"Boss, it's alright. Just give him an internal injury and keep him bedridden for ten days or half a month. It's easy."
It had been a long time since he had heard anyone groan and beg for mercy under his control, and a hint of excitement appeared on Da Biao's face.
"Is this... okay?"
Xu Wei looked at Da Biao with some doubt. If he could inflict internal injuries on Zhuang Rui, he would certainly be more than happy to do so.
Xu Wei usually travels alone, but last time in Nanjing, he not only lost everything gambling on stones, but was also beaten up by some local thugs hired by Wang Yigun. He suffered a double blow, both physically and mentally. This made Xu Wei immediately find a bodyguard through connections after arriving in the Northwest.
This man named Da Biao was introduced to Xu Wei by a client. He was said to be very skilled in martial arts, but his family was poor. Later, he went astray and spent seven or eight years in prison, becoming a powerful figure in the prison. After his release, he had no special abilities or skills, but relying on his fighting prowess, he gathered a group of thugs and hooligans to collect protection money on the streets.
As for Xu Wei's client, he was originally a neighbor of Da Biao's family. However, Da Biao's elderly mother, who was over sixty years old, came to plead for him. Knowing that Da Biao was ruthless and cruel, she thought he was the perfect candidate to be a bodyguard, so she introduced him to Xu Wei.
Da Biao was quite satisfied with his new identity as a bodyguard. He ate and drank well with his boss every day and frequented high-end hotels. The women who used to look down on him would now strip naked and lie on his bed if he was interested. Da Biao felt that he had wasted the previous thirty-odd years of his life and this was the kind of life he should be living.
Of course, Da Biao also fully demonstrated his fighting prowess. The guy who offended the boss a few days ago had all his teeth knocked out by him. The boss was very satisfied with his performance and gave him 10,000 yuan. This money was much easier to earn than collecting protection money.
"Boss, just you wait and see..."
As he spoke, Da Biao lit a cigarette and sauntered toward Zhuang Rui. In his mind, he was already thinking about what reward his boss would give him that night. Guangdong was much more open than his hometown, and Da Biao was already fantasizing about finding a few girls to relieve his pent-up desires that night.
Finding a fault to teach someone a lesson was a piece of cake for Da Biao. Just as he walked past the chair where Zhuang Rui was sitting, he took the cigarette out of his mouth with his left hand, flicked the cigarette butt hard with his index finger, and it flew onto Zhuang Rui's trouser leg.
"Hey, friend, your cigarette butt has burned my pants..."
Zhuang Rui, who was having a lively conversation with the third brother, suddenly felt a heat on his thigh. He then realized that a cigarette butt had just slipped off his pants. Clearly, the person holding the cigarette was the culprit.
Zhuang Rui was a little annoyed. He was just smoking a cigarette and someone was talking about it. While this guy was smoking, the chubby-waisted aunt had disappeared. Zhuang Rui didn't mean anything by stopping the scarred man; he just wanted him to apologize.
"Really? I'm so sorry, let me knock the ash off for you."
A smile appeared on Da Biao's face. Before Zhuang Rui could reply, a large hand slapped Zhuang Rui's right leg, right at the knee joint. The sound of the slap was so loud that even the third brother next to him could clearly hear the "crack".
Ouch!
Caught off guard, Zhuang Rui felt a piercing pain in his right leg, especially his knee, which felt as if it were broken. He couldn't help but cry out. He immediately realized that this person was looking for trouble. Zhuang Rui reacted quickly, and with that thought, he kicked his left leg towards the person's face.
"Youngest brother, damn it!"
The third brother practiced the family's Red Fist style since childhood, which emphasizes practical combat. He often got injured when sparring with his fellow disciples. The sound coming from Zhuang Rui's right leg made him immediately realize that his bone was broken.
Although the third brother was honest and kind, he became furious when he saw his brother's leg crippled in front of him. Just as Zhuang Rui kicked out with his left foot, the third brother jumped up from the chair, used his waist and hips to punch the man in the chest.
Da Biao struck Zhuang Rui's right knee with a palm strike. Upon hearing the crisp sound, he knew he had succeeded. He merely shifted his body slightly to the side to dodge Zhuang Rui's kick, but unexpectedly, a gust of wind came from the side. Before Da Biao could even see clearly, he was struck solidly in the chest by a punch.
As if hit by a speeding train, Da Biao's body flew backward two or three meters as if it were made of paper. Because the ground was slippery, his body slid for more than ten meters after landing, and blood kept spilling from his mouth.
