Which way to go is the road?

The thugs on the scarred man's side were no longer interested in this kind of standoff. As usual, their expressions were fierce, their eyes defiant as they sized up everyone present. When they saw Qian Luomei and Bai Xue, their eyes gleamed with a lewd glint.

Qian Luomei maintained her composed and unyielding expression, appearing ready to face any challenge, and even gave the girls an encouraging and reassuring look.

The three girls clasped their hands together, defiantly returning the provocative gaze.

Xiang Fei, Lao You, Zhang Fang, and the others were all model students in school and had hardly ever been in a fight. They were very nervous in this situation, staring intently at the other side, just like a group of ordinary people facing Japanese invaders who were attacking their homeland.

Wang Haoming, on the other hand, seemed fearless and had the demeanor of a rogue.

"Hey, Boss Qian, you've got some connections! Don't be nervous, my hand slipped, I didn't catch it, sorry! I broke your 'cabbage'!" The scarred man's smile grew even more wicked as he walked over to Qian Luomei. "Why are all the items in your internet cafe so fragile? You'd better take good care of them! Boss Qian, don't you think so?"

"You try it yourself. Not only can you not shoulder this responsibility, but your boss will also have to think twice!" Qian Luomei said calmly but forcefully.

"I never try when it's time to do it! Today isn't the time yet." The scarred man turned his gaze away from Qian Luomei, glanced at Xiang Fei, and shrugged. "I've delivered the message. Boss Qian is gone. See you again!"

After finishing his sentence, the scarred man led his henchmen toward the main entrance. They were met by several policemen walking in through the revolving door, one of whom was Qian Luomei's childhood friend—Fang Dazhi!

"We should have left earlier, now we're in trouble! So dedicated even so early in the morning, those damn cops!"

The scarred man thought to himself, and when he saw them looking at him, he quickly lowered his head and pretended nothing was wrong, quickening his pace.

"Halt! None of you are allowed to leave this gate. Hands over your heads, don't let us take action! Xiao Wang, Xiao Li, check their IDs and see if they have any weapons. Anyone without identification, take them back to the station!"

Fang Dazhi instructed the police officers who had come with him to control the group, and then walked towards Qian Luomei.

"How are you? Are you alright?"

"It's nothing, Xiang Fei just suffered a little injustice and ruined a feng shui ornament!" Qian Luomei was, after all, a weak woman, and seeing that there was someone she could rely on, she sat down on the sofa with a sense of relief.

"Xiang Fei? Is this the young man? Let me see! Where are you injured?" Fang Dazhi walked over and examined Xiang Fei carefully.

"No, I just got scalded by a paper cup of hot water, but the water wasn't even boiling! It's nothing serious!"

"Hmm, looks alright, just a little red! This can't be used to examine the injury!" Fang Dazhi looked at Xiang Fei's burns and then at the pieces of "cabbage" on the ground.

"Bring the leader here! I have some questions for him!"

The scarred man was brought over. Fang Dazhi looked him over, took off his gold-rimmed glasses, and threw them on the bar!

"Did you hit this?"

"I hit it by accident!"

"An accidental hit? Who can prove that? This internet cafe is full of surveillance cameras. I can pull up a video and the truth will be revealed!"

"Then go ahead and adjust it. An accident is an accident!"

"Pretty tough, huh? Well, you'll see when you're not! Xiao Wang, Xiao Li, get the handcuffs over here. Take this old bastard to the station in a bit!"

Just as Fang Dazhi finished speaking, he was gently patted on the back a few times. It was Qian Luomei, who pulled Fang Dazhi aside and said a few words to him.

"Forget it, this guy looks fierce, but he's just a messenger, a gofer! If you arrest him, someone else will just come. Just do him a favor and let it go!"

"Aren't you at a disadvantage? Just for throwing hot water and smashing things, he's already violated the 'Regulations on Administrative Penalties for Public Security.' Detaining him for two weeks is enough!"

"Forget it, it's a waste of your talents to be the deputy captain of the criminal investigation team in charge of this!"

"What kind of talk is that? If we encounter someone bullying a child, we have to intervene!"

"I have my reasons. Let's just say he broke the ornament accidentally! It wasn't worth much, and Xiang Fei's injury wasn't serious either. I'll give him some compensation later! Let it go!"

Seeing Qian Luomei say this, Fang Dazhi didn't insist anymore. He sighed, went up to the scarred man, and unlocked the handcuffs.

"Your name is Li Qi, right? I'll remember you. The internet cafe owner was magnanimous this time and didn't pursue the matter. I hope you know what to do. If I see you in this internet cafe again, you know the consequences!"

"Can I at least use the internet?" Li Qi asked, seeing that the police had become accustomed to it and had learned to be glib.

Fang Dazhi didn't say anything, but held up the handcuffs as if to cuff them again!

"I was just kidding! Don't take it seriously, I promise I'll never come back!" A wise man doesn't fight a losing battle, and nobody wants to stay in jail.

Fang Dazhi made the scarred man pay for the "cabbage ornament" and pretended to tell him to get lost. Just as the scarred man was about to leave with his henchmen, a voice stopped him.

Five pieces

Fang Dazhi saw Xiang Fei speaking, walked over to ask what was going on, then turned back: "You're trying to rob me by not paying for my drink?"

