That Morning in the Tea House

On the morning that Luo Feng was released from the detention center, in an ancient-style tea house in Yian District, a private room contained only Zhou Huayang and Zhang Haobai. The steam rose from the cups in front of them, filling the air with fragrance.

“Brother Zhou, why did you call me here so early? What’s going on?” Zhang Haobai asked in a low voice, “Has there been a result regarding that matter? If it’s settled, don’t worry, money is definitely not a problem.” Zhang Haobai was somewhat eager to know if Luo Feng had indeed suffered a broken leg or an arm.

Zhou Huayang sat there, his expression gradually darkening, remaining silent.

“Brother Zhou?”

Zhang Haobai felt the atmosphere was off and whispered, “Brother Zhou, can you say something?”

“Zhang Haobai, you are ruthless; you want to find death and drag me down with you,” Zhou Huayang sneered at Zhang Haobai.

“What’s wrong with me?” Zhang Haobai was confused and urgently said, “Brother Zhou, what’s going on? Please explain clearly.” He sensed that Zhou Huayang’s tone and expression were not right, but Zhang Haobai truly did not know what had happened.

Zhou Huayang took a deep breath and said solemnly, “Zhang Haobai, you asked me to hire someone to break Luo Feng’s leg and arm, right?”

“Yes, what about it?” Zhang Haobai nodded.

“Hmph, what’s wrong?” Zhou Huayang’s voice turned icy, mocking, “The Luo Feng you want to deal with is a quasi-warrior!”

“A quasi-warrior?” Zhang Haobai was stunned.

Silence.

The room fell silent; Zhang Haobai’s face turned pale as he sat there motionless, beads of sweat oozing from his forehead.

Zhou Huayang, with a cold smile, sat beside him, sipping tea cup after cup, not saying a word.

“How can this be? How could this happen?” Zhang Haobai no longer felt jealousy; all that remained was fear! His family was wealthy, and he knew well the privileges of quasi-warriors... He had actually hired someone to break a quasi-warrior's leg and arm; the quasi-warrior could easily have the security bureau of Jiangnan City come after him.

Once he entered the security bureau, his life would be over!

“No, no…” Zhang Haobai's face turned ashen.

“Now you’re scared, huh?” Zhou Huayang slammed his cup down on the table angrily, shouting, “D*mn it, you fool! If you really want to die, don’t drag me down with you! A quasi-warrior! You want me to arrange for someone to break a quasi-warrior's leg and arm? Once he reports it to the security bureau, I’ll be in deep trouble!”

Zhou Huayang gritted his teeth in anger.

“Brother Zhou, what should I do? What should I do?” Zhang Haobai repeatedly asked, “I don’t want to be caught by the security bureau; tell me what I should do now!”

The security bureau…

To ordinary citizens, it was a mysterious and terrifying place. If the security bureau was sent to arrest someone, that was basically the end of their life.

“By the way, Brother Zhou, did you give me away?” Zhang Haobai's eyes brightened as he spoke quickly. Only Zhou Huayang knew about his request; if Zhou Huayang hadn’t revealed him, then there might still be room for maneuver.

“What the hell are you thinking?” Zhou Huayang stood up angrily, pointing at Zhang Haobai, “The government people came to question me; do you think I dare not speak? If I don’t speak, I’d be going to die for you!!!”

Zhang Haobai was stunned.

Indeed, if Zhou Huayang didn’t reveal him, he would be in big trouble himself.

“I’m telling you this because of our years of friendship, to prevent you from being caught by the security bureau and not knowing what’s going on,” Zhou Huayang sneered. “I advise you to go home and discuss this with your dad. Your dad has more connections than you. He can certainly handle things better than you. Brother… I’m not accompanying you anymore; I’ll take my leave! I’ve already paid for this table, no need for you to settle the bill.”

After saying this, Zhou Huayang directly opened the door and left.

Only Zhang Haobai was left alone in the private room.

“How could this happen?” Zhang Haobai sat in the chair, shaking his head, still unable to believe it. “How could he be a quasi-warrior? Before the college entrance exam, his punch strength was only around 800 kilograms. How could he possibly become a quasi-warrior in just a few days?”

“No, no, I don’t want to be caught by the security bureau.”

“Dad, Dad… I need to find Dad.”

With a pale face, Zhang Haobai rushed out of the tea house, hurrying home.

---

At Home

At home, Zhang Haobai sat on the sofa in the living room, clenching his fists, his body slightly trembling.

*Click!* The door opened.

