"Fan Ming... Is this what you told me, that it’s basically certain Lin Feng instigated the attack?" Zhou Yang stared at Fan Ming, his face dark with anger as he asked, his eyes not hiding his rage.

Damn, challenging me, you were so cocky just now.

"Those hoodlums... How can their words be trusted, I’ll have someone reinterrogate them..." Fan Ming was at his wit’s end by now. He had seriously offended Zhou Yang this time, and failing to complete the task that Deputy Mayor Li had given him in this situation would make things even worse.

"Fine, a precinct chief managed to get himself into this mess. What, find someone to interrogate them again and twist the truth? Wang Ming, immediately transfer all these people and the evidence to the city bureau’s criminal police team. I’ll question them personally." Now Zhou Yang was also angry. Enough with the stalling, he thought, as if he didn’t understand what was going on.

"Yes." Wang Ming was also surprised. Although he didn’t understand why Zhou Yang was so furious and personally getting involved, the situation would be better with Zhou Yang stepping in.

Hearing this, Fan Ming was dumbfounded because if he persisted now, he would be the first to get in trouble. His mouth opened and shut several times, but in the end, he remained silent.

He was so furious inside. Wang Ming, oh Wang Ming, if it weren’t for his sudden interference, even Zhou Yang couldn’t have done anything. If only they had waited a little longer, but now...

"Since you just said it was so serious, the city bureau will take over personally." Seeing that Fan Ming didn’t say anything, Zhou Yang directly stepped down and walked away.

But before Zhou Yang could leave Fan Ming’s office, his phone already started to ring, and not just Zhou Yang’s phone—Fan Ming’s was ringing too.

"Mayor Li, Deputy Director Zhou is right in my office, trying to forcibly take over, and we’ve already started arguing. I’ve been trying to stop him, but even the city bureau can’t just take over our case like this, you know... I’m helpless... Yes, yes..." Fan Ming hadn’t expected Deputy Mayor Li to call at this moment, especially with such a displeased tone. He immediately shifted all the blame to Zhou Yang.

"Chief, it’s not that I’m interfering, it’s..." At this moment, Zhou Yang also received a call from the bureau telling him not to meddle in this foreign-related matter and to come back immediately.

"Deputy Director Zhou, Mayor Li is on the phone..." Fan Ming deliberately passed Zhou Yang his own phone while Zhou Yang was still on another call.

"Chief, it’s Deputy Mayor Li on the phone, I’ll take it first, then call you back." The situation was not what Zhou Yang had expected at all. The previously clear situation suddenly changed.

Zhou Yang had just taken the phone and started to greet the caller when he was met with angry questioning and accusations. The incident, which had originally just been a case of assault, was now being escalated to an international levelof concern.

Zhou Yang didn’t have a chance to interject, but from the conversation, it seemed that influential international media were gearing up to report the incident, and the consulate had protested again, under pressure from other foreign business consortia.

Especially the pressure from foreign business consortia—they had already united with other forces, including several large corporations involved in big projects that were about to be signed.

In the end, Zhou Yang didn’t get a chance to speak. In one sentence, he was told to immediately leave the matter alone. Zhou Yang, who had a background as an old criminal detective, understood immediately. The root of this issue turned out to involve Rafael, who was convinced that Lin Feng was the instigator, and various presures didn’t want this minor incident to disrupt the bigger picture.

The so-called "bigger picture" was their fear of causing disputes that would affect their careers, particularly causing international repercussions. As for whether a university teacher was being wrongfully accused, they didn’t think it was important at all.

Of course, no one would say this directly, but how could Zhou Yang not understand?

Just after hanging up with Deputy Mayor Li, calls started flooding in one after another. The incident had suddenly impacted many people in a short time. Some calls were to persuade Zhou Yang not to get involved, some were cautious warnings, while others outright expressed support for Rafael. Even a chief called, instructing him not to intervene in the handling of the case.

The more Zhou Yang listened, the more frustrated and depressed he became; such a clear-cut case was becoming...

How had Lin Feng gotten himself into this situation, with so many people wishing for him to be the scapegoat, and all these political figures maneuvering? He had planned to forcibly take Lin Feng away and take over the case, but looking at the situation now, it seemed impossible.

Because even if he forcefully took charge now, upon returning to the city bureau, the matter would soon spiral out of control.

Guess I have no choice but to call Boss Wang for advice, Zhou Yang thought, wanting to ask for opinions. But to his surprise, the phone was off...

Zhou Yang thought to himself, Damn it, Boss Wang, just pick up the phone. It’s not that I’m not handling it; the situation really is beyond my control now. The pressure from the top is too much. What should I do?

After thinking it through, I still decided to talk to Lin Feng directly to discuss other methods, ignoring Fan Ming and heading straight out to find him.

While Zhou Yang and Fan Ming were arguing upstairs, there was also an argument occurring downstairs because Rafael saw Lin Feng actually come out from the interrogation room, with an incredulous look on his face. He rubbed his eyes and confirmed that it was indeed Lin Feng.

