Zhou Yaozong was just a security captain, and his acquaintance with Brother Long was purely incidental.

Brother Long didn't care about him at all; if this fellow hadn't had the behemoth Hongfa backing him, Long wouldn't have given him a second glance. He only got to know him last time because of other people.

But it was different with Zhang Yang; the previous incident had been a lifelong lesson for Brother Long, and even now, the thought of Zhang Yang brought a degree of fear.

Furthermore, Brother Long wasn't stupid. Seeing the security guard lying on the floor, coupled with this fellow instigating from the side, he immediately vented his anger onto him.

In doing so, Brother Long also intended to curry favor with Zhang Yang.

The remaining three security guards were dumbfounded, and Huang San stood there frozen.

“Long, Brother Long, what is going on?”

Huang San was utterly bewildered. Brother Long was someone he had called for help; he should be on his side, and his enemy was Zhang Yang.

Although he also looked down on Zhou Yaozong, finding the man shameless, at least today, their stance toward Zhang Yang was unified—they both harbored deep animosity toward him.

“Little San, shut up! How many times have I told you not to cause trouble? How could you have offended Mr. Zhang?”

Brother Long immediately barked, pulling Huang San closer to him and loudly interrogating him.

“I, I didn’t!” Huang San appeared even more confused and hastily tried to explain.

“Still saying you didn’t!”

Brother Long glared again, then smiled at Zhang Yang, “Mr. Zhang, this kid has eyes but doesn't recognize Mount Tai. He is young; whatever he did wrong, I am willing to apologize to you on his behalf!”

Brother Long’s attitude was remarkably humble. Huang San looked wronged but dared not say anything about being young, though Zhang Yang didn't seem much older than him.

However, this was the first time he had seen Brother Long speak to someone with such deference, which instilled a sense of fear in him.

Brother Long’s underlings also rushed over after finishing their task. Zhou Yaozong was beaten until his face was covered in blood, though it was all nosebleed. The few subordinates had hit him, but they hadn't struck with full force.

These men sympathized with Zhou Yaozong, feeling a sense of shared misfortune, so they naturally held back a little.

“Forget it, it has nothing to do with him!”

Zhang Yang shook his head slightly. Zhou Yaozong on the ground was struggling to get up, wiping the blood from his face.

The remaining three security guards didn't dare to move. They might be tough here, but when facing real gangsters, they wilted, especially since the others outnumbered them.

These small-time thugs were the type who would draw a knife without hesitation.

They all had jobs and families; as the saying goes, the barefoot aren't afraid of those with shoes, and they were the ones with shoes. These thugs were barefoot.

“Yes, yes, Little San, thank him, Mr. Zhang!”

Brother Long called out again, even giving Huang San a pat on the head.

Huang San was his brother, not a fair-weather friend like Zhou Yichen, whom he only valued for his money.

Brother Long was still a man of loyalty, at least capable of taking responsibility; he didn’t throw his subordinates under the bus. At a critical moment, he was willing to step up and plead for leniency for his own men.

This slightly altered Zhang Yang's impression of him. Moreover, Zhang Yang and Huang San truly didn't have any major feud, so letting him go was acceptable.

Zhang Yang took a step forward. Just as Zhou Yaozong looked up, he stared at Zhang Yang with utter horror.

Zhou Yaozong had been beaten, but he wasn't a fool; he understood why he had taken the blows.

The Brother Long he dared not provoke was terrified of Zhang Yang, even resorting to striking him on Zhang Yang’s behalf. This was his territory, and Brother Long’s actions were tantamount to a complete break.

Furthermore, this was inside the Hongfa Supermarket; even Brother Long wouldn't dare cause trouble here. Yet, he had done so now, and Zhou Yaozong understood exactly what this implied.

He had truly kicked an iron plate this time; this beating would likely be in vain.

Zhang Yang stood before Zhou Yaozong, suddenly squatting down and picking up the box from the ground. It was a delicate little object—the very thing Zhou Yaozong had intended to use to frame him.

“Was this stolen by me?”

Zhang Yang smiled at Zhou Yaozong, his expression wonderfully bright.

“No, we were mistaken, we made a mistake!”

Zhou Yaozong hurriedly shook his head. With blood on his face, he looked ferocious, but his heart ached now. He had offended someone he shouldn't have; if only he had made inquiries first.

Seeing how afraid Brother Long was of him, he knew his hopes for revenge were dashed.

“Whether we were mistaken or not, I think I need to find someone to confirm!”

Zhang Yang smiled and shook his head, taking out his phone from the canvas bag. Lightning took the opportunity to scramble out of the bag and, in a few leaps, landed on Mi Xue’s body.

It was still squeaking on Mi Xue, as if telling her they hadn't seen each other in many days and missed her dearly.

Lightning's tail kept tickling Mi Xue’s neck, making her giggle. Mi Xue was even more beautiful when she laughed, but sadly, no one was in the mood to look at her now.

Zhang Yang tapped a number on his phone, and the call connected quickly.

“CEO Xie, are you busy?”

“Zhang Yang, I didn’t expect you to call. I heard from my brother that he saw you in Shanghai. Where are you now, Shanghai or Changjing?”

The one answering was Xie Hui. Zhang Yang’s call was both a surprise and a delight to him.

