As soon as he walked in, he clicked his tongue and chuckled, "Oh, not only Director You is here, but Captain Zhong is too. Here to lobby, huh? Hey, you, Lu Chen, you've got some connections! A branch bureau chief and a deputy captain, both here to plead for you?"
He emphasized the words "branch" and "deputy" heavily.
You Haoguo was somewhat better off, but Zhong Qitao's expression was grim.
Lu Chen smiled coldly. Needless to say, this was An Caishen.
Caishen? He looked more like Marshal Tianpeng after falling from the sky.
Zhong Qitao didn't explain, but coldly said, "Boss An, what a big deal! You've kept us waiting from 6:30 until 8:00. Your timing is really something!"
"Oh? Sorry, sorry!" An Caishen cupped his hands, then let out two burps and chuckled, saying,
"It's not that I didn't want to be on time, it's just that another table held me up. By the way, your Director Yang Xiaowen is also at that table, but he's just sitting at the very end! There are several municipal leaders there. They're really giving me face, knowing my newly opened Caishen Farmers Market is striving to become a star private enterprise, they invited me to dinner! Haha!"
As he spoke, his smugness was completely gone.
Then he added, "By the way, you two, why don't you go and toast your leaders?"
"Forget it, forget it, with so many high-ranking leaders, we don't have the right to toast them."
You Haoguo waved his hand, smiling as he gestured for An Caishen to sit down.
An Caishen chuckled and strode over.
His two men who had cleared a path for him immediately pulled out a chair and made him plop down.
You Haoguo immediately ordered the waiter who had been standing to the side to bring the food.
Then, he smiled even more broadly at An Caishen: "I say, Boss An, this young man of ours is ignorant and has offended you. Please, be magnanimous and let him off the hook. As for the conditions, we can discuss them, okay?"
An Caishen smiled sinisterly, not speaking immediately, but sizing up Lu Chen before suddenly asking, "So it was you, you idiot, who stabbed my man with a knife?"
Idiot?
Lu Chen almost retaliated with a slash, but You Haoguo quickly gestured for him to calm down.
Lu Chen let out a slight breath and smiled faintly, "Yes, Boss An, I'm really sorry. I truly regret hitting your man. Here's 50,000 yuan as compensation. Name your terms!"
As he spoke, he took out a bulging small leather bag from his purse, stood up, and handed it to An Caishen.
An Caishen didn't take it, remaining seated with his usual imposing posture.
One of his henchmen snatched the bag, unzipped it, and reported, "Boss, fifty thousand!"
"Fifty thousand?" An Caishen sneered, waving his hand. "Keep it!"
Then he turned to Lu Chen and said, "Fifty thousand, huh? That's just a small compensation! Kid, you beat up my man, you're slapping my face. The worse you beat him, the more you slap my face! And this happened on the street! If word gets out, where will I put my 'God of Wealth' face? Huh?"
He slapped his own fat face.
One of his henchmen shouted, "Boss, he beat Brother Knife so badly, we have to teach him a lesson! Chop off both his hands!"
"Yeah! Chop off his hands!"
"Not just chop off his hands, damn it, take an iron bar and smash his hands and arms to pieces!"
"Haha, that would be awesome!"
The group of guys were acting recklessly. After they finished spouting a bunch of harsh words, You Haoguo and Zhong Qitao's faces turned ashen. An Caishen then raised his hand: "What do you mean? Didn't you see two police officers here? That's incredibly rude! Apologize to the officers right now!"
So, the seven or eight henchmen all saluted and bowed to Director You and the squad leader, chuckling and apologizing to the officers. They were utterly insincere.
"That's right! When you're in the underworld, you have to be polite to the police, you have to salute! Aren't you afraid of going to jail? Look at the faces of these two officers, like they've just suffered some misfortune. Don't underestimate the police!"
An Caishen chuckled, his arrogance making Lu Chen want to punch him more and more.
Then, An Caishen looked at Lu Chen, his eyes full of mockery: "Kid, don't worry, I'll let you off the hook for the sake of the two officers. At least, I won't let you suffer any physical pain. Whoever offends me, An Caishen, I'll make them wish they were dead! However, the fact that you recognized your mistake and actively apologized shows you're... teachable!"
While spouting this nonsense, the food and drinks were brought out one after another.
An Caishen glanced at them: "Oh, all my favorites? Not bad, quite the sincerity, even a crystal skull? Haha! Kids, you're in for a treat tonight, sit down and eat!"
At this call, his men cheered and, without any hesitation, found seats and started eating and drinking. They were so lively, as if they were at home.
Zhong Qitao couldn't help but snort angrily, feeling extremely displeased.
An Caishen suddenly stood up, turned, and walked out, saying as he went, "Alright, I've come to see you, that's giving you face. Kid, take good care of my brothers. As for the conditions, someone will talk to you. You can think about it tonight and give me an answer tomorrow, but if you can't meet them, hehe..."
He didn't finish, the threat was strong.
You Haoguo quickly stood up: "Boss An, aren't you going to eat something?"
An Caishen chuckled: "No time, your leaders still need me to keep them company!"
