Chapter 162

The man narrowed his eyes and said, “He’s also someone who wants your life!” With that, he waved his hand, and a dark shadow flew toward the assassin. The assassin reflexively reached out to catch it. Looking down, he saw a card—thin yet tough, completely black, with a blood-red character “Kill” written in the center, so vivid it seemed to be oozing blood, strikingly eye-catching. The man on the windowsill chuckled and said, “By accepting this black notice, your life no longer belongs to you.” The assassin didn’t know what a black notice was nor recognize it, but an unease arose in his heart as he instinctively feared it. Trembling, he threw it on the ground and demanded loudly, “Who the hell are you?” The man’s gaze was icy, slicing through the assassin like a knife, as he coldly said, “The leader of the Long Hall of the Wen Dong Gang.” After saying that, he leaped down from the windowsill, bowed deeply to Jin Peng, and said softly, “Elder, this man must be killed!” Jin Peng glanced at him and sighed, “Spare someone if you can.” The man shook his head and said, “Once a black notice is issued, there’s no turning back.” These were words once spoken by Xie Wendong, which he had always kept in mind and acted upon. Jin Peng sighed again and said, “Young man, when you reach my age, you’ll understand the value of life. Killing too much in your youth means you’ll have to pay for it in old age.” The man shook his head and said, “Live for today; worry about tomorrow later.” Jin Peng gave him a deep look and said nothing more. The man turned to the assassin and said, “Everyone calls me Three-Eyes!” The assassin shook his head. “I’ve never heard of you.” Three-Eyes said, “Now you should know, though a bit late.” The assassin could sense the oppressive aura emanating from Three-Eyes. Even before fighting, he knew he was no match for him. Pointing a gun at Jin Peng, he said, “You can kill me, but I can kill him too.”

Three-Eyes stepped forward and said, “You definitely can’t shoot as fast as me.” The assassin stared at him and said, “If you let me go, I won’t hurt a hair on his head.” Three-Eyes replied firmly, “You can’t get away.” The assassin’s heart sank as he pressed the tip of his gun against Jin Peng’s head and shouted, “Then I’ll die with him!” Three-Eyes watched him without blinking and said coldly, “I’ll say it again—you definitely can’t shoot as fast as me.” His piercing gaze made the assassin lower his head awkwardly, but he regretted it the moment he did, realizing it gave the other man a perfect chance to act. Yet it was too late; by the time he reacted, the bullet from Three-Eyes’s gun had accurately pierced his forehead, embedding himself in the wall behind with his blood. Three-Eyes walked up to him, sneered, “You really are not as fast as me!” Then he grabbed the corpse by the hair and dragged it out of the room. Before leaving, he turned back and asked, “Elder, do you know who he’s talking about?”
Jin Peng shook his head. Three-Eyes sighed and said, “A gang that’s too large is a hassle. Something like this would never happen in our Wendong Gang.”
Jin Peng chuckled silently and asked, “How did you get here? Why did you know someone would try to assassinate me?” Three-Eyes smiled and said, “Brother Dong sent me to help. He already predicted that someone would try to harm the elder while he was away.” Then he sighed softly, “I wonder if there’s anything in this world he can’t predict.”
By the time Xie Wendong returned to City T, Three-Eyes had been waiting there for two days. He and Dong Xinlei went to the airport to pick him up. In the car, Three-Eyes recounted in detail how the assassin tried to assassinate the elder. After listening carefully, Xie Wendong leaned back in his seat and said leisurely, “Within the Hongmen, the only ones with high status but no real power are the elders. There are five elders, and I really can’t figure out which one it could be.” He looked at Dong Xinlei doubtfully. The latter hurriedly said, “Brother Dong, don’t look at me. I’m even more confused. Every elder is a hero who once fought alongside the elder to build the gang. They just retired due to old age and became elders without real power. I really can’t figure out who would want to assassinate the elder.”
Xie Wendong smiled and asked, “When does a fox show its tail?” Dong Xinlei shook his head. Three-Eyes thought for a moment and said, “When it gets too complacent.” Xie Wendong smiled without saying anything, then changed the subject and asked, “Has the goods been delivered?”

