Chapter Forty-Four: Surrounding the Police Station (Part One)

That’s right—this was precisely what Liu Fan had instructed Zhang Yi to do earlier: make a copy of the surveillance footage from the hotel as evidence.

“Heh, alright, you all don’t need to worry. Third Brother is far too clever to attempt anything he isn’t certain of. Look, what’s this?” With the video copy now in hand, Zhang Yi was visibly more at ease. Seeing the others still anxious and upset, he grinned and joked in an attempt to lighten the mood.

Chen Yazhi, her nerves still frayed, saw Zhang Yi joking at such a time and immediately gave him a sharp rap on the head. Her face clouded with anger as she scolded, “How can you still laugh at a time like this? Liu Fan treats you as a brother, yet you’re acting so heartless. Do you have any conscience left?”

The others, too, glared at him with open hostility.

Zhang Yi had only meant to comfort them and ease their tension, but instead, he received a heavy knock on the head for his efforts. Rubbing his head and hopping in pain, he complained, “Cousin, I was just trying to lighten the atmosphere! Do you really need to hit me so hard? Do you really think I’m that kind of person? You’re all so worried you’ve lost your heads. Besides, do you think Third Brother’s the type to let himself get taken advantage of? Not in a million years!”

“You still dare to argue—” Chen Yazhi threatened to hit him again, and this time Zhang Yi didn’t dare joke further. With a serious face, he said, “Actually, Third Brother told me his plan before he left. See, I’ve already got the surveillance disc from the hotel. That’s our evidence. Plus, if you all call your families for support, we’ll have a two-pronged attack. By then, we’ll have that fat pig and those thugs begging for mercy!”

Only now did the three women realize their panic had led them to overlook such obvious solutions—their concern for Liu Fan had clouded their judgment.

“Oh, why didn’t I think of that? I’ll call my uncle right away!” Sun Junyao exclaimed, slapping her thigh in excitement.

“Junyao, your uncle’s in the military—he might not have much sway locally. I think I should call my dad; he can definitely help.” Zhao Wanyi, who had known Sun Junyao since childhood, was well aware of her family background.

“But even if Uncle Zhao is the provincial party secretary, his influence might not reach as far as Shanghai. I think my uncle should just bring his men and get my future brother-in-law out first!”

“Let’s not argue—what matters is getting Liu Fan out safely as soon as possible. How about this: you both call your families. That way, we’ll cover all bases and be even more secure,” Chen Yazhi interjected, seeing the conversation going in circles.

The two women nodded in agreement and immediately took out their phones to make their calls.

Meanwhile, in distant Hangzhou, Zhao Changshan was reviewing documents in his office when his phone rang. Seeing it was his daughter, he answered with a warm, hearty voice: “Hello, sweetheart! What made you think of calling your old dad today? How’s school? Is someone bullying you? If they are, just tell me and I’ll handle it for you.”

Hearing her father’s gentle, loving tone, Zhao Wanyi felt a wave of warmth wash over her, tears glistening in her beautiful eyes. Composing herself, she explained the situation in detail to Zhao Changshan.

Upon hearing that his daughter had nearly been assaulted, Zhao Changshan was furious. The name Liu Fan also sounded familiar. After a moment’s thought, he asked, “Daughter, is this Liu Fan you mentioned from Hangzhou, and is he skilled in medicine?”

“Hey, how did you know, Dad? He does know medicine, though I’m not sure how good he is. But today, he cured Sister Yazhi’s illness with just two fingers,” Zhao Wanyi replied.

“Good. I’ll take care of this personally. Don’t worry; I guarantee that Liu Fan will be released within the hour.” Zhao Changshan now recognized Liu Fan as the young miracle doctor who had once saved his daughter-in-law and her mother. Hanging up, he immediately made another call.

A similar scene was unfolding in the Wolf Pack Regiment of the East China Military District. Sun Jianguo, in the middle of overseeing training, received a call from his niece. Upon learning what had happened, he flew into a rage and barked at the special forces soldiers on the training ground, “Everyone, assemble!”

Once the troops had gathered, he announced, “I just got word that our chief instructor, Colonel Liu, has been detained at the police substation. What do you think we should do?”

