Chapter 107: I Love Jiang Xiangbang

“Yang Yanzheng is the steward for Second Miss Chu’s household. A little over two months ago, he came to Lan Yang Village and asked me to gather information about you. He said once I heard you had money, I should place two bricks by the old well at the village entrance, and he would send someone to handle things. Afterward, I would receive a reward of thirty silver dollars.

He came to see me two days ago and gave me the promised reward. He also told me to keep going, and the rewards would increase. That’s why I’ve been constantly monitoring your movements.

The people who robbed you were all sent by Yang Yanzheng. They are outsiders unfamiliar with the area, so I was responsible for guiding them and identifying people. If anything went wrong, I was to inform Yang Yanzheng as quickly as possible. That’s all I handled. I never laid a hand on you, nor did I ever intend to harm you. I’ve told you everything I know, Fifth Master, and you, Elder. Please spare my life.”

Wei, the landlord, knelt on the ground, sobbing uncontrollably.

He truly revealed everything he knew. In his eyes, Li Banfeng was like a devil, seemingly able to discern anything hidden in his heart.

Ma Wu finally understood. The people who came to rob him were different each time, yet they always recognized and found him. It turned out Wei, the landlord, had been directing them.

Ma Wu asked Wei, the landlord, “Why does Yang Yanzheng want to harm me? I don’t even know him.”

Wei, the landlord, shook his head and replied, “That I don’t know. I’m just a messenger.”

Li Banfeng nodded. “That’s also the truth. Is there anything else you haven’t told us?”

Wei, the landlord, cried, “I’ve told you everything, without holding anything back.”

Li Banfeng believed him. He turned to Ma Wu and said, “Brother Ma, please step outside for a moment. I have a few things I’d like to discuss with Boss Wei alone.”

Upon hearing this, Wei, the landlord, burst into wailing tears. He didn’t want to be alone with Li Banfeng, not for a single moment.

Ma Wu also guessed what Li Banfeng intended to do. Seeing Wei, the landlord, crying like that, Ma Wu genuinely felt a pang of pity. As Wei himself had said, he was just someone who did tasks for money; he wasn’t the mastermind and hadn’t actually laid a hand on Ma Wu.

“Brother Li, if you ask me, this matter should just…”

Li Banfeng ignored Ma Wu and asked Wei, the landlord, “You clearly knew Ma Wu was sleeping in a shed, yet you still reported his whereabouts to Yang Yanzheng? You still let him send people to rob him? You didn’t even spare his last bit of money for food?”

Wei, the landlord, sobbed, “I was just greedy for that money. I saw Fifth Master selling junk, and I just wanted to earn more.”

Li Banfeng asked again, “Ma Wu saved your life. Have you forgotten that?”

“Well, I paid him back with the rent. One thing’s separate from another.”

Hearing this, Ma Wu’s pity vanished.

“Brother Li, I’ll go for a walk and be back in an hour.”

“No need for an hour,” Li Banfeng said, smiling at Wei, the landlord. “Since Boss Wei is so straightforward, we should be done talking in a few minutes.”

Wei, the landlord, shrieked, “Ma Wu, you can’t leave! Let’s get things clear right now! I have plenty of friends on the street. If you dare touch me today, you won’t walk out that door!”

A few days earlier, when Wei, the landlord, and Yu Mazi had a shootout, there were indeed many people who helped him fight. Could he also be part of a gang? The Landlord Gang?

Ma Wu scoffed, “Boss Wei, do you think I don’t know the ropes? Your ‘friends’ are just thugs; they’ll do anything for money, no matter who pays.”

With that, Ma Wu left.

Li Banfeng patted Wei, the landlord’s face. “Now it’s just the two of us.”

Twenty minutes later, Ma Wu returned to the wooden house and saw Li Banfeng covering the area where the sticky mud had been with a red carpet. Wei, the landlord, was nowhere to be found.

Ma Wu helped Li Banfeng clean up the living room, and then the two of them started talking about Wei, the landlord.

Ma Wu asked, “Wei, the landlord, is gone. Are we still going to live here?”

“Of course!” Li Banfeng sat on the sofa and lit a cigarette. “Wei, the landlord, has gone on a long trip. It’s uncertain when he’ll return, so no one should be looking for him for a while. All it means is one less person collecting rent.”

Ma Wu thought about it and realized it made sense.

Li Banfeng continued, “There’s one thing I haven’t quite figured out: in a ‘wild field’ duel, can someone be replaced?”

“Are you asking if someone can duel in his place?” Ma Wu shook his head. “In a ‘Clear Sky Arena’ duel, which is a daytime duel, you can have someone substitute. But not in a ‘Confused Sky Arena’ duel. That’s a death match; only the person involved can participate.”

