Chapter 100

After a while, the car stopped in front of a two-story building in the northern part of the XF area. The building wasn’t large; it had once been an office building for a certain organization, but after that organization went bankrupt, the building was left vacant. Jiang Sen happened to think the location was good and suggested that Xie Wendong buy it to use as a casino. By the time the organization collapsed, the building had already been seized by the bank, but due to its remote location, no one bought it, and it remained unused for three years. Xie Wendong managed to buy it from the bank for just 300,000 yuan, and after renovating it, it has now become a sizable underground casino.

A hotel sign hung outside the building, and the first floor was indeed designed as a hotel. There were over thirty small rooms along the corridors on both sides of the lobby, mainly provided for guests to rest when tired, as well as for women to relieve fatigue!

Xie Wendong and Dong Xinlei entered through the main gate. There were three or four security guards at the entrance—actually just thugs from Xie Wendong’s gang dressed as security personnel. They quickly stood up to greet their boss. Xie Wendong waved his hand and asked, “Are there many guests today?”

One of the guards replied hurriedly, “About fifty or so! But that’s quite a few more than yesterday. Gambling is like heroin—once you start, it’s hard to quit, and it spreads fast. Yesterday there were less than twenty people, but today there are fifty. It seems to be on the rise. If this continues, in a month or two, this place could become the biggest in City H! The guys Lei Ge brought are also really good at knowing when to win and when to lose, leaving the others in awe…”

Xie Wendong smiled as he looked at the man who was talking. The man was about 1.65 meters tall with an ordinary appearance, but he was really good at talking. Xie Wendong patted him on the shoulder to interrupt him and asked, “What’s your name?”

The man panicked, realizing he had talked too much in front of the boss. He looked at Xie Wendong fearfully and didn’t dare speak. A younger security guard beside him laughed and said, “Brother Dong, his name is Luo Su! We all call him Chatterbox! He doesn’t have any real strengths, except for being good at talking!” This younger man had graduated from No. 1 Middle School and knew Xie Wendong better than those who joined later.

Xie Wendong nodded and said to Luo Su, “Report to the company tomorrow, and I’ll arrange a new place for you!” After saying that, Xie Wendong walked upstairs.

Luo Su, looking pale, asked the young security guard who had just spoken, “W-what does this mean? Isn’t the boss going to…?”

“Come on, you lucky bastard! You’re getting promoted!” the young man said, filled with envy and a sour tone.

After going upstairs, Dong Xinlei asked, “What does Brother Dong want this guy named Russell to do for the company?”
Xie Wendong couldn’t help but laugh and say, “Diplomacy!”
“Diplomacy?” Dong Xinlei was puzzled. “Just him??”
“Maybe for now, but talent needs to be cultivated. How many geniuses are there!? If someone has talent, that’s already good. With a bit of training, they’ll be useful!” The faster Xie Wendong’s business grew, the greater his desire for talent. It wasn’t enough to rely on one person’s efforts; it was extremely difficult to expand without a group of talents in various fields!
They had just reached the second floor and walked a short corridor before entering the hall. There were all kinds of gambling games available—baccarat, mahjong, big or small bets, roulette, and more—anything you could name could be found here. Dozens of people were crowded in the hall, beaming with joy as they won money and shouting loudly. Those who lost had gloomy faces, trying hard to recover their losses. Despite more losses than wins, the biggest winners were still the casino owners.
Xie Wendong walked around the hall. Gao Qiang, hearing that the boss had arrived, hurried out of his office and found Xie Wendong, looking very pleased, along with Dong Xinlei, who stood tall beside him. After returning to the office, Gao Qiang said excitedly, “Brother Dong, we made a good income today. We’ve already earned tens of thousands since morning! That’s more than what we made in the previous few days combined!”
Xie Wendong smiled and said, “What’s this? We’ve only opened two casinos in City H so far. Once we open more and City J succeeds in its transformation, our income will definitely be no less than that from selling drugs!”
Gao Qiang fully believed this. From the progress over the past few days, he saw that the potential of casinos was enormous. “I heard from Lao Sen that the Northern Hotel back home is starting to train new gamblers?”
“Yes!” Xie Wendong nodded. “We still lack skilled players. I’ve assigned the people Lao Lei brought to two locations in City J, asking them to train more new players. Otherwise, when we scale up, hiring outsiders at high costs will not only waste money but also be unreliable! Only those we train ourselves are our real assets!”
Gao Qiang and Dong Xinlei nodded in agreement. Brother Dong really thought far ahead; it seemed like everything was under his control!
After leaving that place, Xie Wendong went to check another casino. Only after confirming there were no flaws did he leave. By then, it was almost 5 p.m., and Xie Wendong rushed to the city police station by car.
When Peng Ling came out of the police station, she immediately spotted the highly noticeable Xie Wendong.

