The Supreme Soldier in the City
Chapter 222 - 223 The Backstage Arrival

Chapter 222: Chapter 223 The Backstage Arrival

In the eyes of Joseph Smith and his two companions, James Brown, handcuffed, posed no threat to them. Those handcuffs not only restrained the man’s hands but also signified that the law had him in its grip, deterring him from reckless actions.

So they bullied without fear, they were unafraid, not believing that the handcuffed James Brown would dare do anything to them here. They felt they could beat him up or curse at him whenever they pleased. Although they couldn’t treat Emily Jenkins and Emma Campbell harshly at a police station, spouting obscene language was no issue at all.

"If you dare to mess around, I will definitely sue you," Emily Jenkins already felt something was wrong, but she still made one last effort, glaring with fury like a little tiger, roaring at the three of them.

Joseph Smith said leisurely, "Go ahead, sue if you wish. There are not a few in YODC City who want to sue me, Joseph Smith. But where will you go? To the Public Security Bureau? Haha..."

"You will face retribution for this," Emma Campbell said, her voice carrying her inner rage.

"Beauty, I’d rather you be the one to retalize against me. I would very much enjoy that," Joseph Smith laughed even more brazenly, reaching out to touch Emma Campbell’s cheek, preying on her apparent weakness.

But as soon as he laid a hand on Emma, he was doomed to misfortune. James Brown had not planned to make a move yet, but seeing his girlfriend being bullied, he couldn’t just stand by idly any longer.

A kick came flying between Emma Campbell and Emily Jenkins, landing squarely on Joseph Smith’s abdomen.

With a loud "Bang!" Joseph Smith’s feet left the ground, as if he were yanked backward by a rope tied around his lower back. He was flung back hard, his arms wide open, legs splayed, until he hit the wall and came to a stop, only after sliding to the ground did he let out a pained scream.

The police outside heard the screams and, somewhat concerned, said to Chris Smith, "Director, nothing serious has happened, right?"

Chris Smith, smoking a cigarette with a stern face, replied, "Nothing’s wrong. They have rubber truncheons, it’s not deadly. Besides, Director Shaw is behind this, what could go wrong?"

Despite his words, as the screams continued relentlessly, Chris Smith couldn’t help but feel uneasy inside. For some reason, he always saw James Brown as a dangerous man, capable of bringing dreadful consequences.

Soon after, the screams inside ceased. Chris Smith hurriedly opened the door, but was stunned upon seeing the scene inside. James Brown was casually sitting at a desk, smoking a cigarette, with the two women standing beside him. As for Joseph Smith and his companions, they were lying on the floor, battered and bruised, groaning in pain.

"Joseph!" Chris Smith quickly rushed to Joseph Smith’s side and helped him up.

"He hit me... he hit me... wah..." Joseph Smith suddenly burst into tears, wailing, "You as the director couldn’t protect me, I got beaten, I’ll tell my mother, I’ll have her fight for me."

Chris Smith was greatly startled, as this incident could bring trouble upon him. If Joseph Smith’s parents found out, especially John Smith, the deputy director of the T District, he could easily use Chris’s incompetence as an excuse to deal with him.

Thinking of this, Chris Smith was filled with anger. It was all James Brown’s fault. It was because he hit someone that Chris was in this awkward position. And now, the only thing left to do was to teach James Brown a lesson, to give an explanation to John Smith and perhaps keep his own position.

"Joseph, wait, I’ll take revenge for you!" With an angry shout, Chris Smith leaped up, grabbed a rubber truncheon, and charged towards James Brown, now completely irrational and intent on giving James a thrashing.

"Stop!" Suddenly, a loud shout came from the doorway.

"Stop your mother’s hand!" Chris Smith cursed without looking back, swinging the truncheon down at James Brown’s head.

But James Brown simply raised his hand and caught the truncheon with a smile, "Your director has arrived!"

Chris Smith pulled at the truncheon viciously, cursing, "Even if the King Father himself came, I would still beat the crap out of you today."

"What a big talker. I want to see you try to beat someone to death," an imposing voice suddenly came from behind.

Chris Smith stiffened; the voice sounded somewhat familiar, and he quickly remembered it was the voice of the branch director, Director Smith. Slowly turning around, he saw Director Smith, sweat pouring from his forehead, as he stammered, "Director... you... how did you get here?"

It was the branch director, James Johnson, in charge of Chris Smith. Fire seemed to spout from his eyes as he angrily said, "Good job, Chris Smith, so this is how you run your station?"

Chris Smith was drenched in cold sweat, and seeing James Johnson’s furious demeanor, it was evident he was very angry. As a director using a rubber truncheon on someone was a major mistake, regardless of the reason. Glancing at Joseph Smith, Chris Smith quickly explained, "Director Smith, this is John Smith, the deputy director’s son."