“That’s strange,” Li Banfeng frowned. “Wei, the landlord, hardly had any decent skills. How could Yu Mazi have lost to him?”

Was Yu Mazi too weak? During the chaotic fight, Yu Mazi didn’t seem weak at all. Could there be another reason? They couldn’t think of an answer to this question right away, so they put it aside for now.

After discussing Wei, the landlord, the two began talking about Yang Yanzheng.

Li Banfeng asked Ma Wu, “Yang Yanzheng must have been ordered by his master to harm you. Do you know Second Miss Chu? I’ve seen news about her in the papers; it said she attempted to murder her husband.”

Ma Wu pondered for a long time. “Second Miss Chu, Chu Huaiyuan, I know her, but I haven’t had any feuds with her. We just had some business friction.”

“Elaborate on the friction,” Li Banfeng said, taking a sip of tea, appearing very interested.

Ma Wu explained, “It wasn’t a big deal. During the New Year this year, Green Water Bay hosted fifteen consecutive singing contests from the first to the fifteenth day. Each contest crowned a ‘Singing Queen,’ resulting in fifteen overall. Among them, Jiang Mengting, Xu Qiulan, and Xiao Xiuhua were the most popular.

I have two dance halls, and I invited the most popular one, Jiang Mengting. I signed a three-year contract with her to perform alternately at both my venues. By March, I managed to poach Xiao Xiuhua from Second Miss Chu. With two of the three most popular singing queens, they usually performed separately at my two dance halls, but sometimes they’d share the same stage. Brother Li, I tell you, during that period, almost half of the dance hall business in all of Green Water Bay was mine. During the day, I also arranged for them to record albums…”

Li Banfeng knew why Ma Wu could generate two-tenths of the Ma family’s income from just two dance halls. He was genuinely skilled at making money; his business acumen was exceptional. He also understood why Second Miss Chu wouldn’t forgive him.

“Brother Ma, you’re so good at business, but do you know that destroying someone’s livelihood is like murdering their parents?”

Ma Wu froze for a moment, then fell silent. As the Fifth Master of the Ma family back then, he only thought about everyone relying on their own abilities in business. Now that he was down on his luck, he realized that in front of Second Miss Chu, he was merely an ant to be crushed at will.

What could he do? The Chu family was also one of the four prominent families. In Ma Wu’s current state, how could he possibly contend with Second Miss Chu?

Li Banfeng, however, was quite optimistic. “She definitely won’t kill you, and the Chu family wouldn’t allow her to do so. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have sent such low-caliber individuals. As for whether she’ll continue to bother you, I don’t think she’ll stop. But if it’s still these kinds of people, they won’t be hard to handle.”

Ma Wu pondered for a moment. “You’ve offended the Lu family, and I’ve offended the Chu family. It’s really not easy for us to just scrape by in Lan Yang Village.”

Li Banfeng was displeased. “What do you mean, ‘scrape by’? We’re going to achieve great things!”

In Yue Dong Province, Yue Zhou City, Eastern City Villa District.

Xiao Zhenggong sat in the spacious living room, looking at the blood-stained scissors that Cui Tik had handed him.

“Master Xiao, do you recognize these scissors?”

Xiao Zhenggong slightly shook his head.

Cui Tik said, “I think you should have a better understanding of your gang. These scissors belong to one of your subordinates named Zhou Yujuan.”

Xiao Zhenggong thought for a moment. “That name sounds vaguely familiar…”

Cui Tik explained, “She was the owner of the Xianle Dance Hall in Yaowang Ditch. Xianle Dance Hall is an asset of the Jiangxiang Gang. She disappeared, and along with her, Du Hongxi, the patrol leader of the second branch of Yaowang Hall, also vanished.”

Xiao Zhenggong recalled something. Luo Zhengnan, the head of Yaowang Hall, had reported to him that Xianle Dance Hall had been bombed. “Where were these scissors found?”

“They were found with Li Banfeng.”

“Li Banfeng? He stole Zhou Yujuan’s scissors?” Xiao Zhenggong found it incredible. “Are you saying that white lamb blew up Xianle Dance Hall?”

Cui Tik shook his head. “Master Xiao, you don’t know much about your opponent. Li Banfeng is not the ‘white lamb’ you speak of. He is a dark energy practitioner, preliminarily assessed as a traveler-cultivator. His level might not be high, but he possesses many powerful weapons, commonly known as spiritual artifacts and magic treasures in Proland. Besides these powerful weapons, he also has a very clear tactical mind and a combat style that is difficult for ordinary people to grasp. He is no ordinary opponent.”

