Chapter 152 - 151: You Found a Very Good Partner

Chapter 152: Chapter 151: You Found a Very Good Partner

Rian Sinclair stood to the side, having listened to everything. Among the crowd, a few more people quietly slipped away, afraid of getting involved.

Very few bystanders remained. The only ones left clustered around the injured girl were the young woman who had initially called the police, the girl who had returned from buying medical supplies, and the boy who had stayed by her side the entire time.

Clutching his chest on the ground, the man in the green shirt raised a hand to point at Ronan Ford. "Officers, you’re finally here! Please, you have to help us! My friends and I just came here for some barbecue, and this guy pinned me down and started beating the living daylights out of me! You have to see that justice is done!"

Standing nearby, Rian couldn’t hold back anymore after hearing the man’s complete nonsense. "Officer, they’re spouting lies. Before you make any judgments, maybe you should look at the four girls they just beat up."

With that, she stepped aside, revealing the four girls behind her. Their injuries were now fully exposed to everyone’s view.

The men lying on the ground probably saw it too. Or perhaps the beating had sobered them up. Seeing the girls’ injuries, they turned their heads away, unwilling to look.

Seeing this, the lead officer glared at the man in green. Suddenly, the wail of an ambulance siren pierced the air, and a group of paramedics rushed over. "Where are the injured?"

The girl still leaning against her boyfriend raised her hand. "Over here!"

"These injuries are severe! We need a stretcher, quick!" The paramedics moved efficiently, swiftly taking the injured girls away. Soon, only Rian and the remaining helpers were left at the scene.

Rian shifted her gaze back to the officer, waiting to see what he would say and how exactly this situation would be resolved.

The officer surveyed the area, then said, "We’ll take this group back to the station for interrogation first. Thank you for your trouble."

At the lead officer’s command, the other policemen began escorting the men on the ground into the cruisers. However, their surprisingly gentle handling made Rian slightly doubtful that they were actually being taken in for a tough interrogation. The men were quickly driven away, leaving behind nothing but a total mess.

Rian looked at the remaining girls and said softly, "You all should head home first." Spotting the girl who was by herself, she added, "I’ll give you a ride back."

The lone girl was about to shake her head, but perhaps remembering the terrifying events of the night, she nodded instead. Seeing this, the girl with her boyfriend waved goodbye. "Then my boyfriend and I will get going too."

Rian nodded. Looking at the girl’s boyfriend, she smiled and said, "You found yourself a great guy. I’m sure you two will be very happy."

At those words, a shy blush crept onto the girl’s face. She nodded firmly. "We will be."

After sending the couple off, Rian turned and walked into the barbecue restaurant. Ronan and the lone girl followed closely behind. The owner was slumped in a chair, looking utterly defeated and dejected. Rian glanced at the wreckage outside, feeling a twinge of guilt. She was about to take out her phone to pay when she remembered the battery was dead.

She was just about to ask if he took credit cards when a phone was handed to her from the side. Then, she heard Ronan’s deep voice. "Use mine."

Rian didn’t stand on ceremony and took it directly. "Sir, tally up the damages outside. I’ll scan your code and pay for it."

Hearing this, the owner jerked his head up, meeting Rian’s eyes. Recognizing her, he sighed and shook his head. "Young lady, you don’t need to pay. This had nothing to do with you."

The owner lowered his head again. How could he have known something like this would happen tonight? He hadn’t even been able to stop them; the men had just shoved past him and rained blows upon those poor girls. They had grabbed whatever was at hand and started smashing things. Not only had he barely made any money tonight, but all his earnings had just gone down the drain, and it probably still wouldn’t be enough to cover the damages. He knew the young woman in front of him had only stepped in to help. If it weren’t for her and the young man, his shop would have been in even worse shape, and his losses would have been far greater.

"Young lady, this is none of your business. Hurry up and leave with your boyfriend, otherwise, those thugs might come back looking for you."

Rian didn’t say a word. She simply scanned the payment QR code sitting on the counter and transferred three thousand.

Hearing the payment notification chime, the owner hurriedly stood up. "No, no, young lady! I’ll refund it to you. You had absolutely nothing to do with this. I can’t accept it."

Rian shook her head. "Sir, it’s not easy running a business out here. Please, take the money and buy some new tables and chairs."

The owner kept shaking his head. "Young lady, this isn’t your fault. They were the ones who went over to harass those girls, and when they got rejected, they started throwing punches. You had no part in that. I can’t take your money. It’s hard enough for anyone to earn a living these days."

Ronan stood to the side and chimed in, "Keep it, sir. We were involved in the scuffle too. Use the money to replace what was broken."

Seeing Ronan speak up, Rian remembered the earlier events and asked, "Sir, do you have security cameras?"

The owner nodded. "You mean for what just happened? Yes, I have cameras. Come here, young lady, you can copy the footage."

By the time the three of them left the restaurant, it was already quite late. While copying the footage, Rian had watched the recording again. She had downloaded the video starting from the exact moment the man in green entered the shop. Although the audio was a bit noisy, his words were still audible. When the altercation moved outside, the voices became muffled, but the men’s aggressive actions were crystal clear.

Since the lone girl’s home wasn’t far away, Rian and Ronan dropped her off first before Ronan drove Rian away.

Inside the car, Rian’s phone finally turned back on. She was just about to transfer the money to Ronan when he spoke up. "Let’s exchange contacts. It’ll be easier to stay in touch about this."

Rian’s hand paused slightly. Looking up, she saw Ronan’s handsome profile and the slightly red tips of his ears. The corners of her lips curled up in a faint smile. She typed her phone number into his device, added him on WeChat, and then transferred the three thousand she had just spent back to him.

"What’s your take on this whole thing?" Rian’s voice broke the silence in the car.

Ronan didn’t answer immediately. From the copied footage, it was painfully obvious that the men were entirely at fault. They had initiated unprovoked sexual harassment, hurled insults, and gotten physical. The women had been completely minding their own business, and when they stood up to defend themselves, they were ganged up on and beaten.

The indoor footage was very clear, capturing the scene from multiple angles. The owner had explained why he installed so many cameras: running a late-night food joint always carried the risk of drunk patrons causing trouble. Having extra cameras provided an extra layer of security.

"The men they took away will definitely be punished," Ronan finally said. "Judging from the video and their conversation, there’s no denying they were the ones who threw the insults and the first punches. It’s just that the girls’ injuries..."

Ronan didn’t finish his sentence, but Rian understood exactly what he meant.

Rian leaned against the car window, staring out into the night. Ronan drove her right up to her front door, not asking a single question about why she had been out so late in the first place.

"We’re here."

Hearing his voice, Rian snapped out of her daze. "Thank you."

She was just about to close the car door when she heard Ronan’s slightly concerned voice. "Get to sleep early."

Rian’s hand stalled on the door. "You too."

Upon arriving home, Ethan Sinclair stepped forward to greet her. "Have you had dinner yet, Miss?"

Rian nodded and handed him a set of car keys. "Have someone go over and drive my car back later."

Ethan took the keys, asked for the address, and nodded. Only then did Rian head upstairs to her room.

Following her usual routine, she washed up, played on her phone for a bit, and scrolled through Sharkstream. After tipping the streamers on her following list, she switched over to scrolling through short videos. After swiping past a few, Rian stumbled upon a clip of the very incident that had happened tonight.