Chapter 39: A Bitter Defeat in the Battle of Fathers

“Brother Ma, these two punks just assaulted someone. Hurry up and arrest them.”
Yang Guang pointed at Qin Xuan and Zhou Xiaoyu.
“What? They dare to start a fight in broad daylight? Do they not know that the police station is right next to Jinling University?” The police squad leader, addressed as “Brother Ma,” first helped Yang Guang up, then turned with a dark expression.
His police uniform was imposing, but in Qin Xuan’s eyes, it was utterly detestable.
Qin Xuan gestured toward the group of basketball players blocked behind him with a chair and smiled. “Officer, it’s obvious they were the ones who wanted to attack us. I was just defending myself.”
Little Gang flexed his muscles angrily beside him and said, “That kid picked up a chair and tried to smash us first! If Brother Qin didn’t have quick reflexes, one of us would already be on the ground.”
“All of you who were fighting, behave yourselves. We’ll take your statements at the station,” the squad leader said, glaring at Little Gang. Two officers entered and moved to restrain Qin Xuan.
“Wait a minute. Are you pretending I don’t exist?”
Zhou Xiaoyu stepped forward.
“Oh? And who are you?” the police captain asked, clearly not recognizing Zhou Xiaoyu.
“You’d better handle this fairly, or I guarantee you’ll regret it,” Zhou Xiaoyu said with certainty, meeting the cop’s gaze.
The officer laughed coldly. “You’re hilarious. I’m a policeman—I’ll handle things fairly, of course.” His smile faded. “Take those two away.” He pointed to Qin Xuan and Little Gang.
To him, Qin Xuan was clearly involved, and Little Gang, with his muscular build, was probably another troublemaker.
Yang Guang shot Zhou Xiaoyu a vicious glare. “Brother Ma, don’t let this guy off! He’s arrogant—he even slapped me!”
“He slapped you?” The squad leader’s face darkened further.
The athletes, seeing the police arrive, ceased their commotion and whispered among themselves.
“Xiao Guang’s dad is the deputy chief of the nearby station. Those two are in for it now.”
“Hmph, serves them right. Did they really think we basketball players are easy prey?”
“That slap has to be repaid tenfold…”
Hearing this, Qin Xuan realized Yang Guang had connections—his father was the deputy chief at the local station. No wonder he acted so brazenly; with that kind of backing, he could throw his weight around this area.
“I’ll look into this. Xiao Yang, you stay and finish your meal with your friends. I’ll take these guys to the station,” the police captain said, waving his hand to take Qin Xuan and the others away.
At that moment, the ever-composed Liu Qianqian finally spoke up, unable to watch any longer. “Hey, why should he be allowed to keep eating while Xiao Qin Xuan is being taken away?”
She pointed at Yang Guang, her lips pursed in indignation.
Yang Guang now noticed the beautiful woman in the red dress nearby and couldn’t help but feel pleased with himself. “Of course. Beauty, do you know who I am?”
“All right, take them away,” the police captain said impatiently.
“Hey, aren’t you being a bit too irresponsible as a policeman?” Liu Qianqian pressed on.
“And what do you want, miss? Are you with this group?” the officer asked, his demeanor strict even as his eyes lit up at her appearance.
“Yes. If you’re taking them, take me too,” Liu Qianqian huffed.
As the two argued, Zhou Xiaoyu quietly said to Qin Xuan, “Boss, don’t worry. That cop’s about to get a phone call. We’ll be fine.”
“Oh?”
Qin Xuan hadn’t been concerned, but Zhou Xiaoyu’s words still surprised him. It seemed his suspicions were correct—Zhou Xiaoyu’s background was impressive. For those truly in power, a small-time police chief was nothing, and even someone like Yang Weiyang’s father, the director of Jinling Public Security Bureau, was just a small fry.
Thinking of Yang Weiyang, Qin Xuan suddenly felt a jolt. Wait, no wonder Yang Guang looked familiar—he resembled Yang Weiyang somewhat.
Now Qin Xuan was puzzled. They both had the surname Yang, and both their fathers worked in the public security system. Could there be a connection?
“Boss, let me tell you something, but don’t spread it around. My father is the deputy secretary of the municipal committee…” Zhou Xiaoyu dropped the bombshell.
Qin Xuan felt as though he’d struck gold. The deputy secretary’s son wanted to be his lackey? If his master heard about this, he’d surely praise his resourcefulness!
Liu Qianqian quickly made up her mind.
“Xiao Qin Xuan, wherever they take you, I’ll go with you.”
The squad leader waved his hand. “Take them all!”
“Are you sure about that?” Zhou Xiaoyu snickered.
“You think I’m afraid to arrest you?” the police captain barked, stepping forward, when suddenly his phone rang.
As Zhou Xiaoyu chuckled quietly, the officer answered, “Hello? Yes, it’s me. Ah, yes, yes… Understood. But Xiao Yang… All right, I understand. It’ll be done.”
He hung up, looking extremely displeased.
“I just received a call. The situation is clear. The rest of you are free to go. Xiao Yang, come with me.” With that, he left the private room.
Yang Guang was stunned.
What just happened? Who called? How did Brother Ma change his tune so quickly? Anyone with half a brain could see that call had gotten Qin Xuan’s group out of trouble.
…
“Brother Ma, what’s going on?”
Yang Guang followed him out, face grim.
“Your father called,” the police captain snorted. “Who did you provoke this time? Even the higher-ups were alerted. If your dad hadn’t called, we’d both be in trouble now.”
“What? Brother Ma, you can’t be serious?”
“You’d better believe it. In the future, watch yourself.” The officer warned, “You’ve just started at Jinling University. Tread carefully—don’t go looking for trouble everywhere. Your dad may be a station chief, but even your brother was all swagger last year when he started here, and look how that ended for him.”
With a pat on Yang Guang’s shoulder, the captain turned and left.
Yang Guang’s face was clouded, unable to shake his gloom.
He had no idea he’d just lost a contest of connections to Zhou Xiaoyu. He didn’t even know which one of Qin Xuan’s group he’d offended.
After all, there were eleven of them together.
“Qin Xuan, I won’t forget this,” Yang Guang muttered, grinding his teeth as he left.
…
Back in the private room, Qin Xuan continued to face off with the group of basketball players.
“You guys are quite something,” said the tall, burly one, surveying the crowd with interest. He had no idea whose connections had overpowered Yang Guang’s.
“Heh, now that you know, you should give us back our reserved room, shouldn’t you?” Zhou Xiaoyu said with a sly grin.
But the basketball players weren’t having it.
So what if you have connections? They’d rather settle things with their fists! As athletic scholarship students, they’d never been ones to back down from a fight. The group eyed them menacingly, rolling up their sleeves, ready for round two.