Chương 190: The Furious Old Du

Lingjiang Gang, Righteousness Hall. A large courtyard was littered with people groaning and screaming in agony! The air was thick with the pungent stench of blood, making it easy to imagine the tragic scene that had unfolded here. A group of the Lingjiang Gang's elite 'Spirit God Guards,' holding punishment staffs and wearing emotionless expressions, were ruthlessly striking down their own gang brothers.

"Whack... Whack..."

"Ah... ah... please... spare my life..." Groans and pleas for mercy echoed continuously, making many onlookers feel unbearable sympathy. Yet, no one dared to step forward and speak a word! Everyone stared anxiously toward the main doors. Inside, the group of Lingjiang Gang Elders and higher-ups weren't faring much better. Staring at their noses, their noses pointing to their hearts, they lowered their heads! No one dared to meet the man-eating gaze of the Gang Leader seated above them.

"First Elder! Have you found any clues from your investigation?!" Du Ruhui's voice was icy cold, squeezed out from between his teeth. He Xuan was reluctant in his heart, but at this moment, he had no choice but to step forward:"Gang Leader, we haven't found any clues yet. The great fire from last night hasn't been completely extinguished even now. Furthermore, it completely incinerated the surrounding buildings and all traces! The possibility of finding anything is infinitesimally small!

However, one thing is certain: this was man-made! All the guards there heard explosions and smelled pungent sulfur right before the massive fire broke out! It is highly likely that someone used a large number of 'Thunderbolt Pills' to destroy our warehouses!" Crash! Du Ruhui angrily smashed the tea table beside him! His fury unabated, he glared around, desperately wanting to find something else to vent his hatred on!

The group of higher-ups wished they could bury themselves deep in the ground out of sight, hurriedly lowering their heads as far as possible!

"Trash!" With nowhere to vent, Old Du cursed furiously. His murderous gaze settled on a person below.

"Elder Li, shouldn't you give us an explanation?!" The slightly thin Li Xu currently shone his pleading eyes around the room. After a moment, seeing no one step forward to speak up for him, he braced himself and stepped forward:"Gang Leader, this... it must be because the culprits' martial arts were too high, which is why the brothers below didn't notice anything!"

"Bastard!" Boom! Li Xu was sent flying backward by a palm strike from Du Ruhui, smashing through the main doors! Fortunately for him, Old Du still exercised some restraint and didn't strike to kill, only causing minor internal injuries. Ignoring everything else, Li Xu hurriedly scrambled up and ran back inside to continue receiving his punishment. He looked incredibly miserable right now, but absolutely no one dared to look or show any reaction! They were as obedient as puppies, staring at their own feet!

"When it's a lucrative job, you all fight tooth and nail for it, spouting beautiful and grand words! Now that something happened, you use this flimsy excuse to brush this chief off?! Have I not enforced the gang rules for so long that you all think I'm easy to bully?!"

"Forgive my sins, Gang Leader! It was this subordinate's mistake! I beg the Gang Leader for punishment!" This time, Li Xu learned his lesson. He honestly knelt down and sincerely admitted his fault. The murderous intent boiling in Du Ruhui's heart was unbearable, but thinking that this guy was still one of his most loyal lackeys, he suppressed the urge to slap him to death!

His mouth couldn't stop roaring:"I gave you hundreds of men, just to guard the docks and a few trivial places like that, and you couldn't even do that right! What do you do all day?! Are you just a bunch of people who only know how to eat, drink, visit prostitutes, and neglect your duties, completely disregarding the words of your Gang Leader?!"

"Forgive my sins, Gang Leader! It is all this subordinate's fault!"

"Of course it's your fault! For culprits to so easily infiltrate and burn our goods without anyone noticing the slightest bit—does this mean that if this father relies on you in the future, one day someone will sneak up to my bed, take my head, and you'll still be out partying somewhere else?!" Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. Cold sweat poured down Li Xu's forehead.

He shot pleading glances at He Xuan and the other Elders for help, but unfortunately, no one dared to stand up for him at this moment! They were all terrified of drawing the fire upon themselves and getting burned!

"Reporting... Gang........" Fortunately for Li Xu, right at this moment, someone came running and shouting from the outer gate. When the person looked inside and saw the situation was grim, he almost peed his pants in fear! The words at the tip of his tongue were involuntarily swallowed back, and he didn't make another sound.

"Speak! If there's any bad news, spit it all out for this chief to hear! I want to see what kind of state you all want to ruin this Lingjiang Gang into!" The messenger originally wanted to shrink back and slip away, but upon meeting Du Ruhui's piercing gaze, he braced himself and spoke tremblingly:"Gang... Gang Leader... My Lords. The Qinghe Hall reports that Vice Hall Master Su Wu had one arm crippled by Song Que! Elder Chu asks... asks... for your venerable self's opinion on how to handle it!" Boom!

Du Ruhui's fury erupted like a volcano! Boiling with rage, he stood up and shattered the chair beneath him, roaring:"You are all a bunch of trash!"

