Chapter 85

After walking for a long distance, they finally saw Jiang Sen standing under the eaves, peering ahead with one foot lifted, and Dong Xinlei bent over beside him. Xie Wendong told the driver to stop and handed him 2,000 yuan. The driver, who had looked worried before, immediately became beaming and kept thanking him.

Jiang and Dong led Xie Wendong into the bungalow. There were five or six brothers inside who quickly got up to greet him.

Xie Wendong took in the place. It looked shabby from the outside, but the interior was fairly well-furnished, though a bit messy. He asked, “Did you rent this place?”

Jiang Sen snapped, “At first, we wanted to rent it, but Lao Lei refused, saying that even though it’s just a temporary place, we can’t be careless. So we bought it instead!”

“Oh!” Xie Wendong thought of Jin Peng’s villa. It seemed Dong Xinlei was used to spending money in the Hongmen. Fortunately, he hadn’t bought a villa as large as the old man’s. Smiling, he said, “It’s good that we bought it. From now on, we can use this as a secret base. Lao Sen, tell me about your ambush plan!”

Jiang Sen nodded and took out a sketch from the side, laying it on the table. He pointed to various parts while explaining. Xie Wendong leaned in to take a close look, nodding repeatedly. After Jiang Sen finished, Xie Wendong thought it over and found nothing amiss. Nodding, he said, “Okay, let’s go ahead with this plan!”

At that moment, there was a knock at the door. Jiang Sen instinctively pulled out his gun and looked at Xie Wendong. Dong Xinlei waved his hand and said, “It might be my men!” Then he went outside. At the door, he asked, “Who is it?”

A deep voice came from outside, “Lao Xiang, it’s me! I’ve brought the goods!” “Lao Xiang” was slang in the underworld, meaning boss.

Dong Xinlei turned back and nodded at Xie Wendong and Jiang Sen, signaling that it was his people and there was no need to worry. Jiang Sen relaxed and put away his gun. When the door was opened, two men stood outside. Xie Wendong remembered them—one was called Jin Yan, and the other Mu Zi. Both carried large sacks inside. Jiang Sen was puzzled and asked, “What’s in these? They seem quite heavy!”

Dong Xinlei laughed, “You’ll know once we’re inside! Hehe!”

They went back inside, and Dong Xinlei told the two men to open the sacks. Inside were guns and other items, mostly pistols, along with Swiss Army knives, grenades, walkie-talkies, and more. Dong Xinlei pulled out a long box from one of the sacks, placed it on the table, and opened it. From inside, he took out a nearly one-meter-long, all-black rifle. Jiang Sen, who had military experience, immediately recognized the rifle’s origin and exclaimed in surprise, “Is this a Type 95 sniper rifle?”

In 1998, the Type 95 sniper rifle was still rare in the military; at that time, the Type 79 sniper rifle was the most common.

