Chapter 797: Mad Dog

In the car, Chen Baocheng said: "Thank you, Officer Wang, you must've gotten yourself into trouble doing that? I'm really sorry to drag you into my son's matter—don't let this hurt you anymore."

Wang Yan shook his head and smiled: "No trouble at all. I enforce the law fairly, openly, and impartially. Now your son is the victim, so I have to give him a proper answer. You don't want mediation? Then follow the normal procedures—no problem at all. What happened just now was just incidental. Someone said they know two people, someone else said they'd file a complaint against me or go to my superiors—how can they be so bold without any reason? I'm not afraid of this kind of thing. Don't overthink it."

"I bet they'll offer even more money next to reach a settlement. You don't need to worry about me—settle if you want, go through legal channels if you want. The choice is yours. Either way is fine."

"I won't settle. I'm doing this for the sake of my pride. My son—he's tall, strong—but he's just a coward. He doesn't do well in school, can't fight, and gets bullied in class…"

Chen Baocheng went on rambling about his son, filled with the helplessness of a father.

Wang Yan and Yang Shu said nothing, just listened quietly.

Wang Yan didn't care which choice the Chen family made—the harm was already done and irreversible. As long as the Chen family got what they deserved, that was enough. These kids were already fourteen; otherwise, Wang Yan wouldn't have been able to handle it easily. Even so, the punishment wouldn't be too severe—it would genuinely be reduced, probably just three to six months in a juvenile detention center.

So relatively speaking, as long as the money was paid, Wang Yan preferred the Chen family settle—it was the better option for them. But as he'd said, whichever choice they made didn't matter. He only wanted to crack down on crime and make those bullying kids and their parents pay.

Including the school staff—all the things they'd said before dripped with contempt for the Chen family, indifference to the incident, and disrespect toward him, Wang Mou. But if today their own children were the victims, they'd be making far more noise than the Chens.

That's why Wang Yan had to fight for justice for the Chen family. Whether the justice they ultimately wanted was money or legal procedure—it didn't concern Wang Yan. They were bullied, and they got what they wanted—that was enough.

On the way, Wang Yan contacted cyber police to track where the video had spread, shut it all down, and give some legal education along the way…

Back at the Balihe Police Station, not in the back courtyard but in the front yard, Wang Shouyi and the political instructor had already rushed out. They told Yang Shu to register Chen Baocheng's report and start the Juan Sect file. Wang Yan turned off his bodycam and followed them to the back courtyard.

As usual, Wang Yan lit a cigarette for Wang Shouyi and one for himself, exhaled smoke, and said: "Chief, political instructor, this isn't a big deal, right? No need to be so serious."

The political instructor smiled bitterly and shook his head: "Not a big deal? What did I tell you on the phone? Mind your image, mind your image—and what did you do? You called every phone at the municipal and district levels—how big does it have to be?"

"Political instructor, Chief, I'm not being argumentative. Go back and review today's bodycam footage—you'll see none of these people are decent. All of them wanted to crush the victim's family. The school did nothing, took sides, the homeroom teacher was terrible, and she even had the nerve to say the bullied kid was antisocial—what the hell is she good for as a teacher? Teaching and nurturing students? She didn't care about class problems, and when something happened, she didn't say one word of justice?"

"And those parents of the kids who beat him—they're really capable, aren't they? Come straight at me to file complaints, say they know two people—who the hell are they? Acting all high and mighty, thinking they're something special? Admit fault, offer compensation, negotiate peacefully—that's it. But no, they think they're clever, rely on their numbers, and brutally bully others?"

"But if I'd handled this poorly today, and the victim's family posted it online, what would you do then? Would that be a big deal or a small one? Definitely bigger than now—and then the blame falls on our station."

Wang Shouyi said nothing, accepting this "small trouble" calmly. After all, Wang Yan had angered too many people now—a school administrator, a few capable parents—none even made the list. It was just that Wang Yan had made too big a scene: involving the education bureau, the discipline committee, filing real-name reports—it had caused some bad internal impressions. But for Wang Yan, it seemed to have no real effect—he'd already experienced worse.

"Alright, political instructor, we're not here to criticize you—we just want to know how you plan to wrap this up."

Wang Shouyi waved his hand: "On your way back, I got over ten calls. From Song Ju, from municipal and district education bureaus and discipline committees—they were checking on you. Some others from the city and district called too, asked by those parents to ask you to ease up."

