Lin Ran took the baton, feeling its weight in his hand—it was his first time using such a thing.
Lin Tianba stared at him in shock. "What are you doing?"
Lin Ran smirked. "You know, I’ve always wondered if we’re really biologically related. Sadly, after countless DNA tests, they all confirm I’m your real father. What a shame—how did I end up with trash like you?"
By then, Little Tong had already secured one of Lin Tianba’s legs.
Without hesitation, Lin Ran swung the baton with full force. The bodyguards showed no reaction.
Only Shen Jingbing turned away, unable to watch.
The boss was far more ruthless than he was.
As they say—when the boss arrives, you’re done for.
"Ah—!" Lin Tianba’s scream echoed through the room.
Lin Ran ordered coldly, "Hold up his other leg.""No, no! Please, I beg you! I was wrong! Lin Ran, spare me!"
Lin Ran remained silent as the bodyguards forced Lin Tianba’s other leg into position.
"I only shattered your knees, but you—you shattered my heart. Since you had the guts to come here today, I can’t let you walk back, can I? Don’t worry, I’ll arrange a ride for you later."
Lin Ran’s eyes flickered to Lin Tianba’s hands. A frown creased his brow.
Why wasn’t he making his move yet?
"You ungrateful brat! Let… me… go!"
Lin Ran chuckled. "You should be honored. I’m doing this for your own good. I know how much your wife and child mean to you, so I’m giving them the chance to take care of you. Though I wonder if they’ll bother with a cripple."
Lin Tianba gritted his teeth, forcing out each word.
"They… will never… leave me. And you… will never… have… a father’s love."
Once Lin Tianba’s other leg was secured, Lin Ran dragged the baton slowly across his knee, raising it high before pausing, as if reconsidering.
The deliberate taunting—aiming, then hesitating—pushed Lin Tianba’s nerves to the brink.
Having already endured the agony of one shattered knee, the anticipation of the next blow was pure torture.
It was like waiting for the guillotine to drop, knowing death was inevitable but delayed.
Or craving peanuts, only for the damn bag to get stuck.
Lin Ran was toying with his mind.
"This time, I won’t miss."
Finally, Lin Tianba snapped. With a furious roar, he yanked a butcher’s knife from his coat and swung at Lin Ran.
"You little bastard—I’ll kill you!"
Lin Ran had seen it coming. He’d noticed Lin Tianba fidgeting with something hidden in his coat earlier.
At first, he’d assumed it was a gun—hence his caution.
But then he realized: where would Lin Tianba even get a gun in his current state?
As the blade slashed toward him, Lin Ran "stumbled" back dramatically, collapsing to the ground with a shout.
"Lin Tianba’s gone mad! He’s trying to kill me! Stop him!"
Little Tong was already moving before the order came. His fist smashed into Lin Tianba’s arm with brutal precision, snapping bone and sending the knife clattering to the floor.
Lin Ran clutched his chest in mock terror. "Lin Tianba, what’s wrong with you? I was going to spare you, and this is how you repay me?"
"You’re beyond redemption."
Lin Tianba, cradling his broken arm, froze at the words.
"What… did you say?"
Lin Ran forced a pained smile, though internally, he was laughing.
This performance deserved an Oscar for Best Ungrateful Son.
"Didn’t I just say that if you knelt and apologized, I’d give you a job? And yet you attacked me? Tried to murder me?"
"Do you even realize what this is? Attempted homicide."
The words hit Lin Tianba like a hammer. He stared at Lin Ran’s devastated expression, almost doubting his own memory.
Had the brat really said that?
Or was this all a lie?
No—it had to be fake.
Lin Ran continued his lament. "Even if I didn’t forgive you, at least I didn’t leave you to starve! And you repay me with murder? What gives you the right? Your age? Or that cuckold’s halo above your head?"
Lin Tianba’s brain, still rebooting, short-circuited at the insult.
"You dare call me a cuckold?! I’ll slaughter you! Hack you to pieces! Scatter your ashes so you never rest in peace!"
"Scatter my ashes?" Lin Ran mused. "If I die, you’d probably just dump me in a ditch. Last time, you didn’t even give me a coffin."
With a sharp glance at Wang Bao, Lin Ran signaled. Wang Bao released his grip.
Freed, Lin Tianba lunged like a rabid dog—but with one leg shattered, his charge was clumsy.
Lin Ran sidestepped effortlessly and brought the baton down hard on Lin Tianba’s other knee. A scream tore through the air.
"Ah—!"
Lin Ran sighed. "You brought this on yourself. I spared you, and you still attacked me. What, won’t you stop until I’m dead?"
Lin Tianba’s face was drenched in sweat.
"You… ungrateful… brat!"
Lin Ran turned to Shen Jingbing. "Turn it off."
Shen Jingbing obediently stopped recording.
"Now we’ve got our justification."
The others finally understood—it had all been an act, staged for the camera.
Sure, the estate’s surveillance existed, but the angle was too distant to capture the nuance.
Shen Jingbing’s footage, however? Perfect. A few edits, and they had solid evidence—not just to counter Lin Tianba’s accusations but to send him to prison anytime.
Lin Ran observed Lin Tianba—both legs crippled, one arm broken.
"One limb left. Might as well finish the job."
Little Tong, ever professional, shattered the last joint with precision.
From now on, Lin Tianba would be a complete invalid.
Even if he recovered, he’d never move like before.