The scarred man quickly took out five yuan and handed it to Fang Dazhi, but Fang Dazhi refused to accept it. He then pointed at Xiang Fei, and the scarred man obediently handed it to Xiang Fei.

Seeing that the police gave another signal to leave, the scarred man and his group of thugs hurriedly left "Shuiyunjian".

After everyone left, Qian Luomei had everyone clean up the mess, while she led Fang Dazhi upstairs to the rooftop attic!

"I'm still late, I'm sorry, Luo Mei! I haven't fulfilled my duty as an older brother, nor have I fulfilled my responsibilities as a police officer!"

Qian Luomei shook her head, gave him a hug, and tears welled up in her eyes: "Brother Dazhi, do you know? Just now I even thought about fighting to the death. There's a whole family here, but I'm the boss. If everyone else can't hold on, I have to! But I'm a woman too! My heart is really in turmoil, I'm so panicked, but I don't dare show it!"

"I'm late!" Fang Dazhi repeated.

Qian Luomei wiped away her tears of grievance, left Fang Dazhi, went to the water dispenser next to her, poured a cup of hot water, and placed it in front of Fang Dazhi.

"Your place is so far from the internet cafe, this is considered fast! Who would have thought they'd come so early in the morning! I thought if there were no problems for two weeks, this would be over! I didn't expect them to come after all!"

Fang Dazhi picked up a cup to warm his hands: "These people will be a menace sooner or later. I sent someone to deliver a message, but now that I think about it, it might have had a negative effect. These people are so unscrupulous; they must have connections in higher-ups!"

"Looks like I'll have to talk to my dad about this tonight. What's that leader called, 'Li Si' or 'Brother Qi'?"

"Li Qi! It seems quite a few thugs call him 'Fourth Brother'!"

"Yes, it's him. He said his boss knows my dad. I need to ask him how to resolve this!"

"Does your dad know 'Ninth Master'?"

"Who is Ninth Master?"

"Li Qi's boss has a very deep background and is involved in many things! He owns a lot of nightclubs, underground casinos, and private clubs. I heard he also sells drugs, but we can't find any evidence. We always come up empty-handed when we raid his places!"

How did my dad come to know him?

"You'll have to go back and ask the old man about that! Oh, and make a copy of the security camera footage from your internet cafe later; it'll be evidence if anything happens in the future!"

"Okay, shall I have Xiang Fei copy it for you in a bit?"

"Is that the young man who got scalded by hot water?"

"It's him! Thanks to him for holding things off for me today, I had time to call you. I even got burned in the process. He also took the lead in protecting me during the standoff. He's a really good young man!"

"Then why not take him as a husband to the bandit stronghold?"

Qian Luomei blushed, then laughed and gave Fang Dazhi a nudge: "You're so unserious! What are you saying?! If you say another word, I might cancel our one-year agreement!"

"I was wrong, I was wrong! I just saw you were so serious and tense, and you'd just gone through something, so I made a fool of myself to help you relax. Xiang Fei has some responsibility; you could consider making him a store manager or something, to lighten your load!"

Qian Luomei tilted her head, pondering Fang Dazhi's words, and couldn't help but nod: "That's a serious statement. I'll consider it. Okay, that's all! You're quite busy with work, why don't you head back first!"

"So you're already telling us to leave?"

Qian Luomei chuckled, "It's fine if you don't want to leave. I'll cook two dishes for lunch, and we can have some drinks!"

"Come on, what good food can you even cook?"

Don't look down on others.

"It used to be terrible; I wouldn't even eat what I made. But recently, Xiang Fei gave me some guidance, and now it tastes much better!"

Fang Dazhi frowned. "Xiang Fei again?"

"What? It's Xiang Fei again? What happened?"

"Oh, it's nothing! I just meant that Xiang Fei is quite capable; he's really impressed me!"

"That's true, you know? This young man used to be a cleaner, but he taught himself computer skills and became a network administrator. He's also a pretty good poet!"

A pang of sadness swept through Fang Dazhi's heart, but he showed no trace of it on his face: "Hmm! That's good. Keep a close eye on it, don't let any talent slip away."

"He won't leave. His girlfriend goes to the university next door, and she's good friends with me. They're always at internet cafes!"

Fang Dazhi immediately felt much more relaxed, and couldn't help but smile.

"What are you laughing at?" Qian Luomei asked, puzzled.

Fang Dazhi coughed lightly: "Ah... I'm happy for this kid, he already has a girlfriend, and she's a college student!"

"Don't be happy for him. When will I be happy for you? He's two years older than me, isn't he? Why aren't you looking for someone? Are you waiting for me?"

"Would you believe me if I said yes?" Fang Dazhi's face suddenly turned serious, causing Qian Luomei to frown slightly, yet she couldn't help but smile in an instant: "Just kidding!"

"Ugh!" Qian Luomei punched Fang Dazhi hard.

"It's getting late, I'm going back now, I won't eat! I still have to work when I get back, the case I'm working on lately is giving me a headache!" Fang Dazhi said, pointing to his head.

"Okay, then I won't see you off. I need to sort this out and figure out how to talk to my dad about it tonight!"

"Okay, I'll come over whenever I have free time these next few days. Give me a call anytime if you need anything!"

Seeing Qian Luomei playfully give an "OK" sign, Fang Dazhi stepped out of the attic, went down to the first floor to copy the surveillance video with Xiang Fei, greeted everyone, and left Shuiyunjian with two police officers.