be reckless! You’re going to be mayor! Your image matters!”

“Whatever. Most cops are useless anyway.”

Ethan immediately realized his mistake—Dana was a cop.

Before he could apologize, a drunk man at the next table turned around.

“You talking about police? I’ll have you know I’m a cop too.”

The man had a pockmarked face, a flat nose, and small, shifty eyes.

“I’m Qian Yong. And I know that uniform—you’re from the 886 Special Forces. You think you’re better than us? Apologize.”

Dana’s eyes lit up. “Qian Yong? The legendary cop who took down three gangs alone?”

She was starstruck.

Ethan burned with jealousy.

“I’m not in the military. This is just a fancy costume. You’re disturbing my date. Apologize to me.”

Qian Yong misunderstood. “I get it—top-secret mission. Fine. Let’s fight in the back. Prove your strength.”

“Are you insane?” Ethan snapped.

Dana didn’t stop them. Part of her wanted to see two legends fight.

In the back of the bar was a huge venting arena—for breaking things, shouting, and even a small fighting ring.

Ethan’s jaw dropped.

The staff bowed nervously. “Chief, this area is approved by the city. And… this bar is owned by DreamBrand. Your company, Mr. Ethan.”

Ethan froze. “This is mine?”

It was Hu Chunlin’s doing. He’d built exactly the kind of bar Ethan had always dreamed of.

Qian Yong jumped onto the ring. Ethan followed.

The crowd gathered.

Neither man wore protection.

The lights blazed on.

Qian Yong stood relaxed, exuding cold confidence. Ethan felt pressured—he was already losing in spirit.

He charged in, throwing wild, fake punches. Qian Yong didn’t flinch.

Ethan roared and threw all caution away. He abandoned skill and fought like a street thug—raw, brutal, direct.

He punched straight for Qian Yong’s face.

At the last second, Qian Yong vanished.

Ethan didn’t stop. He kept going, slammed into the ropes, and rebounded backward like a spring.

He threw a monstrous punch.

Qian Yong landed a heavy hit on Ethan’s face.

But Ethan’s punch landed too.

Qian Yong staggered back.

Ethan spat out blood and laughed.

It felt good to hurt. All the stress, anger, and frustration of being used as bait, being forced to be mayor, losing friends, fighting enemies—it all exploded out.

He began hitting his own head, daring Qian Yong to keep attacking.

Qian Yong’s eyes blazed. No one had ever hit him that hard.

He stopped dodging.

The two men stood toe-to-toe, punching each other as hard as they could—just brawling, like animals.

Dana rushed onto the ring to stop them.

They threw her off together.

Dana stared in disgust. Her hero cop and her reckless friend—both were just madmen.

She turned and left, furious.

Neither man noticed.

Minutes later, both collapsed, gasping.

“Still alive?” Ethan laughed.

“Never felt better,” Qian Yong panted. “You’re not military, are you?”

“Nope. Just a guy who bought a cool uniform. Name’s Ethan.”

Qian Yong’s eyes widened. “Ethan? Of DreamBrand? You own this bar!”

“Guilty. I was gone for years. My friend ran the company.”

The manager, Wang Haibo, rushed over. “Are you okay?!”

Ethan smiled. “I’m Ethan. The real owner. Tell Hu Chunlin I’m home.”

Wang Haibo paled and bowed.

Qian Yong clapped Ethan on the back. “You’re crazy. But I like you. We’re friends now.”

Ethan grinned.

For the first time since returning to his world, he felt truly relaxed.

But outside, Dana was gone.

Their first real date… had ended in a brawl.