Era: Starting with the struggle to refuse being taken advantage of

Chapter 196 I was wrong

Even through the soundproof walls of the interrogation room, Wang Chengpeng could still hear the roar coming from afar.

I imagine Zhou Xia's expression must have been quite something when he saw the recovered copy of the IOU.

And indeed, that was the case. After learning the truth, Luo Haochuan didn't give Zhou Xia a kind look at all, and even gave him a rude awakening:

"Be lenient with confession, strict with resistance!"

“Zhou Xia, not only did you do bad things, but you also accused me first. You are simply lawless.”

"Fortunately, justice prevails, and in the end, it was Comrade Wang's caution that brought victory, allowing us to see your true colors."

"I know you won't admit defeat until you're faced with a desperate situation, but that's alright. Take a look at this copy of the IOU first, and I'm sure you'll change your mind."

As if remembering something, Luo Haochuan said meaningfully:
“This copy of the IOU has already been registered. If you swallow it, it will be considered that you agree that this copy of the IOU is genuine.”

"Destroying evidence is a serious matter."

With an awkward smile, Zhou Xia pulled his outstretched hand back.

He did indeed have the same idea, but the police station couldn't be full of incompetent officials, so how could they possibly give him the same opportunity again?

If it weren't for police ethics, Luo Haochuan wouldn't have even bothered to warn Zhou Xia, intending to see what outrageous things he might do next.

Looking guiltily at the photocopy of the IOU on the table, Zhou Xia's initial arrogance vanished.

However, not wanting Luo Haochuan to see his guilty conscience, he forced himself to remain calm and said:
“I am a law-abiding citizen, so how could I possibly destroy evidence on the spot?”

"What copy of the IOU? How could there be a copy if there isn't even an IOU?"

“And the contents of this copy of the IOU are simply ridiculous. How could I, a model husband, be betrayed by my wife?”

“I have requested a handwriting analysis. I absolutely cannot accept this fake IOU that I don’t know where it came from.”

Seeing Zhou Xia's blustering but cowardly appearance, Luo Haochuan sneered:

"Handwriting analysis? As you wish."

"Here are three articles. Please copy each one twice."

"The bureau has professional staff responsible for handwriting analysis. You will not be wronged, and no lawbreaker will be allowed to get away with it."

At this point, Luo Haochuan took out the books, paper, and pen he had prepared beforehand and placed them in front of Zhou Xia, saying:
"Alright, now you can start copying."

"If your handwriting is illegible, we will request access to your usual writing materials."

"Don't worry, we are the fairest and most just place here!"

Looking at the three lengthy articles before him, Zhou Xia picked up his pen but hesitated to begin writing.
He feared that every word he wrote would become powerful evidence proving his guilt.

With gritted teeth and a determined heart, Zhou Xia decided to throw caution to the wind and start doodling randomly on the paper.

If Luo Haochuan hadn't possessed a certain level of discernment, he truly wouldn't have been able to identify the traces of characters from these scribbles.

Faced with Zhou Xia's resistance to law enforcement, Luo Haochuan sneered:

"Do you think your little tricks are so clever that you can fool us?"

"If you really refuse to cooperate, then I'll have no choice but to go to your workplace to retrieve the relevant information. In that case, you'll be the one who makes your shameful deeds known to everyone."

"I'm giving you one last chance. Write it well, write it as you usually do. Otherwise, you might not have this chance again if you want to write it well later!"

Faced with Luo Haochuan's warning, Zhou Xia's arrogance vanished.

Zhou Xia put down his pen and said with a livid face, "Officer, I request mediation."

"It seems there's been some misunderstanding between me and this young man. I agree to follow the previous mediation plan, where we each take a step back and let's call it a day."

Rewriting it, or not writing it at all, is a problem.

Since that's the case, Zhou Xia has no choice but to choose another path.

He truly hadn't expected that Wang Chengpeng would still have a copy of the IOU.

Thinking this, Zhou Xia secretly felt smug again.

It seems that Wang Chengpeng doesn't dare to offend me at all, otherwise why would he be willing to reconcile with me under these circumstances?

Now that I've proposed a settlement, I imagine the other party will be extremely grateful and agree immediately.

Only Luo Haochuan looked at Zhou Xia as if he were a fool, and said, "Mediation? You think you're qualified?"

