Around 9:30 p.m., the officers from Zhannan District Police left the People's Hospital after finishing their reports.
Inside, the two foremen beaten half to death by Changqing Company were just being wheeled out of the emergency room.
In the parking lot, Kong Zhenghui had already been waiting for over an hour. He hadn't gone upstairs earlier because police and a few officials from the Sanitation Management Committee were still around.
Once the place finally cleared, he led a few men from his family's company into the surgical building and headed straight to the intensive care ward on the third floor.
Outside the ward, quite a few people had gathered—friends and colleagues of the two injured foremen.
When they saw Kong Zhenghui, they immediately surrounded him.
"Xiao Kong, Daming and Lao Li are in terrible shape,"
One older man said anxiously. "The doctor says they'll both be crippled for life. Whether they even make it through the night… that's still up in the air. We've all been out there busting our asses for your company—now that they're hurt, the company has to take care of them!"
"Yeah, they've got families to feed! What are they supposed to do now?"
The crowd erupted, everyone talking to each other, angry and scared.
Kong Zhenghui kept a grave face, his voice firm and heavy:
"Don't panic. The company will take full responsibility for what happened to Lao He and Lao Li. I'll talk to Uncle Bai about compensation and medical support.
Even if we never catch the bastards who did this, and even if we get no payout from the courts, the company will cover it. That's my word.
The group exchanged uneasy glances. Hearing this, their anger eased a little.
Kong continued, waving a hand.
"It's late. Everyone should head home and rest.
Also, —keep this incident quiet for now. No need to stir panic among the crews.
Don't worry, though. My contacts at the precinct just called—the attackers have already been roughly identified. There won't be another incident like this.
You all know the company can handle a crisis.
Most of them were from humble backgrounds, used to taking orders rather than asking questions.
Seeing Kong speak so decisively, they simply nodded and filed out, murmuring.
When everyone was gone, Kong finally went into the ward to meet He Daming's wife and their barely-grown son.
Inside the family waiting room, Kong closed the door and turned toward the woman—plain, worn, still in tears.
"Sister-in-law, don't worry," he said softly. The company will stand up for Brother He.
We'll make sure those men pay for what they did.
The woman, uneducated and exhausted from crying, stared at him with red, swollen eyes.
"Xiao Kong… we don't need anyone to stand up for us anymore. We're done fighting.
We're scared, truly scared. We can't go up against Changqing Company again.
Lao He's already been crippled—fine, we'll take it.
If the company just pays for his treatment, helps keep him alive, that's enough for me… really."
Kong frowned.
Sister-in-law, that's not how this works. We can't just swallow this.
They crippled one of our men—how can we let it go?
He leaned closer, lowering his voice.
Listen, I've already reached out to some people in the police. In a bit, two journalists from well-known local outlets will come by.
They'll interview you, report the story, make it public. Once it's out, people will notice, and someone will have to answer for this.
The woman's face drained of color.
"Report it?! No, Xiao Kong, please don't!
We just filed our complaint to the Committee three days ago—and now he's beaten like this!
If this gets exposed, we're finished! They said it to themselves: If we keep stirring things up, they'll kill us next time!
Kong sighed.
"They won't dare once the media's involved. Trust me, sister-in-law. I'll handle it."
"No," she pleaded, gripping his arm. Please, Xiao Kong, we're just ordinary folks.
We can't fight people like that. I'm begging you—no interviews. Don't make this bigger.
Kong fell silent.
She wiped her tears, voice cracking.
"Please, just save him first, okay?"
He paused, then said quietly,
If you don't cooperate, and this spreads around the company tomorrow, people will panic.
If that happens—if the company collapses—how are we supposed to help Lao He then?
She froze.
"What… what do you mean by that?"
Kong softened his tone, pretending to console her.
"We're all in this together, sister-in-law. We have to hold the line, breathe through this storm together."
The woman trembled.
Xiao Kong, Lao He was speaking up for your company when he went to the Committee!
He took our people there to protest Changqing's illegal monopoly!
And now you're saying this isn't the company's business?
Kong's tone cooled.
No, sister-in-law. Lao He didn't do it for the company—he did it for himself.
He wanted to protect his own job and his share of dividends.
Besides, I paid him.
She stared at him, speechless.
Kong went on, his words calm but cutting.
I paid him more than anyone else—extra cash every day, on top of my salary.
One thousand a day, plus I promised him a contract zone of his own.
But money doesn't come free, sister-in-law.
Her face twisted in disbelief.
"Xiao Kong, that's cold. You've got no heart at all…"
Kong sighed, straightening up.
It's not about the heart. It's about reality.
Look— he pointed toward the IV bag by the bed, his tone turning sharp—
"If no one pays today, do you think that medicine keeps dripping into his veins?
You tell me, sister-in-law—does it?