Zhong Qitao suddenly spoke up: "An Caishen, aren't you afraid of regretting your arrogance?"
An Caishen paused slightly, then laughed: "Captain Zhong, what you're saying is utterly foolish! I could say a few words about you to your leaders and you'd be in big trouble! Besides, do you have the right to make me regret it?"
Zhong Qitao froze, his face darkening.
An Caishen left, while his seven or eight men stayed behind to eat and drink. You Haoguo and Zhong Qitao exchanged glances. You Haoguo could only manage a wry smile, while Zhong Qitao growled in a low voice, "Damn it, this is infuriating! This is outrageous!"
Lu Chen said calmly, "It's alright. Look how happily everyone's eating. Come on, let's eat too!"
As he spoke, he picked up his chopsticks and took a piece of braised shiitake mushroom.
Zhong Qitao suddenly chuckled, "Tsk tsk, An Caishen, the higher he puts himself, the harder he'll fall. Just wait! His bad days are just around the corner."
A thug suddenly looked up, "What the hell did you say?"
Zhong Qitao had many reservations about dealing with An Caishen, but dealing with this small fry was no problem for him at all. He glared fiercely at Zhong Qitao: "Are you tired of living? Talking to me like that? Believe me or not, I'll take you to the station right now!"
Just as the thug was about to lash out, the one next to him nudged his arm and said impatiently, "Eat up, eat up. The boss said to respect officers. Stop with the nonsense!"
The thug laughed and saluted Zhong Qitao again: "Officer, excuse me, but if I salute you and then fart, it'll stink!"
Zhong Qitao couldn't help but jump up, but Lu Chen held his hand down.
Lu Chen shook his head: "Captain Zhong, don't bother with these punks."
Zhong Qitao smiled and nodded: "That makes sense. But my years of experience as a police officer tell me I'm about ready to handle these punks, after you deal with the big one."
Lu Chen was taken aback: "I don't have that kind of ability."
Zhong Qitao winked and remained silent. Without further ado, he snatched the dish the waiter had just brought, placed it in front of him, and started eating. While eating, he muttered, "Damn it, I was already hungry from working on the case, and now I'm even hungrier from this anger. I'm eating too! You two, eat up! It's free food! I'm thinking, in a few days, these kids eating with me will be my prisoners. I can't be happier! Haha!"
The kids rolled their eyes, thinking it was just a bluff.
After finishing most of their food, one of the thugs gulped down a large glass of crystal skull, then pulled out a piece of paper, glanced at Lu Chen sideways, and said, "Hey kid, listen up, these are the conditions our boss is offering!"
Then he read it aloud in a serious tone.
As he read, Lu Chen sneered, Zhong Qitao scoffed that he was courting death, and You Haoguo was both amused and exasperated.
Three conditions—what a rip-off!
The first was a one million yuan compensation; the second was that Caishen Hall would receive 20% of all future revenue from Moon's Tooth Pastry Shop, based on turnover, not profit; and the third, and this was the one that truly ignited Lu Chen's murderous intent! That bastard An Caishen knew the female owner of Moon's Tooth Pastry Shop was beautiful, and actually said he wanted to be friends with her for three days every month.
Be friends for three days every month? Even a fool could see what that meant!
"This is outrageous!" Even You Haoguo couldn't stand it anymore. "Isn't this trying to bankrupt them?"
The thug grinned like a grotesque old man. "Our boss said there are only three conditions, and they must be met. If you can't, fine, you can forget about opening a shop, at least not in Yunzhou City. If you beat up our brothers, don't expect anything good to come of it! Otherwise, how will Caishentang maintain its foothold in Yunzhou City?"
"Anyway, we have one night to consider it. Tomorrow morning, we'll go to Yuezhiya to hear the results. If we're not satisfied, hehe… brothers, let's eat and drink our fill and go!"
He waved his hand, and everyone scurried off.
You Haoguo stared in disbelief: "This An Caishen, he really thinks he can do whatever he wants just because he's best buddy with Director Yang, right?" He then looked apologetically at Lu Chen: "Little Lu, I'm so sorry, I've really messed up! I thought that bastard would at least give me some face, but I didn't expect..."
"It's alright!"
The one who said those two words was actually Zhong Qitao.
Old Zhong looked at Lu Chen, his face beaming: "Chen, just because the tiger doesn't roar doesn't mean you're a sick cat! Strike while the iron is hot, I'll be waiting to reap the benefits."
After leaving Jufushan Villa, Lu Chen politely declined You Haoguo's offer to drive him home and took a taxi himself. He said he needed to go back to the shop to tidy up before resuming work tomorrow.
You Haoguo drove Zhong Qitao back. In the car, he couldn't help but ask curiously, "Old Zhong, you were so mysterious tonight! What did you mean by all those things you said? Does Xiao Lu have some trump card... that can deal with An Caishen?"
Zhong Qitao nodded. "That's right. An Caishen is too greedy. This time he's finally messed with someone he shouldn't have. Old You, just wait and see, he's almost certainly finished."
You Haoguo was skeptical. He said, "But Director Yang is backing An Caishen up. Surely even Director Yang can't afford to offend that trump card?"