Chapter 56: The Future Brother-in-Law and a Sinister Plot

“Brother Liu, you called us together so suddenly. Is something the matter?”

After school let out for lunch, Liu Hong’s text message had foiled Zhou Lin and Wang Jian’s grand plans for the internet cafe. They had no choice but to dutifully follow Liu Hong to a small restaurant near the school.

Though Zhou Lin spoke, his hands were busy ordering without a hint of hesitation. He systematically ordered every single signature dish on the menu, leaving the young waiter utterly dumbfounded.

Liu Hong, however, paid no mind to this extravagance. His brows were tightly furrowed, giving him the appearance of someone grappling with an insurmountable problem.

Having already settled into his seat, Wang Jian subtly reached out and pinched Zhou Lin’s thigh.

Zhou Lin, who had been happily ordering, nearly yelped aloud.

As he rubbed his throbbing thigh, Zhou Lin glared angrily at Wang Jian, only to see Wang Jian subtly gesturing towards Liu Hong with his eyes.

Zhou Lin looked over, a puzzled expression on his face, and noticed that Liu Hong’s troubled demeanor was far from his usual self.

Losing his appetite for ordering, Zhou Lin waved his hand at the waiter, urging them to quickly prepare their meal.

Once the waiter had departed, Zhou Lin pondered for a moment before addressing Liu Hong.

“Brother Liu, have you finally given up on Su Yao?”

Zhou Lin knew, even without thinking too deeply, that the only reason for Liu Hong’s sudden change was related to Su Yao. His question was tinged with a hint of delight.

He imagined the dozens of girls’ contact numbers he held, finally about to be put to good use. From the very beginning, Zhou Lin had never been optimistic about Liu Hong’s pursuit.

Now, it seemed, the saga had finally concluded. It was a good thing!

“Get lost! How could I ever give up on her? Not in this lifetime! Even if I jumped from a building, even if I plunged into the sea, I would never give up on Su Yao!”

However, upon hearing Zhou Lin’s gleeful words, Liu Hong simply rolled his eyes. He then spoke with resolute conviction, declaring that he would absolutely never abandon his pursuit.

Zhou Lin scoffed, utterly deflated. Losing interest in further questions, he simply grabbed a nearby cola and chugged it down.

‘So, he hasn’t given up pursuing Su Yao,’ he thought. ‘Why then is he wearing such a miserable, aggrieved expression? Is he just bored?’

“Brother Liu, what kind of trouble have you run into? Tell us about it. Maybe we can help you brainstorm some ideas.”

Unlike Zhou Lin, who had lost interest, Wang Jian suddenly spoke up.

Liu Hong hesitated for a moment, then finally nodded, unwilling to keep it bottled up any longer.

“I offended my future brother-in-law.”

The moment the words left his mouth, Zhou Lin, who was mid-sip of cola, let out a loud ‘Pfft!’

Fortunately, Wang Jian was quick, deftly pushing Zhou Lin’s face to the side. The cola sprayed directly onto the face of a student at the next table, leaving them fuming but too intimidated to confront them.

Zhou Lin clearly looked like a petty hoodlum, and Liu Hong, seated beside him, was an even bigger name at school. Liu Hong’s fists were known to send people to the hospital.

Moreover, he never relented; even hospitalizations weren’t the end of it. Eventually, a transfer to another school would mark the true conclusion.

Such individuals were not to be provoked. Encountering a mad dog meant simply accepting one’s bad luck.

“Brother Liu! My dearest brother, you and Su Yao haven’t even gotten started, so how is a ‘brother-in-law’ already in the picture? Besides, Su Yao is an only child, isn’t she? I’ve never heard of her having a younger brother!”

Zhou Lin ignored everything else, quickly turning to Liu Hong, his face etched with worry, and pressed for an explanation.

Hearing this, Liu Hong immediately shot Zhou Lin a glare, but then he didn’t hold back.

“The police officer who came today was Su Yao’s uncle, and Lin Qing is her uncle’s child…”

As Liu Hong spoke, his face became even more clouded with worry.

