Chapter 236

Nothing went wrong along the way. Perhaps, as Xie Wendong said, the South Hongmen didn’t expect him to turn back and take such a big risk to return to the city. Xie Wendong glanced at his watch and thought to himself: It seems he won’t be able to say goodbye to Qiu Ningshui. He’ll have to apologize to her next time he comes. Before boarding the plane, he called Dong Xinlei to ask about the situation in the north and south. The news he received reassured him greatly. Since Xiao Fang was driven out of Nanjing again, the morale of the South Hongmen had plummeted, and they had closed themselves off in various places. When one faction was in trouble, the nearby forces didn’t dare send reinforcements, leading to successive defeats. Dong Xinlei, avenging his previous injuries, advanced with unstoppable momentum, aiming to reach Shanghai, the economic hub of the South Hongmen. Xie Wendong pondered for a long time. The decline of the South Hongmen was within his expectations, and he recognized Dong Xinlei’s abilities, but he didn’t expect things to go so smoothly. However, he couldn’t afford to lose Shanghai—its economic core, where most of the South Hongmen’s businesses were located. Losing Shanghai would mean half of the South Hongmen’s economic foundation would be destroyed, which would be fatal for Xiang Wentian. The Hongmen claim to be gangs in the martial world, but in essence, they are just organized crime. The fundamental difference between organized crime and ordinary hooligans lies in whether they have corporate backing. Simply put, hooligans with businesses are organized crime, while those without are just scoundrels. For a massive organization like the South Hongmen, losing its economic support would mean it was on the verge of collapse. The battle for Shanghai was crucial to the survival of the South Hongmen. Xiang Wentian would deploy his most powerful forces, so the difficulty of the battle was evident. Xie Wendong didn’t expect Dong Xinlei to capture Shanghai; even pushing the battle to this point would be a victory. But he didn’t say this aloud. He didn’t want to impose limits on Dong Xinlei and let him act on his own. Before hanging up, he advised him to think carefully before taking action—caution and prudence were the basis for victory and staying undefeated. If he needed more troops, he could draw them from City T and the areas around Nanjing. Xie Wendong’s words undoubtedly meant handing all power of the North Hongmen to Dong Xinlei, showing his trust in him. Dong Xinlei felt warm inside and agreed repeatedly, but then he sensed something was off and asked, “Brother Dong, aren’t you coming back?” Xie Wendong smiled and simply said, “To give Xiang Wentian headaches, we just need to create more battlefields, making it hard for him to handle everything at once.” With that, Xie Wendong said goodbye and hung up the phone.

Xie Wendong took the road back to City H. Only a few people knew about it; even Dong Xinlei thought he was still in Kunming, planning to open a second front. As they headed north, the weather grew colder, and Xie Wendong and his companions needed more and more clothes. Winters in the south are damp and cold, with a chill in the air even without wind, and it gets extremely cold when the wind blows. The cold in the north, on the other hand, is dry and unforgiving—standing outside for a while makes you feel as though your blood has frozen in your veins. After passing DL, Ren Changfeng truly experienced the winters of the Northeast.

City H, a city carved from ice and snow—everywhere one looks, there is nothing but pure white, stretching endlessly to the horizon. Standing in an open area, where sky and earth seem to merge, one is filled with a sense of grandeur. Men from the Northeast are bold and straightforward, just like the harsh winters there—their actions reveal their unreserved generosity. Of course, there are exceptions; Xie Wendong is one such case. Though he has his generous moments, Li Shuang often says that Brother Dong has eighteen twists in his belly.

Xie Wendong and the others returned to City H by car, without notifying anyone in advance, arriving silently. They all seemed noticeably fatter than when they were in Kunming—wearing sweaters and leggings under down jackets. Xie Wendong and Jiang Sen were in better shape, having grown up in the Northeast and already acclimated to such weather. Jin Yan and the other four had been in City H for some time and didn’t find it too much of a problem. But Ren Changfeng, fully dressed in an oversized down jacket that almost covered his entire body, with a scarf tightly wrapped around his neck, still hunched over, his usually high head almost buried in his clothes. Jin Yan nudged Jiang Sen with his elbow and laughed, “Have you ever seen an oversized turtle?” He pointed at Ren Changfeng as he spoke.

