You had to admit, Zhao Liang was a master at this.
In the world of the streets, who's done what? Who's connected to whom? Who can't be messed with? Which local thug has ties to which district?
Zhao Liang had all this figured out like the back of his hand.
So when Zhang Fan asked him to track down Huozui, it was right up his alley.
Zhao Liang confidently informed him that Huozui's real name was Li Gang. He had recently gained notoriety in the county's underworld. Having broken ties with Rong Yufang, he'd gone independent, gathering a gang of dozens of ex-convicts who now ruled the area around "Bath Street." He was said to live somewhere in the downtown chaos.
But Jiang Chen didn't want vague areas—he needed a precise address.
If he wandered around asking questions, Huozui might catch wind and vanish.
Fortunately, Zhao Liang gave him a crucial lead: one of Huozui Li Gang's underlings frequently spent time at a Cherry KTV owned by a friend of Zhao's, often hiring escorts there. Jiang Chen could start with him.
That evening, Jiang Chen headed to Cherry KTV. After a quick inquiry, he found the target in a private room on the fourth floor.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
"Who the f***? Don't you know I'm in the middle of something?!"
Inside, a scrawny, dark-skinned man was tangled up with a completely naked woman. Hearing the knocking, he roared in anger.
"Open the door!"
"Open your damn face! I just got started!"
"You opening it or not? If not, I'm kicking it in."
"Go ahead, kick it in," the man sneered.
Boom—crack!
Jiang Chen kicked the lock hard. The reinforced door gave way with a crash!
Under the dim lights, the scrawny guy's body was sprawled over the woman's.
"Off!" Jiang Chen yanked him off the bed and flipped on the main light.
Stunned silence.
They recognized each other instantly.
The naked man was one of those who had ambushed Jiang Chen outside the county weeks ago!
The scrawny man blinked, then his face drained of color.
Standing in front of him was the same man who had flattened him like a pancake last time.
His knees buckled, his back gave out, and he started shaking like a leaf.
"Boss… Boss, please! That wasn't me, I was just following orders—Li Gang's orders! I'm just a street vendor selling roasted seeds! Look at my hands, all black from the smoke! Please spare me!"
He fumbled to pull his pants on as he begged.
"Still playing the pity card?"
Jiang Chen's foot lashed out—thud!
The man flew across the room, crashing into the door near the tea table.
"Aaaah!" the woman shrieked, scrambling to cover herself, curling into a ball.
Jiang Chen strode over, grabbed the man by the ankle, and flung him back onto the sofa.
"Sit down. I'm asking the questions." He planted a foot on the man's gut, pinning him in place.
"Boss! Please don't kill me! I'll talk! I'll tell you everything! Just don't crush my family jewels—I'm the only son in three generations!"
The scrawny man felt Jiang Chen's foot nearly rupture his insides and broke into a frantic babble.
"Where's Huozui?" Jiang Chen pressed harder.
"Aaaagh!" The man arched in pain and shrieked, "He—he's at the Cherry Hotel!"
"You sure?"
"Would I dare lie to you, boss? I was supposed to go too! But this girl dragged me in…"
Jiang Chen kicked him again. "If he's not there, I'll come back and snap your knees!"
Meanwhile, in the Cherry Hotel's banquet hall, a foot massage parlor owner was hosting a feast for Huozui Li Gang and his crew.
Recently, Li Gang had aligned himself with two powerful backers: the You Group and Tianji Group. He'd left his old boss Pang behind, recruited dozens of men, and muscled out rival gangs, taking over all of "Bath Street's" protection rackets. His name now struck fear throughout the county.
Earlier that day, he'd chased off some local punks for a foot parlor boss, who now repaid him with dinner.
"Brother Gang, if that punk hadn't run, I'd have cut off his ear and served it for dinner," the boss toasted Li Gang.
"Ha, lucky for him! Brother Gang doesn't even bother with small fry like that. If he'd made a move, there'd be a crater in the guy's chest," one sycophant chimed in, massaging Li Gang's shoulders.
"You don't get it," another tattooed lackey bragged. "When Brother Gang fought the Snake Martial Gang—guess what?"
"What? Tell us!" the crowd urged.
"They shot at him with darts and pistols. Brother Gang didn't even blink. Caught a bullet in each hand, and bit one of the darts out of mid-air!"
"Catching bullets by hand? That's legendary kung fu!"
The foot parlor boss was amazed, glowing with admiration.
A buzz-cut thug stood up, wine glass in hand, walked over to the tattooed guy, and dumped the drink on his head.
"You're insulting Brother Gang!"
The tattooed man, covered in beer, stammered, "I swear I saw it! He caught the bullets!"
The buzz-cut guy snapped, "You moron! It was two darts in his hands and a bullet in his mouth! Brother Gang doesn't need hands for puny pistol rounds—only snipers make him lift a finger. Get it right!"
Clap! Clap! Applause erupted.
"Brother Gang is the GOAT!"
"No one in the whole province can match him!"
"Mouth-catching bullets?" the foot parlor boss muttered, feeling his own teeth.
"Brother Gang has Titanium Teeth. The bullets split on contact—his teeth are unharmed."
Crash!
Li Gang suddenly smashed his wine glass to the floor.
"Stop showing off my skills everywhere! Secret techniques only work best when the enemy doesn't know them! Got it?!"
Silence fell.
A moment later, someone whispered, "Brother Gang is so humble."
"Such strength… such humility. Rare combination," the boss murmured in awe.
The tattooed man bowed. "Brother Gang, please don't be angry. How about we get some girls for a private room?"
"You're thoughtful," Li Gang yawned. "The boys deserve to unwind. Tell the top ten bathhouses on Bath Street—each must send their number one girl over."
"On it!"
The room buzzed with anticipation.
Just then—BOOM! The banquet hall doors were kicked open.
Jiang Chen stood in the doorway, face ice-cold, his body radiating a deadly aura like a storm ready to strike.