Collusion in the Shadows

After the chubby man called the police, Yin Xiaoya grew somewhat worried.

She grabbed Xiao Yao’s hand and whispered anxiously, "What should we do now? You hit someone, and Director Chang's injuries look quite severe. Won't you be detained?"

Xiao Yao patted Yin Xiaoya's hand, comforting her, "Don't worry, it's fine. This fat man has a treacherous look on his face; he's clearly no good. How dare he harass you—getting slapped twice is letting him off lightly. We are the ones in the right. Besides, I have a friend at the municipal bureau, so nothing will happen."

Hearing that Xiao Yao had an acquaintance at the municipal bureau, Yin Xiaoya finally set her mind at ease.

The police car arrived very quickly. From the moment the chubby man made the call until the two police officers walked through the door, less than ten minutes had passed in total.

The two officers differed significantly in age. One looked to be in his early twenties, likely a rookie who had just started working. The other was much older, appearing to be over forty.

Seeing the two officers walk in, the chubby man instantly found his backbone. He hurried forward to greet them, shaking hands warmly with the middle-aged officer while saying, "Director Fei, your response time is truly impressive. It took only eight or nine minutes to get here so fast. You really are the protectors of the people."

"You are too kind, Director Chang. As police officers, we treat the people's emergencies as our own. When the masses encounter difficulties, it is only natural for us to arrive at the very first moment."

After the pleasantries, the middle-aged officer took the initiative to ask, "Director Chang's facial injuries look quite serious. What is this all about?"

Fatty Chang quickly spun a heavily biased account of events, while Supervisor Lin chimed in from the side, adding supplementary details from time to time.

Upon hearing Chang's narrative, the middle-aged officer assumed a righteous and stern expression. "This is simply outrageous! Not only did these two young people try to turn things upside down and shift the blame, but they actually dared to resort to violence and hit someone. People like this should be brought back to the station for a few days of detention and made to taste some hardship."

"Director Fei is completely right. Brutes like this who resort to blows at the drop of a hat certainly deserve to be detained through dictatorial means for a period of time. Once scum like him spends a few days tasting hardship in the detention center, he's bound to behave himself when he comes out." A look of bitter resentment and smug triumph surfaced on Fatty Chang's face.

He had specifically called Director Fei and asked him to handle the matter personally precisely so that the little punk who hit him would be taught a lesson. Otherwise, for such a minor issue—especially when he was entirely in the right—there would really be no need to put Director Fei to the trouble of a personal visit.

Although his father and Director Fei shared a close relationship where wining and dining expenses weren't strictly separated, this Director Fei was somewhat greedy, and his appetite for kickbacks was rather unsightly. Since he was asking Director Fei for such a small favor today, he would undoubtedly have to bleed heavily with some compensation another day.

Even though offering perks to Director Fei was unavoidable, Fatty Chang didn't begrudge it in the least. To vent the foul qi pent up in his chest, he was perfectly willing to spend however much money it took.

He had grown up cradled in luxury, accustomed solely to bullying others. No one had ever dared to bully him, let alone strike him.

Being slapped twice by Xiao Yao today was viewed by Fatty Chang as an ultimate humiliation. He was determined to exact double the payback for this disgrace.

Director Fei walked up to Xiao Yao with a solemn expression, first pulling out his identification card to show Xiao Yao, and then speaking with official stiffness, "You're the one who threw the punches, right? Your actions have already violated the law. According to relevant regulations, you are looking at a minimum of 15 days of detention. Director Chang's injuries look quite severe, and we will need to have a forensic medical evaluation done later. If it constitutes minor bodily harm, it won't just be detention—you very well might face criminal prosecution."

After offering this intimidation, Director Fei continued, "I now have a general understanding of the situation. The few parties involved will accompany me back to the station first—those who need statements taken will give statements, and those who need to be detained will be detained."

Having finished his intimidation, Director Fei turned his head toward the young officer and ordered, "Xiao Liu, put the cuffs on this young man. He has violent tendencies and is a dangerous individual; we must be careful."

The young officer hadn't been on the job long, so he naturally wanted to perform well in front of the deputy director. He produced a pair of handcuffs, strode up to Xiao Yao, and warned, "Behave yourself and don't resist. If you dare to assault an officer, the charges will only be much heavier."

Xiao Yao glared at the young officer and said, "What kind of society is this, that you actually dare to pull off these kinds of underhanded, collusive stunts? It seems the uniforms on your backs are no longer wanted!"

Staring into Xiao Yao's glare, the young officer suddenly felt a shiver run down his spine. He stood frozen in place, utterly lacking the courage to put the cuffs on Xiao Yao.

The young officer's abnormal behavior wasn't due to a lack of courage, but rather because Xiao Yao had secretly exerted a trace of spiritual energy. For an ordinary person, this trace of spiritual power was already formidable; the fact that the young officer hadn't been scared out of his wits was a testament to his baseline nerve.

"Xiao Liu, what is wrong with you? Hurry up and cuff him!" Director Fei commanded once more.

"You don't need to make things difficult for him. I advise you to calm down as well. I just called Jiang Shuwei a moment ago, and he will be here very soon. You'd better wait," Xiao Yao said indifferently.

The middle-aged officer's expression shifted drastically. "You aren't just blowing hot air, are you? Bureau Chief Jiang is a man of busy affairs; why would he personally come out to handle such a trivial matter?"

Though Director Fei didn't fully believe Xiao Yao's words, deep down he felt extremely jittery.

What if the young man in front of him was telling the truth? If so, he would have truly kicked a steel plate.

He was merely a lowly deputy director, separated from the head bureau chief by a vast chasm. The bureau had been cracking down hard on police conduct and discipline lately, and standard-compliant, regulated procedures were required even after responding to a call. His actions today were riddled with massive loopholes; if he were caught red-handed by the bureau chief, he would genuinely become a negative example.

"Do you think I have any reason to lie to you? This is something that will be exposed in a moment. I'm not a fool—what use is lying to you for fun?" Xiao Yao looked at the middle-aged officer and said coldly.

"May I ask your esteemed surname?" The middle-aged officer's attitude instantly turned courteous, his gaze even carrying a hint of ingratiating obsequiousness.

"Now you remember to ask my name? Where was that attitude just now? You didn't even bother to clarify my name before blindly showing favoritism. Is your investigative procedure still stuck ten years in the past? Even if the chubby man has financial entanglements with you, this was far too blatant. You're actually quite lucky you haven't been stripped of that uniform by now." Toward such a petty villain abusing his authority, Xiao Yao naturally wouldn't put on a pleasant face.

Thick-skinned as he was, the middle-aged officer put on a flattering smile and said, "You are completely right. I was indeed far too emotional today and failed to strictly follow the investigative procedures. It was my fault."