Chapter 79: Darling, I Want to Start a Business

"Courting death!" The tattooed brute flew into a rage at being mocked and swung a vicious punch straight at Yang Jiekai’s face. Yang Jiekai simply leaned aside, dodging the blow with ease, and then flicked a phoenix-eye fist like lightning into the man’s ribs.

There was an audible crack—the man’s rib snapped cleanly under the force. Agonizing pain made cold sweat bead on his brow, and he doubled over involuntarily. Yang Jiekai seized the back of his neck, drove a knee up hard, and with a swift toss, sent the tattooed man crashing to the floor with a thud. He passed out instantly.

All of this happened in a flash; before the rest of the thugs could react, their leader had been dispatched in three swift moves. But before they had time to shake off their shock, Yang Jiekai was on the move again—a knife-hand strike brought one man down silently, collapsing in a heap.

Next, a spinning sweep from Yang Jiekai’s leg took out several more. Only then did the remaining henchmen snap out of their daze, grabbing steel pipes and machetes as they charged at him. Yet, Yang Jiekai, who had once faced gunfire without batting an eye, barely registered these lawless attacks. His movements were ghostlike, weaving and dodging, and in seconds, the floor was littered with bodies.

Once finished, Yang Jiekai brushed his hands off lightly and called out, "Come in!"

The door swung open. Long Xiaoman strode in, clad in a black trench coat, leading over a dozen men. Without distinguishing between friend or foe, they delivered another harsh beating to the group lying helplessly on the ground.

"I’m heading out for a smoke. This place is yours now," Yang Jiekai said to Long Xiaoman with a wry smile, touched his nose, took out a cigarette, and strolled out, unhurried.

He could handle the fighting, but what came next was out of his expertise—Long Xiaoman would have to personally deal with the aftermath.

Outside, Yang Jiekai smoked leisurely, completely unconcerned about what was going on inside. He trusted Long Xiaoman to handle it.

When he finished his cigarette, Long Xiaoman came out too, tossing two USB drives to Yang Jiekai. "Here’s what you wanted."

Yang Jiekai nodded, pleased with Long Xiaoman’s efficiency. "They didn’t keep a copy for themselves, did they?"

Long Xiaoman raised an eyebrow. "No. One drive is what you asked for; the other is their own nude photos. Even if they have backups, they wouldn’t dare pull any stunts."

"That’s a clever move. Why didn’t I think of that? The old saying is true—every pot has its lid, every tough guy meets his match." Yang Jiekai grinned at Long Xiaoman. "Come on, let me buy you a drink to say thanks."

They returned to the Dragon Palace Bar and had a few drinks. Yang Jiekai couldn’t help but praise Long Xiaoman’s methods.

If it had been him, he would have left the other party half-crippled at best, but never would he have thought to turn their own tactics against them.

"By the way, what’s with this private detective agency? Why do they meddle in everything—loans, extortion, you name it?"

This piqued Yang Jiekai’s curiosity.

Long Xiaoman sipped her red wine and replied, "It’s just a gang of thugs hiding behind a legal front. Private detective agency? They just go wherever the profit is."

"Oh, right—there’s something else," Long Xiaoman suddenly remembered, turning to Yang Jiekai. "Though we’ve put them in their place for now, your friend still has to pay back the debt. That’s the rule—debts must be paid. If I break that, I’ll lose all credibility in this business."

"Why are there so many rules in your line of work?" Yang Jiekai was puzzled. In his eyes, these gangs of thugs were always out for a quick buck, always looking for an angle. Just like Long Xiaoman—one moment a thief, the next a hired muscle, sometimes running protection.

Suddenly, her words gave Yang Jiekai an idea. If even these small-time crooks could open a private detective agency, why couldn’t he start one himself?

Back home, Yang Jiekai lay on his bed, turning the idea over in his mind. His main source of income was as a bounty hunter, but he was only one man—his abilities were limited. What if he found a few helpers?

The more he thought, the more excited he became. Without worrying about manners, he went straight upstairs and knocked on Han Ning’s door.

"What are you up to now?" Han Ning, seeing the excitement on his face, instinctively took half a step back.

"Wife, I want to start a business!" Yang Jiekai got straight to the point, seeking advice from his CEO wife. "You’re an expert at this—could you teach me something about starting a company?"

