Chapter 277

Feng Yi smiled and said, “I’m a government official. I’m afraid I won’t be able to get rich in my lifetime.” Xie Wendong replied calmly, “You can make your family rich.” The two exchanged a knowing look and smiled at each other for a moment. Xie Wendong extinguished his cigarette and said, “Mayor Feng is very busy, so I won’t keep him any longer.” Feng Yi also didn’t want to stay longer. Pretending to check his watch, he said, “I do have some things to attend to today. Let’s talk in more detail next time.” Such opportunities would likely be rare. Xie Wendong nodded with a smile, though he didn’t really agree.

The two stood up simultaneously and left the room. Sanyan and the others had been waiting outside for a long time, unsure of how the conversation between Xie Wendong and Feng Yi had gone. Worryingly smoking their cigarettes, they threw them away as soon as they saw the two coming out and stepped forward, asking, “Brother Dong…” Xie Wendong waved his hand to stop them and said to Feng Yi with a smile, “Mayor Feng, please take care of this matter for me.”

Feng Yi nodded, his expression returning to its usual seriousness as he said calmly, “It’s a small favor.” Xie Wendong replied, “Once this is done, I’ll properly ‘reward’ Mayor Feng.” A glint appeared in Feng Yi’s eyes as he smiled and said, “Among friends, there’s no need for rewards!” With that, he looked up and walked away. After he left, Sanyan stepped forward and asked, “Brother Dong, is it done?” From their expressions earlier, he already had a rough idea. Xie Wendong replied indifferently, “He agreed, but it’s not certain whether he’ll actually do it.”

“Oh!” Chen Baicheng sighed in relief and smiled, “It’s good that he agreed. I was worried he might act too serious or be too timid to do it, which would cause trouble.”

Xie Wendong grunted softly, patted Chen Baicheng’s shoulder, and said, “I don’t have time to wait for him. I have to leave in a few days. Old Chen, I’m leaving this matter to you.”

Chen Baicheng asked confusedly, “Brother Dong, is there anything else?” Xie Wendong sneered and said, “This is urgent. I still don’t fully understand what kind of person Feng Yi is. If he takes the money but doesn’t do the job, we’ll suffer losses. My money won’t be wasted. If things don’t go well, you need to find a way to make him return the money.” Chen Baicheng rubbed the top of his head and said worriedly, “If that happens and he refuses to give back the money, we’re stuck.” Xie Wendong narrowed his eyes and said as he walked downstairs, “Have you never killed anyone before?”

Once in the car, Xie Wendong called Yu Chao and briefly recounted his conversation with Feng Yi. After hearing this, Yu Chao was almost overjoyed, laughing so hard he couldn’t close his mouth. He said, “Getting the company to set up in DL is a piece of cake. The most important thing is gaining government support—this is something no amount of money can buy!” Overjoyed, Yu Chao’s voice trembled as he spoke.

Xie Wendong didn’t share his excitement. Getting government support might be an impossible task for Yu Chao, but for him, it was entirely normal. He could secure government backing for the highly criminal Wen Dong Club, let alone a legitimate, honorable enterprise. Xie Wendong snapped his fingers and said, “Old Yu, don’t be too satisfied. This is just the beginning.”

It took some time before Yu Chao calmed down a bit. He sighed and said, “Brother Dong, if you give up the criminal world, you’ll definitely be a powerful figure in business as well.”

Xie Wendong smiled silently, exhaled, and said, “My path might have already been arranged by fate. And most importantly, I like this path.”

The group left quickly and returned just as fast, without any delays, arriving directly at the apartment where San Yan lived. At that moment, Li Shuang was enduring the greatest torment of his life. Jin Rong forced him to watch TV. That wasn’t wrong in itself, but she was watching cartoons, which Li Shuang could tolerate. What was unbearable was that Jin Rong was watching Crayon Shin-chan—a strange, oddly speaking child jumping around on TV. Annoyed, Li Shuang closed his eyes to avoid watching, but the annoying voice kept piercing his ears. He found it strange—how could a child speak like that? If such a person existed in reality, he would have kicked him to Mars long ago. Jin Rong, holding a pillow and sitting cross-legged on the sofa, watched with great interest, occasionally letting out bright laughs. Li Shuang rolled his eyes. Seeing her so engrossed, he carefully moved toward the door, planning to slip away. But Jin Rong, eyes still on the TV, said, “If you dare leave, I’ll tell Big Brother that you’re bullying me! Big Brother really cares about me, as you know. Last time, some jerk tried to bully me, and Big Brother beat him up…”

Li Shuang’s shoulders slumped. He cursed Jin Rong as a little demon. If he had known this would happen, he should have kicked her into the Songhua River when Brother Dong brought her to City J. He raised his hands in surrender and pleaded, “I’m not trying to leave. My feet are numb; I just want to move around a bit.” Jin Rong glanced at him and asked seriously, “Can someone as fat as you get numb feet?”