Sanyan nodded and said, “It’s all been delivered—ten containers in total.” “Mm!” Xie Wendong replied, “We need to get it shipped away as soon as possible. Storing it here is too risky, and the Golden Triangle needs it urgently.” Sanyan said, “Then I’ll set off tomorrow and deliver the goods to the Golden Triangle.” Xie Wendong said, “That won’t work. You don’t know them, nor are you familiar with the area there, and Yunnan is also a troublesome place.” Sanyan raised his eyebrows in confusion and asked, “What about Yunnan?” Xie Wendong sighed and said, “You surely haven’t forgotten Ma Wu, have you?”
Sanyan laughed loudly, “How could I forget that old guy? To be honest, we’ve really relied on him a lot to build our fortune!”
Xie Wendong said, “I used to wonder how he could have so much drugs at such a low price and where he got them from. It wasn’t until we reached the Golden Triangle that I found out—he has a brother named Ma Feng, who’s been a major client there and operates in Yunnan.” Sanyan gasped and murmured, “So Ma Wu has a brother who’s connected to the Golden Triangle? He must be quite powerful and much harder to deal with than his brother.” Xie Wendong said, “That’s why we must eliminate the root cause; otherwise, it will cause a lot of trouble.”
Sanyan’s face gradually turned red as he said excitedly, “That makes sense. Brother Dong, let me go this time to handle this Ma Feng. The gang’s strength has been growing lately, but we don’t even have any real fights to engage in. It’s really frustrating.”
Seeing his high spirits, Xie Wendong laughed heartily and said thoughtfully, “The world should belong to the young. No matter when, we should have lofty ambitions and an unyielding fighting spirit. In our hearts, there are no enemies we can’t defeat, nor any tasks we can’t accomplish. Only in this way can we keep moving forward. The young, though just the new generation, are definitely the most promising force in society.”
Sanyan became even more enthusiastic after hearing Xie Wendong’s words. Excitedly, he rubbed his broad palms together and said, “So, Brother Dong, are you letting me go?” Dong Xinlei, who drove the car, also said, “Although I’m a bit older than you, I’m still young. When dealing with Ma Feng, don’t forget to include me.” Sanyan patted his shoulder and laughed, “We definitely can’t forget Old Lei. I really admire your marksmanship. I’ve been practicing a lot lately. If there’s a chance, let’s have a competition.” Dong Xinlei chuckled and shook his head repeatedly.

Xie Wendong smiled narrowed-eyed and said, “For delivery, it’s best to find a force that neither the police nor the underworld dares to mess with.” Sanyan rolled his eyes, thought for a moment, and shook his head. “There’s no such force.” Xie Wendong smiled narrowed-eyed again. “There is! It’s the military!”
Sanyan and Dong Xinlei thought Xie Wendong was joking. To their surprise, he went to Beijing right after arriving in City T, stayed there for half a day, and then headed to Shenyang.
Shenyang, formerly known as Fengtian, is an established heavy-industry city that failed to keep up with the rapid development brought about by reform and opening up. It lags behind some of the newer cities in the south. However, the Shenyang Military Region remains one of the strongest in China. That was why Xie Wendong came here—more importantly, Zhang Fanyou had also returned to Shenyang from Beijing. When he saw Xie Wendong waiting in his office, he finally understood that the five million wasn’t given for nothing. One must repay favors when receiving money; Zhang Fanyou naturally understood this principle.
The two talked about something in the office. Anyway, when they came out, both were smiling, seemingly satisfied with the outcome of their conversation. One of their requests had been met, and the other’s wallet had gotten a bit heavier. Xie Wendong had come by plane, but he would return by car—a military vehicle, accompanied by a lieutenant from the Political Department and fifty regular soldiers. This lieutenant, named Zhou Yu, was in his twenty-something years old, had a short, flat haircut, wore simple clothes, and appeared efficient and talkative.
Inside the car, he often chatted with Xie Wendong about various topics. Since both belonged to the Political Department, Zhou Yu was quite polite to him.
They didn’t speak much during the journey and arrived in City T after two days. Seeing rows of soldiers in neat uniforms and fully armed, Sanyan and Dong Xinlei were stunned. They pulled Xie Wendong aside and asked, “Brother Dong, how did you get these soldiers?” Xie Wendong smiled and said, “Money can make even ghosts grind grain. There’s nothing that can’t be done with money these days.”
Sanyan and Dong Xinlei exchanged glances. The former nodded in agreement. “That’s true. No matter how high someone’s status is, as long as you have money, you can bring them down to work for us.” The latter sighed. “Money really is a wonderful thing.”
Looking at the containers, Zhou Yu walked over smiling and asked, “Brother Xie, what’s in all these?”

