I followed the senior and a few others into the depths of the hall. This used to be a ballroom, with private booths for guests to chat and drink. Now, a stage had been set up, but the booths remained.
These were the only places where someone could hide.
Wu Laosan’s men shone powerful flashlights ahead, illuminating the path brightly. Even if someone were hiding, there would be no place to escape.
The senior said, "You go help Young Master Wu clean up the battlefield. I'll handle things here."
I glanced at the people accompanying him; they were all seasoned and strong. I cupped my fists in farewell to the senior, then turned to find Wu Laosan at the scene.
Seeing me approach, Wu Laosan said, "Our casualties are more than half. The seriously wounded have been sent to the hospital across the street, which is our own. The rest have been apprehended. How should they be dealt with?"
I replied, "Wen Siqiang, call the police. Hand them over to the public security bureau."
Once these people were inside, they would likely never come out.
In truth, from the day they pledged loyalty to Chen Liben and sold their lives, their lives no longer belonged to themselves.
I called Lan Ya and asked where she was. She said she was in the office. She had seen what was happening on the first floor through the surveillance. When the security guards came to escort them out the side door, she hadn’t moved. She knew I was downstairs and didn't want to flee without me.
In her eyes, she was always my boss. She had brought me into this industry. Ever since I stepped through that door, I hadn’t lived a single peaceful day. She felt guilty.
I truly didn’t feel that way. In school, I was bullied by the big tough guy and persecuted by the female demon. Most importantly, I was hungry and lived without dignity. Following Lan Ya, I could at least hold my head high and live with dignity.
That was more important than anything.
I instructed Wen Siqiang to assist the first-floor manager with the aftermath and called Wu Laosan to the second floor.
By this time, his men had withdrawn to the second floor. The first floor’s affairs were left to the first-floor manager and security. Their identities were not suitable for public exposure.
Wu Laosan and I arrived at Lan Ya's office. She was sitting in her executive chair, looking at reports. Seeing us enter, she rose from her chair.
I said, "Let me introduce you, this is Young Master Wu, who brought people to assist us. If not for him today, I’m afraid our Great World would have been overrun."
I then introduced Lan Ya, and Lan Ya stepped forward to shake hands with Wu Laosan.
Lan Ya: "The legendary Young Master Wu is a mysterious figure. It's an honor to meet you in person today. A pleasure!"
Wu Laosan also praised Lan Ya a few times, making her blush.
I quickly gestured for Wu Laosan to sit down and handed him a bottle of mineral water.
Wu Laosan, perhaps genuinely thirsty, took it and drank more than half the bottle before heaving a sigh of relief and saying, "According to my information, Chen Liben has about a thousand such elite soldiers. Today, he only sent a small portion. Even a small portion made things difficult for us. He will change his strategy and increase his forces later. We need to make corresponding preparations."
I said, "Currently, our manpower is severely insufficient. The primary issue now, while ensuring General Wu's safety, is to strengthen our mainland defenses as much as possible. If they want to open up an export channel in the mainland, they will spare no effort to eliminate us. The coming battles will be even more brutal."
Wu Laosan: "I can still deploy about 150 people from the military command. Combined with our current forces here, that will ensure 260 people. My father will retain 100 people. This is my entire current strength, and I still need to keep fifty to sixty people mobile at the border for emergencies. Even with this, our troop disparity with them is still too great."
I said, "Tomorrow, I will select 100 people from the security team to integrate with your men. This way, we can supplement our insufficient manpower, and your men can mentor them, helping them improve."
Wu Laosan: "That's a good idea. I was worried about our manpower shortage. Your adding 100 people will greatly reduce our pressure."
I called the security captain and asked him to select 100 skilled security guards to be on standby early tomorrow morning. The security captain agreed, saying he understood and would prepare the list tonight.
I told Wu Laosan that a few days ago, when the raw stone base opened, the security guards had cooperated with Brother Qing's men and participated in several battles. Many of them were quite skilled. Integrating them into regular armed forces would maximize their explosive potential.
Wu Laosan said it was a good idea, much better than him recruiting people from scratch. He mentioned that although the men he brought were all highly skilled, the people on the other side were largely uneducated and had poor learning abilities, making it very difficult to train them into top killers.
However, they had one advantage: once they followed someone, they would never betray their master, unless they died in battle.
At this moment, Wen Siqiang knocked and entered. All of Chen Liben's men had been taken away by the police. The lobby manager and two bar staff were making statements.
I said, "Good, you're here. Perfect timing, we need to discuss something."
I said, "Tomorrow, you will be responsible for working with the security captain to divide the 100 selected individuals into groups and integrate them into Young Master Wu's team. They will be under his unified command."
Wen Siqiang nodded and went out to handle the matter.
I told Lan Ya that the external matters had been cleaned up and we could leave work together. I also asked Young Master Wu to get some rest.
They had traveled between two places and were more tired than us.
Lan Ya got up, tidied her documents, and locked them in the filing cabinet before saying, "Let's go."
I accompanied Young Master Wu downstairs, with Lan Ya following behind me.
I asked, "Where are you going tonight?"
Lan Ya: "Wherever you go, I go. I won't go back alone."
I said Jing Lei was waiting for us outside, so let's go.
I went downstairs to arrange transportation for Wu Laosan and his men. Then, I had Wen Siqiang give Wu Laosan ten thousand yuan for his men's late-night snacks. Young Master Wu hesitated a bit. I said it was just a small token of appreciation; everyone had worked hard. Buying some food would replenish their energy, as there were many things to do tomorrow.
Wu Laosan said no more. He took the money, handed it to his assistant, got into a van, and left with his men.
One hundred people in over ten vehicles made quite an impressive sight as they left in a grand procession.
Lan Ya followed behind me. We found Jing Lei, opened the door, and got into the car.
Lan Ya: "Sister Jing Lei, I'm going back with you tonight."
Jing Lei nodded and said, "My home is your home. It's not about going back with me, it's about coming home."
Lan Ya: "Sister Jing Lei..."
Jing Lei: "Enough said, I'm driving now."
Lan Ya fell silent, sitting in the back seat, touched.
She hadn't expected Jing Lei to be so magnanimous, not only not holding a grudge but sincerely inviting her home.
Between them, I felt like the superfluous one. After all, they had been good friends before I appeared, but our relationship had made things a bit delicate.