"Father, Mother, your son has avenged you. Now focus on getting better." Xu Zhengyang said this to his parents with a smile, then got up and walked out the door.
Xu Neng scolded, "Don't go out and cause trouble!"
Yuan Suqin suddenly remembered that her son was no pushover. If his mother got upset because his father was beaten and went to fight with them, wouldn't she be the one to bear the blame? So she hurriedly advised, "Zhengyang, don't go and fight with them..."
The mother and daughter on the outermost hospital bed watched the family's performance with disdain, thinking, "You chickened out, huh? You're scared now that your son is about to go out and get into a fight because of your impulsiveness and meddling, aren't you? If your son really had that much power, knowing the Party Secretary and the Chief of Public Security, would you still be afraid of him going out and getting into a fight?"
"Hmm." Xu Zhengyang smiled and turned his head to say, "I wanted to go and see Director Pang and talk to him about this."
"Oh." Xu Neng and Yuan Suqin breathed a sigh of relief, but were still somewhat worried about their son's temper. The couple looked at Xu Zhengyang with concern.
"Don't worry, nothing will happen," Xu Zhengyang said with a smile, then turned and walked towards the door.
With a cold and effeminate expression, Chen Chaojiang stood closest to the door. When Xu Zhengyang walked out, he merely turned his head slightly and gave a cold, emotionless glance to the mother and daughter lying and sitting on the hospital bed next to him. Without saying a word, he followed Xu Zhengyang out, not forgetting to gently close the door behind him.
The mother and daughter trembled under Chen Chaojiang's gaze. What kind of person was he? Why were his eyes so cold, devoid of any human warmth? Then, the mother and daughter suddenly thought of the word "bodyguard," and recalling Xu Zhengyang's calm and composed demeanor inside the house, they suddenly felt a pang of regret—regret for their disdain and contempt for mocking the family of three; and a glimmer of hope—hope that the young man could truly help the humiliated girl and get justice.
Xu Neng and Yuan Suqin thought about it and realized that their son wasn't the same hothead he used to be, so they felt relieved. They then comforted Dong Yuebu and his family, especially Yuan Suqin, who confidently said, "Since my son said he would give you justice, he definitely will. Just wait and see that bastard suffer!"
Inside the corridor, Xu Zhengyang walked unhurriedly, his mind racing. He had already identified the two people who had come to the hospital earlier and had directly clashed with his parents, even physically assaulting his father. He sneered, "So, you still have the mood to eat, huh? It just so happens that your master, He Bin, is here too. We'll have to have a good chat with him then."
Chen Chaojiang, standing beside him, coldly asked, "A broken hand or a broken leg?"
"We'll talk about it when we get there." Xu Zhengyang waved his hand, his expression calm, showing no trace of anger.
Chen Chaojiang remained silent, simply following behind coldly, carrying his helmet and walking slowly like Xu Zhengyang, his expression icy and gloomy.
Despite his burning rage, Xu Zhengyang wasn't as irrational as before. Besides wanting to teach those two a lesson, he was also thinking about how to deal with He Bin. A midnight ghostly disturbance? A judge entering a dream to intimidate? He could deal with those later. After venting his anger with direct violence, he'd likely still have to face the pressures of real life, such as police interrogation and legal punishment… Because a mere display of supernatural power wouldn't be enough to completely convince and instill fear in people in the short term, he needed to plan carefully and make proper arrangements.
As the only deity living in the real world, there are many times when one still has to follow the rules of conduct and behavior of this real world.
After all, Xu Zhengyang knew that he hadn't yet reached the point where he was arrogant, domineering, and fearless enough to make everyone tremble in fear of him.
Volume 3, Judge Chapter 126: Don't Do Things You'll Regret
Even the bright, dazzling midday sun in winter seems frozen by the cold, devoid of any warmth.
On the trees along both sides of the street, the fallen leaves are covered with snow like cotton wool. Occasionally, a cold wind blows, and some silvery-white petals will flutter down and fall to the ground. They do not melt into water or freeze into ice, but just lie there white on the damp and dark cement bricks.
Baisheng Commercial Company is located at the intersection of Youyi Street and Yingbin Road at the northern end. The five-story building has a somewhat outdated architectural style and appearance, with white tiles and aluminum alloy windows. The main entrance of the building faces east, but the first and second floors on the north side of the building are leased out to a "Feiyang Hot Pot Restaurant".
At this time, the spacious parking spaces in front of the "Feiyang Hot Pot" restaurant were already filled with all kinds of cars.
A Yamaha 250 motorcycle roared down Youyi Street to the intersection. After the red light came on, it weaved across the pedestrian crossing and drove straight to the front of the Fei Yang Hot Pot restaurant. After driving west for a while, it found an empty spot and parked between two other motorcycles.
