"Do you recognize them?" Lin Fan looked at the group of young people and asked Yun Qingyao, who had just come out of the restroom.

Yun Qingyao glanced over and said, "I recognize a few; they were the ones throwing triangular spikes on the road before. Do you think they’re here to save me? You’re probably overthinking it; they’re not my people. They’re just some local thugs who were paid to do a job before."

Lin Fan nodded, then took Yun Qingyao back to their seat.

Soon, the owner came over with two dishes, smiling as she asked, "Handsome guy and beautiful lady, two bowls of rice, right?"

Yun Qingyao shook her head and said, "I’m not eating."

She wouldn’t take off her mask in public, so she could only watch Lin Fan eat.

But Lin Fan said, "Bring two bowls of rice; I can eat two bowls by myself."

For the rest of the meal, Lin Fan ate alone while Yun Qingyao watched from across the table. Seeing him enjoy his food, and with the aroma of the dishes, Yun Qingyao was tempted and her stomach growled a bit.

Lin Fan laughed and said, "If you want to eat, you can take off your mask and join me."

Yun Qingyao snorted, "You just eat to your heart’s content."

She turned her head away from Lin Fan, showing her last bit of stubbornness.

More guests gradually arrived at the restaurant, including two men. As they walked in, they glanced intentionally or unintentionally at Lin Fan and Yun Qingyao, then passed by them and sat down at a table not far behind Lin Fan.

Their arrival caught the attention of Lin Fan and Yun Qingyao.

Lin Fan and Yun Qingyao understood tacitly; these two men had an aura different from ordinary people. Without taking multiple lives, one wouldn’t have such an aura, and Lin Fan and Yun Qingyao, not being ordinary people themselves, could naturally sense it.

After these two men arrived, trouble ensued.

The group of laughing and joking thugs suddenly started arguing for no reason. Two young guys, after a few drinks, got into a fight. They jumped up, shoved each other, and cursed each other’s mothers, fiercely arguing till their faces turned red.

Then the others divided into two groups, each supporting one person, and eventually the two groups evolved into a brawl, fighting chaotically inside the restaurant.

In no time, tables were overturned, people grabbed chairs, others took bottles, and there was a clattering mess.

The diners in the restaurant were frightened and fled in panic without paying.

The owner was so anxious that she hid in a corner and shouted, "Stop fighting, please stop fighting!"

But the thugs weren’t listening.

Suddenly, someone grabbed a bowl and threw it at Lin Fan, who was eating.

It seemed unintentional but was actually on purpose.

Lin Fan’s attention was drawn to the bowl, and normally he should have dodged it. However, almost simultaneously, he felt two chills behind him, as the two men sitting behind him suddenly attacked, each holding a dagger.

Lin Fan tapped his toe, and both he and the chair slid aside.

Behind him, the two men missed their target, one’s dagger stabbed into the table, and the other’s swing missed, but he reacted quickly and immediately swung a second strike at Lin Fan.

Bang!

The bowl flying toward Lin Fan also missed and shattered on the ground.

The thugs who were brawling abruptly stopped as if they had pre-arranged it and all swarmed toward Lin Fan.

Meanwhile, Yun Qingyao, who had been seated, stood up and swiftly retreated to behind the thugs.

It wasn’t over yet. Two police officers arrived at the restaurant now, shouting inside, "Stop right there!"

Yun Qingyao quickly pointed at Lin Fan and said to the officers, "Officers, there’s a murderer here!"

After saying that, Yun Qingyao turned and ran toward the back door and soon disappeared.

Hearing there was a murderer, the two officers instantly became alert, quickly drawing their guns while shouting, "Everyone stop, squat down, and hold your heads!"

But no one listened, and everyone rushed at Lin Fan, surrounding him regardless of whether they could fight or not, just trapping Lin Fan.

The two officers quickly assessed the situation. Although it was chaotic, it was clear that everyone was ganging up on Lin Fan—one man against a group.

These thugs and those two men were in cahoots, deliberately creating this chaos to trap Lin Fan and give Yun Qingyao a chance to escape.

Against Lin Fan, their fighting skills were insignificant, but they had numbers on their side. As long as they could stall Lin Fan and give Yun Qingyao time to get away, they considered it a success.

Those two officers were also called by them beforehand to cause trouble for Lin Fan.

In no time, Lin Fan knocked all of them down. They weren’t his match and fell with a single blow.

This scene left the two officers dumbfounded. He was too strong! Even they admitted they couldn’t possibly match his skills.

Even those two men were easily taken care of by Lin Fan. One was kicked by Lin Fan and writhed in pain on the ground, while the other was held up in Lin Fan’s hand.

"Help!" This man screamed in fear.

"Don’t move, put him down!"

The two officers pointed their guns at Lin Fan, having decided he was the murderer Yun Qingyao spoke of.

Lin Fan didn’t put the man down; instead, he hid behind him, using him as a shield against the guns, while holding a knife to the man’s throat.

At this point, Lin Fan had no other choice. He didn’t have time to explain to the police.

"Put the guns down, or he dies," Lin Fan said coldly.

The two officers tensed up and shouted, "Let him go, or we’ll shoot! You can’t escape."

Lin Fan said, "Shooting will only hit him. You can try. I’ll give you three seconds to decide. One!"

The two officers observed that indeed, Lin Fan was cleverly positioned, fully using the man to shield his vital parts. Unless they were sharpshooters, they had no confidence they could hit Lin Fan.

"Two!"

Lin Fan said, the knife in his hand already cutting into the man’s neck, drawing blood.

To the two officers, Lin Fan was a ruthless criminal, certainly capable of killing without batting an eye.

Before Lin Fan could count to three, the two officers conceded, prioritizing the hostage’s safety!

"Alright, don’t kill him," the two officers put down their guns.

Lin Fan said, "Throw the guns on the ground."

The two officers complied, tossing their guns to the floor.

Lin Fan added, "Take out your handcuffs and cuff your own hands."

"Young man, you know you’re breaking the law, right? You can’t escape this!" one officer said.

Lin Fan said sternly, "Stop the nonsense, hurry up!"

The two officers had no choice but to bear their anger and handcuff themselves.

Lin Fan gestured with his knife and said, "Alright, now go sit in that corner."

As the two officers walked over to sit, Lin Fan grabbed the man’s throat and, with a light twist, made the man roll his eyes and faint dead away on the ground.

This scene made the officers’ hearts skip a beat; they thought Lin Fan had killed the man, considering him cruel!

Lin Fan walked over, crouched, and picked up the guns.

"Sorry, officers, I’ve offended you tonight. Someone will explain to you later."

Lin Fan said with a smile, tossing the guns toward the back door. Yun Qingyao said she escaped through the back, but Lin Fan didn’t pursue her. Instead, he took the front door and walked out with composure.

Lin Fan went out the door first, and the two officers quickly jumped up and ran to the back door to retrieve their guns. Then they chased after Lin Fan.

But when they got outside, Lin Fan was nowhere to be found.

Lin Fan calmly returned to the 4S store where the Hummer he wanted was ready. A clerk handed him two documents to sign.

Lin Fan glanced at them, confirmed there was no issue, and signed his name, then took the keys to the Hummer and got in the vehicle.

Driving the car out, Lin Fan picked up a phone and made a call, "Lily, I’ve run into a bit of trouble. Can you contact the Feng County police to help explain?"

Lin Fan didn’t have time to explain to the two officers earlier, so he chose the quickest way to get away. Explaining would have to be left to Loli.

After the call, Lin Fan opened a software app on his phone, which was a tracking app with a blinking dot moving on the screen.