Chapter 14

Although no longer worried, the matter that was bound to come eventually did—indeed, the next morning, when the dew had barely dried, a group of burly men already stood in front of the city god temple, each holding a short stick wrapped in cloth, their eyes glaring fiercely, looking like demons and fiends.

In front of them was a greasy table, beside which sat a short and stocky man, bald, wearing a coarse robe, his face full of rugged muscles, his exposed arms round and solid, a live tiger ready to pounce!

This man was Hong Qi Wu Ge Xiong Qi, also known as Wu Pai Tang Ge, the manager, and the grand manager of the Red Flag Hall. His main responsibilities included law enforcement, punishment, and conflict, making him the most powerful in the society of the brotherhood. Although his subordinates were originally from humble backgrounds, after being in the Red Flag Hall for a long time, they all developed a fearless and ruthless demeanor.

The only thing that seemed a bit off was the table—it was clearly dragged over from Lu Fatso’s tavern.

The wrapped sticks would only cause superficial injuries and would not damage bones or internal organs, indicating that Hong Qi Wu Ge himself did not wish to be overly aggressive and was not entirely bad at heart. Old Liu, peeking through the door, understood this and became hesitant, unsure of how to proceed.

Zhi Zun Bao dragged over two straw mats, giving one to each of them, and they squatted there, looking out together.

Seeing that the tea in Hong Qi Wu Ge’s teacup was almost gone, one of the men, a young thug, coughed a couple of times and said with a smile, “Brother Hong Wu, this won’t do. That old Taoist is clearly putting on airs and leaving us here to wait... Why don’t you sit and relax, and I’ll break the door and bring the old Taoist to you, what do you think?”

“Nonsense!” Hong Qi Wu Ge sipped his tea and waved his hand. “You damn fool, don’t you know this is a temple? A temple is where the gods and deities reside, and it needs to be respected! If you cause a commotion here, do you want me to get struck by lightning later?”

The young thug was taken aback and stammered, “But, but this is where the gods and deities live, so we can only wait outside... If we keep waiting like this, when will it end...”

Hong Qi Wu Ge slammed the teacup on the table, immediately getting angry. “Shut up! You damn brat, do you know anything? I’ve told you, no matter what, wherever there are deities, you must be respectful—my old man is over sixty and believes in this. If I don’t respect the deities, I’ll have to kneel in the temple and starve for a few days! If this mess is caused by you, I’ll make sure you die a hard death!”

Seeing the boss get angry, the other young thugs immediately cowered!

Old Liu, seeing this, immediately had an idea. He dragged Zhi Zun Bao aside and whispered a few words. Zhi Zun Bao’s small eyes widened, and he exclaimed, “Master, you want me to deal with such a big thug? You really think highly of me! One swing from him and I’ll be flattened like a painting on the ground, impossible to peel off, and even a toothpick will turn me into a square head...”

Old Liu, knowing Zhi Zun Bao’s character, interrupted him directly, “What conditions will you agree to go?”

Hearing this, Zhi Zun Bao immediately stopped whining and pitifully held up two fingers, “Two days, no restrictions on drinking!”

“Hey! How come you only picked up your master’s drinking habit and not his good qualities... Alright, alright, I agree! If you can handle this matter beautifully, I’ll reward you with two days of drinking, as much as you want, and I’ll pay the bill!”

“Alright!”

He immediately rolled up his sleeves, wiped his nose and tears, and put on a smile. His eyes and demeanor suggested, “Did you already have a plan to fool that guy, and now you’re also fooling me into two days of drinking?”

Old Liu immediately felt like he was being tricked...

※

After drinking two more cups of tea, the taste was almost gone, but Hong Qi Wu Ge was determined to wait, so he ordered his subordinates to prepare lunch. Just then, the temple door creaked open!

Although he didn’t move, all his subordinates immediately stood up!

The temple door opened, and out came a half-grown child!

Zhi Zun Bao closed the temple door and turned around, not afraid, just smiling at Hong Qi Wu Ge. Without waiting for the subordinates to pull him, he ran to him, eyes wide with surprise and admiration:

“Wow! Uncle, you have so many scars! So many, so deep! Don’t they hurt?”

“Uh, this... ha ha, they’re all old wounds, nothing much!” Hong Qi Wu Ge, who liked the child, felt even more pleased by his words, but he didn’t forget why he was there: “Uh, kid, is the old temple caretaker inside?”

Zhi Zun Bao reached out to touch the scars on his body, making sounds of admiration, and casually replied, “Oh, he’s sleeping, he should wake up soon, just wait... Uncle, do you need him for something?”

