96: The gift-giver has arrived.

While the three of them were chatting,

AZu walked in with a round-faced, portly man.

The man was in his early thirties,

his fair, clean-shaven face wreathed in smiles.

But his eyes darted about shrewdly, making him look like a living Maitreya Buddha.

"Brother Zhan..."

AZu placed several exquisite gift boxes on the tea table,

"These are congratulatory gifts from Brother Qiang of Tiger Gate."

He then turned slightly to introduce,

"This is Fatty Ming, sent by Boss Chen of the Chaoshan Gang.

He was the one who helped pass the message to Boss Chen last time."

Fatty Ming was also holding a gift box.

He first glanced at the gifts from Tiger Gate on the tea table,

then carefully set down the box he had brought.

"Brother Zhan,

Master Chen has specially prepared a humble gift to congratulate you on unifying the underground forces of Changan."

He rubbed his hands together, beaming with a genial smile.

"Master Chen says he hopes our two sides can live in harmony from now on, benefiting each other mutually."

As he spoke,

he took a brocade box from his inner pocket, opening the lid with an especially gentle motion.

Inside the box lay a jade Pi Xiu, warm and smooth as jade, gleaming with a soft luster under the light.

"This is Master Chen's personal favorite,"

Fatty Ming said, holding the jade Pi Xiu out with both hands,

his eyes fixed intently on Li Zhan's reaction.

"He said to give it to Brother Zhan as a treasure to protect your home."

Li Zhan took the Pi Xiu, running his thumb over the jade for a moment.

The Pi Xiu had its mouth wide open, its form fierce and imposing—it was indeed a top-quality piece.

"Please thank Boss Chen for me."

Li Zhan suddenly placed the Pi Xiu back into the brocade box and pushed it away.

"However, I don't like the Pi Xiu's nature of only taking in and never giving out."

He looked up, meeting Fatty Ming's gaze directly.

"In business,

what matters is mutual exchange and harmony bringing prosperity.

Since this is Boss Chen's beloved possession, I, Li, cannot take what another treasures."

A glint flashed in Fatty Ming's eyes, though the smile on his face didn't waver in the slightest.

"Brother Zhan is indeed straightforward!

Then I'll return and report truthfully to Master Chen."

He deftly collected the brocade box,

bowed, and took two steps back.

"Another day, Master Chen will host a banquet and hopes Brother Zhan will honor us with your presence."

Li Zhan gave a slight nod and waved his hand.

After Fatty Ming left the tea room, AZu immediately stepped forward and said in a low voice,

"The Chaoshan Gang is..."

"Testing the waters..."

Li Zhan reached out from the stack of gift boxes on the tea table, sent by Bai Shaqiang of Tiger Gate,

and picked up the flat brocade box on top.

The box was no larger than a palm, yet it felt heavy and substantial in his hand.

With a flick of his thumb, the lid sprang open—

Inside lay a gilded invitation, sealed with wax stamped with a ferocious tiger head emblem.

Li Zhan's fingertips brushed over the edge of the invitation.

The tiger head emblem gleamed a dark red under the light, like dried blood.

With a flick of his wrist,

the invitation snapped open, revealing bold, forceful handwriting that seemed to pierce the paper:

"Sincerely inviting Boss Li of Changan

to attend the annual underground boxing tournament in Dongguan at year's end.

Respectfully invited by Bai Shaqiang"

The signature at the bottom was sharp and angular, the final stroke almost tearing through the paper.

Li Zhan narrowed his eyes.

The ink wasn't dry yet; it was clearly written and sent immediately.

"Heh...

One wants to gauge my appetite, the other my courage."

Outside, a cold wind carrying raindrops rattled the window frames, and the metal sheds at a distant construction site banged in the wind.

Big Ox moved closer to Li Zhan,

craning his neck to glance at the invitation, his eyes instantly lighting up.

"An underground boxing tournament?"

He rubbed his large hands together, excited like a child.

"There must be plenty of tough fighters!

Brother, take me along to see the action!"

Li Zhan closed the invitation and gave him a sidelong glance. "You want to go?"

"Absolutely!"

Big Ox thumped his chest, muscles bulging beneath his shirt.

"I promise I won't embarrass you, brother!"

Li Zhan snorted lightly and turned to Old Zhou.

"Give him some special training during this time.

This kid's style is too orthodox; underground boxing doesn't have many rules."

Hearing this, Old Zhou's lips curled into a sinister smile.

He looked Big Ox up and down as if appraising a piece of meat.

"Fine, I'll have Big Courage and Shui Sheng give him some lessons together."

He rolled his neck, joints cracking.

"Those two are experts at playing dirty."

Big Ox suddenly felt a chill run down his spine and instinctively hunched his shoulders.

