"Prosperity, democracy, civility..." Lin Li mentally recited the Purifying Heart Spell, struggling to concentrate and rein in his restless eyes.
He felt that facing Su Yue right now was even more stressful than his earlier battle in the wilderness against that giant Tier Two Peak Wild Boar Beast.
Lin Li wanted to tell Su Yue to go to her bedroom and change, but this was her own home; she had the freedom to wear whatever she pleased.
"Huh?"
"What’s that smell?"
As Su Yue welcomed him in, Lin Li stepped inside. Suddenly, he caught a very pleasant aroma.
Su Yue explained with a smile, "My parents sent me some wild ginseng, so I made a pot of Ginseng Chicken Soup..."
They went into the kitchen, and since it was already noon, Chef Su immediately began her lesson.
She instructed Lin Li to put on an apron while taking out the two bags of ingredients he had brought.
After they spent some time preparing the ingredients, Su Yue began to teach Lin Li step-by-step, personally guiding him through the process.
"Pay attention, don’t get distracted... The wok is hot. Quick, pour in the oil."
’I’m only distracted because of you...’ Lin Li grumbled internally. He then tossed the blanched beef cubes into the hot oil and started to stir-fry them.
SIZZLE, SIZZLE...
The sound of stir-frying drifted from the kitchen, occasionally punctuated by the pair’s playful bickering.
...
「Spirit Realm, Dongwu City.」
Inside the Red Blood Gang’s assembly hall, Fang Jingtang paced back and forth, his face etched with worry.
Earlier, he had ordered all the lieutenants to take their men and pursue the three traitors who had plundered the treasury.
An entire morning had passed with no good news, causing the anxiety in his heart to swell.
"If the stolen money isn’t recovered, then there’s nothing I can do. It’ll be every man for himself!" Fang Jingtang walked over to a chair and sat down. Leaning back, he stared at the ceiling and muttered to himself.
THUMP, THUMP, THUMP...
Just then, a flurry of hurried footsteps sounded from outside the assembly hall. A moment later, a large group of people strode inside.
"Mr. Fang, we recovered the money!" The speaker was Liu Qizhi, a man with weaselly features. As soon as he entered the hall, he called out to Fang Jingtang, who was staring blankly from his chair.
"The money’s been recovered?" Fang Jingtang snapped back to his senses, his expression overjoyed. "Excellent! What about those despicable traitors?"
"We took care of all of them. See for yourself..." As he spoke, Liu Qizhi placed a large bundle on the floor and unwrapped it. The heads of the three traitors appeared before everyone’s eyes.
No one in the hall was faint of heart. Looking at the three bloody heads on the floor, they felt no discomfort. Instead, they stared at the traitors’ heads with utter contempt, their faces showing grim satisfaction.
"Good riddance," Fang Jingtang said. "I don’t want to see their faces again. Get them out of my sight and toss them in the latrine."
A subordinate then came forward, gathered the traitors’ heads, and left the assembly hall, heading for the latrines.
Afterward, the lieutenants returned to their seats. Excluding the three traitors, everyone was now present.
All eyes turned to Fang Jingtang, waiting for him to explain how the Red Blood Gang would navigate its current crisis.
"Our Red Blood Gang has suffered a sudden disaster. The Gang Leader was killed by an unknown assassin. By now, the other gangs have surely heard the news.
Our old rivals are undoubtedly plotting against us. The Red Blood Gang now lacks a powerhouse like the Gang Leader, making it difficult to fend off their advances.
For the Red Blood Gang to survive, I have decided to take all of our funds and request an audience at that personage’s estate.
As long as that personage agrees to grant us protection, the other gangs won’t dare to touch us," Fang Jingtang declared.
Upon hearing Fang Jingtang’s plan, the lieutenants erupted into a flurry of discussion. At that moment, Liu Qizhi stepped forward to voice his own opinion.
"Mr. Fang, the personage’s favor was always with the Gang Leader. Now that he’s dead, the Red Blood Gang is worthless in his eyes. He most likely won’t grant us protection."
"I have a way to persuade the personage to grant us protection. You don’t need to worry about it," Fang Jingtang said with complete confidence. However, he didn’t elaborate on how exactly he would convince this great figure to shelter the Red Blood Gang.
The lieutenants in the assembly hall exchanged uncertain glances after hearing Fang Jingtang’s declaration.
However, Fang Jingtang had never disappointed them in the past, so they unanimously agreed to follow his proposed plan.
The meeting that would decide the fate of the Red Blood Gang thus concluded. The lieutenants filed out of the assembly hall, leaving only Fang Jingtang and Liu Qizhi behind.
They knew the rival gangs were already discussing how to deal with the Red Blood Gang, so time was short. They had to make every second count.
Next, the two of them would take the recovered money and head to the great personage’s estate to request an audience with that mysterious figure.
A short while later, a dozen or so Red Blood Gang underlings left their headquarters, escorting two horse-drawn carriages. They moved quickly toward the district in Dongwu City where the powerful and wealthy lived.
Outside the Red Blood Gang’s headquarters, numerous underlings from various other gangs were gathered. They were there to spy on the Red Blood Gang’s every move.