Lin Yu felt the world spin around him. It was as if a sledgehammer had struck his head, and pain surged through him as the scene before his eyes reassembled like shattered glass. When the dizziness eased, he realized he was in a noisy, chaotic place.
The pungent smell of fish filled his nostrils, accompanied by the din of hawkers shouting and customers haggling. He looked up to see stalls all around him, piled with all kinds of seafood, while filthy water ran across the ground. Lin Yu realized in an instant that he had transmigrated into the world of The Knockout, and this was where the story began: the market where Gao Qiqiang sold fish.
“How is this possible? How did I transmigrate here?” Lin Yu screamed inwardly, but there was no denying reality. Before he could recover from his shock, he heard a commotion nearby.
“Gao Qiqiang, are you paying this month’s stall fee or not? If not, get lost!” market administrator Li Hongwei shouted, his fleshy face twisted with anger.
Lin Yu looked toward the voice and saw a man with a somewhat slight build but a resolute gaze. It was Gao Qiqiang. At this point, he was still just a small-time fishmonger, working hard at the market to put his younger brother and sister through school.
“Brother Li, could you give me a few more days? My younger brother and sister are counting on me to earn money for their tuition.” Gao Qiqiang pleaded meekly, nervously rubbing the hem of his clothes between his hands.
“Hmph, a few more days? You’ve been dragging this out for ages. Pay today, or you can forget about keeping this stall!” Li Hongwei refused to let up. He stepped forward, making as if to overturn Gao Qiqiang’s fish stall.
