Chapter 7: One Day, I’ll Kill Jin Yang

Jin Yang had the car hood up and was crawling under the chassis, working on it for a long while but still couldn’t figure out what was wrong.

He’d been obsessed with cars since childhood. All those military toys under his father’s command had been wrecked by his curious hands at some point. Fixing minor breakdowns like this should have been a breeze.

Crawling out from under the car, covered in dust and grime, Jin Yang could only conclude: “This Crown 122 is too fragile. Can’t hold a candle to those tough military pickup trucks. Damn Japanese products—just a tap to the rear and it’s toast.”

Just as he was standing up, one of Pockmark’s feet stomped hard on his hand, grinding it against the ground like he was squashing ants.

The elegant, noble air around Jin Yang cracked. His face turned grim. “You rear-end me and still think you’re in the right? What a backward place, full of nasty locals. I’ve really landed in a ditch today.”

Then he realized the guy didn’t come alone—two henchmen followed behind. Jin Yang’s only thought was to shake them off, but they were relentless. His car was broken, and he needed to find a mechanic quickly. He was willing to let it go, but they just kept pushing. One of them even kicked him hard in the calf.

Pockmark laughed smugly. “Dumbass! Big guy like you, thought you could fight? That’s it?”

Jin Yang’s face darkened completely. Still, he calmly corrected, “Please say ‘your father,’ not ‘your mother.’ If ‘mother’ is considered swearing, then so is ‘father.’” How could a father compare to a mother? A father enjoys a moment, but the mother suffers for ten months—his own mother had died giving birth to him. No one could match a mother’s greatness.

Pockmark was stunned, then turned to his lackeys. “This guy’s nuts. Complaining about how I cuss? You care who I curse at?”

Jin Yang had had enough. His mother had been dead for over twenty years, and now this pig-faced punk was insulting her? No more patience. He fought back. Three-on-one, no questions asked.

Eventually, some bystanders took him to the hospital. The ER doctor told him: hand wrecked, leg injured—he’d need to be admitted. But it was a busy day: four patients had come in at once. Though Jin Yang’s injuries were the worst, he wasn’t a local and had no connections—so he was told to wait quietly in the ward until the doctor had time to treat him.

At admission, the hospital asked for a family contact. Jin Yang didn’t call his only immediate family—his father—but called his aunt instead.

Unfortunately, she was away on business. After being transferred through several operators, Jin Yang finally left a message at the guesthouse where she was staying: “All is well. I don’t want to eat bamboo shoots with braised pork when I get home.”

She would understand. Only his father ever made him eat that dish. The message was a signal. No one else would make him eat it.

The nurse brought him to the ward and asked which bed he wanted. Jin Yang replied, “Can I have the one by the window?”

The nurse wasn’t surprised—everyone liked the window seat: bright, with a view and fresh air.

But Jin Yang had a different reason: he’d spotted a net bag of apples on the table beside the bed.

He was starving and exhausted. After a nap, he planned to find out who the apples belonged to and buy one.

But he never got to sleep soundly. The moment he opened his eyes, he was greeted by a mother and daughter trying to kick him out. The next moment, in came Pockmark and his cronies.

“Cheng-ge, say the word and we’ll handle him. This is a hospital—won’t be fatal.”

Lin Xiaqing gave Jin Yang a sympathetic look. Dude, you’re really in trouble. Sorry, I’m not noble—I’m out of here. But I’ll get help. The nurses might only be for show, but this was still their territory. Their words carried some weight.

She signaled to Qiao Chunjin repeatedly.

Qiao Chunjin, having never witnessed anything like this, was pale and trembling.

“Mom, you need the bathroom, right?” Lin Xiaqing blinked hard.

Qiao Chunjin nodded stiffly. “Mm…mm…”

Lin Xiaqing ran out of the ward toward the nurses’ station to alert them, but just then, a group of people charged down the hallway—headed straight for the room.

The nurses told her to take her mom to the bench in the hallway and wait. The group that had passed was from the hospital’s security office. Don’t ask questions, they said. Wait here. You’ll be called back when it’s over.

Lin Xiaqing assumed Jin Yang would be the one thrown out. Pockmark was loud, arrogant, and clearly well-connected. He was threatening to take half of Jin Yang’s life right there in the ward.

But then…

It was Pockmark and his cronies who were dragged out by security.

Lin Xiaqing was dumbfounded.

What the hell just happened? That’s it?

Security marched Pockmark and his crew down the hall in full force.

Lin Xiaqing’s heart pounded as fast as their footsteps.

Just a moment ago, the storm was howling—now it was calm, not a ripple left behind.

She thought she misheard—but it seemed Pockmark had said, “Dad, what are you doing here?”

The voice came from the stairwell.

Lin Xiaqing wanted to take a peek, but the staircase was now blocked by two tall security guards.

Then she heard an explosive shout: “Dad? I’m not your dad—from now on, you’re my dad!”

Pockmark’s face: “??”

Deputy County Chief Lu—who oversaw public health—was clutching his chest in despair. “Do you even know who you messed with? Do you know who his father is? Or who his father’s father is? Or his uncles, aunts, and in-laws? Of all people, you had to mess with him?! You’ve basically dug my grave!”

Lu’s calm, commanding presence shattered the moment he got that provincial-level call. The phone wasn’t even hung up—he fell right off his leather office couch.

He jabbed his finger in his son’s face, voice cracking: “You—you—you—I worked hard for twenty years, finally secured a seat on the Standing Committee—and you blow it all up in one go!”

Pockmark was still in a daze. How could this be? That guy’s just some out-of-town punk driving a flashy imported Crown. The whole county doesn’t even have a handful of imported cars. He looked like a perfect sucker. If local thugs don’t extort outsiders, who do they extort?

Sure, he rear-ended the guy, but he could’ve twisted the story so Jin Yang took full blame, forced him to pay repair costs—and even treat his own car to a full maintenance on the guy’s dime.

Unconvinced, he asked, “Dad, you said I messed up—but how bad could it be? There are only a handful of people in the county above you, and I know most of them. What kind of background could that outsider possibly have to make you so mad?”

Chief Lu was furious his son still didn’t grasp the gravity of the situation. “The county? To him, He County is nothing but a speck of dust. Even the province may not be able to protect you now!”

His voice rising with rage, he poked his son in the forehead. “You think you can make this right? You think your arms and legs are enough to repay this? Not even a deity with six arms could save you now!”

Then his tone turned cold. “Those two friends of yours—the ones who egged you on—have already been taken in.”

Pockmark protested. “Dad!”

Chief Lu sneered. “You always pick the worst friends. Didn’t want to study, preferred to mix with the dregs of society. If I don’t kill a couple of chickens, how can I rein in this monkey? Better to get taught a hard lesson now while you’re still young—at least you can still start over.”

Pockmark was truly devastated now—and all that hate in his heart shifted squarely onto Jin Yang.

What does Dad know? That busy man didn’t even know what grade I was in growing up. He’s never treated me like family. Those two were my sworn brothers. They’re no different from blood.

From childhood, their families had taken care of him—he’d eaten at their tables more times than he could count. Now those brothers were gone, thrown into the system. It felt like losing both arms.

He knew his father’s bottom line was the political game. Once it was crossed, there was no turning back. Dad’s stance was firm. It was over. Those two were done for.

The pain of losing his “arms and legs” turned into a tide of rage.

Pockmark swore: One day, I’ll kill Jin Yang. I’ll avenge my brothers.