"Looking for death, are you?" Scarface cursed and swung his palm toward Ye Mo's face. He'd originally decided not to stir up trouble since he was about to be released. But now that Ye Mo was provoking him directly, Scarface—long used to bullying others—couldn't hold back. He raised his hand, ready to slap Ye Mo.
Everyone else in the cell looked on with schadenfreude. A few men cowering in the corners even shook their heads. What an idiot, they thought. Scarface hadn't even bothered him, yet he walked up to pick a fight. Doesn't he know what he's doing?
But reality quickly shattered their assumptions. Ye Mo—whom they all thought had a death wish—grabbed Scarface's wrist and in the next instant, slap slap slap slap, delivered a string of resounding slaps. Then, with a swift kick to the gut, Ye Mo sent the burly man flying across the room.
The tough-looking Scarface didn't even have a chance to fight back. Ye Mo's single kick launched him straight into the iron door with a loud clang.
Outside, the black-faced officer heard the noise from inside the room. Smirking, he immediately pulled out his phone and made a call.
"Master Qiao? Yes, it's me. That guy's been taken in. He's locked up now. Scarface is teaching him a lesson. It's got nothing to do with us. Don't worry—he won't get out of this unscathed. I'll make sure he suffers even before sentencing." Hearing some commotion outside, the officer quickly ended the call and strutted toward the door with a fake concerned look.
Inside the cell, Scarface was stunned. He'd been in the underworld for years and immediately realized that Ye Mo wasn't someone to mess with. Despite his tough appearance, he wasn't stupid. If he enraged Ye Mo, there'd be hell to pay.
This pretty-boy-looking kid was seriously dangerous. Scarface knew that even if all four of them jumped him, they'd still be no match. Otherwise, Ye Mo wouldn't have dared provoke them so openly.
Ye Mo slowly walked over to him and said in an even voice, "I want the bed by the window. Any objections?"
Seeing Ye Mo approach, Scarface's nerves frayed. He thought Ye Mo was coming to finish him off, but instead, he only asked for the bed. Scarface sighed in relief and immediately said, "No objections, none at all. It's yours."
Now that Scarface had backed off, the others didn't even dare breathe loudly. Normally, Scarface alone could take all of them down. If he got beaten this badly by Ye Mo, who'd be foolish enough to step up?
Meanwhile, Su Jingwen was on her way to the police station, increasingly certain that the man she'd seen taken away was the same one who had sold her the talisman. She was determined to get him out as soon as possible.
But what she didn't expect was that the officers at the station refused to let her meet with Ye Mo.
"He's not even a criminal! Why won't you let me see him? And what right did you have to detain him in the first place?" Su Jingwen demanded. She didn't know the full story, but something was clearly fishy. Otherwise, why would only Ye Mo be taken in while the Land Rover crew walked free? Of course, she didn't yet know that the SUV had been taken to a hospital.
"He's suspected of robbery and assault. We're still taking his statement. If you want to meet him, come back tomorrow," said the black-faced officer, his tone calm only because she was a beautiful and refined-looking woman.
"Is that so? Then why is what I saw completely different?" Su Jingwen sneered. "I clearly saw a Land Rover take my friend away, and now that same SUV is untouched while my friend is locked up. Care to explain?"
"If you don't have evidence, don't go around making baseless accusations. This is a police station—we go by facts here. If you continue causing trouble, I'll arrest you for obstructing justice," the officer snapped, his tone suddenly turning harsh. He hadn't expected the woman to have actually witnessed the SUV incident.
"Oh, how impressive," Su Jingwen said coldly. "I'd like to see exactly how you plan to charge me with obstruction."
"You—come with me for questioning. I now suspect you're an accomplice of the robbery suspect," the black-faced officer barked, pointing at her. Looking at Ye Mo's plain clothes, he figured this woman couldn't have much of a background either. Time to give her a lesson.
"Are you a cop or a thug?" Su Jingwen fumed. The man was outrageous.
"Not satisfied? File a complaint then. My name's Huang Yu. Don't forget it," he sneered.
"Young man," said a stern voice from the doorway, "when did police officers start acting like thugs?"
The voice was deep and commanding.
"Director Geng!" both Officer Huang and the younger officer turned and called out.
"What's going on here?" the middle-aged man asked, eyeing Huang with disapproval.
"Oh? Su Zong? What are you doing here?" the man exclaimed upon seeing Su Jingwen, clearly recognizing her.
"You're... Geng Xuebin? Weren't you my dad's driver?" Su Jingwen asked in surprise. A few years ago, this man had worked for her father. Now he was a police station chief—what a rapid promotion.
"Yes, I was reassigned," Geng Xuebin replied. "Now, what's this all about?"
Su Jingwen's face darkened. "Someone kidnapped my friend, yet you arrest him and let the kidnappers go free. When I came to see him, you called him a robbery suspect and even accused me of being his accomplice. When I objected, you told me to file a complaint. Is this how your officers behave now?"
Huang Yu's face turned pale. Even his dark complexion couldn't hide it. He hadn't realized this woman knew their precinct chief. Sure, Young Master Qiao might protect him later, but his promotion prospects just took a serious hit.
"Is that true? That's how you act as an officer of the law?" Geng glared at Huang Yu. He'd long known this guy had issues—riding on Zheng Wenqiao's coattails, acting like he owned the place—but now he'd pissed off the mayor's daughter. Tough luck.
"It's true, but I was just angry and spoke without thinking," Huang Yu admitted. Several people had heard him; there was no denying it.
"Take his weapon and investigate this immediately. Chen Zhen, you're in charge. I want a full report ASAP. Police are supposed to protect citizens—not act like criminals," Chief Geng ordered, swiftly stripping Huang Yu of his uniform in front of Su Jingwen.
Su Jingwen knew this was partly for show but remained silent.
"You can't do this! Even if you want to accuse me, you don't have the right to treat me like this," Huang Yu shouted in panic. He hadn't thought Geng would really go this far.
"Miss Su, let's go check on your friend. It's a disgrace we have someone like this in our ranks. I'll personally report this to Mayor Su," Geng Xuebin said, completely ignoring Huang Yu's cries. He knew that even if this hadn't involved Su Jingwen's friend, there was already enough dirt on Huang Yu to put him away.
Mayor Su? Huang Yu's eyes went wide. Connecting the chief's deference, the "Su Zong" honorific, and everything else, he finally got it. If he didn't know by now that this woman was related to Mayor Su, he'd have to be brain-dead.
If she was really connected to the mayor, even Zheng Wenqiao wouldn't be able to save him.
In that instant, Huang Yu's heart turned to ice.