Chapter 92: The Aftermath

In the grand hall of the Lin family estate, none of the family members had gone back to their rooms to rest. They all stood anxiously by the door, and some paced back and forth through the hall in growing unease. Only Old Master Lin and Old Madame Lin could still sit somewhat calmly.

“Why haven’t they come back yet? Could something have happened?” Liu Runli asked again from the hall, turning to Lin Chuanzhi, who was trying to look composed beside her. She had already asked this same question many times tonight, nearly once every ten minutes, yet no one found it annoying. On the contrary, it made the whole scene feel warmer.

Lin Chuanzhi was becoming increasingly restless as well, but he was the man of the house. Since his wife was already frightened, he had to stay strong and give her comfort. With a firm voice, he assured her, “Don’t worry. Lin Feng is capable. He’ll be back.”

Sure enough, scarcely had his words fallen than footsteps sounded at the doorway, and then the figures of Lin Feng and Lin Yu appeared before everyone in the hall.

When Lin Feng appeared, the first person to rush at him was not Liu Runli, who had been chattering nonstop all night, but Xia Ruoxi, who had remained silent beside them the entire evening. Though she had not said a word and her expression had shown nothing out of the ordinary, all of that was nothing but an act. No one knew her worry better than she did herself.

At that very moment, when Lin Feng truly stood before her, Xia Ruoxi finally dropped all pretense. She threw herself into his arms and poured out the fear and concern she had been carrying for him all night. Seeing this, none of the Lin family members blamed her. On the contrary, the look in their eyes toward her grew even gentler.

Lin Feng hurried to comfort the woman in his arms, but after coaxing her for quite some time without success, he took hold of Xia Ruoxi’s hand and led her upstairs toward the rooms.

Seeing Lin Feng pull Xia Ruoxi upstairs the moment he returned, the others said nothing, but Liu Runli was displeased. Green with jealous resentment, she complained to Lin Chuanzhi beside her, “That little brat. What a waste of all the affection I’ve given him for so many years. Now that he has a wife, he’s forgotten his mother. I worried about him all night, and when he came back he didn’t even greet me before disappearing!”

Seeing that his son had returned safely, Lin Chuanzhi was in excellent spirits and could not help retorting, “Why are you meddling in the affairs of the young people?”

“Lin Chuanzhi, have you gotten bold, is that it?” Liu Runli ignored the fact that there were still others in the hall and said this fiercely to him.

Hearing Liu Runli’s brash tone and seeing Lin Chuanzhi taken down a peg, coupled with the fact that Lin Feng and Lin Yu had both returned safely, the oppressive mood in the hall instantly lightened. Even Old Master Lin and Old Madame Lin could not help but smile for once.

After everyone had laughed enough, Old Master Lin grew curious about what had happened to Lin Feng outside tonight. Since Lin Feng was not present, he turned to Lin Yu and asked, “Lin Yu, how did things go with the Tiger Head Gang?”

Unfortunately, Lin Yu was still lost in the events of the night and did not hear Old Master Lin’s question at all. Even now, he could not forget the blood-soaked scene inside the Tiger Head Gang’s villa.

Only then did the people in the room notice that something was wrong with Lin Yu. Ever since he had returned, he had not said a single word, and he looked dazed and detached, as if his soul had not fully come back with him.

Lin Chuanming frowned as he looked at Lin Yu. Since Lin Yu was his son, he was naturally more concerned about him. Seeing that even Old Master Lin had spoken and Lin Yu still had no reaction, he could not help but stand up and walk over, patting Lin Yu on the shoulder.

Lin Yu had been sunk deep in his thoughts. Only when he felt a hand land on his shoulder did he finally startle awake. Looking up, he saw that the person who had patted him was his father. He hurriedly gathered himself and asked, seeing Lin Chuanming’s dark expression, “Uh, Dad, what’s wrong?”

Seeing Lin Yu like a man waking from a dream, Lin Chuanming said with a frown, “You’ve been looking so distracted since you came back. Didn’t you hear Old Master Lin asking you something just now?”

“Huh? Grandfather asked me something? I didn’t hear it,” Lin Yu said in confusion, then looked toward Old Master Lin.

“What happened tonight?” Old Master Lin, seeing his bewildered look, had no choice but to repeat the question.

“Ah... this... this...” Lin Yu stammered, unable to form a complete sentence for a long time. After all, what had happened today was simply too horrifying.

Seeing him like this, Lin Chuanming did not know what had happened tonight and could not understand Lin Yu’s feelings, so he could not help but flare up. “I’m asking you a question. Why are you suddenly stuttering?”

Old Master Lin, however, seemed to understand a little. He looked at Lin Yu calmly and said, “Was what happened tonight very unusual? It’s all right. Everyone here is family. You can speak freely.”

“Grandfather, do you really want me to say it?” Lin Yu asked again, still uncertain, though he could tell that Old Master Lin understood what he meant.

“Go ahead. We’re all members of a great family. We’ve seen the world,” Old Master Lin said.

Receiving Old Master Lin’s confirmation once more, Lin Yu finally spoke. “Tonight’s matter has been settled. From now on, there will no longer be a Tiger Head Gang in Yanjing. Lin Feng, by himself and in less than ten minutes, killed more than a hundred gang members there, including their boss. It was a one-sided slaughter. The scene was littered with severed limbs and organs, blood flowing like a river, corpses strewn everywhere.”

