Chapter 177 I Don't Need to Apologize to Him
The crowd was shocked when James slapped Yancy.
Yancy's smile vanished, replaced by a furious look.
Everyone was stunned; they couldn't believe it.
No one thought James would slap Yancy too!
Cynthia thought, 'It's over, James, you're done for!'
She stared at James, her mouth agape and her face a mask of horror. She realized that the slap meant disaster for her bar—and for James himself.
"Answer me! Are you done laughing yet?" James' voice rang out again, cutting through the bar.
This time, the laughter was gone.
"How dare you hit me?" Yancy yelled, clutching his face in rage.
"Laugh again, and I'll slap you again," James replied coldly.
Michael, Jennifer, and the others were left in stunned disbelief. They never imagined James would dare to lay a hand on Yancy, let alone speak to him so defiantly. It was nothing short of astonishing.
Ashley stared at James with wide eyes, her expression a complex mix of emotions. Back in school, even when girls like her bullied James, he always chose to endure. But now, facing someone like Yancy, he was acting with such raw confidence.
They couldn't figure out why James was so different today.
"Fine, very fine! I was going to let you off for Ms. Phillips's sake, but now, don't blame me for being harsh!" Yancy shouted.
"Yancy, you've got to teach this brat a lesson! If not, we won't be able to show our faces in the Southern New District anymore" Xavier chimed in, clearly reveling in the chaos.
"Yancy, James is being foolish. Can you cut him some slack?" Cynthia pleaded.
"Ms. Phillips, he slapped me. If I don't teach him a lesson, I can't show my face anymore." Yancy roared, then pulled out his phone and made a call.
"Get to Stellar Lounge now!" he barked into the phone and hung up.
Seeing this, Cynthia looked at James in despair. She knew Yancy was set on dealing with James, and no one could change his mind.
"James, why did you provoke Yancy? If you had just apologized, none of this would have happened," Cynthia said softly to James, who stood alone, looking small and vulnerable, like a lamb waiting to be slaughtered.
His gaze was eerily calm, but to everyone else, it seemed like nothing more than the resigned hopelessness of someone facing their end.
Cynthia was so anxious she didn't know what to say. She rushed up to James and shouted, "James, please apologize to Yancy! If you do, I'll find a way to protect you!"
"I don't need to apologize to him," James replied flatly.
"You slapped Yancy! Of course, you need to apologize! Yancy isn't someone you can mess with. Do you want to get beaten up? Even if you don't care about yourself, think about your parents!" Cynthia yelled, her eyes glaring at James.
"I don't have parents," James said calmly.
Cynthia was stunned.
Even though she knew Cynthia was trying to help, James had no intention of making peace.
A few days ago, he might have apologized to Yancy, but now, it wouldn't be possible.He felt suffocated by his own life—despite his enormous wealth, he was still living like a fool.
Even Terry, a big shot, had to call him respectfully, yet here he was, being bullied by a small-time thug!
If it were Laura and her group, he would have tolerated it because he couldn't reveal his identity to her.
But who were Yancy and Xavier?
Terry would be here soon, and when he arrived, no matter how tough Yancy and Xavier were, they'd have to kneel and bow to Terry!
Plus, James had another reason for his actions.
He wanted Michael and Jennifer to know his true identity so they'd stay far away from him in the future.
Otherwise, these two pests would keep bothering him and causing trouble.
James thought he'd taught Michael a big lesson by making him kneel at the classroom door.
But this idiot didn't learn, so James had no intention of continuing this charade with them. Revealing his identity would not only drive them away but also give him a much-needed break from their relentless interference.
"James, it's just an apology. It's not hard. You're a poor loser; apologizing is easy," Jennifer stepped forward and mocked.
She was worried James might actually apologize, and she wouldn't get to see him humiliated, so she deliberately provoked him.
In Jennifer's eyes, James was only acting tough to impress her, hoping she'd take him back.
Hearing Jennifer's words, James looked at her and silently cursed her in his heart but didn't say anything.
He now wondered if he had been blind to date someone as stupid as Jennifer!
Jennifer was pretty, but her intelligence was non-existent!
At that moment, a commotion was heard at the bar's entrance.
Everyone turned to look.
A large group of people holding baseball bats and steel pipes walked into the bar.
