Everyone left consecutively after the dinner ended. Li Guangzhi, one of the Yulan’s Four Tigers, also known as the Raging Tiger, had only walked about 10 meters away when he heard a series of rapid footsteps and heaving panting behind him. Li Guangzhi turned back to find that it was his underling, Yang Ke, who was chasing after him.
Li Guangzhi glared at Yang Ke and questioned, “Why are you so slow? Have you become dumb from taking too much drugs? I asked you to come with me to meet Big Boss because I’m planning to promote you. Don’t let me down, okay?”
Yang Ke gulped and said in a low voice, “Brother Zhi, I have something to tell you.”
“Oh?” Li Guangzhi glanced around and pointed at an empty area in the distance and said, “Let’s head there to talk then.”
Li Guangzhi walked in front while Yang Ke followed behind him. Li Guangzhi only stopped once there was no one around and said, “Hurry up and fire away. What is it this time?”
Yang Ke responded cautiously, “Brother Zhi, I’m afraid that Big Boss has found out that we… take drugs.”
“What?” Li Guangzhi’s face darkened in an instant. Zhou Minghu used to help external parties distribute drugs in the past. He got some drugs from the external syndicate of the underworld and passed it to Li Guangzhi for safekeeping. This was because Li Guangzhi was considered the most capable amongst Yulan’s Four Tigers. However, Li Guangzhi started to take some drugs out of sheer curiosity and even enticed Yang Ke to take it together. He assumed that he would be the one distributing the drugs in the future, therefore he could definitely take some percentage out of it and cover it up by simply spending some money. Who would have known that Lin Huai would thwart his plan? The school looked for Zhou Minghu and stopped him from distributing the drugs. Hence, he ended up having to return those drugs.
However, the amount of opium that was missing could not be replaced. After Li Guangzhi returned those drugs, he borrowed some money from Pan Haifeng, who was also known as Tiger’s Cane. At the same time, Li Guangzhi forced Yang Ke to get a pretty good amount of money from his family. Yang Ke came from a poor family and he had an old and sickly mother at home. In the end, under Li Guangzhi’s oppression, Yang Ke even stole the money that was supposed to be used for his mother’s medicine from home. They gathered money however they could and finally bought the same type of opium from external parties to cover it up. But ever since then, Li Guangzhi had been strapped for cash and Pan Haifeng was constantly urging him to return the money he borrowed as well.
Li Guangzhi knew Zhou Minghu’s temperament all too well. If Zhou Minghu found out that he stole the drugs and took them, Li Guangzhi would be beaten to pulp even though he had returned the drugs that he stole. Yulan’s Four Tigers were all terrified of Zhou Minghu from the bottom of their hearts.
Li Guangzhi grasped Yang Ke’s arms and asked nervously, “How did Big Boss find out?”
“I-I don’t know.”
“You don’t know? Are you lying to me?!” Li Guangzhi had always been a short-tempered person. On top of that, he was very anxious now, so he exerted more strength. Yang Ke’s arm started to make cracking sounds from his grasp, which made him nearly cry out in pain.
Li Guangzhi also realised that he was exerting too much strength and slowly released his grip. He asked with a darkened face, “What happened? Tell me everything.”
“It started like this,” Yang Ke uttered in a cautious manner. “I overheard Pan Haifeng’s underlings’ conversations. According to them, Big Boss, who is in his last year in school, would graduate soon, along with Li Kandao and Zhang Hongdi. Yu Lan College would definitely be handed down to you in the future, but they think Pan Haifeng is stronger than you.”
Li Guangzhi said in a sullen voice, “Who said that Pan Haifeng is stronger than me?”
“Pan Haifeng’s underlings,” Yang Ke pulled a sorrowful face. “I accidentally overheard them when I walked out just now. They might have seen you walking away and didn’t realise that I was eavesdropping in the dark, therefore they just ran their mouths.”
Li Guangzhi snorted. “How is this related to the opium then?”