"Comrade Wang is a good comrade, but he is a bit too kind, giving you so many opportunities."

"However, Comrade Wang is kind, not stupid, so how could he possibly give you chances forever?"

"Mediation? Comrade Wang refuses mediation; everything will be handled officially."

Luo Haochuan's words left Zhou Xia dumbfounded. He said, "Impossible, this is impossible."

"It is a great honor for this country bumpkin that I agreed to mediation and did not pursue the issue of extortion."

How could he possibly disagree?

"I understand, you're targeting me."

“I requested to meet with Wang Chengpeng so that I could personally discuss this matter with him.”

Luo Haochuan: ...? ? ?
He really couldn't understand how Zhou Xia, who looked so respectable, could be so mentally unstable. Otherwise, he wouldn't be able to say such outrageous things unless he was a little crazy.

However, Zhou Xia's request was reasonable, and Luo Haochuan couldn't refuse, so he reluctantly agreed and went back to the interrogation room.

Upon seeing Wang Chengpeng, Luo Haochuan kindly reminded him:

"Zhou Xia intends to reconcile with you, saying that neither of you will pursue the other's responsibility."

“I know you are kind-hearted, but we must never tolerate such villains. Otherwise, they will only think you are weak and easy to bully, and become even more ruthless.”

"Remember to be ruthless later, and don't let your pity get the better of you."

"If all else fails, just say you refuse mediation, and the police will take care of the rest for you."

Compassion? I wouldn't give that to Zhou Xia even if I gave it to a dog!

Wang Chengpeng nodded, feigning reluctance, and said, "Thank you for the reminder, Comrade Luo. I would never do anything stupid at a time like this."

"I'm fine myself, but I have family members who love me and need protection."

"If they are targeted by Zhou Xia because of me, I would gladly die a thousand deaths."

At this point, Wang Chengpeng stood up and said to Luo Haochuan, "Comrade Luo, lead the way." The interrogation room where Wang Chengpeng was located was very close to the interrogation room where Zhou Xia was located; it was only a few steps away.

Upon seeing Wang Chengpeng, Zhou Xia rushed over with extreme excitement.

Despite possessing boundless energy, Wang Chengpeng feigned fear, hiding behind Luo Haochuan and exclaiming in surprise:
"Comrade Luo, Zhou Xia's destruction of evidence wasn't enough; now he's even planning to kill someone to silence them."

"This is terrifying! Please protect me!"

In all honesty, even if Zhou Xia were incredibly audacious, he would never dare to kill someone in front of the police to silence them.

However, his crazed appearance, combined with Wang Chengpeng's words, was utterly unconvincing. Luo Haochuan drew his sidearm from his waist, pointed it at Zhou Xia, and said:
"Comrade Zhou, it seems you intend to escalate minor issues into major ones, and make major issues into the heavens?"

"Calm down and sit down, or I won't be so polite."

With a dark gun barrel pointed at him, no one could help but feel terrified. Zhou Xia's legs went weak, and he immediately collapsed to the ground.

Even so, Zhou Xia still waved his hand and shouted:

"It's a misunderstanding, it's a complete misunderstanding. I never intended to do anything to Wang Chengpeng."

"I'll sit down obediently right now and promise not to do anything inappropriate."

This finally calmed Zhou Xia down, and he sat down in his seat.

Wang Chengpeng's nose twitched slightly; he seemed to smell a foul odor. He glanced at Zhou Xia with disgust, knowing that Zhou Xia had urinated.

Without sitting down, Wang Chengpeng hid behind Luo Haochuan and said indignantly to Zhou Xia:

"Reconcile? Considering that you gave me such a large sum of money before, I have already given you at least three chances to reconcile."

"It's just that my keeping my promises seems to make you think I'm weak and easy to bully, and you've challenged my bottom line again and again."

"I'm here to tell you that reconciliation is impossible!"

At this point, Wang Chengpeng looked at Luo Haochuan somewhat nervously and said:
"Comrade Luo, I have said what I needed to say. May I leave now?"

"Now that things are clear, it's obviously inappropriate for me to stay in the interrogation room any longer. Can I wait in the lobby?"

"Comrade Luo, rest assured, I will fully cooperate with your work before the case is closed, and I will make sure that Zhou Xia, this evil person who endangers the masses, is brought to justice."

Now that Wang Chengpeng has proven his innocence, it is clearly unreasonable to keep him locked up in the interrogation room.

