159: Chapter 159 Chen Lin's father is dead! Insubordination!

Moo Moo Martial Arts Hall!

As the establishment with the largest investment and the most resources in Wu City, even though it had only recently opened, it had already ascended to become the number one martial arts hall in the area!

The martial arts hall focused on extreme polarization.

There was the extremely expensive rich area, and the token-fee commoner area.

Zhou Tieshan carried the Guojiao liquor and headed straight to the rich area on the second floor.

Because he knew that his old friend was right there...

Wang Ranran was sitting at the front desk of the rich area. She was a staff member of the rich area and sneered as she looked at the elderly Zhou Tieshan.

"What is it, old man? At your age, you are still thinking about practicing martial arts?"

"No, I am just here to find your boss. His name is Boss Ma."

Looking for Boss Ma?

Wang Ranran looked Zhou Tieshan up and down.

Seeing that he was dressed plainly, her eyes were filled with undisguised disdain.

"You can't see him. Our Boss Ma is not here."

"If just anyone could see Boss Ma, wouldn't our Boss Ma be worked to death?"

"Hurry, hurry, hurry, get out of here quickly."

Wang Ranran impatiently shooed Zhou Tieshan away, then picked up her phone to complain to her best friend.

"I'm really fed up. Every day people come to look for Boss Ma. Our Boss Ma is usually so busy with a thousand tasks a day, busy just like an emperor; how would he have time to entertain these commoners?"

"To put it plainly, isn't it just because they heard Boss Ma is a local? They want to come over and try to claim some relation, to scheme for an official position in the martial arts hall for themselves."

"They don't even look at what kind of character they have, whether they are worthy! It would be a miracle for this big martial arts hall to even let him in, and he still wants to see Boss Ma? It's truly speechless!"

After speaking, Wang Ranran put down her phone, deliberately picked up her cup to take a sip of water, and during this time, she glanced at Zhou Tieshan with disdain.

Although Wang Ranran also came from a surrounding village, hadn't attended much school, dropped out to work at a young age, and was only at the Ninghe Realm even now.

But what kind of people did she entertain in the rich area?

They were all business tycoons and famous elites of Wu City!

Any one chosen at random was a local powerhouse with wealth and influence.

Even people of this level spoke to her politely.

Now an old geezer comes up and wants to see Boss Ma.

Who do you think you are?

You can't see him!

As long as I, Wang Ranran, am here today, you won't see him!

Zhou Tieshan frowned. Just as he was about to say something, suddenly, the door to an office inside opened.

Then, the boss of Moo Moo Martial Arts Hall, Boss Ma, with his greasy hair, came out leaning on a cane.

"Oh my, Brother Zhou, it's you! Quick, quick, come in!"

Boss Ma had actually seen Zhou Tieshan on the surveillance monitor long ago.

Wasn't this his good older brother from his youth?

But he deliberately waited for his subordinate to give the other party a hard time, just to give Zhou Tieshan a show of power, to let him know that he, Boss Ma, was no longer the same as he was in the past.

He was no longer Zhou Tieshan's underling.

Now he was the big brother.

Boss Ma enthusiastically brought Zhou Tieshan inside.

Zhou Tieshan carried the Guojiao, feeling bitter inside.

That "Brother Zhou" from just a moment ago had echoed throughout the hallway; indeed, things had changed.

Forget it.

He followed him into the office.

Boss Ma's office was decorated luxuriously, with a painting of a tiger descending the mountain hanging on the wall.

Boss Ma plopped into his boss chair, crossed his legs, fished a large cigar out of the drawer, and lit it slowly.

"Sit."

Zhou Tieshan sat on the sofa and placed the Guojiao on the coffee table.

"Old Ma, it must have been over ten years since we last met, right? Your leg..."

"It's been lame since before, let's not talk about this." Boss Ma waved his hand, clearly not wanting to bring up his leg.

Zhou Tieshan knew how to read the situation, so he changed the subject, took out his phone, and flipped to a yellowed old photo.

"Look, this was taken after we hunted that Tier 3 exotic beast back then. We were so young."

"Now..."

Boss Ma glanced at the phone screen, sneered, and exhaled a puff of smoke: "Alright, alright, that was ages ago, why talk about that?"

"Fine, I won't beat around the bush anymore."

"Actually, Old Ma, I came today..."

"I know why you came."

Boss Ma interrupted him, tapping the table with the hand holding the cigar: "Tieshan, take some advice from your brother. You should just close that martial arts hall of yours."

Zhou Tieshan's expression stiffened.

"Look at you, how old are you now?"

Boss Ma leaned back, his tone sounding like concern, but his eyes had no warmth: "If you're old, stop causing trouble for yourself. I'm about to open three more branches here."

