Chapter 36

Disabling Tang Taihe, Su Xin was not worried at all.

In fact, the moment he saw Mr. Li, he knew that Tang Taihe must have received the instructions from Tiger Third Master; otherwise, he would never have had the nerve to provoke him.

Precisely because he knew that Tang Taihe had Tiger Third Master backing him, Su Xin decided to ruthlessly disable him, to show Tiger Third Master his firm stance.

Let’s talk things out in the open. If you try to play tricks behind the scenes, I’ll cut off your hand if you extend it!

After this gang war, Su Xin’s achievements and reputation had reached a peak. Even the gang leader would have to consider the feelings of the gang members if he wanted to move against Su Xin.

After capturing Yongle Fang, Su Xin did not continue the fight but instead told Huang Bingcheng to openly recruit subordinates, regardless of whether they were previously part of the Green Bamboo Gang, accepting all without discrimination.

However, these newly recruited people could not be treated the same as Su Xin’s old brothers.

They received only two taels of silver per month and were not taught any martial arts techniques, only some basic martial skills.

Any group needs different levels for easier management and to maintain vitality.

The old members, knowing that the new members were treated worse, would feel superior and more appreciative of their current positions.

The new members, on the other hand, would envy the old members and strive to climb up, hoping for the day when they could be on equal footing with them.

Three days after Su Xin’s ceasefire, the gang war between the two gangs ended completely.

As expected, the Green Bamboo Gang suffered a major defeat, losing one and a half market districts, and three major leaders were killed, two of whom were the gang leader Wei Feng’s men.

One could say that the poor Wei Gang leader had become a lone commander, and it was uncertain whether his orders could even leave the main hall.

The most outstanding and most rewarded person in this gang war was undoubtedly Su Xin.

A minor leader, he led fewer than two hundred subordinates to capture the entire Yongle Fang. This achievement was significant enough to qualify Su Xin for a promotion to a major leader.

However, Su Xin was too young, and the higher-ups of the Flying Eagle Gang felt awkward about promoting such a young man to a major leader, making him their equal.

Thus, no one mentioned this, not even the gang leader, so Su Xin remained a minor leader, albeit one who controlled a market district and had more territory than a major leader.

Although his status did not change, the hidden benefits were numerous.

After this battle, Su Xin was at the peak of his popularity among the young members of the Flying Eagle Gang, and almost all the young members regarded him as an idol.

Therefore, many young members from other minor and major leaders came to join Su Xin, and with the new recruits from Yongle Fang, his subordinates now numbered over a thousand.

While the Flying Eagle Gang did not prohibit members from changing leaders, this was not good for the other leaders’ faces, and they would certainly have some complaints.

However, with Su Xin’s current high reputation and the fact that those who left were new young members, not skilled fighters, and were dispensable, the other leaders did not want to cause trouble and only complained in private, not daring to provoke Su Xin.

The impact of the gang war was limited to a few people.

Ordinary people still had to go about their daily lives, and the vast Yongle Fang had already returned to peace in less than three days.

In these three days, Su Xin had enough time to settle the new subordinates and was now ready to re-establish the rules.

When the Green Bamboo Gang managed Yongle Fang, they had their own rules, but now Yongle Fang was under Su Xin’s control.

Yongle Fang had a hall established by the Green Bamboo Gang, and Su Xin had Huang Bingcheng change the sign, making it ready for use.

However, the hall was a bit small, even smaller than the hall in Kuaihuo Lin, which made Su Xin secretly criticize the Green Bamboo Gang for being too petty.

"Old Huang, have all the major merchants from Yongle Fang arrived?" Su Xin asked.

"All the people on the invitation list have arrived. With your reputation, they would be asking for trouble if they didn’t come."

Su Xin wanted to re-establish the rules for Yongle Fang. Who were these rules for? Naturally, the major merchants of Yongle Fang.

The most important source of income for the gang was the monthly fees paid by these merchants, so after each gang war, the new territory owner would first meet with these shop owners.

Kuaihuo Lin alone had over a hundred shops, and the vast Yongle Fang was ten times its size, with over a thousand shops. It was impossible to invite all the shop owners.

Small inn owners and the like naturally did not have the qualifications to come.

