Chapter 34 A Fight Lands Them in the Police Station
Song Ni had no intention of interfering. However, the opposing group numbered around twenty, all armed with sticks, while Li Zi’s side consisted of only ten, including two women who were utterly incapable of fighting. Those two women had already fled in terror. Li Zi’s expression was grim, but they couldn’t run, nor could they back down. For people like them, living and dying was about saving face and holding their ground.
CRASH! Tables and chairs were overturned, beer bottles shattered, and the two groups immediately engaged in a brawl. The other patrons had also fled, leaving only Song Ni’s table. Song Ni calmly sipped a cup of milk, her back to the fight. Tan Zheng sat beside her with a similar air of nonchalance, occasionally eating a skewer.
Within five minutes, Li Zi’s group was beginning to falter. They had no weapons, only chairs and table legs to defend themselves. How could these possibly compare to iron rods? Song Ni finished her milk, silently counting the seconds. When she reached a certain number, she still hadn’t heard Li Zi call for help. Song Ni thought, Li Zi hadn’t changed at all, enduring suffering for the sake of pride, unwilling to even call her even when she was right there. After all, he was someone she had led in high school, and Song Ni couldn’t completely stand by and do nothing. She slowly rolled up her sleeves and smiled at Tan Zheng.
“Let me show you the skills of a school bully,” she said, her smile vanishing instantly as her dark eyes filled with coldness.
“Hey.” Song Ni’s voice was quiet, failing to attract attention. So, she kicked the chair in front of her, hitting the leader of the opposing group squarely on the head. The fighting stopped. Li Zi had been hit with a stick and his right hand was broken. He looked at Song Ni and gasped.
“You don’t need to get involved.” He hadn’t called her boss, precisely to avoid implicating Song Ni. The leader of the other side touched the back of his head, spat to the side, and sneered, “You’d better not meddle in other people’s business.”
But Song Ni was determined to meddle. She glanced at the opposing leader, then looked at Li Zi. “Do you still recognize me as your boss?” Li Zi fell silent. The leader heard this and couldn’t help but laugh. “Boss? Hahahaha, Li Dao, you found a little girl to be your boss? How pathetic are you?” Li Zi could tolerate others looking down on him, but he couldn’t stand it when they looked down on Song Ni.
“You son of a bitch!” He grabbed a table leg and swung it at the man. Three people from the other side immediately surrounded Li Dao, wielding sticks and striking him without restraint. A fierce glint flashed in Song Ni’s eyes. She moved swiftly, arriving beside Li Dao and dealing with those three for him. Her movements were quick, her kicks powerful. After they were knocked to the ground, those three were slow to get back up. The opposing leader narrowed his eyes and sneered, “Got some skills, huh? Let’s see if your hands and feet are tougher than my iron rod.”
Song Ni’s lips tightened as she helped Li Zi to his feet. “Still the same old me.” Li Zi grimaced, the pain making even a smile unbearable. “Boss, be careful, they all have weapons.” Song Ni was certainly not foolish. Fighting hands against iron rods would be asking for trouble. Although she was adept at observing and dodging, the other side had numbers, and iron rods had no eyes. As she thought this, they charged forward. Song Ni reached out, grabbed one attacker’s wrist, twisted it behind him, kicked him away, and then crouched down to pick up the iron rod.
Her fighting style was different from the drills and sparring in the dojo. Song Ni fought with speed, ferocity, and precision, her goal to disable the enemy with a single blow. However, the opposing side was numerous, and Li Zi’s companions had all sustained serious injuries. Even Song Ni was finding it difficult. Having just eaten, these few movements caused her stomach to ache severely. Song Ni’s brow furrowed. She instinctively pressed her abdomen, and in that moment, two attackers swung at her. Song Ni gritted her teeth and dodged one, striking his wrist. The other’s iron rod changed direction, heading towards her head.
“Boss, watch out!” Song Ni, enduring the sharp pain in her abdomen, raised her hand, but her movements were too slow, not nearly enough.
*Bang—* A dull thud. Song Ni looked up in confusion. It was Tan Zheng. That blow had been deflected by his arm, shielding her. Song Ni could no longer think. How had Tan Zheng gotten from his side so quickly? The sound alone made her ache. Yet the man’s expression was unchanged, not even a flicker of his brow. He pulled Song Ni into his embrace and said, “Wait over there.” With that, Tan Zheng took the iron rod from her hand. Unlike Song Ni, Tan Zheng showed no mercy. Each strike targeted the opponent’s most vulnerable points. The ferocity of his attacks was chilling, making one fear that a single blow would end a life.
Just like in car racing, Tan Zheng fought with utter abandon. He blocked an iron rod with his hand, then swung it back towards the opponent’s head. Song Ni watched from the side, her heart trembling. This kind of fighting could easily lead to death, yet Tan Zheng’s blows became increasingly brutal, his eyes carrying a chilling indifference. He didn’t seem to regard the attackers as worthy opponents, and even this chaotic brawl didn’t stir his emotions. It was as if these were trivial matters to him.
The wind picked up, as if to add to the atmosphere. Song Ni suddenly remembered Tang Qin Yun saying that he often bandaged Tan Zheng’s wounds. Tang Qin Yun was dissolute and acted like a ruffian, yet he and Tan Zheng had been friends for a long time. So, was Tan Zheng also a skilled fighter in the past? Song Ni blinked, not dwelling on the thought. She watched as Tan Zheng took down the opponents one by one. He was tall and well-built, his strength formidable, and those men were no match for him.
Even Li Zi found a moment to walk over to Song Ni. “Boss, is your boyfriend really from the underworld?” Song Ni’s heart was in a turmoil. If this continued, they would surely end up in the police station. Her brow furrowed; she didn’t want Tan Zheng to get involved.
“Li Dao.”
“Yes?”
“Find a proper job next time.” Li Dao remained silent for a long, long time. When the police sirens wailed, he finally spoke. “Boss, I’ll listen to you.”
…
At the police station, Tan Zheng and Song Ni sat together, being questioned by the police. This was a major brawling incident, and the station was in chaos. The officer in charge of their case was Qin Dang, the captain of the criminal investigation team, who happened to be free. Song Ni found him familiar and stared at him for a while but couldn’t recall who he was. Before Qin Dang could speak, the station chief arrived.
“Well, what brings Director Du here?” Director Du didn’t respond to him. Following behind him was a person with a head of rebellious silver hair. Who else but Tang Qin Yun? Tang Qin Yun looked at the two people seated and raised an eyebrow. “You two are really something, getting yourselves all the way to the police station.” Tan Zheng couldn’t even be bothered to glance at him. Tang Qin Yun then looked at Song Ni. “Nini, are you hurt?” Song Ni shook her head.
Hearing the name, Captain Qin, who had been sitting there nonchalantly, raised his eyes and glanced at Song Ni. “Director Du, I haven’t even interrogated them yet, and you’re letting them go just like that?” Director Du glared at him. “What’s a criminal investigator like you doing interfering?” Qin Dang’s lips curved into a smile. “I’m a good police officer serving the people.”
(End of Chapter)