Xie Wendong smiled and said, “You’ll find out later. But what’s inside is very important. No matter who comes to inspect it on the way, they must not see it.” Zhou Yu narrowed his eyes and asked, “Is it classified?” Although he had been sent by Zhang Fanyou to assist Xie Wendong, Zhang hadn’t told him that the goods being transported were weapons. He had only instructed him to follow Xie Wendong’s orders, treating it as a trip to the south, with all expenses covered by the department. Zhou Yu held a low position in the Political Department and was a newcomer, often pressured by the older members. He was naturally very happy to be given such an easy task. At the same time, he wanted to take this opportunity to get closer to Xie Wendong. He knew this man was extremely powerful. Rumors had already spread that Zhang Fanyou would be promoted in the next one or two months. The people in the Political Department were all highly skilled, and most knew it was Xie Wendong who had arranged this to sideline Dong Fang Yi, whom he didn’t like. Dong Fang Yi was well aware of this as well. Though he said nothing, he must have regretted not executing Xie Wendong earlier and asking the central authorities for permission to take him away from the police and bring him into the Political Department. Now, he no longer had the authority to deal with Xie Wendong; it required authorization from the central authorities, who seemed unprepared to take action yet. He had originally planned to use Xie Wendong to deal with the Soul Group, with the achievements going to Dong Fang Yi’s account. But now he understood the truth behind keeping a tiger as a pet—it could turn out to be a threat. And Xie Wendong wasn’t just any tiger; he appeared friendly and harmless on the surface but could secretly devour people without leaving a trace.

After hearing Zhou Yu’s words, Xie Wendong was struck by an idea. He nodded and said, “Exactly! Top-secret.” Zhou Yu smiled, wagged his finger at Xie Wendong, and they understood each other without words. He simply said, “I hope Brother Xie can share a bit with me.” Xie Wendong narrowed his eyes, his slits like two flying knives aimed at Zhou Yu’s face. Under his gaze, Zhou Yu’s heart rate accelerated inexplicably, and he lowered his head to avoid his intense, almost tangible stare. After a while, Xie Wendong said with a smile, “There’s a whole table of delicious food, and everyone wants a share. But there are only limited seats. Whether you can get one depends on how well you know how to behave.”

Zhou Yu was stunned. He spoke seriously, “If someone can help me secure a seat, I will be extremely grateful.” Xie Wendong smiled and said, “We help each other.”

Xie Wendong stayed in City T for three days—a time of indulgence and revelry. He spent every night with Zhou Yu, Dong Xinlei, and others, indulging in wine and women, much to the dismay of the Hongmen members. They had originally thought the new leader would be decisive, efficient, and highly intelligent, surpassing even the old master. But his good performance lasted only about ten days; after the Hongmen assembly, he disappeared for some unknown reason, causing panic among the gang members. When he finally returned, he showed no ambition and only sought pleasure. Complaints arose within the gang, and some influential members ignored him, scoffing at him while secretly working hard to strengthen their own power. Those without strength turned to the elders, hoping they could persuade the leader, but the elders never saw Xie Wendong at all. Lei Ting was furious and went to Jin Peng several times, but Jin Peng remained calm, saying that young people have their own ideas and should be left alone. Hearing this, Lei Ting almost cursed Jin Peng for being senile.

Three days later, in a luxury nightclub in City T, Xie Wendong and his friends were drinking in a private room, accompanied by several dancers. Dong Xinlei was singing loudly with his extraordinary voice. Suddenly, the phone rang. Xie Wendong waved at Dong Xinlei, who was in the middle of singing, and answered the call. Hearing the voice on the other end, he smiled broadly, said a few words, then hung up. He then said to Zhou Yu, “We’ll head to Yunnan tomorrow.”