Chapter 119

After sending Vladimir away, Xie Wendong thought about smuggling cars on his way back to the company. He discussed it with Dong Xinlei, saying, “Lao Lei, do you think smuggling cars is feasible?”
Dong Xinlei thought for a while before cautiously responding, “I’m not entirely sure if it’s feasible. It’s better to ask the old man first. Logically, it should be profitable, provided we have the right connections. If we want to scale up as Brother Dong said, we’ll need to establish an automobile company first.”
Xie Wendong lowered his head in deep thought. If he really wanted to get into smuggling, setting up an automobile company as a cover was necessary. But he wasn’t ready to go all in yet. Sighing, he said, “Let’s talk about this later. Let’s head back to the company first.”
“Actually, the cars from the Black Belt gang might not have come through legitimate channels. Most likely, they were stolen, and since it’s hard to sell them locally, they’re trying to push them to us. We can even lower the price significantly. Of course, it depends on Brother Dong’s plans.” After hearing this, Xie Wendong nodded silently.
Back at the company, Xie Wendong first dealt with the pile of documents that had accumulated. After much consideration, he called Jin Peng, who was far away in City T. Jin Peng was very happy to hear from him. After exchanging pleasantries for a while, Xie Wendong recounted in detail his experiences in City H during that period. He felt an indescribable closeness to Jin Peng—the old man wasn’t just his mentor but had also saved his life and helped him a great deal. So, Xie Wendong had nothing to hide from him. When he described the danger he faced when tricked byXia Kui, even someone like Jin Peng, who had gone through many hardships, was shocked. When he talked about taking advantage of the chaos to unify the underworld and wipe out the Tiger Gang in one fell swoop, the old man was thrilled and praised him repeatedly.
After Xie Wendong finished speaking, Jin Peng pondered for a while before saying, “Now that you’ve unified the underworld in City H, what are your plans next? You can’t be satisfied just like this, right?”
Xie Wendong smiled and said, “Old man, it would be lying to say I’m satisfied. City H and Province H pose no real challenges to me anymore. After all, it’s just a province—too small. I want to expand outward and experience bigger things. I want to see how wonderful the outside world is!”

“Hmm, that’s right!” Jin Peng said with satisfaction. “If you want your life to be different, then never stop moving forward. There are many who can become local tyrants, but only a few can truly stand out in the world. How you develop from here depends on your efforts, but I believe you have the ability. But remember one thing—never harm the country! Otherwise, no one can save you. The most important thing in life is to know moderation and not draw too much attention. I won’t say more. Think about how that bandit leader in the Northeast with the same name as you died—maybe you can learn something from that.”

During the war against Japan, there was indeed a man named Xie Wendong in the Northeast. He fought against the Japanese invaders alongside Zhao Shangzhi in the early days and was also a famous anti-Japanese hero. Later, for various reasons, he was expelled from the anti-Japanese forces and turned to the Japanese, becoming a notorious bandit leader in the Northeast. Eventually, he was eliminated by the Communists, and his body was left in City J for several days. The entire city rejoiced, as if it were New Year’s Day. Xie Wendong was familiar with that other Xie Wendong as well. After listening to Jin Peng, he nodded thoughtfully and said, “Thank you for your advice, old man. I’ll remember it. I believe I’ll never reach that point.”

“Hmm!” Jin Peng continued, “As for the Black Belt, I’ve heard of it, but I’ve never dealt with it. Its reputation in Russia isn’t bad, but you still need to be cautious. The relationships between gangs can never be unbreakable—they’re all based on interests. You can trust the Black Belt, but you can’t rely on it completely. It depends on how you handle it. As for smuggling cars, I think it’s feasible. The profits are doubled, and the risks are much lower for you.”

Seeing Jin Peng agree, Xie Wendong made up his mind. He said, “Thank you, old man. I know what to do now.”

Jin Peng smiled and said, “If you have any questions in the future, just ask me! By the way, when are you coming to City T? Don’t forget you promised me.”

Xie Wendong slapped his forehead. He had almost forgotten if Jin Peng hadn’t reminded him. He apologized, “Old man, I’ll definitely go once things settle down here. Don’t worry!”

Jin Peng smiled and instructed, “Don’t forget to bring Rongrong with you.”

Xie Wendong nodded in agreement. After chatting about household matters for a while longer, they hung up. Thinking of Jin Rong, he realized it had been some time since he last saw her. It was almost May now, and the college entrance exams were approaching—she must be very busy. Remembering Jin Rong’s cute appearance, Xie Wendong couldn’t help but chuckle.

