Translator: Larbre Studio
Editor: Larbre Studio
“Get yourself a cab. Be careful when you’re out next time. The people at He Lian Sheng will not let you off,” Li Yan said to Xu Tianci across the street.
Xu Tianci was vicious in his attacks. But before they entered the rings, they had all signed an indemnity. Since Xu Tianci was hurt quite badly as well, there was no reason for the people at He Lian Sheng to stir up trouble.
Unfortunately, nothing could be rationalized in this world. They wanted Xu Tianci dead to honor their people, not for any logical reasons.
“They didn’t follow the rules,” Xu Tianci tried to express his indifference toward He Lian Sheng.
Li Yan glared at him but didn’t say a word.
“Fifteen days. I promise to recover in fifteen days.”
It seemed as if Li Yan hadn’t heard him. He turned and walked eastward.
“Hey, isn’t that the road back to Kowloon? Where are you going?”
“I’m going to find an arcade to play pinball. Back to Kowloon? I would only head to Kowloon at this time if I was stupid.”
Li Yan licked his lips. The Grand Duke, Huashan Jiu, Taizi Le, and Wu Haoxi, who he had never seen… Kowloon tonight was probably more tense than anyone could anticipate.
Maybe the name Grand Duke was fading out. Maybe Taizi Le had really died for his brothers.
The men from He Lian Sheng rushed to enter the city. The situation was getting heated.
“I am a man of rules, but I follow the rules of the streets. That kid chopped off my brother’s arm, so I want his arm in return. He stabbed my brother in his guts, so he better stab himself too. Once he does that, we will leave Kowloon immediately.”
Red Ghost and Liao Zhizong were sitting opposite a lady in activewear with hair down to her waist.
She kept a smile on her face, “Kowloon’s rings have existed for decades. Not many people dare to mess with us here. Even if they do, they can’t get anywhere or anything out of it. I suggest you think properly before you make a decision.”
Taizi Le laughed lightly, then said slowly, “I’m really curious as to how a young lady like Miss Yu could end up as the boss of Kowloon City. Ahh, all the good men of Kowloon… you must have put in a lot of effort to persuade them…”
Taizi Le made sure to emphasize the word “persuade,” but before he could finish, a gust of wind blew and the sheer amount of force caused his eyes open wide.
“Red.” Just as Yu Shu spoke, Red Ghost’s feet stopped at the tip of Taizi Le’s nose.
Taizi Le’s men reacted to the situation and raised the knives they had carried with them, but they were stopped by Taizi Le.
Red Ghost coldly retracted his right foot bit by bit, then slowly retreated behind Yu Su.
Taizi Le swallowed. Red Ghost was at least four steps away from him, and so swift that, not only did he not see this coming, but his men who were exceptional fighters also couldn’t react in time.
“Grand Duke’s man is pretty hot-tempered. I was only joking,” said Taizi Le with a forced smile.
Grand Duke’s men were each smart and good at fighting. Back in the day, Chen Minhong had fought in the sixth round, but in recent years had faded out of the fighting scene when no one dared to spar with him. Liao Zhizong was very impressive as well; he was an elder of the Hong Lineage, the great-grandson of Zhong Yangzhao, one of the forefathers of the Hong lineage. Back when Sun Yatsen was trying to revolutionize the country, he was introduced to the Hong’s by Zhong Yangzhao himself!
As for the family hierarchy, Taizi Le should be addressing Liao Zhizong as great uncle. For many years, people thought that the Grand Duke of Kowloon referred to Liao Zhizong instead. Even Taizi Le was sure that Yu Shu was a decoy and that Liao Zhizong was the true mastermind of the Kowloon RIngs.
Yu Shu did not respond to Taizi, but merely observed his expression for a while. Then she shook her head slowly, shocking Taizi Le with her words. “I’m actually quite impressed by your guts, but I think you have underestimated the old man Wu Haoxi…”
…
In the dim streets, a boy sucked on a lollipop and wandered aimlessly. He carried a large, loose bag on his shoulder. In front of him was a hotel painted in red with the golden words “Fu Xiang Hotel” plastered on the blue backboard.
The boy stood upright, crushing the lollipop in his mouth as he strode toward the building.
The owner of Fu Xiang was the son-in-law of Wu Haoxi. Wo Haoxi was over sixty years old with no sons, and he often had his lunch at the hotel.