At this, the soldiers erupted, eager to storm the police station. After all, Liu Fan was not only their instructor but also a mentor and a friend—their skills were all thanks to him. In their eyes, he was nothing less than a living legend.

“Alright, I order every man to suit up for action. We roll out in ten minutes!” Sun Jianguo wasted no words, issuing a direct command. Soon, over a thousand soldiers boarded dozens of military trucks and thundered toward Yangpu District...

Oblivious to all that was unfolding outside, Liu Fan was being interrogated in a small room. It was sparsely furnished: just a table and a few chairs, with a glaring spotlight shining directly into his face. Yet he remained calm and unmoved.

“Tell us how you crippled Zhao Qijin and Yamamoto Ichiro’s group. If you confess now, you might get a lighter sentence in court,” said Jiang Kaida, who after half an hour of questioning was visibly exhausted. As deputy captain of the criminal police and the police chief Qian Huafu’s loyal lapdog, he was complicit in Liu Fan’s arrest.

“You’re wasting your breath. I’ve already told you what happened—how many times do you want me to repeat it? Is this the efficiency of your police work?” Liu Fan replied with a mocking smile.

“Watch your mouth, kid. This is the police station. Whether you’re a dragon or a tiger, you do as I say. Don’t refuse a toast only to drink a forfeit!” Jiang Kaida snarled, his face twisted with rage.

“Any luck getting him to confess?” At that moment, Qian Huafu strode in, his face dark.

“Chief Qian, this guy’s as stubborn as a stone in a latrine—filthy and hard as hell. He’s not moved by threats or persuasion,” Jiang Kaida replied helplessly.

“Fine, then let’s get rough. As long as there’s no evidence of injury afterwards, do what you must. This kid has offended the wrong people. Young Master Lu and Boss Jin of the Hatchet Gang have ordered us to destroy him,” Qian Huafu said coldly.

“Haha, then I’ll let him sample the ten infamous tortures of the Qing Dynasty.” Clearly, this was not the first time they’d done such things—their proficiency spoke of countless innocent victims.

Though they spoke in hushed voices, none of their words escaped Liu Fan’s ears. Hearing “Young Master Lu,” he immediately realized it was the same man who’d orchestrated the attack on Ning Qi. Suddenly, everything made sense: it was all Lu Hao’s doing. No wonder Zhao Qijin had chosen their private room out of so many—everything had been premeditated.

First, Zhao Qijin had been sent to stir up trouble, leading to Liu Fan beating him up and thus offending the Hatchet Gang. Then, Yamamoto Ichiro—a notorious lecher—had been invited under the pretext of business, so that he’d inevitably be tempted by the presence of three beautiful women. When Yamamoto ended up a eunuch, Liu Fan had made an enemy of the Yamaguchi-gumi as well.

After that, Qian Huafu, the police chief, had arrested Liu Fan on a trumped-up charge of intentional assault, and now they were trying to pin an even more fabricated crime on him to throw him in jail. It was a web of conspiracies, one trap after another—if Liu Fan had been an ordinary man, their scheme might well have succeeded.

“Don’t blame me, kid. You just had the misfortune to cross the wrong people,” Qian Huafu said regretfully as he stepped up to Liu Fan.

“Ha! We’ll see who’s the unlucky one in the end. Be careful you don’t become the real tragedy here,” Liu Fan retorted with a sneer.

“Hmph, still so mouthy at death’s door? Get in here—start with the old chest-breaking stone trick!” Qian Huafu commanded.

At his order, several subordinates eagerly grabbed a sledgehammer and a thin book, ready to torture Liu Fan. But before they could act, Liu Fan suddenly sprang into motion, felling them with a series of whip-like kicks. Clutching their injured bodies, they groaned in pain before quickly passing out.

The abrupt turn of events left Qian Huafu rattled. Hastily drawing his sidearm, he aimed it at Liu Fan. “You dare assault police officers? That’s another charge! You’ll rot in prison for life, haha!”

“Is that funny? Don’t make me laugh—I could turn your face into a pig’s head right now,” Liu Fan replied coldly, feeling almost sorry for Qian Huafu’s utter lack of awareness. Even now, the man didn’t grasp the situation.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Congratulations to “Solitary Dream Remnant” for becoming the novel’s first Hall Master! Two chapters have been updated today; as always, your votes and support are deeply appreciated.