James Johnson is the precinct chief, and John Smith is the deputy chief of the T District, whose rank is clearly higher than that of James Johnson. By invoking John Smith, it seemed like James Johnson wouldn’t dare show disrespect, which would allow one to shirk responsibility.

James Johnson’s face grew even uglier as he bellowed, "Just because he is Deputy Director Shelton’s son, you think you can disregard the law and turn right and wrong upside down?"

Chris Smith was startled, and despite having brought up John Smith’s name, James Johnson didn’t show a shred of face-saving respect, which was quite abnormal. Stammering, he said, "Director Williams, I was a bit impulsive just now, but this man hit Director Shaw’s son while he was at our station - that’s why I was so angry."

James Johnson was furiously retorted, "Is that so? This should be your police station, right? How did they start fighting here? What kind of station chief are you - just loafing around?"

Chris Smith trembled and through clenched teeth, said, "Director Williams, I have to give an explanation to Deputy Director Shelton."

"Humph, which is greater, the law or Deputy Director Shelton?"

Chris Smith opened his mouth but was utterly confused by Director Williams’s reaction. It’s not that such situations had never occurred before, and Director Williams had not been so righteous and indignant; moreover, today he was clearly not giving John Smith any face - could it be... He glanced at James Brown, and a cold sweat broke out on his back. Could this James Brown be some big shot?

Joseph Smith had gotten up, sniffing and wiping away tears and snot, he cried out, "Director Smith, you have to stand up for me, I was hit right here, by him!"

James Johnson, however, didn’t pay any heed to Joseph Smith and sternly asked, "Can someone give me a detailed account of what happened?"

Joseph Smith hit a soft spot, his expression immediately turning sour. Although Director Williams had a slightly lower rank than his father, his father couldn’t boss Director Williams around, let alone himself. Biting his teeth, he moved aside and made a phone call.

Including Director John, all the police officers were looking at each other, feeling that today Director Williams was acting in full compliance with the law, and their actions were clearly unworthy of their police status - none dared to speak out of turn. Emily Jenkins, however, had finally found someone to rely on and promptly detailed the entire incident loudly.

As James Johnson listened, his expression grew increasingly ugly. After Emily finished speaking, he slammed the table and shouted, "Utter lawlessness! Good one, Chris Smith, effective immediately, you are suspended from duty pending investigation. All the police officers involved will await further action."

At this point, Emily quickly said, "Director Smith, you are indeed a good official. What about the taxi driver who was hit? They should compensate him and make Joseph Smith take responsibility."

James Johnson righteously declared, "We will deal with this matter justly, regardless of how powerful the connections are. We will not tolerate such behavior. Having a good citizen like you is a fortune for our police community, and we hope you will continue to support our police work in the future."

"Of course, I definitely will," Emily Jenkins replied excitedly, nodding incessantly.

It was then that James Brown interjected, "Shouldn’t my handcuffs be removed now?"

James Johnson busied himself responding, "Certainly. This is a failing on our part, and I ask for this gentleman’s understanding. I will ensure to discipline our police force and prevent such a detriment to the team from happening again."

There was a polite note in his tone.

Both Emily Jenkins and Emma Campbell were simple-minded and didn’t read too much into it, thinking Director Williams was a good official. However, at this moment, Chris Smith fully understood the implication: Director Williams was here because of this James Brown. Who exactly was James Brown, who even brought the precinct chief in person, with such a tough attitude, disregarding even the deputy chief of T District’s face — it seemed his backer must be significant indeed.

After exchanging a few polite words, James Brown smiled and said to James Johnson, "Director Williams, can we leave now?"

James Johnson nodded repeatedly, saying, "Yes, yes! We will definitely notify Miss Jenkins of the results."

James Brown nodded, preparing to leave with the two ladies when suddenly a woman of slightly plump stature burst in like a gust of wind.

"Mom!" Joseph Smith called out, and the woman immediately hugged him, looking him up and down before turning around with a livid face and demanding, "Who had the nerve to beat my son like this?"

At this moment, James Johnson frowned deeply, knowing all too well about John Smith’s wife, Susan Will’s tempestuous behavior; an utterly unreasonable woman. When faced with someone like her, reason was futile, and if she made a scene, the matter could become quite troublesome.

With newfound backing, Joseph Smith pointed at James Brown and boldly claimed, "Mom, it was him who hit me. Director John stood up for me, but now Director Williams disagrees and even wants to let them go."

Susan Will first threw James Brown an evil glance, then shifted her gaze towards James Johnson and said sarcastically, "Director Williams, what are you trying to say? Are you refusing to acknowledge even Mr. Scott’s influence?"