“Of course it’s related. They said it didn’t matter because their leader would definitely get a bigger chunk of territory from tomorrow’s assignment. Besides, you might even be kicked out of Yulan’s Four Tiger in the future.”
“Nonsense!” Li Guangzhi raised his voice. “I have a higher ranking compared to him. Zhang Hongdi may rank higher than me, but he will be graduating with Big Boss in less than a year. Who else can compare to me?”
“That is true, but they mentioned that Pan Haifeng knows your secret and he would tell Big Boss about it tomorrow, and by that time…”
“What?” Both of Li Guangzhi’s hands grasped on Yang Ke’s shoulder once again and his eyes blazed with anger. He questioned in a rather frantic manner, “What is he holding over my head?”
“Brother Zhi, did you tell Pan Haifeng that you stole and took the drugs?”
Li Guangzhi was breathing heavily. His eyes were filled with anger and fear at the same time. He knew that he wouldn’t be killed even if this matter were made public. Taking a beating would be a small matter, but his status in the Yulan Four Tigers would surely be affected and he would be demoted. Undoubtedly, Big Boss wouldn’t see the usefulness or value of a drug addict. He was called the Raging Fire due to his short temper but he was never foolish. Anyone who took drugs would be considered useless once the person was addicted to it.
Li Guangzhi’s face was set in a grim expression. He clenched his fish tightly and spat the words through his gritted teeth, “How can he do this?”
Yang Ke lowered his voice and said, “The Big Boss of Yulan College will surely be offered a good position by the various underworld syndicates once the person enters society in the future. Brother Zhi, did you really think Pan Haifeng would turn a blind eye to such an irresistible temptation?”
Li Guangzhi’s breathing got more and more rapid.
Yang Ke went on, “Brother Zhi, we have to think of a way out. Tomorrow, the allocation of manpower will take place. If he really spills the beans, I’m afraid that not only will you not gain any power or underlings, but your status in Yulan’s Four Tiger will also be ranked last.”
Li Guangzhi’s gaze deepened and his breathing quickened. Finally, his eyes glowed with viciousness and he said with gritted teeth, “I will never allow this to happen! I will call Pan Haifeng immediately and ask him to join me for a fake celebration. You, on the other hand, should bring some trusted followers along and lie in wait. Once I send out a signal, we will ambush him together!”
Yang Ke was shocked and said hurriedly, “Brother Zhi, I don’t think this is a good idea. We will at most lose power and influence if he reveals the secret. But once Big Boss finds out that we have killing intent against his own people, I’m afraid he will never let us get away with it!”
“Are you afraid?” Li Guangzhi glared fiercely at Yang Ke. “Let me tell you something. By this time next year, I will be the Big Boss of Yulan College! Anyone who wants to snatch this position away from me will never get away with it, even if that person was my own mother! Since Pan Haifeng wants to be heartless, he can’t blame me for my disloyalty then!”
Yang Ke said hurriedly, “Brother Zhi, I’ll do whatever you say!”
“Alright,” Li Guangzhi said. “I’ll give him a stern warning later. He needs to know that the fate of his life is within my control. I want to see if he still has the guts to complain to Big Boss about me!”
“Okay, Brother Zhi. I’ll contact someone to assist on this matter right away.”
“Go then.”
Yang Ke left in a hurry. He kept on running until he arrived at a place where no one was around, then he took out his phone to make a call. He lowered his voice and reported, “Brother Huai, the matter has been settled.”
“Alright, thank you.”
“Don’t mention it, Brother Huai. Thank you for saving my life back then. I would have died if you hadn’t called for an ambulance. I don’t want to serve under a person like Li Guangzhi anymore. I wouldn’t even be entangled with drugs if it weren’t for him! If it weren’t because he forced me to steal the remaining money from my family, my mother wouldn’t have been hospitalised from failing to take her medicine in time!” Yang Ke’s eyes were filled with hatred as he recalled the past.
“Great. This time, you immediately agreed to help me when I asked for a favor. Your life wasn’t saved in vain. Let me know in time if there are any changes to the plan.”