He was adept at fighting and killing, but starting a business was a total mystery to him.

Han Ning finally relaxed a little, though she was curious about his sudden interest in entrepreneurship.

Seeing Han Wei in the room as well, Yang Jiekai remembered his real errand, quickly pulling out the two USB drives and tossing them over.

"What are these?" Han Wei was still sulking over her own troubles.

"Nude photos," Yang Jiekai explained. "One drive is yours, the other is those bastards’. Don’t worry, now that you have their photos, even if they have backups, they won’t dare try anything."

Han Wei was stunned, her gloom instantly lifting. She beamed, "Brother-in-law, I love you so much! I’ve decided—starting now, I’ll help you win my sister’s heart!"

"You little brat, just wait till I tear that mouth of yours!" Han Ning’s cheeks flushed bright red.

Han Wei shot her sister a mischievous look, giggled, and darted out of the room. "I won’t play third wheel here—I’ll give you two some privacy!"

"Get out of here!" Han Ning was exasperated by her sister.

With that, Yang Jiekai and Han Ning started discussing business.

As soon as the topic came up, Han Ning snapped back into her efficient, queenly mode, rattling off a slew of technical terms that left Yang Jiekai’s head spinning.

"Wow, starting a company is that complicated?" Yang Jiekai grimaced. Tax registration, business licenses—it was all Greek to him.

"That’s just the basics," Han Ning added.

Yang Jiekai felt dizzy. "What? All that’s just the basics? Don’t tell me it gets even harder?"

Han Ning continued, "What I mentioned just now can be sorted out with a bit of time. The most important thing is startup capital and personnel—you need a team working for you."

Yang Jiekai scratched his head, looking gloomier. "As for startup capital… Wife, how much does it take to register a company?"

"That depends on the type of company you want to register. Tell me about your plan—maybe I can help," Han Ning replied. Despite his annoying ways, he had helped her a lot lately and had just solved Han Wei’s problem, so she decided to lend a hand.

"Here’s the thing…" Yang Jiekai paused to organize his thoughts, then said seriously, "I want to open a private detective agency. The main business would be investigating extramarital affairs, collecting debts, maybe some loans on the side…"

Han Ning’s face darkened. She pointed toward the door.

Yang Jiekai turned to look, puzzled. "What does that mean? Oh, I get it—you mean to start a business, you have to get out there and learn firsthand. Practice makes perfect, right?"

Han Ning frowned. "I mean get out. I’m going to bed!"

She all but shoved him out the door. Standing outside, Yang Jiekai was baffled—he had no idea what had just happened.

The next day at work, Qin Feng and the others greeted Yang Jiekai as if they'd spotted a rare panda.

"Ha! You finally showed up! We couldn’t reach you at all. Where have you been goofing off?" Qin Feng punched him playfully in the chest.

"Struck by lightning," Yang Jiekai replied honestly.

"Screw you! You must’ve snuck off to that den of pleasure. Spill it—where were you really?" Li Jun obviously didn’t believe him.

Yang Jiekai shrugged, at a loss. Why did no one ever believe the truth?

When Lin Sha heard Yang Jiekai was back at work, she hurried to the security department, scolding him for disappearing without a word.

Yang Jiekai grinned and made up an excuse, but seeing the worry on Lin Sha’s face, he asked what was wrong.

She sighed. "You were absent without leave for several days. This time, there’s nothing I can do to help. Company policy is company policy."

Yang Jiekai just smiled. "Whatever the punishment, it’s fine. At worst, I’ll just lose this month’s pay."

Lin Sha shook her head. "It’s not that simple. A week of unexcused absence means termination—company rules."

"Oh, fired, huh." Yang Jiekai wasn’t much attached to the job, but still felt a twinge of annoyance at being sacked.

"But don’t be too upset," Lin Sha said gently. "I’ll introduce you to another company—better pay, I promise."

Yang Jiekai shook his head. "No need. Actually, I was planning to quit anyway—this just saves me the paperwork."

Lin Sha, thinking he was just putting on a brave face, said softly, "Don’t take it to heart. With your skills, you’ll have no trouble finding another job. Go settle your accounts with finance—you’re entitled to a month’s severance pay."

Then she added, "By the way, Zhang Hua from Sales was fired, and he might even be facing jail time."