Brian Sullivan's abrasion on his left shoulder still hadn't healed, so he couldn't use much force, but with his right fist, he landed five or six solid punches that knocked Big Mouth Harris to the ground, then kicked him repeatedly. It wasn't until John Reed, Eric Bennett, and the others snapped out of their shock that someone finally grabbed him around the waist and dragged him away...

"Ridiculous! Secretary Sullivan, what do you take this place for? A spot for thugs to brawl? You've completely disgraced the city government!"

John Reed walked into the office of the Production Safety Department at the city steel plant with a dark expression, slapping the desk with a loud "bang bang" and sternly reprimanding Brian Sullivan.

John Reed came from the city steel plant and often accompanied Mayor David Carter on inspections there. The veteran employees of the Production Safety Department all recognized him, though most of them still didn't understand what was going on.

Was this young man who rushed in and beat up Big Mouth Harris a city government secretary who came with John Reed?

Someone had originally planned to call security to have him arrested, but now quietly put the phone down.

As the head of the Technical Section in the Chief Engineer's Office, Eric Bennett was among those receiving Deputy Mayor Mark Brooks's inspection team at the steel plant, and he was present at the scene when the fatal fall occurred, so he recognized Brian Sullivan, who was slightly injured in the accident.

Big Mouth Harris had twisted the facts, pushing all the blame for the fatal fall onto Ethan Foster alone, and even tried to use this as an excuse to avoid paying the compensation owed to Ethan Foster's sister. Eric Bennett was furious about this, itching to fight Big Mouth Harris himself, but he hadn't expected Deputy Mayor Mark Brooks's secretary, Brian Sullivan, to suddenly show up and give Big Mouth Harris a thorough beating...

At first, Eric Bennett was stunned too, but once he snapped out of it, he felt that Big Mouth Harris was a bit unlucky to be beaten like that, and instinctively, along with the other staff in the office, helped hold Brian Sullivan tightly around the waist.

In the blink of an eye, Eric Bennett regretted it—he should have let Big Mouth Harris get kicked a couple more times for good measure.

With Eric Bennett holding him around the waist and John Reed shouting at him, Brian Sullivan finally calmed down.

Seeing Little Lily standing at the door looking frightened, Brian Sullivan realized that he had just barged in without a word, knocked Big Mouth Harris to the ground with several punches, and then kicked him—he really had lost control.

Ultimately, it was because he'd been under a lot of emotional pressure these past few days, and ever since yesterday, he'd been worried about whether Little Lily could get through his "sudden death."

When he saw Little Lily being roughly shoved out, her sleeve torn and her arm scratched and bleeding, it was like a spark falling into a pot of boiling oil for Brian Sullivan. No matter how strong his self-control, it was impossible not to explode.

"Let go of me; if I hit this bastard again, I'd just dirty my hands!"

Brian Sullivan spoke in a now-calm tone, telling Eric Bennett to let go, but there were still other safety department employees standing between him and Big Mouth Harris. Only then did he notice his cousin-in-law Grace Brooks standing in the office, presumably having come with Little Lily.

But now wasn't the time to keep beating Big Mouth Harris; he had to deal with John Reed.

Although both of them worked for their respective bosses, that was an unspoken rule that couldn't be brought to the surface.

After all, John Reed was the Secretary-General of the city government, the chief steward, and the direct supervisor of all the city government office staff...

For Brian Sullivan to lose his temper in front of John Reed and beat up his brother-in-law—a mid-level manager at the steel plant—right in the Production Safety Department's office, even if John Reed wanted to smooth things over, it would be impossible.

Since things couldn't be smoothed over, he couldn't afford to show any weakness.

Brian Sullivan rubbed his aching right hand, thinking to himself how weak this body was—just a few more hits and he was already out of breath, his fist soft. Truly the body of a spoiled rich kid ruined by wine and women; unlike his old body, which had been toughened in the workshop, able to handle steel ingots weighing hundreds of pounds, and could work alongside regular laborers for half a day without feeling tired.

Brian Sullivan ignored John Reed's scolding and walked into the office with a grim face.

On the desk near the door lay several documents, the covers printed with "Donghua City First Steel Plant 9·16 Continuous Casting Workshop Fatal Fall Accident Investigation Report."

Brian Sullivan figured that just now, Big Mouth Harris must have been sitting behind this desk, discussing the accident compensation with Eric Bennett, Little Lily, and his cousin-in-law Grace Brooks.

Brian Sullivan picked up the documents and flipped through a few pages. The contents of the report matched what he and John Reed had overheard outside the door.

"Hmph!" Brian Sullivan snorted coldly, slapping the desk with the report in hand, and said angrily, "The fatal fall accident—both Mayor Brooks and I witnessed it firsthand. And yet, the city steel plant still produces an accident investigation report like this. Are you trying to fool Secretary-General Reed, fool Mayor Brooks, or fool the entire municipal party committee and city government?"

No matter what, it's always safe to throw out a big accusation first. Seeing that several copies of the report had been printed, Brian Sullivan handed one to John Reed: "Secretary-General Reed, can you accept this kind of investigation conclusion?"

John Reed was so angry his nose was almost crooked. He had demanded to know why Brian Sullivan had hit someone, but now Brian Sullivan was turning the tables, questioning whether he could accept the accident investigation's conclusion.

John Reed's face was so dark it looked like water would drip from it, and the few white pockmarks on his face twitched.

He didn't take the report, but instead, in a steady voice, continued to question Brian Sullivan: "If you have objections to the investigation's conclusion, we can request the city steel plant to conduct a further investigation. But who gave you the right to hit people at the drop of a hat? I have to report this to Mayor Brooks!"