“I’m in Changjing, right at the Hongfa Supermarket security office. If you have time, could you possibly come over?”

Zhang Yang spoke softly, glancing at Zhou Yaozong on the floor as he spoke. Zhou Yaozong’s already churning heart pounded fiercely.

“Wait for me, I’m on my way immediately!”

Xie Hui was a smart man; he sensed something was amiss from Zhang Yang’s tone and answered directly.

He hung up the phone immediately. Zhang Yang was at the Hongfa Supermarket, in the security office—** he instantly knew something was wrong.

Ignoring the call, he rushed toward the security office. Fortunately, he was at this branch today to review some accounts. This branch was the largest and most important one in both Changjing and Jiangdong, and he spent ten days here every month.

Putting away his phone, Zhang Yang, holding the small box, walked over to a nearby chair and sat down.

Mi Xue sat beside him. Brother Long desperately wanted to leave, but he dared not move until Zhang Yang gave the word, so he could only stand there awkwardly.

Zhou Yaozong finally got to his feet. He felt something was terribly wrong, but he couldn't pinpoint what it was.

Zhang Yang’s call was too brief. Xie Hui wasn't just the manager of this single supermarket; he was the General Manager of all five Hongfa Supermarkets in Jiangdong Province. Normally, a security captain like him would have very few opportunities to meet Xie Hui.

In just over three minutes, Xie Hui arrived at the security office with a few people.

Seeing the chaos inside and the people lying on the floor, Xie Hui was momentarily stunned, his face instantly showing concern.

Only when he saw Zhang Yang sitting there unharmed did he let out a long sigh of relief, and his entire demeanor relaxed.

He relaxed, but everyone else was bewildered.

Especially Zhou Yaozong. The moment he saw Xie Hui, his body stiffened with a shudder. His rank was too low to speak with Xie Hui, but that didn't mean he had never seen him.

On the contrary, he was very aware of Xie Hui’s authority as the head of Hongfa.

Zhang Yang had called him 'CEO Xie,' and Xie Hui had appeared so quickly. If Zhou Yaozong still didn't understand, he would be an idiot.

Unfortunately, he wasn't an idiot; in fact, he was quite shrewd, otherwise, he wouldn't have achieved the rank of captain so young.

“Dr. Zhang, what happened here?”

Xie Hui walked over, first greeting Zhang Yang, and then asked with astonishment, glancing at Brother Long beside him as he spoke.

Brother Long stood quietly now, saying nothing. Until Zhang Yang told him to leave, he absolutely would not depart.

“CEO Xie, why don't you have your own people explain what happened!”

Zhang Yang chuckled and shook his head. Xie Hui looked even more surprised; Zhang Yang was clearly speaking to him with more distance than usual. Zhang Yang never spoke to him like this before.

“You, come here, explain exactly what happened!”

Xie Hui didn't press Zhang Yang further but pointed toward one of the nearby security guards. This guard was a company employee and had seen Xie Hui before, recognizing him as the Big Boss.

When the Big Boss personally interrogated him, he naturally dared not conceal anything.

Before long, he recounted the day's events. This security guard had quite good narrative skills, explaining everything clearly and logically, allowing everyone present to understand the entire situation.

He even revealed Zhou Yaozong’s crush on Mi Xue and the specific reason for targeting Zhang Yang.

At this point, Brother Long finally understood everything and shot another harsh glare at Zhou Yaozong.

It turned out Zhou Yaozong had tried to use him as a weapon to kill, and he was that weapon. Fortunately, he knew Zhang Yang and had met him before; otherwise, he would have suffered again today. Brother Long was very clear about Zhang Yang’s power.

After glaring at Zhou Yaozong, he glared at Huang San again.

His feelings toward Huang San were somewhat different from those toward Zhou Yaozong. (Book Book House) There were plenty of women in the world; why go and fight Zhang Yang for one? Did he have a death wish?

Didn’t that Young Master Hu try to take advantage of Zhang Yang’s woman? Not only did he end up hospitalized, but his fraudulent activities were also being investigated, meaning he would likely be locked up for a while, and it was unknown when he would get out.

“Dr. Zhang, I know what happened. Don't worry, I will definitely give you a satisfactory explanation!”

After listening, Xie Hui turned back and said to Zhang Yang with a stern expression.

He was suppressing a surge of anger within himself.

This wasn't anger because the security guards were blind and offended Zhang Yang; he was furious that such scum existed within his own company—not only framing someone but daring to make a direct false accusation after the framing failed.

This was no longer a simple mistake; it was a crime.

“Very well, sorry for the disturbance today, we’ll be leaving now!”

Zhang Yang stood up, not bothering to be polite with Xie Hui, as this was their internal affair.

To be honest, Zhang Yang was quite annoyed. Zhou Yaozong was despicable, but he was still the security captain here; no matter what, Hongfa Supermarket shared management responsibility, which was why Zhang Yang’s tone was so cold.

“Dr. Zhang, please proceed. I will visit to apologize properly another day; I won't see you out today!”

Xie Hui escorted Zhang Yang to the doorway of the security office and didn't follow further, as dealing with company matters was most important to him.

Brother Long and his subordinates took the opportunity to slip out together. Now that Zhang Yang was gone, they didn't dare linger and followed Zhang Yang out of the supermarket. (To be continued)