Chapter 147: A Farce

“Thank your mother for what?!” Brother Zhou suddenly erupted, slapping Yang Tao across the face with a loud roar. The crisp sound echoed in everyone’s ears.

Luo Xiaofeng and the others watched in surprise as Brother Zhou, who had been aligned with Yang Tao, unexpectedly turned violent. They hadn’t anticipated this sudden turn of events from the fire brigade captain.

Initially, even Lin Xiao was somewhat surprised, but his expression quickly shifted to one of realization.

Yang Tao, caught off guard by Brother Zhou’s sudden attack, received a stinging slap that left a vivid red mark on his face.

It took a moment for Yang Tao to comprehend what had happened. He looked at Brother Zhou, his face filled with anger and shock. Despite his outrage, he held back due to Zhou’s status and asked in confusion, “Brother Zhou… what… what are you doing?”

“What am I doing? You dare ask that? I’ll beat you to a pulp,” Brother Zhou yelled, then threw a punch at Yang Tao.

Brother Zhou’s heart was filled with both fury and fear. He was angry because it was Yang Tao who had put him in a position to offend the new head of the school. The fear stemmed from the realization that he had already offended the new headmaster, and the mere thought of Chen’s Martial Arts Hall’s influence sent shivers down his spine.

This anger fueled his actions, making him even more ruthless in his assault.

Yang Tao tried to resist, but as an intern student, he was no match for a formal student like Brother Zhou. In no time, Brother Zhou had beaten him until he was bruised and sprawled on the ground.

After venting his rage on Yang Tao, fear dominated Brother Zhou. He glanced at Lin Xiao, who remained composed, and eventually mustered up the courage to approach him.

“Hello, Headmaster.”

“Do you know me?” Lin Xiao asked with interest.

When Lin Xiao heard from Luo Xiaofeng about Yang Tao bringing troublemakers, he suspected someone from Chen’s Martial Arts Hall might be involved. A security guard had previously warned him to be wary, knowing Yang Tao was an intern there.

However, Lin Xiao hadn’t paid much attention to this before. But now, seeing Yang Tao’s ingratitude, he was ready to stop being courteous and teach Yang Tao a harsh lesson.

Before he could act, however, Yang Tao and his accomplice, Brother Zhou, unexpectedly began fighting. Seeing Brother Zhou now addressing him as the headmaster, it was apparent that Zhou had recognized him.

“Headmaster, I was blind and fooled by a villain. I’m terribly sorry,” Brother Zhou said, filled with fear.

“I’ll deal with you later,” Lin Xiao replied coldly. He then slowly approached the bruised and beaten Yang Tao, looking down at him.

Yang Tao, glancing between Lin Xiao and the terrified Brother Zhou. With disbelief, he asked, “You… you… you’re the new headmaster of Chen’s Martial Arts Hall?”

Lin Xiao did not directly answer Yang Tao’s question.

“To be honest,” he said, “I never planned to take over as director of the logistics department. If you hadn’t kept provoking me, I wouldn’t have hit you or sent you to the hospital. You forced my hand. Even after taking your position, I had no intention of interfering. I would’ve just been a figurehead—you would have still been the one truly managing things. I wasn’t planning to hold the title long anyway. Eventually, it would’ve landed back in your lap. But you crossed the line one too many times.”

With these words, Lin Xiao shook his head and stopped speaking. He had never really cared for the so-called position of the logistics department director. He would not have accepted this role if not for Wan Caixuan and Ning Xi.

Hearing Lin Xiao’s words, Yang Tao’s complexion grew even paler, his heart filled with deep regret and resentment.

Lin Xiao was the new headmaster of Chen’s Martial Arts Hall, Yang Tao didn’t doubt Lin Xiao’s statement. Though puzzled as to why Lin Xiao would serve as a bodyguard and logistics department director at Brilliant Aya Limited, he understood that Lin Xiao’s status as the headmaster of Chen’s Martial Arts Hall meant that even the president of the company might not be a position of higher authority than Lin Xiao’s.

