Chapter 108: Will you do it yourself, or shall I step in?

"Who are you, how dare you..."

Xiao Zhengtian turned his gaze toward Su Yifan. Upon seeing the young man's face, his words trailed off abruptly. He stood frozen for a moment, then, his voice trembling slightly, he asked, "Are... are you the one from the Su family?"

"You know me?" Su Yifan asked in surprise. In his memory, he had no recollection of this man.

Confirming it was indeed the young master of the Su family, Xiao Zhengtian hurried over to Su Yifan and bowed deeply. "It really is you, Young Master Su. I saw you at the Liu family banquet previously; I never expected to run into you again today."

Su Yifan realized then that this man had been a guest at that banquet. It followed that he must know something about his background, otherwise, he would never be so deferential.

The onlookers were baffled by the respect Xiao Zhengtian showed Su Yifan. Chen Meiling’s expression, in particular, looked as if she had swallowed something foul. What was going on? The head of the Xiao family actually knew this kid, and it seemed this kid’s background was far from ordinary.

At this moment, the elegant woman in the cheongsam spoke up: "Zhengtian, what are you doing? Why don't you hurry up and have them release our son?"

Xiao Zhengtian glared at her. "Shut up!"

"Xiao Zhengtian, what is the meaning of this?" The woman was bewildered. What had happened to her husband? He had never spoken to her like this before; today, he seemed like a different person.

"Dad, save me! They..."

"Smack!"

Before Xiao Chen could finish his plea, his father, Xiao Zhengtian, struck him across the face. "You unfilial son, be quiet!"

Xiao Chen was stunned by the slap, unable to collect his thoughts for a long time.

After scolding his son, Xiao Zhengtian turned to Su Yifan and asked in a low voice, "Young Master Su, I don’t know how my foolish son managed to offend you?"

Su Yifan glanced at Xiao Chen and replied indifferently, "Nothing much. It’s just that he dared to covet my sister’s beauty and even threatened my life."

As soon as these words were spoken, Xiao Zhengtian felt a wave of dizziness and staggered back a step. He shook his head and said, "Young Master Su, my son was ignorant and offended you and your sister. I apologize on his behalf. I am sorry. Please, I beg you, spare my son’s life."

*What kind of disaster have I brought upon myself? To have raised such a thing! Of all people to provoke, you had to provoke this master.*

"By the sound of it, you think a simple apology is enough for me to let him go?" Su Yifan remained expressionless.

Xiao Zhengtian continued, "Young Master Su, name your price for compensation. The Xiao family will pay!"

"Do I look like someone who is short on money?" Su Yifan asked coldly.

Hearing this, Xiao Zhengtian’s heart sank. Without a moment's hesitation, he knelt down. "Young Master Su, my family has only this one heir. Please, show mercy and spare my son. I am willing to offer all the assets of the Xiao family in exchange for his life."

As soon as he finished speaking, the crowd gasped in shock. What was happening? The head of the Xiao family hadn't just knelt; he was willing to trade his entire family’s fortune for his son’s life? Was this Su Yifan truly so terrifying?

Chen Meiling could not fathom it. This boy was only in his early twenties; why would he make the head of the Xiao family so fearful? Apart from Crow and the others from the Qingyun Gang, no one present understood why Xiao Zhengtian was so terrified.

Nearby, the woman in the cheongsam was frantic upon hearing her husband offer the family fortune. "Zhengtian, what nonsense are you spouting?" She was accustomed to a life of luxury; if those riches were gone, how could she go on living? She would rather be dead.

"Shut your mouth! If it weren't for you spoiling him, would he have caused such a catastrophe today?" Xiao Zhengtian shouted in rage. At that moment, he wished he had another son; if he did, he wouldn't feel this much agony even if Su Yifan killed Xiao Chen.

Su Yifan had expected the man to use his family’s influence to pressure him, but this outcome was unexpected. He was, at the very least, a good father.

"In consideration of your decent attitude, I will spare his life today."

"Thank you, Young Master Su." Xiao Zhengtian was about to kowtow in gratitude when Su Yifan added, "However, as I said, he needs to be taught a lesson. I intend to cripple his four limbs. Do you have any objections?"

"Young Master Su, could you please..." Xiao Zhengtian began to plead for leniency, but before he could finish, his son’s cries interrupted: "No, Dad, don’t let him cripple me! I know I was wrong!"

Listening to his son’s miserable wails, Xiao Zhengtian was in deep agony. But when he thought of Young Master Su’s ruthless, lightning-fast methods, the pleas for mercy died in his throat. This man had killed the King of the Southeast! Not only had he faced no government sanctions, but he was still thriving—one could only imagine how immense his power truly was.

Finally, he nodded slightly.

Seeing this, Su Yifan said with satisfaction, "Very well. I will give you one more choice: will you do it yourself, or should I do it?"

"You have ten seconds to decide."

If Xiao Zhengtian had dared to continue pleading for his son, Su Yifan would have killed Xiao Chen without hesitation. No one could bargain with him. Clearly, a man who could lead a top-tier family in Yun City had some sense of judgment.

"Xiao Zhengtian, I beg you, save our son!" The woman in the cheongsam wept and pleaded. She realized now that she was truly at fault. She should never have indulged her son so much; if not for her, he might not have ended up in this situation.

At that moment, Su Yifan began the countdown.

"Three..."

"Two..."

...

On the very last second, Xiao Zhengtian stood up from the ground. He walked quickly to his son and took a baseball bat from the hands of a Qingyun Gang member.

"No, don't, Dad! I was wrong, I really know I was wrong..." Seeing his father approaching with the bat, Xiao Chen wept uncontrollably.

Despite this, Xiao Zhengtian said in a deep voice, "Hold him down for me."

The two Qingyun Gang members grabbed Xiao Chen tightly, giving him no chance to struggle.

"Xiaochen, Dad is doing this to save you. Bear with it..."

As soon as Xiao Zhengtian finished speaking, his eyes hardened, and the bat came crashing down.

"Crack!"

"Ah!!!"

A sound of breaking bone echoed, followed by Xiao Chen’s piercing scream.

Seeing her son’s arm broken just like that, the woman in the cheongsam shrieked, "No, Zhengtian, stop!"

As her voice faded, another crisp sound rang out.

"Crack!"

"Ah—"

Xiao Chen shrieked again in agony.

"No, my Xiaochen..." The woman’s mind finally snapped, and she collapsed to the ground, fainting dead away.