Fujimoto and Ito Kinji also sensed something was wrong. They exchanged a glance and then stepped back from Zhou Xuan and the others, deliberately creating some distance between themselves.
Zhou Xuan coldly replied, "No sale!" Of course, he wasn't afraid of Jin Baiwan, but if he were to take action, even if he only converted a tiny bit of the internal organs of each of Jin Baiwan's men into gold, they would still be doomed. Therefore, Zhou Xuan didn't want to take action himself; it would be best if Zheng Bing and his group could resolve the issue.
Judging from Jin Baiwan's appearance, he's clearly trying to force Zhao Lao Er to buy that jade. Zhou Xuan doesn't understand how someone like him could become the richest raw jade merchant in Tengchong.
Jin Baiwan then said, "One hundred thousand!" At this point, Jin Baiwan stopped haggling and instead beckoned to one of his men behind him, saying, "Bring me one hundred thousand!"
The henchman nodded, opened the small black leather book he was carrying, counted out ten bundles of banknotes, and then walked over and placed them on the ground in front of Zhao Lao Er.
Jin Baiwan pointed to the money on the ground and said, "You let the opportunity slip away. Here's 100,000 yuan, take it for your travel expenses and get out of here right now!"
Zhao Lao Er realized he was in trouble. The other side had several more people than him, and besides, this was their territory. If a fight broke out, his side would definitely suffer losses.
Zhong Qin quietly stood behind Zhou Xuan, leaned close to him, and whispered, "Brother Zhou, this person is not to be trifled with."
Zhou Xuan smiled faintly and said to Zhou Bo, "Boss Zhou, I'll leave my goods here with you for a day. I'll come back to pick them up tomorrow. I'll be leaving now!"
Zhou Bo wore a bitter expression, thinking to himself, "Do you think you can just leave like this? I only invited Jin Baiwan to come and buy it together. We'd each make a profit, but who knew he'd turn on me for the money and try to force me to buy it!"
Zhao Lao Er, clutching the jade, took a step back, his voice trembling slightly as he said, "In broad daylight, do you have no regard for the law? This is forced buying and selling. Get out of here right now, or I'll call the police!"
Jin Baiwan chuckled and said, "Call the police? Heh, do you want me to let you use my phone? This is forced buying and selling, who's going to testify for you? Why don't you find someone to come out and ask them? You dare to say things without any evidence?"
Zhou Xuan understood this without even thinking. Someone like Jin Baiwan must have good connections in the local government. That's why he's so arrogant. But the fact that he could actually pull off such a forced sale shows that Jin Baiwan is just a brainless nouveau riche; his wealth was simply due to luck.
Zhang Shan and Wu Feng stepped forward to block the way, while Zheng Bing and Jiang Jin stood behind Zhou Xuan with their arms crossed, observing the situation. If it was just Jin Baiwan and his group, then it wouldn't be a big deal.
Jin Baiwan chuckled at this moment, waved his hand and said, "Pick up the money, let's call it a day. Even if we can't do business, we can still be friends. Let's go!"
Zhou Xuan had assumed it would be a chaotic brawl, but Jin Baiwan unexpectedly backed down. In his memory, Jin Baiwan wasn't someone who would easily change his mind. He'd come on strong, but suddenly all his arrogance vanished!
The burly man who had withdrawn the money from behind Jin Baiwan picked it up again and put it away. Then, the seven or eight of them walked over to the two Grand Cherokees parked in the parking lot, got in, and drove off.
Zhou Xuan's first impression was that he didn't believe Jin Baiwan would give up so easily. Only Zhong Qin and Zhao Lao Er breathed a sigh of relief, as the danger had finally disappeared.
Zhou Xuan thought for a moment, then said to Zhou Bo, "Boss Zhou, I think we should go back to the hotel first and come back to pick up the goods tomorrow."
Although the check hadn't been cashed yet, Zhou Xuan didn't ask to have the goods shipped out when he returned to the hotel. The raw materials worth over 1.2 million yuan were still stored with Zhou Bo, who would pick them up tomorrow. By then, the check's cashing time would be over, and the truth would be clear. Zhou Bo had nothing to worry about; if it was a bounced check, the goods would still be with him, and he wouldn't lose anything anyway.
"Hehe, no problem!" Zhou Bo replied with a smile.
However, Zhou Xuan noticed that although Zhou Bo was smiling, his smile seemed somewhat forced, and he felt increasingly uneasy. Zhao Lao Er, carrying his precious child, climbed into the car. Zhong Qin remained seated in the front.
Zhou Xuan deliberately lagged behind a few steps and quietly said to Zheng Bing, "Zheng Lian, that fat guy definitely has something to hide, what do you think?"
Zheng Bing smiled faintly and said, "Mr. Zhou, please rest assured. Besides the four of us, I've already notified backup. Of course, that's just to ensure absolute safety; I think with that fat guy's abilities, four people will be enough!"
Zheng Bing spoke calmly, but his expression was extremely relaxed. Zhou Xuan didn't care either; whether he was worried or not, it was all the same. He could only take it one step at a time, dealing with whatever came his way. If it really came to a critical moment, then no wonder he had to act ruthlessly! ...
