At this moment, Chen Chaojiang slowly walked over from behind. His cold and pale face was expressionless, and his narrow eyes were devoid of any warmth. Xu Zhengyang, who had been thinking of giving Chen Chaojiang a wink, couldn't help but worry. Would Chen Chaojiang go mad and not even care about the safety of an infant?
Xu Zhengyang narrowed his eyes, his face extremely gloomy, and commanded in a cold voice, "Put the child down!"
"You, you two, don't come any closer! Don't come any closer!" The robber was terrified. He pressed his back tightly against the wall, constantly turning his head to look at the two young men approaching him from different directions with fear and trepidation. At this moment, he remembered that the pale-faced young man had flown over his head, and his skills were just as terrifying as the other young man's.
The robber, whose arm had been broken, was still screaming in pain on the ground. He was curled up in agony, his whole body shaking violently. He kept banging his helmet against the wall, as if trying to balance the unbearable pain from his severed arm.
"Put the child down!"
Xu Zhengyang reprimanded again.
The robber suddenly stiffened, threw the child toward Xu Zhengyang, and then, to Xu Zhengyang's surprise and astonishment, lunged at Chen Chaojiang, attempting to rush past him in the moment of Chen Chaojiang's hesitation and escape temporarily, avoiding these two extremely skilled and ruthless young men.
However, before he could react and know what was happening, a sharp pain, as if he had been hit by a heavy hammer, came from his knee. His body involuntarily lurched forward, and then a dark, blurry knee appeared in front of him.
With a loud bang, the robber, who had been falling forward, suddenly arched his back, his feet leaving the ground, and slammed into the wall with a thud, accompanied by a piercing scream. The robber rolled on the ground, violently tearing off his helmet with its shattered hood and throwing it aside. He then covered his face and screamed in agony, his legs kicking wildly and his body trembling violently.
Blood flowed from between the fingers of the person covering their face.
Two seconds ago...
Xu Zhengyang's pupils dilated suddenly, and he swiftly reached out with both arms to catch the child who had been thrown into the air, holding him tightly in his arms. Then, he stepped forward, his face extremely calm and gloomy, and kicked the robber, who was covering his face and convulsing, more than half a meter into the air, slamming him heavily against the wall.
Chen Chaojiang then kicked down, breaking the leg of the robber who was still clutching his face and screaming in pain even after being kicked into the air.
The piercing screams rang out again.
Xu Zhengyang turned around, picked up the child, and walked towards the alley entrance, his mental energy constantly protecting and comforting the baby's mind.
On the main street outside the alley, there were already more than a dozen local people watching. When they saw Xu Zhengyang carrying the child out, they all involuntarily took a step back.
"Call the police! Those two people inside are child abductors." Xu Zhengyang's expression returned to calm and gentle as he reminded the onlookers.
Everyone was still in a daze.
Xu Zhengyang sighed, turned around abruptly, and wanted to scold Chen Chaojiang, telling him not to kill him!
But Chen Chaojiang had already followed behind him. After seeing Xu Zhengyang's gaze, Chen Chaojiang said coldly, "I'm not stupid."
Xu Zhengyang breathed a sigh of relief, holding the child in one arm and taking out his phone with the other to dial the police.
A moment later, sirens blared and several police cars sped over.
The first person to rush out of the police car was a young woman in a purple down jacket, her face filled with terror and tears streaming down her face. Upon seeing the child Xu Zhengyang was holding, she rushed over like a madwoman, repeatedly calling out, "Son, son..."
Xu Zhengyang let go of her hand, letting the young woman take the baby and kiss and cry.
Several police officers rushed into the alley and, looking bewildered, helped up the two robbers who were still groaning in pain and occasionally letting out a scream, and carried them out of the alley.
Four police officers surrounded Xu Zhengyang and Chen Chaojiang, frowning and coldly questioning, "Who are you people?"
Xu Zhengyang kicked his car and said calmly, "I saw these two fighting over a child at the intersection of South Ring Road and Huamao Street, so I chased them all the way here." Then he pointed to Chen Chaojiang and said, "He's my friend, we were together."
Several police officers were skeptical. After all, the two men had just been beaten so badly; what were these two doing? Just as the officers were about to ask further questions, the young woman, having recovered from her initial elation and fear, remembered the white Audi A4. She immediately knelt before Xu Zhengyang, clutching her child, and cried out, "My benefactor! My benefactor! Thank you! Thank you for saving my child!" If she hadn't been holding her child, she would likely have kowtowed on the ground.
