“Dad, that Dean Gong he mentioned—is that the same guy we were supposed to invite?” Liu Liang suddenly spoke up from the side.
Liu Hongju didn’t say a word. He just sat down heavily, a look of utter defeat on his face.
Liu Liang could read the situation perfectly well.
“That son of a bitch! Didn’t he say he had a family thing? Was he just jerking us around?” Liu Liang shot to his feet and stormed out of the private room.
“Liang, get back here!” Startled, Liu Hongju made to go after him.
“Uncle, you stay here. I’ll go check on him.” Lin Hai gently held Liu Hongju back and followed Liu Liang out.
“Boss Wang, I think we’ll call it a night. I’m feeling a bit worn out,” Gong Zhen said, hinting broadly.
Wang Li understood immediately.
“Dean Gong, we’ve already booked a room upstairs. Xiaoxia, help Dean Gong up to rest. Make sure you take very good care of him.” Wang Li shot a meaningful glance at the girl next to Gong Zhen.
The girl quickly helped Gong Zhen to his feet, pressing herself close against him.
“Haha, Boss Wang, I’ll take my leave then.”
Bang!
Just as Gong Zhen finished speaking, the private room door was violently kicked open.
Everyone inside jumped, turning to look toward the doorway.
“Who’s Dean Gong?” Liu Liang stood at the entrance, demanding angrily.
“Who the hell are you?”
“Looking for trouble, are you?”
Several people started to rush forward.
“Hold on.” Gong Zhen stopped his companions and gave Liu Liang a quick once-over.
“I’m Gong Zhen. Who are you, and what do you want?” As soon as Gong Zhen spoke, he exuded an air of someone long accustomed to authority.
“You… you’re him?” Liu Liang’s earlier charge had been purely driven by a surge of anger.
But now, faced with Gong Zhen and this whole room of people, he suddenly felt a bit intimidated.
“You… didn’t you say you had a family matter? Why are you here eating then?”
“Hmm?” Gong Zhen was momentarily baffled by Liu Liang’s question.
“Dean Gong, this is Liu Hongju’s son. Their private room isn’t far from here,” Wang Li whispered into Gong Zhen’s ear.
“Liu Hongju’s son?” Gong Zhen immediately relaxed.
“Hmph. Do I need to report my whereabouts to you?” Gong Zhen lifted his chin arrogantly.
“But… you already said yes to my dad. We even ordered all the dishes, and then you didn’t come. Isn’t that just jerking us around?”
“Jerking you around?” Gong Zhen let out a cold laugh. “So what if I am? What are you gonna do about it?”
“I…” Gong Zhen’s offhand comeback had actually stumped Liu Liang.
Yeah. The guy was openly admitting it—he had jerked them around on purpose. But what could he actually do about it?
Who was this man? A vice president of the court, with power and connections. What about his own family? Sure, they had some money, but compared to people with real power, what did money even count for?
“We can’t do anything to you, but at the very least, you should apologize.” Suddenly, a voice came from behind Liu Liang.
“Hai!” Liu Liang turned around, his eyes lighting up.
“Apologize? Are you fricking stupid?!”
“Where the hell did this guy pop out from? Asking for a beating, is he?!”
The people in the room started cursing again.
“Apologize… to you?” That single sentence from Lin Hai had genuinely amused Gong Zhen.
“Kid, do you have any idea who I am?” Gong Zhen asked, looking down his nose at him.
“I don’t care who you are. You didn’t keep your word, so you need to apologize. Make it quick!” Lin Hai said impatiently.
“Well said. You know, I wasn’t originally going to hold your barging in here against you. But since you’ve brought up the topic of apologies, then the two of you can get down on your knees and kowtow to apologize to every single person in this room.”
Gong Zhen’s expression suddenly turned icy. “Otherwise, no one’s leaving this room on their feet!”
Woosh!
As soon as Gong Zhen finished speaking, several men in the room surrounded Lin Hai and Liu Liang.
“Oh dear, Dean Gong! I’m so sorry, so sorry! My son is still young and foolish. He angered you. I’ll take him away right now.”
When Liu Hongju saw that Lin Hai had been gone a while and still hadn’t brought Liu Liang back, he started to panic and quickly rushed over himself. The moment he arrived, he saw this group rolling up their sleeves, ready to start a fight with the two young men.