Chapter 187 Conflict (Part 2)
This brief conflict was like a flash of lightning. It happened quickly and ended even faster. Da Biao was quite fierce; he had been vomiting blood after being punched by Lao San, but he forced himself to get up and ran quickly towards the entrance of the arrival hall, disappearing into the crowd in the blink of an eye.
"Youngest, what's wrong? Is it serious?"
The third brother, mindful of Zhuang Rui's injuries, didn't dare chase after him. He had clearly heard the crisp sound just now; it must have been a broken bone.
"Third Brother, I'm alright..."
As Zhuang Rui spoke, his eyes scanned the crowd. This must have been done by someone who knew him; otherwise, who would have gone to such lengths for no reason?
"Damn it, it's that bastard!"
Suddenly, a familiar figure flashed in Zhuang Rui's sight and then disappeared at the entrance of the hall.
"It's Xu Wei! Ouch..."
Zhuang Rui instantly understood what was going on. Enraged, he stood up to chase after the man, but forgot that his right leg had been slapped hard by the man, and he sat back down in pain.
"Who is Xu Wei? Don't get agitated, little brother. If they dare to come again, I'll take care of them."
The third brother also realized that Zhuang Rui seemed to have encountered an enemy.
"It's alright, Third Brother, my legs are just numb, they'll be fine in a bit."
As Zhuang Rui spoke, spiritual energy seeped into the skin of his legs. With a cool sensation, the excruciating pain gradually subsided. Before long, Zhuang Rui could no longer feel the pain. He tried to stand up and take a few steps, and found that he was completely healed.
"Youngest, are you really alright? Don't push yourself too hard."
The third brother was still a little worried. That palm strike just now showed that the other party was a trained fighter. How could he be alright so quickly?
"It's really alright, Third Brother, look..."
Zhuang Rui paced back and forth a few steps before the third brother finally felt relieved.
"Zhuang Rui, who was that person just now? Why was he targeting you?"
Zhang Rong was terrified. Although it was only a short moment from when Da Biao slapped Zhuang Rui's leg to when Lao San injured him, Zhang Rong was right next to him and saw it all clearly. Even when Da Biao vomited blood, it didn't escape her eyes.
“He’s a petty person, it’s alright, sister-in-law, you don’t need to worry about this.”
Zhuang Rui cursed Xu Wei's ancestors to the eighteenth generation in his heart, but he didn't want his third brother to get involved. After all, his third brother was a civil servant, and if his unit found out he was involved, it wouldn't be good.
“I punched that guy just now. He probably won’t be able to get out of bed for three to five months. Little brother, just be careful when you go out.”
Seeing that Zhuang Rui was unwilling to say more, the third brother did not press further. He knew his own fists well; that punch had been very solid and would definitely have broken several ribs. If the opponent tried to escape, his internal injuries would only worsen.
Zhuang Rui wasn't worried about what the man would do to him in the future. After all, it was a society governed by law, and Xu Wei wouldn't dare hire someone to kill him. However, Xu Wei's behavior made Zhuang Rui's teeth itch with hatred. He was determined to make Xu Wei taste the power of a fist when he had the chance to see him. Although he had already mentally attacked Xu Wei several times, Zhuang Rui didn't mind making him feel the pain physically as well.
"Boss...the person who offended you has been walking on crutches for the past few months. But I didn't expect him to have a martial arts expert by his side. I...I was seriously injured by him."
In a taxi speeding through the heavy rain, blood was still oozing from Da Biao's mouth as he spoke. He knew that this deal was a loss, and that his injuries might leave him with serious health problems if he didn't recover for at least six months.
"Okay, not bad, Da Biao. Take this money and go to a hospital to keep an eye on things. I'll call you again if anything happens."
Xu Wei took out three dollars from his bag and threw them to Da Biao. He felt extremely pleased. Just thinking about Zhuang Rui leaning on his crutches made him want to laugh. As for Da Biao, as long as he didn't die, a little injury was nothing. Thirty thousand dollars was enough to get rid of him.
"Damn it, why did the weather suddenly turn so cold in June? That kid surnamed Zhuang, he wouldn't know I did this, would he? Definitely not, I didn't even show my face..."
