Guanglin Street Explosion

Luo Bin was about to speak, drawing all the hatred onto himself as he took a breath and expanded his chest.

Everyone's gaze locked onto him, wanting to hear what arrogant words this reckless youth dared to spew.

Boom—

A thunderous crash shook the entire Zhenyuan Escort Agency, the two people walking down from the arena struggling to keep their footing as the platform trembled.

The crowd erupted in uproar.

"What's going on outside? What was that noise?"

"Who's using explosives on the street? If it's not explosives, unless it's a high-level Martial Master, there's no way it'd make such a racket..."

Luo Bin was also stunned by the blast for a moment. Glancing at the escort guards around him, whose attention had been drawn away, he suddenly felt like he'd picked the wrong day to come.

The gatekeeper's boy came running again, shouting in terror: "The Shuo Gang and the Su Family are clashing... they've got guns, and explosives too!!"

After the Pei Family withdrew from Ping City, the Su Family stepped up to fill the gap. Though lacking in deep foundations, their foothold in Ping City was rock-solid. Operating on a guild model, they recruited low-level street vendors into their fold, offering protection, stall space, and even priority access to supplies for booming trades.

For example, barber stalls and wonton stalls—some got tools, others got ingredients... with profits split at a set ratio.

Because of this, the family had an excellent reputation in Ping City.

Once the gatekeeper's boy caught his breath, he explained the situation to everyone.

The Shunzhi District of Ping City was originally the northern part of the city plus the suburban area—the most vibrant, down-to-earth part of town, where the street-stall economy thrived. The Su Family had built their fortune by taking in and protecting these vendors.

Additionally, Luo Bin had learned some time ago that the Shuo Gang was a new faction formed from the Green Bamboo Gang—after it split from the Black Sheath Hall—merged with the Jiang Family's forces.

Now, listening to the gatekeeper's boy, Luo Bin understood the cause of the conflict. The Shuo Gang had the Jiang Family backing them, and since the Green Bamboo Gang had always been suspected of acting as the city government's glove, this clash only confirmed that suspicion.

The Shuo Gang claimed that the son of Commissioner Cao from the Southern Democratic Alliance was about to stay in Ping City, with his residence arranged in the Shunzhi District. All vendors in the district were ordered to cease business immediately and clean the streets to welcome the commissioner's son.

The city magistrate of Ping City was appointed by the Southern Democratic Alliance. At this critical moment, the Shuo Gang stepping forward essentially revealed the connection between the Jiang Family and the city government.

As the protector and beneficiary of thousands of vendors along the ten-mile-long street of Shunzhi District, the Su Family naturally couldn't tolerate the Shuo Gang's behavior. As for the commissioner's son—they'd deal with him when he actually arrived...

After hearing the gatekeeper's boy lay out the situation, Luo Bin's curiosity piqued. He followed the crowd from the Zhenyuan Escort Agency out to Guanglin Street.

The escort guards grumbled curses: "That damn Shuo Gang, how dare they be so arrogant? My old lady's still at the end of the street selling jianbing—I wonder how she's doing now?"

"All of us Zhenyuan Escort Agency guards have families doing business around here! Not aiming for riches, just to supplement the household income...

For the sake of some commissioner's son, there's no need to treat everyone so harshly!"

"That's right!"

The group looked at the bluestone slabs in the distance, where a crater had been blown open by explosives. Loose mud splattered everywhere across the stone. Several vendors in coarse brown short jackets lay stiff on the ground, blood seeping from their mouths, noses, and eyes.

Standing nearby, Luo Bin could sense it—these people were already dead...

They must have refused to pack up their stalls, leading to this tragic scene. Around them were foreign department stores, cinemas, restaurants, and eateries, but these were all indoors, with no "street encroachment."

In the middle of the street, two groups faced off. Though neither side held guns, one group had grenades in their hands.

According to the escort guards beside him, the group holding grenades belonged to the Shuo Gang.

The other side, slightly weaker and visibly panicked, was the Su Family's security.

Several women wailed over the bodies, their heart-wrenching cries drowned out by the Shuo Gang men's shouts.

"What are you crying for? Cry again, and we'll blow you up too!"

The leader, cigarette dangling from his lips, tossed a wooden-handled grenade in his hand, scanning the gathered vendors. "The magistrate has ordered: Commissioner Cao's son arrives in Ping City in three days. All street vendors in Shunzhi District must be cleared by today! Anyone who disobeys—this is what you get!"

He kicked over a nearby wonton stall. The iron pot toppled, scalding soup splashing everywhere. Several vendors who couldn't dodge in time yelped in pain, but no one dared step forward to argue.

Everyone knew the Shuo Gang had the Jiang Family and the city government behind them, with guns and cannons at their disposal. If they were truly provoked, these bottom-feeders would die for nothing.

The Su Family's leader was a man in his forties named Su Changgeng, his face flushed red: "Brother, let's talk this out! If Commissioner Cao's son is coming, we'll cooperate, but you have to give us some time, right? Thousands of stalls along this ten-mile street, tens of thousands of people relying on this to eat—clearing it all in one day, where are we supposed to go?"

"Where? The hell do I care where you go?" The Shuo Gang leader spat out his cigarette butt, grabbed Su Changgeng by the collar, and pressed the grenade to his temple. "Talk again, and I'll send you to meet the King of Hell right now!"

"You wouldn't dare!"

"Everyone, get the hell back! Anyone who steps forward, I'll make you taste this grenade today!"

At that moment, about fifty meters from the scene, in a semi-open, elegant room atop a department store called "Jinxi Stone," Chen Manqing was sipping tea and nibbling on snacks.

A soft, pleasant voice came from behind her, tinged with surprise: "Manqing, what are you doing here?"

Chen Manqing paused mid-bite, turning to look. A man and a woman approached from another shop—one was the Sun Family's young lady, Sun Shuhua, and the other was someone she'd met once before: Su Yu, the third branch's daughter of the Su Family.

Chen Manqing snorted. "The Sun Family and our Chen Family are at each other's throats now. You still dare to talk to me?"

Sun Shuhua, dressed in a goose-yellow Western-style dress with her curly hair tied into playful pigtails, was carrying a box of Western candies she'd just bought. Spotting Chen Manqing, her eyes curved into crescents as she quickly walked over and sat familiarly across from her.

"Oh, it's just a conflict of interests. Last time, it was someone from your Chen Family who saved me... I haven't even properly thanked them yet..."

"By the way, this is my good sister Su Yu. We were just out shopping when the Su Family ran into trouble... The Shuo Gang outside is clearing out the street vendors, and they're ruthless. There was even an explosion just as we came upstairs."

"I don't know what those people are up to, but Su Yu is still a young lady of the Su Family, so I pulled her up here to lie low. I wonder if our beautiful Manqing would welcome us?"