Chapter 53

At dusk, as the sun gradually set behind the mountains, a stretched Hummer, escorted by two Jeeps, drove to the entrance of the Zijin Garden wealthy residential area.

Seeing the imposing stretched Hummer, the security guard at the entrance of the wealthy residential area saluted and let it pass without a word, his eyes filled with admiration.

The admiration was because he knew that the owner of the stretched Hummer was Qiao Bazhi.

Like all the hoodlums on the streets, he believed that if he could live like Qiao Bazhi—residing in a luxury mansion, driving a luxury car, and sleeping with beautiful women, commanding respect on the streets—he would be willing to live twenty years less!

Of course, he was just thinking. He knew he didn't even have the qualifications to carry Qiao Bazhi's bag!

"Lord Ba, do you think that young Ye has the audacity to attack the Gou family's playboy, and even dare to lay hands on He Fenghua?" In the stretched Hummer, Liu Qin, adorned with jewels, clung to Qiao Bazhi's arm, leaning against him, her bewitching phoenix eyes blinking, "Does he think the Su family can rule Hanghu with an iron fist?"

"You are wrong. His confidence doesn't come from the Su family, but from himself," Qiao Bazhi said, slowly extinguishing his cigar and smiling. "As the saying goes, a person with great skills is bold. There are too many people in this world who think they are the best after learning a bit of martial arts, looking down on everyone else."

"That's true."

As Qiao Bazhi's woman, Liu Qin also knew that before the establishment of the 'Yanhuang Organization,' many half-baked martial artists who hadn't even crossed the threshold of martial arts ignored the law and committed crimes, only to end up in hell.

In her view, Ye Fan was one of those people.

"Lord Ba, although that kid is quite capable, I don't think it's necessary to send Wu He to deal with him," Liu Qin said, seeing Qiao Bazhi's silence. She thought that sending Wu He to deal with Ye Fan was like using a cannon to swat a fly—overkill.

Although she had limited contact with Wu He, she knew that he had once made a name for himself in the underground fighting circuit. Later, he was spotted by a martial artist and joined his sect, where he was trained and his strength skyrocketed. Now, he was Qiao Bazhi's sharpest blade!

"To completely drive the Donghai Gang out of Hanghu and even Jiangnan, we can't just rely on violence. We need to find a powerful ally. Han Guodong not only wields immense power in Jiangnan but is also connected to the Bai family in the capital. Mr. Lin has a special relationship with the Bai family. Therefore, no matter what the cost, we must establish a connection with Han Guodong!"

Mentioning Mr. Lin, Qiao Bazhi's tone was full of respect. "So, this matter is very important. To ensure everything goes smoothly, it's best to have Wu He handle it, so that He Fenghua doesn't think we didn't do a good job."

"Lord Ba, you are truly far-sighted."

Liu Qin, enlightened, quickly flattered Qiao Bazhi, leaning against him with a seductive expression.

Qiao Bazhi, seeing this, smiled and pinched Liu Qin's buttocks, making her pant with desire, wishing he would take her right then and there.

Despite Liu Qin's seduction, Qiao Bazhi remained unmoved. If he lacked such self-control, he wouldn't have become the leader of the underworld in Hanghu and even Jiangnan.

A few minutes later, the stretched Hummer stopped in front of a villa in the Zijin Garden wealthy residential area. The driver immediately got out to open the door for Qiao Bazhi, who got out with Liu Qin, and they entered the villa courtyard, surrounded by a group of black-clad men.

Once inside the courtyard, the black-clad men discreetly stayed back, while only Liu Qin followed Qiao Bazhi into the villa's main hall.

Unlike other villas, this one's main hall was not luxuriously decorated, lacking even sofas and a TV. Instead, it had been converted into a small martial arts training area, with a wooden post in the center.

When Qiao Bazhi and Liu Qin entered, a young man in shorts was standing in front of the wooden post, squatting in a horse stance, his muscles bulging as he continuously punched and struck the post with his fists and elbows, the sound of "bang bang" echoing continuously.

"Lord Ba."

Seeing Qiao Bazhi and Liu Qin enter, the young man stopped his training, turned around, and greeted Qiao Bazhi, completely ignoring Liu Qin.

Liu Qin showed no sign of dissatisfaction. On one hand, she knew that this young man, Wu He, only showed respect to Qiao Bazhi and looked down on everyone else. On the other hand, Qiao Bazhi valued Wu He as much as he valued her.

In other words, to take over Hanghu and Jiangnan, Qiao Bazhi could do without her, but he absolutely needed Wu He!

"Xiao Wu, it seems your skills have improved."

Neither Qiao Bazhi nor Liu Qin showed any dissatisfaction, as if they were already accustomed to Wu He's attitude.