After arriving in Guangzhou, Xu Wei had a taxi take Da Biao to the hospital. He got out of the taxi and hailed another one. As soon as he got out, he shivered and quickly gave the driver an address, heading towards the hotel he had booked in advance. In Xu Wei's view, this matter was handled flawlessly. As long as Da Biao did not appear by his side, even if Zhuang Rui saw him, he would have no evidence to prove that he had hired someone to deal with him.
Zhuang Rui didn't have time to deal with Xu Wei at the moment. They were being questioned at the airport. Although the commotion wasn't big, it still alerted the airport police. However, the party responsible for the incident had already left, and no one had reported the incident. According to the airport surveillance footage, the fault did not lie with Zhuang Rui and his group. Therefore, after a statement was taken, the matter was dropped.
After this delay, the second brother's flight arrived, and the group had a lively reunion. Zhuang Rui didn't mention what had just happened and drove back to Pingzhou with the second brother.
Wei Ge and Lao Si had been waiting anxiously at the hotel. When Zhuang Rui brought the people back, they immediately drove to Guangzhou to welcome Lao San and his wife, Lao Er, and others. As soon as Wei Ge and Yue Jing met, they naturally started bickering, but the people listening nearby could feel a faint warmth in their hearts.
After dinner, the group found a karaoke room and partied until after 1 a.m. before returning to the hotel. During this time, Fatty Ma and Song Jun each tried to contact Zhuang Rui to ask him to look at the raw materials, but Zhuang Rui declined both times. Yue Jing and Lao San only had two days this time. They didn't know if they would have another chance to get together, so Zhuang Rui cherished this gathering very much. ...
Nothing was said that night.
The next morning, Zhuang Rui was woken up by his phone ringing incessantly, whether because he was tired from using spiritual energy the day before or because he was still hungover from drinking too much. When he picked it up, he saw that there were more than twenty missed calls. In addition to the people in Pingzhou, his brother-in-law Zhao Guodong had also called four or five times.
After washing up, Zhuang Rui picked up his phone and called his brother-in-law back.
"Hey, is this Xiao Rui? I've been calling you since yesterday, but no one answered. Your sister was really worried."
As soon as the call connected, Zhao Guodong's voice came through the phone.
"Brother-in-law, I'm fine. I had a class reunion yesterday, and after dinner I went to karaoke. It was a bit noisy, so I didn't hear the phone ring. What's up?"
Zhuang Rui held the phone in one hand and pressed his temples hard with the other. It seemed he should drink less alcohol in the future. Although spiritual energy could cure illnesses, it couldn't cure drunkenness.
"Here's the thing, Xiao Rui, the repair shop is doing well right now, but the current workshop is a bit small, and we don't have enough manpower. We can only repair some large semi-trailers. We don't repair many family cars, which have higher profit margins. This area has great potential for future development. Your sister and I discussed it and we're thinking of renting the warehouse next door and combining it into one workshop. Right now, this half will be used for truck and freight vehicle repair, and the other half will be used for car repair. We'll also set up an auto decoration center. When I went to Nanjing last month, I found that the auto decoration business is very good and has extremely high profit margins."
After being the owner of the repair shop for a few months, Zhao Guodong became more efficient in his speech and actions. He analyzed the market situation for Zhuang Rui over the phone, speaking in a very organized manner.
However, Zhuang Rui was clearly not in the mood to listen to these things. He patiently waited for his brother-in-law to finish speaking before saying, "Brother-in-law, is it that you don't have enough money? How much money do you need to expand the scale? I'll transfer another 1 million to you. You can make these decisions from now on. You don't need to ask me. I know nothing about this industry, so asking me is pointless."
Upon hearing Zhuang Rui's words, Zhao Guodong quickly said, "Xiao Rui, we have enough money. Last month, the repair shop's net profit reached 480,000 yuan. Renting a warehouse and making some renovations won't cost much. Your sister and I are thinking that you should quit your job at Zhonghai now and come back home to work at the repair shop. You went to university and have broad experience. You would definitely be much better than me as the boss."
After all that commotion, it turned out that it was his older sister and brother-in-law who were worried that he would lose his job, so they thought of expanding the repair shop and letting him manage it. This idea must have come from his older sister. Speechless, Zhuang Rui also felt the warmth brought by his family and couldn't help but feel a surge of warmth in his heart.
"Brother-in-law, let's not talk about this anymore. Although I no longer work in Zhonghai, I'm even busier than before. I'm in Guangdong right now, and I'm going to Shanxi with Dachuan in the middle of the month. I really can't take care of the family business. As for the repair shop, you should handle it. Don't be afraid to spend money. If we can grab more market share now, the repair shop business will only grow bigger and bigger as there are more private cars. Just go for it."