Li Shuang felt a buzz in his head, followed by a ‘pop’ sound, as if a string had snapped. Just as he was desperately trying to stop himself from wrapping his hands around the ‘little demon’s’ neck, Xie Wendong and the others returned. Li Shuang let out a long sigh of relief and exclaimed, “Finally! I’m finally free!”

“Big Brother, you’re back!” Jin Rong threw the remote control aside and rushed over excitedly, saying brightly, “Let’s go out and play.”

Xie Wendong rubbed his head and said helplessly, “Where to? The most charming thing about DL is the sea. It’s already the twelfth lunar month—the sea breeze is too cold. Catching a cold isn’t something to take lightly.”
“Hmm…” Jin Rong frowned, tilting her chin as she pondered for a long time but couldn’t think of a good place. Seeing Xie Wendong about to take off his coat, fearing he wouldn’t accompany her, she hurriedly said, “Oh, whatever it is, just going out for a walk would be nice!” Without waiting for his consent, she grabbed his sleeve and pulled him outside. Xie Wendong shook his head with a wry smile. “There has to be a goal, right?” “The goal is…” Jin Rong’s eyes sparkled. “Eating, drinking, and having fun!”
Smart people generally dislike taking risks because they’re intelligent and prefer to do things with certainty. Xie Wendong was definitely smart. Although he had taken many risks, he always had everything well planned in advance. When Jin Rong dragged him onto the roller coaster and they plunged down from dozens of meters high, he suddenly regretted it—regretted being too soft-hearted to accompany this little girl on such a risky adventure. As his body plummeted, everything around him flashed by. All he could hear was the howling wind, his heart seemed to be pounding in his throat, and his blood surged throughout his body. Xie Wendong had always thought he wasn’t afraid of heights, but now he knew he was wrong. “Wow…” Jin Rong let out an excited and thrilled scream, gripping Xie Wendong’s arm tightly. If not restrained, it seemed she could jump up from her seat at any moment.
The roller coaster slowly came to a stop. After jumping down, Jin Rong danced around excitedly, shouting that it was thrilling, and didn’t forget to hug Xie Wendong’s arm to ask how he felt.
Xie Wendong’s face was already pale, and now it was as white as paper. Seeing Jin Rong’s innocent and bright smile, he wanted to smile too, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t. Sanyan and Gao Qiang, who were waiting below, noticed his unnatural expression and rushed over to ask, “Brother Dong, are you okay?” Xie Wendong waved his hand, indicating he was fine. Jin Rong also noticed his abnormality and asked in surprise, “Big brother, what’s wrong?” “I’m fine,” Xie Wendong shook his head, his lips twitching slightly. Hearing that he was fine, Jin Rong immediately perked up again, pulling at his clothes and exclaiming cheerfully, “Then let’s ride it again!” “Oh?” Xie Wendong’s legs turned weak, and he almost fell. Shaking his head seriously, he said, “We’ve been riding for so long; I’m hungry. Let’s go eat something.” Hearing this, Jin Rong did feel a bit hungry and said reluctantly, “Then we’ll come back and ride again later.”
“Sure!” Xie Wendong agreed quickly, but inwardly he thought: No way!

There was a KFC fast-food restaurant near the amusement park, quite large in size, but packed with people, leaving no empty space at all. They ordered four sets of meals. After checking around for a while, Xie Wendong found an empty seat. Jin Rong skillfully squeezed herself next to him. San Yan and Gao Qiang originally wanted to sit across from them, but under the girl’s intense gaze, they wisely took their meals and moved to a table nearby. Annoyed, San Yan glared at the food on the table and complained, “This is typical junk food. I don’t understand why kids love eating such things.” Jin Rong was under twenty, and with her mischievous personality, she indeed seemed like a child in the eyes of San Yan and the others. Gao Qiang’s lips twitched slightly, but he said nothing either, just bent down and started eating slowly.

