Chapter 77: Middle East Peace Talks

Xiang Qiang left to convey Xiao Ran’s message to Lian Ying and facilitate these negotiations. Xiao Ran maliciously speculated that Xiang Qiang’s enthusiasm was likely driven by his desire to exploit Lian Shengying’s violation of the rules to strike back at Lian Ying.
“It’s definitely dangerous for you to go. It’s better to let someone else negotiate on your behalf!” Lin Qingxia showed concern; Xiao Ran always made her worried. Yet every time she saw him take risky actions, she became overly anxious. She couldn’t help mocking herself as foolish, as if she were a naive first-love girl. But love was indeed something that could make people act foolish.
Zhong Chuhong was very smart, one of the few intelligent people in the film industry. After thinking for a while, she said, “I think Ah Ran should go. Otherwise, if this matter drags on, Lian Ying definitely won’t give up.”
“Don’t worry, I have a plan!” Xiao Ran glanced at the others, then at Fa Ge, stepped on tiptoes to pat his shoulder, smiled lightly, and turned to Guan Xin. “They may not want to continue the conflict. There are other gangs eyeing this area, and I don’t want to prolong it either. Things need to be clarified face to face!”
Chunlai Teahouse, though named as a teahouse, was actually a restaurant—not a place for long periods of tea tasting. This was the negotiation site chosen by Ghost King Dong. When Xiang Qiang told Xiao Ran the location, he looked somewhat troubled.
Xiang Liangkun inquired and quickly realized that Chunlai Teahouse was actually owned by Lian Ying. In short, it was Lian Ying’s territory. Xiao Ran was uneasy at first but calmed down when he saw Guan Xin’s unwavering smile.
With a quick analysis, he knew there would be no danger in this trip. After all, he had just become the most prominent figure in Hong Kong. If he were killed right there at Chunlai Teahouse, even the governor wouldn’t be able to handle the consequences.
Moreover, Xiang Qiang and the members of Thirteen K would be present. Xiao Ran doubted Ghost King Dong would dare attack both such important figures at once. If he were killed, the police would first target Lian Ying, and with the two major gangs involved, Lian Ying would hardly survive.
With these thoughts, Xiao Ran went to the meeting calmly—of course, accompanied by Guan Xin, his strange middle-aged figure who acted as both mentor and bodyguard. Chunlai Teahouse was not open to the public today, at least not at night. Outside the teahouse, Xiao Ran saw some gang members smoking by the road—likely people prepared in advance by Thirteen K and Sun Yee On.
“Quite cautious,” Xiao Ran mocked secretly. The teahouse seemed quiet. He had expected many Lian Ying members here, but it was surprisingly empty. Realizing that the people he saw on the street were divided into three groups, he understood why.
Upon reaching the second floor, he immediately spotted Ghost King Dong. In his forties, Ghost King Dong was still strong, and his posture alone exuded an air of authority. At other tables sat several fierce-looking men, adding to the tense atmosphere.

At another table, there was another group of people, with a rather sharp-looking man leading them. Xiao Ran guessed he was from the 13K gang, so he stepped forward and introduced the two groups to Qiang. As Xiao Ran had suspected, the man in his forties was Ghost King Dong.

Once both sides were seated, Qiang crossed his arms and said coldly, “Since everyone’s here, let’s get started!”

“Xiao Ran, right?” Ghost King Dong, who had been smiling casually, suddenly turned his smile into a sneer. “I’m really curious to know what kind of big shot you are to dare ask me to come here in person!”

“I certainly can’t be called a big shot!” Xiao Ran smiled cheerfully. He felt that the fact he could force Ghost King Dong, the leader of a major gang, to appear here proved he had what Ghost King Dong wanted. “But I’m worried that someone of lower rank might not be able to make decisions. I guess the only one in your gang who can really make decisions is Brother Dong!”

Ghost King Dong was momentarily stunned, then laughed lightly. “So you think your status is comparable to mine?! Hah!”

That snort clearly showed his status as a leader, subtly implying that Xiao Ran wasn’t qualified to talk to him. Xiao Ran found this even funnier. After all that pretense, they still had to sit down and talk. “Indeed, I can’t compare to Brother Dong, because we’re not in the same business. If it weren’t for showing respect to Brother Qiang, I might not even be sitting here today.”

“What did you say?” A few men behind Ghost King Dong immediately jumped up and glared at Xiao Ran. The scene wasn’t much different from negotiations in movies, showing that many Hong Kong films draw inspiration from real life.

“I meant, anyway, since we’re here, let’s just talk things through!” Xiao Ran dismissed them with disdain. He thought these gangsters were utterly contemptible, but he still wore a faint smile on his face. “Otherwise, do we really have time to argue? Or maybe Brother Dong could just settle this quickly.”

“Good, you’ve got guts!” After several tests, Ghost King Dong gradually began to admire Xiao Ran. “I’ll talk to you today. Tell me how you want to do it!”

“Negotiations are just about discussing each other’s conditions!” Xiao Ran knew Ghost King Dong wanted to get back his men from Lianshengying, but that was enough for him to use as leverage. He turned to look at Liang Kun. “Brother Kun, given Lianshengying’s ways, do you think I have the right and reason to keep them?”

“Of course, boss. Gu Long and the others broke the rules and even sent people to hurt you. By any set of rules in this business, that’s absolutely unacceptable!” Liang Kun explained respectfully to Xiao Ran. He now admired Xiao Ran greatly—someone who clearly didn’t understand martial arts yet had the courage to negotiate with Ghost King Dong, and he seemed to be doing it quite well too.

