Then let the witch offer her loyalty

Zhou Haiwei felt relieved, beckoned to Zhou Yan with his finger, and said impatiently, "Hurry up, this month's money, don't make me chase you every time."

Zhou Yan nervously tugged at her sleeves, cautiously glancing up at Chen Moxin, who gave her an encouraging look.

Zhou Yan pursed her lips, her mouth opening and closing repeatedly, before finally gritting her teeth and whispering, "I...I won't give you the money..."

Zhou Haiwei stood there, stunned, looking incredulous, as if he had misheard.

Giving money has long become a monthly routine.

For Zhou Haiwei, Zhou Yan was just an ATM. At the beginning of the month, he would automatically generate gold coins. If he generated too many, he could take them comfortably. If he generated too few, he would be beaten and kicked.

Zhou Yan had never dared to object to this before, but today she actually dared to refuse, saying she wouldn't give her the money?!

Zhou Haiwei's face quickly turned grim, so dark it seemed like it was about to drip water: "Say that again?"

Zhou Yan was somewhat timid, and subconsciously moved closer to Chen Moxin, her voice trembling slightly: "I...I don't earn much in a month, not even enough for myself...I need to save that money for food..."

Zhou Haiwei was immediately enraged.

From childhood to adulthood, Zhou Yan had always been a doormat in front of her. No matter if she was beaten or scolded, or whatever she was asked to do, she would do it obediently.

This was the first time she had ever talked back to him, and in front of outsiders no less, which greatly insulted Zhou Haiwei's male pride.

"You son of a bitch, I think you deserve a beating!" Zhou Haiwei said, reaching out to grab Zhou Yan's hair.

"Whoosh—" Without saying a word, Chen Moxin pulled out a baton from his pocket.

Zhou Haiwei was startled and dodged backward while complaining to Luo Lingyou, "Hey, look at him! He's trying to hit someone! You need to stop him!"

Luo Miaoyou blinked: "Did he hit you?"

Zhou Haiwei cursed, "You've even pulled out your baton, aren't you trying to hit me?"

Luo Lingyou shrugged and said, "He just pulled out his baton, he didn't actually hit you."

Zhou Haiwei choked for a moment, then said with a face full of indignation, "So you didn't care that he was carrying such a dangerous thing?"

Luo Lingyou shook his head: "He is an agent of the Special Investigation Division of the Administration Bureau. According to regulations, he is allowed to carry weapons. I can't control that."

Zhou Haiwei was furious. He gritted his teeth, glared at Zhou Yan, and said, "Zhou Yan, you come here! Do you hear me?!"

Zhou Yan didn't go over; instead, she moved and hid behind Chen Moxin, her little hands gripping his clothes, only revealing half of her head.

"You traitor! Is he your father or am I your father?!" Zhou Haiwei roared, and tried to step forward again.

"Whoosh—" Chen Moxin swung the baton forward sharply, almost grazing Zhou Haiwei's forehead.

If Zhou Haiwei hadn't been on guard and dodged quickly, he would probably have a fist-sized bump on his head by now.

"He hit someone! He hit someone!" Zhou Haiwei complained to Luo Lingyou again.

Luo Lingyou said slowly, "I didn't hit you, why are you so upset? Can't a man be more magnanimous?"

Zhou Haiwei yelled, "What does this have to do with being magnanimous?! If I hadn't reacted quickly, that stick would have hit me on the head!"

Chen Moxin brandished the baton again, grinned, and said, "Don't slander me. I just saw a fly flying around. I swatted the fly, not you."

“Look, he’s swatting flies, not targeting you,” Luo Lingyou chimed in.

"What if he actually hits me?!"

"Let's talk about it when it really comes down to it."

Zhou Haiwei was furious, but dared not approach Chen Moxin, so he simply grabbed a water glass from the table, ready to smash it.

"Thump!" He had just picked up the cup when he was suddenly kicked hard in the butt, and fell face-first into the mud.

Zhou Haiwei looked back in astonishment and saw Luo Lingyou standing behind him with her feet raised, saying to him with a serious expression: "Your behavior just now constitutes disorderly conduct. According to regulations, we have the right to take emergency measures."