Seeing this, Rafael also became upset. How could Lin Feng be let out? What was even more infuriating was that Lin Feng was immediately taken upstairs without casting even a glance at him.

"Officer, why has he been let out? Shouldn’t the interrogation continue? What on earth is going on here?" Rafael asked Brother Liu, the one who had initially taken Lin Feng into the interrogation room.

"Are you done being annoying? Can’t you just go somewhere else?" Brother Liu was also annoyed—what did this have to do with him?

"No way, I want to file a complaint. I want to complain about the police handling this unfairly. How can they release a dangerous person like Lin Feng just like that?" Rafael continued to be relentless, shouting his objections there.

I thought that after seeing a policeman catch the person who had hit me before, I was worried something might go wrong, and I tried to contact some people to exert pressure. But now it seems the situation is getting out of control again. No, I can’t let these cops off without pressure; there’s no way I’ll allow them to release Lin Feng.

I have to call my uncle—it seems the pressure from above is still not enough. With that thought, Rafael dialed another number to his uncle, explaining the situation here and sharing his thoughts with him.

Leng Mei was surprised to see Lin Feng emerge from the interrogation room because, given the urgency and exceptionality of the situation, she was also in a dilemma and hadn’t expected Lin Feng to be released. According to the original state of affairs, they didn’t seem about to release Lin Feng unless something happened... this is...

Lin Feng also saw Leng Mei, and especially noticing the worry mixed with determination behind her icy facade, felt a bit of warmth in his heart. He thought to himself that she was not bad, just a bit too cold. As he was about to head upstairs, Lin Feng gave Leng Mei an ’okay’ gesture to reassure her.

In fact, Lin Feng had been quite relaxed all along; not to mention here, even in a heavily guarded national-level prison, if he wanted to leave, no one could stop him. It was just that he didn’t want to make a spectacle of himself and disrupt his peaceful life right now. Besides, he had called his senior brother to see how things would pan out.

Leng Mei saw Lin Feng’s gesture, which slightly settled her heart, but she was still worried about him and unsure of what to do. She glanced at Rafael, who was on the phone trying to put pressure on the Public Security Bureau to deal with Lin Feng strictly. Her disdain for him grew even stronger—she thought Rafael used to be different. Why had he turned into such an ugly sight?

Could it be that the refined demeanor he had always displayed was just an act? It was lucky she had no feelings for him. But now, seeing his true colours revealed, Leng Mei felt an increasing disgust.

In a room with no surveillance equipment, which was not an interrogation room.

"Hello, my name is Zhou Yang. I am also the Deputy Director of the Tianhai Public Security Bureau." Zhou Yang had been waiting there already; although he was in control of some evidence and had temporarily prevented Fan Ming from continuing the interrogation of Lin Feng.

But the phone call he had just received let him know the situation was serious, so he needed to speak with Lin Feng right away. If any problems arose, he had to reassure Lin Feng before contacting Boss Wang. If, as Boss Wang had said, Lin Feng caused a commotion, then there would be trouble.

"Lin Feng," Lin Feng replied indifferently, his gaze steadily on Zhou Yang as he waited for him to continue.

This young man is rather curious, Zhou Yang observed Lin Feng from the moment he entered, the true successor of Boss Wang’s master—what was he like? He hadn’t expected him to be so young and a lecturer at a university. When did universities start letting such young people teach?

Looking at him, there were no obvious clues, not even a hint of that terrifying power and destructive force.

Yet Lin Feng’s calm composure was unexpected to Zhou Yang. Evidently unaffected by anything, he had been in the interrogation room for so long without any impact. Strange.

"It was your senior brother who called me. Originally, taking you in wouldn’t have been an issue, but complications have arisen, and you really can’t leave for now. I’m also trying to figure out a solution. The pressure from above has exceeded my control. I can’t contact Boss Wang right now... that’s your senior brother. But rest assured, with me here, I won’t let them mess around. Hopefully, we can get in touch with Boss Wang soon, and everything will be easier," Zhou Yang spoke candidly, without any hesitation, showing his straightforwardness.

"Hmm, pressure from above?" Lin Feng felt curious and puzzled within. A deputy director of the city bureau, needing nothing more than a word to pull me in—what does this ’pressure from above’ mean?

"That Rafael—his family is very well-connected. His uncle is the Deputy Consul at the embassy. But most importantly, his family’s Bolinte Group is exerting pressure on the Tianhai City Committee and City Government. On one hand, there’s the assault charge, and on the other hand, it involves billions in business and the livelihood of tens of thousands of people. Moreover, the Bolinte Group has also allied with others, who might not genuinely want to withdraw investments or such, but it’s normal to take advantage of the situation to seek benefits. Thus this originally straightforward matter has become rather complicated."

So the Bolinte Group is Rafael’s family business. I knew about Bolinte before, but I didn’t realize it was under Rafael’s family’s control. Lin Feng thought, so there’s more to Rafael than I expected.