The once lively wedding scene fell into a dead silence.
After a full few minutes, an enraged voice broke the quiet: "Bastard! You dare send me a clock? I think you're tired of living!"
It was Hu Quan'an, his heart brimming with fury, pushing through the crowd and emerging from the wedding hall.
Hu Quan'an's face was cold, his eyes filled with murderous intent.
He looked like a ferocious beast ready to devour someone.
Seeing Hu Quan'an like this, the attending guests all unconsciously took two steps back.
At the same time, they silently mourned for Ying Chen.
Why pick a fight with Hu Quan'an, who was currently at the height of his influence?
Most importantly, it was one thing not to bring a gift on someone's joyous occasion, but to specifically send a clock – wasn't that courting death?
Not a single guest present felt sorry for Ying Chen; they all believed he deserved to die.
"Whether I'm tired of living is not for you to decide?"
Unexpectedly, Ying Chen, whom everyone expected to kneel and beg for mercy, spoke with such arrogant defiance.
The crowd was instantly incensed.
"This guy is too arrogant! He truly doesn't know how to write the word 'death'!"
"If Heaven wants to destroy a man, it must first drive him mad. This person is perfectly embodying that saying! Just you wait and see, this guy is as good as dead!"
"He picks a fight without even looking at the occasion. In a situation like this, even if Hu Quan'an didn't act, there would be countless people eager to curry favor with him who would rush to strike. No matter who sent this kid, he's incredibly foolish!"
Amidst the guests' indignation, Hu Quan'an finally reached the courtyard and saw the gift-giver.
But in the next second, his face changed drastically as if he had seen a ghost. He pointed at Ying Chen in disbelief and exclaimed, "You... you... How is this possible?"
"Lin Zhiping specifically told me you died in the Fengdun Bureau! It's a hallucination, it must be a hallucination!"
Hu Quan'an rubbed his eyes vigorously, trying to dispel the illusion.
But when he looked at Ying Chen again, he found that Ying Chen was still Ying Chen, not someone else.
This meant that Ying Chen was indeed not dead!
Ying Chen had indeed escaped from the Fengdun Bureau!
And he had specifically come to Yan Jing to give him a gift symbolizing bad luck!
Hu Quan'an's face instantly turned extremely grim.
"Lin Zhiping, you good-for-nothing! You can't even handle such a small matter!"
While cursing, Hu Quan'an took out his phone.
He believed that the Fengdun Bureau must be fully mobilizing to search for Ying Chen's whereabouts.
He wanted to tip off Lin Zhiping.
Ring, ring...
However, after calling Lin Zhiping's number several times, no one answered.
Finally, with no other option, he dialed the landline of the Fengdun Bureau's Eastern Branch.
This time, someone finally answered.
"Hello, is this the Fengdun Bureau? I want to report! The escaped convict Ying Chen from your Fengdun Bureau is here with me right now, come and arrest him quickly!"
Hu Quan'an said impatiently.
But what Hu Quan'an never expected was that the operator on the other end not only did not thank him for his righteous report but also warned him, "Comrade, fabricating false information and providing misleading information is a violation of the law. If you maliciously call the Fengdun Bureau's reporting hotline again, we will punish you according to the law."
"..." Hu Quan'an was dumbfounded.
He didn't understand how he was fabricating false information and providing misleading information.
Could it be that Ying Chen had not yet been added to the Fengdun Bureau's wanted list, so the operator couldn't find him?
Thinking of this, Hu Quan'an quickly said, "Is Lin Zhiping there? Let him take the phone! Tell him Young Master Hu is looking for him!"
"Lin Zhiping? He's not here."
"Not here? Then where did he go? I have an urgent matter to find him! No matter where he is, you must contact him for me! Otherwise, I'll make you regret it!" Hu Quan'an was anxious and threatened the operator.
The operator chuckled, "I regret to inform you that I cannot contact Lin Zhiping. If you really want to reach him, I suggest you buy some yellow paper and three sticks of incense tonight and try to summon his spirit to see you."
Hu Quan'an shivered at this.
Spirit?
Lin Zhiping... was dead?
*Clink!*
Hu Quan'an's phone dropped to the ground.
He stumbled, almost falling.
The most crucial piece in his plan – Lin Zhiping – was dead?
"Right, Lin Zhiping is suspected of dereliction of duty. Although he is dead, the case is still under investigation and is fully handled by our Director Xiang. Judging by your tone, it seems you knew Lin Zhiping. If you have any relevant information, you can report it to our Director Xiang, and we will reward you based on the value of the information."
"Hello, are you still there?"
"If there's nothing else, please hang up. You can rate my service later. 0 for satisfied, 1 for very satisfied, 2 for extremely satisfied, 3 for absolutely thrilled..."
*Crack!*
Hu Quan'an, listening to the sound from his phone on the ground, couldn't help but stomp it into pieces.
"Lin Zhiping is really dead! The Eastern Branch has appointed a new director named Xiang so quickly! Why do I feel like something is wrong, but I can't pinpoint it?"
Hu Quan'an's mind was a complete mess, his head throbbing as if it were about to explode.
The guests at the scene, seeing Hu Quan'an's panicked state, had no idea what had happened.
They thought Hu Quan'an was just furious at Ying Chen.
"Young Master Hu, even if the police won't handle it, you don't need to be this angry! Because his behavior is at most immoral, not illegal. And to deal with people like him, you can't use normal means!"
"Don't worry, leave it to your little brother! Your little brother has been working out for eleven years for this very moment!"
"I'll let him know what it means to – persuade with virtue! These fists of mine are called 'virtue'!"
A visibly muscular fitness enthusiast stepped forward, trying to comfort Hu Quan'an.
He mistakenly thought Hu Quan'an had just been on the phone to call the police.
After speaking, the fitness enthusiast looked at Ying Chen.
"Kid, you're quite the troublemaker, aren't you? On someone's big day, you send a clock. I almost thought it was a magical artifact and praised you for a bit."
"Pah! If I don't crush your little... today, all my hard-earned muscle will be for nothing!"
The fitness enthusiast tore off his shirt with a rip, instantly drawing gasps of admiration from the crowd.
It had to be said, the fitness enthusiast's muscles were indeed impressive.
Perfectly sculpted, tendons bulging, as if containing boundless strength.
In contrast, Ying Chen was thin as a stick, looking like he'd fall over in a strong breeze.
The crowd couldn't understand how Ying Chen, with such a frail body, had the courage to come and cause trouble.
"Kid, eat my punch!"
Without any preamble, the fitness enthusiast raised his fist and swung it towards Ying Chen's face.
All his muscles tensed instantly as he moved his fist, like a steel plate.
His face turned crimson, showing the full force behind the punch, as if he were using all his strength.
His legs trembled slightly, indicating he was a professional martial artist, using his feet to generate power, transfer it to his upper body, and then strike, completing a full chain reaction.
There was no doubt that this punch would be earth-shattering, capable of smashing Ying Chen's head!
But one second passed, then two...
The crowd soon noticed something was wrong.
Why hadn't Ying Chen's head exploded?
Why was the fitness enthusiast's face turning even redder and his legs trembling more violently?