Chen Moxin and Luo Lingyou, working in perfect unison, rushed forward one after the other and began punching and kicking Zhou Haiwei.

...

monitoring room.

Faced with the chaotic scene on the surveillance footage, the guard first looked at Chen Moxin, then at the daughter of the court committee member.

He turned off the surveillance camera, deleted the recording, and continued eating his instant noodles with his head down.

...

The family meeting room was now filled with smoke and chaos.

Chen Moxin straddled Zhou Haiwei and unleashed a flurry of punches at his head.

Luo Lingyou followed along, occasionally kicking Chen Moxin a few times while making the same "hehe" laugh.

Zhou Yan stood there bewildered, his mind blank, unable to process what was happening, staring blankly at the utterly chaotic scene before him.

"Help! Help me!!!" Zhou Haiwei was beaten black and blue, howling at the top of his lungs, but the people outside the house were as still as if they were dead, without making a sound.

He stretched out his hands and gripped the table legs tightly, pulling with all his might, finally managing to free himself from under Chen Moxin.

At this moment, his face was covered in bruises, blood kept gushing from his nose, and his hair and clothes were torn. He looked extremely miserable.

Zhou Haiwei stumbled to his feet, pointing at Chen Moxin and Luo Lingyou and cursing wildly: "You two are in cahoots! I'll fuck your mothers!"

Chen Moxin: "My mother is dead."

Zhou Haiwei: "That day, your dad!"

Luo Lingyou: "My dad died too."

Zhou Haiwei's vision went black, his blood pressure spiked, and he couldn't speak.

After a long pause, his gaze turned cold, and he threatened fiercely, "Officials protect each other, colluding with each other. You two just wait, this isn't over!"

"I'm booking a train ticket right now and heading to the capital to sue you in court!"

Chen Moxin chuckled briefly, dusted off his hands, and said indifferently, "Dude, it's no fun playing with scum like you. Enough is enough."

“Just live your life, do what you normally do, go through the motions each time and then get out, otherwise just pretend you never had this daughter.”

"Do you only feel comfortable when you've tortured yourself to the point of committing suicide with seven bullets in your back, or being hit and killed by a fully insured truck on the street?"

Zhou Haiwei wasn't stupid. Although he wasn't very capable, he had at least come from a chaotic place on the frontier and had some ability to read people and understand the unspoken meaning behind their words.

Chen Moxin's expression seemed calm at this moment, but it was precisely this calmness that gave people a strange sense of danger.

The following words were not even a hint, but a blatant threat—if you cause trouble again, I have a way to make you die without knowing why, but also without knowing why.

This made Zhou Haiwei shiver involuntarily.

Seeing that Zhou Haiwei remained silent, Chen Moxin picked up a document from the table and handed it to him: "It's quiet now? Then let's start the process. Let me tell you about Zhou Yan's situation this month."

What happened next was quite routine.

Chen Moxin relayed the report from the detention area's supervisors and informed Zhou Haiwei of Zhou Yan's living records for the month.

Zhou Haiwei had a gloomy face and didn't say a word, whether he listened or not.

After speaking for about fifteen minutes, Chen Moxin put down the documents and said, "That's all the information I need to share with you this month. If you have any questions, ask them now. If not, sign here and get out of here."

Zhou Haiwei gritted his teeth, even though he felt that Chen Moxin's threat might have been a bluff.

But he also knew in his heart that young people in their early twenties were not as shrewd as those seasoned veterans who had been in the business for a long time.

Young people often act without considering the consequences.

When he was living on the frontier, he wasn't afraid of any so-called gang leaders or underworld figures.

These are all respectable people; even if they were to take action, they would know their limits.

Zhou Haiwei is most afraid of those young, unsophisticated, and uncultured lads.

This kind of dimwitted idiot would actually stab you to death without a second thought.

In the end, Zhou Haiwei didn't dare to provoke him. He just spat and coldly said to Zhou Yan, "Don't think that outsiders can protect you forever. I'm your father, and you'll end up in my hands one day!"

Zhou Haiwei's departure marks the official end of this family meeting.

"Chen Moxin, I'm leaving now. You can take Zhou Yan back."

"Okay, thank you for making this trip."

