Chapter 145: Gathering

For the next period, Yang Jiekai personally went to the training ground every day to put his men through a devilish regimen.

He employed ruthless methods, punishing them daily until they were battered and bruised.

In Qin Feng's words: "I would rather be slashed by a blade than tortured by Brother Yang ever again!"

This alone was proof of how brutal Yang Jiekai's training methods were.

During this time, Yang Jiekai kept himself relentlessly busy, terrified of having any idle moments. The moment he had free time, he would inevitably find himself thinking of Han Ning.

Although their divorce papers had not yet been finalized, Yang Jiekai had already moved out of the villa and simply bought a property in the eastern suburbs. By day, he trained Qin Feng and the others, and by night, he conceptualized various development plans for the Dragon Hall.

Following this period of brutal training, no one dared to take things lightly anymore. The ranks stood neat and disciplined, finally bearing a resemblance to a real military unit.

Aside from physical and disciplinary training, Yang Jiekai, together with Old Stick, taught them grappling and combat. The combat effectiveness of all the brothers in the Dragon Hall soared straight upward.

Three months later...

"Qin Feng!"

"Present!"

"Tell me, what have you learned during this time?"

"Reporting!" Qin Feng stood straight as a ramrod. "I have learned three things. First, obedience. Second, obedience. Third, obedience!"

"Very good!" Yang Jiekai nodded in satisfaction. "Congratulations, you have successfully survived the three-month devil week. But this does not mean training stops here. Every week from now on, each of you will lead your respective subordinates through at least two training sessions."

"Understood!" Qin Feng, Red Boy, and the others shouted in unison.

Yang Jiekai nodded. "Alright, dismiss. Tonight, everyone goes to the Dragon Palace Bar, my treat."

"Long live!"

"That's awesome!"

Having been tormented for a full three months, the members of the Dragon Hall burst into cheers.

That night, the Dragon Palace Bar was booked exclusively by the Dragon Hall, making for an extraordinarily lively scene.

Yang Jiekai and Dragon Xiaoman, however, did not attend the gathering. The two of them went to the riverside, strolling side by side along the expansive riverbank.

"Jiekai, what's been going on with you lately? You've seemed quite abnormal," Dragon Xiaoman asked, linking her arm through Yang Jiekai's.

Yang Jiekai gave a bitter smile. "Not at all. I just felt that the Dragon Hall was strong on the outside but hollow within. On the surface, it seemed to be developing rapidly, but its actual combat capability was extremely low. That's why I wanted to drill them using military methods."

"I'm not talking about that."

Dragon Xiaoman was exceptionally clever. Although she had never met Han Ning, from the way Yang Jiekai and that woman stepping out of the Bentley had locked gazes that night, she had already guessed the general outline.

"The woman who stepped out of the Bentley that day must be your wife, right?" Dragon Xiaoman asked with a sigh.

Yang Jiekai had no choice but to nod, remaining completely silent.

"What happened afterward? Were you kicked out because of me?"

Dragon Xiaoman looked at Yang Jiekai. Since he had been living in the eastern suburbs all this time, she had managed to guess roughly what had transpired.

Yang Jiekai offered a bitter smile and let out a long sigh. "Let's not talk about that. From now on, I will pour my heart and soul into my career."

Seeing that Yang Jiekai did not wish to pursue the topic, Dragon Xiaoman did not press further. She took a deep breath and said, "Seriously, thanks to your three months of training, the Dragon Hall's combat effectiveness has definitely skyrocketed. I really want to find someone for a real, no-holds-barred fight!"

During this period, even though Dragon Xiaoman was the boss of the Dragon Hall and theoretically exempt from the grueling training, she had voluntarily requested to join. On one hand, she wanted to win the respect of her subordinates, and on the other, she wanted to improve her own combat skills.

"Right, that set of saber techniques I taught you last time—you must practice them diligently. I've found that you are a martial arts genius."

Yang Jiekai's words were a sincere expression of praise. During the training sessions, he had privately taught Dragon Xiaoman a saber form. Over the course of three months, the speed of her progress had left him dumbfounded.

"It's just passable!"

Dragon Xiaoman stretched her arms and said, "That saber technique is quite formidable, but I can't find anyone to test it on in actual combat, which leaves me itching for a fight."

Yang Jiekai smiled. Speaking partly to Dragon Xiaoman and partly to himself as he looked into the distance, he said, "Don't worry, this is only the beginning. There will be plenty of unimaginable, fierce battles to fight in the future."

For several days in a row, everything remained uneventful.

Yang Jiekai kept himself busy every single day, terrified of having idle time. On this particular day, right after handling some matters regarding their properties, he received a phone call from Chen Peifeng.

"Are you free tonight? Let's go to a gathering together," Chen Peifeng said from the other end of the line.

"I have things to do tonight, let's make it another day."

Yang Jiekai prepared to hang up. Business was the kind of thing that was never truly finished; in order to keep himself from idling these past few days, Yang Jiekai had immersed himself in every trivial detail of the Dragon Hall, and indeed a mountain of tasks awaited his attention.

"Don't be so quick to refuse. I think you should consider it. Tonight's gathering might be a bit special—everyone attending belongs to the underworld of Anhai City," Chen Peifeng said.

Yang Jiekai frowned slightly. "Alright, send the time and location to my phone."

After hanging up, Yang Jiekai immediately sought out Dragon Xiaoman and informed her of the matter.

