Chapter 8

"Xiao Fei, Xiao Fei, wake up quickly." A voice called out to Shen Fei. He frowned, rubbed his eyes, yawned, and opened them to see his sister staring at him. His mood immediately brightened, and he grinned, "Good morning, Sister."

"It's not early anymore; the sun is already high in the sky! If you hadn't been sleeping so soundly, I would have woken you up to practice long ago." While scolding him, Shen Yuxia lifted Shen Fei up and then wiped his face with a wet towel. After a quick wash, she took off his pajamas and dressed him.

Shen Fei naturally enjoyed this treatment, but he was surprised when he touched his bottom and exclaimed, "Hey? Sister, my bottom doesn't hurt anymore."

Shen Yuxia pulled down Shen Fei's pants to check his bottom, nodded in satisfaction, and said, "That's right. It usually takes a few days to go down. This ointment must be better. Yes, we should buy this kind of ointment next time."

Shen Fei didn't care about that. He put on his shoes, grabbed a few buns from the table, and was about to run out. Shen Yuxia quickly shouted, "You stinky kid, you haven't even rinsed your mouth. Don't go out to play. Father will take you to meet the leader soon."

"Wow, does the leader live in our branch? " Shen Fei asked with shining eyes.

"Where else would he live? By the way, if Father isn't with you, you absolutely mustn't disturb the leader. We don't want the leader to think that people in our branch have no discipline." Shen Yuxia, while tidying the bed, sternly instructed.

"Got it!" Shen Fei left only his voice as he ran out.

Although he had answered well, Shen Fei still lingered outside the main hall of the branch. This was where the branch leader lived and issued orders. If the leader was staying in the branch, he would definitely be here.

The two men in black standing guard at the door were clearly strangers, probably the leader's direct subordinates. Oh, the treatment in the main hall is really good. Look at them, their clothes are so shiny, and they even wear boots and carry swords openly. How enviable.

Shen Fei chewed on his bun and secretly commented. The two men, though unhappy with this nosy kid, knew he was a relative of a brother in the gang and had some status. Otherwise, anyone could come here? So they didn't scold him, just occasionally glared at Shen Fei.

After finishing his bun, Shen Fei suddenly remembered his detector and silently said, "Activate." A circular map instantly appeared, and the display on the map made Shen Fei pause. It showed two blue dots.

Blue? What does that mean? Green is for allies, yellow for dislike, red for enemies, and blue for friends? Shen Fei suddenly understood the meaning of the different colors.

Shen Fei was thinking about taking a few steps forward to see if he could sense the leader's position when a loud voice came from behind, "Shen Fei, what are you doing here, poking around?" It was clearly Shen Haofeng's voice.

Shen Fei turned around and saw his leader, Uncle Three, and Uncle Four walking over, all looking very happy. He immediately greeted them, "Good morning, Leader, Uncle Three, Uncle Four. Leader, did you find gold? Why are you all so radiant? Hey?"

As he said this, Shen Fei suddenly looked at Uncle Three in surprise because the dot representing Uncle Three on the map had turned green. What's going on? Wasn't it red yesterday? How did it turn green?

"Xiao Fei, what are you staring at? Don't you recognize Uncle Three?" Uncle Three, seeing Shen Fei staring at him, looked at himself and asked.

"Uh, I've never seen Uncle Three looking so good. Did you take some kind of tonic?" Shen Fei quickly said.

"Haha, you have a good eye, kid." Uncle Three, Uncle Four, and the leader exchanged glances and laughed heartily.

Seeing their expressions, it was clear that there was some treasure in the valley, and they had all benefited from it. Could Uncle Three have turned green just because of this benefit? Shen Fei couldn't help but speculate.

"Stinky kid, I was just looking for you. Come, let's go in and pay respects to the leader." Shen Haofeng playfully tapped Shen Fei's head and dragged him into the main hall, with Uncle Three and Uncle Four following with smiles.

Shen Fei immediately ran ahead, excited at the thought of meeting the leader, and his curiosity about the treasure was slightly suppressed.

The four of them entered the main hall, where the two men in black bowed. Inside, there was no one, and the four of them sat down casually to wait. Soon, the familiar Branch Leader Chen walked out, smiling and praising Shen Fei before chatting with his subordinates who had stood up to greet him.

After a while, two even more imposing men in black walked out quickly, stood on either side of the main seat, and shouted, "The leader has arrived!"

