Chapter 554: Longing for Home Translator: Timothy Editor: GlobeGlotter

“His name is Yin Jia. He came here because he needs a lot of money, at least tens of thousands of dollars. I want to help him, but I don’t have any money either…” Annie explained.

Annie didn’t really grow up the American way. Her father was from Hong Kong and came to this town many years ago. He met her mother, and they married, but her mother passed away soon after Annie was born. Although her father couldn’t give her the best life, they survived. But due to the economic crisis, her father went bankrupt and they moved to the poor region of Chinese Back Street. Living off the grid, they received little government assistance. Furthermore, her father was an alcoholic, so most of their money went to alcohol. She had very little to spend.

Annie met the Yin siblings in Chinese Back Street, and fell in love with Yin Jia. He and his sister desperately needed money, but she couldn’t help, so he came to fight here. Because he was strong—two or three ordinary people were no match for him—Annie supported his decision.

Recently, the town started a “boxing king of Mesica Town” tournament. First place won $100,000; second and third, $50,000 and $30,000 respectively. Yin Jia signed up immediately. Although the entry fee was only $300, a backer was required, paying a $1,000 insurance fee. They only had $1,000 together, so Annie went out to earn more money somehow.

Hearing this, Ye Mo was speechless. This woman slept with others to help her loved one raise money. Should she be praised, or was she an idiot? He soon decided she simply thought differently. Perhaps she didn’t consider it a big deal?

Although Ye Mo didn’t understand her actions, he knew everyone had their own methods, and perhaps she felt she was doing the right thing.

Seeing Ye Mo’s silence, Annie felt she should apologize further. She’d already given the money to Yin Jia. If Mr. Ye didn’t want her to lead the way anymore, she wouldn’t know how to return the $200.

Wooosh—Ye Mo looked over and saw a Chinese man knocked off the stage. He’d been watching the fights since arriving.

The Chinese man spat blood and stopped breathing. The victorious black man was ecstatic.

Many people threw money onto the stage, and a woman in a bikini collected it, striking seductive poses to encourage more donations.

People casually beaten to death? Ye Mo stared in shock.

Noticing Ye Mo’s surprise, Annie quickly said, “To go further inside, you have to pay more. By the way, like that man, most winners are rewarded even if they don’t reach the top three.”

“The government doesn’t care?” Ye Mo asked, frowning.

Annie shook her head. “Of course not. Sometimes, people come for an inspection, but everyone’s notified beforehand, so there are no problems.”

“Aren’t you worried Yin Jia might get beaten up like that?” Ye Mo found it strange that, as his girlfriend, she wasn’t trying to stop him. Instead, she seemed very supportive.

Annie shook her head. “Yin Jia can win. I trust him, so why worry?”

Ye Mo was speechless but unconcerned. He scanned the underground fighting ring. As he’d thought, although many Chinese were present, he didn’t recognize anyone. There weren’t many Chinese women, either.

“Let’s go, take me to Chinese Back Street,” Ye Mo said. He held out hope for that place.

If Sister Yan was in town, there was a 90% chance she was there; it was the Chinese ghetto. Having come alone, she’d have nowhere else to go.

…..

Chinese Back Street was indeed a slum. Seeing it, Ye Mo realized that even in the US, not every place was rich.

The street was narrow, dirty, and hidden. Without Annie, he never would have known about it.

Eighty percent of the people were Chinese, with a few black and white people. Ye Mo subconsciously looked at Annie. Her father was from Hong Kong, so why did she look completely white? He even considered that her mother might have been unfaithful.

“Annie!”

Annie was obviously well-liked. Many Chinese greeted her. She smiled and chatted with everyone.

No wonder her Chinese was so good.

“Annie, something happened to Yin Si; hurry and find her brother.” A Chinese man rushed over with a trolley and stopped Annie.

“Something happened to Sister Sisi?!” Annie didn’t speak to Ye Mo and ran off.

Ye Mo didn’t blame her. But ‘Yin Jia’ and ‘Yin Si’—combined, they formed ‘Si Jia,’ meaning ‘the longing for home.’

The man was about to leave when Ye Mo asked, “Where is Annie going? What happened?”

The man studied Ye Mo, but didn’t hesitate since he’d come with Annie. He said, “Yin Si was working at a restaurant, and I heard she offended a customer and needs to compensate him, so she’s being held there.”

“Where is the restaurant? Also, isn’t America supposed to be a lawful society? How is this happening?” Ye Mo asked, confused.

The man looked contemptuous and said coldly, “Lawful? Only for some people. You’ve been reading too much democratic propaganda. It’s easy for rich people to have you jailed here. Young man, you must have just arrived, right?”

He walked off without telling Ye Mo where the restaurant was.

Ye Mo felt helpless. He knew he didn’t understand American life, but even he knew the rich and poor lived differently. Although the man’s words were extreme, he wasn’t entirely wrong.

Ye Mo stopped a middle-aged lady and asked about the restaurant. This time, he was pointed in the right direction. Reaching the restaurant, his spirit sense detected a white man on the second floor raging at a girl in her twenties. He didn’t understand what he said.

A Chinese man was also cursing at the girl.

Annie held the girl, who had a slap mark on her face and looked worried. Ye Mo was surprised. Annie had always been optimistic, so her worry was strange.