Liu Hongju was terrified. He hurried over, apologizing profusely and trying to pull the two of them away.
“He’s foolish, but so are you, it seems?” Gong Zhen narrowed his eyes, a cold glint flashing in them.
“Dean Gong, I…” Liu Hongju froze for a moment, then his face twisted into an expression even more painful than crying.
“Hmph. I’ve already spoken, and I’m not taking my words back. You figure out what to do about it,” Gong Zhen said coldly.
“I… I…” Liu Hongju was furious inside, but he didn’t dare show it one bit. He knew too well that these officials could ruin him with any random excuse.
Since ancient times, common people don’t fight officials. Faced with such power, Liu Hongju had no choice but to give in.
“Fine. Dean Gong, I’ll apologize to you on behalf of the two kids.”
“Just standing there and saying you’re sorry? Are you an idiot?” a middle-aged man nearby said with a cold sneer.
Liu Hongju frowned, and the light in his eyes dimmed.
“Fine. I’ll kneel and apologize to Dean Gong.” As he spoke, Liu Hongju bent his knees, about to kneel down.
“Dad, don’t!” Seeing this, Liu Liang rushed forward desperately, trying to hold his father up.
“Get the hell out of the way!” Wang Li stepped up and delivered a vicious kick, sending Liu Liang staggering backward. He tripped and crashed onto his back on the floor.
With a sickening thud, Liu Liang’s head struck the corner of a chair, and blood immediately started streaming down.
“Xiao Liang!” Seeing this, Liu Hongju’s heart wrenched in pain, and he moved to go to him.
“Huh?!” A young man stepped in front of him, blocking his path.
“Ahh!” His heart aching with bitterness, Liu Hongju closed his eyes tightly and slowly sank to his knees.
Seeing this, smug smiles crept across the faces of Gong Zhen and his companions.
“Wait.” Just as Liu Hongju’s knees were about to touch the floor, a strong hand pulled him back up.
“Xiao Lin?” Liu Hongju looked up, startled.
“You motherf—!” Wang Li reacted instantly, throwing a punch straight at Lin Hai’s face.
Lin Hai’s eyes hardened. He grabbed Wang Li’s arm, and with a smooth pull-and-push motion, dislocated it cleanly.
“Aaargh!” Wang Li let out a blood-curdling scream, sweat pouring down his face from the pain.
Lin Hai gave a cold snort, then suddenly raised his foot and stomped viciously on Wang Li’s knee.
A sharp, clear crack of breaking bone echoed through the room, and Wang Li collapsed with a thud, kneeling on the floor.
“Oh god, oh mommy, it hurts so bad!!!” Wang Li instantly started wailing like a ghost.
Lin Hai didn’t spare him a single glance. He swept his fierce, menacing gaze across everyone else in the room.
The people in the private room were a bit stunned. Lin Hai had seemed so quiet just moments before—how could he suddenly strike, and so ruthlessly at that? Meeting Lin Hai’s terrifying gaze, these pampered officials, long accustomed to comfort, began to feel their hearts thumping with fear.
“Who the hell are you?! How dare you deliberately assault someone? Just wait for jail time!” a middle-aged man shouted at Lin Hai, his voice outwardly fierce but inwardly quivering.
Lin Hai didn’t reply. Instead, he turned and helped Liu Liang to his feet.
“You okay, Liang?” Lin Hai asked with genuine concern.
“It’s not too bad.” Liu Liang pressed one hand against the wound, enduring the pain.
Lin Hai gently moved Liu Liang’s hand aside to check and immediately frowned.
It was a very deep gash!
Lin Hai’s anger instantly flared up!
He reached out and touched a point on Liu Liang’s body, instantly stopping the bleeding.
Then, Lin Hai turned his head back, his gaze icy cold, his face like a frost-covered stone.
“You sons of bitches, do you have any idea who’s in this room? You’re asking for death!” someone shouted.
Seeing Lin Hai remain so unnervingly calm even after hitting someone, a sense of unease rippled through the room.
Lin Hai said nothing. He just kicked his foot backward, slamming the door shut with a loud bang.
“Who you are—I don’t know. All I know is, none of you are leaving this room on your feet today.”
