Chapter 191: The Ambitious Uncle

Uncle Zhao Guozhong’s injuries weren’t very serious, just some superficial soft tissue contusions. The main thing was the bruising on his face, which was swollen from the beating.

Ultimately, the other party hadn’t used lethal force.

After all, this was a society ruled by law, and there was no market for being ruthless and violent anymore.

When Chen Feng arrived at the hospital and checked his uncle’s injuries, he asked him directly, “Did you call the police?”

“Of course, I did,” Zhao Guozhong said with a grin, wincing slightly.

“What did the police say?” Chen Feng asked again.

Zhao Guozhong chuckled, “Don’t worry. Three of their group have already been detained. The problem now is how to get them a heavy sentence. That’s where you come in.”

Hearing his words and seeing his expression, Chen Feng knew that his uncle had probably gotten beaten up on purpose this time, deliberately setting a trap for that group of outsiders.

His methods weren’t exactly above board, but Chen Feng also knew he was doing it to make money and to capture the car wash market.

Besides, competitors are like enemies. Even if he wanted to compete with them fair and square, they might not be willing.

It was just that Zhao Guozhong’s methods were a bit ruthless; he wanted to send this group of people directly to prison.

“Tell me exactly what happened.”

At Chen Feng’s request, Zhao Guozhong recounted the process of his staged incident with a proud expression.

Actually, even without Chen Feng asking, he was going to tell him anyway. In his eyes, the plan had been executed perfectly.

Coincidentally, besides Chen Feng, Zhao Xiaolan, and Chen Dayong, there was no one else in the hospital room, so Zhao Guozhong had even fewer inhibitions. He spoke with great animation, his pride evident.

The course of events was actually quite simple. Zhao Guozhong first went to their place in person, introduced himself, and then provoked them with words, telling them to shut down and get lost, or else don’t blame him for being impolite.

The other party was naturally very angry, but they didn’t immediately start beating him.

So, Zhao Guozhong arrogantly arranged to meet them that afternoon at a restaurant. This restaurant was the same place where Shorty Ba had asked him to negotiate last time, and it was considered one of the more luxurious ones in their town.

Most importantly, Zhao Guozhong knew the owner of this restaurant, and every private room had surveillance cameras. He had already made arrangements before inviting them there.

The time Zhao Guozhong set was twelve noon. The other party, a group of six, arrived on time. Zhao Guozhong then deliberately arrived more than half an hour late, showing up just as they were about to leave in frustration. Moreover, he came alone, showing immense courage.

The subsequent scene was Zhao Guozhong being arrogant, threatening, and provocative in various ways. Finally, one of them couldn’t take it anymore and came forward to hit him.

To make it look real, and also to deliberately provoke the other party, Zhao Guozhong stubbornly fought back, even slapping the other person’s face, and verbally insulted all six of them, taking on all six at once.

Even if the other five who hadn’t acted were more rational, the words Zhao Guozhong used were too ugly. Two more of them couldn’t hold back and joined in, giving him a good beating.

Fortunately, the remaining three were calm enough to quickly pull their companions back. They then threw a few harsh words at Zhao Guozhong, who was on the ground, and left.

As soon as they left, the bruised and swollen Zhao Guozhong immediately called the police and also got the surveillance footage from the restaurant owner. The evidence was conclusive.

As soon as the police arrived, they used the surveillance footage to detain the three people who had beaten him.

This trick was relatively simple, but also very effective. What particularly impressed Chen Feng was that his own uncle had personally put himself in harm’s way, which required great courage.

In this matter, his good-for-nothing uncle’s performance was commendable; he could be considered both brave and resourceful.

Therefore, after hearing his account, Chen Feng wasn’t angry. Instead, he felt a bit of appreciation and relief.

Zhao Xiaolan, who was listening on the side, said with great distress, “A-Zhong, it’s just a car wash. Is it worth risking your life like this?”

“Sis, a car wash is a good business that’s guaranteed to make money. I finally have a career of my own, so of course, I have to work hard. I’m not young anymore. If I don’t make an effort now while I still can, I’ll really become a good-for-nothing,” Zhao Guozhong said, his bruised face beaming with a brilliant smile.

Zhao Xiaolan complained, “If you had this kind of awareness before, you wouldn’t be in this situation now.”

Chen Feng interjected, “It’s not too late for Uncle to have this realization now. Although Uncle took a bit of a risk this time, the result is pretty good.”

Hearing his nephew’s affirmation, the smile on Zhao Guozhong’s face grew even brighter, like a primary school student who had been praised by his teacher.