As he spoke, Wang Shouyi suddenly chuckled: "These people really are connected. Remember that rehab doctor friend of mine at the Third Hospital? His name is Zhuo Liming. They actually found him to call me and plead for you."

"That's their leverage for bullying," Wang Yan sneered. "I never targeted them—they brought it on themselves. One wanted to complain, another wanted my boss, another said they knew two people. If they'd just been honest, shown sincerity, paid up, the victim's family wouldn't have said a word. But they colluded to bully."

"As for handling this, I respect the victim's family's wishes. If they want compensation, give compensation. If they want legal procedure, follow legal procedure. As for those parents—I said it, I'll do it. No matter the final outcome, I'll call their workplaces, call the industry and tax bureaus. They did wrong and still act superior—I hate that. They must be hurt."

Brother Wang is an old traditional doctor—he specializes in treating these arrogant bastards.

"As long as you can handle it yourself, personally, I support you," Wang Shouyi nodded, showing his stance.

"If you've seen the beating video and then rewatched the bodycam footage, you'd support me even more. Chief, we must take this seriously. Juvenile crime is a major issue. After this case is settled, we need to launch legal education at schools and crack down on delinquent youth in our jurisdiction."

"You hit the nail on the head. This incident woke us up—our work has serious gaps. Even though our station is short-staffed, we must prioritize preventing small problems from growing. Fine—this difficult task is yours."

"Visit the kindergartens and primary schools in our jurisdiction as you go. Then just gather all the students for a big assembly—you've got more authority than I do. The capable should bear more burden—take it easy."

When Wang Shouyi said "authority," he meant that after this incident, every single school leader in the jurisdiction would treat Wang Yan like a revered ancestor and cooperate fully.

Wang Yan understood perfectly and smiled: "It's only because I understand what you mean—otherwise, everyone'd think you're trying to make me chief again."

"You little rascal…" Wang Shouyi laughed loudly, slapped Wang Yan's arm. "Alright, go handle your business. Fix this."

He tossed his cigarette butt, waved to them, and returned to the front reception room. Yang Shu had already registered Chen Baocheng's report and written the on-site incident report. Chen Baocheng was on the phone, calling friends—even without money or power, he needed advice. Now that he'd calmed down, he sensed something was off. If not for Wang Yan siding with them, he'd have had no recourse. Clearly, the people he called were those he considered capable.

That friend might have no money or power either, but in daily life, others trusted him. One mind is short, two minds are long—bringing someone over to see the situation couldn't hurt.

Wang Yan sat there smiling, listening clearly as Chen Baocheng's friend urged him to settle—use the cop on their side to squeeze out as much money as possible. The reasoning was simple: the bullies were minors; even if punished, consequences wouldn't be serious.

That was also Wang Yan's view. So when Chen Baocheng hesitantly asked what the outcome would be if he chose legal procedure, Wang Yan had Yang Shu, the law master's graduate, give the theoretical opinion.

Yang Shu paused, then said: "Mr. Chen, according to our national law, juvenile crime… if your son's injuries don't constitute serious harm, in my view, those four boys will get at most six months in a juvenile detention center. Compensation for mental distress and medical expenses would be around fifty thousand yuan—that's probably the best outcome."

Wang Yan nodded with a smile, endorsing Yang Shu's words: "Brother Chen, he's a law master from a top university, specializing in criminal law. I expect the result will be just as he said. The final choice is yours—I support you."

"Thank you, Officer Wang," Chen Baocheng said, hesitating: "If… I choose to settle, will I be letting you down, Officer Wang?"

"Why would you let me down? I already said—it's up to you. As long as you're true to yourself and your son, it's fine."

Wang Yan shook his head and smiled: "But I must warn you—whether you settle or not has nothing to do with whether I call their workplaces or the industry and tax bureaus. When they arrive, I'll call right away."

Chen Baocheng gave a forced smile and nodded, said nothing more, and called his wife to check on his son's condition.

Soon, ten minutes passed. The involved students and their parents arrived. The school sent only one vice-principal—the others were too busy, but had to send someone to face Wang Yan's grim expression. Along with them came district office and education bureau officials. The chief and political instructor also showed up—the reception room was packed.

In every office, Wang Yan's name as a police officer carried weight. Because beneath the calm surface of Ping'an City, a series of personnel changes were underway—all thanks to Wang Yan.