As Zhuang Rui was speaking, there was a knock at the door. Zhuang Rui quickly said into his phone, "Brother-in-law, I can't talk to you anymore. I'm busy today, so I'll hang up now."
Hearing the busy tone on the phone, Zhao Guodong felt somewhat helpless. This brother-in-law was becoming more and more incomprehensible to him. However, he hadn't completed the task assigned by his wife, and Zhao Guodong was now thinking about how to explain it to Zhuang Min when he got home.
Zhuang Rui didn't care what Zhao Guodong thought. As soon as the door opened, seven or eight people rushed in, startling the white lion so much that it jumped out from beside the bed. If Zhuang Rui hadn't shouted early, the second and third brothers, who were unfamiliar with the place, would probably have been pounced on by it.
"Hey guys, it's only eight o'clock, what are you doing?"
Zhuang Rui looked at the room full of people and asked helplessly.
"Nonsense, of course we're going to gamble on jade! Isn't today the opening day of the jade gambling convention?"
The second brother's words represented the sentiments of everyone, and the entire room nodded in agreement.
Chapter 188 Jade Bidding and Trading Fair
Zhuang Rui spotted Song Jun strolling leisurely in through the door. He quickly asked, "Brother Song, you're not going to join them in the fun, are you?"
Yesterday, when Wei Ge told these guys about Zhuang Rui's jade gambling trip in Nanjing, these guys immediately got excited as if they'd been injected with chicken blood. Even the usually steady third brother was eager to try, and actually took out the five thousand yuan he had saved for his honeymoon trip, saying he wanted to invest and have Zhuang Rui help him gamble.
The hopeful expressions on Lao San's and Zhang Rong's faces still send chills down Zhuang Rui's spine. If he lost the bet, who knows what kind of shock Lao San would suffer? Zhuang Rui was so frightened that he didn't dare to take the money from Lao San at that moment.
Early in the morning, after failing to reach Zhuang Rui by phone, several people came to his door one after another, as if they were afraid that if they were late, all the good stones would be taken. Song Jun, on the other hand, also came to his room early in the morning, which surprised Zhuang Rui. He was not as impetuous as these guys.
"Why are you going so early? To listen to the boss speak? Go have breakfast first, then I'll hitch a ride with you..."
Song Jun's words left Zhuang Rui somewhat confused, so he asked, "Brother Song, are we still driving?"
"Nonsense, with such a narrow space as Jade Street, do you think you can set up several stalls? Let's go, it'll be about time after breakfast. By the way, with so many of you going, how many invitations did you manage to get?"
"An invitation? What's that?"
Zhuang Rui wondered if he was still drunk, as he was asking so many inexplicable questions so early in the morning.
"This jade gambling convention isn't for ordinary tourists; it's specifically for jade merchants from all over the country. You need an invitation from the organizers to get in, and each invitation allows you to bring two people. How are you going to get in without an invitation? Let me make this clear: I only have one invitation, so besides Master Peng, I can only bring one more person."
Actually, what Song Jun said wasn't entirely true. In the first few days, it was indeed jade merchants from all over the country who came to gamble on stones. However, as the stone gambling event came to an end, it would also be open to tourists. It's just that the chances of finding good rough stones would be much smaller.
Zhuang Rui was surprised to find that there was such a thing as a gambling stone event, and he became anxious. These guys were all eager to see it for themselves, and he couldn't just go in with the Song army and leave his friends outside, could he?
“Lei Lei, by the way. Lei Lei must have an invitation. Let her take two people in, and then ask Old Master Gu for a solution. We’ve come all this way, so we should at least let the brothers go in and see what it’s like.”
Thinking of this, Zhuang Rui took out his phone, intending to call Lei Lei to ask her about it.
Just as Zhuang Rui was about to make a call, Wei Ge stepped forward and said weakly, "Youngest brother, I just remembered something. Yesterday, Grandpa Gu had someone bring you a few invitations. I thought they were for inviting you to dinner or something, so I didn't pay attention to them and just left them somewhere."
Upon hearing this, Zhuang Rui didn't bother calling Lei Lei anymore and went straight to call Grandpa Gu. It sounded a bit noisy on Grandpa Gu's end; there were firecrackers and what sounded like lion dance cheers. Zhuang Rui asked around, and sure enough, Grandpa Gu had prepared three invitations for him and sent them over.