Turning back, Wang Zhuo pointed dismissively at Li Runqian, who was clutching the car window with blood still gushing from the wound, and shook the sleeve of his robe with contempt.

Guan Yingying immediately opened a packet of tissues and thoughtfully offered them to Wang Zhuo, making him feel that her cooperation was so perfectly synchronized and effective; it was even more of a slap in the face than if she had jumped up to strike those two scoundrels herself.

Just as he wiped the blood from his hands, Yuan Ye, who had been in the Toyota, got out of the car and jogged over in a fit of rage, immediately reaching for the handcuffs on his waist.

"Hold it!"

Wang Zhuo suddenly roared, a sound so sharp it made everyone freeze, even Yuan Ye instinctively stopped his advance.

"You surnamed Yuan, I now suspect this deployment is an act of disciplinary violation through the misuse of public office. You had better not act rashly, or watch out for that police uniform you're wearing."

Wang Zhuo's voice was authoritative, clear, and ringing high, striking everyone's heart like the heavy blows of a clock bell.

The phrase 'misuse of public office' was a grave taboo within the judicial and public security system. If it were another department, such a violation might not be so severe, but misconduct in the public security and judicial sectors often involved infringing upon personal rights and unfair treatment of others—it was one of the violations that generated the most public resentment and the strongest backlash. Wang Zhuo's shout had been heard by at least a hundred people in the complex. It was hard to guarantee no one had recorded it on their phone. If this matter blew up, it would be genuinely difficult to suppress.

Even if Yuan Ye had a deep background, this was not a situation he wished to face. Because if word spread online, and the common folk stirred up trouble, his uncle could certainly find a way to defuse it, but it would certainly give him a headache for a while—a definite loss-making endeavor.

Furthermore, Wang Zhuo’s final half-sentence, "watch out for that police uniform," nakedly displayed an intent to threaten. There’s an old saying: a frog peeled of its skin is worse than a chicken. That basically describes this situation: a policeman stripped of his green uniform, reduced to an ordinary person, might not be much better off than a streetwalker.

"Don't give me that useless talk." Yuan Ye had been a police officer for four years, and with an uncle who was a bureau chief, he wasn't afraid of minor storms. He quickly calmed down and said coldly, "You are violently resisting law enforcement; that is an even more serious criminal offense. You can talk about peeling off my uniform after you've spent a few years in prison."

Saying this, he had already unclipped the handcuffs from his waist, snapping them open with a flourish, ready to restrain Wang Zhuo.

Wang Zhuo watched him with a cold smile and said, "You surnamed Yuan, you better think clearly. Once these handcuffs are on, your police uniform goes in with you."

"I don't believe in that evil!" Yuan Ye glared, stepped forward, grabbed Wang Zhuo's arm, and with a wha, snapped the cuffs onto his wrist.

"You've got some nerve," Wang Zhuo chuckled lightly, staring into Yuan Ye's eyes at close range, and said to Guan Yingying beside him, "Sis, in my phone's contacts, find someone named Yuan Xinyu. Give him a call, tell him his little brat is causing trouble, and tell him to get ready to clean up the mess."

"Oh, okay." Guan Yingying deftly transferred the bag of cold noodles she was holding with one hand, took out the phone Wang Zhuo had given her before killing the dog, quickly found the number, and dialed.

Yuan Ye froze. The officers he brought also froze. Qin Zeyu, who was trying to retrieve his missing front tooth in the van, and Li Runqian, who was plugging his nose with a wad of paper, also froze.

The residents who had been evacuated further away couldn't hear clearly and didn't know who on earth Yuan Xinyu was. But those nearby or with keen hearing caught every word clearly: this brave man had just named the elder of the police captain's family—this was escalating the conflict to a higher level of confrontation.

Who was Yuan Xinyu? He was the Deputy Director of the Criminal Investigation Detachment of the Huangjiang District Public Security Bureau in Jiangzhou City. When that major figure, the Secretary of the Jiangzhou Municipal Political and Legal Affairs Commission and Director of the Public Security Bureau, shook hands with Wang Zhuo, Yuan Xinyu was among the crowd on the periphery applauding.

Why did Wang Zhuo have Yuan Xinyu's number? Because Deputy Director Yuan viewed Wang Zhuo as a favored figure around Mayor Qin, someone who could be a useful resource. Thus, he had found an opportunity to meet Wang Zhuo and they exchanged numbers.

In truth, between Director Yuan and Wang Zhuo, it was Yuan who was trying to curry favor; he couldn't find a good avenue, so he had to rely on waiting patiently for Wang Zhuo to have a need for him, which would allow him to get closer.

Wang Zhuo didn't know the relationship between Yuan Ye and Yuan Xinyu. When Yuan Ye first announced his name, Wang Zhuo hadn't even thought of Yuan Xinyu. It was only after seeing Yuan Xinyu's police ID that he made the connection: both were from the Huangjiang Branch Bureau, and the surname Yuan was relatively uncommon. Even if they weren't father and son, they were likely close relatives. And even if they weren't related, Wang Zhuo calling him "your family's brat" had some bearing, as Yuan Xinyu was a leader in the Huangjiang District Public Security Bureau and could be considered a parental figure to the junior officers.

Seeing the tall, beautiful woman actually start dialing the phone, Yuan Ye's heart immediately began to sink.

The fact that the other party dared to call Yuan Xinyu by name meant their background was certainly not insignificant. Coupled with the rather impolite phrases "brat causing trouble" and "clean up the mess," Yuan Ye had every reason to believe that Wang Zhuo didn't take his Deputy Director uncle seriously at all.