Branch Leader Chen and Shen Haofeng, along with the others, had already stood up when the men in black appeared. Shen Haofeng even grabbed Shen Fei's arm to keep him close.

As a figure emerged from the back, Shen Fei didn't have time to see clearly before his head was pushed down by the leader, who urgently whispered, "Kneel and bow!"

Shen Fei knew these etiquette rules and immediately knelt and bowed, following the others in shouting, "Greetings, Leader!"

"Ha ha, no need for such formalities, everyone. Please sit down." A warm voice sounded, and Shen Fei, along with the others, shouted, "Thank you, Leader!" before standing up. Shen Fei, still on his knees, looked up and was stunned, forgetting to stand.

A middle-aged man wearing a light blue robe, a red sash, and black boots, with a handsome beard and a kind face, sat at the main seat.

What stunned Shen Fei was not the leader's kind face but the light blue robe, which was a ninth-rank official's robe. His sister had taught him these basics, as gang members feared the government, and not knowing about it was like courting death.

The four adults had already returned to their seats, but Shen Fei was still kneeling dumbfounded. Shen Haofeng immediately stood up, ready to apologize and pull the kid up, but before he could speak, the leader smiled and waved, "No problem, this is the kid who, to join the gang, called you 'Leader' instead of 'Father,' right?"

Everyone, including the two men in black, laughed. Shen Haofeng's face turned red, and he nodded, embarrassed, "Heh, that's this little rascal." But he was secretly pleased, as he noticed the leader's subtle fondness. For the leader, Shen Fei's rebellious behavior showed his love for the Tiger Might Gang.

"Ha ha, Xiao Fei, I often hear you clamoring to meet me, the leader. How do you feel now that you've met me?" The leader stroked his beard and smiled.

Everyone laughed along, waiting for Shen Fei's response, but they all felt a chill. The Tiger Nest Branch was only in the middle to lower ranks among the seventeen branches of the Tiger Might Gang, and Shen Fei was just a kid who hadn't officially joined, only a relative. Moreover, only a few close people knew about his desire to meet the leader. How could the leader know such a trivial matter?

Shen Haofeng wanted to answer for Shen Fei, but the leader had already stopped him once. Especially since the leader knew such a small matter, it meant his every move was under the leader's watch. So, despite sweating, he didn't move, maintaining a smile and hoping Shen Fei wouldn't say something inappropriate.

"Leader Uncle, you are mighty." Shen Fei, blushing and excited, jumped up and shouted. Before anyone could react, he eagerly asked, "Leader Uncle, why do you look so kind and like a high official? I always thought you were a giant three zhang tall, with fists that could stand a person and arms that could run a horse!"

"Ha ha ha! You little rascal, I could tell you were going to ask about my official robe by how you kept staring at it. You didn't waste any time flattering me before asking, just as I expected from the curious Shen Fei!" The leader laughed heartily.

"Stinky kid! No manners, calling the leader 'Uncle'!" Shen Haofeng immediately stepped in to cover for Shen Fei's bluntness.

The leader waved his hand, "Ha ha, it's fine. We're all brothers. What should Xiao Fei call me if not 'Uncle'?" The four adults immediately stood up and bowed, "We dare not, we dare not, the leader is too kind."

Shen Fei scratched his head, smiling foolishly, waiting for the adults to finish their formalities. The map in his eyes showed the leader, the branch leader, and the two men in black as blue, indicating they were allies.

"Alright, no need for such formalities. Everyone, sit down." The leader's face turned serious, and a commanding presence filled the room. Everyone obediently sat down, respectfully looking at the leader.

However, the leader didn't immediately say what his subordinates were eagerly waiting to hear. Instead, he smiled at Shen Fei, "Little guy, are you brave enough to leave your leader and sister's care and live on your own for a while?"

Shen Fei blinked, looking at Shen Haofeng, who was frantically signaling and nodding. Uncle Three, Uncle Four, and Branch Leader Chen all subtly showed envy and jealousy.

Without thinking about what the leader meant, Shen Fei, knowing he needed to support his leader, immediately pounded his chest and shouted, "Of course I am."

"Good! That's the spirit of a Tiger Might Gang member." The leader shouted, slapped the armrest, and said, "Shen Fei, I, your leader Uncle, will guarantee your admission to the county's War Martial Academy. I hope you won't disgrace the Tiger Might Gang while there."

Shen Fei, with great enthusiasm, knelt on one knee, clasped his hands over his head, and shouted, "Please rest assured, Leader. I will uphold the might of the Tiger Might Gang!"