Chapter 177: There’s a Case

Chapter 177: Chapter 177: There’s a Case

When Qi Hao returned, he sat down, stretched out his long legs, and went back to eating. Since he couldn’t drink alcohol, he had grape juice instead.

Before long, a group of police officers appeared on the street outside. They marched straight to the disco’s entrance and forcibly shut off the sound system.

The police got into an argument with a group of trendy-looking people, and the sound of their shouting drew the curious gazes of many patrons.

This was already a busy street, so in no time, a curious crowd had gathered to watch the drama unfold.

Some of the patrons in the Western restaurant also took notice.

They began to murmur amongst themselves, "Finally, someone’s cracking down on this disco. It’s so annoying. I just like to enjoy a Western meal, but of the few times I’ve come this month, I’ve had to put up with that noisy disco almost every time."

"Tell me about it. I went over to the disco last time to ask them to keep it down, and they acted like I was being a busybody."

"Well, it’s about time. The police are finally stepping in."

"It’s useless. That crowd is crazy. The police have been here several times, but it does no good. They’ll quiet down for two or three days, and then it’s right back to the same old chaos."

Lu Zhengchuan asked Qi Hao, "Old Qi, was this your doing?"

"Yeah. Since I ran into it, how could I just let it be?" Qi Hao nodded, admitting it with righteous and domineering confidence.

Zhang Yun shot Qi Hao a few more glances, then tugged on Su Wan’s sleeve and whispered, "Sister-in-law, your husband’s comrade is so bold. Isn’t he afraid of retaliation?"

"His grandfather is a veteran commander." Su Wan’s single sentence explained why Qi Hao wasn’t afraid.

Zhang Yun sucked in a sharp breath. ’I thought my cousin was already outstanding, but I never imagined his comrade would be even more of a badass.’

’So this is what a man from a truly distinguished family looks like.’

’Compared to someone like that, Ah Yuan really doesn’t have any advantages... In fact, he even lied to me.’

’Even if he made a mistake in the past, he should have just told me. Why did he have to hide it?’

Zhang Yun was completely lost in thought.

Just then, screams suddenly erupted from outside.

"Ahh, they’re fighting!"

"They’re assaulting the police!"

"Call for backup!"

"There’s trouble." Lu Zhengchuan’s eyes narrowed, and he shot to his feet.

Qi Hao did the exact same thing.

He was even quicker on the uptake, striding toward the exit and out the restaurant door in the blink of an eye.

"Wanwan, you guys stay here. Don’t go out," Lu Zhengchuan said. "Old Qi and I will go take a look." He couldn’t possibly ignore an act of violence.

Su Wan knew she couldn’t stop him, so she just said, "Take a weapon with you."

"Don’t worry, I have one."

Lu Zhengchuan patted his calf, where he had a dagger concealed.

Not wanting to make Su Wan worry, he even grabbed a baseball bat from the restaurant owner on his way out.

Baseball bats were also a foreign import, and when Su Wan saw the restaurant owner dressed in trendy hip-hop attire, she understood why this place had so many things from abroad.

However, she couldn’t spare any curiosity for the restaurant owner. Her eyes were glued to the confrontation across the street.

Qi Hao strode over and, in an instant, effortlessly kicked all six or seven of the young troublemakers to the ground. They crumpled to the pavement, curled up and too pained to make a sound.

Now that they had backup, the police officers immediately entered the disco and began arresting everyone inside.

Outside, Lu Zhengchuan worked with another officer to form a perimeter, cordoning off the troubled disco.

Qi Hao had already gone into the disco and was out of sight.

The only sign of the ongoing crackdown was the stream of people being escorted out.

Lu Zhengchuan wanted to go inside as well. Before he did, he glanced back and gave a nod in Su Wan’s direction.

Only then did he step inside.

"Sister-in-law, will my cousin and Mr. Qi be okay?"

"Some of those people were bleeding. Were they drunk? There are broken bottles all over the ground. These guys are terrifying! How dare they attack the police." This wasn’t just an eye-opening experience for Zhang Yun; she was also badly frightened.

Su Wan shook her head. "We won’t know until Lu Zhengchuan comes out."

"We’re powerless to help, so we shouldn’t go in and cause more trouble."

"That’s right. Ms. Su Wan, you shouldn’t go over there. I hear this disco is backed by gangsters," Huo Ming said, having appeared by their table at some unknown point, his face grim.

Su Wan looked up at him, studying his expression, and suddenly asked, "Mr. Huo, what’s the real story with this disco?"

"They have enforcers, a bunch of thugs, which is why nobody dares to provoke them." Huo Ming met her suspicious gaze and quickly added, "But don’t you worry. They wouldn’t dare lay a hand on soldiers."

Su Wan shot to her feet. "Take me to a phone."

Without a moment’s hesitation, Huo Ming led Su Wan over and had a word with the owner.

Su Wan immediately picked up the phone and dialed Xiao Liu.

"Xiao Liu, the disco at 213 Front Street, West City. Bring some of the comrades who are on break. There’s been a fight. Lu Zhengchuan and Qi Hao have gone in to deal with the whole place, but I have a bad feeling."

"Yes, Ma’am! I’ll bring people right away!"

Xiao Liu sprang into action the moment he hung up. Officially deploying troops was impossible, but Lu Zhengchuan was a Group Leader and always had a few men with him. By calling on them and adding some soldiers who were off-duty, he could assemble a group. Besides, Qi Group Leader Qi Hao was also there.

Xiao Liu quickly arranged for the manpower.

"Sister-in-law, why did you ask Xiao Liu to come?" Zhang Yun, who had followed her, grew tense hearing the phone call, especially as Lu Zhengchuan was no longer visible at the entrance to the disco.

She couldn’t help but feel uneasy.

"What else? Who knows how many people are in there? The thugs and enforcers Mr. Huo mentioned haven’t even appeared. No matter how skilled Qi Hao and Lu Zhengchuan are, two fists are no match for a crowd. Calling for backup is the safe bet."

Zhang Yun breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this.

"You’re right. Let’s leave the fighting to the professionals. Nothing can happen to my cousin." In truth, Zhang Yun had no real grasp of the dangers a soldier faced; she was only focused on Lu Zhengchuan’s high stipend and the comfortable life that came with it.

’This was the first time she truly understood that great rewards came with great risks.’

Su Wan returned to her seat and waited nervously.

About twenty minutes later, Xiao Liu arrived with a group of soldiers. They filed into the disco to make arrests and restore order.

In the blink of an eye, another half hour passed.

Su Wan checked the time—it was already one o’clock. Unwilling to wait any longer, she stood up, walked out of the restaurant, and found Xiao Liu, who was organizing police cars to take the detainees to the station.

"Xiao Liu, where is Lu Zhengchuan? I have to go back to school. Go get him for me."

When Xiao Liu saw her, he gave a military salute. "Ma’am, please wait a moment. I’ll go get the Group Leader now."

Xiao Liu went inside and came out about five minutes later. He scratched his head and said apologetically, "Ma’am, my apologies. Qi Battalion Commander discovered this disco has a basement and even a secret underground tunnel. We heard the owner and those junkie patrons got away, so the Battalion Commander and our Group Leader went in pursuit."

"The Group Leader left a message. I’ve already filed a report with our superiors and arranged for military personnel to assist with the case."

"It’ll probably take some time to get a result. If you’re busy, shall I arrange for someone to escort you back first?"