"Why do you ask?" Lin Ling was taken aback and hesitated. "The man from the Capital City has already left. That one, Wang Dazhi, is still here."

"Mom, let him take the phone," Chen Fei's icy voice came through the receiver.

"Let him take the phone?" Lin Ling was slightly stunned. Hearing her murmur, Wang Dazhi couldn't help but shiver violently and stammer, "Th-that... there's no need to take the call, right? It's all a misunderstanding. A misunderstanding that's already been cleared up."

"Why should he take the phone? Didn't I already tell you everything is fine? There's no need to worry..." Not wanting to escalate the situation, Lin Ling spoke up.

"Mom!" However, Chen Fei cut her off, his tone firm. "Mom, give him the phone. It's okay, I just want to have a few words with him alone. It's no big deal, so don't worry."

Though he said this, he was sitting in a military vehicle hundreds of miles away, and the murderous, bone-chilling cold on his face was like shards of ice. Since he was a child, his mother had single-handedly raised him through incredible hardship. For this reason, the word "mother" represented the softest part of his heart, the one thing he could not tolerate anyone touching—his reverse scale. Yet now, some reckless fool who didn't know his place had dared to lay hands on his mother, all to try and capture *him*. How could Chen Fei possibly let this slide?!

"Well... alright," Lin Ling nodded reluctantly.

"Director Wang, my son would like to have a word with you." She then passed the phone to Wang Dazhi.

"No, I..." Wang Dazhi's face immediately grew frantic. At this moment, however, he didn't dare refuse Chen Fei's call. Steeling himself, he took the phone. "Hello? Hello, this is..."

"Hmph!" Before he could finish, a cold snort echoed from the receiver, followed by an exceptionally cold and cruel voice. "You're Wang Dazhi? Good. You're very good!"

"Th-that's not it, I... I'm sorry, I truly didn't know you were acquainted with Director Zhu and Mayor Huang. Plus, the other party was a leader from the Capital City's Public Security Bureau, so some misunderstandings were inevitable. Now that it's all been cleared up, please don't take offense," Wang Dazhi explained hurriedly, his tone panicked as sweat beaded on his forehead.

His reasoning seemed plausible. After all, Chen Weishan was a high-ranking, deputy department-level leader from the Capital City's Public Security Bureau. Wang Dazhi, on the other hand, was just the deputy director of a small county police station. How could he have dared to show disrespect?

But the problem was that Chen Fei didn't want to talk to him alone to listen to reason. His intent was pure and direct: he was here to cause trouble.

You motherfucker, you dare to touch my mom, and I'm supposed to reason with you? In your dreams!

"A misunderstanding?" Chen Fei's voice and expression turned cold. "Don't you think you're oversimplifying things?"

"No..." Wang Dazhi's expression changed slightly. "Little brother, I know I was in the wrong this time, but as the saying goes, it's better to resolve animosity than to create it. Besides, to be honest, the Director of the Chengyang County Public Security Bureau, Wang Ye, is my cousin! My cousin also knows Director Zhu and Mayor Huang, so you could say we're all on the same side... There's no need to be so rigid over such a small matter, is there?"

Hearing Chen Fei's young voice, a sliver of false hope bloomed in his heart. He figured that even if this kid had some connections, he couldn't possibly be as formidable as Director Zhu had made him out to be. Besides, he, Wang Dazhi, was the cousin of Wang Ye, the Director of the Chengyang County Public Security Bureau! They were all insiders. He was owed some face, so why blow a trivial misunderstanding so far out of proportion?

"The Director of the Chengyang County Public Security Bureau, Wang Ye?" On the other end of the line, Chen Fei's lips curved into a flat, cold smile. "It's not that hard to let this matter go. If you agree to one condition, I might just consider letting you off."

Wang Dazhi's face fell once more. However, the names of Director Zhu Qianye and Mayor Huang Tao carried too much weight. In the end, he had no choice but to compromise. "Alright, then. Name your condition."

"Resign from your current position, cut off one of your own arms, hand over all the ill-gotten gains you've amassed from corruption and bribery over the years, and go sit in a prison cell for a few years. Do all that, and then I'll consider letting you go," Chen Fei said nonchalantly.

Normally, he wouldn't stoop to dealing with such a person, but this fool had blindly stumbled onto his reverse scale. This punishment was already exceedingly light.