Xu Zhengyang was driving the motorcycle this time, and Chen Chaojiang was sitting behind him.
After getting out of the car, Chen Chaojiang took off his helmet and glanced coldly at the hot pot restaurant's sign. He had no doubt that Xu Zhengyang had found this place so accurately. Xu Zhengyang calmly got out of the car, took off his helmet, and walked towards the restaurant entrance, with Chen Chaojiang silently following beside him.
It was lunchtime, and the restaurant on the first floor was full of customers eating hot pot, with the enticing aroma filling the air.
A pretty waitress with slightly chubby cheeks approached and said politely with a hint of apology, "I'm sorry, there are no empty tables in the restaurant, and the private rooms on the second floor are also full. If you have time, you can wait a moment. There are a few tables of customers on the first floor who are almost finished eating."
“No need, our friends on the second floor have booked rooms and are waiting for us,” Xu Zhengyang said with a smile, stopping in his tracks.
"Oh, I'm sorry, may I ask which room your friend is in? I'll take you upstairs," the waiter quickly apologized.
"208, we can go up ourselves." Xu Zhengyang waved with a smile, said no more, and walked towards the stairwell. Chen Chaojiang followed beside him with a cold expression, but had already subtly scanned the layout of the first floor.
The waitress watched the two go upstairs, thinking that the person following behind was really cool, but she didn't think much of it.
This is not a high-end hot pot restaurant. The private rooms on the south side of the second floor are located close to the interior of the building. Therefore, the ventilation can only be done by using exhaust fans on the side facing the corridor to replace the air inside. At the two ends of the corridor, there are two exhaust fans installed above each window, constantly spinning. As a result, the whirring sound of the exhaust fans can be heard constantly as you walk down the corridor.
Inside the hallway, waiters kept hurrying past carrying trays of food.
Xu Zhengyang's expression was calm, with a slight smile. After going upstairs, he turned right and walked a few steps west, glanced at the door number, and then turned the doorknob and went inside. Chen Chaojiang followed closely behind, and after entering, he closed the door and locked it from the inside without anyone noticing.
"Hey, who are you? You've come to the wrong room!" a man sitting on the outer side of a round table inside the room said angrily.
“That’s right, right here.” Xu Zhengyang smiled and walked over, passing behind the man on the right. He then placed the helmet on a chair next to him, pulled out another chair, and sat down without ceremony, placing his gloves on the table. “He Bin, is that right?”
The man sitting inside, wearing only a white thermal shirt, put down his chopsticks, looked at Xu Zhengyang and Chen Chaojiang with surprise, and asked, "Who are you?"
"Oh, my name is Xu Zhengyang." Xu Zhengyang smiled and turned to look at Chen Chaojiang. He said, "He's my friend."
"I don't know you," He Bin said in a deep voice, seemingly sensing that the newcomers were hostile.
Xu Zhengyang still smiled and said, "It's enough that I know you."
He Bin frowned, feeling a bit annoyed, and asked, "What do you want from me?"
"Hmm." Xu Zhengyang nodded, then turned to look at the two men in sweaters sitting on the outside. His smile faded, and he asked calmly, "Gentlemen, you just came back from the city hospital, right?"
The two men were already annoyed by Xu Zhengyang's uninvited arrival. Seeing that He Bin didn't recognize them and that the two men clearly had ill intentions, the man facing Xu Zhengyang glared at him and angrily asked, "Who are you?"
Xu Zhengyang ignored him, picked up a pair of chopsticks from the table next to him, peeled off the paper wrapping, and unceremoniously reached into the hot pot to pick up meat, casually muttering, "It's not good to see blood."
He Bin and the other two were taken aback.
Chen Chaojiang placed the helmet and gloves on the small cabinet by the door and turned to walk to the table.
Suddenly, Chen Chaojiang punched the man who had just been shouting angrily in the face, then pulled back his fist and swung his elbow to the side, hitting another man hard in the face.
Cries of pain rang out almost simultaneously, and with a series of crashes, the two fell from their chairs to the ground.
Just as He Bin was about to cry out in alarm, a cold glint flashed, followed by a loud bang. A gleaming dagger, still trembling slightly, was stuck into the table in front of him, which was covered with a thin white film. He Bin immediately shut his mouth. He wasn't stupid. Two young men in their early twenties dared to come to his door and threaten him with violence right in front of him. This meant they weren't afraid of him calling for backup, and... if he called for help now, who knew what more impulsive actions these two might take?
