Can't Lose Face, Slap Him Twice

The people's will.

The people's hopes.

Lin Fan knew full well that in this world, power flowed like water. Only the people's support was as unyielding as iron.

Now he was using the power he had to accomplish progressive things and win the people's hearts.

It also left him a way out.

"Are kings and nobles born to their station?" After all.

This was a trump card every transmigrator had to keep ready at all times.

Hu Mansion wasn't far from the Security Bureau, but he didn't hurry back. He strolled around Yong'an City instead. When the people who knew the eldest young master of the Hu family saw that face, they blinked in disbelief.

In a teahouse by the street, a young man holding a teacup narrowed his eyes and glanced over casually. He immediately choked and began coughing violently, pointing at the street with a trembling finger.

"Cough, cough... Isn't that... that guy from the Hu family?"

"Which one?"

"Good heavens!"

"It's Hu Yu?!"

Exclamations rippled rapidly through the crowd.

Many people who hadn't known what was going on followed the shocked gazes and pointing fingers of those around them. Once they got a clear look, they too sucked in a sharp breath and whispered among themselves in disbelief.

Were the people from the Security Bureau really that brazen?

They even dared to lay hands on someone from the Hu family?

At first, Hu Yu had shouted furiously, threatening to wipe out Lin Fan's whole family one moment and declaring him a dead man the next. But after Lin Fan slapped him a few times in public, he quieted down at once.

He stopped shouting and swearing.

He lowered his head obediently, and no one knew what was going through his mind.

Whatever it was, it couldn't be good.

Security Bureau.

Xu Ming stood by the entrance, watching for someone. He hadn't gone back to the squad room to work. When the officer on gate duty came out to ask what was going on, Xu Ming waved him off, indicating everything was fine.

He already knew Shopkeeper Wang had found Lin Fan.

But he didn't know how things had gone.

The Security Bureau was in turmoil. Headman Chen had been badly injured and taken away for treatment, while his trusted men were consumed with thoughts of how to save face and avenge him.

"Xu Ming, what the hell are you standing here like a door god for? Did you do the thing I told you to do?"

The trusted officers who had taken Headman Chen to the clinic had returned. Seeing Xu Ming standing there in a daze, they were already in a foul mood, and now their anger flared all the more.

They strode over and kicked him hard in the small of the back.

Caught off guard, Xu Ming stumbled and fell to the ground, but he didn't dare make a sound.

It was perfectly normal for a regular officer to beat a rookie officer. If you wanted to work, then work. If not, get lost.

The young masters who had just joined the Security Bureau were also shaken by the sight. They'd known the bureau was corrupt and chaotic, and that bullying was rampant, but they hadn't imagined it could be this bad.

Of course, given their status, the old hands were still quite friendly to them.

That friendliness, however, was built on their silver.

Xu Ming got up without a word, a muddy footprint left on his trouser leg. He said nothing. His only chance to turn his life around was today. He didn't trust Headman Chen, and he didn't trust Captain Song. The only person who might bring him a glimmer of hope was Lin Fan, another rookie officer like himself.

He didn't know why he thought Lin Fan was his glimmer of hope. He just had a feeling deep down.

"Have you gone deaf? I asked you a question. Did you get it done or not?" Seeing that Xu Ming didn't answer, Zhao Fu grew even angrier and raised his hand to hit him again.

He was already in a foul mood.

Seeing Xu Ming act so ungrateful only made him angrier.

Just then, a commotion of approaching footsteps and voices rose from the street corner, drawing everyone's attention in an instant.

Xu Ming saw the large group coming and felt a rush of joy. He spotted Lin Fan, as well as Shopkeeper Wang beside him, excitedly gesturing and explaining something. The shopkeeper was nothing like the despairing, defeated man he'd been earlier.

Xu Ming searched anxiously behind them. When he saw that unmistakable, arrogant face being hauled along like a dead dog, his heart leaped so violently it nearly jumped into his throat!

They really arrested him. Brother Lin really did it.

At that moment, Lin Fan reached the entrance of the Security Bureau. He looked calmly at Headman Chen's trusted men, then turned his eyes to Xu Ming. Shopkeeper Wang had told him that the officer who wanted to meet him was named Xu Ming.

Yang Ming had told him about Xu Ming's situation. He'd been at the Security Bureau for years and was still a rookie officer. His family was ordinary, and he'd once been recommended as a token gesture when a high-ranking official toured the area.

"Young Master Hu."

The trusted officers stared at Hu Yu in custody, all of them stunned.

Hearing their voices, Hu Yu suddenly lifted his head, overjoyed. "Zhao Fu, hurry and save me! Where's Headman Chen? Get him out here and have him release me! That bastard came to Hu Mansion to arrest me. I want him dead!"

