Chapter Ninety-Two - The Indifferent Future Father-in-Law, Part One

The page number flashed past as another volley of throwing blades came whistling through the air. I dodged frantically, wondering how many more of those things the bastard still had in his hands.

With a furious shout, I slammed one foot hard against the wall beside me, borrowing the force to launch myself straight toward the ninja.

He was unnaturally agile; the instant I closed in, he tried to scramble up to the top of the wall. I seized his ankle and yanked him back down, then drove my right fist into his body in a blur, striking seven times in succession at several vital points too fast for the eye to follow. He coughed up blood and collapsed into unconsciousness. Only then did I kick him down at Tengtian’s feet.

“Boss! I’m here!”

Just as Tengtian Jueichi stood frozen, staring at the ninja bodyguard at his feet, half dead and coughing blood, a thunderous roar rolled in from the entrance. The henchmen who rushed forward to block the way were instantly crying out in pain, each one sent flying by a kick. Soon a burly man burst out of the crowd, his face alight with excitement. Who else could it be but Li Dabiao?

I watched him come up to me and nodded. “Have they all left?”

“No, they’re waiting for you in the car. If you don’t go out, how could they leave?” Li Dabiao cracked his knuckles, glanced at the stunned Tengtian in front of him, and lowered his voice. “Is that the bastard Miss Su was talking about?”

“Yes. I just took down his men. They were actually ninjas from the Island Nation. Looks like he’s no small fry.”

I answered quietly, then saw that Tengtian still had not recovered. I could not help but bark, “Tengtian Jueichi, I’ll give you credit for being a guest in River City, so I won’t make a fuss today. Your men are the lesson you needed. Don’t think you can bully us just because you’ve come to our great country. Whoever told you the world was yours to do with as you please? This is not that place!”

Huang Qi was truly terrified now, too afraid to move. How could he have known I had such skill? In his eyes, I was probably nothing more than a flashy rich playboy who liked to spend money and save face.

Tengtian Jueichi raised his head and glared at me fiercely, saying in a low voice, “You dare to bring down the finest warriors of my great nation? Do you know what kind of trouble you’ve invited? Hmph, Mr. Huang, why don’t you let your people handle him?”

At Tengtian’s shout, Huang Qi snapped back to attention. He hurriedly turned to the gang of thugs behind him and pointed at a red-haired punk in a black tank top. “A Kun, go teach that guy a lesson. I won’t forget your reward. Huang Qi keeps his word. As long as you take him out, I’ll give you a very generous payment!”

At the mention of money, the thugs who had been tense a moment ago suddenly lit up with greed. The red-haired punk fixed his eyes on me, gritted his teeth, and snarled, “All right! Old Huang, you said it. Damn it, brothers, let’s go all out! I don’t believe that guy can beat all of us. Get him!”

“Yeah!!!”

The thugs roared together and immediately raised their sticks, charging at me. Li Dabiao and I exchanged a glance and at once assumed a two-man defensive stance, waiting quietly for these fools who had come looking for death.

“Everybody stop! Police! Nobody move!”

Just as Li Dabiao and I were about to meet them head-on, a shout suddenly rang out from the doorway. All the gangsters at once halted in their tracks. The police were practically the natural enemy of a street brawl; arrogant as these men were, they were not arrogant enough to challenge the police.

Soon a group of officers in green uniforms pushed through the thugs and came to stand before us. One of them swept his gaze over me and Tengtian’s side, then said coldly, “Who is Miss Su’s friend?”

Hearing that, I raised a hand. “I am.”

“Oh, so you’re Miss Su’s friend?” The officer was very polite as he shook my hand and smiled. “My surname is Zhang. Just call me Officer Zhang. Miss Su said outside that someone here was stirring up trouble with a crowd; looks like that was true. Men! Arrest the main offenders and take them all to the station!”

“Yes, Captain Zhang!”

Several officers immediately began making arrests on command. Officer Zhang smiled at me and said, “I’ll trouble Mr. Xiao to come to the station as well and assist with the investigation.”

“All right, of course.”

As soon as I heard him, I already understood the reason. Su Xin must have called her father, and her father had sent the police. I could not help thinking things looked bad. If her father found out about my relationship with Su Xin...

