Four-Family Talks

It was past midnight when Su Tiannan finished talking with the workers and finally drove home with Su Tianyu.

"The company management won't stay fired up for long. If you really think they'll help us demand justice from Changqing Company, you're wrong." Su Tiannan was steady by nature and thought things through carefully. "What brings the shareholders together is profit, and that always comes with risks."

Su Tianyu nodded slowly. "That makes sense."

"Come with me tomorrow. We'll arrange a meeting with the other three families." By now, Su Tiannan saw his younger cousin as someone capable of helping him discuss family affairs.

"Tiannan, I've only just arrived in Dragon City. I don't really know the situation here, and a lot of what I've said is just guesswork. You'll still have to decide what we actually do." Su Tianyu disliked making absolute statements, so he offered his older cousin a reminder.

Su Tiannan drove in silence for a while, then suddenly changed the subject. "Six, what are your plans for the future here in Dragon City?"

"I want to take the civil service exam," Su Tianyu answered frankly.

"What I mean is, if our family gets through this crisis, why not stay and work with us?" Su Tiannan said softly. "Sanitation might not be a prestigious business, but there's a real future in it if we expand. The cousins of our generation should stick together and build something here in Dragon City."

Su Tianyu paused before answering. "Tiannan, I still want a government job. That way, I can help the family too."

Su Tiannan considered it briefly. "That works too. Having someone in government will make things easier for the family down the road. If we get through this, we'll give you our full support in getting into the system."

"Heh." Su Tianyu flashed a grin.

Both cousins knew exactly where they stood. They could settle things in a few words, and neither liked putting his feelings on display. Much of their affection for each other lay in the quiet details of their time together.

Su Tiannan glanced at his younger cousin out of the corner of his eye. Suddenly, he felt that the boy had changed since leaving for school, though he couldn't put his finger on exactly how.

After the cousins returned home in the early hours, they each went to their rooms.

Su Tianyu entered his room and found that his second cousin still hadn't returned. Everything was just as he had left it. After a quick wash, he called Tianbei. "Tianbei, you're not home yet?"

"...I'm out whoring. Busy. Not coming home tonight," Su Tianbei said bluntly.

"?" Su Tianyu was utterly baffled. "Fuck, with everything going on, you're still in the mood for that?"

"I got some friends in the city to look after your second uncle inside. Had no choice but to treat them." Su Tianbei let out a drunken belch. "We'll talk when I get back."

"All right. Get some rest soon."

"Yeah. Go to sleep."

They ended the call. Su Tianyu yawned, lay down on the bed, and fell sound asleep.

Early the next morning, the sun rose in a bright, clear sky.

As was his habit, Su Tianyu got up early and ran four laps along the road outside the courtyard.

"Oh, Six, you work out in the morning too?" His older cousin Su Miaomiao stood outside her door in pajamas, wiping her cheeks with a towel.

"I got used to it at school." Su Tianyu's white T-shirt was soaked with sweat, and his short hair was damp too. He looked bright and energetic.

Su Miaomiao looked her younger cousin over and teased him with a hint of surprise. "Wow, you're in pretty good shape! I couldn't tell with your clothes on. You've even got some muscle!"

"I have low body fat. I don't look that big." Su Tianyu had the kind of build that looked lean in clothes but solid without them.

Su Miaomiao tied up her hair, walked over, and casually patted Su Tianyu's lower abdomen. "Oh, pretty firm too."

Su Tianyu immediately tightened his stomach. "Can you behave yourself?"

His Third Sister, Su Miaomiao, was two years older than Tianyu. She was beautiful, but her temperament was anything but demure. When the children in the family fought as kids, she could hold her own against Su Tianbei, which showed just how fierce she was. Su Tianyu had been wary of her since childhood, and she was also the one who had dubbed him the Su Family's biggest coward.

"Oh, getting shy now? Forgot the time I caught you watching porn with Tianbei when you were little?"

"You're nuts!" Mortified, Su Tianyu turned and fled.

"Go to the front hall. Breakfast is almost ready," Su Miaomiao called with a laugh.

"Got it."

There were so many people in the Su Family that mealtimes required five or six tables inside and outside the front hall. Rice porridge, steamed buns, fried dough sticks, and other food were carried to the tables by the basinful, making for a lively, warm scene.

After a quick breakfast, Su Tiannan said quietly to Su Miaomiao, "You and Tianbei keep an eye on the yard later. Make sure nothing happens. Tianyu and I are going out."

"Okay." Su Miaomiao nodded.

After settling the arrangements at home, Su Tiannan drove off with Su Tianyu again. Su Tianbei still hadn't returned.

On the road.

Su Tiannan explained quietly, "I've invited people from the Bai Family, Liu Family, and Kong Family to tea at Fuhai House in Zhannan. Those three families are about our size, and their companies are on roughly the same scale."

Su Tianyu nodded slowly. "Are they close to us?"

"Not really. Changqing Company has been gaining more and more influence in Zhannan District these past few years. We've been keeping in close contact mainly to stick together for protection. In fact, a few years back, we had a pretty nasty dispute with the Bai Family over contracts for downstream waste processing," Su Tiannan replied.

"I see." Su Tianyu nodded.

"The Bai Family is also reaching out to people at the Police Bureau. They've already accepted defeat and privately put together a lot of money. They want the old man of the Bai Family classified as an accessory so he might get a lighter sentence. But if Old Bai is an accessory, your second uncle could very well be pushed into the role of principal offender." Su Tiannan continued, "The Liu Family has always been timid. They're scared now and planning to cave to Changqing, handing over their work zones to settle things. The Kong Family's situation is about the same as ours. They don't want to give up their operation, but their connections aren't strong enough. They're also looking everywhere for someone who can help."