"In the future, I will manage all the martial arts halls in all of Wu City and the surrounding areas by myself."

Zhou Tieshan clenched his fists, then relaxed them: "Old Ma, I've run this martial arts hall for over twenty years; it is my home."

"Can you give me a way to survive? At my age, I'm just relying on it to support my family."

"Besides, those employees of mine have been with me for at least eight or ten years. If they leave me, where will they find work?"

Boss Ma held his cigar and laughed.

"You can't say that to me, Tieshan."

"I have people above me too, and their meaning is very clear."

"There can only be one martial arts hall left in Wu City, and that is my, Boss Ma's."

"I'm just following orders. You should just retire and don't make things difficult for me."

Zhou Tieshan's heart sank.

The last bit of hope was flicked away like cigarette ash.

He took a deep breath, his voice lowering a few notches: "Old Ma, our bond from back in the day..."

"Chen Niu, Chen Lin's father, you remember him, right?"

"Back then, when that exotic beast lunged at you, it was Chen Niu who pushed you out of the way. Have you forgotten the scar on his shoulder?"

Boss Ma's expression didn't change; he even seemed a bit impatient: "How many years has Chen Niu been dead? What's the meaning of bringing him up to me?"

"It's nothing."

"Just wanted to say that Chen Niu has a son named Chen Lin."

"This child has now been admitted to Lixian Academy. I heard he's doing quite well, and he's always had a good relationship with me."

Once these words were spoken, Boss Ma's eyes finally changed.

But it wasn't fear; it was a sneer.

"Oh? Trying to scare me with a student?"

Boss Ma pressed the cigar into the ashtray: "What can a Lixian Academy student do? If you really want to talk about it, I'm his uncle!"

"Stop talking about those meaningless things and move out as soon as possible."

"I don't want us old brothers to end up on bad terms."

Speaking of this, he glanced at the Guojiao on the coffee table, curled his lip, and simply couldn't be bothered to pretend anymore: "Take this wine back with you too."

"I stopped drinking this trash long ago. People drink foreign liquor now."

!!!

Zhou Tieshan's face darkened, and he stood up: "Old Ma, don't be like this."

"If my martial arts hall closes, and Chen Lin comes back and sees that his Uncle Zhou's martial arts hall is gone, how do you think he will feel?"

Boss Ma sneered.

"He can think whatever he wants."

"What does that have to do with me? Let alone a junior like Chen Lin, even if his father Chen Niu came, if I didn't like the look of him, I wouldn't give him face either!"

"Threatening me?"

Boss Ma tapped the table with his finger: "Do you think this is Wu Song and Ximen Qing?"

"What can he do if he comes back?"

"If he comes back, you just tell him—your Uncle Ma didn't let you do it!"

"If he has the ability, let him come over and kill me!"

Zhou Tieshan looked at the face in front of him.

The Boss Ma of back then was not like this.

Back then in the wilderness, when the three of them split a piece of dry ration, Boss Ma always got the smallest piece.

And now?

Although he had a limp, he smoked cigars, drank foreign liquor, wore custom suits, and even his eyes were different from before.

"Seeing you now, dressed so flashily, even this cane is overbearingly rich."

"I think you have already forgotten the bond between us old brothers."

"Very well, I will prepare and go back to close up shop." Zhou Tieshan laughed at himself.

The conversation in the office was heard clearly by Wang Ranran, who was eavesdropping outside.

When she saw Boss Ma personally receiving Zhou Tieshan earlier, Wang Ranran had been scared out of her wits.

She thought she had encountered the plot from a novel where someone has eyes but fails to recognize Mount Tai.

Unexpectedly, what Mount Tai? Boss Ma didn't put Zhou Tieshan in his eyes at all.

"Made me worry for nothing."

Wang Ranran curled her lip, her eyes filled with disdain.

Back at her workstation, another group of people immediately came up.

Especially a Little Booger who jumped directly onto the front desk.

???

You're short, but you can't just jump on the desk, right?

Wang Ranran frowned, just about to speak.

The leading man said coldly: "Is your Boss Ma here?"

Looking for Boss Ma again?

Come on, man, is there no end to this today?

One went in first, and now six more came?!

Are you here to hold a meeting with Boss Ma?

Wang Ranran snorted coldly, raised her slender neck, as proud as a white swan, and said: "He is."

"But you can't go in..."

Before she could finish her sentence, Chen Lin grabbed Wang Ranran by the neck.

Like to crane your neck, huh?

Violently dragged her out from the front desk, and directly performed a Hulk smash.

"Who the hell are you acting for?"

"In a High Martial Arts world, a Ninghe Realm receptionist, who gave you the damn guts to speak to me, a Real Realm master, like that?!"

"Answer me!!!"