“Alright, Brother Huai. I will contact you by text message later.”
Yang Ke ended the call and subsequently went to contact the others.
Pan Haifeng was drinking outside when he got a call from Li Guangzhi, who had invited him for a karaoke session. He knew that there would be girls in these karaoke sessions and Li Guangzhi had borrowed money from him on top of that. Pan Haifeng accepted the invitation immediately with the thought that it was time for Li Guangzhi to give him a good treat. He headed toward the promised location after that.
Both of them met up in a small karaoke near the school. This karaoke wasn’t a famous place and it was a little remote, but the girls in there were all very open-minded. Therefore, they usually liked to visit this place.
Pan Haifeng and Li Guangzhi went in and ordered some beer. Then, each of them called for some girls who were scantily clad, and started to drink.
Pan Haifeng smiled as he said, “Brother Zhi, you borrowed money from me, saying that you had an urgent matter back then. But you should also know my situation. I’ve been pretty strapped for cash, so don’t forget to pay me back.”
“Relax, it has only been a few days. I’ll definitely pay you back. I will return some to you by next month.”
“Alright.” Pan Haifeng nodded with satisfaction, and started to fondle and kiss the girl in his arms.
A trace of disgust flashed across Li Guangzhi’s eyes. He was guilty of this as well but at this point in time, any action of Pan Haifeng just filled him with anger and irritation.
However, he wasn’t ready to ambush him for the time being. He was still a little hesitant. He thought for a moment and asked, “Haifeng, what do you think about Big Boss’s arrangement tomorrow?”
“Haha, are you talking about the delegating of underlings? Of course it would be up to Big Boss to decide. But I feel like you and I should have a larger piece of cake. Chen Gang is gone now. Zhang Hongdi, Li Kandao and Big Boss are all senior students and will graduate soon. Everything will be under our control in the future!” Pan Haifeng said with an air of smugness.
Li Guangzhi got even more suspicious once he heard Pan Haifeng’s smug tone. It was actually rather normal. Anyone would behave like Pan Haifeng at the thought of having more underlings in the near future. However, Li Guangzhi already had doubts about him, which was why Pan Haifeng looked suspicious no matter what he did or said.
Li Guangzhi simply grunted and asked again, “Then who do you think will be getting more underlings? Me or you?”
“This will be up to Big Boss to decide.” Pan Haifeng didn’t expect Li Guangzhi to discuss this matter with him. He couldn’t help but feel slightly displeased as he uttered, “There is no need to fuss about this matter between us. We are brothers.”
“You’re right.” Li Guangzhi gave a smile and hesitated. Pan Haifeng’s response had been pretty satisfactory, but you could never truly understand a person. Therefore, he wasn’t sure about Pan Haifeng’s true intention.
Li Guangzhi started to drink sullenly while fondling the girl in his arms at the same time. After Pan Haifeng left for the toilet, he heard the soft murmuring of two guys talking to each other by the door.
Li Guangzhi moved closer to the door immediately to eavesdrop on their conversation. “Brother Feng said that Brother Zhi seems to be suspecting him. We have to be careful tonight.”
“Alright. I’ll inform the underlings in the school right away.”
Li Guangzhi’s heart was in his throat once he overheard the conversation. Fury surged through him immediately. He clenched his fists until his knuckles turned white, his face distorted with anger as he said with a strained voice, “Very well, Pan Haifeng. Since you’re heartless, don’t blame me for my disloyalty.”
Pan Haifeng should be back any second now. He hurriedly went back to his seat as if nothing had happened.
Pan Haifeng walked along the corridor and realised there was no one standing by the private karaoke room door. A little puzzled, he muttered to himself, “Damn, where are those two underlings who came along with me? Whatever. I guess they have gone to some other private rooms to have fun.”
Pan Haifeng didn’t think further of it. He didn’t know that his underlings were indeed in another private room, but instead of having fun, they were all knocked out and tied up by Lin Huai and the others.