Chapter 1 Gu Baisun

Inside a three-story gambling den in Tianhong Port, Dragon City, Gu Baisun had Xu Hu's henchmen playing cards downstairs, while he only took two men with him to a private room on the second floor.

After drinking tea for a while and waiting for about twenty minutes, a man in his thirties finally walked in.

"Oh, it's Young Master Gu," the man said with a smile as he greeted Gu Baisun.

"Brother You, long time no see," Gu Baisun said, standing up and politely extending his hand.

The man called Brother You sized up the other two people in the room before raising his arm to shake hands with Gu Baisun, then sat down in the chair opposite him.

"Something you need, Young Master Gu?" Brother You asked directly.

"Indeed… there is something." Gu Baisun scratched his head awkwardly, as if he had hesitated for a long time, before biting the bullet and saying, "There have been a lot of troubles recently, and there are some internal conflicts in Zhanan. I came here to talk to you and see what we should do in the future."

Brother You picked up his teacup, paused, and replied, "What can we do? No matter who's gone, we all have to survive."

"That's right. No matter what happens above, our stevedore gang brothers still have to support their families and live their lives," Gu Baisun said, following the other man's words. "Today, I went to the general association and talked to the elders. Everyone supports Brother Hu taking over Zhanan. Besides, Wei Xiangzuo colluded with outsiders to kill my father. The association will definitely not tolerate him anymore. So I came here to talk to everyone and see if we can integrate the industries and businesses in Zhanan as soon as possible."

Besides doing business at sea, the stevedore association also has many businesses on land.

The gang is involved in various businesses such as "meat shops" (brothels) in various port areas, gambling dens, entertainment ships at sea, various seafood businesses, supermarkets, and restaurants on land.

The intention of doing this is to diversify the business. Because the business at sea has its cycles, and the amount of cargo throughput each month is relatively fixed. Whether there are two more or two fewer trips, it doesn't have a big impact on the total amount.

However, the business on land can create more extra profits. Simply put, when there is no cargo at sea, the brothers below will still have income, make money, and have something to do.

In other districts, the land business is basically controlled by one person in the gang. Each month, after deducting the commission for the general association, the rest is distributed by the stevedore gang in each district. This involves who has invested, who has contributed, and is balanced and distributed by the gang leader.

But the situation in Zhanan is more special. Wei Xiangzuo occupies a very important position in internal power. In other words, the *zuotang* (hall master) has taken away some of the gang leader's power, which has led to the land business in Zhanan being in a state of division.

One part is managed and operated by Xu Hu, while the other part is controlled by Wei Xiangzuo, with the ratio being about 6:4.

...

Today, Gu Baisun came to find the temporary head of this gambling den, the purpose of which was to help Xu Hu take "territory" and occupy shops. This strategy was proposed by the traitor Cheng Gang. His motivation for doing so was very simple: as long as Xu Hu swallowed all the shops and businesses under Wei Xiangzuo, the henchmen below would have nothing to do, no money to earn, and naturally, they would scatter or surrender.

This move can be regarded as cutting off the fuel under the cauldron. However, when Gu Baisun talked with the other party, he did not show an aggressive attitude, but rather came to discuss it.

After understanding the other party's meaning, Brother You raised his cup, took a sip of tea, and said with a slight frown, "Wei Xiangzuo colluded with outsiders to kill Gu Tongshan. This is absolutely against the rules. We have nothing to say. We will definitely not support him anymore. We have no objection to what the general association wants to do to him. But having said that, there has always been a rule in Zhanan, that is, whoever invests the money in the shops and businesses has the final say. We can pay money to the hall and the general association according to the previous share, but there is no reason to hand over the business directly!"

Gu Baisun rubbed his palms together. "It's like this. Brother Hu said that he will buy out the money invested in the shops according to the current market price. It's not a forced takeover."

"If we sell the business that feeds us, how will we live in the future?" Brother You asked.

"It doesn't affect anything. Everyone is still a member of the stevedore gang. Brother Hu won't let the brothers below have nothing to do and no money to earn," Gu Baisun replied with a smile.

Brother You waved his hand. "I don't have any objections to Xu Hu. Let's talk about something practical. The shops on this street were all invested in by my brother and Old Wei. Now that he's run away, I can't find him. I can only temporarily manage the business here for him. But I don't have the authority to directly sell the business and hand it over. You know what I mean, right?"

Gu Baisun couldn't help but lick his lips when he heard this.

"If you want to take it, go find my brother. If he agrees, then I have no objections," Brother You added again.

Gu Baisun seemed very restrained, looking at the other party, as if he had no way to do it for a while.

"Old You, why are you being so stubborn?" At this moment, Xu Hu's brother, who had come with Gu Baisun, frowned and said directly, "You also know that your brother has run away. What are you still insisting on?! The higher-ups said they want to take it over and even give money. Wouldn't it be over if you just took care of it quickly? Do you have to wait until things turn sour before regretting it?"

Brother You looked at the other party without saying a word.

"Wei Xiangzuo doesn't even care about you anymore, and your brother doesn't know where he ran off to. Why can't you see the situation clearly?" The other party continued in a low voice, "These days, how many people have the coast guard caught in the port, and how many people have been thrown into the sea? Aren't you clear about that?"

Brother You paused and shouted back, "Is there any more tea? Bring some more."

As soon as he finished speaking, the door was pushed open, and a dozen men walked into the room expressionlessly, standing on both sides of the wall.

Gu Baisun frowned and looked outside, seeing that many people were gathered at the door on the second floor, looking into the room.

Xu Hu's brother raised his eyebrows and asked with his head tilted, "Old You, you wouldn't be stupid enough to rebel, would you?"

"The shops and businesses are all the means for the brothers to support their families," Old You stood up, looked at the other party, and said, "If we hand them over, our lives will no longer be in our own hands! What's more, this business is indeed not mine. If I really sell it, I won't be able to explain it to my brother."

Xu Hu's brother slowly stood up. "You really won't shed tears until you see the coffin!" (stubborn until faced with undeniable evidence)

"Wei Xiangzuo is in trouble. How many people has Xu Hu ruined in Zhanan?" Old You replied very decisively, "If the higher-ups really don't give us a way out, then we'll just make a scene! If Zhanan becomes chaotic, the police station will be in a hurry and will have to arrest all the people from the elders' association."

Xu Hu's brother frowned when he heard this.

"If you want to incorporate us, you have to show some sincerity! You can't just rely on sticks and hammers. Who will submit to you?!" After Old You finished speaking, he turned around and left.

Gu Baisun pulled on Xu Hu's brother's arm and whispered to persuade him, "Forget it, forget it. Don't make trouble for now. The police station is indeed watching Zhanan."

...

Sinaloa region.

After Su Tianyu came here, he waited with Wei Xiangzuo for half a day before finally seeing someone from the port arrive.

In a bungalow, a middle-aged man in his forties, with a coast guard pistol stuck in his waist, frowned and looked at Wei Xiangzuo and said, "...It's all over the place now, saying that you killed Gu Tongshan."