Taking the fall

"Wei Tong, have you found out why Xin Ya put Wang Yang and the other man in isolation for questioning?"

"That little bitch isn't stupid. She wouldn't fight us to the bitter end just for Lu Zhan."

Chen Wansen, the deputy gang leader presiding over the meeting, spoke with an extremely dark expression.

By daring to reject the Wutu Gang's goodwill, Xin Ya had slapped him squarely in the face.

If that little bitch hadn't been hiding behind the Inspection Office's authority, Chen Wansen would have shown her what it meant to have her tendons torn out and her bones stripped bare.

"Deputy leader, that's exactly the problem."

"That bitch Xin Ya keeps claiming she's enforcing the law impartially. She says she discovered illegal activities by Wang Yang and the other man while working with them."

"As an Inspection Office commissioner, she refuses to let personal ties interfere."

Wei Tong gave a very detailed account of Xin Ya's "shameless" behavior.

An ordinary person might actually have been taken in by Xin Ya's "incorruptible impartiality."

But they were the Wutu Gang. They had been dealing with the Inspection Office since the day their gang was founded.

At the height of their power, they had even had members inside the Inspection Office.

Wei Tong and the others knew exactly what the Inspection Office was really like.

"Something's wrong. Something's very wrong!"

"It makes no sense for Xin Ya's team to keep hounding our Wutu Gang."

"According to what I've heard, they haven't even found that mutant beast yet. How could they have the time to meddle in our affairs?"

"Unless...?"

An old hall master who had weathered many storms sensed trouble brewing.

Though they considered the Inspection Office rotten to the core, those jackals never lifted a finger without something to gain. They wouldn't do anything pointless.

Thinking of the "massacre" Xin Ya was investigating, a "vicious" suspicion rose in his mind.

"F***! Those bastards at the Inspection Office aren't planning to make us take the fall because they can't solve the case, are they?"

"Outrageous! They've gone too far!"

"Those five wet-behind-the-ears brats dare make our Wutu Gang their scapegoat?"

"Deputy leader, we absolutely cannot take the fall for this!"

"Exactly. The massacre has caused too much of a stir. Taking the blame for it could cost us the entire Wutu Gang."

His words jolted everyone awake, sending waves crashing through the room.

The old hall master's suspicion threw the entire meeting hall into an uproar, everyone seething with indignation.

That fit. It fit perfectly!

Finding someone to take the fall-that was the Inspection Office they knew.

In their past dealings with the Inspection Office, the Wutu Gang had often "helped" those jackals.

Chen Wansen and the others hadn't thought of "taking the fall" earlier simply because they didn't believe Xin Ya had either the ability or the nerve to pin the "massacre" on them.

Compared with the Wutu Gang, Xin Ya was simply too weak.

And the blame for the "massacre" was too heavy a burden, even for the Wutu Gang.

"That damned little bitch actually dares look down on our Wutu Gang like this!"

"It seems we've kept too low a profile lately. Now outsiders underestimate us and think we're easy prey."

"We have to put a stop to this!"

Unlike the outraged hall masters, Deputy Gang Leader Chen Wansen remained calm in the face of this tremendous humiliation.

Compared with the hall masters who still basked in the Wutu Gang's past glory, Chen Wansen, who managed its day-to-day affairs, understood its current situation far better.

The Wutu Gang had indeed fallen on hard times. In fact, it had never been weaker.

If the blame being forced on them hadn't been for the "massacre," Chen Wansen might have compromised, even if the bullies were only Xin Ya and those few brats.

But as the other hall masters had said, the burden of the "massacre" was too great. The Wutu Gang could neither accept it nor bear it.

"On what grounds?"

"The massacre has absolutely nothing to do with our Wutu Gang."

"Are Xin Ya and those treacherous bastards trying to frame us?"

"Even if they are, do they really have what it takes?"

Of everyone present, Ma Yancheng was undoubtedly the most aggrieved.

If he had known things would turn out this way, he would never have bothered with Lu Zhan.

Granted, if Xin Ya and her team wanted to make the Wutu Gang take the fall, Lu Zhan's involvement made no difference.

But at least Ma Yancheng wouldn't have been put in such an awkward position within the gang.

Although Ma Yancheng was venting his frustration, his words weren't without reason.

What made Xin Ya and her team think they could make the Wutu Gang take the fall?

Their Wutu Gang wasn't actually easy prey.

"Ultimately, the idea that they want us to take the fall is only our own speculation."

"As I see it, this is probably just a fallback plan Xin Ya's Special Task Force has prepared."

"They'll only use it if they really can't catch the mutant beast and close the case."

"That's why Wang Yang has been isolated for questioning, while they haven't approached our Wutu Gang at all."

Wei Tong sighed. Their Wutu Gang had truly declined.

In the past, why would all their senior leaders have needed to agonize over and repeatedly second-guess the intentions of a mere Inspection Office commissioner?

At worst, they would have confronted her head-on. Even if they suffered some losses, the Inspection Office would ultimately have been the one to back down.

But now, despite everyone's tough talk, they had lost their nerve.

"So that's it. You've really thought this through, Wei."

"That's true. The massacre has had such a terrible impact that the Inspection Office wouldn't dare casually sweep it under the rug."

"If they found a scapegoat, only for the mutant beast to show up right afterward..."

"Xin Ya and her team would still be in trouble."

"In that case, there's still room to smooth things over. We've been worrying a little too much."

Wei Tong had clearly been analyzing the current situation, but what the other hall masters heard was that they "didn't need to worry about it."

Their instinctive reaction exposed their cowardice. They didn't want to clash with the Inspection Office.

If they could put this matter to rest completely, they wouldn't mind abandoning Wang Yang as a pawn.

Or rather, they didn't want to get into a conflict with the Inspection Office just for Wang Yang.

"All right, let's leave this matter here for now."

"Our Wutu Gang has survived for twenty years. We're not going to fall apart at the slightest sign of trouble."

"The Inspection Office..."

"If they really make a move, the gang leader and I will handle it."

"Just take care of your own responsibilities. Keeping the Wutu Gang strong takes effort from all of us."

Seeing that everyone's mood had "returned to optimism," Chen Wansen quit while he was ahead and dismissed the meeting.

But after everyone left, he met with Wei Tong again.

"Wei, could there be trouble on Wang Yang's end?"

"Whether or not Xin Ya intends to make our Wutu Gang take the fall, Wang Yang has become our weak point."

"If our Wutu Gang's deepest secret is exposed, there may no longer be any place for us in Yero City."

At that moment, Chen Wansen no longer showed his earlier composure. His eyes were filled with worry.

If the secret their Wutu Gang concealed was discovered, there would be no need to worry about taking the fall. Yero City would wipe them out outright.

But he didn't dare show that concern in front of the others.