The young woman looked up again and hurriedly said to the police, "Yes, I can testify. It was them, this car. They were the ones who chased after and stole my child's motorcycle and the person."
The police officers then believed them and frowned, saying, "Show me your ID cards and driver's licenses, and oh, vehicle registration certificates too."
Xu Zhengyang nodded, took out his wallet, and handed over his driver's license and vehicle registration. Chen Chaojiang had also taken out his driver's license and handed it to another policeman.
After checking their identification, the police asked them to go back to the police station to cooperate in making a statement and providing evidence.
Xu Zhengyang naturally wouldn't refuse. He nodded and returned to the car with Chen Chaojiang, driving the Audi A4 and following the police car into the city.
"Damn it! My car! My new car!" Xu Zhengyang cursed inwardly, his face contorted in pain as he drove. His brand-new car, less than two hours old, was already wrecked, and Xu Zhengyang was truly heartbroken. In his mind, he acted as the chief judge under the City God of Fuhe City, his pen flashing across the judgment book, harshly scribbling away at the two robbers' crimes: thirty years of lifespan deducted—no, not lifespan deducted, but lifelong torment from illness! After death, their souls would flow slowly into the River of Three Crossings, enduring the venomous attack that would devour their souls…
Damn it! I'll make sure you all suffer a terrible death!
Having settled the matter in his mind, Xu Zhengyang suddenly remembered another problem. He knew he would encounter many more such evil people in the future. Now that there were no ghost messengers in the underworld, the laws and regulations of the underworld were incomplete. When evil people entered the underworld and fell into the River of Three Crossings, they would be swept into the rapids and slow currents of the River of Three Crossings just like ordinary ghosts or even the ghosts of good people in life. Moreover, when they flowed to the Pool of Reincarnation, they might even enter the cycle of reincarnation as good people... Who the hell could he reason with?
No, no! Absolutely not!
But he had no right to govern. Even if he became the City God and had the authority to govern, there were countless evil people in the world, and the underworld was filled with countless pools of reincarnation. As a single god without any special divine artifacts, how could he possibly manage? Besides, he wasn't just a god; he was also a human being with his own life…
Putting all that aside for now, there are a great many evil people in the area of Fuhe City alone. One judge like myself can't possibly handle them all, so it's necessary to assign a few subordinates.
Anyway… as the chief judge under the City God, he already had the authority to arrange for five of the City God's human ghost messengers to share some of his burdens. Arranging for ghost messengers not only allowed him to learn more about the evil deeds and villains within the Fu River region, but occasionally the ghost messengers could also punish some not-too-outrageous bad elements on their own. Moreover… when the ghost messengers performed acts of punishing evil and promoting good, a large portion of the credit would be attributed to all the deities, including the City God.
Currently, within the Fuhe River region, there is only one Chief Judge, Xu Zhengyang.
So, aside from a few extremely wicked individuals who require his personal punishment, basically... well, Xu Zhengyang can be a hands-off manager in this area, earning merit and divine power while enjoying a leisurely life. Hmm, he's not yet qualified to appoint land deities. Because land deities are the lowest-ranking divine positions, requiring the City God's approval to bestow a land deity title.
These were all things that the case file had informed him of.
However, upon learning all this, Xu Zhengyang thought it best not to appoint a local god. Not only would there be no more local gods with divine artifacts, but people are inherently selfish. Who could guarantee that if another local god were appointed, he wouldn't rise through the ranks like Xu Zhengyang and eventually seize power through a coup?
Volume 3, Judge Chapter 134: Being a celebrity is really difficult
In winter, the days are short and the nights are long. It was not even six o'clock when it was already completely dark.
Inside the compound of the Fuxing District Public Security Bureau, the lights dispelled the darkness, making it as bright as day.
Under a few evergreen trees a little to the west of the main entrance of the building, Xu Zhengyang squinted, his heart aching terribly, pacing back and forth around his new car, baring his teeth like a wolf whose tail had been stepped on, looking furious and vicious.
The white Audi A4 sedan had a large dent between the left front and rear doors, and both doors were partially dented as well. There were also two long and deep scratches on the lower part of the front and rear doors. It looked like someone had splashed manure on a freshly painted white wall. It was truly a pity and infuriating.
