"It really is you!"
The man strode forward, stopping beside Manager Cui. When he got a good look at Evan Lin's face, he was instantly certain and his expression lit up with joy.
There was a dangerous aura about him that made people instinctively wary.
As the current deputy company commander of Knife-Edge Company, he was someone who’d actually been assigned to the front lines and seen real combat.
That’s exactly why everyone around looked at him with obvious fear in their eyes.
"Hey, brother, do you have a grudge with this guy or something?"
Seeing the newcomer, Manager Cui was shocked by his strength. He hurried over, smiling, and said, "You're just in time! This guy’s about to smash up our store—how about you give us a hand and take care of him for us?"
"Yeah, man, you look strong and intimidating. Ever thought about working for us? I’ll talk to my dad and get you a job for ten thousand yuan a month!"
Harvey Jiao looked at the man with greedy admiration all over his face.
Just imagining having such a powerhouse following him around made Harvey fantasize about how cool he’d look strutting down the street.
No matter where he went, his presence was enough to make people submit.
Wouldn’t that be insanely cool?
Hearing Harvey Jiao and Manager Cui’s words, the newcomer raised an eyebrow and glanced at them. The ferocity in his gaze made Manager Cui instinctively back away several steps.
"Brother Lin, are these your friends?"
The man looked at Evan Lin and asked.
Evan Lin shook his head, eyeing the newcomer with some confusion. "You know me?"
The man was big and burly, with a square face and an upright, honest look.
Evan Lin didn’t recall ever crossing paths with him.
"Uh, you probably don’t know me. I’m Warren He. Back when you were training Fifth Blade, I snuck a few peeks."
As he said this, Warren scratched his head awkwardly. "I wasn’t strong enough to get direct instruction from you."
Hearing this, Evan Lin started to understand.
This guy was probably another member of Colonel Su’s Knife-Edge Company.
Manager Cui, meanwhile, was completely lost.
Harvey Jiao spoke up, "Hey, are you confused or something? Just look at this scruffy kid—you're calling him 'brother'?"
Harvey Jiao glared, eyes wide.
"You think you can insult Brother Lin?"
As soon as Harvey finished, Warren He spun around and grabbed Harvey by the neck with one hand.
"Ah! Let go, let go!"
The girl next to Harvey shrieked in terror, slapping at Warren’s wrist.
Mandy Yu and the girl beside her both turned pale, clearly scared out of their wits.
None of the other diners dared to even breathe loudly.
Most of them didn’t know what Evan Lin’s relationship with this guy was, but just his raw, intimidating aura was enough to shake everyone.
Bang!
Warren He flexed his hand, lifted Harvey Jiao, and slammed him against the wall. Harvey grimaced in pain, teeth bared.
When Warren first came in, he’d planned to call Evan "Instructor Lin."
But then he remembered Colonel Su’s instructions before leaving, so he didn’t dare say anything that might draw a crowd or bring Evan unnecessary trouble.
At first, Warren had been puzzled by Evan Lin’s shabby appearance.
But then he figured that real experts like Evan Lin do things their own way, never caring about appearances—whatever feels right, they do. Thinking it over, it all made sense.
Warren He glanced around the room.
No one dared say a word.
"You here to pick me up?"
Evan Lin let out a sigh.
He’d originally planned to handle things himself, but seeing how cowardly Harvey and the others looked now, Evan lost all interest in making a move.
"Yeah. There are a few more brothers outside. Since you didn’t say exactly which restaurant you were in, we had to check each one until we found you."
Warren He looked a little embarrassed, then picked up his phone and called out in a steady voice, "Found him—fourth restaurant on the left side of the street! Everyone, get over here!"
After hanging up, he turned to Evan Lin, his tone softening. "Have you finished eating? If not, you can take your time."
"No need."
Evan Lin slowly got up and glanced at Manager Cui. "Just now, you said I was here to smash the place?"
"You said I couldn’t pay and was some kind of special customer?"
Manager Cui could only force a bitter smile. "Misunderstanding, total misunderstanding."
Just one look at Warren He was enough to make Manager Cui’s heart tremble.
It was downright terrifying!
And those security guards Warren had knocked down earlier were still lying on the ground, unable to get up.
"A misunderstanding?"
Evan Lin shook his head and looked over at Harvey Jiao. "You also said I was here to smash the place, right?"
"You were about to call Raymond Rong and make me kneel in front of him?"
Evan’s tone was calm.
"I... I... I..."
Harvey’s legs turned to jelly and his face went pale. He couldn’t get a single word out.
At that moment, someone pushed open the restaurant door.
Five more people came in all at once.
"Brother Lin!"
As soon as they saw Evan Lin, their faces lit up and they all called out.
They were all from Knife-Edge Company.
Even though none of them had ever been personally trained by Evan Lin, just the fact that he’d led Fifth Blade to beat Flying Eagle Company in exercises was enough to make them feel honored.
They truly respected Evan Lin from the bottom of their hearts.
"Everyone here?"
Evan Lin glanced at Warren He.
"Yeah, all six of us."
Warren He nodded repeatedly.
"Alright then, smash the place."
Evan Lin’s tone was flat: "I don’t want to see this restaurant again."
"What did you say!" Harvey Jiao instinctively shouted.
His dad had invested millions in this restaurant, and it had just opened—the capital hadn’t even been recovered yet.
Smack!
Evan Lin slapped him with a backhand.
Harvey flew across the room, landing headfirst in a trash can, legs sticking up in the air.
"Noisy."
Evan Lin sighed.
"Smash it!"
Warren He barked out a sharp order at Evan Lin’s words.
The men behind him didn’t hesitate—they grabbed chairs and started smashing everything in sight.
They were strong and fast, moving with ruthless efficiency.
The diners who’d been watching shrieked in terror. Forget about enjoying the show—they scrambled up from their seats and stampeded out of the restaurant.
"Don’t smash it! It’s all a misunderstanding!"
Manager Cui was so scared he dropped to his knees, clutching Evan Lin’s pant leg. "Grandpa! Grandpa! I’m begging you! It’s my fault, it was all a misunderstanding! I’ll refund your meal right away—just please, make them stop!"
If this restaurant was destroyed under Manager Cui’s watch, his career in the industry was basically over. No one would ever hire a manager who let a new restaurant get wrecked.
"I don’t see this as a misunderstanding at all."
Evan Lin shifted his weight and kicked Manager Cui aside, then turned to look at Mandy Yu, who was shaking all over.
Mandy Yu’s pretty face was drained of all color. She stared at Evan Lin, her eyes full of fear.
"Mandy Yu, remember what I’m telling you today."
"Ken picking you is his own blindness. That’s his business, not mine."
"I’m even happy to see him grow through heartbreak and pain. But you’d better remember this."
"Everything has its limits. Leave yourself some dignity."