Chapter 136: Cut The loss

— Thousand Treasure City – Money Gang HQ —

Within a wooden hall decorated with gold and jade, adorned with a large symbol of three golden taels, stood the headquarters of the Money Gang. The luxury and splendor of this hall had been built from the blood and sweat of its victims.

A sly looking middle aged man with a neatly trimmed mustache and a scholar’s beard sat upon a throne made of gold. He was Fei Wuyan, the leader of the Money Gang, and his cultivation had reached the Nascent Soul realm.

It could be said that both he and his gang thrived on fleecing the weak. Their targets were mostly mortals, but they also preyed on low level cultivators, all of whom lacked any backing.

Fei Wuyan sat on his golden throne, reading a ledger with a smile. This was his favorite pastime, watching the numbers rise higher and higher. As someone with mediocre talent in cultivation, this was how he soothed his own shortcomings.

The feeling of wealth, gain, and profit was something he could never get enough of. As long as he avoided offending those he should not offend, he could live like a king among mortals.

As for ambition, he had long since forgotten about it. Who would struggle to reach the apex when they already had a safe and comfortable place where they could feel superior in this world?

There was no need for him to compete with geniuses. Even if he stopped cultivating altogether, his lifespan as a Nascent Soul cultivator would still be long.

While Fei Wuyan was reading the ledger, the men who had gone to collect the debt returned.

“Boss! I’m back!” the gang member said as he stepped into the hall. He was the same person who lead the gang members to fatty Ding Lao home.

“How did it go? Ah Hu, Have you got that pig to hand over his ancestral home yet?” Fei Wuyan asked, his eyes still fixed on the ledger.

“Not yet, boss. There was an idiot who wanted to buy that pig’s debt. But I already duped him. He is expecting to get the promissory notes, but I will give him fake ones,” the Ah Hu said with a sly smile.

“Good.” Fei Wuyan nodded. “Our target was never the money. This is a favor job. Someone wants that pig’s ancestral home, and we need him to hand it over willingly. That is the condition.”

“Yes, boss, I remember. I will try harder next time after I deal with this idiot,” Ah Hu replied.

“Good. By the way…” Fei Wuyan paused and glanced at his subordinate. “How much did that idiot give you?”

“One million spirit stones, boss. That idiot was quite wealthy. I think he must be that pig’s friend, trying to help him,” the gang member said.

“Huh?” Fei Wuyan’s hand froze when he heard the number. This was an amount most people could not gather in their entire lives.

“What did you say again?”

“One million spirit stones, boss. Don’t forget, this is a great contribution. How about that, boss? What about the talk of me overseeing one of our gambling dens in Azure River City?” the gang member boasted, testing the waters. With this much money brought into the gang, he was certain he deserved a promotion.

Fei Wuyan paused. He closed the ledger and handed it to his secretary, who stepped forward to take care of it.

His attention was now fully focused on his subordinate.

“One million? Do you know what one million spirit stones implies? And what kind of person could pay one million in a single transaction?” He stood up from the throne and walked toward the gang member.

Ah Hu was stunned. Instead of receiving praise for the income he brought to the gang, he was being questioned. But as he thought about it, what kind of person could pay one million spirit stones in one go? At the time, he had not thought about it much because he was excited and also afraid of the man who had slapped him and his people.

Fei Wuyan continued, “If your brain does not work that well, then I will tell you. One million spirit stones is equal to our entire yearly income, and that is before we give our cut to our protector.”

“Now think about the person who could pay that much in a single transaction. Who are they? What about their background? Did you not even have a single inkling that this might be a trap, and a blatant one at that?” Fei Wuyan finished his explanation.

Ah Hu’s face paled at the realization. “Then… then I will give it back to him!”

“Do you know who he is? Or where he went?” Fei Wuyan asked.

Ah Hu paused. He had not even asked for the man’s name.

“It seems you do not know,” Fei Wuyan concluded after seeing Ah Hu’s pale face.

He let out a sigh and walked slowly around Ah Hu. Then, suddenly,

Slap!

He slapped Ah Hu across the face, sending him to the ground. “Then why the fck are you still here? Go and investigate. If possible, unfck this situation!” he shouted, furious at his subordinate’s stupidity.

“Yes! Yes! Right away, boss!” Ah Hu panicked, replied quickly, and scrambled out of the hall.

After Ah Hu left, Fei Wuyan let out a heavy sigh. He walked back to his throne and dropped into it, rubbing his forehead with his right hand.

Someone who could pay one million spirit stones in one go was not someone he could afford to offend. In the worst case, that person might have connections to the Thousand Treasure Pavilion.

If that were true, even his protector would be unable to shield him or the Money Gang. Worse still, if that one million spirit stones led to an investigation by the Thousand Treasure Pavilion, he could kiss his life goodbye.

The Money Gang ran many shady businesses that were not approved by the Thousand Treasure Pavilion. The reason he operated this way was because the kickbacks demanded by the Thousand Treasure Pavilion were not in his favor, while his protector asked for less.

Tempted by his own greed, he chose to pay his current protector instead of the Thousand Treasure Pavilion.

As a result, he gained more freedom and paid less, but beneath that freedom lay countless unsanctioned dealings that could get him killed many times over.

“What should I do…” Fei Wuyan muttered as he thought deeply about his situation.

Fei Wuyan was not strong or especially powerful, but he had outlived many of his competitors. The only reason he had stayed on this tightrope longer than anyone else was because he left nothing to chance.

“Leng Suan!” he called out.

A man in blue robes emerged from a side room. He wore neat and clean clothes and looked frail, like a simple scholar. A jade abacus hung from his sash, and a large brush the size of a spear was strapped to his back.

“Help me fix this situation. If the Thousand Treasure Pavilion starts sniffing around, kill Ah Hu and his people, then throw all our dirt onto them. Make it look like all of our shady deals were instigated by Ah Hu and his group,” Fei Wuyan said.

“Boss, will the investigators from the Thousand Treasure Pavilion believe us?” Leng Suan asked.

“It does not matter whether they believe us or not. What matters is that it looks believable. I let Ah Hu’s ambition grow unchecked, and now this has happened. We only need to point out that Ah Hu tried to undermine me. Kill anyone connected to him and make sure no one speaks about things they should not,” Fei Wuyan replied.

“Even if the Thousand Treasure Pavilion is suspicious, without evidence they cannot do much. Do not forget that the Thousand Treasure Pavilion wants to maintain the image of free trade and investment here. They must obey their own rules, unless they want to abandon that facade altogether,” Fei Wuyan added.

“Yes, boss. It will be done,” Leng Suan replied before leaving to handle the matter.

After Leng Suan left, Fei Wuyan leaned back against the throne and let out a sigh.

“Other than Leng Suan, why am I surrounded by idiots?”

— Ding Lao Ancestral Home —

In front of the main gate, Ah Hu arrived with his people. He clutched the money exchange shop note as if it were his lifeline. Only a few hours had passed since he left this place, and now he had to return in humiliation.

Ah Hu gritted his teeth, hoping it was not too late. If the man who had given him the money exchange shop note was no longer here, he would have no choice but to grovel on the ground and beg fatty Ding Lao for information about that man’s whereabouts.

But Ah Hu hesitated only briefly before determination appeared in his eyes. It was either his pride or his life, and the choice was easy.

Ah Hu walked into fatty Ding Lao’s home with his people.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep