The Prey

As soon as he said this, the others immediately understood.

It seemed this was aimed at the Wang family. The Black Tiger Gang was merely the other party's vanguard.

"It's so noisy downstairs. What happened?"

Wang Pan summoned a servant waiting by the door and questioned him.

"Young Master, someone is causing trouble in the establishment."

"Should we leave first? Someone will come handle things here."

The servant answered respectfully.

"Brother Pan, should I have someone deal with them?"

Xun Youcai said with a grin. Since this was Wang Pan's territory, he did not overstep his bounds and instead asked Wang Pan for his opinion.

Don't be fooled by the little fatty's ever-smiling, amiable appearance. His heart was black as coal.

The Xun Family dealt in illicit salt. Influenced by what he saw and heard growing up, the little fatty was ruthless and vicious.

"Interesting. Let's go down and have a look."

Wang Pan was intrigued. The Wang family had operated in Baiyang City for more than four generations, and their influence had long since taken deep root.

Everyone born in Baiyang City knew that magistrates came and went, but Wang City stood firm!

Wang City meant the Wang of the Wang family and the city of the Wang family!

"Fine."

Xun Youcai called over his guards as well and followed Wang Pan downstairs.

Wang Pan had not brought any guards. Only two manservants followed him.

With Wang Pan's strength, guards would have been useless anyway.

Over all these years, the Wang family had only recruited five experts at the Muscle and Tendon Changing Stage.

These experts either guarded a particular place or accompanied merchant caravans to protect them.

When Wang Pan had been younger, an expert at the Muscle and Tendon Changing Stage had always accompanied him whenever he went out, protecting his safety.

But Wang Pan had grown stronger and stronger. Moreover, he was in Baiyang City, where he would not face any danger, so Wang Ji had stopped assigning guards to protect him.

"Young Master!"

When Wang Pan came downstairs, the shopkeeper, whose head was bloodied from the beating, immediately seemed to find his backbone. He crawled and rolled toward Wang Pan.

Damn it, why is the Wang family's Young Master here too?

Zhou Hui's heart skipped a beat when he saw Wang Pan's face.

Zhou Hui was no fool. Smashing up this establishment was no big deal, since someone behind them would clean up the mess.

As long as the person behind them had not gotten what they wanted, the Black Tiger Gang would remain a banner they had raised and would not be easily abandoned.

That was why Zhou Hui had acted without fear. At worst, he could take the money and flee far away afterward, living well somewhere else.

But if he hurt the Wang family's Young Master, Wang Ji would definitely go mad!

Even the person backing the Black Tiger Gang would not be able to save him, nor would they want to!

With that thought, Zhou Hui immediately grew timid. He told his subordinates to stop and prepared to run.

They were paying five thousand taels of silver to smash up this establishment.

Why risk his life for five thousand taels of silver?

Zhou Hui could still tell the difference between money to earn and a life to spend it.

"What happened?"

Wang Pan quietly shifted his feet aside, avoiding the sniveling, tearful shopkeeper.

After failing to hug Wang Pan's leg, the shopkeeper froze for a moment before recounting everything that had happened.

"Did I say you could leave?"

Wang Pan patiently listened to the shopkeeper's accusations against the group.

When he saw them preparing to slip away, he spoke up at once.

"Young Master Wang, we were only following orders. Please spare us this once."

Zhou Hui surrendered quickly, without the slightest hesitation.

His subordinates were so frightened that their legs trembled. They huddled together in a tight cluster.

"You're quite clear-headed."

Wang Pan was taken aback. This was an interesting fellow.

"Young Master Wang, small people have their own way of surviving. The most important thing is knowing who can be provoked and who cannot."

Zhou Hui stood obediently where he was, his face bitter.

He did not dare fight, nor did he dare curse. All he could do was admit defeat.

"So many people fail to understand that principle. But I'm curious—if you're so clever, why did you do something so foolish?"

Wang Pan was rather curious. He had to admit, this man was interesting.

"My cultivation has been stuck at the Body Strengthening Stage for nearly ten years. They offered too much."

"I had planned to leave Baiyang City the moment I walked out that door, but my luck was bad..."

Zhou Hui spoke with a deeply aggrieved expression.

"Someone, come here. Today, I'm treating these heroes to cakes!"

"Have the kitchen make one hundred Wealth and Status Cakes. They can leave whenever they finish eating them."

"Don't think about running. If I hadn't noticed you, that would have been one thing. But since I have, you should know that you won't be able to leave Baiyang City."

After giving his orders, Wang Pan turned and left.

"Thank you, Young Master Wang!"

Zhou Hui was stunned, then overwhelmed with joy.

His subordinates also breathed sighs of relief and thanked Wang Pan one after another.

They had thought their corpses would end up in the mass graves outside the city today, but unexpectedly, they had escaped disaster.

The subordinates looked gratefully at Zhou Hui as well. Choice was more important than effort—just as they had chosen a clear-headed boss like Zhou Hui.

But when they turned and looked at the Wealth and Status Cakes on the table, their faces fell. It seemed they would be vomiting quite a few times today.

"Brother Pan, why didn't you ask them who ordered them to do this?"

Xun Youcai could not hold it in any longer. He had wanted to ask earlier.

"They're all small fry. Even if we asked, we wouldn't get any answers."

"You may be ruthless, but your perspective is too narrow. You must remember this!"

"The strong never need evidence, nor do they need reasons. Reasons and evidence are merely comforts and restraints the weak impose upon themselves!"

Wang Pan smiled. It seemed everyone had been living rather well these past few years.

Only when everyone was living well did they have the leisure to think about expanding and growing stronger.

And if they wanted to expand and grow stronger in Baiyang City—or rather, throughout the thirteen cities of You Province—the Wang family was an obstacle they could not avoid!

After all, what poor person would come provoke the Wang family?

"I think I understand, but not completely."

At the end of the day, Xun Youcai was merely an eleven- or twelve-year-old child.

His so-called ruthlessness was nothing more than the superficial methods he had learned from his elders.

There were still many things he only half understood.

"Figure it out yourself. Oh, and I probably won't have time to go hunting with you. I've found better prey."

Wang Pan waved his hand and returned to the residence with his attendants.

"Didn't he promise to go hunting with us? Why isn't he going now?"

"Better prey? What kind of prey could catch Brother Pan's attention?"

After Wang Pan left, Xun Youcai stood there in confusion.

"Father, Brother Pan said he found better prey. What prey was he talking about?"

Unable to figure it out, Xun Youcai returned home and told his father about what had happened at the restaurant that day before asking curiously.

After listening, Xun Kuang fell silent.

After a long while, Xun Kuang came back to himself and sighed. "Wang Ji truly has a fine son."

"Youcai, remember this. You must build a good relationship with Wang Pan. Whatever he tells you to do, you do it."

Xun Kuang solemnly instructed his son.

"Oh, isn't our whole group already listening to Brother Pan?"

Xun Youcai did not understand.

"People have degrees of closeness and distance. It's useless if you alone acknowledge Wang Pan and listen to him.

"You must make Wang Pan acknowledge you as well and treat you as one of his own.

"You're still young and don't understand some things, but you must remember my words firmly."

Xun Kuang earnestly taught his son.

"I'll remember."

Xun Youcai's chubby face was full of confusion, but upon hearing his father's words, his expression turned serious.