“I always said that Taizi Le was going to exhaust his father’s wealth with his lifestyle. Now that He Lian Sheng is busy, he has run to the rings to seek revenge for his men?”
Hong Kong’s largest drug cartel, Chairman of the Kowloon Association, Wu Haoxi, listened disinterestedly as his son-in-law spoke with droopy eyelids.
He replied, “I haven’t met Chang Kaile before, but he has quite a reputation. His father, Chang Shen is at his dying breath. The elders of He Lian Sheng are as well. The others are just blind followers. Huashan Jiu is one of the only few who are loyal to Taizi Le. It’s not surprising that he would stir up such trouble…”
There were six to seven people seated around the table. They were Wu Haoxi’s close acquaintances and juniors, and they laughed when they heard what he had to say about He Lian Sheng. Because they were part of Hong Kong’s secret society, spreading their influence so widely was not necessarily good for them. Wu Haoci alone was able to kick Chang Shen to the curb. If they messed with Kowloon’s Grand Duke over something like this again, He Lian Sheng would crumble.
The boy climbed up the stairs, tense as he watched his surroundings, feeling like a misfit amidst the bustle of the hotel environment.
During the gala, Wu Haoxi received a call. The caller sounded very nervous but Wu Haoxi was unfazed.
“Dad, what happened,” asked the man who had just insulted Taizi Le as he filled up Wu Haoxi’s cup with more alcohol.
He didn’t answer the question and instead said joyfully, “A newborn calf is not afraid of a tiger!”
The man blinked, unable to understand the statement.
“The people from He Lian Sheng didn’t head to Fu Yi Tower after they arrived in the city. In fact… they walked along the alleys to Xin street.”
The man’s expression changed abruptly. He spilled the bottle of alcohol on his sleeve while the people around the table stood up one after another.
Xin street belonged to Wu Haoxi. His people, facilities, and wealth were concentrated there.
“What’s with the panic?” said Wu Haoxi.
“Dad, I wasn’t careful enough.”
The man’s expression had soured. He had thought that Taizi Le was going to fight the Grand Duke. He hadn’t even stopped He Lian Sheng’s people from entering the city. He had thought that he could watch happily from the sidelines, when in fact they were coming for him instead.
“Using others as an excuse to enter and attack me. How cliche,” said the man. He tapped the table lightly before calmly picking up his glass, his face flushed from alcohol.
“Chang Shen, your son’s not bad.”
He dragged out his chair, ready to get up. When he saw a dirty boy with both his hands in his canvas bag, he suddenly sobered up, as if triggered by instinct he had cultivated running the streets for so many years. He quickly lifted up the table.
“Bang! Bang! Bang!”
The boy shot with one eye open, his arms numb from the strong recoil, as they watched smoke rise from the gun in his hand.
The bullets penetrated the table. One of them shaved across the shoulder of the elder, and another hit Wu Haoxi’s son-in-law straight in the neck.
“Jun!” Wu Haoci exclaimed as his eyes turned red.
The boy held onto the gun clumsily and kept shooting until a heavily-built man tackled him and held him to the ground, causing him to lose his grip on his gun.
Wu Haoxi rushed over. Before he could take a closer look at the boy’s face, he furrowed his brows and lifted up the boy’s clothes, only to see a yellow wire peeking through.
Outside the hotel, a man held his cigarette in his mouth. When he heard the gunshots coming from the hotel, he pulled out a control and pressed it without a second thought.
“Boom!”
…
“You arranged to meet with the association members privately. Si Lizheng is a follower and will never take drastic actions. Aunt Hua already received your payouts. The smuggling king, Yu Shikui, is closely related to your family. You haven’t even fired a shot in Kowloon and yet you want to take over the place. I see that you have a decent plan, as well as courage and good motives.”
The Grand Duke softened her tone, “But there are two things you messed up.”
Taizi Le leaned back and brashly said, “I’m all ears.”
“First, Wu Haoxi has been in Kowloon for so many years. He’s in control of eight hundred and five of Hong Kong’s drug sources. You bit off way more than you could chew with this one. If you want to really take him down, you really got to lose some teeth. And second…”
The smile disappeared from her face and veins popped out from her forehead as her tone turned cold. “You f***ing bastard. You tried to use me as your shield. You think I’m just going to let this go? Motherf***ing b****. F*** off. Do a headcount of all the He Lian Sheng people here today. No one will leave this building!”