Su Tianyu frowned. "So all four families caught up in this have their own agendas?"

"Right." Su Tiannan nodded. "Any thoughts?"

"We need to stick together," Su Tianyu replied decisively. "I think you can use what happened last night when you talk to them."

Su Tiannan thought for a long while. "They'll kill us even after we surrender. Is that what you mean?"

"Exactly."

"All right. I understand." Su Tiannan nodded slowly.

At ten that morning, in a private room at Fuhai Teahouse on Time Avenue in Zhannan District.

Bai Hongbo, the eldest son of Zhannan District's Bai Family, Liu the Second from the Liu Family's company, and Kong Zhenghui, the Kong Family's eldest son, were already seated in the room.

At the end of the table, Su Tiannan took the initiative to pour tea for the three men. "I asked everyone here today so we could discuss how to clear the names of our four families' elders."

On the sofa, Su Tianyu silently studied the three family representatives at the table. Having only just arrived in Dragon City, he still didn't understand much of the deeper situation, so he only planned to listen and watch how his older cousin handled things.

"Clear their names, my ass!" Bai Hongbo, who was thirty-one or thirty-two, spoke in a loud voice. "Changqing Company has already got the Management Council and the Police Bureau all lined up. We've got nobody in the justice system, and the higher-ups won't speak for us. You tell me how we get out of this!"

Second Liu wasn't of the same generation as Su Tiannan and the others. He was the younger brother of the old man who headed the Liu Family, so his words carried more weight. "Tian Nan, with things as they are, we need to be even more careful. The heads of all four families are locked up. They've got us by the throat. One careless move could lead to a disaster."

The Kong Family's eldest son, Kong Zhenghui, listened to everyone without saying a word.

Su Tiannan filled the teacups and pushed them toward the others before saying quietly, "Let's put aside how to break this deadlock for now. Suppose we all accept defeat, surrender, and obediently hand over our operations. Will Changqing Company let us off?"

Everyone fell silent.

"Personally, I think Changqing Company won't let us off even if we hand over everything we own." Su Tiannan had an innate steadiness about him. Though he was the youngest at the table, he spoke clearly and logically. "The heads of our four families have been detained for several days, but the Police Bureau still hasn't formally classified the case. Publicly, they keep saying it's under investigation. If Changqing Company wants our operations right away, why not classify the case immediately and put direct pressure on us?"

"Isn't it obvious? They're keeping you hanging so you'll panic," Bai Hongbo said bluntly.

"That's part of it, but not the whole story." Su Tiannan waved a hand. "I think Changqing Company is waiting for us to surrender before finishing us off."

"What do you mean by that?" Second Liu asked with a frown.

"It's simple. They don't just want our work zones. They also want us to cough up all the profits we've made over the years. Why are those corrupt bastards at the Police Bureau helping Changqing Company? For money, obviously! If we don't pay, Changqing Company has to. That's why they're waiting for us to surrender." Following Tianyu's line of reasoning, Su Tiannan spoke coldly. "With our elders locked up, we're bound to panic. We'll use our connections and hand over money, but if the Police Bureau still refuses to release them and insists on sentencing all four old men, what can we do? We'll still have to hand over our territory then, won't we?"

Everyone's expression darkened at those words.

"We're already openly at odds. If I were Changqing Company, I'd put all four families down in one go and leave no chance for a counterattack," Su Tiannan continued. "To be honest, I've been working my connections these past few days and contacting people at the Police Bureau. I can tell you plainly: trying to solve this alone through money and connections is impossible. Several Bureau leaders are very close to Changqing's people on the Management Council. The people below them might want to take our money and help, but they don't dare openly get involved."

"Tian Nan isn't lying. I've been trying my connections these past few days too. That's exactly how things are," the previously silent Kong Zhenghui interjected.

"Fuck. Handing over our work zones isn't enough. They want us to surrender before killing us." Bai Hongbo clenched his jaw. "They've gone too far!"

"I think we need to stick together and make some noise." Su Tiannan caught Tianyu's look and continued in tacit understanding, "We're doomed even if we don't resist, so we might as well take them on. The elders of our four families are all decent men. They've never done anything shameful in their lives. Having a charge of smuggling military industrial supplies suddenly pinned on them is outrageous."

"What if they crush us?" Second Liu demanded anxiously. "Your father is still in their hands!"

"Uncle Liu, if we can reach an agreement, I, Su Tiannan, am willing to stick my neck out and take the lead. If anything goes wrong, I'll take the blame, but everyone has to contribute." Su Tiannan made his promise to the three men without hesitation.

After a moment's consideration, Kong Zhenghui immediately said, "I'm out of options. I'm in."

Bai Hongbo took a sip of tea. "If you lead, I'll back you up."

"We still need to be careful." The timid Second Liu hesitated.

"Uncle Liu!" Kong Zhenghui said succinctly. "If you don't fight back today, Changqing Company will finish off your older brother tomorrow and come for you the day after."

Second Liu considered it for a long while. "All right. If Tiannan takes the lead, let's give it a try!"

An hour and a half later.

After leaving the teahouse, Su Tianyu said to his older cousin, "If we're going to act, we need to move fast. These people aren't sure of themselves. They could easily go back on their word."

"Right. Let's go see our contact at the Police Bureau immediately and start talking..."

As the cousins were discussing their next move, Su Tiannan's phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Something happened to Tianbei. He got beaten up."

"What?!" Su Tiannan's eyebrows shot up as he demanded, "Where is he?"

"He just got home."