Chapter 66 - 66 Stinky Fish and Rotten Shrimp

Chapter 66: Chapter 66 Stinky Fish and Rotten Shrimp

“Brother Zhou, please come in.”

The master of the Tiger Saber Gang, Zhang Mingze, invited a man in his early thirties, wearing a black windbreaker, into a private room.

“Master, you are too kind, please.”

The man entered the private room with Zhang Mingze.

The room had a sofa, a coffee table, and tea sets, and it was decorated with fruits and exquisite desserts.

“Gentlemen, do you require any services?”

A woman dressed in a cheongsam with a graceful figure approached them, bent her knees slightly, and asked in a respectful manner.

“No need, you may leave; do not let anyone come in and disturb us.”

The man in the windbreaker waved his hand.

His name was Zhou Yuan, secretary to Deputy Supervisory Director Wu Yihua at the Inspection Bureau, and also his trusted nephew. He was here tonight representing Wu Yihua.

After the woman left the private room and closed the door, Zhou Yuan got straight to the point:

“Before he left, Huang Weiguang, that old fox, specifically arranged to have Li Lei promoted as the captain of the first large team. Uncle is very dissatisfied with this. You know how important it is to hold the position of captain of the first large team. Is there any way we can change this outcome?”

Zhang Mingze slowly poured tea for both of them and then gestured to Zhou Yuan:

“Brother Zhou, please.”

Zhou Yuan finished his cup of tea in one gulp and stared at Zhang Mingze.

Zhang Mingze shook his head: “After so many years as Inspector General, Huang Weiguang still has some connections. Moreover, his recent troubles were really unforeseen mishaps, making many in the Governance Hall still willing to show him favor before his retirement. Additionally, Li Lei’s son, Li Fei, made significant contributions recently and even met with Chief Gu personally.

When Huang Weiguang nominated Li Lei as the captain of the first large team, many might think this was at Chief Gu’s suggestion, further discouraging opposition. So, it’s already difficult to change this situation.”

Zhou Yuan frowned upon hearing this: “That old fox really knows how to seize every opportunity!”

“Never mind that, once your uncle becomes the Inspector General, there will be plenty of time to slowly figure something out. There will always be opportunities,” Zhang Mingze said with a smile.

“Is that really all we can do?”

Zhou Yuan intently looked at Zhang Mingze.

Zhang Mingze retorted: “We painstakingly managed to bring down both Lu Sheng and Huang Weiguang, aiming for the positions of Inspector General and captain of the first large team. Now we’ve only succeeded halfway. If it were possible, do you think we wouldn’t want to change the result?”

His usual scholarly demeanor showed an extremely fierce look at this moment, which somewhat intimidated Zhou Yuan from keeping eye contact.

“Let’s not talk about these upsetting matters. I heard that you, Brother Zhou, quite enjoy watching boxing matches. So, I specifically invited you here to Qingyuan Fist Village tonight. There’s a Dragon and Tiger Fight happening later. What do you say to placing a bet for some fun?” With a flash of a sinister look in his eyes that disappeared as quickly as it came, Zhang Mingze smiled again and spoke to Zhou Yuan.

“Oh?”

Zhou Yuan, catching the implication, smiled and asked, “How would you like me to bet, Master?”

“Which side do you favor more?”

“Dragon and Tiger Fight is usually a case of Dragon Swallowing Tiger. It rarely happens the other way around. If I were to place a bet, I’d definitely bet on the Dragon Generals winning,” Zhou Yuan said.

“Alright, let’s keep it light and enjoyable then. I’ll place a bet of three thousand on behalf of Brother Zhou on the Dragon Generals to win. If you lose, I’ll cover it; if you win, the winnings are all yours,” Zhang Mingze stated casually.

“Oh?”

Zhou Yuan’s eyes lit up.

He indeed enjoyed watching underground boxing and placing bets; he was quite a seasoned gambler.

“Who are the fighters in tonight’s Dragon and Tiger Fight, and what are the current odds?” Zhou Yuan asked professionally.

Zhang Mingze then called the service staff from outside the Fist Village to come in and elaborately introduce the details to Zhou Yuan.

“So, the Dragon General is Ling Yong, then it’s a sure win!”

Zhou Yuan rubbed his hands excitedly and told the service staff from the Fist Village:

“Three thousand in cash, and also sign a note for seventeen thousand; that makes a total of twenty thousand. Put it all on the Dragon General to win!”