As he flung the dagger, Chen Chaojiang kicked the two struggling, cursing men back against the wall. The kicks were incredibly fast and precise, not enough to crush their chests and kill them, but enough to leave them clutching their chests, curled up on the ground, groaning in pain but unable to utter a sound.
Chen Chaojiang had stopped and stood in the middle, his expression colder than the icicles hanging from the exhaust fan outside. A sharp, gleaming dagger had appeared in his left hand, which he slowly twirled between his fingers, its cold glint flashing...
"Gentlemen, I don't know how I, He Bin, have wronged you?" He Bin's expression had returned to calm. He leaned back in his chair, suppressing the unease in his heart, and tried his best to keep his tone calm.
"Oh, these two friends were at the hospital just now, they got into a fight with my father, and it seems... my father got the short end of the stick." Xu Zhengyang put down his chopsticks, poured himself another glass of wine, drank half of it, then got up and walked to the man curled up on the ground. He kicked the man hard in the face, but didn't pull his foot back; instead, he stomped on the man's face, making his mouth open and contort. "At the hospital, you were the one who started it, weren't you?"
The other person groaned but couldn't speak, and blood seeped from the corner of their mouth.
Xu Zhengyang suddenly raised his foot and kicked the man hard in the face again, causing him to cry out in pain. Xu Zhengyang didn't care at all whether the passing waiters outside would hear. He kicked him several more times until the man could no longer cry out in pain. Then he picked up his helmet, walked up to another man, and swung the helmet down on his head.
At this, the other party let out a shrill scream.
Xu Zhengyang stepped on the man's face, then turned his head and squinted at He Bin.
At this moment, He Bin realized what had happened. He recalled what the two men had told him about what happened at the hospital. It turned out that these two young men weren't after him, but rather after his two friends, seeking revenge. Therefore, He Bin felt a little relieved and said, "Brother, my two friends acted impulsively at the hospital. I apologize to you on their behalf. You've already hit them, so I think... we should just let it go?"
A rapid knocking sound rang out, accompanied by the sound of the doorknob being turned quickly.
"Go open the door and tell them they've had too much to drink and there's been some misunderstanding. It's alright," He Bin said in a deep voice.
So the man who was first kicked by Xu Zhengyang and whose mouth was bleeding staggered to his feet, walked to the door, turned the doorknob, and opened it a crack.
The two nervous waiters outside saw a man peeking through the crack in the door, his mouth stained with blood and his face swollen like a pig's head. They immediately asked in alarm, "Sir, what... what happened here?"
"It's nothing, my friend had too much to drink and there was a misunderstanding."
"Oh, um, do you want to go to the hospital?"
"Why are you meddling in other people's business? Go do your own thing!" The man vented his anger on the two waiters.
"Oh, I'm sorry, I'm sorry." The waiter hurriedly turned and left, inwardly cursing, "Why don't I beat you to death, you ungrateful bastard! You deserve it!"
The door closed again, and the man turned around. He saw Chen Chaojiang staring at him, his face pale and his eyes icy cold and devoid of any warmth. The man was immediately frightened and lowered his head, walking to the wall without uttering a sound. He was secretly glad that he hadn't called for help, otherwise the dagger in this guy's hand would probably already be stuck in his neck.
Xu Zhengyang turned around and sat down at the table, put down his helmet, faced He Bin, and said calmly, "He Bin, go to the hospital later. Make sure you pay Dong Wenqi's medical expenses in full, and also give her extra compensation. Sincerely apologize and ask Dong Wenqi and her family to forgive you."
He Bin was stunned for a moment, and in his heart he had already concluded that these two young men were just hotheads and fools. They were only trying to take revenge because their father had been beaten, and they thought they could take advantage of the situation to help others and play the role of heroes.
“No problem, no problem,” He Bin nodded and said.
"It's hard to say." Xu Zhengyang reached for the glass he had just used, drank the remaining half of the wine, and a slight smile appeared on his face. "Don't do anything you'll regret..."
Volume 3, Judge Chapter 126: Who has the strongest backing?
After saying that, Xu Zhengyang stood up, picked up the helmet from the chair next to him, walked to the door, opened it, and went out.
Chen Chaojiang walked coldly to He Bin, suddenly kicked He Bin and his chair to the ground, pulled out the dagger from the table, and stared coldly at He Bin, who was enduring the pain without making a sound.
"You probably don't know who I, He Bin, am, right?" He Bin's eyes blazed with fury.
Chen Chaojiang tilted his head and coldly said, "Nonsense." Then he turned and walked out, not forgetting to close the door behind him. In Chen Chaojiang's opinion, He Bin's words were indeed nonsense. If he didn't know who He Bin was, why did he come all the way here to beat them up? He'd already called out his name, so why was he still saying these tough-guy things? Wasn't he afraid of getting beaten up again?