Local news reported the municipal party secretary's speech, full of "cracking down on tigers and flies," "eradicating black and evil forces"—more righteous than Wang Yan himself, as if he were justice incarnate. But in reality, this man had held office for over three years. Only now, unable to hide it any longer, he had to show himself—his leadership team had problems, and he was the primary responsible party.

But now, he'd sparked this storm in Ping'an City. Bad deeds couldn't become good ones, but at least some damage was mitigated. So now Wang Yan was despised by all—his own stubbornness and big head had done it. Otherwise, he'd be guarding files in the archives.

Wang Yan's public reporting already had power, and with these parents using every connection, this case became relatively high-profile…

"Officer Wang, we were wrong before. You're magnanimous—please don't hold it against us. We were disrespectful, we admit fault. Don't crush us entirely—give us a chance to reform. Look, they're only fifteen, they don't understand much. We just gave them a good beating—see, their faces are swollen, Officer Wang."

The former parent representative bowed and smiled, pleading. Others chimed in with useless chatter. The four kids who'd laughed cruelly in the video were now limp. Clearly, events had exceeded their expectations—they'd just bullied a poor, powerless, spineless classmate…

Wang Yan shook his head, speaking calmly: "Don't waste my time with empty words. The kids beat someone—that's your fault as parents, the school's fault. Don't tell me they didn't understand. You've seen the video—how arrogant, how openly they laughed. Why? Because you, their parents, backed them. They thought their money and power let them bully Chen Ming."

"You don't need me to replay the bodycam footage to remind you of your attitude before. What gave you the right? You looked down on Chen Baocheng's family too. The school played favorites—cowardly leaders who produce no good people. Why are you glaring at me? The district education bureau is here. The office staff is here. Look at you—this is what passes for leadership?"

"Why the sudden change? Did you find out I'm stubborn, so now you're afraid? You called everyone to plead for you—showing off your connections? Now you think I'm abusing power? Thinking big fish eat small fish?"

"If I didn't have some clout, would you be smiling at me now? You'd have already had me dealt with. Pens and paper are right there—write down your workplace, your company. This is standard procedure to understand both sides. Understood? Chen Baocheng, write first—don't let them say I favor you, that I'm unfair. This room has cameras, full audio and video recording—complain, report, go ahead."

Wang Yan's voice was quiet, but to them, it rang like thunder—as if a towering mountain cast a shadow over the sky, and they ran frantically beneath it, unable to find a single ray of light.

Chen Baocheng felt vindicated, excitedly scribbling his messy handwriting. He'd never been well-educated, hadn't written much in years—trying to write so much at once, he couldn't make it look neat.

When he finished, Wang Yan turned his gaze to the parents, faces as if they wanted to die. They'd been told plainly: I'm reporting you. They couldn't refuse, couldn't stop it—despair, suffocating despair, was their reality.

The lead parent sighed resignedly, picked up pen and paper, and began writing.

At that moment, the district office official spoke up, politely asking: "Officer Wang, may I ask—how do these parents' circumstances relate to today's case?"

"Write yours." Wang Yan glanced at the parents who'd paused, then looked at the district official: "These people abused their power. I question their character. Some are public servants, many are private business owners, some are private enterprise leaders—half of them are Party members."

"For Party members, I question their Party spirit. For public servants, I believe their character is unfit for their current positions. For private business owners, I suspect illegal business practices and possible tax evasion. For private enterprise leaders, I suspect they oppress subordinates and embezzle funds. I demand all relevant units investigate their conduct."

"As for you—I believe you're questioning the legality of my enforcement and harbor personal bias against me. You're here to witness and understand the process, not to question me, not to teach me how to do my job. Is that clear? If during the investigation I find you're connected to these people or the school, I'll report you."

That man still had some face, but he never expected that just asking one question would make Wang Yan target him so fiercely—he immediately turned red, his eyes blazing as he glared at Wang Yan.

Without waiting for Wang Shouyi to mediate, Wang Yan glanced at the man in the office: "Feeling ashamed? Used to being above everyone else, only you can question others, but no one can question you? I seriously doubt your party spirit, your loss of ideals and beliefs, your betrayal of your original mission. If you have any objections or views about my law enforcement process, you're free to report me—let the bureau follow the proper investigation procedures."

Right now, I think your attitude is poor, your party spirit is flawed, your awareness is insufficient, your conduct lacks impartiality, and your character is jealous of talent. So I won't wait for the later investigation—I'm calling the district and municipal discipline commissions right now to report your issues."

