81: Chapter 81 Premeditated Wang Yang

The two of them snuggled together, chatting about the past and their plans for the future.

From whispering at the beginning, slowly, Zhao Yaqin leaned into his embrace and fell asleep, exhausted.

Wang Yang held Zhao Yaqin until the horizon began to turn a pale, fish-belly white.

Zhao Yaqin finally quieted down, curling up in his arms and falling into a deep sleep.

Her face still held a rosy flush, and the corners of her mouth were slightly upturned.

Wang Yang held her close and kissed her on the forehead.

Then, he closed his eyes.

Tonight's business was not over yet.

Zhang Mingde, Liu Qian—neither of them would escape.

...

Meanwhile.

In a room at an express hotel, the atmosphere was as gloomy as the sky before a storm.

Zhang Mingde sat on the edge of the bed, his face swollen like a pig's head, with a bandage on his nose.

The corner of his mouth was split, making him lisp when he spoke.

He slammed his phone onto the bed fiercely, his eyes bloodshot.

"Damn! That kid is actually so good at fighting!"

Baldy sat in a chair opposite him, clutching his stomach, his face covered in bruises.

"Young Master Zhang, that kid plays too dirty. My stomach still hurts."

Yellow Hair leaned against the wall, his nose stuffed with paper balls, his voice sounding muffled.

"Exactly, that punch almost broke my nose. I can't just swallow this insult."

Zhang Mingde gritted his teeth, his face twisted out of shape.

"Swallow it? When have I ever had to swallow this kind of indignity?"

He stood up and paced back and forth in the room like a wounded beast.

"If I don't kill him, I'm not surnamed Zhang!"

Baldy and Yellow Hair exchanged glances and leaned in.

"Young Master Zhang, no matter how good that kid is at fighting, can he fight against the authorities?"

Baldy lowered his voice.

"Didn't you say your dad is sworn brothers with the Police Station chief? Just have him step in, find some excuse to throw that kid in, lock him up for a few days, and then won't it be up to us?"

Yellow Hair chimed in.

"Right, right, right. Once he's in the station, let's see how arrogant he can be. We'll wait outside, and when he comes out, we'll take care of him."

Zhang Mingde's eyes lit up. He picked up his phone, found a number, took a deep breath, and dialed.

The phone rang a few times, and it was answered on the other end.

"Hello, Uncle Zhou? It's me, Zhang Mingde."

A middle-aged man's voice came from the other end, carrying a smile.

"Mingde, what's wrong? Calling so late."

Zhang Mingde's voice immediately turned aggrieved.

"Uncle Zhou, I was beaten up by someone. That guy was ruthless. Look at my face, it's swollen like a pig's head. I can't swallow this insult."

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the line.

"Who hit you? Did you call the police?"

Zhang Mingde quickly said.

"Uncle Zhou, that guy is a troublemaker; he ran off after hitting me. I figured I'd better ask for your help with this kind of thing. Do you think you could step in and teach him a lesson?"

There was silence again for a few seconds on the other end.

"Mingde, you know, we can't just do whatever we want with these things. There must be a reason, there must be evidence."

Zhang Mingde quickly said.

"Uncle Zhou, don't worry, I've already found a reason. That kid was fighting and threatening me. Just find some excuse to have him locked up for a few days, that's all."

"I'll definitely thank you properly later, I'll come visit and bring you two bottles of good wine."

The person on the other end laughed.

"Alright, alright, don't do all that. I'll have someone check it out tomorrow; if he really has a problem, we'll deal with it as appropriate. Take care of your injuries and don't stir up trouble."

Zhang Mingde nodded repeatedly.

"Thank you, Uncle Zhou! Thank you, Uncle Zhou! I'll definitely come to thank you in person another day."

After hanging up, the gloom on Zhang Mingde's face vanished, and a smug smile curled the corners of his mouth.

"It's done."

Baldy leaned in.

"What did he say?"

Zhang Mingde tossed the phone onto the bed, leaned against the headboard, and crossed his legs.

"Uncle Zhou said he'll check it out tomorrow. As long as there's really a problem, he'll have him thrown in directly."

Yellow Hair chuckled.

"No matter how good that kid is at fighting, once he's in the station, he'll have to behave. We'll wait outside, and when he comes out, we'll give him a proper welcome."

Baldy laughed too.