He Bin said those words because he was enraged by the beating. He could have tolerated being beaten just for his two men, but he was also kicked, and in such a painful and humiliating way – how could he not be furious? Moreover, he was convinced these two were brutes and idiots, daring to openly come to him for revenge and then wanting to play the hero… what were they if not fools?
He was unaware that Xu Zhengyang's meaningful "It's hard to say" before leaving was actually a result of seeing through his thoughts and intentions, which is why he said that.
He Bin struggled to his feet. He sat back down at the table, picked up a glass of wine and gulped it down, gritting his teeth as he said, "I'll make you two idiots know what it means to wish you were dead! You talk big, but don't make me regret it! Humph!" Hao Bin sneered, his smile sinister.
After leaving the Fei Yang Hot Pot restaurant, Xu Zhengyang and Chen Chaojiang drove their motorcycle back to the Municipal People's Hospital.
In the biting wind outside the hospital, Xu Zhengyang, helmet in one hand and phone in the other, dialed a number. After a few rings, the call connected, and a deep male voice came through:
"Hello, this is Pang Zhong."
"Director Pang, I am Xu Zhengyang. Do you remember me?"
"Hmm? Xu Zhengyang? Oh, of course I remember. Hehe, have you been playing chess with Old Li lately? How is his health?"
Xu Zhengyang was taken aback for a moment, then smiled and said, "It's good, it's good. Is Director Pang busy today?"
"Huh?" Pang Zhong was also taken aback for a moment, then smiled and said, "Zhengyang, what made you think of calling me? Is there something you need?" Pang Zhong thought Xu Zhengyang probably wanted to invite him to dinner to try and build a closer relationship. After all, even the biggest ship needs someone to pull it across when it comes to this shallow river, right? Unfortunately, I, Pang Zhong, am not that kind of person. Respecting Old Master Li is a given, but asking me to protect you juniors from doing anything illegal or unethical that would tarnish Old Master Li's reputation is absolutely unacceptable. Putting aside that reason, even if you came with the greatest favor, I, Pang Zhong, would still have to be true to this police uniform and to my conscience!
It's no wonder Pang Zhong was suspicious. After all, the Tianbaozhai cultural relic smuggling case had just been cracked, and the "Guxiangxuan" jointly opened by Xu Zhengyang and Yao Chushun was currently the largest antique shop in Fuhe City. How could Pang Zhong not be suspicious?
"There's something I need to tell Director Pang..." Xu Zhengyang sighed, then briefly recounted Dong Wenqi's situation to Pang Zhong. Finally, with apology and self-reproach, he also poured out all the impulsive and reckless things he had just done to Pang Zhong.
Pang Zhong breathed a sigh of relief after hearing this. It was good that Xu Zhengyang wasn't trying to curry favor with him. However… Pang Zhong still felt a slight disappointment. He quickly dismissed this thought. Since it was about a simple case, he felt it necessary to express his stance. After all, Xu Zhengyang was someone who could play chess with Elder Li. Who knew if he would say something to Elder Li, or if Elder Li would even pay attention to it?
But it's not a big deal that I have to do it myself.
Therefore, Pang Zhong said seriously, "I will arrange for someone to investigate immediately. If it is true, no matter who the other party is, they must be severely punished without any leniency!"
"Thank you, Director Pang, but..." Xu Zhengyang paused, then continued, "That He Bin seems to have a lot of connections."
Director Pang cursed inwardly, "Even if you have connections, can they compare to the powerful backer behind Xu Zhengyang?" But after thinking for a moment, he understood Xu Zhengyang's meaning and smiled, "Alright, there's nothing urgent today. I'll go over this afternoon and ask what's going on."
After hanging up the phone, Pang Zhong sighed with a wry smile. He never thought he would have such a day, having to go and put on a show for someone else.
Isn't this beneath his dignity? Pang Zhong shook his head, got up and walked out, muttering to himself, "Even a bureau chief is a policeman. Isn't this what a policeman's duty is to do?"
Outside the city's People's Hospital, Xu Zhengyang lit a cigarette, let the cold wind blow in his face, and took a deep drag.
Chen Chaojiang said coldly beside him, "If you're going to be detained, I'll go. You'd better be careful out there."
"Huh?" Xu Zhengyang was taken aback for a moment, then laughed and said, "Detain my ass. If you really have to detain them, I'll find someone to lock you and He Bin in a room and let you beat them up every day to vent your anger."
Chen Chaojiang grinned.
Xu Zhengyang shivered. Chen Chaojiang looked cold enough even without smiling, but this smile sent shivers down his spine.