"What? You need me to handle such trivial matters? Should I just set up an altar and worship you all as my ancestors, while I do all the heavy lifting for the gang? Would you like that?!"

"Speak! Is that what you want?!" His qi-infused shout shook the entire Righteousness Hall incessantly.

"We wouldn't dare! Please calm your anger, Gang Leader! We are incompetent!" The group of Lingjiang higher-ups bowed deeply in fear. Li Xu even kowtowed and shouted sincerely.

"Get the hell back! Tell Chu Tianqiu I don't want to hear about this anymore! If he can't handle it, he shouldn't sit in the Elder position! He should immediately step down and yield to someone more capable! I don't need trash like him here!"

"Yes, Gang Leader!" The messenger felt as if he had been granted amnesty! He bowed excitedly and ran for his life, truly afraid that staying any longer would bring undeserved disaster upon him.... Righteousness Hall. After venting his frustration for a while, Du Ruhui finally regained some composure. With a gloomy face, he turned to He Xuan and asked:"How much did we lose this time?"

"To answer the Gang Leader, the loss in materials is approximately one hundred thousand taels! Additionally, causing business to stall and dealing with the aftermath—I estimate the total loss will not be less than one hundred and fifty thousand taels!" Saying this, even for the wealthy Lingjiang Gang, He Xuan couldn't help but wince in pain! Don't look at how Old Lu secretly hoarded a hundred thousand taels and think it's a small amount! Lu Tianxiong was just a special case!

That guy didn't indulge in wining, dining, or taking pills! He only knew how to stuff money into his pants and take it home to admire; that's how he managed to hoard so much! The Lingjiang Gang had a massive enterprise! Their daily expenses were not small! Moreover, the competition among these higher-ups was fierce, and their monthly pill expenses were staggering!

A hundred and fifty thousand taels of silver, along with the chaos at the docks affecting business, was enough to slice a huge chunk of meat off their bodies!

"Bastards!" Du Ruhui wasn't faring any better. Even though he had an estimate, hearing the exact figure still made him burst with anger! Looking around and finding no intact tables or chairs, Old Du roared furiously:"Where is everyone?! Are you blind?! Can't you see all of this father's tables and chairs are broken?!"

"Forgive our sins, Gang Leader! Forgive our sins, Gang Leader!" A group of terrified guards outside frantically apologized, hurriedly bringing in a new set of tables and chairs for him to sit on. Fortunately, Old Du wasn't intending to nitpick. Sitting down, he ordered in a deep voice:"Continue investigating this matter to the very end! Offer a huge reward! Until the culprit is found, you absolutely must not stop! Li Xu, get the hell back and reorganize the docks for me!

If something like this happens again, don't blame me for being ruthless!" Hearing Old Du's voice growing colder by the second, Li Xu couldn't help but shudder! He nodded frantically like a chicken pecking at rice, guaranteeing:"Rest assured, Gang Leader! If anything else happens, I will personally bring my head to see you!"

"Hmph, I hope it doesn't come to that!" Plum Manor. After causing trouble, Boss Song didn't care whether others lived or died. He did what he had to do and went back to his room to close his eyes and rest. It wasn't until early morning, when he stepped out the door, looked up at the sky, and saw Lightning cruising the area as usual that he finally felt truly at ease. Signaling Lightning to descend, he let his separated soul attach to it again.

Only then did Song Que, along with Xiong Ba, Li Xin, the Husky, and the rest of the 'big shots,' get into the carriage and head toward the city. He had secretly stored that batch of military crossbows in his spatial ring last night. Fortunately, his spatial ring had expanded significantly, barely enough to hold all these items! They hadn't traveled far on the official road when they saw Zhong Hong leading a long procession of dozens of people approaching.

"Brother Hong!"

"A'Que! So you all returned to Plum Manor yesterday?"

"Hehe, that's right. Had some things to pack. This is?" Beside Zhong Hong, a middle-aged man seeing him look over hurriedly stepped forward and bowed:"Greetings, Boss Song. This lowly one is Chu Zhong, the foreman of this group of masons."

"Boss Chu is a very well-known foreman in the city! He is also the one who renovated our West City Headquarters. I specifically sought him out to renovate your Plum Manor," Zhong Hong introduced him.

"So it's Foreman Chu! I'll trouble you here then." Boss Song smiled and nodded.

"I wouldn't dare. It is my honor to serve Boss Song!"

"A'Que, while we're at it, if you have any specific requirements, you can tell Boss Chu again." Hearing this, Song Que pondered for a moment before speaking:"Nothing major. Just make the rooms sturdy, clean, and spacious. I won't be living in them, so there's no need for windows and the like. The more secluded, the better." Chu Zhong had already pulled out a small notebook at some point and began taking notes. Waiting for him to finish, he hurriedly guaranteed:"Rest assured, Boss Song!

This lowly one will definitely make you satisfied!"

"Mhm, then I'll trouble Boss Chu! Brother Hong, I'll return to the Gang first." Nodding and bidding them farewell, Song Que's entire 'family' set off towards Qinghe City.