“What are you doing? A few little cops, and you think you can strut around here? Do you know who I am? Do you know who he is? Open your eyes and look carefully: he is a distinguished guest invited by the city government, Mr. Tengtian from the Island Nation!”

While I was mulling it over, Huang Qi’s voice rang out beside me. I quickly looked up.

One officer had been about to cuff Tengtian, but Huang Qi hurriedly stopped him. I leaned in and said softly to Officer Zhang, “Officer Zhang, that man is called Tengtian Jueichi. He seems to have quite a background. Don’t cuff him for now; just take him to the station. I’m afraid if he really does have powerful connections, it could be bad for you.”

Officer Zhang seemed to suddenly understand. He looked at me gratefully, then turned and said to the officer, “Xiao Wu, who told you to handcuff anyone? Hurry up and escort Mr. Tengtian to the car. Mr. Tengtian, I’m sorry, but today’s matter has to be taken back to the station for a proper investigation. Please bear with us if we have offended you.”

“Hmph!”

Tengtian gave a cold snort, pointed at the two ninja bodyguards lying on the ground, and said, “These are my men. Send someone to take them to the hospital. Mr. Huang, let’s go!”

With that, he and Huang Qi turned and walked toward the exit without another glance back.

After the arrest of several gang leaders among the thugs, Officer Zhang, Li Dabiao, and I also left the bar together. I immediately spotted my Audi A8 parked not far away and turned to Li Dabiao. “I’ll ride with Officer Zhang. You drive the others and follow behind. If anything comes up, we’ll talk once we reach the station.”

“Got it, Boss. Be careful.”

Li Dabiao nodded and hurried off toward the Audi. Under Officer Zhang’s apologetic smile, I got into his police car and sat in the back with him, closing the door behind me.

The shrill wail of the siren tore through the night’s silence. With a wry smile, I realized that, whether in my previous life or in this one, this was the first time I had ever ridden in a police car.

“Thanks for the warning earlier, brother. My name is Zhang Baoqiang. That Island Nation fellow doesn’t look like someone to mess with. How did you end up crossing him? You’ve got pretty good skills, brother. Those two bodyguards of his were taken down by you, weren’t they?” Officer Zhang seemed determined not to keep things formal with me, and as soon as he started the car he began asking questions.

I knew he was treating me with respect because of Su Xin, so I could only smile bitterly. “How could I possibly go looking for someone like that? He was trying to bully Su Xin and her friends, so I stepped in. Those two were his men. I was only protecting myself.”

“Oh, I said as much—those Island Nation people never looked like anything good.” Zhang Baoqiang seemed to be thinking something over. His eyes shifted as he said, “Brother, if that Island Nation man really is as important as his men claimed, as a guest invited by the city government, then this is going to be troublesome. Miss Su’s father and our bureau chief are good friends, but when the city government invites foreign guests, that usually falls under the mayor’s authority. And lately we’ve all heard that Secretary Su and Mayor Xia haven’t exactly been on good terms. I’m afraid this could get messy.”

“It’s fine. We’ll deal with it as it comes. Don’t worry.”

On the surface I looked relaxed, but inside I was already calculating. This time, I was probably really going to face Su Guohui head-on. Ah, Su Xin, Su Xin—why did you have to call the police? Now things were only getting more complicated.

“Bold spirit, Brother Xiao. You really do have something special. You must have been confident all along, huh?” Zhang Baoqiang looked at me as though I were some young master from a powerful family. And indeed, only someone with real backing would dare say something like what I had just said.

“Nothing special in my family’s background,” I said with a bitter smile. “My ancestors were all ordinary people. I just have a little money, that’s all. I’m sure there will be many places where I’ll need Brother Zhang’s help in the future.”

It was just right. I was actually short on acquaintances in the police bureau, and getting to know Zhang Baoqiang was no bad thing.

“Easy enough, easy enough. Brother Xiao, one word from you and I’ll help without a second thought, for sure.” He laughed. “From now on, we’re brothers!”

I had deliberately courted Zhang Baoqiang, and he clearly viewed me as some kind of valuable catch. Of course, anyone connected to the daughter of the municipal party secretary could hardly be without some standing.

I said nothing more and simply closed my eyes to rest. Seeing that I was silent, Zhang Baoqiang tactfully turned his face forward and signaled the officer driving to proceed carefully. And so the police car sped onward under the howl of the siren, racing straight toward the station.