Those invited by Su Xin were major merchants who owned dozens of shops and earned over ten thousand taels of silver per month. There were only about a hundred such people in Yongle Fang.

Su Xin entered the hall, and the main hall was packed with over a hundred people, making it quite crowded.

Seeing Su Xin enter, everyone hurriedly clasped their hands and said, "Boss Su."

They did not dare to offend this hot new talent of the Flying Eagle Gang.

Merchants value harmony and profit. As long as their interests were not threatened, why would they offend the ruthless gang members?

Su Xin sat in the main seat and said loudly, "Everyone, you know why I’ve called you here today.

I don’t like beating around the bush. This place used to be managed by the Green Bamboo Gang, but now it’s under my control, Su Xin. The monthly fees, of course, need to change."

The model of Kuaihuo Lin could not be replicated, and Su Xin had not planned any reforms for Yongle Fang.

Without reforms, how could he increase income? Naturally, he had to think about the monthly fees.

As soon as Su Xin mentioned the monthly fees, the shop owners’ faces turned grim.

After all, these fees were like cutting flesh from their bodies. Who would be willing?

Of course, they had mentally prepared for this before coming, as this was not the first time it had happened.

Every time the territory changed hands after a gang war, the monthly fees would inevitably increase, and they were used to it.

"The monthly fee set by the Green Bamboo Gang was thirty taels per person, but now it will be fifty taels per person."

As soon as Su Xin said this, the shop owners’ faces turned black.

This young Boss Su, who looked harmless, had a rather dark mouth.

One shop owner stood up agitatedly and shouted, "Boss Su, you’re asking for too much. Almost doubling the fee is too much, isn’t it?"

Actually, fifty taels was a significant burden for small inn owners.

But for these major merchants, who made over a hundred thousand taels of profit per month, it was not a big deal.

What they resisted was the system.

Today you come and raise the fee from thirty to fifty taels, and tomorrow someone else might raise it to a hundred taels.

After a few rounds, who knew if the fee would rise to a thousand or even ten thousand taels? Such exponential increases were unacceptable even for these major merchants.

Su Xin looked calmly at the agitated shop owner and said, "It seems this boss is quite agitated. That’s not good. Interrupting others is very impolite. Li Qing, go and make this boss see reason."

Li Qing immediately stepped forward, grabbed the shop owner’s head, and slapped him repeatedly, causing him to scream in pain.

With Li Qing’s strength, a few slaps left the shop owner with a mouth full of blood, barely alive.

At that moment, the only sound in the hall was the groaning of the shop owner. The other major merchants were so frightened by Su Xin that they did not dare to breathe.

This Boss Su was too ruthless, dealing such a heavy hand on the first day just because someone interrupted him.

Su Xin stood up and looked down, saying coldly, "I hope everyone understands that I called you here today not to discuss the increase in the monthly fees but to issue an order!"

I don’t care about the rules of the Green Bamboo Gang. Now that Yongle Fang is under my control, it will follow my rules.

Previously, the monthly fees were collected per person, but now they will be collected based on the number of shops.

As soon as Su Xin said this, some of the major merchants’ faces turned even darker. This was a significant blow.

Among the nearly a hundred major merchants, some operated gambling dens or brothels, which were highly profitable businesses, while others ran fabric shops, grain stores, and other businesses.

These shops were almost on every street, and each of them had over a dozen shops. According to Su Xin’s new rule, each of them would have to pay several more monthly fees.

Although they were dissatisfied, they did not dare to speak.

They had seen Su Xin’s firmness, and the one who had spoken up had been made an example, now lying half-dead on the ground.

Looking at the crowd below, Su Xin said calmly, "You don’t need to look so miserable, as if you’ve been wronged.

The Green Bamboo Gang collected less in monthly fees, but their members didn’t hesitate to take advantage of you.

Now that Yongle Fang is under my control, anyone who harasses the shops will be punished according to the gang rules!

Moreover, if there are any troublemakers on the streets, you can come to my people for help."

The major merchants below looked at Su Xin with doubt. If he could truly guarantee this, then the increased fees might be worth it.

In the past, the Green Bamboo Gang members often came in groups to disturb their businesses, taking things that, while not much, damaged their reputation, causing losses far greater than fifty taels.

PS: Thank you to the reader Yisheng VS Sigh for the tip.

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