‘Why am I so unlucky?’ he thought.

Not only had he made a fool of himself in front of Su Yao, but he had repeatedly offended his future brother-in-law. If only he had known the relationship between Su Yao and Lin Qing earlier, he would have treated Lin Qing like a revered elder, showering him with good food and drink.

“My goodness, is that true? Lin Qing has such a background? I always saw him getting bullied by Wang Fanran and never speaking up, so I assumed he had no connections!”

While Liu Hong was caught in his turmoil, Zhou Lin was equally astounded. His eyes widened in disbelief, his face a mask of shock.

He never imagined Lin Qing possessed such a formidable background! The “Director Ye” who had arrived earlier—just hearing the title suggested a high-ranking official.

Despite such an impressive background, Lin Qing had remained silent. This was truly a case of ‘playing the pig to eat the tiger’!

“There are some special reasons why Lin Qing couldn’t say anything directly.”

“Oh, Brother Liu, you don’t need to worry so much. My relationship with Lin Qing is quite good. A meal together, and we’ll be familiar again.” Zhou Lin immediately waved his hand with a laugh, speaking with an overly familiar air, trying to reassure Liu Hong.

Wang Jian, sitting nearby, shook his head. He picked up a few peanuts with his chopsticks and placed them on Zhou Lin’s plate, wondering, ‘We haven’t even had any alcohol today!’

‘What nonsense is Zhou Lin spouting?’ he thought. ‘Who was it that publicly grabbed Lin Qing by the collar, threw him to the ground, and sent him straight to the hospital?’

“Have you forgotten? I took on Chen Sen’s request to protect Wang Fanran at school. It was precisely because of that Wang Fanran grew bolder, later teaming up with Li Dong to target Lin Qing.”

Liu Hong saw Zhou Lin’s chest-thumping bravado and knew the boy hadn’t considered the full implications. He then openly voiced his concerns.

Zhou Lin paused, then stuck out his tongue and tapped his head, feigning a sudden recollection.

Wang Jian felt a surge of nausea at such a display of cuteness and quickly took a sip of his drink to suppress it.

“Indeed, we truly have offended Lin Qing!” Zhou Lin conceded.

“That’s why I don’t know what to do,” Liu Hong added, his worry deepening. “Fortunately, Lin Qing dodged in time and wasn’t stabbed by Li Dong, otherwise my guilt would be even greater!”

“Hey, Brother Liu, I know exactly what we should do!” As he spoke, Zhou Lin slapped his thigh, then grinned, speaking words that immediately drew bewildered glances from both Liu Hong and Wang Jian.

They wondered what brilliant idea he could possibly have.

“Since all of this is Wang Fanran’s fault, we just need to catch him and give him a good beating. We can even film a video of him admitting his wrongdoing and show it to Lin Qing later, as a sincere gesture of our apology.”

Wang Jian rolled his eyes at Zhou Lin’s terrible idea. Just as he was about to speak, Liu Hong’s words preempted him.

“That’s right, it’s all because of Wang Fanran. Let’s go teach him a lesson right now.”

****

“Chen Sen, it’s all because of you! My life is completely ruined! The police are about to catch me, and I don’t want to go to prison! If you don’t help me, I’ll report you to the police!”

Inside a certain escape room, Wang Fanran, his face bruised and swollen, cried out furiously, his words laced with undeniable menace.

Chen Sen, listening from behind another wall, had a gloomy glint in his eyes. He found Wang Fanran’s escalating demands utterly tiresome.

However, Wang Fanran was now officially on record, and no further mishaps could be afforded. While he no longer held the initial high expectations for the incompetent Wang Fanran, given his fervent insistence, now was the opportune time to fully immerse him in his work.

No longer would he need to attend school. He could finally carry out that specific task.

“I will protect you, but you must fulfill the previous agreement twofold.”

“I can do even more, but you must make Lin Qing experience the torments of hell!” Wang Fanran spoke, his expression twisted and menacing.

Chen Sen couldn’t help but smile, waiting to see what Wang Fanran was truly capable of. He hoped the iron cages in the basement would soon gain many new members!