Ren Changfeng’s head was almost squeezed into his clothes, but his ears were sharp. He tilted his head back and glared at Jin Yan, “Want to fight?!” As soon as he said that, he pulled his head back, shoved his hands into his sleeves, shivered cleverly, snorted, and said to Xie Wendong, “Brother Dong, let’s find a place to stay soon. I can’t take it anymore.”

Jiang Sen laughed heartily and said proudly, “Coming here is like coming home! You can pick whatever place you want to stay in.”

Xie Wendong also smiled and said leisurely, “Lao Sen, what do you think Li Shuang is doing now?” Jiang Sen tilted his head and thought for a moment before affirming, “He’s either drinking or sleeping.” “Mm!” Xie Wendong nodded and asked, “Where would he drink?” Jiang Sen wiped the frost from his stubble and said, “Fatso said that no matter how good it is outside, it’s not as comfortable as home.” Xie Wendong knew which home he meant. He clapped his hands and laughed heartily, “Let’s go home!”
“Who is Li Shuang?” Ren Changfeng couldn’t help asking while in the taxi. As soon as Xie Wendong mentioned that name, even his eyelashes seemed to smile—it wasn’t the fake smile he usually wore, but genuine joy, which Ren could tell. This made him even more puzzled. Xie Wendong leaned back heavily in the seat and sighed deeply, “Li Shuang is one of my brothers. A brother who would trade his life for mine.” Ren Changfeng blinked repeatedly, unable to believe his ears. There really was someone in this world who could make Xie Wendong willing to exchange lives? Jiang Sen smiled and said, “Those who haven’t fought alongside us can’t understand. In our Wendong Club, there’s a tiger and a dragon—the tiger is Li Shuang.”
“And where’s the dragon?” Ren Changfeng had long been curious about the Wendong Club but never found the chance to ask. Xie Wendong narrowed his eyes and said, “The dragon is someone with three eyes.” Ren Changfeng curled his lips and muttered, “How can a person have three eyes?” Jiang Sen shook his head and said, “If you’ve never seen his third eye, you won’t understand how terrifying he is.” The more Ren listened, the more confused he became. He looked at Jiang Sen and asked curiously, “So what are you in the Wendong Club?”
Jiang Sen smiled calmly and said, “I’m just a lowly soldier.” Xie Wendong patted Jiang Sen’s shoulder and laughed, “It’s not good to underestimate yourself too much. Lao Sen is a snake in our Wendong Club—a cobra whose bite can be fatal.” Jiang Sen smiled bitterly, not knowing whether to cry or laugh at Xie Wendong’s comment. But upon reflection, it made sense—after all, bloodshed was just like a venomous snake; one bite could leave someone severely injured.
Xie Wendong’s destination was the villa left to him by Jin Peng, a gathering place for senior members of the Wendong Club. It had once served as a temporary headquarters, but as the gang grew larger and more people joined, the already sizable villa became crowded. Located in the suburbs, it was too remote to accommodate everyone quickly, so the temporary headquarters was naturally replaced by a larger and more luxurious building in the city center. However, people like Li Shuang, who were highly skilled, had grown accustomed to living here. Even though the headquarters had moved, they continued to live there.

When the taxi was about to reach the villa, it couldn’t get in. There were two white vans parked by the road, and three burly men stood in the middle of the road and beside them. They wore black coats with their collars up, smoking cigarettes. One of them stood there carelessly with his hands in his pockets and his head tilted. The taxi stopped in front of him. The man stepped forward, bent down to look at the driver, then glanced at Xie Wendong and the others in the car, and asked, “Guys, what brings you here?” The driver was shocked by their demeanor, thinking he had encountered road bandits in broad daylight.

Xie Wendong was puzzled, not knowing when Li Shuang had set up a checkpoint here. It seemed even rough guys could be careful at times. With that thought, Xie Wendong smiled and said, “I’m looking for someone.”

“Looking for someone?” The burly man sized up Xie Wendong from head to toe. His hair reached his eyebrows, giving him a plain student-like appearance; he was fairly handsome but had rather distinctive eyes—slanting phoenix eyes. After staring at him for a while without figuring anything out, the man laughed and said, “You’re looking for someone? Are you old enough? There’s no one you know here. Go away.”

Xie Wendong nodded inwardly. Although the man was impolite, his words weren’t bad. Not wanting to tease him, he said directly, “I’m looking for Li Shuang.”

“Huh?” The burly man was stunned and examined Xie Wendong again, asking doubtfully, “Are you…?”

Xie Wendong stepped out of the car, followed by Jiang Sen and the others. After sending the taxi away, he said, “I’m Xie Wendong.” The burly man’s round eyes widened, and it took him a while to swallow his saliva. He nodded repeatedly at him. Jin Yan rolled his eyes and pulled him aside, whispering, “Don’t embarrass yourself!”

Xie Wendong and the others got into their van. Inside, the burly man sat in silence, deep in thought. He had never met Xie Wendong in person and couldn’t just believe his word. What if it wasn’t true? He couldn’t afford the consequences. If the other party had ulterior motives, things could get even worse. After some thought, he cautiously asked, “I heard from Brother Shuang that the boss has been in City T all along. Why did he suddenly come back? I wonder…” His expression didn’t escape Xie Wendong’s notice. Knowing what he was thinking, Xie Wendong smiled secretly and said, “I wasn’t in City T. I’ve been in Nanjing the whole time. You don’t need to test me. I’m the real Xie Wendong.” The burly man’s face turned red as he coughed a few times and stopped talking.

After a while, the car arrived at the villa. The two large iron gates at the courtyard wall were open, with many men in black standing on either side. The burly man pulled open the car door and jumped out, then approached a young man in his early thirties and whispered to him for a while. At first, the young man didn’t show much reaction, but as he listened, his expression grew increasingly alarmed. After the burly man finished speaking, his face changed several times. He quickly pushed the burly man aside, got into the van, just as Xie Wendong got out. Upon seeing him, the young man immediately stood up straight and shouted loudly, “Brother Dong, long time no see!”

That shout was like thunder crashing from the sky; it could probably be heard even a hundred meters away. Ren Changfeng, who got out of the car with Xie Wendong, was unprepared and started trembling at the sudden noise. Instinctively, he reached for his waist. Fortunately, Jiang Sen was quick enough to hold his arm down; otherwise, he might have drawn his knife. Xie Wendong glanced at the man, smiled slightly, nodded, and walked toward the courtyard. With that loud shout, the men in black gathered in groups in the courtyard and saluted Xie Wendong, most of them showing confusion and surprise in their eyes. The once bustling courtyard suddenly fell dead silent. Ren Changfeng, puzzled, asked Jiang Sen in a low voice, “Is this Brother Dong’s gang? Did we get lost?”

Jiang Sen’s expression turned serious as he said firmly, “Nonsense! How could you get lost in your own home?” “But…” Ren Changfeng pursed his lips and said, “It seems like they don’t even recognize Brother Dong.” Jiang Sen replied helplessly, “There’s nothing we can do. The elders have gone to support Sanyan. Most of the people here are new members; few have actually met Brother Dong.” “Oh!”

Without anyone guiding him, Xie Wendong strode straight to the front of the villa. Pushing the door open, he was greeted by warm air. Inside, there were familiar scents, familiar smells, and familiar people.

There were a few people in the hall, sitting or lying on the sofas, with beer, peanuts, and other things on the floor. In the center sat a tall, thin man with an expressionless face, radiating a cold aura; his presence exuded a sense of gloom and seriousness. To his right sat a young man under thirty, with a firm, angular face that seemed carved by a knife, and a prominent scar between his brows. He was laughing and drinking, but couldn’t hide his imposing masculinity. Across from him sat another young man, not very old, with fair skin and eyes that occasionally flashed with intelligence. There was also someone lying on the sofa; when Xie Wendong pushed the door open and cold wind blew in, the person on the sofa quickly stood up. He wasn’t tall but rather fat, giving the impression that he hadn’t grown vertically but rather had developed horizontally, looking like a round, plump ball. He shivered and cursed, “Who the hell came in without closing the door? Scramming away already?”
What a familiar way of speaking. Xie Wendong wanted to laugh, but he held back. He said leisurely, “If people could grow tails, it would definitely be you.”