Gao Lei, almost suffocating under Du Fei's grip, heard a roar and immediately summoned all his strength to cry out, "Brother-in-law, save me!"
Chaozi, who had fallen to the ground, scrambled to get up.
*Clack.*
Du Fei released his grip, and Gao Lei dropped to the ground, gasping for air.
"How is it? Still alive, aren't you?"
Zhao Tao, upon seeing his brother-in-law's neck being held up in the air, felt a surge of rage. If something were to happen to Gao Lei because he arrived late, his wife would never forgive him. Seeing that Gao Lei seemed more startled than injured, Zhao Tao finally relaxed.
"Sis, brother-in-law, if you hadn't come sooner, *gasp, gasp*, this guy was going to kill me! Kill him for me! Kill him!"
Gao Lei had genuinely thought he was about to be killed by Du Fei. He was terrified. Fortunately, Zhao Tao had arrived, which made the other man back off. However, the near-death experience made Gao Lei grit his teeth and point at Du Fei with hatred.
Chaozi quickly chimed in, "We both told him you were his brother-in-law, but he completely disregarded you, Zhao Laoda, and acted like a madman trying to kill. I fought with all my might but couldn't match him."
Chaozi spoke now to inform Zhao Tao that he wasn't a useless coward. Otherwise, when Zhao Laoda recovered and saw that most people around Gao Lei were unconscious or severely injured, while he himself only received a slap, he might think Chaozi was afraid and unwilling to fight.
"Good! Don't worry, in Rongcheng, this is my territory, and I have some influence. You were bullied like this today, and I will ensure justice is served. Just rest assured!" Zhao Tao wouldn't normally speak like this, but the situation, where his brother-in-law nearly lost his life if he'd arrived any later, had filled him with anger.
However, just as Zhao Tao stood up, intending to get justice for his brother-in-law Gao Lei, a cold snort reached his ears.
"Well said, the mighty Zhao Laoda. I'd like to see what you can do to me today!"
Huh? That voice sounded familiar. When Zhao Tao looked up at the person opposite him.
"Mr. Du??"
Zhao Tao was an experienced man. He had faced death several times before without batting an eye. But now, seeing the man standing before him, his face turned pale, and his legs felt weak. Zhao Tao never dreamed his brother-in-law had provoked Du Fei. This was a huge problem.
"Damn it, who the hell do you think you are, challenging my brother-in-law? You're looking for death..."
Gao Lei hadn't heard Zhao Tao's words. Seeing Du Fei still talking back in front of his brother-in-law, he became enraged and pointed at Du Fei, yelling. With Zhao Tao's arrival, Gao Lei felt emboldened and shouted his insults.
"Slap!"
Before Gao Lei could finish his tirade, Zhao Tao slapped him across the face.
"What the hell, brother-in-law? Why are you hitting me?"
Gao Lei was stunned by the slap. When he recovered, he looked furious. Zhao Tao's public slap had stripped Gao Lei of all his dignity, and as someone who valued his reputation highly, he was enraged. Chaozi, standing nearby, was bewildered. What was going on? The situation wasn't what he expected. Zhao Laoda had arrived, but instead of avenging Gao Lei, he had slapped him.
Seeing his brother-in-law Gao Lei acting so recklessly, Zhao Tao roared, "The person standing before you is Mr. Du. Apologize immediately!!" Zhao Tao was actually very nervous, so he used a loud voice to cover his unease. Du Fei was someone even the highest bosses treated with respect. How could his brother-in-law provoke him? Zhao Tao was furious and felt like slapping Gao Lei a few times.
"Your brother-in-law injured Mr. Du's mother's leg. Not only did he fail to apologize, but he also verbally abused the elderly. What do you think should be done about such behavior?" Before Du Fei could speak, Gong Chengbin, who had been by Wu Chunmei's side and understood the entire situation, walked over.
"What!" Hearing Gong Chengbin say that Mr. Du's mother's leg was injured, Zhao Tao was so shocked he almost choked. Zhao Tao had always known his brother-in-law was prone to causing trouble, but he never expected him to cause such a disaster this time. After a brief hesitation, Zhao Tao quickly walked towards Gao Lei's car.
As everyone wondered what he was doing, Zhao Tao opened the car trunk and pulled out a baseball bat. Gao Lei had a baseball bat in his trunk not because he played baseball, but for fighting. Of course, he usually only resorted to violence when bullying weaker individuals or when using Zhao Tao's name.
"Sis, brother-in-law, what are you doing?" Seeing Zhao Tao pull the baseball bat out of the trunk, Gao Lei suddenly had a bad feeling. Then, as Zhao Tao approached him with a murderous look, Gao Lei didn't hesitate and turned to run. However, he was caught by Zhao Tao after only a few steps.
*Whizz.*
Zhao Tao swung the baseball bat with force, creating a whistling sound.
*Crack!*
"Ah!! Ah!!!"
The sound of bone breaking and ear-splitting screams followed. But it wasn't over. Zhao Tao gritted his teeth and raised the baseball bat again.
"Brother-in-law! Spare me, I won't dare again, brother-in-law, please spare me!" Seeing Zhao Tao raise the baseball bat again, Gao Lei was terrified and begged for mercy with all his might. Anyone who didn't know the situation might pity Gao Lei. But as the saying goes, pitiable people often have hateful causes. If Gao Lei hadn't frequently done bad deeds under Zhao Tao's name, he wouldn't be in this situation.
Zhao Tao hesitated for a moment, but the baseball bat still fell.
*Crack!*
Gao Lei's other leg was also broken. This time, Gao Lei didn't even have time to scream before he passed out from the pain.
Without looking at the unconscious Gao Lei, Zhao Tao walked up to Du Fei with the baseball bat and held it above his head.
"Mr. Du, I failed to discipline my family, leading to your mother's injury. I know nothing I say can quell your anger."
"From now on, whether you kill me or dismember me, Zhao Tao will accept any punishment."
Zhao Tao's ruthless act of breaking Gao Lei's legs twice with the baseball bat stunned even the slightly angered Gong Chengbin. Just as Du Fei was about to speak, his mother called out to him from behind.
Du Fei hurried to his mother's side.
"Understood, Mom." Hearing his mother's soft words, Du Fei nodded. He then picked up his mother and walked directly towards Gong Chengbin's car. He didn't even glance at Zhao Tao, who stood frozen in place.