Ke Teng was like a madman, his features contorted, his eyes malevolent.
"You wanted to leave? Go ahead, leave."
"You think you can leave without explaining yourself? Fine, I'll make sure they have a miserable end."
"You upset me, and I'll make sure not a single one of them lives—"
Everyone had realized what was happening and rushed over, forming a circle around the three of them.
They were all ready for a fight, filled with righteous indignation.
Some looked at Zhang Gong, others glared at Ke Teng.
"Zhang Gong, are you alright?"
"Ke, you mad dog, let go! You think you can take on all of us by yourself? Believe it or not, we'll beat you into a pulp!"
Jiang Nan Fang reached out to grip his wrist.
"Ke Teng, let go. Don't forget, our first meeting was a fight. You're no match for me."
Ke Teng chuckled.
"That's right, our first meeting was a fight."
"You killed one of my dogs, and I haven't settled the score yet. I'm going to kill one of your dogs too!"
"Scared? I really like the look on your face right now."
With that, he gritted his teeth, uncorked the wine bottle again, and raised it to stab Zhang Gong in the neck.
Everyone screamed and lunged forward to tackle him.
Jiang Nan Fang reacted faster, leaping up and delivering a flying kick to his wrist.
The wine bottle flew up and smashed against the wall.
With a "crack," it shattered into pieces.
His threat gone, Ke Teng was immediately grabbed by the others and pinned to the ground.
Some kicked his back, others hit him on the head.
"Your father spent his whole life worrying about making money and never bothered to educate you. Look at how spoiled you've become!"
"Attempting murder in broad daylight? Who do you think you are?"
"Always embarrassing yourself in public, aren't you afraid of killing your father with worry? You're so filial!"
"Outside of Huatai, you're nothing to us. You think you can fight me? From now on, I'll beat you up every time I see you!"
Seeing how things had escalated, the bank managers were half-sober from shock.
They all stood up, urging everyone to calm down.
"Director Ke just had a few too many drinks and lost control of his temper. Everyone, please let go, let's talk this out."
Finally, Jiang Nan Fang told them to release him.
She then took Shen Min'er and Zhang Gong, and they all left the restaurant.
After they were gone, the bank managers rushed over to help Ke Teng.
Ke Teng, instead of being angry, laughed and spat viciously on the ground.
"You all saw this with your own eyes. It's not that I'm ruthless, but they brought this upon themselves."
"This game is getting more and more interesting."
They had arrived in multiple cars, and they left in two cars as well.
Jiang Nan Fang told the driver to take Zhang Gong and the others to the hospital, while she and another group would protect Shen Min'er.
"You can't go home anymore. With Ke Teng's personality, he'll never let you off the hook."
"Go back, grab some essentials, leave the keys with the landlord, and come with me."
Shen Min'er had never witnessed such chaos before.
And a significant part of it was caused by her.
She was both angry and anxious, ashamed, and trembling all over.
"Sister-in-law, can we not go home first? Take me to my mom's."
"Your mom? Does Ke Teng even know your mom is hospitalized?"
"Let's go there first, and we can talk when we get there."
Clearly, with outsiders present, some things couldn't be said directly.
Jiang Nan Fang had no choice but to suppress her questions for the moment.
The attending physician had already finished his shift, and upon arrival, the nurse dared not release the patient without authorization.
Fortunately, Jiang Nan Fang had previously obtained the doctor's contact information to ensure Min'er's mother received proper care and had spoken with him privately a few times.
She called him on the spot, explaining that she would bring her back in a couple of days.
After a long ordeal, Jiang Nan Fang took Shen Min'er and her mother to Zhou Jinbei's place.
Zhou Jinbei was diligently working on her professional skills, wearing a face mask and poring over documents.
She was startled when Jiang Nan Fang brought the two of them over.
Jiang Nan Fang gave a brief explanation, asking Min'er to first coax her mother to sleep.
Then, at three in the morning, the three of them sat down for a heart-to-heart talk.
Min'er finally told her the truth.
"He must have concrete evidence, possibly even having bugged my home beforehand."
"He knew my every move that day, which is why I didn't dare to resist him. Otherwise, my mom... What should we do now?"
Jiang Nan Fang hadn't expected the situation between her and Ke Teng to be so complicated.
It even involved a life.
Min'er and her mother had accidentally killed her father...
This was far beyond her ability to comprehend or resolve. Exchanging a glance, Jiang Nan Fang and Zhou Jinbei both fell into silence.
Seeing that Jiang Nan Fang was also speechless, Min'er gave a self-deprecating smile.
"I know I'm beyond saving."
"The moment my father died, I foresaw and accepted my fate."
"I'm not afraid of death, it's just that my mother has suffered so much. I don't want her to have lived this life without ever experiencing any joy, only to leave so confusedly."
"It's not for myself, truly. If you can help me, I only ask that you help clear my mother's name."
Jiang Nan Fang found her words problematic.
"You've washed your hands of it all, but how can you be sure your mother will be better off without you?"
"You're leaving her in a strange city, entrusting her to two strangers. Without you, without her psychological support, is simply being fed and clothed considered a good life?"
Min'er was distressed.
"Then what can I do for her? Should I take her to surrender? Let her spend the rest of her life in prison?"
Jiang Nan Fang couldn't bear to see such an outcome.
Because she had heard from Zhan Bei Jue that Min'er's past was also very tragic.
It was almost the same as her own past; she had never lived a good life.
After finally escaping that mire, she had fallen into Ke Teng's clutches.
Even accidental homicide had severe consequences.
She was 20 this year, and by the time she got out, she would be middle-aged.
Her life would truly be meaningless.
"Don't worry. All of this started because of me. Ke Teng is after me, not really after you. I'll talk to him again tomorrow."
She tried to comfort her.
"Worst case scenario, you still have your brother. There will always be a solution."
Min'er felt deeply ashamed.
Having done something so disgraceful, she still had to rely on Zhan Bei Jue to resolve it.
"Don't think like that. When your brother was at his most desperate, didn't you share half of your rations with him?"
"I told you, he's very grateful to you. It's only right that he does something for you. Don't feel guilty."
Jiang Nan Fang did not go home that night.
Min'er, shaken, couldn't sleep well.
Zhou Jinbei felt a sense of melancholy, and with everyone feeling troubled, they simply lay down together.
Leaning on each other offered some comfort.
They drifted into a fitful sleep like that.
The next day, Jiang Nan Fang asked Zhou Jinbei to stay home from work to accompany Min'er and take care of her mother.
She would go alone and think of a solution.
She was still concerned about Zhang Gong, who had been seriously injured the previous night.
The first thing she did in the car was call to ask about his condition.
To her surprise, her first call went unanswered.
Her second call also went unanswered.