Looking at Wang Zhuo again, Yuan Ye's expression was filled with resentment and bitterness. He thought to himself, kid, you're so skilled at playing the pig to eat the tiger; you didn't mention your uncle earlier or later, but waited until I had cuffed you before bringing up my uncle's name. Aren't you intentionally trying to set me up?

Just then, the phone connected. Before Guan Yingying could speak, a string of hearty laughter came from the other end. This laughter was clearly audible within a radius of five or six meters. It turned out this sister was using speakerphone.

Upon hearing that familiar laughter, Yuan Ye’s heart plummeted to the floor. The thing he feared most had happened: it was indeed his Uncle Yuan Xinyu!

After laughing, Yuan Xinyu asked in a warm and forthright tone, "Wang Zhuo, what brings you to call me? Let me guess, you don't visit without a good reason—is there something you need my help with?"

Yuan Ye's face had contorted into the shape of a bitter melon. His usually solemn uncle, who was so imposing at home, had never spoken to anyone in such an almost fawning tone. What kind of influential figure had he provoked?

Seeing Wang Zhuo smiling without speaking, Guan Yingying addressed the phone, "Wang Zhuo is currently indisposed and cannot take the call. He has been handcuffed by an officer named Yuan Ye and is about to be taken back to the precinct for questioning. Officer Yuan's friend also said that Officer Yuan needs to learn a lesson about what it means to be a local tyrant whose family can destroy a county, or an official whose entire clan can be wiped out."

Holy hell! Yuan Xinyu, on the other end of the line, immediately kicked over the foot massage attendant. A classmate and the owner of the foot bath center beside him were suddenly struck with great alarm. Just how big was the incident that caused Director Yuan to lose his composure like this?

"You, who are you?" Yuan Xinyu stammered out.

The Huihai case, the political purge in Dongjiang District, and Qin Xue's promotion—all of these were ignited by Wang Zhuo's incident of assaulting a police officer. Yuan Xinyu, as one of the officers involved in handling that initial assault case, knew exactly how destructive Wang Zhuo could be, and also his relationship with the Qin family. Hearing that his nephew had handcuffed Wang Zhuo, Yuan Xinyu didn't consider who was right or wrong; he only thought about how to handle it without getting burned.

"I am Wang Zhuo's friend," Guan Yingying replied simply.

Yuan Xinyu hurriedly said, "Then could you do me a favor and let Yuan Ye listen to the phone?"

Guan Yingying looked at Wang Zhuo. Seeing him casually shrug his head, she turned the phone over to Yuan Ye.

The widespread adoption of Apple phones brought one major benefit: once people got someone else's phone, they didn't need to ask how to operate it. So, the moment Yuan Ye took the phone, he immediately turned off the speaker function.

"Uncle, it's me, Yuan Ye," Yuan Ye said tentatively.

Although Yuan Ye held the rank of Second Class Police Inspector and a sub-section level position, commanding a team, the higher he climbed in this position, the more he understood the strict hierarchy of officialdom and his own insignificance. After listening to the conversation between the other party and his own uncle, he knew instantly that he had caused a massive disaster.

"Damn your ancestors!" In his overwhelming fury, Yuan Xinyu directly cursed, completely forgetting that he was Yuan Ye's ancestor.

Yuan Ye dared not utter a sound, waiting for this uncle, who could chastise himself, to finish his lecture.

"What's going on? Give me the short version!" Yuan Xinyu roared, adding a final instruction, "I want the truth!"

Yuan Ye glanced at Wang Zhuo and Guan Yingying, then trotted back to his vehicle to tell the truth.

The officers exchanged glances and immediately resumed dispersing the onlookers. It seemed highly likely that their side had already conceded today. They rushed to minimize the impact while they still could.

In the van, Li Runqian and Qin Zeyu also quickly called their respective families. Both were in their mid-twenties, spoiled rich kids for too long; when faced with a major, unsolvable problem, they had to seek help from home.

A full three minutes later, Yuan Ye returned the phone, still keeping the call connected. By this time, he knew exactly what a hornet's nest he had disturbed; the expression on his face was indescribably complicated.

"Wang... Wang Zhuo," Yuan Ye swallowed hard, saying sheepishly, "My uncle wants to speak with you."

Wang Zhuo glanced at him flatly. Yuan Ye guiltily averted his gaze elsewhere. Having learned that this man was someone who could easily strip him of his police uniform with a single word, he was now as docile as a little lamb.

"Director Yuan, it's Wang Zhuo."

Wang Zhuo's calm voice made Yuan Xinyu frown deeply. After a moment of thought, he said, "Wang Zhuo, I have clarified the matter. The fault lies entirely with those two complainants. Yuan Ye also made mistakes. Tell me exactly how you wish this matter to be handled, and I will certainly do my utmost to achieve it."

That old fox, Wang Zhuo, sneered inwardly. With just one sentence, Yuan Xinyu had drawn a clear line between Yuan Ye and the two young thugs, reframing the thugs calling the police for backup as 'filing a complaint.' Moreover, the phrase "do my utmost" was very vague; they could easily push off today's commitment later by claiming they tried their best but couldn't fully deliver.

Glancing at the two young thugs still frantically making calls in the van, Wang Zhuo became even more determined to teach them a proper lesson. He said to Yuan Xinyu, "Director Yuan, I don't think this can be cleared up properly over the phone. Why don't we meet and discuss it in person?"