Chapter 73: Countering Moves with Countermeasures

“Very good!” Xiao Ran took out his checkbook again, wrote out a check, and handed it to Scarface. “This money is for you. Don’t refuse it. Try to secure a better position for yourself in the gang. Also, life in the underworld is dangerous—keep some money for your family! Next time, just call me Brother Ran. Don’t always use ‘Boss Xiao’; it makes me sound too opportunistic.”
“Thank you, Brother Ran!” Scarface was deeply grateful to Xiao Ran, even moved, because in the underworld, one spends whatever money they earn that day. To get a settlement fund, one would have to undertake some life-threatening missions, so most people in the underworld were poor. Yet as a boss, Xiao Ran still cared about his family—how could he not be grateful?
“Go now! If you hear anything, you can contact Guan Xin; he can make the decisions.” Xiao Ran nodded at Scarface with a smile, displaying an unconscious blend of kindness and authority.
“Yes, Brother Ran!” Scarface nodded respectfully to both Xiao Ran and Guan Xin before leaving, leaving only Xiao Ran and Guan Xin behind.
“Ah Ran, you’ve done well. You’re showing the demeanor of a high-ranking figure!” Guan Xin nodded in approval at Xiao Ran. Xiao Ran chuckled awkwardly and touched his nose. In fact, Xiao Ran was already somewhat famous; wherever he went, there were always those of lower status who flattered him. If he continued to act as before—cheerful yet uncontrollable—that would be hopeless.
“He really respects you. Trustworthy!” Before Xiao Ran could speak, Guan Xin made a judgment. “But I advise you not to get involved in the underworld. With your intelligence, you must have figured out how the Chinese government will deal with underworld figures after 1997!”
“Master, don’t worry. I have a plan!” Xiao Ran was now very different from before the yacht incident. Back then, he would have hesitated, but now he spoke confidently, showing the beginnings of a tycoon’s demeanor. “Some things don’t need to be done personally by the one in charge. Don’t you think, Master?”
Guan Xin was stunned for a moment before laughing. “You’re trying to figure out my background again. Let me tell you—it’s impossible for me to reveal it to you.”
Xiao Ran shrugged nonchalantly with a laugh. Anyway, he was sure of one thing: Guan Xin must be from the mainland, and his status seemed quite high. In short, one word described him—mysterious.
Don’t ask why Xiao Ran trusted Guan Xin. It could be intuition, or perhaps he had a hunch. Or maybe Guan Xin didn’t need to set such a complex trap to play with him. After all, with Guan Xin’s skills, destroying Xiao Ran would be effortless, Xiao Ran was convinced.
In the office of the Shadow’s boss and general manager, Xiao Ran, Wei Dongling, and Liang Kun—present as a underworld advisor—discussed how to handle this situation. Of course, Xiao Ran didn’t reveal his source of information to Liang Kun.

Xiao Ran and the others discussed for a long time but couldn’t come up with a good solution. Forcing things wouldn’t work—no matter how skilled Guan Xin was, it would be difficult for him to take on dozens of armed men. Giving in was even worse; Xiao Ran certainly didn’t want to lose the advantage he had worked so hard to build.

“I’m really curious—who could possibly make Lian Shengying’s elder brother make such a rule-breaking decision? That’s a serious taboo!” Liang Kun still couldn’t figure it out and said after pondering for a moment.

“Rules, rules!” Xiao Ran had heard Liang Kun mention the rules of the underworld countless times that day. Suddenly, he had an idea—perhaps a good one. He looked at Liang Kun and asked, “Brother Kun, what happens if the rules of the underworld are broken?”

“The underworld is an underground society, completely different from what ordinary people see, but it still has one thing in common—rules!” Liang Kun was puzzled by why Xiao Ran would ask a question he had already explained many times. “As the saying goes, every family has its own rules, and every industry has its own regulations. Without rules, order in the underworld can’t be maintained. So, the rules must not be broken!”

“Nobody dares to break the rules because that would make them a disruptor of order, leading to absolutely unpredictable consequences!” Liang Kun explained clearly. Rules were rules—no matter when, as long as you were part of this world, you couldn’t break them. Unless… you set the rules yourself.

“Are there any special circumstances?” Xiao Ran kept pressing this question because he suddenly had a good idea. “I think this is very important.”

“Special circumstances do exist. For example, if you inform the police about Lian Shengying’s elder brother, that means you’ve made an enemy of him, and then he can use any means to deal with you—this is allowed under the rules!” Liang Kun shrugged like Xiao Ran had, but realized he didn’t have that same carefree attitude.

At this point, Liang Kun was utterly confused. “But I think you, boss, haven’t offended anyone from Lian Shengying’s group. Theoretically, there’s no possibility of enmity. According to you, someone behind the scenes is instigating Lian Shengying to do this, but that doesn’t conform to the rules. He can send people to attack you, burn down your house, or even kill your whole family, but he shouldn’t make a fuss over protection money!”

Attack him? Kill his whole family? Xiao Ran’s heart skipped a beat, then he laughed—a cold laugh. He thought he understood what Wang Yang wanted to do to him: just toy with him to vent his resentment. Since he and Wang Yang didn’t have any major grudges, killing wasn’t an option.