At that moment, he pondered, what if… what if he hadn’t provoked Lin Xiao?

Would he still be securely holding his position as the head of the security team, or even effectively managing the logistics department without officially being the director?

What if he had maintained a good relationship with Lin Xiao?

Could he then have successfully advanced to become a formal student at Chen’s Martial Arts Hall, perhaps even a core member?

Unfortunately, there were no second chances. Now he had deeply offended Lin Xiao, and everything was lost.

He felt as if his heart was being torn apart by a swarm of ants, the agony and regret overwhelming.

“What is happening here? Lin Xiao, did you assault someone?” Just as Yang Tao was engulfed in regret, a voice suddenly echoed from the doorway.

Secretary Wang entered, wearing gold-rimmed glasses, looking scholarly in his suit. Seeing Yang Tao sprawled on the ground, a flash of excitement crossed his eyes, followed by an angry outburst directed at Lin Xiao.

At that moment, Secretary Wang was inwardly thrilled. He believed Yang Tao’s scheme had worked—Lin Xiao must have lost his temper and attacked him. Truth be told, he didn’t care much for Yang Tao. In fact, he felt a twisted satisfaction at the beating; after all, Yang Tao had offended him before. He had held his tongue only because he needed Yang Tao’s help for the time being, but he’d always planned to teach him a hard lesson once Lin Xiao was taken care of. Now, it seemed Lin Xiao had done the job for him.

However, his delight wasn’t solely for this reason. In his eyes, Lin Xiao’s daring to attack Yang Tao publicly, coupled with the troubles caused by the fire brigade, provided ample justification to strip Lin Xiao of his position.

Even if Wan Caixuan wanted to intervene on Lin Xiao’s behalf, it seemed unlikely now.

But just then, Yang Tao, who had been lying on the ground, suddenly rose and lunged at Secretary Wang. He overpowered him, raising his fist to fiercely strike Wang’s face.

“Ah…”

Secretary Wang, typically lacking in physical conditioning and unprepared for Yang Tao’s assault, was knocked down and hit hard, emitting a painful scream.

“Have you lost your mind?” Secretary Wang bellowed in anger.

“Crazy your ass, I’m hitting you!” Yang Tao yelled furiously.

In his mind, if it hadn’t been for Secretary Wang’s intervention, he wouldn’t have left the hospital early and wouldn’t have sought revenge on Lin Xiao.

Even after provoking Lin Xiao, he had been taught a lesson and ended up in the hospital, which should have settled the matter. He believed someone of Lin Xiao’s status wouldn’t bother with a minor figure like him.

But due to Secretary Wang, he had been discharged early and set out for retaliation.

Now, everything was ruined. Not only was his job hanging by a thread, but even his position as an intern at Chen’s Martial Arts Hall was in jeopardy. That internship had been his safety net—his ticket to a respectable future. Even if he walked away from Brilliant Aya Limited, the name of Chen’s Martial Arts Hall on his résumé would’ve guaranteed a decent position elsewhere. But now, all of it was slipping through his fingers.

“It’s all because of this bastard!”

With bloodshot eyes, Yang Tao glared at Secretary Wang, raising his fist to deliver a brutal blow to his face. “I’ll kill you!”

Even a cornered rabbit will fight back. Although Secretary Wang was not known for physical fitness, being struck several times by Yang Tao drove him into a frenzy, and he bit Yang Tao’s hand viciously.

“You madman, I’ll bite you to death!”

Yang Tao screamed in agony.

Secretary Wang seized the opportunity to overpower Yang Tao, pinning him to the ground, then raised his own fist to strike back furiously.

The two became entangled, wildly biting and beating each other.

“What a farce.”

Lin Xiao observed the utterly crazed duo on the ground and shook his head in disbelief.

Yet, he felt no disturbance in his heart. He hadn’t known that this issue involved Secretary Wang until he arrived, but now it seemed Secretary Wang had brought this upon himself.

To Lin Xiao, it was nothing more than a dog-eat-dog situation.