A police car drove in from outside the gate. Branch Chief Li Xiuping got out of the car with a wry smile. He saw Xu Zhengyang pacing back and forth in front of the Audi A4, grinning and grimacing. Li Xiuping was even more amused and exasperated. He walked up to him and greeted him, "Xu Zhengyang."
"Hmm, Director Li, hello, I'm sorry to trouble you." Xu Zhengyang smiled sheepishly.
"Hehe. It's better to have more trouble like this, oh no, I mean." Li Xiuping waved his hand and said, "It's you again, and it's that Chen Chaojiang again. The four people you captured last time were all covered in injuries. Look at what you've done today... Two of them are seriously injured, one has a broken arm, several broken ribs, and the other has a broken nose..."
Xu Zhengyang said solemnly, "This was absolutely not something that Chaojiang and I did on purpose. Really, you have no idea how fierce those two robbers were. They were waving knives and stabbing at us!"
"Where's the knife?" Li Xiuping asked, his face darkening.
"Well, cough cough, okay... they hit us with their motorcycle, we dodged it, and then they threatened to kill the child, so, so... we got angry." Xu Zhengyang scratched his head and said with a wronged look, "You decide what to do. Chaojiang and I were furious at the time. I just bought this motorcycle. Look, look at what they did to it."
Li Xiuping chuckled, patted him on the shoulder, and said with a smile, "It's good to be brave and righteous, but you also need to pay attention to your own safety!"
Xu Zhengyang nodded with a simple smile.
Inside the office building, a young woman in a purple down jacket, holding her sleeping child, hurriedly led her husband, mother-in-law, and father-in-law out. Upon seeing Xu Zhengyang, she rushed down the steps, exclaiming, "My benefactor is here! He's here! It's him!"
Xu Zhengyang was stunned.
To his surprise, the whole family surrounded him and knelt down in the courtyard. His parents-in-law kowtowed repeatedly, their words of gratitude pouring out. The baby, who had been sleeping in his mother's arms, was startled awake and began to cry loudly.
Xu Zhengyang panicked and quickly bent down to pull them up one by one, saying, "No! What are you doing? What are you doing? This is shortening your lifespan!"
Li Xiuping and another policeman quickly stepped forward to help the family.
After finally helping the whole family up, the two elderly people kept expressing their gratitude and saying how lucky they were. Their Ding family had only had one son for three generations, and this child was simply the apple of their family's eye!
Xu Zhengyang thought to himself, "You all don't know how to take good care of your precious child. Taking such a child out to visit relatives in this freezing weather, aren't you afraid that such a young child will catch a cold and get a fever?" But he couldn't say these things out loud, so he could only keep smiling and saying, "Don't be so polite, it's what I should do."
The child's father, around twenty-eight or twenty-nine years old, stepped forward and tightly grasped Xu Zhengyang's hand, his eyes filled with tears of gratitude: "Brother, I don't need to say anything more. They hit your car, I... I'll sell everything I own to fix it for you..."
"No need, no need, there's an insurance company..."
Just as things were getting lively here, the sound of a car engine came from outside. Everyone looked towards the entrance and saw a police car in front, followed by a black Audi A6, a silver-gray Buick Regal, and an Iveco. The four cars filed in from outside.
After the car stopped, Zhong Zhijun got out and ran over with a wry smile, looking slightly uneasy and nervous. He whispered a few words in Director Li Xiuping's ear.
Li Xiuping was stunned for a moment, then smiled wryly. Well, there's nothing we can do about it. Let them come.
But then several people suddenly jumped off the Iveco van, some carrying cameras, some holding microphones, and arranging all sorts of odds and ends...
A tall, slender female reporter, dressed in a white down jacket and appearing to be around thirty years old with striking good looks, strode over with a microphone. Upon seeing the policeman standing next to Zhong Zhijun, she approached and asked, "Hello. Are you Director Li? I'm Zhang Yan, a reporter from the 'News 30 Minutes' program on Fuhe City TV. I heard that two brave young people fought off a robber who tried to abduct a baby today, apprehended the perpetrator, and saved the child. Is that true?"
"Yes, that's right. Well, this is the young man." Li Xiuping smiled and pointed at Xu Zhengyang.
