Chapter 64: My Cousin Is Really No Good

Fang Junye led Cao Zhen and Cao Shujie into the administrative office building, heading straight to the fourth floor and entering one of the offices.

Inside, Cao Zhen met his cousin, Lian Qijian.

“Qijian, are you alright?” Cao Zhen had been complaining about his cousin’s immaturity on the way, but seeing him in person, he couldn’t help but feel a bit anxious.

Lian Qijian seemed to be in good spirits and even managed a smile. “Brother Zhen, I’m fine.”

He then turned to look at Cao Shujie, feeling a sense of familiarity but unable to recall where they might have met before.

“This is my best buddy; you can just call him Brother Jie,” Cao Zhen introduced, pointing to Cao Shujie.

He added, “Your Brother Jie had other things to do, but when he heard you had an accident at school, he got worried and drove me here without taking care of his own matters.”

Cao Shujie watched as Cao Zhen twisted the facts and suddenly understood why his childhood friend was so successful as a logistics director, even earning the respect of outside distributors who called him ‘Supervisor Cao.’

“This guy was born for this line of work!” Cao Shujie thought to himself.

Across the office, a middle-aged couple became visibly agitated when they entered.

Cao Shujie took a closer look and noticed a boy about the same age as Lian Qijian standing next to them. He was taller than Lian Qijian and not bad-looking, but a bruise on his face was quite noticeable.

Seeing the bruise, Cao Shujie wondered if Lian Qijian had been the one to inflict it.

Looking at Lian Qijian’s clean face, devoid of any marks, he mused about Lian Qijian’s impressive fighting skills.

“Are you the parents of this little bastard?” The middle-aged man across the room started with an insult.

Cao Shujie found the words grating and frowned slightly. “Can you watch your language? We’re here to resolve an issue. If you keep provoking, do you want me to take you outside for a proper chat?”

Cao Zhen also glared, “If you don’t want to resolve this properly, we can call the police and stop wasting everyone’s time.”

The middle-aged man’s bravado faded quickly in the face of Cao Shujie and Cao Zhen’s firm stance, and he held his tongue.

The woman beside him, however, scolded, “Old Yang, say less!”

Her name was Ma Shaohong, and the middle-aged man was her husband, Yang Mingyong. Their son, the one with the bruise, was named Yang Richen.

After scolding her husband, Ma Shaohong turned to Cao Shujie and Cao Zhen, pointing at her son’s bruise. “Look at this, my son was beaten like this, and he’s feeling dizzy. How do you plan to handle this?”

“This woman won’t be easy to deal with,” Cao Zhen frowned. The middle-aged woman was calm and pointed out her son’s injuries and ‘severity,’ indicating her goal of seeking compensation.

Thinking this over, Cao Zhen turned to his cousin, “Qijian, tell me honestly, why did you two fight? Who started it?”

“Brother Zhen, you know me. I never start fights over trivial matters,” Lian Qijian stated upfront.

He pointed at Yang Richen, “That day, I was walking with Liu Dan, and out of nowhere, he came over and started cursing us, accusing us of meddling in his relationship, and even insulted my parents. He threatened to get people to kill me. How could I let that slide?”

He shrugged, “So, as you can see, we ended up fighting. Who knew he looked big but couldn’t take a hit? I took him down with a few punches and kicks.”

He spoke with a hint of pride, reflecting his youthful nature.

The office was crowded, and everyone had different reactions after hearing the story.

Fang Junye had already investigated and reviewed the school’s surveillance footage. The footage confirmed Lian Qijian’s account: Yang Richen approached Lian Qijian and Liu Dan, said something, and then Lian Qijian attacked him.

The two scuffled for less than ten seconds before Lian Qijian landed several punches on Yang Richen’s face.

If Liu Dan hadn’t intervened, Yang Richen might have been beaten even worse.

“Is what my cousin said true?” Cao Zhen asked, looking at Yang Richen with a dangerous glint in his eyes.

But Yang Richen clammed up, refusing to speak.

Ma Shaohong urged her son to recount the incident.

Fang Junye interjected, “There is surveillance near the scene, and we’ve reviewed it. It matches what Lian Qijian described. Yang Richen approached Lian Qijian and Liu Dan, but we couldn’t hear the exact words.”

“That doesn’t prove my son provoked them. How do we know you’re not all in cahoots? My son was beaten like this; should he just take it?” Ma Shaohong argued.

“So your son provoked first, and now you’re playing the victim?” Cao Zhen’s sharp tongue was something Cao Shujie had never experienced.

Ma Shaohong was nearly speechless from Cao Zhen’s retort, but he wasn’t finished. “The school has surveillance, and my cousin has witnesses. If you don’t believe it, let’s check together. If not, I’ll call the police to take them all for investigation.”

Ma Shaohong realized Cao Zhen and Cao Shujie were not backing down, and she started to waver.

She said, “I didn’t say call the police, but you can’t just let the beating slide.”

“True, even a hospital visit for a check-up costs a few dozen bucks. The bruise on the young man’s face, with some anti-inflammatory medicine and an IV, could run a few hundred,” Cao Shujie unexpectedly chimed in, turning to Cao Zhen. “Cao Zhen, how about a thousand bucks?”

“I have no problem with that,” Cao Zhen understood Cao Shujie’s intent.

After all, his cousin had injured someone. Dragging this out wouldn’t benefit his cousin and could even affect his uncle.

Spending a thousand yuan to settle the matter seemed reasonable to him.

An hour later, Lian Qijian brought Cao Zhen and Cao Shujie out of the school.

He repeatedly promised his cousin Cao Zhen that he would never fight again.

“Qijian, you don’t need to promise me anything. Just don’t let Uncle and Aunt worry,” Cao Zhen sighed. “I mean, if you have to hit someone, why aim for the face? Next time, could you pick a spot that’s a bit tougher and less visible?”

“None of us are perfect, and you have a lot to learn!” Cao Zhen earnestly advised his younger cousin.

Lian Qijian thought to himself, “My cousin really isn’t a good influence.”

(End of Chapter)