"Sir, then... then can we leave now?"
The horse-faced young man looked at Fang Xing and asked cautiously.
"You, you, you two stay. The rest of you can leave."
Fang Xing looked at the horse-faced young man and another man.
The two men Fang Xing had singled out looked utterly miserable.
But neither dared ask questions.
Their boss had just been killed by the baleful fiend in front of them. If they angered him, there was no telling whether the two of them would follow in their boss's footsteps.
The others hurried away, afraid that if they were even a step too slow, Fang Xing would call them back.
With their boss dead, the Black Tiger Gang was finished.
They had no shortage of enemies. If they didn't run now, when would they?
Fang Xing paid no mind to all that. Just as he was about to give his orders, four or five more constables arrived in the distance.
"Chief."
The five constables came forward and greeted him in unison.
Fang Xing nodded, then looked at Xu Le and another constable. "Xu Le, leave two men here to handle things. Dispose of the bodies and seal off the place for now."
Xu Le's face lit up with joy. "Thank you, Brother Xing!"
Being put in charge meant Fang Xing was looking out for him. And a sealed property could bring in plenty of extra profit.
Even a little would be enough.
"Chief, what do we do next?" one of the constables asked Fang Xing.
Fang Xing looked at the group, then turned to a skinny young man from the Black Tiger Gang. "You were the one who went to notify Xu Hu, right?"
At Fang Xing's question, the skinny young man shuddered and nodded, trembling. "Sir, it... it was me."
"Where did you notify him?" Fang Xing asked.
"Not far. In a courtyard on the next street." The young man pointed in a direction.
Fang Xing looked that way, then said, "In that case, lead the way. You come along too."
The skinny young man and the horse-faced young man exchanged a glance, their faces bitter. They nodded.
Fang Xing then looked at the remaining constables. "The rest of you, come with me."
"Yes!"
The constables answered firmly, then left in a grand procession.
The sight immediately drew plenty of attention. People whispered and speculated among themselves.
Before long, with the skinny young man leading the way, Fang Xing arrived at a courtyard.
It was very secluded.
The alley was also at the junction of two wards.
Nearby, several homeless beggars huddled in a corner. The moment they saw Fang Xing and his group, they hurriedly fled.
Fang Xing glanced around the courtyard, then looked at the horse-faced young man beside him. "Is this where your gang leader lives?"
The horse-faced young man shook his head. "No. The gang leader arranged it as a place for someone else to stay."
"Oh?"
Fang Xing's eyes brightened. "Who did he arrange it for?"
"Sir, I don't know. I've never seen him. I only know he's a young man, and the gang leader respects him greatly."
The horse-faced young man replied.
"A young man... whom Xu Hu respects greatly. Could this be where that emissary is staying?"
The thought flashed through Fang Xing's mind. He looked at the constables.
"Everyone, stay alert."
At his words, the constables hesitated, but asked no questions. They drew their sabers and stood ready.
Bang!
Fang Xing kicked the courtyard gate open.
It swung open easily. The courtyard was small.
There was only a main room, a side room, and a storeroom.
With his Internal Force gathered, Fang Xing stepped into the courtyard.
The others followed close behind.
The doors to the main room and side room were shut. Only the storeroom stood open.
Everything was quiet.
"You two, go open the doors." Fang Xing looked at the horse-faced young man and the other skinny young man.
The two men didn't dare refuse. They steeled themselves and went to open the doors.
The doors to the main room and side room swung open.
Both rooms were empty. There wasn't a soul in sight.
Fang Xing frowned. "Did he leave early...?"
He entered and searched both empty rooms carefully, but found nothing.
There was nothing but bedding and beds.
Fang Xing looked at the skinny young man, his gaze cold. "When you came to notify him, who was here besides your gang leader?"
"I... I only saw the gang leader. I didn't see anyone else." The skinny young man looked tense as he replied.
At that, a trace of disappointment flickered through Fang Xing's heart.
But there was nothing he could do.
He had missed this chance. Catching the "emissary" behind it all would be difficult now, unless the man showed himself.
It wasn't weighing heavily on him, but the thought still pricked at his heart like a thorn.
It was deeply unsettling.
"Fine. You can go."
Joy appeared on the skinny young man's face. He hurriedly left.
Fang Xing made a hand signal, and the constables sheathed their sabers.
"Sir, then... can I leave too?" the horse-faced young man asked cautiously.
"Leave? Where do you think you're going?" Fang Xing shot him a cold glance.
The horse-faced young man's face fell.
"Sir, I've told you everything I know. Please... please spare me."
"I'm just an ordinary member of the Black Tiger Gang."
The horse-faced young man put on a pitiful act, nearly bursting into tears.
But Fang Xing remained unmoved. "You can leave when I tell you to. Next, take me to your gang leader's residence."
"N-no problem." He had been about to say more, but when he saw Fang Xing's cold face, he swallowed his words and obediently turned to lead the way.
Fang Xing followed him with the constables.
Before long, Fang Xing and his group arrived at Xu Hu's residence, in the North City.
Compared to the earlier courtyard, Xu Hu's residence was clearly much larger.
Fang Xing opened the gate and assigned two men to stand guard, then led the others inside.
The courtyard was spacious. It had five main rooms, a hall, guest rooms, a kitchen, and more.
Fang Xing looked around and had the horse-faced young man take him to the main room. The others searched the other rooms.
The main room was spacious, twice the size of the one he lived in.
The horse-faced young man stood obediently outside, not daring to make a sound.
A constable guarded the door. Without Fang Xing's permission, leaving was nothing but a pipe dream.
Fang Xing entered the main room, took a look, then began searching every corner carefully.
He searched the bed, the cabinets, and nearly everything else.
But he came up completely empty-handed.
There weren't any treasures, let alone a single tael of silver.
Xu Hu had given him a money pouch earlier, and he had searched Xu Hu as well. His entire fortune had amounted to no more than ten taels of silver.
But Fang Xing didn't believe that the residence of a gang leader would hold no hidden wealth.
He carefully scanned the room again. Soon, he spotted a concealed compartment behind a cabinet that stood as tall as a man.
He opened it. Inside was a bundle.
The bundle held one silver ingot after another, each made of pure silver.
A total of one hundred taels!
There were also several gold leaves.
About five taels' worth.
At Great Jing's exchange rate, one tael of gold was worth ten taels of silver.
It was hard currency, through and through!
Five taels of gold were worth fifty taels of silver.
Together with the hundred taels in silver ingots, that made a full hundred and fifty taels.
He couldn't keep it all for himself, but he took the lion's share.
He tucked all the gold leaves into his inner pocket and took thirty percent of the silver.
The rest had to be "turned over to the authorities"!
Some of it went to the constables below, but more went to their superiors.
That was how things were done.
He could keep part of it, but what had to be handed over had to be handed over.
After pocketing the silver and gold leaves, Fang Xing looked at the last book.
Three large characters on its cover caught his eye.
Gale Step!
Before you continue