"Boss, are you alright?"
One of Zhu Ba's underlings was supporting him as he moaned non-stop while getting out of the jeep.
After being taught a lesson by Ning Fan, the whole group had returned to town.
"Do I look like I'm alright? Argh! It hurts like hell!" Zhu Ba grimaced in pain as he looked at the underling supporting him, his complexion very unsightly.
His face was a mix of blues and purples, with not a single part of his body left in peace, especially after Liu Dashun was encouraged by Ning Fan to greet him with a steel pipe, Zhu Ba's hatred deepened.
Clutching the backpack that Ning Fan gave him filled with one million, a flicker of greed and gravity passed through Zhu Ba's eyes.
Honestly, that one million wasn't easy to get, having been kicked by Ning Fan and beaten up by Liu Dashun.
Zhu Ba had no intention of keeping the peace just because he took the one million; he was determined to settle the score with Ning Fan and his crew.
Just thinking about how he had been utterly humiliated by that worthless Liu Dashun, Zhu Ba felt a suffocating sense of indignation. To him, it was an immense disgrace!
"Boss Wu is waiting for you inside, are you going in looking ?"
Zhu Ba and his underling were now standing in front of a three-story building—not an uncommon sight in the town, but none were as imposing as this one.
The man inside was Zhu Ba's boss, a guy with some connections, even more ruthless than Zhu Ba. He made a small fortune a few years back and started getting into real estate.
Although his business hadn't expanded much, he had grand plans and aimed to take over the surrounding areas of the town first.
And the piece of land where the solitary village school was located had long been coveted by Zhu Ba's boss.
Zhu Ba had tried to cause trouble there multiple times, failing to get them to agree to sell the land, and this time he was directly sent back beaten.
Looking at himself and his underlings, all in a sorry state, Zhu Ba was on the verge of tears. Then, he pushed away the underling helping him and walked up ahead alone.
"What are you staring at, get your asses up here!"
Zhu Ba turned his head back and glared fiercely at the underlings who were still standing motionless below. He, on the other hand, was holding the backpack in one hand and clutching the handrail with the other, forcing himself to keep going.
Soon, he appeared pitifully in Boss Wu's office.
"Brother Zhu, what happened to you?"
In the office, a middle-aged man wearing a mink stood up. He had a fierce look about him and didn't seem like someone easy to get along with. Now, seeing Zhu Ba's injured and pitiful state, his eyes suddenly flashed coldly.
He was the Local Emperor here, and Zhu Ba was under his protection. Who dared to bully them and beat them to this extent?
With a face full of grief and anger, Zhu Ba walked up to Boss Wu, while his underlings stood at the door with heads bowed and faces full of loss.
"Boss Wu, I ended up all because of that piece of land you wanted!"
"That piece of land? Are you talking about the land from the solitary village school?"
Boss Wu's eyes suddenly shone with cold light, and his tone became fiercely intense.
"Yeah, you don't know, this time those obstinate villagers brought in a fighter. We went over, and they sent us back beaten!"
"You were all taken down by one person?"
Mr. Wu looked at Zhu Ba and his cohort in amazement. If they had been beaten up by a group, he could have believed it, but being trounced by a single person sounded somewhat abnormal.
At that moment, Zhu Ba's face also turned awkward. It was indeed embarrassing to admit that a group of them had been handled by one man.
However, for the sake of revenge, and since Mr. Wu was an insider, Zhu Ba didn't care about losing face and continued, "You have no idea how arrogant that kid was; he didn't take us seriously at all. He even boasted about coming to town to kill us, and you too, Mr. Wu!"
"What did you say?!" Mr. Wu's eyes widened, and it seemed as if a roaring flame ignited in his gaze.
Zhu Ba instinctively swallowed and kept quiet.
Mr. Wu, without any doubt, then roared, "Dare to threaten me, I'll kill him!"
Upon hearing this, Zhu Ba's eyes pivoted, and he whispered, "That kid is arrogant, but he does have some ability. Maybe he got scared in the end. He gave me a million, hoping we wouldn't go after that plot of land in Gu Orphan Village again!"
Zhu Ba did not hide the million from Mr. Wu. He didn't dare to pocket the money all by himself.
If Mr. Wu found out about the million, he would definitely cause trouble for Zhu Ba. That money would have to be handed over eventually, with only a portion returning to his hands.
Zhu Ba opened the backpack with some heartache and spread the money out on the office desk.
This was a million dollars! He wondered how long he would have to work for Mr. Wu to earn a million!
But now, he had to hand it over, and the taste of that was truly bitter.
Mr. Wu looked closely and saw the backpack was full of cash, a shining sea of red. He casually took out a stack and scrutinized it, confirming they were all genuine bills.
"Skilled and generous with a million dollars...," Mr. Wu suddenly sobered up a lot, no longer furiously insisting on killing Ning Fan like before.
Being able to dish out a million and single-handedly take care of Zhu Ba and his gang, Mr. Wu figured the person must have some significant backing.
Suddenly, Mr. Wu found himself in a tricky position since he wasn't clear about Ning Fan's real status.
But he wasn't scared, after all, there's a saying that a mighty dragon can't crush a local snake. As the Local Emperor of the town, Mr. Wu wasn't afraid of Ning Fan as per Zhu Ba's account, but he still needed to be cautious.
"Interesting, able to put up a million just like that. Invite him over, and be polite. Tell him I'm hosting a banquet to apologize for this affair!"
"This, Mr. Wu, what are you—" Zhu Ba's expression changed, thinking Mr. Wu was going to confront Ning Fan, but now he wanted to host a banquet to apologize?
Mr. Wu glared at him with impatience, "You really have a pig's brain. This man must have some clout. Taking money means he's open to negotiation. This invitation, besides figuring out his limits, of course, has other purposes!"
"Ever heard of Liu Bang and Xiang Yu, you fool!"
"Oh, now that you mention it, I get it. It's a Hongmen Banquet, isn't it! You're indeed wise, Mr. Wu. If we can't come to terms, let's make sure the kid won't leave unscathed!"
"Hmph, you finally get it? Now go invite him, quick!" Mr. Wu urged, completely disregarding Zhu Ba's injuries.
"Right now?" Zhu Ba's face took on a pained expression. He was still hurt, after all.
Mr. Wu looked at Zhu Ba and finally sighed, conceding, "Go tomorrow then!"