"You bastard! Don't take it too far! So what if you know Director Zhu? I, Wang Dazhi, am not a nobody! My cousin is Wang Ye, the director of the Chengyang County Public Security Bureau, and he's part of Director Zhu's direct lineage! It's not yet certain whose words carry more weight with Director Zhu! So don't you think for a second that I'm afraid of you!" Wang Dazhi roared, enraged by Chen Fei's outrageous demands.

Truly, greed and the tendency to underestimate the young are fatal flaws. Director Zhu Qianye had already been perfectly clear on the phone, but now, blinded by these very things, Wang Dazhi fell back into delusion. He believed he, Wang Dazhi, was a man of status. He believed that because his cousin was the County Public Security Bureau Director, he himself was untouchable. He felt helpless. He had already been so patient with Chen Fei, time and again, only to be met with these harsh conditions! Forcing him to resign from his post and send himself to prison? What was the difference between that and killing him? He had to be fucking dreaming.

"Taking it too far? I already gave you a chance, but you didn't know how to cherish it. Fine. We'll leave it at that for now." Chen Fei's voice was devoid of pity. Then, to Wang Dazhi's horror, he heard the buzz of a dial tone. The line went dead.

"Bah! What a piece of trash!"

CRASH!

Spitting, Wang Dazhi's face turned ashen with rage. Despite the arrogant attitude that sent an inexplicable shiver through his heart, he couldn't stop himself. He slammed Lin Ling's phone onto the ground, smashing it to smithereens.

"What are you doing!? That's not your phone!" Aunt Deng shouted in anger.

But Wang Dazhi's reaction was far more extreme than she could have imagined. He actually drew his service pistol, glaring viciously at her. "Shut the fuck up! Do you believe I won't blow your head off right now?"

"You..." Aunt Deng immediately fell silent, her eyes filled with fear as she looked at the seemingly unhinged Wang Dazhi and his drawn gun.

Lin Ling, in contrast, remained relatively calm. She wasn't angry about her phone, nor was she frightened by the gun. With her level of skill, even though she had yet to reach the Innate realm, an ordinary pistol posed no real threat to her. There was nothing to fear. The next moment, she looked at the snarling Deputy Director Wang and said calmly, "Director Wang, I'm not a criminal or a suspect. Isn't it a bit inappropriate for you to be pointing a gun at us?"

"None of your business! I'm telling you, this was all a misunderstanding. Now that it's cleared up, we should all let it go peacefully! Otherwise, don't think I, Wang Dazhi, am a pushover. On my turf here in Chengyang County, I've never been afraid of anyone! Understand?" Wang Dazhi glared fiercely at Lin Ling.

Lin Ling remained silent. She finally understood the reason for his sudden change in attitude. It must be that boy... sigh, didn't he say everything was already settled? Why go this far...

"Remember what I said. He's young and foolish, but don't tell me you're the same as him! In any case, if you two push this too far, don't blame me for being merciless. Hmph! We're leaving!" Seeing that Lin Ling wasn't responding, Wang Dazhi, putting on a brave front, continued to bluster. Finally, with a sharp snort, he turned and left. The wail of police sirens faded into the distance.

"Little Lin, they're gone. Ptui! What a bunch of shameless cowards who bully the weak and fear the strong." Only after seeing Wang Dazhi and the other officers from the Xicheng Police Station drive away did Aunt Deng emerge from her fear, cursing as she clutched her heaving chest. She was, after all, an ordinary and rather timid woman. She had never experienced something as terrifying as having a gun pointed at her; it was remarkable she had held it together this long.

"Sister Deng, I'm so sorry. I really got you mixed up in this today." Lin Ling turned to Aunt Deng with a grateful smile. Whether or not she had been able to help, the gesture alone was heartwarming enough.

"Oh, Little Lin, don't be so formal with me! If it weren't for your son, Xiaofei, my Yi Shu would still be locked up in that police station. I may just be a simple housewife, an ordinary citizen, but I know to repay a debt of gratitude. A person must have a conscience. I can see you got a fright today, too. Come on, I'll walk you home. Xiaofei should be back soon, right?" Aunt Deng said.

"Yes, he said he's on his way now. I told him not to come back since everything was settled, but he insisted... He should be here in about two hours," Lin Ling replied.

"What do you mean, 'settled'? Look at your phone! He smashed it to bits, and it wasn't even his! He should have to pay for it!" Aunt Deng grew indignant. "Those guys only know how to bully the weak and fear the strong. If not for Xiaofei, I'd be the one getting hauled away right now. Just think what would have happened if we'd actually been taken to the station! Come on, I'll walk you home. We'll talk more when Xiaofei gets back."

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