Chapter 110: The Silver Dollar

Han Ning chuckled the moment she saw Yang Jiekai’s expression. "What, are you still jealous?"

Yang Jiekai pulled a long face and said, "Can you blame me? I worked so hard to bake a cake, only for it to stir up memories of another man for my own wife. Anyone in my shoes would be jealous!"

"Oh, give it a rest!" Han Ning was torn between laughter and annoyance. "I’ve told you, Li Bin only pursued me in the past, and all that is behind us now. I only have some business dealings with him; we aren't even friends."

Yang Jiekai grumbled, "Right, and what about the other day? You called me over to act as your shield—why were you so intimate with me on the phone? We’ve been married for so long, and that was the first time I ever heard you call me 'darling'."

Thinking back to that day, Han Ning’s face flushed a deep crimson, all the way to her ears. She lowered her head and muttered, "You said it yourself, I called you over to be a shield. If I hadn’t acted intimate with you, I was afraid Li Bin would have kept pushing."

In truth, her words were only half-true. She would never tell Yang Jiekai the real reason, lest the hot-headed man do something reckless.

Yang Jiekai chuckled after hearing her. "Darling, let’s discuss something."

"Speak."

"Be honest now—after spending all this time together, have you fallen for me?" Yang Jiekai asked, his skin thicker than ever.

"Get lost!"

Han Ning’s already red face turned even brighter. She grabbed a throw pillow and hurled it at him. "Keep dreaming! Get out, I’m going to sleep!"

Women are truly strange creatures!

After stepping out of Han Ning’s room, Yang Jiekai stretched and prepared to wash up and turn in. Just then, his phone rang. He checked the screen and saw it was Wang Sankui.

Yang Jiekai knew immediately that something was wrong. Under normal circumstances, Long Xiaoman or Qin Feng would be the ones to contact him. A call from Wang Sankui at this hour likely meant bad news.

"What is it?" Yang Jiekai answered, his voice dropping.

Wang Sankui sounded frantic on the other end. "Brother Yang, it’s bad! Our place has been smashed!"

Yang Jiekai frowned. "Where are Long Xiaoman and the others?"

"Sister Long and the others went to the Dragon Palace Bar. I heard something happened there, too!"

"All right, I’ve got it!"

After hanging up, Yang Jiekai immediately dialed Long Xiaoman. Her tone on the other end was surprisingly steady. "I’m in the middle of a fight right now. We’ll talk later."

Yang Jiekai was speechless. "Can you handle it?"

"No problem. Go check on Wang Sankui’s side; it sounds like they’ve run into some trouble, too."

After hanging up, Yang Jiekai smiled. Long Xiaoman’s greatest strength was her straightforwardness—she never beat around the bush. Working with her was always seamless.

As he drove toward the eastern suburbs, Yang Jiekai wasn’t worried about Long Xiaoman. For one, if things had truly gone south, she would have called him; for another, with the old master Old Stick with her, there was nothing to worry about.

Wang Sankui and his men were waiting in the eastern suburbs. Upon seeing Yang Jiekai, they immediately recounted what had happened.

The situation seemed suspicious. Not long ago, the Dragon Palace Bar had been suddenly attacked by a group of unidentified men, forcing Long Xiaoman and Old Stick to rush back to handle the crisis.

However, no sooner had they left than another group descended upon the eastern suburbs. Without a word, they began trashing the place. There were about seventy or eighty of them, and they were fierce fighters. Wang Sankui and his men were no match, resulting in many injuries and the total destruction of their property.

"Brother Yang, we’ve been played! This was a diversion!" Wang Sankui said with a bruised face, looking miserable.

"I don’t think so," Zhang Hua suddenly interjected. As the strategist of the Dragon Hall, he rarely took part in the fighting, so he remained unscathed.

"Oh? Tell me your reasoning," Yang Jiekai said.

Zhang Hua adjusted his glasses. "I believe this is merely a coincidence, not a diversion. The reason is simple: the Dragon Palace Bar is in the city center, while this is the suburbs. If our enemies were more powerful than us, they wouldn't need to resort to such complex tactics; if they were weaker, this wouldn't help them anyway. Therefore, I believe the attacks happening simultaneously were just a coincidence."

Yang Jiekai nodded; Zhang Hua’s assessment matched his own.

"Who were those people?" Yang Jiekai asked.

"I don’t know. They were all new faces, definitely not from around here," Wang Sankui replied, wincing as he touched a bleeding gash on his forehead.

Zhang Hua continued, "Those people fought well; they weren't your average rabble. I kept my guard up, and when they left, I sent a man to tail them. I believe we’ll have an answer shortly."

