Su Lei had wanted to take his parents’ memorial tablets and leave right after. But when he got back home, he realized it was too late.
It seemed that some of the bandits in town had already discussed how to deal with his gang before their return.
Just as Su Lei had guessed, the bandits started plotting as soon as he left town. If Su Lei did not manage to get the business deal done, everyone would just go on with their lives as usual. If the deal were successful, they would want in as well. If Su Lei were unwilling to share, they would kill him and force Wang Ergou to tell them everything that he knew.
Wang Ergou was a very spineless person. As long as they scared him a little, he would spill the beans.
Whatever it was that the rich investor from the grasslands wanted, or the time and place of the next transaction, they could find out all that from Wang Ergou.
This was also the reason why they immediately noticed Wang Ergou did not come back with them. However, they did not expect Su Lei to be even more ruthless than they had imagined. He actually killed Wang Ergou in advance!
This caught everyone by surprise. It was also why a few groups of bandits had surrounded the place where Su Lei and his gang were staying. They did not make a move yet as they were still discussing what to do.
Su Lei was definitely going to be killed. If they let him off today, it would be the same as letting the tiger back into the mountains. If such a ruthless person did not die, they would not be able to sleep well.
The crux of the problem was that they did not want to give up on this business opportunity either. They were eyeing this trade route with the grasslands since it would definitely earn them a lot of money.
The most important thing right now was how were they going to kill Su Lei and steal his business deal.
With Su Lei’s return, everyone in the town had completely forgotten about Ren Xiaosu and Yang Xiaojin.
In the evening, Ren Xiaosu prepared the money and was waiting for the refugees to voluntarily send some food over. However, no one came by.
“They’ve even given up on a target who’s stupid and rich? What are these refugees thinking?” Ren Xiaosu pondered things. “Something big is probably going to happen in this town. It should be related to Su Lei, right? I guess they’re still bandits, after all. Their hearts get stirred up in the presence of a fortune.”
“So are we going to do anything about it?” Yang Xiaojin asked as though she were waiting for Ren Xiaosu to decide.
“Of course we are.” Ren Xiaosu grinned and said, “We definitely have to!”
…
As night fell, Su Lei took Cui Qiang and his fellow men out to guard their residence’s yard. Everyone was really tense as they silently gripped their weapons.
Some of the higher-ranked people were armed with improvised guns, while the others made do with bone knives or whatever iron weapons they could get their hands on.
White bone knives near their waists, it added a sense of gravity to the bandits in the yard.
Su Lei said, “I’m sorry, my brothers. This was all because I insisted on making a trip back here.”
His men did not say anything. Su Lei’s gang might not be that united, as after all, they were still just bandits and could not be compared to military troops.
Some of the men were also blaming Su Lei in their heads, but no one would possibly open their mouths to criticize him at such a time.
Cui Qiang was sitting by a dirt wall next to the yard’s door and wiping the improvised gun in his hand until the steel barrel shone.
Their improvised guns were all single shot only, so they had to reload every time they fired the weapon once. There were too many people watching them on the outside, so Cui Qiang knew that in a fight to the death, their gang would definitely be at a disadvantage.
Someone whispered, “Boss, why don’t we just hand over the business deal to them? They have so many people, and a wise man knows better than to fight when the odds are stacked against him. We can look for other business opportunities, but we only have one life.”
Su Lei was about to say something.
But just as this person finished speaking, Cui Qiang shot to his feet and jumped in front of him. As he moved, Cui Qiang pulled out a dagger from his waistband and stabbed it ruthlessly into the neck of the person who spoke.
Cui Qiang’s movements were so fast he looked like a wild cat on the hunt, swift and powerful!
“None of that nonsense here.” Cui Qiang said coldly, “It wasn’t easy for Boss to get this deal, so how can you ask him to give it away just like that? We’re all gonna listen to Boss’s orders later and fight our way out of here. Those who survive can go on to enjoy life with the boss, and we’ll live in luxury for the rest of our lives!”
The people around them were all stunned. Cui Qiang rarely spoke much, so when he made this move to kill someone, it left the others in a state of silence. They were all afraid they would get killed by Cui Qiang.
Su Lei sighed in his mind. He had thought of just handing over the business deal. However, Cui Qiang did not even ask him before making a move. Thus, it would obviously not be appropriate for him to talk about giving up the business deal.
He had no other choice now.
However, Su Lei knew full well he would not survive even if he handed over the business deal.
Then the outside of the residence gradually lit up like it was illuminated by a fire.
Numerous people had lit torches and surrounded the yard of Su Lei’s residence. The leader of a group of bandits said, “Su Lei, I think it’s better that you step out. Just hand over the business deal to us obediently and we can make money together. When the time comes, we can all enjoy life together. Wouldn’t it be better that we bros be happy together?”
Su Lei laughed and scolded, “Li Mazi, don’t pretend to be kind and just. Do you think I’ll survive after I give up the deal to y’all? You’ll probably find it difficult to sleep if I’m not dead!”
Li Mazi said coldly, “I’m gonna count to ten, so step out by yourself. Otherwise, we’re gonna set your place on fire! Then we’ll see if you come out or not!”
Su Lei’s heart had already hit rock bottom. He knew he was doomed.
But then, a young man’s voice suddenly rang out outside. “Hey, it’s so lively out here tonight. Everyone has gathered around here, but no one has cooked anything for me and my wife. I’m really unhappy about that.”
Everyone was stunned. Su Lei turned around and looked at Cui Qiang. “Whose voice was that?”
“I’ve never heard it before.” Cui Qiang shook his head. They still did not know a couple strangers had come to their small town.
Li Mazi looked at Ren Xiaosu and Yang Xiaojin and grinned. “Young man, don’t be a busybody. This is none of your business.”
Someone next to Li Mazi said, “Why not just kill these two people as well? They seem to be quite rich, so we can use their money as our business’s capital! Besides, that woman—”
Ren Xiaosu could not be bothered to say anything further.
Su Lei and the others heard a flurry of screams come from outside. This group of bandits in the yard were so frightened their hearts were pounding. They did not know what was going on outside.
The sound of bones breaking and tendons snapping reverberated in between the wails. It was terrifying to listen to!
Half an hour later, Ren Xiaosu’s voice came again from outside. “Alright, I’ve killed them all. Come on out.”
Su Lei carefully opened the yard’s door and was surprised to see Ren Xiaosu standing outside with a torch in hand. He was smiling at him. Next to the young man was a girl wearing a cap, and it was obvious there was an extraordinary demeanor about her.
Bodies were strewn all over the ground next to the two of them, but there were no traces of blood on the two of them.
“Wh-Who are you?” Although Su Lei was a ruthless person, he was still only starting out and had not seen much of the world yet.
Corpses were strewn all over the ground while the killers stood around calmly.
The impact he got from this sight was something he would not forget for the rest of his life.
Even if he were to become a big shot in the future, he would still feel a sense of reverence if he saw Ren Xiaosu again.