Xie Wendong was never picky about what he ate; he had no particular favorites or dislikes. After taking a few sips of Coke, he managed to calm his restless stomach and chewed on his meal without really tasting it. As he ate, a sense of discomfort suddenly arose in him. He put down his meal and slowly raised his head to meet a pair of emotionless eyes, like still water.

The man was dressed in black, with a high collar covering most of his face. His complexion was pale, almost colorless, and his fish-white eyes were slightly open. He exuded a lifeless aura, filled with terrifying fear. Xie Wendong was initially stunned, then laughed. He knew this man all too well—it was the Gray Wolf who had escaped from the military district in City H, eluding him and keeping him from capturing him. Xie Wendong smiled sweetly, his eyes narrowing into thin slits like crescent moons. His smile started from his eyes and gradually spread across his face, like a flower blooming. His arms naturally dropped beneath the table, and with a light tap of his fingers, a golden knife appeared in his palm. The Gray Wolf stared at Xie Wendong unblinkingly, then walked slowly to sit across from him.

“There’s someone sitting here!” Jin Rong called out loudly without even looking up, as someone sat across from her. Her voice caught San Yan and Gao Qiang’s attention. Glancing over, they saw the most dreaded face they could imagine—the lifeless face of the Gray Wolf. Almost simultaneously, they reached for their weapons at their waists, their nerves tensed to the extreme. They had both seen the Gray Wolf’s skills, especially Gao Qiang, who had even experienced them firsthand. His abilities far exceeded what humans could comprehend. Not to mention Xie Wendong, even if all the experts from the Wen Dong Association came together, it was doubtful they could subdue the Gray Wolf. With only a table separating them, at such close range, if the Gray Wolf attacked, San Yan and Gao Qiang were not sure they could save Brother Dong.

The two of them were afraid, and Xie Wendong felt the same way. He wasn’t worried about himself; after all, he had confidence in his fighting skills, and with the protective undergarments on, it wouldn’t be easy for anyone to injure him in just a few moves. What worried him was Jin Rong beside him. But he wouldn’t show it on his face. The more afraid he was, the less he could let it show—being caught off guard usually led to a tragic outcome, and he knew that well. Nothing could be read from his face, only a broad smile, as if he were facing an old friend he hadn’t seen in years. Xie Wendong and Cang Lang stared at each other, neither taking the initiative to attack. San Yan and Gao Qiang turned slightly, keeping an eye on Cang Lang’s every move with the corners of their eyes, their arms tucked under their clothes—one holding a gun, the other a knife. They didn’t dare act rashly without Xie Wendong’s signal.

The four of them, each hiding murderous intent, created an unseen current in the crowded fast-food restaurant that ordinary people couldn’t detect. The one who cared the least and was also the weakest suddenly spoke up. Feeling that the person in front of her hadn’t left, Jin Rong, upset that her moment alone with her big brother was disrupted, raised her head in displeasure. When she saw Cang Lang’s appearance, she was shocked, but quickly recovered. With her special status and wide range of experiences—having seen all sorts of odd people in the Hongmen and Xie Wendong’s group—she was used to such things. She placed her hands on the table and said spoiledly, “There’s someone here! Can’t you hear?” Her face turned red as she tapped the floor impatiently with her tiny feet.

Cang Lang didn’t move at all, not even blinking, as if Jin Rong were transparent to him. This naturally angered Jin Rong even more. She rolled her eyes and pouted, “It’s one thing if you’re ugly, but to act like you can’t hear either?” Not a trace of emotion appeared on Cang Lang’s face, but a snow-white sword tip had already appeared from the vertically hanging sleeve.

Blocked by the table, Xie Wendong couldn’t see, but he could sense the intense killing intent. He smiled and patted Jin Rong’s shoulder, saying, “Don’t be like this. It’s just a ‘friend’.”

“Oh?” Jin Rong was stunned. She glanced at Xie Wendong, then at Cang Lang. One smiled sincerely, the other coldly and indifferently. Something felt off, but she couldn’t pinpoint what. She frowned like a little adult, holding her large Coke cup, sipping while trying to figure out what was wrong.

Xie Wendong said again, “Rongrong, I need to talk to this person. Go sit with Brother Zhang and the others.” Jin Rong still didn’t understand and shook her head, “I won’t.” “Be good and listen,” Xie Wendong said softly. He coaxed Jin Rong as if she were a child; though his tone was calm, he was inwardly extremely anxious. At that moment, Cang Lang suddenly spoke up, his hoarse voice like stones scraping against glass, painfully harsh. “Mr. Xie, let this girl stay. There’s no need to hide from anyone between us.”