It was past eleven at night. Three cars weaved through the narrow alleys, trying to avoid the main roads and heading towards secluded areas.
In the rearmost Audi, a large, stout man was in a deep coma, with Bai Xiaoguang and Qin Chuan sitting beside him.
The outcome of the fight a little over an hour ago was indisputable; Qin Chuan's side had achieved a complete victory. With experts like Qin Yang and Bai Xiaoguang, Hai Kuaisheng and his two bodyguards were dealt with in under two minutes.
This time, Hong Jinlong was driving. He was very familiar with Jinling City's layout and had volunteered, claiming he knew of a safe location. He then led the main group swiftly through various corners of the city. They even encountered police patrols during their journey, but fortunately, they were lucky enough to be left unchecked.
After driving around for more than two hours, the three cars finally reached their destination. It was a derelict fertilizer plant, long abandoned and in a desolate, uninhabited area. However, out of caution, Qin Chuan had people thoroughly search the surrounding hundreds of meters. Only after confirming that there was truly no one present did he order the unconscious individuals to be woken up.
"You surnamed Chang, you scumbag, I treated you so kindly, and you repay me with treachery!" As soon as Hai Kuaisheng regained consciousness, he started cursing, spitting with every word.
*Slap!!*
His response was a harsh slap from Bai Xiaoguang standing beside him. "You fat pig, watch your mouth, who are you calling names?" "Don't you understand the situation yet? Believe it or not, I'll do you in right here!"
The intense pain in his face finally jolted Hai Kuaisheng fully awake. He began to examine his surroundings, and the more he looked, the more his heart sank. He was from the underworld and understood such situations all too well. He himself often preferred to take his opponents to places like this, to torment them slowly, and then…
Beside Hai Kuaisheng, Cao Yuqing also regained consciousness. Her face was pale, filled with fear, and her whole body was trembling. As for the two bodyguards, they looked even worse. Bai Xiaoguang had inflicted several deep cuts on them, and the excessive blood loss left them too weak to even sit up.
"Brother, if you're going to kill me, at least let me be a ghost who knows why!" Hai Kuaisheng lowered his stance. He had no choice; when under someone else's roof, one must bow. As a seasoned veteran of the streets, he understood the meaning of that saying all too well.
"Brother Hai, we are separated by a thousand miles. We had no prior grudges, and if nothing unexpected had happened, we probably wouldn't have met in this lifetime." Qin Chuan squatted down, took out a pack of cigarettes from his bag, lit one, and offered it to Hai Kuaisheng, then lit one for himself.
"But you shouldn't have, you absolutely shouldn't have, deceived my brother!" Qin Chuan said with a smile.
"Your brother?" Hai Kuaisheng blinked, then quickly glanced at Qin Gang. Upon seeing him, he realized something remarkable – the two shared many facial resemblances. Moreover, he looked similar to the other man who had subdued him so quickly.
"You… you are…"
"We are brothers!" Qin Chuan flicked the ash off his cigarette with a smile. "If you don't believe me, you can ask this woman. She has seen me before." Qin Chuan's gaze fell on Cao Yuqing, who was trembling nearby.
When Cao Yuqing saw Qin Chuan looking at her, she shivered again and stammered, "Yes… the three of them are brothers!"
Hai Kuaisheng's eyes widened. This news was truly astonishing!
"Brother Hai, now you understand why I came looking for you!" "You defrauded my brother of nearly three million yuan twice. This is not a small sum, and I had no choice but to come in person!" Qin Chuan stated. "Tell me, shouldn't I have come to find you?"
Hai Kuaisheng was speechless. Suddenly, he glared fiercely at Ma Xiaolian, who was also trembling with fear in the distance.
"Brother Hai, I was also threatened! If I didn't say anything, they would have killed me. I was scared!" Ma Xiaolian cried out loudly, not daring to approach.
Seeing this, Hai Kuaisheng sighed deeply. He knew that tonight there would be no easy way out; a resolution was necessary.
"Brother… Brother Qin, I admit that what happened to your brother was arranged by me. There was nothing I could do. I've lived half my life doing this kind of business. Whenever I see a fat sheep, I can't resist the urge to fleece them." Hai Kuaisheng was quite forthright and openly admitted it. He couldn't deny it anyway; the situation was beyond his control. These people were truly formidable, having easily dealt with his expensive bodyguards.
"However, asking me to produce so much money at once might not be possible for the time being!"
"What did you say?!" This time, before Qin Chuan could speak, Qin Gang, who had been standing nearby, suddenly lunged forward, grabbed Hai Kuaisheng by the collar, and delivered a heavy punch to his nose. He then pinned Hai Kuaisheng to the ground and began a brutal beating.
Qin Chuan did not intervene this time; he chose to ignore it. He knew very well that his second brother desperately needed a cathartic release, otherwise, it might become his biggest lingering issue later.
After an unknown amount of time, Qin Gang finally stopped his violent outburst. He collapsed on the ground, exhausted, gasping for air, his body drenched in sweat. Hai Kuaisheng, meanwhile, had become a swollen mess, his already obese body appearing to weigh ten catties more. He lay on the ground groaning.
"Brother Hai, that's where you're wrong!" "We haven't asked for extra, nor do we intend to extort money from you. We just need our money back. Three million. That number is the bottom line, not a cent less!" Qin Chuan squatted down and spoke slowly.
"We're both in the same line of work. It's not wise to make an enemy out of nowhere. I don't want to, and I'm sure you don't either. You wouldn't really want me to cut off a piece of you to find a way to get this money, would you?"
Hai Kuaisheng, enduring the intense pain, slowly crawled up like a wounded beast. He was truly resilient; he hadn't suffered much from Brother Qin Er's beating.
"Brother Qin, I really can't produce that much money!" Hai Kuaisheng said with a mournful face.
"You said earlier that we're both in the same line of work, so you should understand that our profession isn't as glorious as it appears on the surface. A large portion of the money we make has to be handed over, and I still have a group of brothers to feed. After all these expenses, there's not much left for myself!"
Qin Chuan's amiable expression gradually faded, replaced by an icy chill and anger. "Does your expenditure have anything to do with us?" "Those people you defrauded, should they just suffer ruined lives, bear huge debts, and have no chance of ever recovering?"
Hai Kuaisheng was rendered speechless, his face flushing and paling. "In that case, I have no other options!" "According to the rules of the underworld, one cut for ten thousand yuan. This price is very reasonable, no cheating. However much you owe, I'll stab you that many times…"
"Xiaoguang!" Qin Chuan called out. Bai Xiaoguang immediately walked over with an excited expression. In his hand, a sharp dagger danced like a fluttering butterfly, handled with extreme dexterity, as if it were dancing on his fingertips.
"Brother! Brother, wait… wait!!" Hai Kuaisheng, terrified by Qin Chuan's seriousness, quickly called out. "I… although I can't produce that much money right now, I have some special items here that I believe should be sufficient to cover that amount!"
Qin Chuan raised his hand, signaling Bai Xiaoguang to stop, and asked, "What items?"
"A batch of antiques!" Hai Kuaisheng replied.
A flash of light flickered deep within Qin Chuan's calm eyes, but he quickly dismissed it. "No! We need cash!" Dealing with antiques was far too risky; for someone unfamiliar with the trade, it was pure suicide.