"Right, let him know the consequences of offending us."

The three of them became more and more pleased with themselves as they talked, forgetting the pain of the injuries on their faces.

Zhang Mingde's gaze landed in the corner.

Liu Qian was huddled in the corner, head lowered, trembling all over.

The slap mark on her face was still clearly visible, half her face was swollen, and the blood at the corner of her mouth had dried, forming a dark red scab.

She didn't dare look at Zhang Mingde, nor did she dare look at Baldy and Yellow Hair.

She just huddled there like a frightened rabbit.

Zhang Mingde looked at her, a cold sneer curling his lips.

"Come here."

Liu Qian shuddered, looked up, her eyes full of fear.

"Young Master Zhang, I... I didn't mean to, I didn't think it would turn out like this..."

Zhang Mingde's expression darkened.

"I told you to come here, didn't you hear me?"

Liu Qian bit her lip, slowly stood up, and shuffled over step by step. With every step she took, her legs were shaking.

Baldy and Yellow Hair's gazes fell upon her, full of dissatisfaction.

They had thought they would be able to deal with Wang Yang properly, but ended up getting beaten up, and it was all her fault.

Liu Qian walked in front of Zhang Mingde, head lowered, not daring to look at him.

Zhang Mingde reached out, pinched her chin, and lifted her face up.

"What are you crying for? You had a part in today's business too. If it weren't for you saying your mom would definitely come, if it weren't for you saying that medicine would definitely work, would I have ended up like this?"

Liu Qian's tears fell again.

"Young Master Zhang... I, I thought it would work, I didn't expect Wang Yang to..."

Zhang Mingde's expression turned instantly grim, and he slapped her again.

With a "slap," Liu Qian's face swelled even more.

"You thought? You thought my ass! I've been beaten up like this, lost all face, and you're telling me you thought?"

Liu Qian trembled all over, covering her face, unable to speak.

Zhang Mingde let go and pointed to the floor.

"Kneel."

Liu Qian froze.

Zhang Mingde's voice was as cold as ice.

"I told you to kneel and apologize to me, didn't you hear me?"

Liu Qian bit her lip, tears streaming down her face.

She slowly bent down and knelt on the floor.

Her knees hit the cold floor, causing her to gasp in pain.

Baldy and Yellow Hair exchanged glances and also leaned in to scold her.

"Exactly, if it weren't for you, would we have been beaten up like this? How do you have the nerve to cry?"

"Everything was going fine, but you ruined it all. Do you still have the face to cry here?"

Zhang Mingde stood up, walked in front of her, and looked down at her from above.

"Remember today's business well. If this thing is ruined, don't think you'll have an easy time."

Liu Qian knelt on the floor, trembling, her tears dripping onto the floor one by one.

"Young Master Zhang, I was wrong, I was really wrong, please give me another chance, I'll definitely get it done next time..."

Zhang Mingde sneered.

"Chance? Haven't I given you enough chances? If it weren't for the fact that you're still a little useful, I would have thrown you out long ago."

He grabbed Liu Qian by the hair and dragged her to the bedside.

Liu Qian cried out in pain but didn't dare to resist.

"I'm telling you, if you dare to run, or dare to tell anyone about today, I'll expose that you drugged your mom."

"I'll spill everything about you conspiring with me to plot against Wang Yang, make you lose your reputation in Yuntian City, and make your mom unable to show her face in public!"

Liu Qian shuddered, her eyes full of despair.

She knew that Zhang Mingde meant what he said.

Zhang Mingde threw her onto the bed and looked down at her.

"Remember today's business well. Tomorrow I'll have Uncle Zhou throw Wang Yang in, and then you go persuade your mom to stop making a scene, otherwise, you'll be sorry."

Liu Qian lay on the bed, tears streaming uncontrollably.

She thought of Zhao Yaqin, thought of Wang Yang, and thought of the things she had done.

But she had no way back.

She could only let Zhang Mingde curse at her, not daring to refute a single word.

Baldy and Yellow Hair were also cursing on the side, calling her useless, scolding her for ruining things.

Outside the window, the night was thick.

...

The next day.

Sunlight shone in through the gaps in the curtains, falling on the bed, warm and cozy.

Wang Yang woke up first.

He looked down at Zhao Yaqin in his arms, and a smile slowly curled the corners of his mouth.