Chapter 71 It is His Good Luck He Wasn't Run Over and Killed

A police officer placed a form on the table in front of Lin Bai, turned around, and walked inside with a set of keys.

Lin Bai rubbed his hands together, picked up a pen, and began filling out the document.

The information requested on the form was standard, except for one field: the relationship to the detained person. Lin Bai had no idea what to write.

After a moment of hesitation, he put pen to paper and wrote the word "brother-in-law" in the blank space.

"All done," Lin Bai said, handing the form to another officer.

The officer took it, glanced at it, and pointed in the direction the first officer had gone.

"That way, go straight ahead, then make a left."

"Alright, thank you."

Following the officer's instructions, Lin Bai entered the inner area of the detention center.

Come to think of it, this was Lin Bai's first time inside a detention center, and it looked very different from the prisons depicted on television.

"Over here!"

A shout echoed from ahead. Lin Bai broke into a jog and entered the room where the police officer was waiting.

As soon as he stepped inside, Lin Bai saw a young man sitting straight in a chair, wearing the specially designated clothing of the detention center.

The moment he laid eyes on the young man, Lin Bai immediately frowned and looked at the officer. "What is the meaning of this? Did you people beat him?"

Before the officer could reply, the young man's voice rang out first.

"Who the hell are you? What do you want with me?"

The young man had a buzz cut—very short—with a purplish bruise under his left eye. He had a rebellious, cocky air about him, strongly resembling a street delinquent.

Hearing this, the officer looked at Lin Bai in confusion. "You two don't know each other?"

"Never seen him before. Who the hell is he?" The young man seemed rather agitated.

The officer looked equally puzzled. Before he could speak, Lin Bai walked right up to the young man and gave him a light slap on the head.

"Shut up!"

The young man was stunned, reaching up to touch the spot where he had been hit. "What the fuck?"

Lin Bai turned to the officer. "Sorry about that. I'm his brother-in-law; his sister and I went to school together."

The officer's expression cleared as he pointed at Xu Zhonghao, who was restlessly fidgeting with his legs.

"Behave yourself!"

Xu Zhonghao burst into anger. "He is not my brother-in-law! I don't know him! Who the fuck are you, just walking in here claiming to be my brother-in-law? I don't know you! Get lost! Get the fuck out of here!"

Lin Bai pressed a hand down on his shoulder. Xu Zhonghao tried to struggle, but the strength radiating from Lin Bai's palm made his resistance utterly insignificant.

Having subdued Xu Zhonghao, Lin Bai looked at the officer.

"I can take him with me once I pay the fine, right?"

The officer nodded. "In theory, yes. After all, he's the responsible party, and the other side is claiming one hundred thousand in compensation. If it's not paid within a week, he'll have to be transferred to the Xiangshui Town Prison."

"Like hell you will!" Xu Zhonghao roared. "I'm not paying a damn cent! I don't have the money! Whatever they want to do to me, I'll take it on! Bring it on! Damn it!"

The officer seemed accustomed to Xu Zhonghao's temperament and chose not to argue with him.

"Alright, where do I pay?"

The officer looked up. "You're actually going to pay?"

Xu Zhonghao froze for a second, then violently shoved Lin Bai.

"Who asked you to pay for me?! Get out of here, I don't want your money! I made my own mess, I'll deal with it myself. It has nothing to do with anyone else!"

For the first time, Lin Bai realized that Xu Zhonghao might not be as completely beyond saving as he appeared on the surface.

All of his recklessness and impulsive behavior seemed intended to mask something else.

"Let's talk outside," Lin Bai said, signaling the officer with a glance.

Understanding, the officer stood up and walked out of the room, with Lin Bai following closely behind.

Seeing this, Xu Zhonghao tried to follow them, but Lin Bai turned around and pointed a finger right at him.

"Stay put and behave!"

Seeing Lin Bai's stern expression, Xu Zhonghao swallowed hard and, for once, didn't talk back.

Lin Bai left the room with the officer, went to the outer office, paid the one hundred thousand yuan fee, obtained the certificate for release on bail, and signed the necessary paperwork.