Zheng Bing had Jiang Jin drive instead of Zhang Shan, while he himself sat in the back with Zhou Xuan and Zhao Lao Er. Zhang Shan and Wu Feng drove the other car. Both cars had tinted windows, so you couldn't actually see inside from the outside.
Zhou Bo watched as Zhou Xuan and his group drove out of his factory gate in two cars, one after the other. A bitter feeling welled up inside him; he figured his deal was ruined. Jin Baiwan was no benevolent man. He had hoped to use Jin Baiwan's wealth to buy Zhao Lao Er's jade, thus making a profit without spending any of his own money. But he was wrong. It was truly a case of "possessing a treasure invites trouble." With such fine jade, Jin Baiwan dared to try something sinister.
However, Jin Baiwan didn't openly take action in Zhou Bo's factory, which was giving him face. Of course, there was another reason as well. He was the only witness, and he needed to make a decision sooner rather than later and get the employees to agree. This was just in case. If it were someone with Jin Baiwan's connections, probably nothing would happen.
While in the car, Zhou Xuan heard Jiang Jin communicating with Zhang Shan's car while driving, and also heard that a squad was rapidly approaching. Zhou Xuan wasn't nervous; with Zheng Bing and the others around, things were truly worry-free. He didn't need to lift a finger; if he did, Jin Pangzi's men would surely die. After all, he had never killed anyone before, and making that decision wasn't easy.
He glanced in the rearview mirror again and saw that the taxi that Fujimoto and the others were riding in was about two or three hundred meters away from his chauffeur.
Zhang Shan's car was only six or seven meters away from the car behind. Jiang Jin looked at the road ahead and realized that they had entered a mountainous forest area. There was no one around, and they could not see more than two hundred meters ahead. There was nothing but trees.
Zhou Xuan thought to himself, if Fatty Jin wanted to make a move, he would probably do it here.
He was thinking the same thing, as were Zheng Bing and Jiang Jin. Zhang Shan's car had already slowed down, and after driving another hundred meters or so, Zhang Shan said through the walkie-talkie, "Company Commander, there's a roadblock ahead!"
Zheng Bing said in a deep voice, "Get out of the car, be careful, and try your best to reduce the enemy's lethality!"
"clear!"
Hearing Zhang Shan's cold and somber reply, Zhou Ji felt a chilling aura emanating from his words.
Jiang Jin also stopped the car. Zhou Xuan saw a long chain of iron nails lying across the road ahead. If the car tried to drive across it, the tires would definitely be destroyed.
As soon as the car stopped, sixteen or seventeen people poured out from behind the grove of trees. Jiang Jin turned to Zheng Bing and said, "Zheng Lian, you drive Mr. Zhou and the others back. We'll handle things here. We'll let you know when the danger is over."
Zhou Xuan chuckled and said, "Forget it. If he's determined to ambush us, do you think there won't be anyone behind us?"
Jiang Jin looked back and, sure enough, a dozen or so people emerged from the woods about ten meters away. Further away, Fujimoto and his group's car was far away. The driver turned the car around but didn't leave, probably because Fujimoto wanted to see how things were going.
Zhang Shan glanced around and counted. There were seventeen people in front of him, and then he glanced behind him. There were fourteen people behind him, making a total of thirty-one people. Judging from their figures, Fatty Jin was not among them.
Zhang Shan gestured to Zheng Bing, indicating that they should move forward.
Jiang Jin clenched his fists and said to Zheng Bing, "Zheng Lian, you stay with Mr. Zhou and the others for a while. I'll take care of the rest!"
Among the dozen or so people in front, one man stepped forward carrying a bag, patted it, and said, "This is 100,000 yuan. If you know what's good for you, sell the jade, take the 100,000 yuan, and leave. Otherwise..."
Zhang Shan darted forward in a flash, punching the man so hard he tumbled several times, cursing, "Otherwise, you're a damn fool."
The man was punched by Zhang Shan, which knocked seven or eight teeth out of his mouth. Blood gushed from his mouth, and he could only groan and mumble, unable to speak!
The remaining people were surprised that Zhang Shan dared to strike first and injure someone. How could a few of them dare to attack dozens of people like them? After a moment of stunned silence, they shouted and rushed forward in a swarm.
Without hesitation, Wu Feng and Zhang Shan rushed into the crowd, kicking and chopping.
Jiang Jin, who was behind, also silently confronted the group and started fighting. All that could be heard was a series of cracking sounds, followed by a series of groans.
Although Zhou Xuan didn't know martial arts, he had seen plenty of fighting techniques. People like Fu Ying, Li Junjie, Ito, and Ono Yuriko were all skilled fighters. Fu Ying practiced martial arts, while soldiers like Jiang Jin and Zhang Shan relied on purely crippling methods. This didn't mean they were more skilled than Fu Ying, but their techniques were more effective and direct. One strike, no need for a second; anyone hit would either have a broken leg or arm, immediately losing their mobility!