Chapter 14

In the Changning Prefecture, among the three factions and four associations, the Green Bamboo Gang and the Flying Eagle Gang were the weakest, and the two factions were evenly matched.

Although the Green Bamboo Gang lost the battle at Kuaihuo Forest, they did not actually suffer much in terms of manpower. One could say that they had willingly given up Kuaihuo Forest.

After all, the old Kuaihuo Forest had little to offer; a monthly income of four to five hundred taels was considered good. There was no need to fight to the death with the Flying Eagle Gang over such a place.

So after just one battle, the Green Bamboo Gang gave up Kuaihuo Forest and retreated to Yongle Lane, which was right next to Changle Lane.

But now, seeing Kuaihuo Forest thriving under Su Xin's control, and learning that the monthly dividend from Kuaihuo Forest was nearly 100,000 taels, the Green Bamboo Gang was even more envious.

Especially the small leader Zhang Hong, who was previously in charge of Kuaihuo Forest, was almost driven to the brink of anger.

When he was in charge of Kuaihuo Forest, he had a hard time. The monthly income he collected, after paying tribute to his superiors and distributing to his subordinates, left him with very little.

But when the Flying Eagle Gang took over, Kuaihuo Forest turned into a gold mine. This made many people within the Green Bamboo Gang secretly mock Zhang Hong, saying he was begging with a golden rice bowl.

Moreover, after leaving Kuaihuo Forest, the big leader Dai Chong only gave him a short street next to Kuaihuo Forest to manage, with only a few dozen shops, which was even worse than Kuaihuo Forest.

One night, after eating and drinking to his heart's content, Zhang Hong led a few subordinates on a patrol. Looking up, he saw the bright lights of Kuaihuo Forest, which made him even more resentful.

"Damn it! Why didn't those merchants give me a share when I was in charge of Kuaihuo Forest? Are they bullying us because the Green Bamboo Gang has no one?"

A subordinate behind Zhang Hong chimed in, "Brother Hong, don't be angry. Those merchants are just scum! I heard that when the young man from the Flying Eagle Gang came, he directly crippled the old Huang who ran the gambling den, and the group obediently handed over the share."

Zhang Hong picked his nose and coldly snorted, "Damn it, if I had known, I should have been more ruthless. I could have taken a big cut before leaving, instead of ending up like this."

"Hey? Brother Hong, look, isn't that a guy from the Flying Eagle Gang?" One of the subordinates pointed to the corner of the tavern.

The tavern was right between Yongle Lane and Kuaihuo Forest, and they could see it with a glance. At that moment, a man dressed in the Flying Eagle Gang's uniform was drunk and urinating there.

It was the day they received their monthly pay, and it was ten taels each, which made the subordinates very excited.

Those who joined the gang were not the type to live a decent life; most of them lived for the moment, and after receiving their monthly pay, they immediately went out to have fun.

So a few subordinates who were on good terms with each other immediately went to the tavern for a big meal, but this time they dared not eat and drink for free; they paid honestly.

After all, the events of the day were still fresh in their minds, and this Su Boss was not someone to be trifled with.

The subordinate zipped up his pants and a silver ingot fell out of his pocket.

Seeing the fist-sized ten-tael silver ingot, the subordinates behind Zhang Hong's eyes turned red.

Sometimes they didn't even earn ten taels in a year, but now any member of the Flying Eagle Gang could casually take out ten taels of silver.

The subordinate, after finishing urinating, turned around and saw Zhang Hong and his group.

The Flying Eagle Gang and the Green Bamboo Gang had fought several times, so he recognized the Green Bamboo Gang members. However, he then sneered, weighed the silver in his hand, and walked away.

So what if he was a small leader? He was still driven away by our Flying Eagle Gang, and following Su Boss was much better than being a small leader!

Seeing the sneer, Zhang Hong immediately exploded.

"Damn it, a little punk dares to laugh at me? Drag him over and beat him up!"

The subordinate, seeing that things were going wrong, tried to run, but he was quite drunk and stumbled, and before he could take a few steps, he was pinned to the ground by Zhang Hong and his group, who started punching and kicking.

"I'm from the Flying Eagle Gang! This is the Flying Eagle Gang's territory, and if you do anything rash, my boss won't let you off!"

Zhang Hong sneered, "Your boss? That snot-nosed brat? I'll beat you to death today and see what he can do!"

Fists rained down, and the subordinate initially cried out in pain, but eventually fell silent.

"Stop!"

Zhang Hong shouted, and a subordinate went over to check, swallowing hard, "Brother Hong, this guy is dead!"

Everyone looked at each other, feeling that things had gotten out of hand.

They had only intended to teach the guy a lesson, but because they had been drinking, they had lost control and ended up killing him.

Fights between gangs were not uncommon, and even killings during large-scale gang wars were normal.

