Chapter 122, Chapter 119: Judgment

Rumble, rumble…

The courtroom instantly erupted in thunderous applause. Those clapping were all underlings gathered by Zhang Dadan or Yan Buer.

When she heard the verdict, Li Ruo seemed to lose her soul. She stared dejectedly at Ye Chen in the defendant’s dock. She was not the only one—Zhang Yantong was equally disappointed. Although Ye Chen’s voluntary surrender had been taken into account, he had still been sentenced to fifteen years. Even with a reduction, he would have to spend roughly ten years behind bars.

Clang!

The thermos lunchbox in Liu Momo’s hands fell to the floor. She shot to her feet and screamed, “No! This can’t be true! Brother Chen has been framed!”

Screaming, Liu Momo frantically charged toward the defendant’s dock. At that moment, there was only Ye Chen in her eyes. She had to throw herself into his arms. She needed him to tell her personally that he had been wrongfully accused.

Liu Momo’s outburst triggered Feng Zhixiao and the others as well. More than fifty people rose from their seats at once. They kicked the chairs viciously, tore off the armrests, gripped them in their hands, and charged Zhang Dadan’s men. The courtroom descended into chaos as the two sides fought fiercely.

The bailiffs immediately rushed in, and Liu Momo was the first to be stopped. She shouted, “Brother Chen! Brother Chen! It’s me, Momo! Look at me!”

“Go back at once! Go back!”

The bailiff brandished his baton, but Liu Momo not only refused to obey—she clawed at his uniform and bit into his arm. At that moment, no one could stop her from seeing Brother Chen. Not even demons or monsters would be allowed to stand in her way.

“Damn it!”

The bailiff froze for a moment, then raised his baton and swung it down at Liu Momo.

“Ah!”

Liu Momo let out a heart-rending scream.

Ye Chen heard her cry and immediately turned around. The sight before him filled him with agony: the bailiff was savagely swinging his baton at Liu Momo.

Ye Chen flew into a rage. He leaped out of the defendant’s dock, and the two bailiffs beside him moved to intercept him.

“Get lost!”

Ye Chen swung his fist and drove one foot viciously into another bailiff’s head. Both bailiffs crashed to the ground. The courtroom guards here had received no professional training; they were merely big, intimidating men serving as decorations.

Ye Chen raced toward Liu Momo. The bailiff was still waving his baton. Three meters away, Ye Chen launched himself into the air, his legs scissoring toward the man like a pair of blades.

Everyone stared wide-eyed.

Ye Chen clamped both legs around the bailiff, then twisted. The bailiff was dragged off his feet and slammed headfirst into a wooden chair. Ye Chen sprang up from the floor in one fluid motion and charged toward Liu Momo.

“Brother Chen!”

Tears streamed down Liu Momo’s face like rain on pear blossoms. The bailiff had struck her head hard enough to draw blood. She covered the wound with one hand, but blood seeped through her fingers and stained her snow-white school uniform.

Seeing this, Ye Chen’s eyes reddened. He breathed heavily, and a murderous aura burst from his gaze.

“Brother Chen!”

Big Prawn and Rat broke through the crowd and rushed over. When they saw how badly Liu Momo had been hurt, they gritted their teeth.

“Brother Chen, I’m going to kill them!”

“Stop!”

Ye Chen barked, “I’ll do it myself!”

Liu Momo was Ye Chen’s deepest vulnerability. In truth, everyone he cared about was one of his vulnerabilities. A dragon had its inverse scale, and a man had his own forbidden ground. Ye Chen was a dragon destined to soar through the heavens.

He lifted Liu Momo into his arms and held her against his chest. The pitiful girl in his embrace had struck the deepest part of his heart. At that moment, he realized that endless weakness only invited humiliation, and endless retreat merely allowed those beside him to be bullied.

Kill!

The thought surged through his heart, fierce and unstoppable.

Seeing this, Rat hurriedly stepped aside. From Ye Chen’s eyes, he knew that his former leader had returned.

That heroic figure, that legendary man, was back.

The man who had once fought his way in and out of the Mexican drug cartels three times, alone and armed with nothing but himself, had returned.

Rat watched excitedly. The bailiff before him seemed like an offering from some mysterious African tribe.

The red carpet on the floor was the sacrificial altar.

The offering was fulfilling its purpose, awakening the incomparable God of War.

“Ye Chen, don’t do anything reckless!”

Zhang Yantong hurriedly pushed through the crowd. She had seen Ye Chen’s fury and sensed the boundless murderous intent in his heart.

Ye Chen held Liu Momo in his arms. She was sobbing softly against his chest.

Who had broken her heart?

Who had made her cry?

Ye Chen’s eyes widened as he glared at the trembling bailiff. He turned and handed Liu Momo to Zhang Yantong.

“Please take care of Momo for me.”

“What are you going to do?”

Zhang Yantong hurriedly caught Liu Momo. She was a little heavy, but still light enough for her to carry.