Dong Xinlei wiped the gun and smiled, saying, “Good eyesight—exactly the 95 model!” Then he handed it to Jiang Sen. The latter took the gun and inwardly praised it. He had only seen it in photos before; this was his first time holding it. The 95 was considered one of the best domestically produced guns in China at that time. He wondered, “Old Lei, how did you get this gun? It shouldn’t be common in the military these days!”
“As long as you have connections, nothing is impossible. I could even get you a tank! Haha, just no ammunition!”
Jiang Sen understood he was referring to the relationship between the Hongmen and the military and felt envious. He said to Xie Wendong, “Brother Dong, I wonder when we’ll be able to reach the level of the Hongmen!”
Xie Wendong smiled and replied, “Maybe in ten years, or maybe twenty. Growing strong sometimes also requires luck and opportunity!”
“You’re right, Brother Dong!” Dong Xinlei said. “The North Hongmen has achieved what it has today through the efforts of several generations of leaders over decades…” Remembering the old man’s instructions, he didn’t finish his sentence. Jin Peng intended for Xie Wendong to take his place, but he had never voiced it outright. Whether Xie Wendong could shoulder such a heavy responsibility depended on his ability to rise above the chaos in City H.
Xie Wendong hadn’t thought about these things, nor did he know that Jin Peng had secretly designated him as the successor of the North Hongmen. After hearing Dong Xinlei’s words, he said proudly, “Others might not be able to, but I’m Xie Wendong—nothing is impossible for me!”
Dong Xinlei was secretly shocked. Xie Wendong’s words were somewhat exaggerated, but after spending some time with him, Dong Xinlei felt that nothing Xie Wendong said was unachievable. He thought to himself that perhaps under Xie Wendong’s leadership, the Hongmen could truly regain its former glory.
Two days later, at 2 p.m., the sky was clear, though cold winds blew from time to time. The winds from the northeast were fierce—thick coats would become permeable to the cold with just a gust, bringing a bone-chilling sensation. In the alleys near the Fire Red Nightclub, there stood over a dozen people, all dressed in black suits.
Xie Wendong was among them. He checked his watch, touched the pistols at his back, and adjusted his outfit again, ensuring nothing was amiss. Then he said to Jiang Sen, “Old Sen, are the brothers all ready?”
Hearing this, Jiang Sen picked up the phone and dialed several numbers in a row. Finally, he showed Xie Wendong three fingers to signal OK!
Xie Wendong took a deep breath and said, “Let’s go!”

More than a dozen people came out of the alley together, reached into their chests, secretly took out pistols, and began their revenge against the Soul Group. The group entered directly through the fiery red gate. It was Xie Wendong’s first time there, and he was unfamiliar with the surroundings. After taking a close look, he found it roughly the same as the sketch drawn by Jiang Sen.

Nightclubs are usually busy at night, with only a few customers during the day, but today was different. There were many men and women sitting in the hall, with laughter and noise coming from time to time. The waiter was surprised to see another dozen people enter and thought to himself, “What’s going on today?” He quickly stepped forward and asked, “How many gentlemen? Would you like a private room?”

Xie Wendong didn’t say anything and just walked over. Jiang Sen approached the waiter with a smile and said, “Give me a large private room and bring over more than a dozen girls!”

Although it wasn’t a strict crackdown period, anti-prostitution efforts were still intense. The waiter glared at Jiang Sen, thinking to himself, “What an idiot. There’s no way to ask for girls like this.” He forced a smile and said, “I’m sorry, sir. We don’t have any girls here. Please go sit in the private room for now. I’ll find some girls to sing with you…”

Before he could finish speaking, Jiang Sen slapped him across the face. “Damn it! Stop acting like you know something! I want girls today. Get lost!”

The waiter’s nose and mouth started bleeding, and he nearly fainted from the pain. He had never suffered such humiliation before. Filled with anger, he pointed at Jiang Sen’s nose and cursed, “I swear to God, you’re here to cause trouble, right?” Then he turned around and shouted, “Brother Luo, someone’s trying to ruin the place!”

Jiang Sen chuckled. “Ruin the place? I’ll ruin you first!” With that, he pulled out a military knife and stabbed it into the waiter’s lower abdomen. Jiang Sen moved so fast, and the waiter was completely unprepared, so he was stabbed right in the heart. The waiter screamed in pain, clutching his abdomen as he stumbled back several steps, colliding head-on with Brother Luo who was coming from behind. Brother Luo, who was about 1.8 meters tall, thin, with a long face full of pockmarks, grabbed the retreating waiter and snapped, “What’s the fuss? What happened?”

The waiter looked back at Brother Luo in despair before slowly collapsing to the ground. Only then did Brother Luo see that the waiter’s white shirt was completely soaked in blood, with white strips still emerging from it. The other customers in the hall screamed and scattered in all directions, but they couldn’t escape as Jiang Sen and his men blocked the exit.