Xiao Zhenggong waved his hand. “You don’t need to tell me all this. Just tell me, how much money will it take to find him?”

Cui Tik thought for a moment, then shook his head. “Master Xiao, this is no longer a matter of money. You haven’t realized the gravity of the situation. The Lu family, the most influential powerful family in Proland, has already set their sights on Li Banfeng. I’ve encountered the private detective they sent; this person, who calls himself Daboyins, is one of the most outstanding detectives in all of Proland.”

Xiao Zhenggong chuckled upon hearing this. “I’ve known about this for a long time. That private detective was sent by Zhuo Yuling. Zhuo Yuling isn’t Lu Dongliang’s official wife, so her actions don’t represent the Lu family.”

“Master Xiao, that was in the past. Perhaps you don’t know that Lu Xiaolan has returned to the Lu family mansion, and she has told her father everything about Li Banfeng. The Lu family has already committed significant manpower to search for Li Banfeng in Yaowang Ditch. I believe Lu Dongliang will not doubt his daughter, and the resources they deploy will only increase. If I continue to be involved, I will face extremely great risks.”

Xiao Zhenggong frowned deeply. He lit a cigar and told Cui Tik, “You need to find Li Banfeng before the Lu family does. Any conditions you want can be discussed.”

Cui Tik sighed. “Master Xiao, you don’t understand what I mean. I can’t contend with the Lu family.”

“The Jiangxiang Gang can help you.”

“The Jiangxiang Gang is no match for the Lu family either.”

Xiao Zhenggong took a puff of his cigar and smiled faintly. “If the Lu family went all out, no one in Proland would be their match. But they can’t go all out; the He family is keeping them in check. My purpose in having you cure He Haiqin was precisely for this reason.”

Hearing this, Cui Tik nodded slightly. Many times, Cui Tik looked down on Xiao Zhenggong. However, he had to admit that Xiao Zhenggong had handled the matter of reviving He Haiqin quite brilliantly.

Xiao Zhenggong, holding his cigar, tilted his head and looked at Cui Tik. “Quickly state your conditions, while I’m still willing to listen.”

Cui Tik considered for a long time before stating the price he most desired.

“I want to open a hospital.”

“You? Want to open a hospital?” Xiao Zhenggong thought he had heard the most ludicrous request in the world. He knew what kind of sect Cui Tik belonged to, and he knew about the unspeakable techniques practiced within that sect. This man was a disaster for all hospitals, and now he wanted to open one.

Seeing Xiao Zhenggong’s surprised expression, Cui Tik smiled faintly. “Master Xiao, do you think I can’t open a hospital?”

“Yes, of course, you can. Is it just about money?” Xiao Zhenggong tried his best to control his expression.

“It’s not just about money. In Proland, all businesses require gang backing, and hospitals are no exception. Master Xiao, you should understand my difficulty.”

Xiao Zhenggong pursed his lips. Have the Jiangxiang Gang back Cui Tik’s hospital? The Jiangxiang Gang’s reputation wasn’t exactly great to begin with…

After much hesitation, Xiao Zhenggong agreed. “I’ll contact the head of Yaowang Hall.”

Cui Tik shook his head. “I don’t want to open a hospital in Yaowang Ditch. I want to open it in the city, in Green Water Bay.”

In Green Water Bay?

“Damn it, you dead foreigner, aren’t you going too far!” Xiao Zhenggong’s cheek twitched. “This matter is not easy to handle. You’re not officially part of the Jiangxiang Gang, after all. If you open a hospital in Green Water Bay, I’m afraid I won’t be able to provide you with adequate protection.”

“I am a member of the Jiangxiang Gang.” Cui Tik pulled open his shirt, revealing a tattoo on his chest with five large characters: I love the Jiangxiang Gang.

Xiao Zhenggong stared in astonishment for a long time. “Before, wasn’t it, ‘You love Proland’?”

Cui Tik smiled. “I feel my affection for the Jiangxiang Gang is deeper.”

Xiao Zhenggong pursed his lips. “You, your tattoo, it can’t just be changed arbitrarily.”

Cui Tik said with a solemn expression, “I can change it as I please. I can even change it to ‘I love Master Xiao’.”

Xiao Zhenggong, holding his cigar, turned pale and said, “No, that won’t do. Don’t change it. Don’t let others see your tattoo normally. You don’t understand the customs of Proland; if a tattoo is revealed, it’s considered indecent.”

(I recommend a new book, 'I Seem Too Extreme' by Old World Puppet. It’s a legendary tale set in a secret martial arts world, where the King of the World manipulates magnetic fields in the face of global nuclear weapons. All are welcome to check it out.)