A Corpse in One Hand, Cash in the Other; Payment on Sight of the Corpse
Soon, the subordinate dismissed the disheveled plainclothes officers outside, strode back, leaned down with a strange expression, and whispered a few words in Lam Kong's ear, causing Lam Kong's expression to instantly become even more shocked than the other man's.
Lam Kong's first reaction upon hearing the news was to look at Song Tianyao, who was calmly chatting and laughing with two women. Song Tianyao was cutting beef and talking, but his eyes noticed the look Lam Kong gave him for a moment.
Ignoring the strange atmosphere in the restaurant, Lam Kong got up and walked to Song Tianyao's table. Under the somewhat surprised gazes of Lu Yuanchun and Qi Weiwen, he sat down in the seat to Song Tianyao's right.
Seeing Lam Kong's actions, Lu Yuanchun didn't show any particular expression, but Qi Weiwen frowned immediately. In her opinion, Lam Kong wasn't someone without sense of propriety; on the contrary, despite his seemingly carefree and playful exterior, he was shrewd and vigilant at heart. If something serious hadn't happened, he wouldn't have come over so directly and interrupted Song Tianyao's conversation with the two of them.
"What is it?" Song Tianyao put the beef into his mouth, not even glancing at Lam Kong, and continued to use his knife and fork to cut the next piece of beef.
Lam Kong turned his entire body to face Song Tianyao, his eyes fixed on Song Tianyao's gaze fixed on the beef on the plate. He lowered his voice and slowed his tone. "Golden-Tooth Lei is dead, Chan Ah-sap is dead, and several other Big Brother and uncles are also dead. They were all shot. Now the rumors are circulating that you've sided with the Shanghai people and had those Shanghai Green Gang members kill those two. Consider it your pledge of allegiance to the Shanghai people."
Song Tianyao paused briefly while swallowing the beef, then continued eating without stopping. Only after he had completely swallowed the food did he let out an "oh" in response.
"Sister Yun also managed to lure away a group of gangsters with the help of Britain soldiers at the Peninsula Hotel tonight. Now, no one can deny it even if they want to." Lam Kong continued, watching Song Tianyao's actions.
Qi Weiwen and Lu Yuanchun fell silent at the same time. One stirred her coffee gently, while the other twirled the ring on her finger, avoiding looking at Song Tianyao and Lam Kong. Of course, this didn't mean they hadn't heard what Lam Kong had said.
Song Tianyao swallowed the second piece of beef, wiped his mouth with a napkin, glanced at Lam Kong, reached for his wine glass, and asked, seemingly halfway through his meal, "And then?"
Lam Kong shook his head slightly and didn't say anything more. He just stared at Song Tianyao, his gaze and expression showing a complex mix of emotions, including vigilance, worry, ferocity, and fear.
Song Tianyao took a sip of red wine. "I did indeed side with the Shanghai people, but I didn't intend to make this pledge of allegiance so impressive. Now it seems someone else has done it for me, and done it so beautifully. Combined with Sister Yun's actions at the Peninsula Hotel, it's practically flawless. I can't even open my mouth to defend myself. This has forced me to take this path."
"Boss, don't lie to me. I'm not a smart person; I believe whatever I see." Lam Kong said to Song Tianyao with a serious expression.
Song Tianyao smiled and turned to look at Lam Kong: "What did you see in your eyes?"
"I can't see anything, that's why I asked. Brother Six isn't with you tonight. After you finished what you did this afternoon, it seemed like you hadn't seen Chu Xiaoxin in a long time and randomly chose this restaurant. But Chu Xiaoxin can leave, but you can't. Brother Six is your man. He's not with you. Right now, in the restaurant..."
Chapter 512 One hand on the corpse, the other on the banknotes; payment upon seeing the body.
In a spacious, dilapidated factory at Tai Kok Tsui Asia Dockyard in Tai Kok Tsui, Chen Tai, his muscular upper body embroidered with a self-sacrificing tiger motif, was bare as he punched a broken wooden dummy. There were no electric lights in the factory, only a dim oil lamp. The roof, already beyond repair, was being eroded by the torrential rain, and the entire factory echoed with the dripping sound of leaking water.
Chen Tai hasn't been having an easy time lately. His Big Brother, Bo Ming Bo Cong, was killed, and he insisted on avenging Bo Cong by causing a ruckus at the Lin Family's soft drink factory. However, instead of gaining more prestige in the underworld, his life became increasingly difficult after losing his backer. He didn't have Bo Cong's brains, nor could he learn his social skills. He had previously been loyal to Crippled Cong as his henchman and thug, making enemies from all sides. But Bo Cong hadn't had time to expand Chen Tai's network, so after Bo Cong's death, most people sought revenge against Chen Tai, and few offered him any help. Chen Tai couldn't even protect the Mei Yin Guild Hall, which his Big Brother Bo Cong had once been most proud of. It was seized from Chen Tai by Detective Chief Inspector from Sai Ying Pun who colluded with Harmony Heroes's uncles as gang property.
People in the martial arts world admire Chen Tai. He's a skilled fighter, loyal, and born to fight. Now, those who are interested in Chen Tai and the Big Brother of the He-prefix gangs are all waiting for Chen Tai to give up so they can keep this obedient and fierce dog by their side.
But Chen Tai disappointed everyone. They never expected that Chen Tai could enjoy the entourage and revelry of his heyday, and also endure the loneliness and lack of food and clothing during his downfall.
People in the martial arts world all follow the powerful and the weak. Today you may be successful and have many followers willing to follow you, but tomorrow you may fall from grace and your followers will scatter like leaves in the wind. After all, those followers in the martial arts world who have no chance to rise to prominence also need to make a living and cannot stay with you.
Chen Tai is in this situation right now. Without Bo Ming, Chen Tai has no money, and he's not smart enough to fight against those old fogies like Harmony Heroes. His mahjong parlors and Opium dens have all been seized under the guise of gang property.
His underlings advised him to switch allegiance to a different Big Brother, but Chen Tai refused. As a result, his brothers gradually distanced themselves from Chen Tai, and now only two or three loyal henchmen remain. Since Chen Tai is willing to endure hardship, they stick with Chen Tai through it all.
After running out of money, Chen Tai chose to make a living by working.
The three underlings thought Chen Tai was joking, but to their surprise Chen Tai actually found a job as a ship repairman at a dock, leaving them dumbfounded.
They had tried to persuade Chen Tai that even if Chen Tai didn't switch allegiance to Big Brother, he could rebuild his territory and quickly make a comeback. However, Chen Tai insisted that conquering the world required money, and in his current situation, he couldn't even afford to feed his underlings a bowl of noodles, let alone provide them with resettlement funds. Some Big Brother offered money to promote Chen Tai, their true intentions were obvious, and Chen Tai naturally wouldn't touch that money, which led to his current predicament.