"There are too many distractions in the secular world, and my progress is very slow. I haven't broken through yet," Wu He frowned and then said, "Lord Ba, did you come to me today to take action against the Donghai Gang?"

"Not yet," Qiao Bazhi shook his head, "But I need you to kill someone."

"Who?"

Wu He's eyes sharpened. Since following Qiao Bazhi to Hanghu, he hadn't had the chance to fight freely and was somewhat nostalgic for the taste of blood.

"Xiao Qin, show the video to Xiao Wu," Qiao Bazhi smiled, indicating for Liu Qin to show the surveillance footage of Ye Fan's fight at the CC Bar.

Without a word, Liu Qin quickly took out a tablet from her handbag, opened the footage, and showed it to Wu He.

"His reaction speed is too slow."

As the footage played, Wu He saw Ye Fan dodge at the last moment when Gou Wei's car hit him, and immediately gave his evaluation.

Qiao Bazhi remained silent, waiting for Wu He to finish watching.

"His speed is decent."

Seeing Ye Fan appear in front of Gou Wei in a flash and slap him away, Wu He said with disdain, "But his strength is too weak. He hasn't reached the peak of the innate realm, just a bit stronger than an average innate martial artist, having pushed his external skills to the limit."

"Why?"

Qiao Bazhi had learned some martial arts but couldn't meditate and hadn't crossed the threshold of martial arts, so he couldn't gauge Ye Fan's strength.

"If he had reached the peak of the innate realm and used his full strength, that slap would have killed the person," Wu He explained, his enthusiasm quickly fading, seemingly losing interest in fighting Ye Fan.

Qiao Bazhi saw through Wu He's thoughts and laughed, "What? Do you think the opponent is too weak?"

"Not too weak, but not worth my effort—this kind of person, I could kill with one slap," Wu He said, looking bored, "Lord Ba, I think you should let someone else deal with this rookie."

"Ha ha!"

Hearing Wu He's arrogant words, Qiao Bazhi couldn't help but laugh, "Xiao Wu, although this person is weak, killing him is crucial for our next move against the Donghai Gang. To be safe, it's best if you handle it."

"Alright."

Although he thought killing Ye Fan was a bit beneath him, Wu He knew he had to follow Qiao Bazhi's orders and agreed.

"Be clean and leave no traces," Qiao Bazhi added after a moment of thought, "Also, bring me the kid's head."

"Lord Ba, you know I don't use weapons," Wu He smiled, his smile filled with a bloodthirsty aura, "I like to twist off my enemy's head."

"Hiss~"

Hearing Wu He's words, Liu Qin involuntarily recalled the time she saw Wu He tear apart an opponent, feeling a chill run down her spine and instinctively shrinking her neck.

Qiao Bazhi, however, wore a relaxed smile.

On one hand, he was already used to Wu He's bloodthirsty nature. On the other hand, in his memory, Wu He had never failed him since they met!

...

When darkness enveloped the earth, Ye Fan and Su Yuxin walked out of a private restaurant, their bodies almost touching, looking like a loving couple to outsiders.

However—

What surprised the passersby was that after leaving the restaurant, the two did not get into the same car. Ye Fan got into his not-so-conspicuous Audi, while Su Yuxin got into a stretched Mercedes.

Hmm?

As the car started, Ye Fan was about to turn the steering wheel when he suddenly felt a gaze locking onto him. Looking in the rearview mirror, he saw a Buick LaCrosse parked to the side, its lights on, seemingly ready to leave at any moment.

This discovery made Ye Fan feel something was off. He thought for a moment, opened the window, and let Su Yuxin go first.

Su Yuxin nodded and drove out of the parking lot first.

Even after Su Yuxin's car entered the street, Ye Fan didn't leave. Instead, he keenly observed the surroundings to see if any other cars were following her.

"Did he notice?"

In the Buick LaCrosse, Wu He saw that Ye Fan's car didn't follow and frowned, seemingly disbelieving that Ye Fan could detect him so quickly.

After all, he hadn't even started following yet!

"Buzz!"

Just as Wu He was puzzled, Ye Fan's car suddenly started.

"I knew it, how could he have noticed?"

Seeing Ye Fan's car leave, Wu He smirked, and after Ye Fan entered the street, he followed.

Seeing this in the rearview mirror, Ye Fan narrowed his eyes, thought for a moment, and called Su Yuxin to say he would be back later. Then, he deliberately slowed down and drove toward the Jiuxi Rose Garden wealthy residential area.

"Little rookie, dying at my hands, you won't have lived in vain!"

Seeing that Ye Fan hadn't noticed him, Wu He sneered, looking like a bloodthirsty beast.

...

...

PS: New day, please give me recommendations, Three Rivers votes, and favorites!!