Wang Yan ignored Wang Shouyi and the instructor's signals entirely, pulled out his phone, and called the district and municipal discipline commissions directly, just as before, reporting under his real name.

Since he's already acting like a madman, he might as well go all the way. Today, anyone who dares say another word, he'll call and report them. The Zhao family incident and the billionaire's young master affair built his image as a ruthless, impartial officer—he can't let it collapse. Maybe the previous cases involved higher ranks and people lacked clear standards, but this time he'll set a clear example.

Otherwise, anyone can come forward to question him—how will he ever get anything done? He said he'd report, so now he will report, and he'll make everyone see the weight of Wang Mou's actions.

As he himself said, if you have problems or complaints, follow the procedures to investigate and handle them—don't whine while he's doing his job. Like this man in the office—he already knows he's overstepping, so why waste words, speaking in that sneaky, sarcastic tone…

If a report is unfounded, there will be consequences. Otherwise, if everyone launched baseless attacks, chaos would reign. But he wasn't afraid—he operated with method, spoke with precision. He wasn't filing a report; though he did the act of reporting, he called it "reflecting on issues." He merely reflected the situation—just as he'd said with all those stock phrases—to the person on the phone. Poison against poison.

Moreover, at this level, in a city like Ping'an—not as peaceful as it claims—any targeted investigation will easily remove nine out of ten people…

Watching Wang Yan finish his call, the district office man no longer glared; his face had gone calm, not a word left. He gave Wang Yan one long, deep look, then turned and walked away.

Everyone present was stunned. Wang Yan calling to report the principal was already extraordinary, but now he was directly reporting a district government official—just because the man said one extra word?

This isn't madness—it's psychosis. No normal person would do something like this.

But the effect was astonishingly effective. The parents said nothing, all trembling slightly, writing their work units down obediently—too brutal.

Wang Shouyi and the instructor exchanged a glance, both smiling bitterly and shaking their heads—he truly feared nothing anymore…

The education bureau official watched Wang Yan carefully, breathing out slowly, afraid to take a deep breath—he feared even his breathing might disturb Wang Yan, who had gone completely berserk.

Next, as expected, Wang Yan stood before them and called each person's workplace one by one. These calls were harmless—he was well-known, but not necessarily known in their own units—so he called higher-level departments too, warning that if no attention was paid, he'd call even higher. For businesspeople, it was simpler—he called both district and municipal industry and tax bureaus together.

In their hearts, Wang Yan now looked no different from a rabid dog—grabbing onto any tiny thing and refusing to let go, dragging them down to ruin.

Wang Yan was perfectly willing to be this rabid dog. It was their power and privileges that gave them the courage to defy the law and look down on others. Some lucky people had forgotten their humanity—and Wang Yan intended to help them reclaim it.

They were just unlucky. If Wang Yan hadn't seen it, he wouldn't have cared—he stuck to his duty as a minor cop. If these people had been courteous, respectful, sincere, and resolved today's matter properly, he wouldn't have said another word. But think about it—if they truly could have acted that way, their children wouldn't have bullied others so badly.

Only after finishing all the calls did Wang Yan let Yang Shu take the four children who wanted to die to the underground detention room for temporary holding. He wanted them to witness the severe consequences of their momentary arrogance—to crush their arrogance.

Whether these kids were traumatized or depressed—he didn't care. A loud bell needs a heavy hammer. If it breaks, so be it. If such trash later used family connections to enter various institutions, that would be terrible. In fact, there were already cases of three generations in police, three in tobacco, three in power grid, three in this, three in that…

He also instructed the parents: today's investigation is done. Once Chen Ming's injury assessment is out tomorrow, he'll apply to the procuratorate for procedures and begin the formal process. In other words, they had only one day.

These parents no longer showed their former arrogance or indifference—they were all like withered eggplants, faces filled with despair. Every one of their phones had rung more than once.

Facing Wang Yan's instructions, they had not a single word left. They no longer claimed their children were too young to understand—they nodded obediently, then left the police station. Outside, before even dispersing, they politely invited Chen Baocheng to the hospital together, with school leaders and education bureau officials accompanying them the whole way…

"You little bastard…" Wang Shouyi sighed bitterly.

Wang Yan grinned: "I still say the same thing—I fear nothing. Whoever breaks the law, I'll deal with them. Whoever abuses power here, I'll deal with them. Even if we take this to Beijing, I'll stand tall, clear in conscience—I refuse to believe national law and party discipline won't work."