No sooner had he finished speaking than Zhang Hua’s phone rang. After a brief conversation, he turned to Yang Jiekai. "It’s confirmed. They are thugs from the northern suburbs, and they’re currently having a meal at a restaurant in the city center."

"Damn it! It was Yuan Datou all along!" Wang Sankui roared in anger upon hearing the name.

Yang Jiekai frowned. "Who is Yuan Datou?"

Wang Sankui spat on the ground viciously. "The boss of the northern suburbs. His surname is Yuan, and he has a massive head, hence the nickname 'Big-Head Yuan.' His methods are brutal. We’ve had friction with them before, but I never expected him to actually come and wreck our place!"

Yang Jiekai asked, "Why didn't you go to war with him before?"

Wang Sankui sighed. "It’s a long story. There are bosses in the four suburbs—East, West, North, and South—and the power gap is significant. The eastern suburbs are the weakest of the four. Yuan Datou is ruthless, and we’re simply no match for him."

Yang Jiekai continued, "What about the west and south?"

Wang Sankui sighed again. "Monkey Sun in the west doesn't have great combat skills, but he has the numbers—hundreds of men. He just stays in his corner like a hillbilly and doesn't mix with other factions."

"The thugs in the southern suburbs are the wealthiest. That area is a goldmine—it’s right next to the university town, filled with restaurants and bars. They control it all. Their monthly income is more than we make in a year. I heard their boss, Red Boy, has connections in the city underworld, and even Monkey Sun is wary of him."

Yang Jiekai nodded. He had already gathered a rough understanding of the situation, which was why he had chosen to start with the relatively weaker eastern suburbs.

After a moment of thought, Yang Jiekai asked, "How many men do you have left who can still stand?"

Wang Sankui thought for a moment. "After the fight with North Dog’s men, we’ve got quite a few wounded. At most, we have about thirty men left who can still hold a weapon."

Just then, Yang Jiekai’s phone rang. It was Long Xiaoman.

"Xiaoman, how are things on your end?"

Long Xiaoman was breathing heavily, having just finished the fight. "It’s done. It was a group of local thugs trying to grab territory. If Old Stick hadn't been here, we might have been in real trouble."

Yang Jiekai nodded. "Take all the uninjured men and get to the eastern suburbs immediately!"

When Long Xiaoman and her group arrived, Yang Jiekai felt a pang of pity seeing the blood still drying on her face.

By age, Long Xiaoman was just in her early twenties—an age where she should have been enjoying a carefree life at university. Instead, she had been thrust into the bloody, dirty underworld, living a life of constant violence.

"Damn it! Who did this?" Qin Feng roared with rage as he saw the wreckage left by the northern thugs.

After hearing the situation from Zhang Hua, Qin Feng shouted that he wanted to charge over and wipe them out.

Yang Jiekai held back the impulsive Qin Feng. Just as he was about to speak, Zhang Hua stepped forward. "I don’t know much about underworld affairs, but I have an idea, if you’re willing to listen."

Yang Jiekai smiled at Zhang Hua. The man was sharp-witted and highly capable, moving between the worlds of business and the street with ease. Though he lacked physical strength, Wang Sankui and the others had already come to respect him deeply.

"Zhang Hua, from now on, don't stand on ceremony. If we’re brothers, just say what’s on your mind," Yang Jiekai said with a smile.

Zhang Hua nodded. "I don’t think we can compromise. If we choose to endure this, there will be a second and a third time. We have to face this, and we have to win!"

Yang Jiekai nodded. "Go on."

Zhang Hua swallowed hard and continued, "Monkey Sun and his subordinate, North Dog, are currently dining in the city. This means the western suburbs are at their most vulnerable. This is the best time to strike. Since he trashed our place, we’ll trash all of theirs!"

"Director Zhang’s plan is excellent! I second that!" Qin Feng, hearing there was a fight to be had, was instantly pumped, waving his blood-stained belt in the air.

"I agree, too," Long Xiaoman added.

Yang Jiekai looked at Wang Sankui. "Sankui, do you have the guts to go into the western suburbs and tear the place down?"

"I do!"

Wang Sankui spat on the ground again. "What’s there to be afraid of? The worst that happens is we lose our lives!"

"Good," Yang Jiekai said, nodding. "Take your men to the western suburbs now. Smash every one of North Dog’s establishments. Remember: leave nothing behind, not even a spare part!"

"And what are we doing?" Long Xiaoman asked.

Yang Jiekai rubbed his nose, a cold, imperceptible glimmer in his eyes. He said playfully, "Aren't they having a dinner party at a restaurant? It just so happens I’m hungry, too. I think I’ll go over and have a drink with them."