Hearing this, Dragon Xiaoman's expression turned solemn. "If that's the case, this gathering might be an opportunity for us. I think we should go."

Yang Jiekai nodded. "I was thinking the same thing. However, I believe it is necessary for you to attend tonight's gathering with me."

"I'm going too?" Dragon Xiaoman asked, looking bewildered.

Yang Jiekai nodded. "That's right, you are going too, and you must go. You are still the boss of the Dragon Hall, whereas I am merely an outsider. You must take this opportunity to show your face."

Dragon Xiaoman pondered for a moment. "Fine, then we'll go test the waters. Even if we don't gain any benefits, showing our faces is fine too."

The location was set at a private mountain villa on the outskirts of Anhai City, covering an area of over ten thousand square meters. Various luxury cars were parked densely at the entrance.

Chen Peifeng had been waiting at the villa entrance for a while. Spotting Yang Jiekai, he hurried over to greet him.

"Haha, Brother Yang, long time no see! I knew you would come."

Chen Peifeng glanced at Dragon Xiaoman beside him. "And this is..."

Yang Jiekai introduced her, "This is Dragon Xiaoman, the boss of the Dragon Hall."

Chen Peifeng nodded, extending his hand to Dragon Xiaoman. "Ah, I've heard of you. Hello, I'm Chen Peifeng."

Dragon Xiaoman also reached out and shook hands with Chen Peifeng. "Hello, President Chen, I've heard a lot about you."

Guided by a waiter, the three of them entered the villa grounds. Along the way, Chen Peifeng briefed Yang Jiekai: "You came to the right place this time. This gathering isn't just for small-timers like us; representatives from the two major factions of Anhai City are also attending."

"Two major factions?" Although Yang Jiekai was somewhat a man of the underworld, he was not very familiar with the underworld landscape of Anhai City.

Dragon Xiaoman chimed in, "There are two largest underworld forces in Anhai City: the Zhou Group in the south of the city, and the He family in the north of the city. These two forces entrenched in Anhai divide the underworld landscape of the city right down the middle, north and south."

"The He family?"

The name sounded somewhat familiar to Yang Jiekai. After pondering for a moment, he suddenly asked, "Are they led by someone named He Xiao and someone named He Yuan?"

"Right!"

Chen Peifeng said, "He Xiao is the head of the He family, but he didn't come this time. Instead, his son He Yuan is attending as his representative."

Yang Jiekai nodded, inwardly marveling at how enemies often crossed paths. He had indeed crossed paths with He Yuan before. When he had previously accompanied Han Ning to a banquet, He Yuan had attempted to make a move on Han Ning, and it was only thanks to a bag of cornmeal that Yang Jiekai had managed to bluff him away.

While leading the way, Chen Peifeng continued to explain the details of the gathering to Yang Jiekai.

In the underground world of Anhai City, there were two gatherings held every year. Sometimes they served to discuss matters, and other times they were merely a formality. Every prominent boss with any standing in Anhai's underworld would receive an invitation.

Currently, neither Yang Jiekai nor the Dragon Hall possessed the qualifications to attend; it was solely thanks to Chen Peifeng acting as their guide that they were qualified to come today.

Chen Peifeng was also keeping the promise he had made to Yang Jiekai earlier. At banquets like this, if one could seize even one or two opportunities, it would be a massive win; and even if nothing was gained, at least they could become a familiar face among the various bigwigs of Anhai City.

Chen Peifeng had promised Yang Jiekai back then that his aged face still carried some weight in the Anhai underworld, and if there were any benefits to be had, he would certainly not forget Yang Jiekai. That was why he had specifically called him for this gathering.

There were roughly a dozen underworld bosses attending this gathering. As soon as Yang Jiekai stepped into the private dining room, he saw He Yuan dressed in a brown suit, sitting boldly in the seat of honor. Next to him was a somewhat stocky middle-aged man.

Judging solely by the seating arrangement, it was not difficult to tell that He Yuan and the stocky middle-aged man beside him were the main protagonists of today's gathering.

"Ah, Brother Chen has arrived as well! Come, please take a seat, we were just waiting for you."

Chen Peifeng was usually gentle in his dealings and often acted as a peacemaker, making him quite popular in the Anhai underworld. The moment he stepped into the room, the people inside greeted him warmly.

After exchanging a few brief, polite remarks with those present, Chen Peifeng guided Yang Jiekai and Dragon Xiaoman to sit beside them.

Whether He Yuan had a poor memory or not, he merely glanced sideways at Yang Jiekai with a blank expression, acting as if he didn't recognize him at all.

"Director He, everyone is here. Why don't you give the opening speech?"

The stocky middle-aged man sitting nearby saw that everyone had arrived and immediately smiled as he spoke to He Yuan.

He Yuan had a fair complexion and wore gold-rimmed glasses; no matter how one looked at him, he didn't resemble someone from the underworld. Without standing on ceremony, he picked up a glass of wine and addressed everyone present: "Thank you all seniors for gracing us with your presence. I'll deliver the opening remarks today."

After speaking, following underworld convention, he downed a glass of wine by himself, wiped the corner of his mouth with a paper napkin, and said, "Everyone here is straightforward, so I won't beat around the bush. You all surely know the reason for this gathering. Recently, the underground forces of Beihai City have been aggressively infiltrating Anhai City, resulting in several clashes with us. Today, we've gathered here to properly discuss how to resolve this matter."