Wearing a fitted black suit that made his figure appear especially tall, his slightly long black hair fluttered in the wind, and his gentle face carried an maturity beyond his years. His long, narrow eyes, though open, gave the impression of being squinted, with flashes of light occasionally appearing within them. Leaning against a black Audi, he wore black leather gloves, holding a lit cigarette between his fingers.

The car was black, his clothes were black, his hair and eyes were also black—Xie Wendong seemed surrounded by a dark mist, exuding an indescribable sense of mystery. That was Xie Wendong; he was mystery itself!

Seeing Peng Ling come out, Xie Wendong flicked the half-smoked cigarette from his hand, walked over with a smile, and took Peng Ling’s hand, saying, “Come stay at my place today!”

Peng Ling grasped Xie Wendong’s hand in return—only then did she feel his reality, not just a mist that might vanish at any moment. She nodded shyly in agreement to his proposal.

Delighted, Xie Wendong led Peng Ling into the car. Yan Ke, who had rushed out of the police station to invite Peng Ling for dinner, witnessed this scene. Staring at the disappearing back of the black Audi, his eyes seemed to blaze with anger as he snapped, “Xie Wendong, I’ll definitely bring you down!” The anger in Yan Ke’s eyes gradually subsided, replaced by a vicious glint.

After a soul-stirring night, early the next morning, Xie Wendong dropped Peng Ling off at the police station before returning to the company to deal with the documents he hadn’t had time to review in recent days. As the New Year approached, the migrant workers clamored to go home. Xie Wendong called the construction company owner: “You signed the contract, but if work stops and the project isn’t completed by the deadline, it won’t just be a matter of compensation—you better be careful!”

The owner, aware of Xie Wendong’s questionable background and fearing to offend him, agreed readily. He secretly increased the workers’ wages to keep them there.

Just after speaking with the construction company owner, before Xie Wendong could even settle in, Jiang Sen called again, “Brother Dong, those two Russians are here again, still at New Century.”

Pretty quick! Xie Wendong muttered inwardly, realizing the other party was even more anxious than he was. Instead, he remained calm and said to Jiang Sen, “Let them wait! We need to take the initiative!”

After the two Russians waited for nearly two hours, pacing impatiently in the New Century office, Xie Wendong walked in with a smile, saying, “I’m truly sorry! There were matters at the company, so I kept you waiting!”

The two Russians weren’t fools; they knew he was trying to boost his own value by arriving so late. They inwardly cursed Xie Wendong for being worthless, though they certainly wouldn’t show it on their faces. Instead, they politely said, “Not late at all. Mr. Xie has such a big business—being busy is only natural, haha!”
“Too kind! Compared to you guys with black belts, I’m nothing!” Xie Wendong sat down with them. Neither side spoke, waiting for the other to take the lead. After five minutes, seeing that Xie Wendong still hadn’t said anything, the shorter Russian couldn’t help but say, “Mr. Xie, I’ve passed on your words from yesterday to our boss. He wants to meet you in person and talk to you!”
“Oh? He wants to meet me? I wonder where?” Xie Wendong asked casually, his mind racing.
The shorter Russian smiled and said, “It will be within Russian territory! Our boss wants you to come to Russia!”
What an insult! They want to meet me and still expect me to go to them! Xie Wendong sneered, “I’m not going to Russia. If your boss Viktor wants to meet me, he should come here. Otherwise, our cooperation ends here!”
“Bang!” The taller Russian slammed the table and snapped, “Xie Wendong, who do you think you are? What kind of status does our boss have to come here to meet you? We’re only cooperating with you because we think highly of you. Don’t act so arrogant—if you provoke us, you’ll regret it!” (Russian) He had already been waiting for Xie Wendong for two hours and was already annoyed; now, hearing these words, his anger became uncontrollable.
Xie Wendong didn’t understand what he was saying, but he could read his expression. With gleaming eyes, he stood up and snarled, “Let me make it clear—this isn’t Russia! No matter how skilled you black belts are, in my eyes, you’re nothing! This isn’t a place where you can act arrogantly! Listen well, Russian—if you provoke me, you’ll soon know what I’m capable of! Don’t take my words as a joke. I only joke with friends!”
The taller Russian trembled with fear. He realized Xie Wendong wasn’t lying. Dong Xinlei and Jiang Sen behind him had already reached for their weapons, ready to draw them at any moment. His face paled as well.
The two stood on opposite sides of the table, staring at each other. Sweat streamed down the Russian’s forehead. Although it was the coldest time of year in the north and the meeting room wasn’t very warm, he could truly feel the icy aura emanating from Xie Wendong.