Chapter 48

Xie Wendong sneered, “I’ve been waiting for that day. But now your son is in my hands. If you want to save him, come to the Northern Hotel alone. We’re all in the underworld—if you call the police, I don’t need to tell you what will happen!”
Taking a breath, Xie Wendong instructed, “Remember, come alone. Your son’s blood will run dry in thirty-seven minutes! Whether you come or not is your choice!”
Without waiting for Li Shiming to respond, Xie Wendong hung up the phone and sneered at Li Feng, “Your life is in your father’s hands. If you’re not important to him, then today is the day you die!”
After saying that, Xie Wendong ignored Li Feng and left the room. He turned to Jiang Sen behind him and said, “Lao Sen, send people to keep an eye on the Qing Gang’s movements. Even though Li Feng is in our hands, we can’t be careless! Li Shiming isn’t simple—he might pull some trick.”
Jiang Sen replied, “Sure! Don’t worry, Brother Dong. I’ve already arranged everything. Every move Li Shiming makes is under control!”
Xie Wendong smiled in satisfaction. Having someone like Jiang Sen as an ally was truly a blessing—whatever you could think of, he had already taken care of it! He patted Jiang Sen’s shoulder and said, “Good job. I wasn’t wrong about you. It was a smart move to keep you and Liu Bo around. Haha!” Jiang Sen felt a bit embarrassed under Xie Wendong’s praise and lowered his head shyly.
Li Shiming was heartbroken to learn that Li Feng was in Xie Wendong’s hands. Worse still, he had just heard that Gao Zhen had been rescued by Xie Wendong—Gao Zhen would never let Li Feng go. Worried about his son’s safety, Li Shiming hurriedly rushed to the Northern Hotel with his trusted subordinates. Along the way, he instructed them to stay near the hotel. No matter what happened inside, they were to storm in together ten minutes later and ensure no one escaped.
Li Shiming arrived at the Northern Hotel as fast as he could. Hundreds of his men were lurking nearby, all armed, waiting for the signal to rush in. Standing at the door, Li Shiming took a deep breath and stepped inside. As he entered the lobby, a man approached him and said, “Brother Dong has been waiting for you for a long time. Please come upstairs.”
Li Shiming grunted, checked his wrist, and followed the man upstairs. Upon reaching the third floor, the man led him to the entrance of a meeting room, told him to spread his arms, and thoroughly searched him, finding two pistols. Smiling, he pointed to the door and said, “You may go now!”
Hesitating for a moment, Li Shiming still pushed the door open and entered. The room was large, with a ten-meter-long conference table in the center. Xie Wendong sat at the head, Gao Zhen beside him, with over a dozen others behind them.

“Li Shiming is indeed someone special—he really showed up, haha!” Xie Wendong laughed as he looked at him.
Li Shiming shouted, “Xie Wendong, I don’t have time to listen to your nonsense. Where’s my son? I want to see him!”
Xie Wendong replied, “Sure, sure. I’m a man of my word. Since you’re here, I’ll release him!” Then he said to the people behind him, “Go get Li Feng over quickly. Don’t keep our guest waiting!” Two people behind him nodded and rushed out.
After they left, Li Shiming glared at Xie Wendong and asked coldly, “Now that I’m here, just tell me what ritual you want to perform!”
Xie Wendong smiled and said, “I have no ritual to perform with you. You’d better ask Brother Gao first!” He pointed at Gao Zhen, who stood up and walked toward Li Shiming, saying coldly, “Li Shiming, you’re an elder of the gang. You’re already second in rank. I’ve been generous to you by bringing you here—why would you harm me?”
Li Shiming sneered, “You? Don’t you even ask if you’re fit to be the gang leader?”
Gao Zhen remained silent, staring at Li Shiming. Li Shiming continued, “Trying to be the leader before you’re ready! Tell me, what achievements has the Qingbang made under your leadership these past years? Now that it’s finally growing, you’ve turned to Xie Wendong and become brothers with him. One day he’ll swallow up the Qingbang, and you’ll still think of him as a good person! Gao Zhen, let me tell you—you lack the ambition and intelligence to be a leader. If the Qingbang stays under your leadership, its downfall is only a matter of time. I know you’ve been generous to me, that’s why I haven’t killed you!”
Gao Zhen listened quietly to Li Shiming’s words before shouting angrily, “Yes! Maybe I’m not capable of being a leader, but does that mean you can take over? If you want to be the leader of the Qingbang, you can organize all the elders to impeach me! What kind of despicable tactics are these?! With you leading, the Qingbang will perish even faster!”
Li Shiming laughed heartily. “If it weren’t for what happened to Li Feng today, I would have destroyed the Wendong Gang long ago. It’s just that fate isn’t on my side!” He pointed at Xie Wendong and said harshly, “Xie Wendong, you’re smart! Gao Zhen is an idiot, but I’m not. You’re not just trying to advance yourself by getting close to the Qingbang, are you? As long as I’m here, you’ll never be able to touch the Qingbang!”
Xie Wendong’s expression darkened as he stared at Li Shiming. He said, “Li Shiming, let me make it clear today—I have no intention of touching the Qingbang, let alone swallowing it up. As long as Brother Gao is around, the Wendong Gang will always remain an ally of the Qingbang!”