Xiao Ran said nothing more, just spread his hands in a helpless gesture toward Ghost King Dong. Ghost King Dong sneered. These days, even lowly people had gotten bold—someone from the film industry dared to speak to him like that.

But Ghost King Dong was also helpless. The police’s previous crackdowns weren’t jokes—there were rumors in the underworld that the boss of Shadow Company had powerful connections. Ghost King Dong was only half convinced, but the police launched a massive operation as soon as something happened to Xiao Ran, so it might not be unrelated after all.

Moreover, the previous protests by major film companies and artists were also triggered by Xiao Ran. Ghost King Dong just couldn’t believe it and had to be on guard against whatever tricks Xiao Ran might have up his sleeve. Besides, he wanted to get back his men from Lian Shengying, so he had to negotiate in person—and do so amicably. Otherwise, if it were someone else who dared speak to him like Xiao Ran, he wouldn’t need to get his hands dirty; someone else would have already taken care of them on the spot.

“Rules are made by people!” After saying this, Ghost King Dong paused for a second before looking at Xiao Ran and saying grandly, “I’ll give you Bone Dragon—do whatever you want with him. The others, give them back to me!”

Xiao Ran didn’t intend to let Scar be buried too. Most importantly, he didn’t want to offend Lian Shengying because of this. Still, he had to gain something—perhaps to establish his authority. His faint smile gradually turned into a cold one as he tapped the table rhythmically, creating an indescribable sense of pressure.

Xiang Qiang and the men from Thirteen K also began to feel nervous. Even Ghost King Dong unconsciously grew tense under Xiao Ran’s deliberate atmosphere, feeling that Xiao Ran might not be satisfied with just that. Just then, Xiao Ran spoke up.

“Brother Dong is really straightforward. I can’t afford to lose face either!” Xiao Ran stopped tapping abruptly, his cold smile instantly turning into a bright, sunny one. “Bone Dragon is Brother Dong’s man—do whatever you want with him. I won’t interfere. But those who hurt me that day…”

Thirteen K and Xiang Qiang’s hearts suddenly settled after Xiao Ran’s strange shift in attitude, and Ghost King Dong couldn’t help but secretly breathe a sigh of relief. Of course, they didn’t realize their wills had been taken away by Xiao Ran’s deliberate actions. This was the difference between those with experience and those without, between those who had studied a lot and those who hadn’t.

In fact, they weren’t worried that Xiao Ran would pull some trick—just due to industry norms. Moreover, besides having some influence with the police, Xiao Ran also had a certain impact in the film industry, which wasn’t something they wanted to offend. So, under Xiao Ran’s deliberate actions and their own concern about the matter, they were easily controlled by him.

Ghost King Dong suddenly stood up with a stern face, causing everyone to tense up. After a long while, he let out a domineering laugh. “As expected, you’re straightforward. Just because of that, I like you. I’ll definitely make things right for the mistakes Bone Dragon made. As for those who hurt you, I’ll have them handed over to you within three days at the latest!”

“Thank you, Brother Dong!” Xiao Ran changed his tone. After some internal struggle, he decided to establish his authority. With a strange smile, he said, “But I don’t like having blood on my hands!”

Ghost King Dong was stunned but immediately understood what Xiao Ran meant. Xiao Ran didn’t want to do it himself but hoped Ghost King Dong would help him deal with those guys. As they were talking, footsteps came from the stairs, and Xing Jiafeng appeared before them.

Surprised, Xiao Ran immediately went up to greet him, shouting, “Brother Feng, what brings you here?”

“Haha, I heard you were having tea here with Brother Dong, so I wanted to join in!” Xing Jiafeng laughed heartily before telling Xiao Ran, “It was Gu Long who did this. The person who attacked you wasn’t his orders—it was a guy named Wang Yang! Wang Yang’s father is a wealthy businessman in Taiwan with good connections to some triads. He introduced business deals to Lian Shengying, so Gu Long did such a stupid thing only after getting 500,000 from Wang Yang.”

Xing Jiafeng said this in front of everyone, so everyone heard it clearly. Ghost King Dong and Xiang Qiang immediately realized that Wang Yang must have done this to frame Gu Long. Ghost King Dong slammed his hand on the table and said in a low voice, “Investigate him! Whoever dares to touch my Lian Shengying people is just impatient to die! No matter who his father is, if he breaks my rules, he’s doomed!”

One of his subordinates immediately agreed and left right away. Xiao Ran smiled and said to Xing Jiafeng, “Well then, Brother Feng, I’ve just talked things over with Brother Dong. Let’s release as many of Gu Long’s and Lian Shengying’s people as possible, of course, if it doesn’t cause you trouble!”

Xing Jiafeng thought for a moment. He was indeed angry, but every member of Lian Shengying who had been taken to the police station had already been beaten. Besides, many of them had no evidence, and charging them with serious crimes would just be a waste of the police’s resources. Just as he was about to agree, Ghost King Dong suddenly laughed loudly, “You’re the team leader, right? No need to bother yourself. I have a way to get them out—as long as you don’t make things hard for these guys!”

Xiao Ran was confused. Could it really be like in “Infernal Affairs,” with Ghost King Dong having an undercover agent in the police force? Otherwise, why would he be so sure he could spare Xing Jiafeng and let the people go? Looking at Xing Jiafeng and Xiang Qiang, everyone seemed to think it made perfect sense.

This question was only answered after asking Liang Kun. The answer was simple: gangs have no real power in the official system, so what’s the point of being in the underworld? Most importantly, the British government never intended to leave a well-functioning Hong Kong to the Chinese government. Thus, the existence of gangs was undoubtedly a problem meant to give the Chinese government headaches. With the British government’s deliberate actions, it was inevitable for gangs to grow stronger.