The Green Fire Gang

Xiao Chuanzi had prepared over a hundred buckets for Xiao Genzi, all brim-full of night soil. The workers had grumbled plenty about it; even though the pay was generous, it was truly foul work. The crowd that had originally besieged the Pure Observance Society had completely dispersed, terrified of getting splashed. Not only had Xiao Chuanzi prepared the night soil, but all the contrivances and supplies for the clash outside the cinema had been laid out in advance by him and the workers. Otherwise, things would never have gone so smoothly. Seeing that the time was about right, Li Banfeng gave the order. "Ring the bell." That was the standard signal for a movie to begin, but Xiao Chuanzi spoke up beside him. "Seventh Master, the rule in Heishi City is to blow the whistle." Steam pipes ran into the cinema from the neighboring factory, used for heating in winter and for washing down and disinfecting during ordinary times. Opening the valve made the steam whistle sound; all cinemas in Heishipo blew a whistle instead of ringing a bell. And not just cinemas—in Heishipo, those who had their own boilers ran them, while those without bought steam from factories. Every household had steam pipes. The whistle blew, and moviegoers filed inside one after another, cheerful and eager to enjoy the show. With the onlookers gone and the Pure Observance Society driven off in disgrace, Xiao Genzi and Xiao Chuanzi led their men to clean up in front of the cinema. This blow dealt at the cinema had struck hard. Yet Li Banfeng still had the Pure Observance Society by the pigtail, and he had no intention of letting go. Li Banfeng returned to the factory and told Bai Qiusheng and the others to hurry up with their articles. The front-page headlines had already been drafted: "Pure Observance Society Beats Septuagenarian Woman in Broad Daylight" and "Elder Doused in Feces, Name Stinks to High Heaven." Following the front page were extensive commentaries meticulously breaking down the entire sequence of events—from the Pure Observance Society marching to the cinema to smash it up and beating an old woman in the street, to their subsequent encirclement and dousing in filth. These were hardly of one voice; each of the writers had their own spin. One suggested that the Pure Observance Society attacked the cinema because Bloodgun Detective corrupted public morals and failed their moral standards. But with photograph after photograph plainly showing them beating an old lady in the street, these people clearly had no morals of their own, so that explanation fell flat. Another writer argued that Elder Tang Peigong of the Pure Observance Society was getting on in years and could no longer perform. With one primary wife and twenty-six concubines, he was under immense daily pressure. Seeing a movie like Bloodgun Detective, where the leading man Song Chunjie triumphed everywhere with unyielding virility, made Tang Peigong deeply miserable—so miserable that a perverse fire blazed in his chest, uncontrollable, forcing him to wage an irreconcilable feud against the movie. This theory was considerably sounder in logic. Another theory was slightly less logical but made for a great story: Tang Peigong's twenty-six concubines were all utterly infatuated with the male lead of Bloodgun Detective, and someone had supposedly even written letters to him. Suspecting he had been cuckolded, Tang Peigong despised the movie with a passion. This angle had already been spun into serialized fiction, slated mainly for pages three and four of the paper. Song Chunjie, the star of Bloodgun Detective, featured prominently in the story, having just conquered the first two concubines, with future installments to follow across newspapers and magazines. Yet another theory claimed Tang Peigong had been bought off by Ling Family Pictures to deliberately target Bloodgun Detective and eliminate a competitor, which also tied into the interests of figures like Old Master Lu Maoxian of the Lu family. With diverse opinions across all the commentaries, nearly a third of tonight's Night Fragrance was dedicated to the Pure Observance Society. For an affair of this scale, relying on a single newspaper was obviously not enough punch. Li Banfeng had shared that concern, but in such a short time, he could only get one newspaper operation up and running. Fortunately, there was another helper. Li Banfeng called over a worker, gave him a silver dollar, and told him to invite Zeng Wenbing of the Green Fire Gang over. The worker was bewildered. "Why invite him?" Li Banfeng