“Haha!” Li Shiming laughed. “You can only say that to a fool like Gao Zhen. Do you think others can’t see your ulterior motives?!”
Xie Wendong snorted, turned away, and stopped talking, but inwardly he thought Li Shiming was truly not ordinary! In fact, Xie Wendong had considered taking over the Qing Gang when Gao Zhen was less vigilant, but he never had the chance—first dealing with the Tiger Gang, then the Brothers’ Alliance. By the time everything was almost cleared out, the city government made another major shakeup.
Xie Wendong had asked himself several times if he really had the chance to take over the Qing Gang whether he would give it up because of his friendship with Gao Zhen, but the answer that came to mind each time was no—he would never let it go! Even though he knew it was wrong.
What is justice? No one can define it clearly. What you think is wrong today and don’t do might turn out to be right in the future, and by then there will be no chance to regret it, nor will anyone thank or sympathize with you. For progress and to become stronger, one must give up some things—conscience and so-called justice!
Gao Zhen sneered, “Li Shiming, don’t try to stir up trouble between me and Wendong. I trust my judgment and I trust Wendong’s character! Only a petty person like you would be on guard against others all the time!”
Hearing this, Li Shiming gritted his teeth in anger. Seeing Gao Zhen standing up for Xie Wendong, he really wanted to go up and beat Gao Zhen senseless.
At that moment, Li Feng was dragged in by the two men. After entering the room, they threw Li Feng on the ground and went over to Xie Wendong, whispering, “Brother Dong, Li Feng is dead!” Xie Wendong nodded expressionlessly. Even if Li Feng wasn’t dead, he wouldn’t let him go alive, because he dared to be rude to Gao Huiyu, which Xie Wendong could no longer tolerate.
Seeing his son lying on the ground, Li Shiming rushed over. Li Feng was pale and motionless. Suddenly, Li Shiming had a bada bad feeling. With trembling hands, he touched Li Feng’s nose and felt no breath. Still not giving up, he checked Li Feng’s neck—no pulse.
Without tears, Li Shiming held Li Feng tightly in his arms. The pain of losing a son in old age is beyond what ordinary people can bear, especially since Li Shiming had only one son. After about five minutes, Li Shiming let out a loud cry of grief, still holding Li Feng’s body tightly.

Gao Zhen felt pity in his heart. Though he hated Li Shiming, seeing such a scene made him feel some sympathy for him. Xie Wendong rested his chin in his hand, waiting quietly for Li Shiming to finish crying. He had already sentenced him to death in his mind—not because of his rebellion, but because he was too smart. If he really became the leader of the Triad, he would definitely be a fierce rival.

After a long time, Li Shiming slowly lowered Li Feng, moving very gently, as if Li Feng were asleep and he didn’t want to wake him. Standing up, Li Shiming glared at Xie Wendong and gritted his teeth, saying, “Xie Wendong, what grudge do I have against you? Why did you kill my son? Today, you must pay with your life!”

Xie Wendong replied coldly, “Your son deserved to die! Do you know why? Because he dared touch Gao Huiyu—just that alone is enough for him to die ten thousand times!” Looking at Li Shiming’s pale face from excessive grief, Xie Wendong sneered, “Pay with my life? Haha, I don’t know how you can say such things. But one thing is certain—you must die today!”

“Haha!” Li Shiming laughed maniacally, pointing at Xie Wendong and shouting, “I die? If I die, you won’t live either! No one here can leave today. You all must die—everyone will serve as sacrifices for my son!”

Xie Wendong said, “Are you still counting on your subordinates? Stop dreaming. If it were still possible, maybe you could see them being taken away by the police from the window.”

Li Shiming opened his mouth in surprise and walked toward the window in disbelief. Pulling back the curtain, he saw police lights flashing outside, with dozens of police cars parked nearby. In the light, he could faintly see the police arresting people and loading them into the cars. Li Shiming turned back to look at Xie Wendong. If looks could kill, Xie Wendong would likely have been shattered by Li Shiming’s gaze.

Xie Wendong smiled and said, “I know you’re puzzled—why are there police here? Every move you make is under my control. I even know what you’re saying to your subordinates. Do you think I didn’t know you hid them nearby? I brought the police here. They’ll take good care of your men. Don’t worry—none of them will get away!”

Li Shiming sighed deeply. “Xie Wendong, you’re really smart! I lost…”

Xie Wendong smiled triumphantly, stood up, and said, “Li Shiming, you’re quite sensible. With your intelligence, you should have guessed what I would do to you!” Glancing at Gao Zhen beside him, he took a breath and said, “You despicable wretch! Even after Brother Gao treated you well, you still conspired against him. People like you can’t be kept around!” With that, he gave a signal to his men behind him.

Li Shiming wasn’t a fool; he knew Xie Wendong intended to kill him. Determined to die rather than let Xie Wendong live, he swung his arm, causing a palm thunderbolt to fall from his wrist. Pointing it at Xie Wendong, he shouted, “Everyone, stay still! Otherwise, I’ll kill Xie Wendong first!”
Everyone was shocked, including Xie Wendong, as they hadn’t expected Li Shiming to have such a move. Those who knew Xie Wendong didn’t dare take another step forward and moved their hands to the back of their waists. Li Shiming sneered, “It’s better if none of you pull out your guns, or I’ll make sure Xie Wendong dies first!”
Li Shiming’s words stunned everyone. Then he waved his hand at Xie Wendong and said, “Xie Wendong, come over slowly! Better not try any tricks!”
Xie Wendong simply smiled in response, sat down, picked up a cigarette, and began smoking slowly, completely ignoring Li Shiming with the gun. His calm and relaxed demeanor earned nods of approval from everyone in the meeting room.
Li Shiming felt a chill in his heart—he had lost. He knew he lacked Xie Wendong’s boldness, which couldn’t be faked. It was Xie Wendong who exuded the aura of a king, overwhelming others. Xie Wendong said calmly, “Li Shiming, stop resisting needlessly. A man must be able to accept defeat. Since you joined this gamble, you should have considered the consequences!”