Everyone had wine poured before them. Gong Ye, holding a glass of white wine that was almost overflowing, stood up to toast everyone.
"Brothers, today Young Master Qi specially invited everyone for a meal. Come, let's toast him together! Thank you, Young Master Qi, for your hospitality! From now on, you must all diligently serve Young Master Qi, and absolutely not slack off in the slightest!"
"To Young Master Qi, thank you, Young Master Qi."
"To Young Master Qi, thank you, Young Master Qi."
"To Young Master Qi, thank you, Young Master Qi."
For a moment, everyone in the restaurant stood up, raising their glasses to Qi Xingjie. Qi Xingjie did not stand up. He closed his folding fan and picked up his tea cup.
"Thank you all. As long as you diligently help me with my affairs, I will not mistreat you."
Seeing that Gong Ye had already taken the spotlight, A Li also wanted to seize the opportunity to show his face in front of his subordinates and brothers. As soon as Qi Xingjie finished speaking, he stepped forward to pledge his loyalty.
"Young Master, please rest assured! As long as it is something you command, we will do our best and strive for perfection. We will absolutely not fool you!"
"Good! Good! You are indeed very diligent, especially Boss Gong and A Li. Both of your abilities have exceeded my imagination. Come, come, let's all drink this cup together!" As Qi Xingjie said this, his teeth felt a bit sore, and his inner anger surged.
However, he quickly stabilized his emotions. To avoid letting his momentary anger ruin this carefully planned meal, Qi Xingjie took the lead and drank his tea, masking the anger that was constantly churning in his eyes.
Clearly, Qi Xingjie was overthinking. Hearing his words, everyone else thought he was genuinely praising them and did not detect the gritted teeth in his tone at all. Boss Gong and A Li, hearing Qi Xingjie praise them individually, were even happier than if they had found silver. They never expected this straw bag to trust them so much. After today, their prestige among their brothers would definitely increase!
"Cough, cough, cough..."
"Cough, cough, cough..."
As many of them had never drunk such strong liquor before, they were not used to it. Loud coughing echoed through the hall, making the entire atmosphere somewhat chaotic.
Soon, Shopkeeper Tu arranged for dishes to be served. There were cold dishes, hot dishes, and soups, and they looked truly abundant. A Li's smile deepened as he looked at the tables of food.
Normally, the Young Master would casually throw him fifty or a hundred taels of banknotes for a table of dishes. Today, with over ten tables, wouldn't they make a fortune! Today, they would earn at least several hundred taels.
Although the Young Master's temper was sometimes unpredictable, he was generous with his money! Before, A Li had thought of serving him diligently. If Qi Xingjie were to leave this place for somewhere else someday, he might even bring A Li along.
But now, he could only hope that such good things would happen more often. That way, even if Qi Xingjie stayed in Yong'an Town long enough to leave, he would have saved enough money. Then, he could buy a house, marry a wife, and live like a master being served!
Boss Gong's attention was entirely on the jar of wine at this moment. He had to admit that this wine had a real kick! He could usually drink three to five jin of rice wine, but after just one bowl just now, he felt a bit dizzy.
Throughout the meal, Qi Xingjie barely touched his chopsticks. However, the others were so engrossed in eating and drinking that they didn't notice anything unusual about him.
Gradually, the effects of the alcohol took hold of the men. The group of thugs, who had initially shown some self-restraint, gradually began to reveal their true natures.
They grumbled and cursed, discussing which brothel had the most supple waists, which widows cried out the most seductively during intercourse, whose cooking was the best, and when they could go to which street to snatch more things and money!
Some even bragged about how many young girls they had bullied. Seeing the smug look on one person's face, someone immediately stepped forward to share their own experiences. In the end, the one who "won" had even preyed on girls as young as eight or nine years old.
They were simply beasts worse than pigs and dogs! Even beasts would feel insulted to be compared to them.
Fueled by alcohol, they wantonly boasted about their glorious deeds, treating their most heinous acts as capital to compare who was the most formidable.
Qi Xingjie sat there quietly, listening to their boasts and comparisons. Watching their each and every ugly display, listening to them enumerate their glorious deeds, his anger was truly immense.
If the incident involving the Li family had shocked Qi Xingjie, then the things he heard today were simply earth-shattering! Earth-shattering in the most literal sense.
These people were villains, truly wicked individuals!
Out of over a hundred people, not a single one had not committed a foul deed. They were simply a bunch of scum and dregs! Regardless of whether it was due to the alcohol, the smug expressions on their faces as they recounted their stories made one want to twist their heads off.
Previously, when Su Muqing told him to set a Hongmen Banquet, Qi Xingjie didn't understand the point. These people were so despicable, and he still had to invite them to a meal? Simply giving them dozens of planks and locking them up in prison to eat gruel would have been too lenient.
But Su Muqing said that her wine contained something special that could make people truly "spill the beans after drinking," and it guaranteed that they would confess all the bad things they had done, word for word.
The most crucial point was that there were not many constables in town. The entire yamen, inside and out, numbered less than a hundred people. This was far fewer than the number of these ruffians.
If they were arrested directly, there would surely be some who escaped. Once the word got out, it would be like letting the tiger return to the mountain, with endless future troubles. It would be much harder to catch them again.
Therefore, Qi Xingjie adopted Su Muqing's suggestion and chose to invite them for a meal. And it had to be one person for each seat. This way, it was more likely that they could be rounded up neatly, caught in one fell swoop!
As Qi Xingjie was recalling Su Muqing's words, a rough, large hand suddenly appeared on his shoulder. The hand was dark, and the fingernails were full of dirt.
"Haha! Qi Xingjie, I actually can't stand you! You're just a straw bag who's lucky enough to be born into a good family. You do nothing all day and can have people waiting on you hand and foot.
"But this meal you're treating us to today is quite good. You're eagerly coming to give us brothers money. Why don't I have such good luck as you? But your name really works well in Yong'an Town. I just say I'm experiencing it on your behalf, and I don't even have to pay to go to a brothel."
Boss Gong was drunk, patting Qi Xingjie's shoulder as he spoke, a triumphant smile on his face. Seeing that the latter did not answer him, he became a little displeased.
"What's with the long face? Do you really think you're someone important? You're a good-for-nothing in front of me. If it weren't for your status allowing me to eat, drink, and sleep with women for free, do you think anyone would want to be around you like this every day!"