She bit her lip, silent.
Kong leaned closer again.
When the reporters come, tell them everything—how Changqing monopolized the market, how they used violence to silence you.
The worse it sounds, the better. You say your part, cooperate, and I'll make sure someone pays the hospital bill tonight.
Compensation too—maximum payout. I'm talking at least twenty grand.
And your son—he'll get a job with the company.
Lao He can't work anymore, but I'll give the zone to his boy. That's fair, isn't it?
He turned to leave, pausing at the door.
"Oh, and one more thing—don't go spreading negativity around others. It's bad for morale."
The woman looked at her shattered husband on the bed, then at her son standing outside the door. Her voice broke.
"Join the company… but he'll just be another laborer, won't he?"
Yes.
A laborer's son rarely becomes anything else.
Her tears fell silently, soaking the floor.
An hour and a half later.
Bai Hongbo staggered out of a bar—half drunk—and arrived at the hospital to check on Li Gang, the other injured foreman.
"Big Bai, look what they did to your uncle," Li's wife said, sobbing. "What are we supposed to do now?"
Bai sat down, speaking loudly but with surprising steadiness.
"The company's covering it all—medical bills, lost wages, pension, compensation—everything."
"We're not going to the Committee again," the woman cried. "If we do, they'll kill us."
Bai hiccupped, standing up.
No one's asking you to. It's over now.
Just take care of him and focus on recovery.
"Alright…
Bai reached into his pocket, pulled out his wallet, and dumped a wad of crumpled bills—barely three thousand yuan—onto the bed.
Spent most of it wining and dining with people, in my dad's case earlier today.
Take this first—use it for meds and some food. Doesn't count toward the company payout.
"Thank you…"
He chuckled bitterly.
"That's just how it is these days, Auntie. Try not to think too much."
Even half-drunk, Bai didn't leave right away. He stayed and chatted for over an hour before heading out.
As he left, Li's wife said softly,
"Don't worry, Bai—we won't badmouth the company. You've done what you can."
Bai rubbed his eyes, forcing a tired smile.
"Yeah. We're all just trying to survive."
Past eleven that night, inside the Su family scrapyard, the crew was gathered in the main hall.
Su Tianyu sat in the corner, listening to the company workers chat and joke.
With so much tension lately, they'd been keeping night shifts—seven or eight men stayed behind every evening to guard the place.
They smoked, played cards, cracked dirty jokes.
Tianyu liked the noise, the rough laughter—it made the night feel alive.
In the corner, Wu Shixiong, the stuttering giant they called Iron Tower, sat on a stool carving a small wooden figurine.
Tianyu, half-bored, glanced over.
"Hey, Xiong, why do you stay for night duty every damn day? Don't you go home?"
"T-t-thirty yuan a night. I can make extra," he said with a shy grin.
Tianyu laughed.
"You really love money, huh?"
My family's got four boys. I'm the one who's… not right in the head.
My dad says there's no money to marry me off, so I have got to earn it myself.
Tianyu looked at him again—his simplicity disarmed him.
One of the smokers grinned, teasing:
"Hey, dumb Xiong, have you ever been with a woman? You talk about marriage every damn day."
"No."
"Then how will you know what to do when you get a wife?"
"H—how to do what?"
"I'll tell you," the man said, smirking. "Next time you're home at night and hear your parents making noise, peek through the window. Watch a few times—you'll figure it out, haha!"
Laughter broke out. Tianyu frowned slightly but said nothing.
Wu Shixiong glanced up, then down again, quietly continuing his carving.
"Hey, you ever heard your parents making noise?" another worker jeered.
"…" Wu said nothing.
"Come on, his dad's innocent. He ain't making any noise now!" someone quipped, and the room burst into laughter.
At that moment, a sharp voice cut through the air.
Third Sister stomped down the stairs, snapping:
You idiots got nothing better to do than pick on him?! You bored or just brain-dead?
Get outside and patrol before I make you!
The men fell silent, sheepish, then shuffled out together, still chuckling under their breath.
Wu Shixiong cast a furtive glance at her, quickly stuffed the carving into his pocket.
"I… I'll patrol too," he mumbled, heading out.
Moments later, footsteps sounded again—Su Tiannan rushed into the main hall, breathless.
"We've got trouble," he said. "Two of our company men got hit—bad."
Tianyu's face didn't change. He stood slowly.
"Upstairs," he said. "Let's talk."
In Zhannan District, at the New Macau Club, Lu Feng sat in a private booth, phone in hand.
"Let's see if he pulls his people out tomorrow," he said coldly. If he does, I'll hit another one right after.
Once that's done, the whole board resets—and everyone falls in line.
"Have you picked your next target already?" Li Hongze asked.
Lu Feng grinned.
"Heh… oh, I've got someone in mind."