After hearing this, Xiao Ran’s thoughts gradually took shape. After pondering for a while, he said to Liang Kun, “Brother Kun, what would happen if other gangs in the underworld found out about collecting protection money?”

Guan Xin, who had been listening, nodded again. He thought Xiao Ran was quite smart. Wei Dongling also smiled; he thought he understood what Xiao Ran meant. Liang Kun, still confused, told Xiao Ran, “Then Lian Shengying will definitely be suppressed by other gangs. If even the police find out, it’ll be hard to operate in the underworld for a while!”

Xiao Ran had no intention of troubling the police; matters within the underworld should be resolved through underworld means, otherwise he would never be able to carry weight in it in the future. So, he laughed heartily, rubbing his nose: “Brother Kun, don’t you understand what I mean? Find someone to spread this news. Then I’ll see how Lian Shengying can act recklessly!”

With Xiao Ran’s reminder, Liang Kun also realized it and immediately broke into a smile. As someone from the underworld, he understood better than Xiao Ran the effectiveness of this approach. It simply involved leading gangs like Xin Yi An issuing a stern warning to Lian Shengying and preventing them from deploying significant forces during this period. Lian Shengying surely wouldn’t be foolish enough to attack Mei Ying Company knowing full well that the matter would blow up.

However, things took a turn far beyond their expectations. Thanks to Liang Kun’s efforts, by the next day, in nightclubs, taxi stands, boxing gyms, and bus stations—every place where gang members gathered—there were rumors about Lian Shengying breaking the rules by demanding a huge protection fee from a film company.

Exaggeratorically, these rumors gave rise to several others that Xiao Ran favored. For example, at the bus station, two drivers waiting to take shifts chatted, “I heard Lian Shengying attacked a film company yesterday and dared to demand two hundred thousand in protection fees!”

“Nonsense! It’s not two hundred thousand—it’s three hundred thousand!” the other middle-aged driver said with a mysterious smile. “And do you want to know the name of that film company?”

“What is it?” the first driver snapped. “Damn it, stop teasing me!”

“Let me tell you—do you know who Xiao Ran is?” The bus driver spoke in a hushed, secretive tone, just like someone sent by Xiao Ran to spread the word. “It’s the one whose movies all gross over twenty million. It’s his newly established film company. What’s its name?”

“It’s called Mei Ying!” the first driver replied dismissively, nodding at the other driver. “You don’t even know that? How are you still around? I really don’t understand how Xiao Ran offended Lian Shengying. Lian Shengying is also really foolish for breaking the rules—this time he’s in big trouble!”

If Xiao Ran were there, he would surely be amused. He knew his movies didn’t all gross over twenty million—at least “Happy Ghost Meets Ghost” only made fifteen million. It was just the average figure that was high. With these drivers praising him so much, he saved a lot on image maintenance costs.

Through the vast transportation network and the underworld’s secret communication channels, this news quickly became well-known in all the major gang territories across Hong Kong. They were all shocked—how could a small-time figure like Lian Shengying dare to break the underworld rules? He was simply reckless.

What was Lian Shengying’s older brother, Gu Long, doing? He was pacing frantically in the office of the nightclub, so anxiously that it made the other person’s eyes blur. Unable to bear it any longer, they said, “Gu Long, can you stop moving around?”

“Young Master Wang, we’ve really gotten into big trouble this time!” Regarding this Young Master Wang, Gu Long dared not speak out in anger and could only speak humbly, “It won’t be long before other gangs send people to investigate this matter. By then, I’ll be in even bigger trouble! Maybe you’d better go back first!”
“Of course I’m going back. Do you think I’d stay in a place like this?” Wang Yang glanced at Gu Long with hatred in his heart. “What’s there to fear? I don’t believe anyone has any evidence. When they come to investigate, just say it never happened. Otherwise, do you think Xin Yi An can control everything on its own? Don’t forget—Lian Ying is backing you from behind!”
Hearing about Lian Ying, Gu Long felt much more relieved. After all, Lian Sheng Ying was a branch of Lian Ying, and the leadership surely wouldn’t sit idly by while its branch faced trouble. Xin Yi An was powerful too—Lian Ying was also one of the most influential gangs in Hong Kong. It wasn’t certain who was more powerful.
After comforting Gu Long, Wang Yang stomped angrily on the ground. He had originally intended to teach Xiao Ran a lesson, to make him suffer a bit and see him in a sorry state. But he never expected Xiao Ran to be such a tough opponent. At this thought, Wang Yang became furious.
That day at sea, he hadn’t dared to touch Fang Ruoxin either, as she wasn’t someone easy to deal with. He had planned to give himself a chance to pursue her before abandoning her. But soon after Xiao Ran showed up, Fang Ruoxin asked to go back, and after that, she refused to see him again.
How could Wang Yang swallow this insult? Moreover, he remembered that Xiao Ran was there when he failed miserably in pursuing Lin Qingxia. Although Wang Yang wasn’t some great person, he wasn’t completely hopeless either—he could at least use some tricks. Yet things turned out like this, leaving him filled with regret.
Before he could leave, two people came to visit Gu Long one after another. Gu Long knew both of them—one was the leader of Thirteen K, and the other was Xiang Qing’s advisor from Xin Yi An. Neither was easy to deal with.