Negotiation

"Two hundred thousand, Boss Ding. Do me a favor?" Mr. Li watched Old Ding calmly.

Old Ding stared coldly at the check. After a long silence, he suddenly smiled. "You're too kind, Mr. Li. Your goodwill is worth far more than a check. I like making friends, so let's consider this settled."

Old Ding's words sounded gracious, but he quietly pocketed the check.

Ultimately, Old Ding was unwilling to fall out with Mr. Li over Old Xie.

That was the power of strength.

"One more thing."

Mr. Li had known all along that Old Ding would agree. He calmly lit a cigarette. "Our company handles a lot of freight, so I'd still like him to take over the logistics market on Red Three Street."

Little White Tiger had killed Old Xie, and he was from Red Three Street himself. By the rules, he was entitled to take over the street.

Old Ding's hands stopped moving, and the friendliness vanished from his face.

Letting Little White Tiger off would cost him some pride at most.

Giving up Red Three Street, however, meant letting Mr. Li openly steal his interests. That was a much bigger matter.

"If I remember correctly, you're in the grain business, Mr. Li. Your goods can still go through the Red Three Street logistics market. I can even waive your fees. But Red Three Street is full of all sorts of characters. A businessman like you would be better off staying out of the dirty business on the streets."

Old Ding's words were laced with threats. As far as he was concerned, Mr. Li was the head of a branch office, and men like him couldn't handle street business.

Both sides were determined to secure Red Three Street.

Little White Tiger looked at Mr. Li in bewilderment, curious about why he was interested in Red Three Street.

The atmosphere instantly grew tense.

Mr. Li silently finished his cigarette. "I need that street. Name your price."

Old Ding shook his head, his face cold.

"Mr. Li, we both know what's going on, so let's not play dumb. The old district is being redeveloped, and Red Three Street will be right at its center. That street will be a gold mine. You want a slice too?"

"Can we negotiate?" Mr. Li asked in a low voice.

Old Ding rubbed his face, looking troubled. "The people above me are determined to secure this project. You're a powerful outsider, but isn't it a little inappropriate to demand a slice of the pie as soon as you arrive in Ice Prefecture?"

"So there's no room to negotiate?" Mr. Li had lost patience with the evasions and asked directly.

"None."

Old Ding refused firmly. "Mr. Li, I know you have powerful backing, but even a mighty outsider can't push around the local boss. Ice Prefecture runs deep. Plenty of major corporations have come to grief here."

"Thanks for the warning. Then let's each do what we can." Mr. Li smiled faintly and rose to leave. "I won't take up any more of your time, Boss Ding."

Old Ding shook Mr. Li's hand with a show of friendliness, but refused to let go.

Mr. Li's expression didn't change. "What's this? Trying to keep me here?" he asked mockingly.

"You have money and influence, Mr. Li. We welcome you to do business in Ice Prefecture with open arms. But if you smash my livelihood the moment you arrive, the people above me will think I'm incompetent."

Old Ding held on to Mr. Li with a smile that never reached his eyes.

It sounded like a threat, but Old Ding was also revealing where he stood. He had people backing him too, and Mr. Li's connections might not be enough to overpower him in Ice Prefecture.

He was also telling Mr. Li that he was merely carrying out orders.

Shuffle, shuffle, shuffle.

Heads crowded together outside the door.

Old Ding's men silently gathered around the doorway.

Little White Tiger glanced at Old Ding, grabbed the ashtray from the table, and walked to the door.

A man with dyed red hair was about to charge inside with a group of thugs. Little White Tiger didn't give him an inch, smashing the ashtray straight into his head.

"CNM!"

The men outside erupted. A dozen clubs came crashing down on Little White Tiger's head.

"Stop!"

Old Ding shouted his men down, then offered a hypocritical, apologetic smile. "You're from a big city, Mr. Li. Here in the backwater of Ice Prefecture, we're used to being rough. Didn't frighten you, did we?"

Mr. Li smiled back, then looked at Little White Tiger. "Scared, kid?"

"CNM, I've never backed down from a fight. Take your time talking. As long as I'm here today, nobody's getting in."

Little White Tiger drew the dagger at his waist, baring his vicious streak.

Red Hair clutched his split scalp, still unwilling to back down and ready to attack again.

Old Ding roared, "Didn't you fucking hear me?"

Little White Tiger sneered and tossed away the half-shattered ashtray. He took a deep drag on his cigarette, then blew a thick cloud of smoke into Red Hair's face.