The three thousand in cash was covered by Zhang Mingze, and as for the signed note of seventeen thousand, Zhou Yuan frequently visited Qingyuan Fist Village and had built up enough credit to sign up to twenty thousand.

“Okay.”

The waiter, excited by the large order, scurried out of the private room immediately.

Zhang Mingze looked at Zhou Yuan, “Brother Zhou, are you so confident you’ll win?”

“If it were just hand-to-hand combat, Ling Yong wouldn’t be exceptionally outstanding among the top-class martial artists, but in a weapon fight, the combination of his ‘Tiger Pattern’ and that ninety-seven pound Black Steel Coiling Dragon Stick makes him an absolute peak martial artist in the Body Breaking Stage!”

Zhou Yuan spoke fervently and professionally analyzed,

“His opponent tonight, one Steel Bear, is good at defense, but he certainly can’t withstand several of his heavy strikes. Another person, Black Blade, is slightly threatening, but he’s not a formal martial artist after all, and the difference between him and Ling Yong is still too large. As for the newly emerged Green-faced Ghost, who has just moved up to the ‘Xuan’ rank arena, it’s obvious that the arranged fighter had some issues and the Fist Village couldn’t gather anyone else in time, so they randomly picked some mediocre fighter to fill in.”

“Oh?”

Zhang Mingze listened calmly, without offering any comments.

Zhou Yuan became more excited as he spoke, “So tonight’s fight is basically a welfare spot, Dragon’s side has very low odds, I bet twenty thousand, the odds might even drop further, I won’t make much in the end, just consider it pocket money for myself.”

“Master, why don’t you also place a bet? It’s a sure win tonight!”

Zhou Yuan even began urging Zhang Mingze to bet.

Zhang Mingze smiled and shook his head,

“In my view, there’s only one kind of sure-win bet in this world.”

“What’s that?”

“The one where I’m the bookmaker myself. Besides that, I never join the table.”

“Master, you’re being too uninteresting.”

“Hahaha, as long as you’re happy, Brother Zhou.”

The two chatted casually as they waited for tonight’s Dragon and Tiger Fight to begin.

As Zhou Yuan placed his twenty thousand bet on Dragon, and some others followed suit based on rumors, Tiger’s odds rose a bit again.

“Welcome everyone to Qingyuan Fist Village…”

A presenter stood in front of a microphone and began speaking, giving the audience a detailed introduction to tonight’s match and the upcoming fighters.

This time was also the peak for placing bets.

A minute before the match started, betting closed, and tonight’s final odds for Tiger settled at 7.8.

“It’s starting!”

In the private room, Zhou Yuan walked to the window, excitedly watching below.

First to enter the arena were the three challengers from Tiger:

Holding a square shield, Steel Bear, whom Zhou Yuan had dubbed ‘can’t withstand a few hits.’

Wielding a Big Guan Saber, Black Blade, who Zhou Yuan had deemed ‘somewhat threatening.’

Lastly, wielding a single saber, the Green-faced Ghost, Li Fei, who Zhou Yuan had labeled ‘mediocre.’

After entering, the three quickly positioned themselves in their pre-discussed formation:

Steel Bear with the shield in front, with Li Fei and Black Blade on either side behind him.

This was the tactic they had agreed upon before entering: Steel Bear would hold the front against the initial onslaught, while the other two looked for opportunities to attack from the flanks.

Since Ling Yong was a peak martial artist at the Body Breaking Stage and could unleash multiple bursts of power from his implant, Steel Bear and Black Blade had agreed they couldn’t afford a drawn-out fight and needed to go all in from the start.

Winning would be great; if they couldn’t match up at the start, then they would concede defeat.

After all, this wasn’t a ‘Deathfight’; there was no need to risk their lives.

Li Fei didn’t object to this tactic. His thinking was simple: if the three of them together could defeat the opponent, he would continue to keep a low profile.

If it turned out to be ineffective, he would then step in to stabilize his teammates’ morale.

Suddenly, a peculiar sensation, like being pricked by needles, arose from the Steel Armor Implant within Li Fei’s body.

This was a signal of impending danger!

Li Fei looked towards the other entrance—

A formidable figure emerged.

Tonight’s Dragon had arrived!

…