Then I cautiously said to him, "Zhu Gui had a little trouble and got a minor injury, but it's nothing serious. Who do you think should be notified first?"
Song Qing didn't say much. He found Lu Junyi and gave him the phone number. I explained the general situation to him, and Lu Junyi asked, "How is Zhu Gui now?"
"It's nothing serious, I'm just lying down."
Lu Junyi said unhurriedly, "I'll take Military Advisor Wu and the others there now."
I quickly said, "Should I come pick you up? How are you going to get here so late? Do you know the way?"
"Hehe, you don't need to worry about that. We've caused trouble in Tokyo, this little place won't be a problem for us."
His last sentence sent chills down my spine. I had always thought Lu Junyi was a moderate, conservative, and capitulationist, but I never expected him to be so ruthless.
And they arrived faster than I expected. I had only been sitting for a short while when I saw Lu Junyi walk into the bar first. I hurriedly went to greet them and saw Wu Yong and Zhang Qing, the Featherless Arrow, get out of a taxi at the entrance. I was puzzled as to why there were only three people in one taxi. Zhang Qing smiled and pointed back at the car, saying, "There's one more person I don't know. We hitched a ride."
I told the three of them to wait a moment, then ran to the taxi. The driver was calling the police, and a middle-aged passenger, still shaken, was in the front passenger seat. I told him not to call. After asking, I learned that these three weren't hitchhiking at all. The passenger had just taken a taxi from the city to leave, but these three had intercepted him on a highway near Yaocun and insisted the driver come back. I apologized profusely and gave the driver 100 yuan to settle the matter. Seeing that it wasn't a robbery or murder, the passenger, whether frightened or relieved, burst into tears. I quickly brought out a small bottle of Corona from the bar and put it in the car, saying, "Don't cry, this is for you to calm your nerves."
I led Lu Junyi and the others into the private room. Zhu Gui was still too scared to move, lying naked watching an MTV. When he saw the leaders arrive, he quickly turned off the TV and covered his wound with a piece of clothing. Wu Yong went over to examine the wound and told Lu Junyi, "It's just a superficial wound, nothing serious."
Zhu Gui said aggrievedly, "Why didn't Doctor An come? Their medicine isn't working well anymore." Wu Yong said, "They were supposed to be the first to come, but the carriage can only seat three people, and we don't feel at ease without Zhang Qing and the other brothers."
Zhang Qing crossed his arms and asked Du Xing, "Do you know who did it?" Du Xing pointed to Zhu Gui and said, "Ask him. I wasn't there at the time, otherwise those kids wouldn't have gotten away."
Wu Yong sat down next to Zhu Gui: "Take your time—Xiao Qiang, go back to the gate and make backup. The brothers will enter the city in batches; there are still many people behind us."
As soon as I arrived at the entrance, an Audi A6 pulled up, and Lin Chong, An Daoquan, Yang Zhi, and Dong Ping got out. I asked Sun Sixin to lead them inside, and sighed; the people driving this car couldn't be bought off with money. Unexpectedly, the driver was very generous, clearly the kind of rich guy who had come out of prison and made a fortune. He even praised me, saying, "I like guys like you. Call me if you ever need anything; I'm definitely friends with you." Later, I learned that when these guys stopped him, this guy fearlessly unleashed his Black Tiger Fist, honed in prison, and started punching him relentlessly. Dong Ping didn't fight back, and only after the rich guy collapsed from exhaustion did Dong Ping tell him that they needed to visit their injured brother and asked for a ride.
The next car carried Hu Sanniang, Jin Dajian, and the Ruan brothers. The driver even waved to Hu Sanniang as he left; no doubt, this car was thanks to her. Next came Song Qing with Li Yun and two other people. I was wondering how they managed to flag down the car when I realized the driver was a woman. The woman even chased after Song Qing, the pretty boy, asking for his phone number—she was incredibly bold!