Brother Luo looked up at Jiang Sen, who was smiling, his dagger covered in blood.

“Hmph! Not bad!” Luo Ge slowly pulled out his pistol from his back waist, and the dozen or so men following him also tried to draw their guns. Seeing that they couldn’t get out through the main door, the guests inside rushed toward Luo Ge, crowding around him. Filled with rage, Luo Ge shouted, “Damn it, get away from me!” But no one listened to him; the crowd grew denser. Realizing this was unfavorable for him, he was about to fire a warning shot at those pressing in when suddenly he felt a chill in his chest, as if all his strength had been drained. His hand holding the gun loosened involuntarily. He slowly lowered his head—two-inch-wide dagger pierced his chest. Following the direction of the dagger, he raised his head to look at its owner: a face devoid of expression, a woman whose appearance was utterly ordinary.

“Ah!~~~” Luo Ge let out his final roar. Pushing the woman aside, he turned to look at his men. Their fates were similar to his—each was killed by members of the secret group hidden in the crowd. Some didn’t even understand what was happening before being stabbed in vital areas. Luo Ge lay stiff on the ground, still convulsing, his eyes wide open as he watched one after another step over his body. Finally, the last person leaned down near his face and muttered, “You really are good at surviving!” With that, she pulled out a dagger and slashed his neck viciously…

Xie Wendong led his men up the stairs in big strides. Just then, two men in their thirties came down. Seeing Xie Wendong and his group, they were stunned and spoke broken Chinese, “What are you guys doing here?”

Xie Wendong stepped forward urgently and said, “There’s a murder downstairs! Run!” Then he ran upstairs, with the others following.

The two men quickly grabbed Xie Wendong, “The upstairs is private property. You can’t go in.”

Xie Wendong cursed, “Damn it, you’re so annoying!” Then he swiftly pulled out a black pistol with a silencer and shot the man holding him by the head. The man fell to the ground without a sound. The other man, seeing this, tried to draw his gun when suddenly a dozen guns were pointed at his head. Sensibly, he raised his hands high, thinking he had been ambushed and needed to call his boss immediately!

Just as he was about to speak softly to buy time, Xie Wendong, unwilling to waste time or manpower on him, waved his hand. Everyone understood—over a dozen guns fired almost simultaneously, instantly filling the air with blood mist.

By then, Jiang Sen had cleared the downstairs area and came up with his men, joining forces with Xie Wendong.

Xie Wendong said quickly, “Lao Sen, clean the second floor! Make it clean!” Then he led Jin Yan and the other Five Elements brothers up to the third floor. Once there, the six of them headed straight for the office at the end of the corridor. Jiang Sen had already found out that the leader of the Soul Group in City H was in that room.

The third floor was quiet; the chaos on the first floor didn’t seem to reach here. The group took out their pistols and tiptoed slowly toward the end of the corridor, not wanting to alert the enemy prematurely. Halfway there, gunshots rang out from the second floor, followed by screams—Chinese, Japanese, gunshots, and cries of pain all mixed together. Xie Wendong muttered, “Damn it,” and signaled the five of them to run quickly toward the office at the end.

As expected, the members of the Soul Group on the third floor heard the gunshots from the second floor and came out of their rooms armed. These were well-trained experts who showed no signs of panic. Xie Wendong nodded at the five of them, then dashed to the office door in two strides, kicked it open, and stepped in.

Behind them, Jin, Mu, Shui, Huo, and Tu raised their guns and fired at the Soul Group members who had just come out. All of them were killers by profession, but the Five Elements brothers took advantage of the surprise, knocking down five of them in an instant. Each of those who fell was shot once, but in vital areas, killing them on the spot.

Realizing they had been ambushed, the Soul Group members didn’t fire a single shot and quickly retreated back into the room without even seeing how many enemies there were. The five Five Elements brothers stood motionless in the corridor, guns held out at full length. Like five statues, they were, to the Soul Group members, five death gods.