Hearing that the caretaker would wake up soon, Hong Qi Wu Ge was no longer in a hurry, “No, no, just a chat...” He let Zhi Zun Bao’s hand rest on the scar on his chest, and to pass the time, he said, “These are from fights with bad guys, each one has a story!”

This was exactly what Zhi Zun Bao wanted to hear, so he exclaimed, “Uncle, tell me the story of this one!”

The scar Zhi Zun Bao pointed to ran diagonally down his chest, almost splitting him open, looking extremely dangerous. But the story behind it was perfect for Hong Qi Wu Ge, as it involved the brotherhood standing up for an orphan and a widow, a righteous and glorious act, and a victory against overwhelming odds. The other brotherhood members, knowing the story, joined in, “Brother Wu, tell us the story!”

Hong Qi Wu Ge, feeling proud, said, “Alright, I’ll tell you! Back then, we...”

He told the story in a thrilling and dramatic way, taking a full incense stick to finish. As soon as he finished, Zhi Zun Bao led the applause, “Uncle, you’re so amazing! So amazing!”

Seeing the outsider lead, the brotherhood members couldn’t help but join in, clapping, praising, and flattering, creating a lively atmosphere, almost like a market fair.

Encouraged by this, Zhi Zun Bao continued, “Uncle, what about this one?”

“This is... how it happened... how it happened...”

“And this one...”

“This is... how it happened...”

Hong Qi Wu Ge kept boasting, and the young thugs and Zhi Zun Bao kept praising, creating a joyful atmosphere around the table.

Just then, Zhi Zun Bao suddenly pointed to a half-circular scar on his calf, which he had noticed earlier but chose to ask about now, “Uncle, what’s the story behind this one?” The scar was raised and slightly darker, looking like a bite from an animal.

Sure enough, Hong Qi Wu Ge’s face darkened—almost all the brotherhood members suddenly fell silent, and even those who didn’t know were silenced by their companions.

Zhi Zun Bao, ignoring the tugging on his clothes, continued to smile, “Uncle, what’s the story behind this scar? Tell me, please...”

Hong Qi Wu Ge suddenly smiled bitterly, “There’s nothing to hide... When I was young, I had a wife who was beautiful. A local landlord wanted to buy her, but how could I agree? So he brought a group of henchmen to take her by force. This scar is from a dog bite during that incident...”

His eyes revealed a fierce and indescribable look, like a wounded wolf protecting its young in the snow.

Thinking of the past, he felt sad and continued, “...I was beaten so badly that I had to stay in bed for days before I could get up. My wife couldn’t be saved and jumped into a well to die.” He took a deep breath and said fiercely, “Later, I went to his house at midnight and killed the whole family!”

Feeling relieved after recounting his revenge, he was about to take a sip of tea when Zhi Zun Bao suddenly asked, “Uncle, did the landlord pay to buy your wife, or did he take her by force?”

“What’s the difference between buying and taking!” Hong Qi Wu Ge said angrily, “I didn’t want to sell her, so even if he threw money and took her, it was still a forceful act!”

“Uncle is right!” Zhi Zun Bao said calmly, “If someone doesn’t want to sell, even if you pay, it’s still a forceful act—Uncle, if our temple doesn’t want to sell to you, and you come to find the caretaker like this, isn’t it also a forceful act?”

Hong Qi Wu Ge was taken aback, hesitating, “Uh, you say this... this...”

Before he could finish, Zhi Zun Bao continued, “When your wife was taken, you were heartbroken. Uncle, when you take our temple, our place of livelihood, have you thought about our feelings?” His eyes showed disdain, “When you were robbed, you hated the injustice of the world. Now, you’re robbing us... If your wife were to see this, what would she think?” This was not something a child would normally say!

Suddenly, Hong Qi Wu Ge and his subordinates were stunned!

Hong Qi Wu Ge’s face was calm, but his heart was in turmoil, remembering the day his wife was dragged away by the landlord, her helpless eyes, desperate struggles, and the blood marks she left on the ground... The scenes flashed before his eyes.

His heart softened!

Zhi Zun Bao’s words were righteous and powerful, and he had been secretly observing his expression. Suddenly, Hong Qi Wu Ge stood up without warning!

Zhi Zun Bao was startled but heard the burly man take a deep breath, “Kid, you’re right! If I come to take your temple by force today because of my brother, what’s the difference from the landlord back then? Bullying the common people with power and money, if I do this, not only will the deities be angry, but my wife’s grave will not be at peace—boys, let’s go back and tell our brother that we can’t bully the common people!”

“Agreed!” the group of men shouted in unison.

Hong Qi Wu Ge patted Zhi Zun Bao’s head and smiled, “I didn’t expect you to understand such big principles. I really like you. If you come to Chengdu next time...”

Just then, they heard the sound of galloping horses!

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