Five minutes by car, the three arrived at Qilin Street. There was only one welfare lottery sales point on this street, so it was easy to find.
Yang Jian drove the car to the entrance of the lottery shop and glanced inside. Many people were coming and going, so he would have to go in to find someone.
"Brother Chong, you're a celebrity here, and many people know you. Stay in the car for a while. I'll go in with Brother Bao to take a look."
Yang Jian wanted to see what Feng Wu was up to, so he didn't want to be too ostentatious.
"Okay, you guys go. I'm familiar with the boss of this street, so nothing will happen."
Cao Chong waved his hand indifferently.
Yang Jian and Ah Bao entered the shop pretending to buy lottery tickets. The shop was large, over fifty square meters. Although there were many people, it wasn't noisy. Many people sat quietly on long benches studying betting slips, while others queued to buy them.
Two young men were selling the tickets, one collecting money and the other issuing tickets.
There were also four burly young men standing nearby, presumably to maintain order and supervise the ticket sellers.
Yang Jian pretended to look at the lottery trend chart, while his eyes scanned these young men, as his impression of Feng Wu was still from when he was twelve or thirteen years old.
The young man issuing tickets had somewhat familiar eyes, but he couldn't be sure if it was Feng Wu.
Yang Jian immediately sent a text message to Jing Yongli, asking him to call Feng Wu.
As expected, the young man issuing tickets' phone rang. He glanced at the number, quickly asked a colleague standing by to replace him, and then took his phone to a corner to answer it.
Yang Jian continued to pretend to look at the trend chart and slowly approached him until he could hear his voice.
"Yongli, save me! I haven't eaten for two days. When I get back, I'll work in the factory until I pay off my debts."
Feng Wu pleaded with a tearful voice. Although he saw Yang Jian very close, he didn't pay attention, as he didn't recognize this cousin.
Yang Jian stared at the trend chart on the wall, already confirming in his heart that this cousin was lying to get money.
"Yongli, I beg you! If you don't save me, I'm dead. They said if I don't pay the money within three days, they'll cut out my kidneys and corneas, and sell all my sellable organs."
Feng Wu continued his act. Jing Yongli seemed to be cooperating, asking him which account to transfer the money to.
"Yongli, I'll send you an account number right away. Please transfer the money today. I'm so hungry I can't stand it anymore."
"Yes, seven hundred thousand. It's a total of eight hundred thousand. I've already paid one hundred thousand, and there's still seven hundred thousand left. Please transfer it. My life depends on you."
Feng Wu's voice sounded very weak, but a smile had already appeared on his face, as Jing Yongli had likely agreed to transfer the money.
Yang Jian couldn't stand it any longer. He walked over and kicked him in the stomach, stunning Feng Wu. "Who the hell are you? Why are you hitting me?"
Jing Yongli's voice also came from the phone, "Brother Wu, what's wrong?"
The commotion was so loud that it alerted everyone. They thought someone had come to cause trouble. Feng Wu's companions immediately rushed over, but Ah Bao blocked them, and the two sides immediately started fighting.
These were all street thugs. Facing Ah Bao, a professional martial arts expert, they didn't even have a chance to fight back. The four young men were all on the ground in less than ten seconds, but they weren't injured. The crackdown had just passed, and Ah Bao didn't want to attract the attention of the police.
The young man responsible for collecting money ran out with the money bag, simultaneously calling for backup on his phone.
Feng Wu was no pushover. After inexplicably taking a kick, he was furious and swung his fist at Yang Jian.
As soon as Yang Jian made a move, he grabbed Feng Wu's wrist and twisted it slightly, causing Feng Wu to kneel on the ground.
"Who the hell are you? I didn't provoke you."
Although Feng Wu was subdued, his mouth was still tough.
Yang Jian slapped him across the face again. "Whose son are you? Look at who I am."
Feng Wu stared at him in terror, still not recognizing him.
Yang Jian grabbed the phone from his hand. "Yongli, it's me. Don't give him any money. He's lying and isn't being held captive at all."
"Okay, Brother Jian, I understand."
Jing Yongli felt relieved when he heard Yang Jian's voice.
Feng Wu finally realized, "You, you're Brother Jian?"
"Get up and tell me why you lied."
Yang Jian released his hand. Feng Wu jumped up. Dozens of people in the shop were watching, and kneeling on the ground was very embarrassing.
"Brother Jian, you, how are you here?"
Feng Wu was completely baffled. He had only called home that morning. How did his cousin find him here so quickly? He hadn't even told Yongli the address.
Just as Yang Jian was about to speak, he heard the sound of dense footsteps from outside.
"Who the hell has the guts to cause trouble on my turf?"
A lean young man in his late twenties, leading more than a dozen people, rushed into the welfare lottery shop, completely blocking the entrance.
The onlookers inside were terrified and all squeezed to the wall, afraid of being mistaken for troublemakers.
Ah Bao excitedly pulled out two extendable batons, eager to test the results of his recent training.
"Shitou, what are you shouting about?"
Cao Chong's booming voice came from outside the door. The young man blocking the entrance clearly knew Cao Chong and quickly made way.
"Brother Chong, why are you here? Someone is causing trouble here. I'll talk to you later."
Shitou was a bit surprised to see Cao Chong walking in, thinking he was just passing by.
Cao Chong walked up to him and whispered, "Shitou, the person inside is my junior brother, handling family matters. Don't get involved. The one at the very back is Yang Wu, who recently made the Xiang family back down. Even all of you together can't beat him."
"Holy crap, Yang Wu? How did Feng Wu offend such a powerful figure?"
"Feng Wu is his cousin. Feng Wu lied to his family, saying he was being held captive here. My junior brother came personally to check."
"Oh, that's indeed a family matter. Brothers, let's withdraw."
Shitou waved his hand, and his subordinates retreated outside the shop door.
Cao Chong walked over with Shitou. "Little Yang, this is my brother Shitou. He controls this street, and your cousin works for him."
Yang Jian took out cigarettes and offered two. "Hello, Brother Shitou. I'm sorry to have caused you trouble."
Shitou quickly took the cigarette. "No trouble, no trouble. Mr. Yang, it's truly an honor to have you in my shop. I've always wanted to invite you. Please, sit down. Xiao Xu, quickly pour some tea for Mr. Yang."
The young man who had carried the money and reported the incident responded and quickly went to get a cup.
Feng Wu looked completely stunned. How could his cousin be so formidable? Not only was the boss, Shitou, respectful to him, but even the well-known boss Cao Chong in this area seemed to be very familiar with him.
Could it be that his cousin had carved out a new territory in Dongjiang and become a big shot in the underworld?
If that were the case, then he had miscalculated. He had failed to embrace such a powerful figure, and it was all Feng Wen and his father's fault for not gathering such crucial information during their long stay in Yangli Village.
If he had known his cousin was so powerful here, why would he have to be someone's subordinate? Now he was in a difficult position, not knowing how to cover up his lie.