In fact, many things are arranged by people. For example, the TV news reporter came to interview us today. This was arranged by Song Xiangxin, the deputy general manager of Dongsheng Automobile Sales and Service Co., Ltd., through connections. The purpose was naturally to take the opportunity to promote their company. Zhong Zhijun and two colleagues originally went to Dongsheng Automobile Sales and Service Co., Ltd. to investigate whether Xu Zhengyang's car was indeed picked up from their company today, as Xu Zhengyang claimed, and they mentioned today's case in the process.
Song Xiangxin, however, quickly discovered an opportunity to exploit and immediately called her uncle, who was the deputy director of the TV station, to inform him of the matter.
What do TV stations want? News! This kind of heroic act is very rare in today's society. The impact and publicity of broadcasting it will be enormous. It might even win an award... So the TV station immediately arranged for someone to arrive at the Fuxing District Public Security Bureau in Fuhe City at the same time as Song Xiangxin and Zhong Zhijun, despite Song Xiangxin's deliberate delay in notifying them.
"Hello, are you Xu Zhengyang?" Zhang Yan asked as she stepped forward with the microphone.
The camera was already pointed at Xu Zhengyang.
Poor Xu Zhengyang, a country bumpkin who had never encountered such a situation before, chuckled sheepishly and scratched his head nervously, saying, "Ah, it's me."
"I heard that when you caught up with the criminals, your newly bought car was also damaged, is that right?"
"Yes, it's right here. I'm still heartbroken about it," Xu Zhengyang answered honestly.
Did you consider the possibility of the car being damaged in the accident?
"Well, back then, who had time to manage the cars?" Xu Zhengyang thought this question was really poorly phrased.
Little did he know that this was exactly the kind of answer the reporter needed, which is why he asked a question with an answer as obvious as lice on a bald man's head.
Zhang Yan asked with a smile, "When you had the conflict with the criminals, were you afraid, or nervous and worried about being hurt by them?"
"No." Xu Zhengyang was increasingly puzzled by how simple-minded these educated people were. What's there to be afraid of? If I were afraid, why would I have chased after them?
"What were you thinking at the time?"
"What are you thinking? Just save the child."
"Many people in society today, when they see things like this, lack the courage to step in and do something right. What are your thoughts on this?"
"Well, how can I explain this? That's their business."
"You mean, if you encountered a similar situation again, you would still choose to be a hero without hesitation, right?"
"Of course." Xu Zhengyang thought to himself, "I am the judge, this is not called acting bravely for a just cause, this is called fulfilling my duty."
The barrage of questions annoyed and irritated Xu Zhengyang. Why were they asking such pointless questions? Little did he know that the reporter's questions were meticulously crafted, refined a thousand times over by countless elites, ensuring that his answers would be photogenic even when he was completely unprepared.
The Ding family finally snapped out of their confusion; they were going to put their benefactor on TV!
The family immediately began to express their gratitude again, wanting to kneel and kowtow, which flustered Xu Zhengyang and made the police officers rush to help and dissuade them; the reporter was so happy that he quickly handed over the microphone, and the cameraman pointed the lens at them...
After conducting a highly precise interview with the family members, Zhang Yan hurriedly handed the microphone to Li Xiuping.
Li Xiuping was, after all, the director of a public security bureau. He had seen pigs run countless times, even if he hadn't eaten pork himself. How could he be intimidated by such a show of force? So, with a calm expression and a steady voice, after praising and affirming the brave actions of the two young men, Xu Zhengyang and Chen Chaojiang, he launched into a scathing speech, stating that the police would definitely punish the criminals severely, crack down on criminal gangs, and ensure the personal safety and social order of the people of the city, and so on, among other official platitudes.
Just after the interview with Li Xiuping, several more vehicles of various sizes pulled up outside the branch office, and reporters from newspapers large and small, carrying cameras and microphones, rushed in.
At the same time, Pang Zhong, the director of the municipal bureau, also received the news and called Li Xiuping to tell him what to do.
So Li Xiuping immediately arranged for his men to bring everyone to the second floor of the branch office, move the conference room aside to allow reporters to conduct interviews, and hold a press conference...
That evening, the Fuhe City evening news reported a heinous crime that occurred at the intersection of South Ring Road and Huamao Street in Fuhe City, where a pedestrian's infant was robbed. Two 21-year-old youths were driving their newly purchased white Audi A4 when they witnessed the crime and immediately gave chase. After reaching Hesha Town, the two vicious criminals, with nowhere to escape, revealed their true colors and attacked the two young men with weapons. When the two young men offered no resistance, the criminals then took the infant hostage, threatening the infant's life to threaten the two young men.