Chapter 234 - 234 You Will Have Your Retribution
Lin Yaqing was so terrified by Zhao Shilin that she almost wet herself, now hiding behind the inner room's door, she dared not approach, watching Zhao Shilin from a distance.
Zhao Shilin had no intention of chasing after her either. He glanced at the Lin family members and said, "Face? Even if I had given you face, you would have lost it in a couple of days. The undying, remember my words, you will pay for shielding Lin Tianhao like this. Lin Yashi was lucky this time, but next time, who knows who will become mute or crippled.
As many people as the Lin family has crippled, that's how many of you will end up the same way!"
Having said that, Zhao Shilin turned around, waved his hand, and left proudly with his troops.
The Lin family members watched until Zhao Shilin and his men had completely vanished from sight before they finally exhaled in relief. In truth, everyone was frightened, afraid that Zhao Shilin would start beating them up too. With Zhao Shilin's fiery temper, he really might do such a thing!
"Madman! Madman! Madman!" Old Lady Lin was helped down by some of the younger relatives, rubbing her temples as she furiously said, "A bunch of bandits, the Zhao family, they are nothing but bandits!"
"Mom, I can't go on living!" Lin Yaqing cried as she ran out, stamping her feet repeatedly, "He doesn't see me as a human being at all. To hit me in front of so many people, how can I face anyone after this? I might as well die!"
Old Lady Lin clenched her teeth and turned to look at Lin Zhen Nan, angrily saying, "Zhen Nan, call the provincial officials immediately, report this matter. I refuse to believe that there's no law in this world!"
Lin Zhen Nan frowned and said, "Mom, let's just forget it. Uncle Zhao is an elder after all, and if he disciplines us, that is only proper. Making a big deal out of this is bad for both sides. No matter what, our families are related, making a scene like this will only be a laughingstock to others."
"What sort of nonsense about him being an elder! Is that how one behaves as an elder?" Lin Yaqing retorted angrily, "Eldest brother, didn't you see how he hit me? Look at how he beat me up. Look at this, look how swollen my face is. Eldest brother, he didn't hit you, so of course you don't feel the pain. Why can't you consider how I feel!"
"Shut up!" Lin Zhen Nan roared, saying, "If not for you slapping Cheng Shuang twice, would Uncle Zhao have come to our house to settle scores?"
Lin Yaqing shot back, "As an elder, what's wrong with me disciplining Cheng Shuang. You saw it, Cheng Shuang was disrespectful to an elder, shouldn't he be hit?"
Lin Zhen Nan said angrily, "Even if he deserved to be hit, you should consider the circumstances. He's still in a wheelchair, getting hit by you in such a situation, who could bear it? Besides, he came with good intentions to give us a message. Whether his message is true or not, he meant well. You not only didn't thank him, but also targeted him, who wouldn't get angry?
Oh, so if you're an elder, you're allowed to hit Cheng Shuang, but Uncle Zhao, another elder, isn't allowed to hit you? What kind of logic is that?"
Lin Yaqing, rendered speechless by Lin Zhen Nan's words, could only clutch at Old Lady Lin's clothes and said in a low voice, "Mom, eldest brother is siding with outsiders. I got hit, and he doesn't say a word for me. What kind of elder brother does that make him?"
Old Lady Lin slowly shook her head and said, "Zhen Nan, you are the eldest son. Can't you take on the responsibility of the family? Can't you look after your younger siblings? You saw how arrogant Zhao Shilin was in our house. So according to you, everything Zhao Shilin did was right, and we are all wrong?"
Lin Zhen Nan said helplessly, "Mom, I'm not saying you're wrong. I'm just saying, we have to be reasonable in whatever we do!"
"How am I not being reasonable!" Old Lady Lin exclaimed. "Cheng Shuang disrespected an elder first, and disciplining him was justified. Zhao Shilin coming here to cause trouble is just not right. What, as elders, we can't discipline the younger ones? And what do they mean by slandering Tianhao all the time? If they think Tianhao did something unspeakable, let them bring out the evidence.
Without proof, everything they say is slander. Zhen Nan, Tianhao is your nephew. Don't you believe him either?"
Lin Zhen Nan truly didn't believe Lin Tianhao, but he couldn't voice this opinion; otherwise, Old Lady Lin would be even angrier.
Lin Zhen Nan said, "Mom, let's not talk about this right now. Tianhao is fine, isn't he? Don't let him go out for a while, let him rest at home for half a year. Things are a bit uneasy outside recently. It's better if our Lin family members stay out of public sight for a while."
"When did our Lin family become so cowardly!" Lin Fuyuan said angrily, "The Lin Corporation is the biggest enterprise in Shenchuan City, after all. Now that people are beating us at our doorstep, we're expected to swallow this humiliation and hunker down at home like turtles? I don't care about the rest of you, but I can't swallow this insult.
Zhen Nan, if you're unwilling to make an enemy of the Zhao family, then I'll settle this matter myself. I, Lin Fuyuan, will not let anyone beat me up for nothing!"
"Yuan, I support you!" Lin Yaqing immediately took Lin Fuyuan's side.
