Chapter 116: Vengeance Satisfied

Liu Jingye watched coldly, the current situation and Brother Xian's true intentions already clear to him.

What was most infuriating was that Brother Xian was still playing the good guy, reprimanding the thugs: "What is wrong with you? You come to someone else's establishment to eat, drink, and make merry, and then you hit people? You have no sense of decorum."

The thug laughed: "Brother Xian, it's not that we don't know the rules. A girl here spent ages with me and didn't provide service, yet she still demanded a tip. Tell me, should I pay that? And this guy here helped her coerce me for money. What was I supposed to do?"

"This..." Brother Xian feigned difficulty, saying, "Oh, it's just a small matter. We are here to make friends, let's not damage the harmony."

Brother Xian's words were clearly meant for Lin Shengnan; by saying "let's not damage the harmony," he meant that Hu Ming's beating was to be taken in stride.

This was a naked threat and humiliation, suppressing them in the simplest way possible. It all depended on how Lin Shengnan would respond. The situation was like a tensioned spring; if you are weak, it becomes strong.

Lin Shengnan was a woman who had come from the countryside. She didn't understand schemes or tricks; her temper was straightforward, and she liked to be direct. Therefore, she immediately said: "Hu Ming, go. Whoever hit you, you pay them back double."

The moment she spoke, an uproar ensued. Even Brother Xian was stunned. The twenty-some thugs began to curse and bluster, their fierce demeanor effectively intimidating Hu Ming.

At this point, Brother Xian stepped in to smooth things over, but with a hidden edge: "Sister Nan, why get angry? It's just young people playing around. Besides, how much could a few of them spend? You just made a clean profit of one hundred thousand, you shouldn't care about such small change."

Lin Shengnan still ignored him. She didn't even glance his way, repeating to Hu Ming: "Go. Whoever hit you, hit them back."

This concerned the morale of their entire team and Hu Ming's own confidence. If they backed down now, they would have no right to survive in this area.

Brother Xian wore a look of regret, but his eyes flickered with a crazed light, hiding a smirk. The twenty or so men were laughing and cursing, not taking them seriously in the slightest.

Just then, a lazy voice came from behind the crowd: "If he wants to hit, let him. Let him hit whoever he likes. We are just thin, weak teenagers anyway; once beaten, we'll have to go to the hospital for treatment..."

They were threatening extortion before even starting a fight—a common tactic for low-level hoodlums. They didn't want to fight; their only goal was money.

The crowd parted to make way as a man emerged. He was of medium height and rather stocky, with an ordinary face, but what made him stand out was that one of his hands was wrapped in bandages and splints.

"Boss..." the twenty thugs chanted in unison, showing great discipline.

Lin Shengnan and her group stared at the boss, finding him unfamiliar—they had never dealt with him before. But Liu Jingye's eyes lit up; he recognized this man. In just a few days, this guy had become a boss?

The man, cradling his injured hand, walked out unsteadily with a cigarette in his mouth. Surrounded by his men, he wore a look of contemptuous disdain, truly acting like he owned the world.

Just as he stepped through the crowd and cast a contemptuous look at Lin Shengnan's group, his gaze stalled. He froze, a look of horror appearing in his eyes. His face turned pale as paper, and large drops of cold sweat poured down his forehead as if he had seen a ghost.

At this moment, two of his thugs pointed at Hu Ming and said: "Did you hear our boss? Come over and hit me. But I have a bad heart, so you'd better be gentle."

The thugs laughed heartily, completely unaware that their boss had been frightened out of his wits, his face ashen.

Liu Jingye grinned, showing a set of snow-white teeth that looked incredibly sinister. He suddenly reached out without warning, pointed directly at the boss, and beckoned him with a contemptuous flick of his finger.

Everyone on the scene was stunned, confused. One of the thugs couldn't help but shout: "Who do you think you are, daring to order my boss around..."

Before the thug could finish, he was struck in the jaw by his boss’s elbow and fell to the ground, blood spilling from his mouth.

Everyone stood frozen, feeling as if Liu Jingye had cast some kind of spell that caused the boss to lose his mind.

The boss, trembling all over with his legs shaking, crawled toward Liu Jingye with extreme reluctance and overwhelming terror. He tried to force a smile onto his face, but just as he was about to speak, he saw Liu Jingye's large hand swinging toward him.

'Slap!' A crisp sound reached everyone's ears. The boss spun in place, one side of his face turning red as blood and swelling rapidly, his vision filled with stars.

'Slap!' Another ringing strike. Liu Jingye didn't put much force into it; slapping wasn't a combat technique and had no lethality, but it was the best way to humiliate an opponent.

As the saying goes, one should not hit a person in the face; this was the ultimate disgrace.