But that was decided by the higher-ups, who would handle the aftermath and deal with the authorities.

However, if a subordinate killed someone, it was not so easy, and their actions could even trigger another war between the two gangs.

"Brother Hong, what do we do now?" The subordinates were at a loss.

Zhang Hong looked around; there were no Flying Eagle Gang members nearby, and the others who came with him were probably still drunk in the tavern.

"No one saw it, let's retreat. After all, this is the Flying Eagle Gang's territory. We'll report to the big leader."

Zhang Hong cursed himself for losing control, and now that he had killed a member of the Flying Eagle Gang, he knew he couldn't handle it.

Reporting to the big leader Dai Chong, given his greedy nature, would likely cost him a lot.

Dai Chong, the big leader of the Green Bamboo Gang, was a gambling addict, and his love for money was because he enjoyed gambling.

Zhang Hong went directly to the largest gambling den in Yongle Lane, the Jinsheng Gambling Den, and easily found Dai Chong.

Dai Chong, in his fifties, was tall and strong, with a half-man-tall drum hammer by his side.

Because of this unique weapon, he had a well-known nickname in Changning Prefecture: Thunder Hammer.

"Boss, I've gotten into some trouble," Zhang Hong reported cautiously.

Dai Chong seemed to have won some money and was in a good mood, lazily asking, "What trouble did you get into this time?"

"I accidentally killed a member of the Flying Eagle Gang."

"Oh, it's a small matter. I'll go and talk to the Flying Eagle Gang later and pay them ten taels of silver for the funeral expenses," Dai Chong said nonchalantly.

Zhang Hong was stunned. Was it really that simple? He felt something was off.

"Boss, won't the Flying Eagle Gang start another fight over this?" Zhang Hong couldn't help but ask.

Dai Chong waved his hand, "Don't worry, there won't be a fight. Even if we want to fight, the Flying Eagle Gang won't. You don't understand the higher-ups."

"By the way, we're short one player. Come, let's play a few rounds."

Zhang Hong, confused, was pulled to the mahjong table. He knew one thing: he wouldn't have to take responsibility.

The next morning, in the main hall of Kuaihuo Forest, Su Xin sat in the main seat with a dark expression, looking at the body on the ground without a word. The other subordinates stood silently below.

"What happened?" Su Xin asked slowly.

Huang Bingcheng, with a face full of anger, said, "It was the Green Bamboo Gang. Last night, a few brothers went out for drinks, and when they came out, they found one of them beaten to death and thrown on the street."

The subordinates below were all angry, and the few who had been with the deceased that night had red eyes, feeling that their carelessness had led to their brother's death.

"Has the gang been notified?" Su Xin asked.

"The gang knew even before us. Today, Tiger San sent ten taels of silver, saying it was the funeral expenses from the Green Bamboo Gang's big leader Dai Chong," Huang Bingcheng said, feeling aggrieved.

"Bang!"

Su Xin threw the teacup on the ground.

The subordinates below were also angry.

They received ten taels of silver a month, and now, for killing someone, they were given ten taels of silver for funeral expenses. This was clearly an insult!

"What does the gang intend to do? Just let it go?"

Su Xin was puzzled. The Green Bamboo Gang and the Flying Eagle Gang had a long-standing grudge, and the Green Bamboo Gang killing a member of the Flying Eagle Gang, yet the higher-ups of the gang were willing to let it go, which seemed strange.

Huang Bingcheng said helplessly, "They didn't say it directly, but that's what they mean."

The subordinates below looked at Su Xin with hope, not knowing how he would handle it.

Su Xin's subordinates, apart from a few dozen old members of the Flying Eagle Gang, were mostly new recruits.

These young people still had passion in their hearts.

Even if they knew that fighting the Green Bamboo Gang could lead to their death, they were unwilling to be humiliated, seeing the Green Bamboo Gang kill their brother and then leave with just ten taels of silver.

On the contrary, the older members who had been in the gang for years were much more calm.

The struggle between the two gangs was not that simple. Even if they wanted to fight, they needed orders from the higher-ups.

Now that the higher-ups had indicated they didn't want to fight, relying on Su Xin's subordinates would be a death sentence.

"Boss, what do we do now?" Huang Bingcheng asked softly.

Su Xin stroked his chin, feeling somewhat stuck.

In this situation, if they didn't fight, the little bit of prestige he had built up would be lost.

But if they did fight, without support from the higher-ups of the Flying Eagle Gang, what could he rely on? Just these newly recruited young people?

After a moment of thought, Su Xin said decisively, "I, Su Xin, will not let my brothers die in vain! I will go and ask my godfather to send people to get justice from the Green Bamboo Gang!"

The subordinates present were immediately invigorated. Su Boss had not let them down!

They had the beaten subordinate carried out for burial, and Su Xin asked Huang Bingcheng to take out a 5,000-tael silver bill and go with him to see Tiger San.

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