"Wait, Brother Zhou,

you're not going to..."

"Don't worry,"

Old Zhou patted his shoulder,

the force so strong it made Big Ox grimace.

"We'll be very measured."

He turned to Li Zhan and said, "But a tournament of this scale usually has a few desperate, ruthless characters."

Li Zhan tossed the invitation back onto the tea table. "It's good for him to see some blood."

His gaze fell meaningfully on Big Ox.

"I can't have the boss personally stepping into every arena."

Big Ox swallowed hard,

suddenly feeling the boxing tournament wasn't so appealing anymore.

He looked down at his sturdy arms,

still bearing bruises from that morning's fight, and began to worry inexplicably about the upcoming training.

In the fish tank,

three Arowana suddenly began chasing each other fiercely,

churning the water into splashes.

Big Ox stared at the ferocious fish,

suddenly feeling his own situation wasn't much different from that of the small fry being fed to them.

—

The office door was knocked gently,

and Uncle Jiang walked in with his son.

He looked around,

his gaze lingering on the newly replaced furniture for a moment before he smiled and said,

"A-Zhan, I didn't expect you to take Changan so quickly.

What Master Bai struggled to achieve for so many years, you accomplished in a few months."

He patted his son's shoulder.

"That's why,

we old-timers should have made way for the young long ago."

Li Zhan stood up to greet them, letting out a hearty laugh.

"Uncle Jiang, you flatter me.

I was just in the right place at the right time, thanks to luck."

He shot a glance at Big Ox,

who immediately understood and got up to stand guard outside the door.

"Uncle Jiang, Brother Jiang, please have a seat."

Li Zhan had always treated capable people with respect, even though his status was now different.

After the Jiang father and son took their seats,

AZu had already efficiently started boiling water.

Old Zhou stood behind Li Zhan like a shadow.

"This visit..."

Just as Li Zhan was about to ask their purpose,

Uncle Jiang had already taken a bank card from his inner pocket,

placing it gently on the tea table.

"This is the dividend from that line over the past two months."

His wrinkled face broke into a smile.

"Now that all of Changan is our territory, business will only grow from here.

I'll talk to the office later and try to secure a larger share."

Li Zhan took the card, twirled it between his fingers,

and casually handed it to AZu, who was pouring tea.

Amid the fragrant steam of the tea,

he spoke slowly, "The Wharf will be our top priority in the future..."

"Exactly..."

Uncle Jiang narrowed his eyes into slits, like a cunning old fox.

"We're not the only ones in this line of business.

Anyone else who wants to make a living at Changan Wharf in the future..."

He took a sip of tea, a glint flashing in his eyes.

"will have to pay us tribute.

Otherwise..."

He set the teacup down heavily on the tea tray, producing a crisp sound.

"Master Bai had the same idea back in the day,"

Uncle Jiang continued, his fingers rubbing the rim of the cup.

"but he lacked the strength and had to turn a blind eye to what others were doing."

He looked directly at Li Zhan. "But now it's different.

With all of Changan in our hands, we can't let them run wild anymore."

Li Zhan pondered for a moment,

smoke curling up from the cigarette between his fingers.

"Uncle Jiang is right."

Li Zhan stubbed out the cigarette, his voice steady. "It's time to strengthen control over the Wharf."

He turned to Old Zhou. "Notify the heads of all the lines; we'll have a meeting next Monday.

We need to establish the rules that should be in place."

Then Uncle Jiang suddenly lowered his voice.

"There have been some unfamiliar faces at the Wharf lately."

He looked directly at Li Zhan. "You know, although Changan Wharf can't compare to Tiger Gate,

its annual throughput is still 26 million tons. We can't monitor every shipment."

Old Zhou leaned forward slightly.

"There's word that..."

Uncle Jiang tapped his knuckles on the tea table.

"someone is moving flour through the Wharf... and the quantity isn't small."

Li Zhan lit another cigarette,

his eyes inscrutable in the smoke.

After taking down Flour Qiang, he had also shut down Master Bai's underground drug-manufacturing factory,

and he explicitly forbade his people from dealing in drugs.

But the market demand remained, so naturally, someone coveted this lucrative trade.

"Uncle Jiang, this information is important."

Li Zhan took a sip of tea and turned to Old Zhou.

"Arrange for Shui Sheng to take some men and assist Uncle Jiang in investigating this thoroughly.

Don't alert them yet; map out the entire operation first."

Old Zhou nodded, noting it down,

a flicker of ruthlessness in his eyes.

As someone who came from the military, he particularly despised drug-related activities.

Outside the window,

the faint sound of a ship's horn from the Wharf could be heard.

The cold December wind carried a fine drizzle, tracing winding trails on the windowpane, while a distant crane swayed in the wind.