Just as Xie Wendong was deep in thought, several knocks at the door interrupted him. Startled, he put away his smile and donned a mask of indifference, saying in a deep voice, “Come in!”
Yu Chao’s tall figure stepped in. Without waiting for Xie Wendong to speak, he found a comfortable spot to sit and frowned, saying, “Brother Dong, where have you been these past few days? The project has been going on for months now, and several companies are ready to buy our floors. I’m busy from morning till night with no free time at all. Working as your manager must mean I’ll live ten years less!” Yu Chao spoke in a pitiful tone.
Seeing Yu Chao’s gaunt face, Xie Wendong knew he had indeed been working hard. He comforted him, “You must know that the underworld is in chaos these days. How could I have time to deal with company matters? Besides, even if I stayed at the company, I wouldn’t be of much help. Having you here puts me at ease.” Xie Wendong paused for a moment before adding with a smile, “Besides, I think you’d be willing to live twenty years less, right?”
“Huh?” Yu Chao looked at Xie Wendong in confusion, not understanding what he meant.
Xie Wendong glanced outside and said with a sly smile, “Don’t you admire my pretty female secretary?”
Yu Chao’s face turned red with embarrassment. He stammered, “Brother Dong, don’t say such nonsense. I don’t have those feelings for Zhang Qing. Besides, she might not even like me. I…”
Xie Wendong nodded knowingly, interrupting Yu Chao’s explanation, “Let’s not talk about that. I know you’ve been working hard. I’ll give you an extra bonus at the end of the month. Let’s discuss what to do after the project is completed—should we sell it or rent it out?”
Yu Chao hesitated for a moment before saying, “I think renting it out would be better than selling it. Selling it might bring immediate profits, but renting it out could earn us much more. That piece of land has great potential once a shopping mall is built on it. It may not show any signs now, but it will surely develop greatly in the future. I trust my judgment.”
Xie Wendong understood the principle of trusting those you employ and doubting those you don’t, especially since Yu Chao was introduced by Old Master Jin! He nodded and said, “Good! This is your responsibility anyway. Go ahead and take charge. You trust your own judgment, and I trust it even more. Haha!”
Yu Chao sighed inwardly. Having such a boss was either a blessing or a curse. Perhaps it was as Old Master Jin had said—he had a charm that could bring others together around him. Yu Chao said helplessly, “Well then! It seems I won’t have much time to rest these days. Sigh!”
Xie Wendong joked, “Do you need me to transfer Zhang Qing to work as your secretary to give you some motivation?”

Yu Chao shook his hand repeatedly and said, “No need, no need! If she were by my side, how could I focus on work?! I’ll leave first if there’s nothing else.” With that, Yu Chao rushed out of the office, making Xie Wendong laugh heartily. He thought to himself that Yu Chao and he were quite similar emotionally—both belonging to the cowardly type.

In the evening, Xie Wendong took a car to No. 22 Middle School to pick up Jin Rong after school. First, he hadn’t seen her in a long time and really missed this “little sister.” Second, he wanted to ask if she would like to go to City T with him. Knowing that senior high students finish school late, Xie Wendong arrived around seven o’clock. After waiting for a while with no sign of them leaving, he found the security guard at the entrance and learned that seniors finish school at 8:30. He sighed inwardly—he understood this well too; being a student was tough, especially a high school student, with all the extra tutoring. With nothing much to do for now, Xie Wendong looked around and saw several small restaurants selling barbecue across from the school. He pulled along Dong Xinlei and Wen Zi and chose one with a small flower bed next to it and went in.

After seven o’clock in the evening, the place was quite busy. There were many people inside, and since the weather was already warming up, it was even hotter inside. The three of them went in briefly before coming back out. Dong Xinlei shook his head and said, “No way, I can’t stand it. It’s like an oven in there! Brother Dong, let’s just eat something outside!” Each restaurant had a few tables outside, with large sunshades next to them, likely to prevent customers from feeling too hot inside—similar to street food stalls.

Xie Wendong agreed. People from the northeast aren’t afraid of cold but are afraid of heat. He also felt it was like a sauna inside, with a strange, unpleasant smell. The three of them sat around the table and ordered dozens of lamb skewers and three bottles of beer from the waiter. The lamb skewers took some time to cook, so the waiter brought the beer first. Xie Wendong and his friends drank and chatted like ordinary people. It would be hard for anyone to guess that this young man, dressed in a plain outfit with an unremarkable appearance, was actually the city’s top gang leader, the undisputed underground king!

At that moment, a van slowly stopped by the road. When the door opened, two young men, one tall and one short, jumped out. They looked around for a while before returning to the van. Xie Wendong, with his back to the street, didn’t see them, but Dong Xinlei across from him saw them clearly. They seemed familiar, but not local. He moved closer to Xie Wendong and whispered, “Brother Dong, the people in that van behind you also seem to be from the gang. They look familiar, but not like locals. I wonder where they come from?”

“Oh?” Xie Wendong turned to take a look but saw nothing amiss. Shaking his head, he said, “It’s fine! Even if they’re from the underworld, they wouldn’t dare do anything if they’re not locals!”
Dong Xinlei chuckled. “Maybe I’m overthinking it! I had a fierce clash with the Tiger Gang recently, and it left some aftereffects.”