“Haobai, why did you call me in such a hurry? Did you think I was dead because I came back late?” Zhang Zelong, who had rushed back from work, pushed the door open and entered. Seeing his son’s pale face and anxious look, he felt a sinking feeling in his heart and thought, “Not good, Haobai must have caused a huge mess.”

“Dad, I’ve gotten into trouble,” Zhang Haobai looked up at his father.

Those simple words—“I’ve gotten into trouble”—sent a chill through Zhang Zelong’s heart.

“Tell me, what’s going on? Explain it all to me in detail; don’t leave out anything. Clear everything up,” Zhang Zelong said seriously. Although he knew the situation was serious, he did not lose his composure, as he had weathered many storms since the Great Nirvana period; what kind of turbulence hadn’t he seen?

Zhang Haobai took a deep breath: “It’s like this; last time in my family yard, the decoration company delivered furniture…”

From start to finish, Zhang Haobai did not hide anything and told everything.

“You dared to hire someone to disable a quasi-warrior?” Zhang Zelong’s eyes widened.

“I didn’t know!” Zhang Haobai panicked when his father glared at him. “If I had known, I wouldn’t have dared to do it!”

Zhang Zelong took a deep breath, fell silent, and took out his phone to dial.

*Beep—beep—*

*Ding!*

A sound rang on Zhang Zelong's phone, and he frowned as he looked.

“What’s wrong, Dad?” Zhang Haobai asked hurriedly.

“I’m calling your uncle, but he’s currently hunting monsters outside the city,” Zhang Zelong said as he sat on the sofa. “Just wait for your uncle to call back.”

Outside the city, who knows where a monster might be lurking?

So generally, they would seek a safe place to communicate with those in the city.

After a while—

“Elder brother, what’s the matter?” a deep voice came through, “I’m busy right now.”

“A-Hu, this matter isn’t small. Your nephew has caused big trouble,” Zhang Zelong said, his eyes reddening.

“What trouble did Haobai cause? Tell me, elder brother. I’m listening.” Zhang Zelong’s brother, Zhang Zehu, replied.

“It’s like this.” Zhang Zelong immediately recounted what his son had said.

There was silence on the phone for a moment before Zhang Zehu’s voice came back: “Haobai actually dared to provoke a quasi-warrior. He’s really too bold! Starting today, Haobai, you must stay home and don’t go out to cause any more trouble. And don’t see that Luo Feng again.”

“Got it, uncle.” Zhang Haobai felt as if he were clutching at the last straw and nodded in agreement.

“Okay, don’t do anything,” the voice continued from the phone. “Just wait for me to come back. Even if the security bureau comes and takes you away, don’t do anything else; just wait for me to return. This mission is quite important, and I estimate I won’t be back for one or two months.”

“Okay.” Zhang Haobai nodded.

“Don’t worry, Haobai! You’re my only nephew; whatever I say, I will protect you.” The voice on the phone continued, “Elder brother, the captain is calling me; I won’t talk much. Remember, don’t do anything else, just wait for me to return.”

After hanging up, Zhang Zelong and Zhang Haobai both sighed in relief.

---

Meanwhile at Luo Feng’s Home

While the Zhang family was anxious, the Luo family was cheerful.

After dinner, Luo Feng took his brother Luo Hua from upstairs to stroll around the neighborhood, pushing the wheelchair.

“Brother, we’ve lived in this neighborhood for more than ten years, and our parents have lived here for over twenty years,” Luo Hua looked up at the community. The residential buildings were densely packed, with very little greenery. “In the future, when we move to Mingyue Community, I’ll come out to walk every day; I can manage on my own.”

Every day, going up and down the stairs was a huge challenge for Luo Hua, who was in a wheelchair.

“Mhm.” Luo Feng nodded with a smile as he pushed the wheelchair. “Ah Hua, soon we won’t have to spend every season in a place that never sees the sun, cramped in that little room. Mom and Dad won’t have to sleep on the couch anymore.”

Luo Hua nodded in agreement.

This day... they had waited so long for it.

“Someone’s coming over,” Luo Hua said, looking ahead. A young man with glasses was walking toward them, smiling. He first gave a polite nod to Luo Hua in the wheelchair, then looked at Luo Feng. “You’re Brother Luo, right?”

“And you are?” Luo Feng asked, a bit puzzled.

The young man smiled warmly. “Brother Luo, nice to meet you. My name is Zhou Huayang! I was wondering if you’d have time to chat with me somewhere?”