The entire process took a little over half an hour, and the formalities were finally completed.

...

Outside the detention center, with Lin Bai in the lead and Xu Zhonghao trailing behind, the two walked up to a Mercedes-Benz.

"What the hell? Is this your car? Not bad, looks like you're pretty well-off."

Xu Zhonghao stroked the car's glossy paint, his tone still laced with his usual insolence.

"Get in."

Lin Bai took the driver's seat. Seeing Xu Zhonghao shivering slightly in his thin school uniform in the passenger seat, he reached back, grabbed the winter coat he had just replaced, and tossed it to him.

"Put it on."

Xu Zhonghao glanced at the jacket with a look of disgust. "What is this? It's so ugly."

When Lin Bai made a move to take it back, Xu Zhonghao hurriedly pulled it away, chuckled, and began putting it on.

Ignoring him, Lin Bai started the engine and drove toward the center of the town.

"Talk to me. Why did you ram Liu Xiaojun?"

On the way, Lin Bai took the initiative to ask.

Xu Zhonghao, who had been rummaging around the car, stiffened at the question, then cursed angrily, "He deserved it! It's his own damn luck I didn't kill him!"

Lin Bai glanced at him sideways. "I asked why you hit him. Do you two have a grudge?"

Xu Zhonghao frowned. "You still haven't told me who you are! Let me make it clear right now, I don't have any money. You're the one who paid it out of your own pocket, so don't ask me to pay you back!"

Lin Bai shook his head speechlessly.

"I'm a friend of your sister."

"My sister's friend? Stop bullshitting. You're more like one of her suitors."

Lin Bai raised an eyebrow. "How are you so sure?"

Xu Zhonghao waved a hand indifferently. "Tch, I'm used to it. Still, you're not bad—at least you're not that annoying. Hey, can you pull over up ahead? Buy me a pack of cigarettes, will you?"

Lin Bai stopped the car by a roadside store and tossed a hundred-yuan bill to Xu Zhonghao.

"Go buy them yourself."

"Holy crap, big spender! Consider it a loan!"

With a loud laugh, Xu Zhonghao pushed the door open, hopped out, and darted into the store. A moment later, he emerged carrying two bottles of cola and a pack of cigarettes Lin Bai didn't recognize.

The car set off again. Xu Zhonghao rolled down the window and quietly smoked his cigarette. Neither of them spoke.

After a while, Xu Zhonghao finally broke the silence.

"My sister is pretty, so a lot of people have their eyes on her. Liu Xiaojun is one of them."

"My sister got good grades and left this place for college. Ever since, Liu Xiaojun kept trying to get her contact information, and even went to my house to threaten my parents, saying that if my sister wouldn't marry him, he'd make sure my parents didn't live to see another day."

When Xu Zhonghao said this, both his gaze and his tone were completely calm.

And it was precisely that calmness that made Lin Bai feel his helplessness and fury with chilling clarity.

"A week ago, I came home after evening self-study and found my dad had been beaten up. Liu Xiaojun did it."

"That very night, I went looking for him. I rode my electric scooter, and the exact second he stepped out of his car, I rammed right into him!"

"Too bad! If I'd been driving a real car, I would've smashed the son of a bitch to death!"

With that, Xu Zhonghao viciously stubbed out his cigarette butt and flicked it out the window.

The truth of the matter had finally come to light. Lin Bai felt deep empathy for Xu Zhonghao because his own family wasn't well-off either, and being bullied by local villagers was a frequent occurrence.

Right at that moment, the system's voice rang out once again.

[Ding! Side quest triggered!]

[Side quest: Utilize existing resources to the fullest to completely eradicate the Liu family's sphere of influence in Xiangshui Town. Time limit: One month.]

[Quest reward: Female purity attribute unlocked.]

"Purity attribute? What's that?" Lin Bai felt curious about this new term.

[Ding! Female purity: Indicates the total number of boyfriends a female has had up to the present moment.]

The system's explanation was somewhat cryptic, but Lin Bai was no longer an innocent virgin boy; he understood immediately.