Old Ding took in Little White Tiger's ferocity. Anyone else surrounded by dozens of men in their own stronghold would have been trembling at the knees.

Yet Little White Tiger remained perfectly composed. It wasn't an act; he genuinely didn't take them seriously.

"You have a good eye, Mr. Li."

"You flatter me."

A red glow flared on Mr. Li's hand, and Old Ding abruptly released his grip.

Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle.

Old Ding's palm sizzled like meat on a grill. The burn was clearly severe.

But Old Ding was tough too, and forced himself not to make a sound.

"You're the first person who's dared to use force in this building, Mr. Li." Old Ding sneered and put his hand behind his back. "This isn't one of your big cities. You'd better watch yourself when you go out at night."

"I've traveled thousands of miles for my company, and I've never found a place I couldn't walk out of. Even the people behind you wouldn't dare force me to stay. If I can't leave today, there won't be a single person left alive in this building tomorrow."

Mr. Li picked up his gloves from the table, put them back on, and strolled toward the door.

Dozens of men packed the doorway. Mr. Li approached without any change in expression and brushed the wood splinters from Little White Tiger's hair.

"You all right?"

"Ask him." Little White Tiger grinned and pointed his chin at Red Hair.

Mr. Li turned to Old Ding with a polite smile. "Sorry, Boss Ding. My subordinate doesn't know the rules."

Then he pulled a stack of banknotes from his pocket and flung it straight into Red Hair's face.

The golden banknotes scattered across the floor. It was an all-out insult delivered right to his face.

Red Hair raised his fist to swing, but Little White Tiger moved first, pressing his dagger against the man's throat.

"Let them go."

Old Ding shouted impatiently.

By now, it was perfectly clear who held the upper hand. Mr. Li dared to use force, while Old Ding didn't dare detain him.

Mr. Li patted Little White Tiger's shoulder. Taking the cue, Little White Tiger shoved Red Hair aside.

"CNM, what the fuck are you staring at? If you've got a problem, fucking try to stop us." Little White Tiger spat a thick wad of phlegm and used the formidable strength of an Awakened to force a path through the crowd.

As they brushed past Old Ding's men, everyone glared at the pair.

One order from Old Ding, and they would swarm them.

Yet Little White Tiger remained outrageously brazen, shoving people aside and taunting them as he went.

After escorting Mr. Li to the elevator, Little White Tiger turned around and headed back toward Old Ding's office.

"Where are you going?"

Seeing Little White Tiger walk back into the crowd, Mr. Li asked curiously.

"Got something to do."

Little White Tiger lit a cigarette and pushed his way back into Old Ding's office.

Watching Little White Tiger's retreating back, Mr. Li suddenly gave a meaningful smile.

"I'll wait for you."

Mr. Li called out from behind Little White Tiger.

Old Ding sat on the sofa with his phone in hand, hesitating over how to report what had happened.

The office door was pushed open.

Old Ding turned in confusion. With a cigarette between his teeth and both hands in his pockets, Little White Tiger swaggered over to face him.

Thump.

Little White Tiger sat down again and crossed his legs.

"Don't want to leave anymore?"

Old Ding's face turned cold.

A newborn calf might have no fear of a tiger, but Little White Tiger was taking his arrogance too far.

Ptoo.

Little White Tiger spat the cigarette butt from his mouth straight into Old Ding's teacup.

"If I hadn't been brought into the fold, I'd have leveled this whole fucking building today."

"What the fuck did you say?" Red Hair charged into the office with his men and shouted furiously at Old Ding, "Boss, let's fucking kill them!"

Old Ding raised a hand to stop Red Hair and watched Little White Tiger with a sneer.

He didn't believe Little White Tiger would dare attack here. After all, Mr. Li was still outside, and a businessman like him wouldn't put himself in danger.

Little White Tiger slowly stood and reached toward Old Ding.

Old Ding froze for a moment. Black fur and sharp claws sprouted from his right arm.

At the slightest suspicious move from Little White Tiger, Old Ding could smash his head with a single blow.

Little White Tiger smiled contemptuously. Without stopping, he reached inside Old Ding's jacket and took out the check.

Snap.

Little White Tiger flicked the check with a finger. "I don't need to buy my safety."

"Mr. Li isn't a street guy. I'll play with you on his behalf. Boss Ding, don't disappoint me. Throw whatever you've got at me."

With that, Little White Tiger swaggered out of the office. "Old Ding, I'll be waiting for you on Red Three Street."