Liu Jingye began swinging his hands back and forth, slapping the boss's face like raindrops. He knocked the man around like a leaf in a storm until he finally fell to the ground, his mouth full of blood foam and his face swollen beyond recognition. His vision blurred, but from start to finish, he offered no resistance or defense.

Everyone present went from stunned to dumbfounded; they were scared witless. The previously arrogant boss was now as obedient as a son being beaten by his father.

However, upon closer inspection, although the boss was being subjected to humiliating violence, the expression on his face didn't seem to show much pain—instead, there was a hint of relief.

Because the boss knew: "Getting slapped is better than catching a bullet."

He had once witnessed Liu Jingye walk alone into a minefield, killing his way through a purgatory of smoke and flying shrapnel as if it were an empty room. The moment he emerged from the fire wielding a massive pistol, he looked like a god of war descended to earth, invincible under heaven. Even if the boss had three heads and six arms, he would be no match for him.

Moreover, his wrist had been pierced by a bullet from Liu Jingye back then—a bullet that could have easily blown his head off.

This was the same thug who had helped the bomb-maker kidnap Chen Yuxin not long ago. Liu Jingye had shot through his wrist, dealt with the bomb-maker, and left him with a threat after learning his detailed address before letting him go. He hadn't expected the guy to have become a boss so quickly.

As the man lay on the ground with stars in his eyes and blood in his mouth, Liu Jingye squatted beside him and said: "I remember telling you last time not to let me see you again. Are you tired of living, or do you miss me so much you can't stand it?"

The boss cowered on the ground, mumbling incoherently: "I'm sorry, Big Brother. I didn't know this was your territory. Please, spare me. I'll roll away right now, I'll roll away..."

As he spoke, he really began to roll away to the side. With twenty of his subordinates watching, he no longer cared about dignity or face; nothing was more important than survival.

Brother Xian, watching from the side, was completely stunned. The underworld in this city was currently in chaos, with various warlords carving out territory. If you had a dozen men, were fierce enough, and dared to fight, you could be considered a warlord.

And this boss was one of them, having made a name for himself recently. He never expected that, in front of Liu Jingye, this man would act like a grandson meeting his grandfather.

"Don't be in such a rush to roll away," Liu Jingye suddenly said. "That doesn't follow the rules. Even in Fenglai Tower, if you dine and dash, besides getting a beating, you have to work as a gigolo for three months to pay off the debt. You've all been eating and drinking here; is it enough to just take a few slaps? Isn't that too cheap?"

"I'll pay, I'll pay!" The boss remained on the ground, not daring to stand up, fearing that if he did, that pitch-black gun muzzle would be pointed at him again.

He pulled a wad of cash from his pocket and respectfully handed it to Liu Jingye, but Liu Jingye replied: "Why give it to me? I'm not the cashier. Go settle the bill at the front desk... Right, after you finish, roll back here. Since you're Brother Xian's friend, I have to give Brother Xian some face. I'll treat you to a buffet; consider it our reconciliation drink."

"Yes, yes!" The boss didn't dare refuse. With a face swollen like a pig's, he crawled up and went to settle the bill personally.

Liu Jingye's constant insistence on giving "Brother Xian face" was crueler than slapping him directly. Brother Xian felt as uncomfortable as if he had swallowed a toad; he wanted to say something, but lacked the courage.

As for the twenty-some thugs, they were all dumbstruck. These were just kids who had recently left school, prone to making trouble and eager to fight, but they didn't dare provoke real gangsters easily, and even if they did, they needed someone to lead them.

Now that their leader had been broken, they were all terrified, and none dared to bluff again.

On Lin Shengnan's side, the group was incredibly excited, barely holding back from cheering. The thug had hit Hu Ming, and Liu Jingye had humiliated their boss—there was no feeling better than this, finally having their revenge and holding their heads high.

Soon, the boss returned, looking wretched. He kept his head bowed, waiting for Liu Jingye's orders, not daring to look at him even once.

"Brother Xian, I'm truly sorry. I had a small disagreement with your friend here. Now that our business is settled, and since you've come to patronize us, let me play the host today. Let's have a good drink, the two of you, and get to know each other properly." Liu Jingye acted with force first and courtesy second, having completely seized the initiative and firmly suppressing them.

Brother Xian hurriedly forced a smile: "Big Brother is too kind. It's my honor to oblige."

Brother Xian was a smart man; he immediately abandoned any malicious intent and became incredibly respectful. As for the boss, he stood by Liu Jingye with his head lowered, like a submissive grandson.

The twenty thugs were dispersed, but Lin Shengnan's men were all present, which implicitly raised their status. Brother Xian and the boss were also seated at the largest table, which was laden with food, yet no one dared to touch a single thing.

The entire restaurant was filled with a heavy atmosphere, as if an emperor were hosting his founding ministers, charged with a terrifying sense of murderous intent where one wrong move could lead to total ruin.