“A-Feng, the rest is up to you. I can’t have taken this beating for nothing. We must get their shop shut down and take over their business.”

Although Chen Feng was a bit speechless, seeing his bruised and swollen face, he couldn’t say much and just nodded at him.

Since the two sides had already become enemies, there was no need to be polite anymore. Even though this was the result of his uncle’s provocation, their positions and interests were different, and Chen Feng would definitely side with his own uncle.

Thinking of this, Chen Feng said to Zhao Guozhong, “I’m going out to make a call.”

With that, Chen Feng left the hospital room.

He walked out into the corridor, went to the fire escape, and first called Fang Xiaoyue. He briefly explained that he and his uncle had partnered to open a car detailing shop in Yuelou Town, and that his uncle had been beaten. He asked her to help him file an official report about the environmental pollution problems of that car wash, preferably to go and inspect and shut it down that very afternoon.

Fang Xiaoyue already owed Chen Feng a big favor, and this was a small matter for her, so she readily agreed. She also caringly asked about Chen Feng’s uncle’s injuries. When Chen Feng said it was nothing serious, she even offered to come to the hospital to visit. After Chen Feng repeatedly told her it wasn’t necessary, she seemed a little unhappy.

After hanging up with Fang Xiaoyue, Chen Feng called Qin Zhen.

This guy had been extremely busy over the New Year. When he contacted him yesterday, he was at a relative’s dinner party. For the past few days of the New Year, he basically had dinner parties and social engagements every day. Plus, with his girlfriend by his side, he had no time to meet up with Chen Feng alone.

“Where are you?”

As soon as the call connected, Chen Feng asked directly. The background noise was a bit loud.

“At a restaurant. A few army buddies from when I was a new recruit came to visit. I have to entertain them.”

“Officer Qin, you’re really busy,” Chen Feng couldn’t help but tease. However, he had to admit that this guy had foresight. He had met with him right after returning from Xiuzhou, probably anticipating this situation.

“Can’t be helped,” Qin Zhen said helplessly. “These are all engagements I can’t avoid. I’ve had at least one drinking party every day for the past few days, sometimes two or three a day. I can barely hold on. Next year, no, this year, I’m definitely not coming home for the New Year, even if it kills me.”

“Alright, I won’t waste your time. Let’s talk business. You’re not drunk right now, are you?”

“No. I’m not drinking. I deliberately drove here. My buddies didn’t pressure me to drink either. We’re all older now. Only the two who didn’t drive are drinking; the rest of us are having soft drinks.”

“Alright then.” Chen Feng didn’t stand on ceremony with him and directly told him about his uncle’s situation, asking if he had any acquaintances in the system here who could help exert some influence to get the assault case handled as soon as possible.

“This uncle of yours, is he the one we met at the nightclub last time? Is he seriously injured?”

“It’s nothing major. But it’s not light either. For the injury assessment, I think we can get it classified as a minor injury, right?”

“Hehe, I’m not sure about that. You’ll have to bring him over for an examination to know for sure, you know what I mean? It’s not good to talk about it on the phone. I’ll come visit your uncle this afternoon or tomorrow when I have time, and we can talk then.”

Of course, Chen Feng understood. He resisted the urge to roll his eyes and complain. This guy probably had a habit from his time in the mysterious department; his sense of secrecy was very strong.

“Then come over this afternoon when you have time. I’m on the second floor of the inpatient department at the county hospital right now. Is an hour from now okay?”

Chen Feng certainly wouldn’t be polite with him. It was only right for him to come and visit his injured uncle.

“I don’t need an hour. I’ll be there in half an hour at most.”

“Alright, I’ll wait for you.”

“Okay.”

The two hung up, and Chen Feng returned to the hospital room.

“How did it go? What did your friend say?”

As soon as Chen Feng came in, Zhao Guozhong asked with concern.

“He’s coming to see you later. There are some things you don’t need to know in detail. Anyway, he’ll help.”

Zhao Guozhong quickly nodded, indicating he understood, and didn’t dare to ask any more questions.

It was almost two in the afternoon. Chen Feng had his parents go home first, while he stayed to accompany his uncle, which would also make it more convenient to talk with Qin Zhen later.

“Uncle, what about your friends from the streets? Didn’t they come to see you?”

As soon as his parents left, Chen Feng relaxed and started teasing his uncle.

Zhao Guozhong gave an embarrassed smile, “They all came to see me earlier. Didn’t you see all the fruit by the bed?”