Even though Old Master Lin had just said that everyone here had seen the world, after hearing Lin Yu describe what was practically a hell on earth, everyone in the hall still could not help shivering.

“Th... this... Lin Feng really killed all those people in less than ten minutes?” Lin Chuanming asked in a faltering voice after hearing this.

“Yes. How could Lin Feng kill people like that, and kill so many of them?” Liu Runli also tightened her grip on Lin Chuanzhi’s hand and asked worriedly from the side.

“Yes. It was all Lin Feng alone. We had underestimated him. He is definitely the strongest master I have ever seen so far, hundreds of times stronger than those people trained by the state. More than a hundred Tiger Head Gang members could not even get near him, and he seems to understand internal energy. I saw inner force erupting from his body and turning into blade energy. The bodies of the dead gang members were cut apart just like by a sharp weapon.”

“Then... did you clean up the scene?” Lin Chuanyan was the mayor of Yanjing. Faced with such a shocking and massive case, the thing he cared about most at this moment was how to handle the aftermath.

“No. At first, Lin Feng’s men wanted to destroy the evidence and burn down the Tiger Head Gang headquarters, but Lin Feng stopped them. He said there was no need. I tried to persuade him too, but he said I didn’t understand.” Lin Yu repeated Lin Feng’s words to the alarmed Lin Chuanyan.

“Dad, what does Lin Feng mean by this? He killed so many people and yet refused to destroy the evidence. Isn’t that the same as handing the Wang family a handle to seize?” Lin Chuanzhi said excitedly, turning to Old Master Lin.

Old Master Lin remained silent at the side, thinking through the interests involved.

Liu Runli began worrying again. Pulling nervously at Lin Chuanzhi’s hand, she said, “Chuanzhi, Lin Feng won’t be in trouble, will he? That boy killed so many people. Will the Wang family come after him?”

But Lin Chuanzhi saw things more clearly. Comforting the anxious Liu Runli, he said, “Don’t worry. Not only will that boy be fine this time, but from now on no one in Yanjing will dare provoke him. Maybe the Wang family and those rising new families are already regretting ever going against Lin Feng.”

Old Master Lin, hearing Lin Chuanzhi say this, looked up in surprise and asked, “Why do you say that? Chuanzhi, have you figured out Lin Feng’s intention? Tell us all about it.”

“Taking one life is a crime. Taking ten makes one a butcher. But to kill more than a hundred people in less than ten minutes, and all of them were ruthless gang members with battle experience, means something that everyone here understands very well. It means Lin Feng is no longer just strong in terms of wealth and power; his personal strength has also reached an extraordinary level. If Lin Feng had acted on behalf of our Lin family, they might have dared to strike back, but now that he has plainly done it himself, they’ll be afraid he may come to their doorstep at any time. What can they use to resist him? Lin Feng did this to intimidate them.”

Lin Chuanzhi explained the deeper meaning of Lin Feng’s actions to everyone in the hall. As it happened, his interpretation was entirely correct; that was indeed Lin Feng’s intention.

After pulling Xia Ruoxi back to the room, Lin Feng found that perhaps because this was the first time she had ever borne such immense pressure, she was still clinging to him and refusing to get up.

Feeling the warmth of the woman in his arms grow hotter and hotter, and thinking of Xia Ruoxi’s concern and dependence on him, combined with the dim, secluded atmosphere of the night, Lin Feng could not help but feel his body change once more.

“Pervert!” Xia Ruoxi, nestled in his arms, was extremely sensitive. She immediately sensed the change in him and blushed as she gave him a coquettish rebuke.

“How... how can this be my fault?” Lin Feng gave a wry smile and touched his nose.

Seeing his helpless expression, Xia Ruoxi could not help asking curiously, “Is it very uncomfortable?”

Lin Feng had not expected her to ask that, but he still answered honestly, “A little.”

No sooner had he spoken than he suddenly felt Xia Ruoxi’s hand close around his most sensitive place. Lin Feng was stunned. Having just gone through a fierce battle, he could no longer suppress the fire in his body. He simply lifted the blushing beauty in his arms and carried her to the bed. In an instant, the room was filled with the colors of spring.

While Lin Feng was claiming his victory over Xia Ruoxi in the room, those outside who had been waiting to laugh at the Lin family or at Lin Feng were instead stunned by a piece of news. They all rushed to verify whether the information was true.

Something like this had happened to the Lin family. Old Master Lin had wanted to strike back, but the Wang family, together with the rising new families, had joined forces to suppress his retaliation. They had all been waiting to see the Lin family make a fool of itself, never imagining that Lin Feng would slap every family laughing at them across the face.

The Lin family had not acted at all, yet Lin Feng alone had wiped out the Wang family’s underground force, the Tiger Head Gang. From the moment they received the news, Lin Feng had been listed by every major family as someone absolutely not to be offended. Families with third-generation heirs, especially, issued strict orders that none of the younger generation were ever to provoke Lin Feng again, and that if possible they should make friends with him instead.

Ten minutes, empty-handed, and more than a hundred vicious gang members armed with weapons slaughtered. What did that mean? It meant Lin Feng’s individual combat power had already surpassed everyone else in the whole nation. Even soldiers or experts trained by the state could not compare with him.