Smack!

Without even looking at him, Lin Fan casually slapped him across the face, then turned to Zhao Fu. "Were you behind what happened at Shopkeeper Wang's tavern? Were you the one who framed his child?"

Under Lin Fan's steady gaze, Zhao Fu's throat bobbed. Sweat broke out on his back. He was a regular officer, while the other man was only a rookie, yet he was afraid.

It was as if the man standing before him wasn't a human being, but a man-eating tiger.

That gaze, that presence—

They weighed on him until he could barely breathe.

"L-Lin Fan, don't push it too far," Zhao Fu finally managed to stammer.

Lin Fan snorted with laughter and looked at Xu Ming. "You're Xu Ming?"

"Brother Lin, I'm Xu Ming."

"Shopkeeper Wang told me about you. Interested in working with me?" Lin Fan offered him a chance. He was short-handed. Apart from himself, only the headmen and Yang Ming could get things done. Sometimes, he had to ask the brothers at the docks to drop their work and help out.

It was rather inconvenient.

Xu Ming didn't hesitate for even a moment. "I'm willing. I'm in."

Zhao Fu's expression darkened. Lin Fan was poaching one of Headman Chen's men right in front of him. No matter how little Headman Chen favored Xu Ming, he was still one of his men.

"Who kicked you?" Lin Fan saw the footprint on Xu Ming's trouser leg and the dust on his clothes, and understood what had happened. "Forget it. Since you're working with me now, I can't let you lose face. Give him two slaps."

"Yes, Brother Lin."

At that moment, Xu Ming felt a rush of blood surge straight to his head. He strode toward Zhao Fu.

"You dare?"

Zhao Fu roared in fury.

Xu Ming's gaze sharpened. Without the slightest hesitation, he raised his hand.

Smack! Smack!

Two crisp, ringing slaps landed squarely on Zhao Fu's face. They hit so hard that his head snapped to the side, and vivid red handprints immediately appeared on his cheek.

The whole place fell deathly silent!

Those two slaps left Zhao Fu stunned. The burning pain on his face and the crushing humiliation instantly overwhelmed his reason.

He hadn't thought Xu Ming would actually dare lay hands on him.

"Xu Ming, I'll fucking kill you!" Zhao Fu bellowed furiously. With a metallic clang, he drew his saber, its gleaming blade pointed straight at Xu Ming. "I'll butcher you, you filthy bastard!"

The surrounding officers were dumbstruck. They naturally wanted to shout along, but Lin Fan's ruthless methods flashed through their minds. Besides, this hadn't happened to them, so they swallowed their anger.

Xu Ming lifted his chin, the corners of his mouth curling in a faintly smug smile. He wasn't the least bit flustered, as if to say, Go on, if you've got the guts.

Seeing the saber drawn, Hu Yu shrieked, "Zhao Fu, what are you waiting for? Cut him down! He's just a rookie officer. What are you afraid of?"

Lin Fan smiled. "Young Master Hu, was he the one doing your dirty work?"

"So what if he was? Everyone in the Security Bureau works for me. Lin, remember what you've done to me. I'll make you pay for every bit of it, a hundred times over, a thousand times over, even ten thousand times over." Even now, Young Master Hu still didn't understand how serious things were. He continued to bluster.

Zhao Fu's mind was in chaos. Hu Yu's words didn't even register. While he stood there dazed, Lin Fan kicked him to the ground. As soon as he lifted his head, Lin Fan waved a hand.

"Take him."

Xu Ming obeyed without a word. He seized Zhao Fu's wrist, braced a knee against his back, and forced him to the ground. Zhao Fu yelped in pain. "Let go of me! Lin, what are you trying to do? I'm a regular officer! You're just a rookie, and you dare defy your superior? What are you all standing around for?"

The surrounding officers took a step forward, some of them reaching for the hilts of their sabers.

But when Lin Fan's gaze swept over each of them like a cold blade, the invisible pressure made their scalps tingle. Not a single one dared to step forward.

He'd cowed them into submission.

Lin Fan said coldly, "Zhao Fu, as an officer, you took bribes from Hu Yu and framed an innocent person. You've committed a crime under the law. I'm arresting you today and sending you to the jail for interrogation. I advise you to think carefully about how you're going to confess."

He swept his hand through the air. "Take him away."

He led them into the Security Bureau.

Everyone left behind felt as if they were floating among the clouds, lost in a fog of confusion and uncertainty.

The onlookers stood with their mouths agape, unable to close them for a long time.

Was this really something they could witness?

It was something they'd never even dared imagine happening in their entire lives.