"Remember to call me if anything fun like this happens again!"

"Definitely next time."

Zhou Yan was completely dumbfounded as he looked at the two people chatting and laughing in front of him.

When she refused to give Zhou Haiwei money, she was prepared to be beaten, but she didn't expect that Chen Moxin and Luo Lingyou would actually protect her.

After leaving the family visitation room, Luo Lingyou went back to do other work first, while Chen Moxin took Zhou Yan back to the strict detention area.

Before parting, Chen Moxin squatted down in front of Zhou Yan and gently pinched her cheek: "See, I didn't lie to you, did I? With me here, your dad can't touch you."

Zhou Yan looked at Chen Moxin and nodded obediently, her eyes sparkling with longing.

...

Starting in early October, according to feedback from the strict control and detention area, Zhou Yan seemed to have become a different person.

I'm not going to stay in bed in the morning anymore.

I won't kick the wall at night anymore.

They no longer antagonize regulators, nor do they resort to verbal abuse or physical violence.

The trash cans in the shelter finally escaped their fate and were no longer kicked every few days.

Zhou Yan even took the initiative to report to the supervisors and honestly confessed the "little granary" in his dormitory.

When the inspectors removed the tiles from the wall and saw it stuffed full of packaged foods such as compressed biscuits, they were all shocked, thinking they had entered a human-shaped rat's nest.

After discussion, the regulators took all the food away.

After all, rules are rules, and no precedents can be set.

However, the supervisors also told Zhou Yan that these foods were being kept on her behalf, and she could ask them for them whenever she wanted to eat them.

And so, Zhou Yan transformed from a troublemaker who couldn't stand not causing trouble every day into a sensible and disciplined good boy.

If this situation continues, she should be able to leave the strictly controlled area and move to the regular controlled area in a few months, at which point she can finally live a comfortable and carefree life.

Chapter 178 Berserker Death Apostle

The office of the Ninth Division of the Demon Hunter.

Yang Jie, having already learned of Zhou Yan's recent situation, smiled at Chen Moxin and said, "You little rascal, you really have something going for you. You actually managed to reform that troublemaker Zhou Yan."

Chen Moxin said jokingly, "It's all thanks to Captain Yang's good teaching. He taught me to be less cunning and more sincere, and it really worked."

Yang Jie waved his hand dismissively: "Come on, if it were that simple, Zhou Yan would have signed a spirit contract with me last year. Would it be your turn?"

Alexander poked his head out and asked curiously, "Speaking of which, Captain Yang, you've served for so long, haven't you ever considered forming a spiritual pact with a second witch?"

Yang Jie waved his hand: "For us hunters, having more psionic energy is certainly not a bad thing, but it doesn't mean the more the better."

"Mastering one type of psionic ability is often far more useful than having a bunch of half-baked psionic abilities."

Alexander nodded in understanding.

It's like playing a game.

Your fancy E-soldier kiting skills interspersed with basic attacks followed by your ultimate and double wind upon landing might not be as effective as someone else's QE-Greatsword combo.

However, Yang Jie added, "Of course, it depends on the person. I mainly have a wife and children, and besides work, I also have to take care of my family. I really don't have that much energy to come into contact with other witches."

"Moreover, I'm getting old, and my reaction and learning abilities are declining, making it difficult for me to focus on studying new psionic abilities."

"But for young people like you, having the time and energy to interact with more witches, acquire more spiritual power, and apply it in actual combat will definitely be beneficial and harmless."

While Yang Jie and Alexander were chatting, Chen Moxin was checking the system panel.

[Zhou Yan's current reputation: Unremarkable]

Zhou Yan has been very well-behaved lately, cooperating in every way, and has even been praised in a public notice. His reputation is no longer that of someone who is disliked by both people and dogs.

The awkward part is that her reputation used to be really bad.

Even if she has reformed and her reputation has improved somewhat, it's not much better.

Whether it's the other witches in the containment area or the supervisors, their reactions to Zhou Yan are pretty much the same—that pink-haired bully who used to cause trouble often seems to have calmed down a bit recently, but who knows how long she'll stay quiet.

The ingrained negative impression makes it extremely difficult for Zhou Yan to reverse her reputation.