Furthermore, since Wang Chengpeng expressed his willingness to cooperate with his work, he felt no need to restrict the other party's personal freedom.

Thinking this through, Luo Haochuan nodded and said, "Okay."

"Don't worry, this case will be closed soon, and the real criminals will be punished quickly!"

However, just as Wang Chengpeng was about to leave, Zhou Xia let out a wail and said:
"Don't go, let's make peace, I beg you to make peace with me."

"Two hundred yuan. If you're willing to forgive me and not hold a grudge, I'm willing to give you two hundred yuan as compensation."

Wang Chengpeng's earlier words reminded Zhou Xia that since he could settle Liu Yanran's affair with money, he could also resolve his own slander and defamation with money.

Anyway, since he's hooked up with Song Wenxin, a rich woman, two hundred yuan may seem like a lot, but in reality, he can save up that much in just a few months by being frugal.

Compared to that, the risk of going to jail is too great, especially since it's for this reason. Song Wenxin might just tear him apart.

Faced with Zhou Xia's monetary temptation, Wang Chengpeng snorted coldly and said:
"They gave me compensation, then wrote me an IOU, and then sued me for extortion?"

"I, an ordinary citizen, dare not accept the compensation from Lord Zhou. I'm afraid that if I do, I'll end up in the police station."

If it were anyone else, Zhou Xia could say that such thoughts were completely unfounded, but facing Wang Chengpeng, whom he had already sent to the police station, Zhou Xia simply couldn't bring himself to say it.

He could only look to Luo Haochuan beside him for help and said:
“It’s different this time.”

"With police officers as witnesses, this is a done deal, and there will absolutely be no surprises."

"I was wrong, I will never do it again, please have mercy and forgive me."

Faced with Wang Chengpeng's pleading gaze, Luo Haochuan maintained a straight face and said in a formulaic manner:

“You have the right to choose. I can only guarantee that Zhou Xia will never try to extort you again because of this.”

At this point, Luo Haochuan thought to himself, "Rich people like Zhou Xia, who act recklessly, really deserve to die."

They always manage to pay money to offset the illegal acts they commit.
Unfortunately, many victims fall for their tricks, leaving police officer Luo Haochuan feeling quite helpless.

However, considering the significance of two hundred yuan, Luo Haochuan felt that it would be only natural for Wang Chengpeng to agree.

After all, two hundred yuan is an astronomical figure for a rural family.

Now, if I could just let Zhou Xia, that scumbag, go this one time, I'm afraid I would make the same choice if I were in Wang Chengpeng's position.

Seeing that Wang Chengpeng seemed somewhat interested, Zhou Xia continued to persuade him:

“This is two hundred dollars. You should know what this means for your family.”

"I've avoided jail time, and you've gained money—it's a win-win situation!"

"I was wrong, I really know I was wrong, please forgive me this time, I will never dare to do it again next time."

Looking at Zhou Xia's earnest words, Wang Chengpeng knew that the other party did not realize his mistake, but was simply afraid of death.

Thinking of this, Wang Chengpeng sneered, "Forgive you? And then let you turn around and bite me again like this time?"

"If you want me to forgive you, you can, but you must confess your crimes and pay five hundred yuan in compensation."

"If you can pay the 500 yuan compensation within these three months, then I'll let you go."

"If not, I can continue to pursue your responsibility for this slander and defamation."

Many things are simply a matter of "if the people don't complain, the officials won't investigate."

Even if Zhou Xia did commit a crime, if Wang Chengpeng, the party involved, does not sue him, he cannot be held accountable.

After all, the crime of spreading rumors and slander only occurred between the two of them and had nothing to do with anyone else.

Upon hearing the previous statement, Luo Haochuan thought Wang Chengpeng would soften his stance again, but unexpectedly, he turned the tables on him once more.

Not only was the compensation increased from 200 yuan to 500 yuan, but Zhou Xia was also required to plead guilty and submit to the law. Even without compensation, Wang Chengpeng's right to continue pursuing his crimes was reserved.

In this way, Zhou Xia would no longer be able to cheat or shirk his responsibilities.

As expected, after hearing Wang Chengpeng's proposal, Zhou Xia's face turned ashen, and he lost all of his initial arrogance.

His pants, which were clearly soaked, made him look extremely disheveled.

(End of this chapter)