“I’m going to kill him,” Ye Chen said through clenched teeth.

“Kill him! Kill him!”

Rat and Big Prawn waved their arms. Feng Zhixiao and the others charged over as well, each brandishing a wooden club.

The bailiff finally realized how serious the situation was. He hastily turned to look at the people behind him, but not one of them was willing to step forward and help.

The fury radiating from Ye Chen made it impossible for anyone to approach. The other bailiffs timidly hid to one side, while the presiding judge had disappeared at some point.

The case had already been decided. It had nothing to do with them anymore. Getting away quickly was the wisest course of action.

Ye Chen advanced one step at a time.

“Momo, hurry and persuade him! If he kills someone, he’ll probably be sentenced to death!”

Zhang Yantong knew she could not stop Ye Chen, so she could only plead with Liu Momo. Liu Momo was a sensible girl; she did not want anything to happen to Ye Chen either.

Just as Ye Chen was preparing to strike, Liu Momo suddenly cried out, “Brother Chen, don’t! Please, don’t!”

“Momo… you…”

Ye Chen froze.

“Don’t kill anyone!”

Liu Momo struggled out of Zhang Yantong’s arms. Tears filled her eyes as she looked at Ye Chen.

“Brother Chen, I don’t want you to receive a harsher sentence because of me. Momo isn’t worth that. Brother Chen, whether you’re sentenced to fifteen years or twenty, I’ll wait for you. Even if you come out one day as an old man, I’ll take care of you. Brother Chen, Momo will definitely wait for you!”

The entire courtroom fell silent.

Zhang Yantong began to cry. She turned her head, unwilling to let anyone see her tears.

Li Ruo cried as well, covering her red lips. Hearing Liu Momo’s heartfelt confession, she realized that she had done far too little for Ye Chen—far, far too little.

Lin Ziwen also wept, moved by the depth of Liu Momo’s love.

“Ziwen, let’s go.”

Li Ruo cast one reluctant glance at Ye Chen, then turned and walked away. Lin Ziwen hurried after her.

“All right. I’ll listen to Momo.”

Ye Chen nodded. He grabbed the bailiff by the collar and said, “You’re a man who has returned from the gates of hell. Your life was granted to you by the girl whose head you beat bloody.”

With that, Ye Chen flung him away. The bailiff rolled five or six meters across the floor.

Ye Chen was sentenced and sent to Jianghuai City Prison.

Some people cried. Others laughed.

Yan Buer immediately gave the prison guards a few instructions, telling them to give Ye Chen a proper welcome.

On his first day in prison, Ye Chen underwent a medical examination, had his hair cut, collected his daily necessities, and was assigned a cell. After all that, he entered Cell 302.

There was already another inmate inside.

“What’s your name?”

On Ye Chen’s first day in prison, the young man in Cell 302 frowned and asked him the question.

“Ye Chen.”

After answering, Ye Chen tossed all his belongings onto the head of the bed.

For the old Ye Chen, going to prison would have been nothing more than a ridiculous joke. Yet this ridiculous thing had genuinely become part of his life.

Sometimes, Ye Chen felt that life was truly interesting. Things one believed would never happen somehow happened anyway, and people one believed one would never love somehow became the very people one fell for.

“First day here, kid?” the man asked with a cold laugh. “Don’t you know that bed is where I keep my things?”

“Then where am I supposed to sleep?” Ye Chen asked curiously.

There were only two beds, two desks, and two wardrobes in the entire cell.

The man laughed loudly. “You’ll sleep on the floor. From now on, you’ll call me Boss!”

“What’s your name?” Ye Chen asked.

“Liu San!”

“From now on, you’re not Liu San anymore. You’re Scumbag San.”

Ye Chen strode forward and smashed his fist into Liu San’s face. The blow sent blood pouring from Liu San’s nose.

Liu San immediately dropped to his knees and begged for mercy.

“Big brother, stop hitting me! From now on, I’ll call you Big Brother, all right?”

“Pathetic bastard. Spit!”

Ye Chen spat directly onto Liu San’s head. He had always looked down on cowards like him.

After tidying up his things, it was already noon. Liu San immediately sidled over, two wads of tissue stuffed into his nostrils.

“Big brother, be careful when you go to lunch. There’s one tyrant in this prison you need to watch out for.”

“What do you mean?” Ye Chen asked.

“There’s a prison bully here. Anyone who comes in has to call him Boss. His name is Liu the Overlord!” Liu San hurriedly explained. “He loves tormenting newcomers. After they arrive, they have to serve him tea and water. If they dare resist, the consequences are severe. They’ll be beaten brutally!”

“Hmph. I like people like that.”

Ye Chen gave a cold laugh.

Just then, the bell rang. The doors of all the cellblocks opened automatically, and large numbers of prisoners rushed out.

“Big brother, hurry up!” Liu San shouted. “Otherwise, you won’t get any food!”