Chen Feng glanced at the few fruit baskets under the bed, smiled, and asked, “Did they know about your plan this time?”

Zhao Guozhong quickly shook his head, “Of course not. This kind of thing has to be kept secret. I don’t trust these people.”

“You got beaten up this time. Didn’t they offer to help you beat them back?”

Zhao Guozhong gave a wry smile and shook his head, “We’re all getting old. We’ve long lost the hot-bloodedness for fighting. Besides, times have changed. Fighting is useless now. To get by in society, you have to rely on your brain and connections. A few of them who seem simple-minded said they wanted to help me smash up that car wash, but I don’t know if they were serious or not. They were probably just saying nice things.”

Chen Feng nodded, “It’s good that you know. What these friends of yours from the streets value now is profit, not brotherhood. In today’s society, anyone who still talks about brotherhood is considered a fool. You should have learned your lesson from the nightclub incident last time. I don’t need to remind you again, do I?”

At the mention of the nightclub incident, Zhao Guozhong could only look like he was being lectured, nodding and saying, “Of course. Your uncle isn’t a fool, okay? Before, I was just a bit naive, a bit old-fashioned as you said. Now I see it clearly. These so-called sworn brothers, I now just hang out with them and use them. I will absolutely not be a foolish sucker who puts brotherhood first again.”

“It’s good that you know.”

Chen Feng had heard that his uncle was now quite influential in Yuelou Town, having joined forces with a large group of old-time gangsters, which is why he gave him this reminder.

However, he had to admit that his uncle now seemed to have truly seen the light and was striving to improve himself.

This was a good sign.

After the uncle and nephew chatted idly for a while, Qin Zhen arrived with another person. Both were carrying a fruit basket.

In Zhao Guozhong’s eyes, Qin Zhen was a big shot. He was immediately flattered and sat up from the hospital bed.

After introductions were made, hearing that the person who came with Qin Zhen was a deputy captain in the bureau made Zhao Guozhong feel a little light-headed.

This deputy captain happened to be Qin Zhen’s army buddy. Hearing about Chen Feng’s uncle’s situation, and that Chen Feng was Qin Zhen’s close friend, he came along. He was a straightforward and practical person.

After the three chatted for a while, Chen Feng and Qin Zhen whispered to each other for a bit. Then Qin Zhen went over and whispered to his army buddy for a bit, and the matter was more or less settled.

Qin Zhen and his friend only stayed in the hospital room for about ten minutes before they took their leave.

“Is it settled?”

Zhao Guozhong asked, his eyes shining.

Chen Feng nodded, “More or less. Just wait for the news. Also, go for an injury assessment this afternoon.”

“Okay.”

Zhao Guozhong smiled happily.

Chen Feng continued to wait at the hospital for about another hour. Then, after receiving a phone call, he took his uncle to the designated place for the injury assessment.

The process went smoothly and was completed in less than an hour.

When they returned to the hospital, Chen Feng received a call from Fang Xiaoyue, who said that both car washes in Yuelou Town had been shut down.

Although Chen Feng had only reported one, when the inspection team went over, they certainly wouldn’t turn a blind eye to another car wash that was polluting the environment, so they investigated and dealt with it as well.

Chen Feng expressed his thanks, exchanged a few polite words, and then hung up.

Not long after, Zhao Guozhong received a call from his sworn brother, Sanzhi.

“Guozhong, it’s one thing for you to deal with that group of outsiders, but why did you get Shorty Ba’s shop shut down too?”

As soon as the call connected, Sanzhi started complaining to Zhao Guozhong.

“You really can’t blame me for this. I only wanted them to shut down the outsiders’ shop. Shorty Ba’s shop being shut down was probably just collateral damage. That’s the inspection team’s business, I really can’t control it.”

“Then can you help put in a word to get the shop unsealed first?”

Zhao Guozhong chuckled twice, “You think too highly of me. I don’t have that kind of power. I just filed an official report against the outsiders’ shop.”

“Guozhong, you know Shorty Ba is my underling. Aren’t you slapping me in the face by doing this? Give me some face and help me sort out Shorty Ba’s matter this time. Don’t worry, I know the rules. Just name your price.”

Hearing this, Zhao Guozhong looked at his nephew. He had already put the call on speakerphone, so Chen Feng had heard everything. Seeing Chen Feng shake his head, he said without any hesitation, “Sanzhi, what are you talking about? I don’t know what you mean. And I don’t have that kind of ability. Anyway, I really didn’t deliberately target Shorty Ba this time. Believe it or not. I have other things to do, so let’s leave it at that.”

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