Chapter Ten: Settlement and Worries

Wei Lian sighed and said, “Thank you, but my situation isn’t so easy to resolve. You probably don’t know about Fat Luo’s influence in the county—he’s a particularly domineering man. He wanted to seize our family’s factory, so he set up a scheme that tricked my father. In the end, my father lost his life because of it.”

Zhou Xuan, in his previous life, had seen the details of this incident. It was mentioned many times in Wei Lian’s biography. The gist was that Fat Luo, who ran skating rinks, billiard halls, and computer rooms in the west side of town, coveted Wei Lian’s small factory. He staged a trap that bankrupted the factory and made Wei Lian’s family owe him two hundred thousand yuan.

Although Wei Lian later took the matter to court, they lost due to lack of evidence. The family factory was awarded to Fat Luo to cover the debt, pushing Wei Lian’s already struggling family into deeper despair. His mother fell gravely ill from the blow, and because there was no money for proper treatment, she passed away a few years later.

In his grief and anger, Wei Lian eventually found an opportunity to ambush Fat Luo and struck him on the head, leaving him in a vegetative state.

Of course, Wei Lian was arrested. The incident caused such a stir that the county leadership took it seriously and launched a thorough investigation. Only then did it come to light that Fat Luo had used underhanded means to seize the factory, which had led to the tragedy that befell Wei Lian’s parents.

In this small, education-focused county named NC, the exposure of such a major criminal case demanded immediate attention from the authorities. They acted swiftly, arresting Fat Luo and his gang, which quickly fell apart.

Later, the judge considered that Wei Lian’s actions were driven by his parents’ suffering and that Fat Luo would likely never wake up. Wei Lian was sentenced to twenty-five years, and was eventually released early for good behavior.

As for Fat Luo, Zhou Xuan had always appreciated the county’s public order. To protect the educational sector, there was no room for outright criminal syndicates. Fat Luo was just a local bully, living off his skating rink and computer room, usually picking on the weak and avoiding the strong.

As for a solution, Zhou Xuan hadn’t yet thought of one. But whatever came, he would face it. There was nothing to fear.

“Don’t worry. I’ll figure out a way to deal with Fat Luo’s trouble. Where are you and your mother staying now?” Zhou Xuan asked.

“My mother and I are staying with relatives, but the county is so small that Fat Luo’s people will find us eventually,” Wei Lian answered, his worry obvious.

Zhou Xuan reflected that although Fat Luo wouldn’t dare commit murder, he was certainly capable of beating people up, breaking arms, and constant harassment, all to force Wei Lian’s family to give up the factory. In his previous life, this was the very reason Wei Lian’s family finally surrendered the factory to Fat Luo.

The most important thing now was to make Fat Luo back off. When the time was right, he would deal with him properly.

“Here’s what we’ll do: take your mother and stay at my family’s house in the countryside for a few days. Once I’ve taken care of Fat Luo, you two can come back,” Zhou Xuan said, not having a better solution for the moment.

He called his uncle, then brought over three helmets. When his uncle rode over with the motorcycle and asked what was going on, Zhou Xuan simply said he needed to take two friends to stay at the country house for a few days.

He handed a helmet to Wei Lian, took one himself, and drove to the place where Wei Lian and his mother were staying. Ten minutes later, Wei Lian came out with his mother, who thanked Zhou Xuan profusely. He simply replied, “It’s nothing.”

He drove them to the countryside. At the old home, seeing his grandparents there, Zhou Xuan introduced Wei Lian as his friend who was recovering from illness and would be staying with them temporarily.

He urged Wei Lian and his mother to rest well for a few days and assured them they could return soon.

As Zhou Xuan prepared to head back to town, Wei Lian saw him off and said with deep feeling, “Zhou Xuan, thank you!”

Zhou Xuan laughed heartily. “No need for thanks between us. Just have a good rest—before long, you’ll be able to go home.”

“Alright, take care on the road!”

Back in the county, Zhou Xuan explained everything to his parents, then returned the motorcycle to his uncle at the supermarket.

As he walked home, Zhou Xuan considered whether he should buy a vehicle himself. He couldn’t afford a car yet, but a motorcycle would make things easier for his parents and himself.

He’d just gotten home when his phone rang. It was Liu Yixue, who asked with concern, “Zhou Xuan, are you alright?”

Hearing her worry warmed Zhou Xuan’s heart. He smiled and said, “What could happen to me? I’m fine. You know what I’m capable of.”

“But I heard those guys were Fat Luo’s men from the west side—they’re not to be messed with. If you get tangled up with them and they come after you, that would be bad. I’m really worried about you.”

“How do you know? Was it Li Xing and Cheng Zijin who told you?” They were both locals and lived on the west side, so they probably knew about Fat Luo.

“I asked them. Zhou Xuan, how about I talk to my cousin and have him warn Fat Luo? He wouldn’t dare trouble you if my cousin intervened!” Liu Yixue suggested, taking Zhou Xuan by surprise.

“What? What does your cousin do?”

“He works at the police station on the west side. If I say the word, he’ll definitely help.”

“Well, it seems your family is pretty well connected. Thank you, Yixue. But I’ll handle this myself. Don’t worry, I’ll be fine. I mainly want to resolve Wei Lian’s problem—he’s a real talent and very important to me.”

There was a moment’s hesitation on the other end before Liu Yixue spoke again. “If you think you should help him, then do it. If you run into trouble you can’t solve, let me know. My father is the head of the county’s political and legal affairs committee—no one who bullies you will get away with it.”

Even over the phone, Zhou Xuan could sense Liu Yixue’s fierce protectiveness, which he found endearing.

He hadn’t realized that Liu Yixue’s father was Liu Yinchou, the county’s top official in public security and legal affairs—the number one in the police, legal, and prosecution systems.

But Zhou Xuan had no intention of letting Liu Yinchou find out about this. If he did, Zhou Xuan’s image in his eyes would be ruined.

“Thank you, Yixue, for telling me something so important. There’s much I haven’t told you yet, including what I’m working on now. But don’t worry—when school starts, I’ll tell you everything.”

He was planning to share more with Liu Yixue. Since they were to grow together, it was only right that they understand each other.

“I know you’re always busy, doing your own thing. I trust you’ll tell me everything sooner or later. Zhou Xuan, you must believe that no matter what you do, I’ll always be quietly supporting you from behind!”

Hearing her heartfelt words, Zhou Xuan felt that as long as he could walk through life with Liu Yixue by his side, he would have no regrets.