The others who had been beaten also instantly voiced their support for Lin Fuyuan. In fact, most people in the room were backing Lin Fuyuan. After all, Zhao Shilin had just made a scene there, and everyone in the Lin family felt stifled, unable to swallow their pride.
"Zhen Nan, what on earth is going on with you!" Old Lady Lin looked at Lin Zhen Nan with disappointment that bordered on disdain, saying, "As the eldest son, you've allowed others to bully us without seeking justice for our family. Instead, you just let them swallow their pride. Zhen Nan, even when our Lin family was poor, no one dared to step on us. Now, you show no backbone at all.
Have you become muddle-headed in your role as chairman? Have you had enough glory outside, thinking that these family members don't matter anymore?"
Lin Yaqing sarcastically said, "Eldest Brother has been chairman for so many years; how could he possibly pay attention to us poor relatives? Mom, don't make it hard for him. He needs to think about the bigger picture; we're irrelevant to that."
"You go be your chairman; we wouldn't dare trouble you with these matters!" Lin Fuyuan said coldly.
Lin Zhen Nan furrowed his brows while Old Lady Lin looked at him with disappointment, saying, "Zhen Nan, I'm really starting to doubt whether handing over Lin Corporation to you was the right choice. True, in these past years, you've indeed increased the company's wealth by dozens of times. But you should not forget your roots.
Initially, it was our Lin family's combined capital that started Lin Corporation. Your success today wouldn't be possible without the support of the Lin family members. But how could you neglect your family after achieving success? With such actions, what right do you have to lead the Lin family, what right to control Lin Corporation?"
"Hmph, if Yuan had been put in charge of Lin Corporation back then, at least we wouldn't be living so stifled!" Lin Yaqing said coldly.
Lin Fuyuan sneered at Lin Zhen Nan, who furrowed his brows even tighter. Judging by the expressions of everyone in the room, he suddenly felt he had been isolated. Over the years, as the family had grown stronger, these people had become increasingly arrogant, completely failing to recognize their own faults.
When anything happened, they wanted to bully others with their power, never considering whether they were in the wrong. By pointing out their faults, he had instantly been isolated like a traitor to the family, gradually losing control over it.
In the evening, Zhao Chengshuang came to find Ye Qing again, and they casually ordered some food from a night market stall outside.
Zhao Chengshuang was in a foul mood, starting off with a big glass of beer and gradually calming down.
Ye Qing didn't ask why, knowing that Lin Zhen Nan had come to persuade him to leave Shenchuan City today, which meant that Zhao Chengshuang's attempt to reason with the Lin family must have been thankless and ineffective.
Actually, Ye Qing didn't want to get involved with the Lin family's affairs. Even if Boss Lin truly colluded with He Ziqiang, it was the Lin family's problem. His only goal was to rescue his brother Ye Jun. If possible, capturing He Ziqiang would also help Zhao Chengshuang earn some merit, but it wasn't his primary concern.
However, thinking of Lin Huayu, that young girl, Ye Qing couldn't help but worry. He Ziqiang's main target in Shenchuan City was Lin Huayu. If Boss Lin was truly in cahoots with He Ziqiang, then Lin Huayu would be in danger. So Ye Qing asked Zhao Chengshuang to pass a message, not expecting it to provoke even greater anger from the Lin family.
This incident had pretty much sealed his despair towards the Lin family, and he really didn't want to have anything to do with them anymore.
Zhao Chengshuang did not wish to bring up what happened at the Lin family. After a few drinks, he lowered his voice, saying, "Ye Zi, I've spoken to Director Deng about the matter you mentioned. About commanding authority, it's a bit tricky. After all, the police from Xiangjiang are coming over for a joint operation. If we let you take full command, it would be hard for the department to save face.
But, Director Deng talked to Deputy Director Hou, who's leading the team, and Hou has agreed to give you a squad to follow your direct orders. What do you think?"
"No problem," Ye Qing nodded. He just needed a small team; being able to move freely was enough. In fact, to catch a criminal like He Ziqiang, it wasn't about the number of people but rather the ability to understand his mind and find where he was hiding.
Seeing Ye Qing agree, Zhao Chengshuang heaved a sigh of relief. He was afraid Ye Qing would refuse, which would have put him in an awkward position.
"When the time comes, I'll personally lead a team to assist you. The ones coming are all my trusted men; you can count on them to not drag their feet!" Zhao Chengshuang said.
Black Bear looked at Zhao Chengshuang's wheelchair, expressing his worry, "Your legs, will they be a problem?"
"I'm not going to be in the field myself; it's mainly up to you guys," Zhao Chengshuang responded.
"Actually, whether you come or not doesn't matter, as long as the captain leads the team, we'll definitely catch the guy," Black Bear said.
Zhao Chengshuang coughed awkwardly and said, "Well, I... I should still go. At least, when people arrive, I can share in the merit!"
Black Bear stared at Zhao Chengshuang for a while and said, "You're really hypocritical."
Zhao Chengshuang immediately responded with a tilt of his head, "Hey, how can you call that hypocritical? That's ambition!"