said, "Just tell him our business made a killing, and we'd like to settle up his cut." The worker was even more baffled. "Pay him more? Didn't you already give him twenty thousand?" Li Banfeng smiled. "I'm a generous man. A little extra buys peace." The worker couldn't wrap his head around it, but having taken Li Banfeng's money, he could only follow orders. Before long, Zeng Wenbing arrived with a cigarette dangling from his lips. The moment he walked through the door, he kicked the workers a few times and kicked over piles of folded newspapers, sending them scattering across the floor. "Motherfucker! Made some money and suddenly you're putting on airs? If you've got a cut for me, why the fuck didn't you deliver it to my door instead of making me come get it myself?" Li Banfeng went out to greet him personally. "Second Master, isn't inviting you over just so we can settle the account face to face?" Zeng Wenbing looked Li Banfeng up and down. He seemed a bit different from the man he saw yesterday. Different or not, who cared? A newspaper office might be here today and gone tomorrow; he couldn't be bothered to think too much about it. "What fucking account? Cough up twenty thousand first, and then we'll talk!" Li Banfeng paused, seemingly taken aback. "Second Master, isn't twenty thousand a bit much?" "I came all the way here in person, and you have the fucking nerve to complain it's too much? Did I give you too much face?" Li Banfeng said in mock astonishment, "Ah, so you came for face? Then as you wish. Twenty thousand." Zeng Wenbing spat his cigarette butt onto the ground, glaring at Li Banfeng. "What the fuck do you mean by that? Are you fucking tired of living—" *Smack!* Li Banfeng suddenly appeared right before him, a slap knocking out one of Zeng Wenbing's molars. Stars danced before Zeng Wenbing's eyes. He glared at Li Banfeng. "You dare..." Li Banfeng backhanded him with another slap, caving in the bridge of Zeng Wenbing's nose. Clutching his nose, Zeng Wenbing shouted to his men, "Get him!" His lackeys surged forward, but Zuo Wugang stepped up. Like catching chickens, he grabbed them one in each hand and slammed them to the ground, calling out to the workers, "Stomp on their faces! That's it, pin them down! Put your weight into your soles, stomp hard! Once they're pinned, they won't move." Seeing all his subordinates pinned under boots, Zeng Wenbing stared at Li Banfeng in terror. Li Banfeng delivered a third slap to Zeng Wenbing's face and chuckled. "You asked for twenty thousand right off the bat, which is truly hard to pay out all at once. I'll give you three first, leaving nineteen thousand nine hundred ninety-seven. We can calculate the interest later. First, do something for me." Zeng Wenbing's jaw was completely dislocated. Bai Qiusheng stepped out of the workshop. "Second Master Zeng, that was our Boss Ye settling his score just now. I haven't settled mine with you yet. First, tell me: how many newspapers are on your turf?" Zeng Wenbing answered truthfully, "I oversee three, plus one that sells magazines. The gang controls fifteen in total, though two are about to go belly-up." Zuo Wugang lifted Zeng Wenbing up by the collar. "Come with us first. Let's go discuss some business with those three." Bai Qiusheng followed Zuo Wugang out. They truly were going to discuss business; Li Banfeng didn't intend to make his living off newspapers and magazines, so there was no need to make things difficult for his fellow tradesmen. Arriving at one newspaper office, two writers sat behind a desk, fretting over what to write tonight. The office had only the two of them. They wrote the drafts, operated the press, folded the papers, and delivered them. Selling two or three hundred copies a day barely scraped together enough to feed themselves. Seeing Zuo Wugang walk in, the two men froze, completely baffled by this dark hulking giant. Zuo Wugang dropped the man in his hand before them. Seeing the bloody, mangled figure, both jumped in fright. One of the writers had sharper eyes; after staring for a moment, he finally recognized him. "Is this... Second Master Zeng?" Zuo Wugang nodded. "You get the picture now?" Both writers shook their heads repeatedly; they didn't get it at all. What did this mean? Did this area no longer belong to Zeng Wenbing? Were they supposed to pay their protection money to this dark giant from now on? Bai Qiusheng quickly stepped forward to explain. "Gentlemen, we're colleagues in the trade. We're from the Night Fragrance newspaper. We've come to discuss whether you could run a piece of news