Just twenty minutes after Xiao Feng left, a black Mercedes stopped in front of the bar. An elderly man who appeared to be around fifty got out of the car, limping as he walked into the bar, his expression shrouded in a constant gloom.

This man was none other than the father of Zhou Laohu and the captain of the Jiangcheng security team, Zhou Jinxian.

Upon first hearing of his son's troubles, Zhou Jinxian felt a jolt in his heart. He knew about the operation Xiao Feng and the others were carrying out tonight, yet his son happened to get beaten at a place under the Shen Group's name at this exact time. It's hard not to connect these two incidents in one's mind.

At this moment, Zhou Laohu only hoped that the ones who beat his son were not from Xiao Feng's group. Otherwise, his son would have been beaten for nothing, and even his own peaceful retirement could be in jeopardy.

However, Zhou Jinxian's hopes were dashed when he saw Zhao Xingfeng and Wang Qiang; his heart sank significantly.

"Zhou Jinxian?" Upon seeing that the visitor was Zhou Jinxian, Zhao Xingfeng's brow immediately furrowed, and Wang Qiang, along with others, showed varying degrees of displeasure.

It's not that Zhou Jinxian wielded much power; after all, within the jurisdiction of Jiangcheng Public Security Bureau, no one could be bigger than Song Keren.

In fact, Zhou Jinxian had an excellent reputation within the Jiangcheng police circles. Whether dealing with major or minor issues, he was happy to help anyone from grassroots officers to leading cadres. He was seen as a good-natured person by everyone.

Additionally, Zhou Jinxian was a man of integrity and fair in his dealings. Many had asserted that if it weren't for his early injury, with his character and capability, he would have at least reached the level of a provincial cadre.

Zhao Xingfeng and the others looked at the limping Zhou Jinxian, exchanging glances, wondering how a man known for being so amiable could have a son like that?

"Dad, these bastards beat me up, and there's another one that's their leader, but I don't know where he ran off to," Zhou Laohu said excitedly upon seeing Zhou Jinxian.

Unexpectedly, Zhou Jinxian didn't even glance at his son but went directly up to Zhao Xingfeng.

Zhao Xingfeng instinctively straightened up, his right hand habitually moving to salute, but it was quickly stopped by Zhou Jinxian: "Can I have a word with you?"

The two walked out from the crowd, and Zhou Jinxian handed Zhao Xingfeng a cigarette: "My son's disappointing; I've embarrassed you, Officer Zhao. He's our only child and got spoiled; it's my own failing as a father."

Zhao Xingfeng took the cigarette but didn't light it, thinking for a moment, he said, "It's better for you to restrain him a bit, otherwise, sooner or later, he'll cause big trouble."

"Hasn't he already caused big trouble?" Zhou Jinxian said with a bitter smile, "In the past, I tried to make up for what he did to the bullied merchants as much as possible. Maybe this time it's good for him to fall down."

"Let's not talk about this." Zhou Jinxian shifted the topic, "Officer Zhao, may I ask, was it Xiao Feng who beat my son?"

Zhao Xingfeng nodded, noticing the immediate change in Zhou Jinxian's expression.

After a long pause, Zhou Jinxian sighed, "I understand. Charge him with causing a public disturbance, detain him first, and handle it as it should be handled, without considering my feelings."

With that, Zhou Jinxian limped away, his departing figure giving off a sense of desolation.

Zhao Xingfeng lit a cigarette, staring blankly at Zhou Jinxian's retreating back.

He didn't really feel sorry for Zhou Jinxian. If one were to feel sorry for Zhou Jinxian, then what about those bullied by his son Zhou Laohu? Aren't they worthy of pity?

If you don't educate them well when they're young, they'll only cause trouble when they're older; it's a self-inflicted consequence.

The reasoning might be sound, yet Zhao Xingfeng couldn't help but feel a sense of sorrow for this old officer.

After finishing a cigarette, Zhao Xingfeng returned to the scene with Wang Qiang and the others, handcuffing Zhou Laohu. As for how to handle the aftermath, whether Xiao Feng would continue to hold a grudge against Zhou Laohu was no longer his concern.

...

At dawn, Zhang Wan woke up groggily from her sleep.

"You're awake?" Xiao Feng leaned over and asked, "Do you want some water?"

Zhang Wan was startled, seeing the sky brightening through the curtain gaps, she exclaimed, "You didn't stay up all night, did you?"

"No, I dozed off a little after you fell asleep." Xiao Feng smiled, handing over a cup of warm water.

"Thank you!" Zhang Wan took the cup, gulped down half, her mind bursting with myriad thoughts.

Having drunk too much, she couldn't feel anything, but now she couldn't help overthinking—had she made a fool of herself last night when she blacked out?

Did she say anything she shouldn't have, do anything she shouldn't have, but Xiao Feng held back from telling her out of worry for her pride?

Such questions lingered in her mind, yet Zhang Wan felt too embarrassed to ask, wanting to find a hole to crawl into out of shame.

After a long silence, Zhang Wan seemed to remember something, "Oh right, I think I threw up on you last night, let me have your clothes, I'll clean them for you."

"No need, I already threw them in the washing machine, they're probably dry by now." Xiao Feng replied as he walked to the balcony to collect the outerwear drying there.

Zhang Wan felt a little disappointed. If Xiao Feng hadn't cleaned the outerwear himself, she could have taken the opportunity to keep it, and when returning the outerwear, she'd get to see him again.

"It's already daylight, how are you feeling, is your head still dizzy?" Xiao Feng asked with concern.

A hangover's aftereffects aren't easy to shake; it can take at least a morning, or even a day, to feel recovered.

"Much better." Zhang Wan smiled wryly, "If you have things to do, you can head out first, I can take care of myself."

Xiao Feng put on his coat, "Actually, I don't really have anything to do..."

Just as he spoke, his phone rang. Xiao Feng took it out to see it was Song Keren calling.

After listening for a while, Xiao Feng's expression turned somewhat odd, "Okay, I'll be over right away."

Ending the call, Xiao Feng gave an apologetic smile, but before he could speak, Zhang Wan said first, "Go ahead with your business, and thank you for everything last night!"

Xiao Feng smiled, "Do you remember what I told you yesterday?"

"Wha-what did you say?" Zhang Wan suddenly became anxious, quickly recalling last night's events.

"I told you not to drink at bars alone anymore, if you do go, take me with you." Xiao Feng reminded her with a smile.

Zhang Wan nodded, "Got it, I'll take you with me next time."

After Xiao Feng left, Zhang Wan immediately buried her head into the blanket, revealing a happy smile.

She remembered clearly, Xiao Feng had said that she shouldn't go drinking alone at bars anymore and didn't add that she should take him with her.

This hinted at what, Zhang Wan didn't dare to speculate wildly, but at least it gave her another reason to contact him, which was enough to make her very happy!

Much later, Zhang Wan got up, pulled open the curtains, letting the golden sunshine pour over her, as if dispelling all the gloom in her heart.

At that moment, she had a change of mind. Since she couldn't forget him, why not stop obsessing over forgetting and focus on improving herself?

Only by doing so could she keep up with his pace and perhaps help him through challenges at some point.

Zhang Wan didn't know why she felt this way, only her intuition told her that Xiao Feng's future achievements were beyond her imagination. To avoid being left behind, and not become a useless burden, she could only start working hard.

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