These Liangshan heroes were like the Eight Immortals crossing the sea, each with their own methods. They arrived in batches, and most of the drivers were naturally full of resentment. I was responsible for cleaning up the mess at the entrance. Finally, a large charcoal truck blocked the bar entrance, and people started jumping out of it. Li Kui jumped off the hood of the truck and said in Shandong dialect, "Thanks, fellow villager." Then he slammed the door shut and hurriedly followed Sun Sixin upstairs.
Lu Junyi and his men were coerced; Lin Chong and his men were moved by emotion; Hu Sanniang was naturally seduced by her beauty; Song Qing—seduced by male beauty. Dai Zong ran here on his own, so he's a 4; he could have run even faster if he hadn't been afraid to run freely into the city.
The 54 heroes finally gathered at the Reverse Time Bar. I walked upstairs with my arms crossed, knowing that this matter was definitely not over.
The corridor was filled with heroes, who went in in batches to visit Zhu Gui. I squeezed into the private room and saw Lu Junyi and Wu Yong sitting to one side. Li Yun and Hu Sanniang were now talking to Zhu Gui. Li Yun was the master of Zhu Gui's older brother, Zhu Fu, and he held Zhu Gui's hand, offering a few words of comfort in a senior's tone. Hu Sanniang looked at me with a half-smile, and I suddenly had a very bad premonition…
Sure enough, she grabbed me and pinched my head with her fist, yelling, "Our brother's only been with you for a day and he's already in trouble, huh?" The people around laughed and quickly pulled me away. This time, although my head hurt, it felt like I was pressing against something soft and comfortable; I didn't know what it was. Hu Sanniang, taking advantage of the fact that no one was looking, patted her chest. Seeing me peeking at her, she gestured with her fist, and I quickly pretended to look away.
At this moment, Li Kui, unable to contain his impatience, spun in from the back of the corridor, shoving many people around him. He entered the room and yanked off the clothes covering Zhu Gui's buttocks. The wound had already been re-bandaged by An Daoquan, very neatly, with only a few drops of blood seeping through the new gauze. Li Kui laughed heartily, "You bastard! I thought your buttocks had been chopped off, and I rushed here to see you one last time, only to find out it was just a bug bite!" He then pretended to slap Zhu Gui's wound, startling Zhu Gui into leaping behind Lu Junyi, causing everyone to burst into laughter.
The atmosphere at the scene was friendly and harmonious, completely different from what I had imagined. I thought they would hug Zhu Gui's backside and wail loudly, then grit their teeth and vow to avenge him. It seems bandits are just bandits; losing an arm or a leg is within their tolerance.
I fantasized that this matter would end there, and if an investigation was necessary, I would handle it myself. After all, having multiple hidden enemies made me uneasy, but if I let them do it, who knew what they might do? However, my hopes were quickly dashed.
Lu Junyi waved his hand and said, "Shi Qian and Xiao Qiang stay here. The rest of you brothers, go downstairs for a drink."
Ruan Xiaoer peeked in through the doorframe, his triangular eyes gleaming, and said, "Let us know when you have the results." Then the group of fifty-odd people came downstairs in a cacophony of voices, taking over half the bar and drinking heartily. They already knew I was the owner of this bar, and they chug their drinks like water. Luckily, they only ordered beer, and they didn't like it, so they didn't drink excessively, keeping the bill under 20,000 yuan.
Only Zhu Gui, Du Xing, Lu Junyi, Wu Yong, and Shi Qian remained in the private room. Zhu Gui, who had stood up earlier, hadn't slumped down again, leaning against the corner of the sofa with half his buttocks sticking out. Wu Yong patted his hand and said, "Now tell me in detail, what happened?"
Zhu Gui said, "Actually, I felt something was wrong as soon as I entered the room. There were eight of them in total. Four of them darted behind me and blocked me in the middle. Then they pretended to argue while surrounding me. Two of them grabbed my arms, and someone else attacked me from behind. When they left, they warned me to 'be smart,' which was obviously a veiled threat."