tomorrow." "What news?" Bai Qiusheng showed them Night Fragrance's story. The two writers hesitated, not daring to speak up lightly. Running a news story was no big deal—most of their daily news was copied anyway—but the problem was that this involved the Pure Observance Society. Spreading rumors about the Pure Observance Society would invite heaps of trouble. Having worked in this line, Bai Qiusheng knew their concerns. "Brothers, this news is real. And we won't ask you to do it for nothing—we'll pay! Thirty silver dollars for one day of publication! If trouble comes, just run over to our place. We'll handle it!" Thirty silver dollars a day! The two of them couldn't earn thirty silver dollars in a month. The pair looked at Zeng Wenbing. Zuo Wugang hauled Zeng Wenbing up and slapped him. "He's asking you!" Zeng Wenbing nodded. "Fine..." These people were ruthless, beating Zeng Wenbing into this state. And they had come with genuine sincerity, offering good money for such a minor task. There was no reason to refuse. The pair agreed on the spot, and Zuo Wugang hauled Zeng Wenbing along to the next shop. The next place was in the middle of a photo shoot for a magazine. When Zuo Wugang hauled the man in, the girls were scared off. Zuo Wugang slapped Zeng Wenbing again. "Speak!" Zeng Wenbing mumbled through bruised lips, crying out, "Print the paper!" Print what paper? Bai Qiusheng stepped forward to explain, "We have a matter to trouble everyone with..." After hitting all three newspaper offices, Bai Qiusheng asked Zeng Wenbing, "Is your boss around? Let's pay a visit to your lodge." Zeng Wenbing stayed silent. Bai Qiusheng slapped him. "Refusing to talk, are you?" Zeng Wenbing still didn't say a word. Bai Qiusheng glanced at Zuo Wugang. "Master Zuo, my hand doesn't pack enough punch." The moment Zuo Wugang raised his hand, Zeng Wenbing opened his mouth. "The chief is at the lodge. I'll take you." Zuo Wugang hauled Zeng Wenbing up. "Let's go find Seventh Master first." Bai Qiusheng said, "Master Zuo, for a small matter like this, there's no need to trouble Seventh Master. We can handle it ourselves." "No. Seventh Master gave orders: going to their lodge must be reported to him." Zuo Wugang was not one for making decisions. Whether an affair was hard or easy, he followed only the commands of Li Seven and Ma the Fifth. With Zeng Wenbing leading the way, Li Banfeng and the others arrived at the Green Fire Gang's lodge. In Puluo Province, the Green Fire Gang could not even qualify as a third-rate gang. Their lodge wasn't large—it was also a factory. Zuo Wugang moved to step inside, but Li Banfeng stopped him and told him to wait at the entrance. There was something at the gate. Zuo Wugang couldn't see it, but Li Banfeng saw it crystal clear. The gang was called the Green Fire Gang; Li Banfeng had figured out long ago that the gang leader had to be a Nightmare Cultivator. Sure enough, two ghost servants stood guard at the gate. When Li Banfeng walked into the factory, the two ghost servants followed behind him. The factory's front courtyard was overgrown with weeds, and abandoned machinery was rusted beyond recognition. Even though the gang was small, they ought to have possessed some resources and shouldn't have sunk to living in such a decrepit place. Yet Li Banfeng understood why. The factory had heavy yin energy, and many wandering spirits lingered nearby, making it well-suited for a Nightmare Cultivator's cultivation. Reaching a secluded corner of the workshop, Li Banfeng suddenly drew the clock pendulum, slashed both ghost servants, and tossed them into the Portable Abode. The wife tasted them, puffing out steam as she said, "Oh my, husband, today's dishes aren't very fresh, and the quality is rather poor." That single remark revealed the gang leader's caliber. The dish not being fresh proved these ghost servants had been raised for a long time. And for old ghost servants to still be of such poor quality proved that the gang leader's cultivation was limited. Li Banfeng strode toward the workshop. Two hoodlums standing guard at the door stepped forward to block him. "What're you here for?" Li Banfeng asked very politely, "Is your chief in?" A young hoodlum shoved Li Banfeng. "I asked what the hell you're here for!" The older hoodlum said nothing. There were ghost servants at the entrance. The fact that this man could walk in meant he was no ordinary person. Li Banfeng glanced at the young hoodlum, swung his scythe, and slit his throat. The older hoodlum shuddered and lowered his head. "I'll take you to the chief."