Chief, I can't control other places, but on this patch of land in Fengdan Bali River, no one else has authority. Next time something like this happens in our jurisdiction, don't send someone else to smooth things over—give it all to me. I'm not afraid of my future being ruined or being targeted. If we'd taken the wrong stance today, wouldn't the Chen family have suffered terribly with no recourse? At best, they'd pay five or six ten thousand yuan—what about the boy forced to drink urine?"

The instructor sighed: "Aren't you afraid you'll scare those four kids to death?"

"Instructor, that's not my concern—and certainly not yours. Sow what you reap. Haven't you watched the video yet? Here, take a look."

Taking Wang Yan's phone, Chief Wang and the instructor huddled together to watch. Then they fell silent, patted Wang Yan on the shoulder, and walked away.

At fifteen or sixteen, with the internet's rapid development, today's kids are shockingly mature—what could they possibly not understand? Hitting someone is illegal, killing is a crime—the simplest truths. How could a ninth-grader not know? If you can correct them, correct them—give them a memorable lesson. It's good for them and for society.

If they're psychologically fragile and can't handle it, then let them break. Go mad, go stupid, die—it doesn't matter. The more arrogant they were when beating someone, the more they should regret it now.

Clearly, after watching the video, Wang Shouyi and the instructor shared this view. Wang Yan had ability—he could do whatever he wanted. They couldn't stop him anyway…

Wang Yan grinned as he brewed tea, chatted with curious colleagues, showed them the video, collected a pile of thumbs-up, then took Yang Shu down to the underground detention room to bring out one boy for interrogation.

In the past, he'd handed all cases to others. Now that he was permanent, cases he encountered during duty were his to handle. Besides, no one wanted to take on today's mess—he had to step up himself.

In fact, he didn't even need to speak. These boys saw him like they saw ghosts—couldn't even raise their heads, couldn't speak clearly. He just sat there sipping tea—the rest was handled by Yang Shu at the computer, asking questions, taking notes, and the terrified boys spilled everything.

Even the things their parents had told them to say—anything favorable to themselves—they dared not utter. They recounted the entire incident, word for word.

Chen Ming was tall and fat, but extremely timid, cowardly. He was quiet in class, didn't study well, just liked reading comics. His homeroom teacher often scolded him for fun, classmates mocked him—he had no friends at all. Clearly, he was the classic target for bullying.

Every class has a few students who don't study—athletes, kids from wealthy families, or just mindless fools tagging along, doing nothing good.

These four bullies: two were from the same class, the other two from different classes. They skipped class to smoke in the restroom, and Chen Ming happened to come in. The two from his class started teasing him. Chen Ming tried to leave, but they blocked him. He tried to push his way out with his size. One of the boys from his class, thin and weak, got shoved aside—he got angry and slapped Chen Ming hard.

Chen Ming instinctively hugged himself, trying to escape quickly—but that only enraged the classmate further. He immediately signaled the other three, and they kicked Chen Ming repeatedly, leading to the events in the video.

Throughout the entire incident, these four boys were simply evil.

To put it bluntly, even when Wang Yan was a thug, he never bullied people this badly—they were practically the definition of evil, yet still less arrogant than these little bastards…

After investigating the facts, compiling the records, and locking them up, the morning passed. After eating a third-tier canteen meal at the station, Wang Yan again took Yang Shu out on patrol.

"Do you think they'll settle?"

"Why else would they drag Chen Baocheng around? No big issue. Look at their faces—if Chen Baocheng doesn't demand an outrageous sum, it'll be fine."

"You called their workplaces, the industry and tax bureaus—they might get desperate and send the kids to juvenile detention for six months, right?"

Wang Yan shook his head with a light laugh: "Precisely because of that, they must settle. They've paid such a heavy price—they can't end up with nothing. They'll settle. It's about money—they definitely aren't short on cash. Without fail, they'll come tomorrow morning to settle."

"You're really impressive. Otherwise, the Chen family would've had nowhere to turn."

"This is still Ping'an City. Down in the towns or other small cities, networks are even more tangled. If you truly face a ruthless person, the law sometimes becomes useless—you've got to fight harder."

"You're mocking me for overreaching?"

"No. Anyone with ideals who persists on that path is a hero. I just hope you never lose your original heart…"

Wang Yan lazily propped his chin on his hand, one hand resting on the steering wheel, calm and indifferent. Yang Shu saw light on him—a light so bright it blinded him…