âMs. Schneider, ready the car.â
âWhere are we going?â
âMr. Leutholdâs house.â
The moment she heard his reply, Elena broke into a wide grin. She knew that his bark was worse than his bite.
They obtained Louisâ address from those who knew him well.
âHow is his family doing? With his salary, I trust he has no issues supporting them,â Casper asked one employee.
âSomething unfortunate happened. His son murdered someone. He had to pay the victimâs family a large compensation.â
Casper was stunned. He had assumed it was a terrible disease of some sort. âMurder? Do you know why his son did it?â
The employee suddenly grabbed his hand and patted. âMr. Simpson, youâre a good man. Can you help Louis? He has been an honest man his entire life. If it wasnât for his son, he wouldnât betray Tycoon.â
Casper could see the sincerity among many other emotions in his eyes. âTell me exactly what happened.â
Leuthold Sr. was a righteous man and a veteran. Louis inherited his fatherâs character. Early in his life, he suffered greatly because of his unwavering principles. His priorities shifted after he was married. For decades, he toiled in a restaurant to save for the down payment for a house.
Leuthold Jr. was as righteous as his father and his grandfather. The access to Internet allowed the young man to aim higher in life. On his way home after a five-year service with the military, he intercepted an assault on a lady. The ruffian died after a couple of punches from him.
The victimâs parents were no simpleton. They demanded a two-million compensation from Louis or pressed criminal charges on his son.
Casper and Elena exchanged glances when they heard the story. Nowadays, itâs really common for honest men to be beset by disasters.
âMr. Simpson, please help Louis. Without his job, he canât support his family.â the employee pleaded.
As he was about Louisâ, he understood and sympathized with his colleagueâs situation.
âAll happy families are alike, but every unhappy family is unfortunate in its own way,â Casper mumbled as he dragged Elena up and prepared to head to Louisâ house.
A while later, they arrived to find a crowd gathering at the entrance. Many had tattoos on their arms.
Casper instantly knew they came with malicious intentions.
âYou have only paid seven hundred thousand out of two million. Are you trying to default on your debt?â
One man with a crooked mouth and a tattoo-covered arm pointed at Louis arrogantly. Casper wondered if he was born that way.
âI sold everything⦠I really have no more money.â Louisâ voice was very soft.
âNo money? Then your son will have to go to jail!â the tattooed man roared.
Elena frowned at what she saw. âMr. Leuthold, why donât you fight them in court? Perhaps the judge will take into consideration of your sonâs righteousness and ruled it a manslaughter with a short sentence.â
Casper adjusted his pants. âYou canât be too idealistic about it. For example, accidents donât happen often, but they can still happen anytime.â
Elena gazed deeply at Casper. âNot too long ago, you told me we werenât obligated for everyoneâs mistakes.â
âBut there really are people who deserve to be saved. And they are right in front of us!â
Suddenly, all hell broke loose. Leuthold Jr. dashed out of the house with a cleaver in his hand, prepared to fight off the group of men.
The tattooed man was a vicious and seasoned gangster. He stood inches from Louisâ son. âYoung man, come at me if you want to die before your parents. I will make sure they have no peace after youâre gone.â
Trembling with the cleaver in hand, Louisâ son felt the urge to hack the troublemakers to death.
However, the gangster was right. If he got himself killed, there would be no one to take care of his parents.
âI did the right thing! How did it turn out this way?â
No matter how tortuous his training was in the army, he could endure the hardship. However, he didnât expect himself to cry in the face of his current predicament. As tears streaked down his face, he could taste the bitterness on his tongue.
âI am different from my father. I know that there isnât real justice in the world. Therefore, we have to fight for it ourselves. Nevertheless, I still choose to stick to my principles. Nothing more, nothing less.â
Putting down the cleaver, he turned and bowed to Louis. âDad, I have failed you. I canât repay you for all that you have done for me. My only wish is youâll still be in good health when Iâm released from prison.â
The tattooed man realized that Louisâ son had decided to go to court.
âLet me give you a piece of advice. For manslaughter alone, you will be imprisoned for at least ten years. If we interfere with the case, you will most likely get a longer sentence. By the time you are released, your dad would be rotting in his grave. Hahaha.â
Casper sighed at those words. With that, he picked up a brick.
There was no way he could be as righteous as Louis. Instead, he was more of a villain, like the tattooed man.
What goes around comes around.
Just as the tattooed gangster was chortling haughtily, something smashed into his head, causing him to collapse in pain. He turned around and bellowed at his attacker, âWho the f*ck are you? How dare you hit me! Kill him!â
When Casper saw he was surrounded, he threw the brick aside with a chuckle and gave the foe on his right a forceful slap, dislodging his jaw.
At the same time, another man threw a punch at him. However, Casper was disgusted by how weak it was. Grabbing the manâs wrist, he gave it a forceful tug, dislocating the manâs shoulder. It was so painful that his attacker fled in agony.
Bam!
Suddenly, a wooden stick landed on his back. It broke, inflicting no injuries.
Casper frowned at his attacker. âWith such a weak attack, how did you end up being a gangster?â
âI-I-Iâm not a gangster. I was paid to make up the numbers. Even my tattoo is fake.â
The next moment, Casper gave him a kick that sent him flying three meters back. âBack off. The next time I see you in a gang, Iâll bash you up again. You b*stard!â
At that moment, many gangsters scrambled away.