Zhu Gui never said these things to me, which clearly shows he doesn't trust my intelligence.
Wu Yong suddenly asked me a strange question: "Xiao Qiang, you're really not running a shady business?"
With a pained expression and trembling hands, I said, "I've only been running this bar for a day. Even if I wanted to, I haven't had a chance yet, have I?" Actually, if I hadn't said anything beforehand, I really wanted to revamp this bar. I'd bring in some young girls, dress them up as bunny girls with long ears, and put them in reflective little skirts. One touch and they'd buy a bottle of liquor, one touch and they'd buy a bottle of liquor... Then I'd put a steel pipe on the stage and have hot girls go up and hug the pipe, acting all horny. They'd start by wearing padded jackets with leather jackets, padded coats, sweaters, vests, and stuff underneath. They'd take off their clothes as soon as money was thrown at them. The faster the money was thrown, the faster they'd take their clothes off. I reckon I could easily make tens of thousands just by getting them down to their thermal underwear...
After I finished speaking, Wu Yong smiled and picked up the tray containing Yunnan Baiyao, iodine, and gauze, asking, "Does your tavern sell medicine for knife wounds?"
I was startled, realizing that this was indeed a question.
Lu Junyi interrupted Zhu Gui, asking, "What did those people mean when they told you to be smarter? Have you offended anyone?"
"I've only been here for less than half a day, how could I have offended anyone?"
Du Xing suddenly said, "Could it be those who lost the dance competition?"
I shook my head firmly: "Those who do street dance are just from low-class venues; they don't have that kind of guts."
Wu Yong said, "It's obvious that encountering something like this on your first day in office means someone wants you to quit. If Zhu Gui doesn't take this deputy... what?" I reminded him, "Manager."
"...As a deputy manager, who benefits the most?" Wu Yong picked up his beer glass, took a sip, frowned, and put it down again. I quickly ordered two cups of tea to be brought over and called Sun Sixin over as well. Then I answered Wu Yong, "It won't benefit anyone. All the profits from this bar for the year belong to me. Even if I hire hundreds of deputy managers, it just means we won't make any money."
Wu Yong nodded and said, "This is a bit of a problem."
Just then, Sun Sixin entered carrying two cups of tea. This capable young man, seeing the steady stream of burly men arriving, realized that things had become complicated. While the Liangshan men didn't have three heads and six arms, their willingness to risk everything was unmistakable. Having spent so much time in bars, he could naturally discern the different personalities of various people.
Although Lu Junyi and Wu Yong were sitting gracefully, they did not conceal their local tyrant and bully attitude at all. Sun Sixin placed tea in front of the two of them and did not leave, but waited with her hands at her sides to ask questions.
Wu Yong glanced at him and asked, "How come you have something like this in your tavern?" As he spoke, he pushed the tray containing the medicine.
“Those belong to our Manager Liu. It’s not unusual for bars to have minor issues, so we always keep these things on hand.” Lu Junyi glared at me, as if to say: You still think you’re not running a shady business?
Wu Yong continued, "What's the background of this Manager Liu?"
Sun Sixin hesitated for a moment, knowing that she couldn't hide it for more than a few days, so she simply said, "Our Manager Liu is quite popular in the underworld. His friends often come to the bar to see him after getting injured in a fight."
"Is she also a person of strong emotions? Have you met this Manager Liu?" This question was directed at Zhu Gui. Zhu Gui shook his head.
"Doesn't your Manager Liu come to the store often?"
"I used to come every day, but only today..."
I just remembered what Chen Kejiao told me. It seems that this Liu guy is very unwelcoming to Zhu and Du. Now the whole thing is starting to take shape.
Wu Yong, with an expression of relief as if the clouds had parted and the sun was shining, said with a smile, "It seems my two brothers have gotten in the way of this Master Liu, and they are quite embarrassed."