Chapter 41

It turned out that the person who came was Man Niu.

Since being photographed by Qin Lang in the hospital, Man Niu had lost his edge. Although Sang Kun had been urging him to deal with Han Sanqiang together, Man Niu had only been pretending to comply. This was because the things in Qin Lang and Han Sanqiang's hands were enough to make Man Niu lose his footing in Xiayang City, and even send him to prison.

Since Han Sanqiang had taken Man Niu's gun, which had his fingerprints on it, framing someone for murder was not complicated. Man Niu only needed to use his brain a little to know which side to choose.

Seeing Qin Lang on his turf, Man Niu hurried over to flatter him and took the initiative to stand up for Qin Lang.

Sun Sanlang's lover was one of Man Niu's subordinates, which was why she dared to treat the guests so arrogantly. But she never expected to provoke the wrong person today. When she heard Man Niu call Qin Lang "Brother Qin," Sun Sanlang was so scared that she trembled. Anyone who could make Man Niu call him "Brother" must be a powerful figure in the underworld of Xiayang City, someone she, Sun Sanlang, could not afford to offend.

"Brother Qin, are you and Sister-in-law coming out for a meal? How about I treat you—Sun Sanlang, quickly go and ask the chef to prepare some signature dishes!"

Man Niu said flatteringly, and Sun Sanlang hurriedly apologized, expressing her willingness to make amends.

Qin Lang accepted Man Niu's flattery, but declined the invitation to eat. He smiled and said to Man Niu, "I have some business today. Let's do it another day. I'll treat you then."

"How could I let you do that?" Man Niu said, flattered. Although he knew Qin Lang was just being polite, it clearly indicated that Qin Lang was in a good mood, and his scandalous photos would not be leaked for the time being.

"By the way, Brother Qin, if you need any help in the future, just let me know," Man Niu pledged his loyalty to Qin Lang. Recently, he had been on edge, not knowing what Qin Lang would do to him. Moreover, today he heard that Qin Lang had beaten up the people Sang Kun had sent to the detention center, even turning the "First Steel Fist of Xiayang's Underworld," Chen Gang, into a panda. This made Man Niu even more respectful of Qin Lang.

"Good, since you say so, I'll find you soon," Qin Lang chuckled, then instructed Man Niu, "I'm temporarily out on medical parole. Don't let this get out."

"Yes, yes," Man Niu nodded quickly, thinking to himself that Brother Qin was really impressive. He had heard that Qin Lang was a murder suspect, but he had been out on medical parole the day after he was admitted. It seemed that Qin Lang had a very powerful backer. Following Brother Qin would definitely be the right choice!

After getting rid of Man Niu, the two walked to the street. It was now the time for school to let out, so the street was bustling with people.

As they walked, Tao Ruoxiang suddenly pinched Qin Lang's arm and huffed, "Brother Qin? You're really something, it seems you're quite a big shot in the underworld!"

Tao Ruoxiang clearly did not like street thugs, and she certainly did not like the idea of Qin Lang being one of them.

But hearing Man Niu call Qin Lang "Brother Qin" clearly indicated that Qin Lang was indeed part of the underworld. Qin Lang knew that he was now in a situation where he was stuck in the mud—whether he was or wasn't, he was still considered a thug. However, he did not want Tao Ruoxiang to have a bad impression of him, so he explained, "Teacher Tao, Aunt Tao, you misunderstood. I am indeed part of the underworld, but I practice martial arts, not criminal activities. That guy fought with me once and got beaten, so he's afraid of me."

"Brother Qin, your explanation is terrible," Tao Ruoxiang huffed. "But we'll settle this later. We need to focus on the important matters now!"

"I agree," Qin Lang said with a smile, feeling pleased by Man Niu's flattery.

The two didn't even have dinner and hurried to the "Ouhai Art School" in Xiayang City.

On the way, Qin Lang called Han Sanqiang.

"Brother Qin, I've been waiting for your call," Han Sanqiang said excitedly. "Are we going to take on Sang Kun?"

"Take on who?" Qin Lang huffed. "There's something more important—send some smart brothers to keep an eye on the Ouhai Art School and Xiayang Medical College. See if anyone is secretly drugging or getting girls drunk. Report to me immediately if you find anything."

"Brother Qin, is that all?" Han Sanqiang's enthusiasm was dampened. "Besides, those places aren't ours."

"Stop complaining. Just send someone to keep an eye on it. This place will be yours eventually. Isn't it better to scout it out now?" Qin Lang huffed. "Get to it!"

"Okay, Brother Qin," Han Sanqiang said, though he found Qin Lang's instructions strange, he did not dare to defy him.

After hanging up, Tao Ruoxiang said, "I didn't expect you to really have connections with the underworld!"

"Having connections doesn't mean I'm a bad person," Qin Lang said calmly. "At least, what I'm doing now is good, right?"

Tao Ruoxiang did not deny it. She also knew that they needed to act quickly, or the other side might take measures to obstruct and retaliate once they found out about their investigation. So, it was not wrong for Qin Lang to use others to help gather clues.

As soon as Qin Lang and Tao Ruoxiang got out of the taxi, he received a call from Ma Wei. Ma Wei, having heard Han Sanqiang's instructions, had already arrived outside the Ouhai Art School with a few smart brothers and started searching for "suspicious targets." Ma Wei, being someone who often hung out on the street outside the school, quickly found some clues and immediately reported to Qin Lang.

"Brother Qin, I've checked. Outside the Ouhai Art School, there are two places that the female students particularly like to go to. One is called 'KK Bar,' and the other is 'Circle Water Bar.' The 'Circle Water Bar' is run by a former female student of the art school, whom the girls call 'Circle Sister'—"

"Alright, let's go check out this 'Circle Water Bar' first," Qin Lang said, instinctively feeling that there was something wrong with the Circle Water Bar, especially with its owner.

Ma Wei had already scouted the area. Following Qin Lang's instructions, he quickly led Qin Lang and Tao Ruoxiang to the street opposite the Circle Water Bar.

"Alright, continue to keep an eye on other places," Qin Lang told Ma Wei to leave, as he sensed that Tao Ruoxiang was still somewhat repulsed by Ma Wei and his fellow thugs, especially after she had witnessed Ma Wei beating up Sun Bo, who was her colleague.

Qin Lang and Tao Ruoxiang watched the Circle Water Bar from across the street. Indeed, many art school students, both male and female, were entering and leaving. The bar was luxuriously decorated, with two floors and even private rooms for couples, and the lighting was very suggestive, giving a sense of fantasy.

"There's definitely something wrong here!" Tao Ruoxiang said confidently after a moment of observation.

"But we can't see what's wrong just by standing here," Qin Lang said. "I mean, we can't see the real issues just by looking from here."

"I agree," Tao Ruoxiang nodded. "Why don't we go in for a drink?"

"Sure, I'm thirsty anyway," Qin Lang said with a smile, then extended his hand to Tao Ruoxiang, as if to take her hand.