Boss Yu, What Do You Think?

Old Mr. Yao was not a person of the living world. In life, this old gentleman had likely been a high-tier Wine Cultivator. As for why he remained in the mortal realm after death, that was anyone's guess. "Seventh Master, let's not dwell on this for now. The technique on Boss Qin has been undone. He ate a few bowls of rice and just fell asleep." Yu Nan changed the subject; she felt more and more that Li Banfeng was no ordinary man. Qin Xiaopang was sleeping soundly, so Li Banfeng didn't disturb him. That night, Li Banfeng claimed he would sleep in the wing room with Qin Xiaopang. In reality, he hid the key outside the courtyard and slept in the Portable Abode. The next morning when he woke up, Li Banfeng checked his pocket watch. It was still early, not even seven o'clock. He thought about going back to sleep, but felt a bit parched. Just as Li Banfeng came out to find some water to drink, he was greeted by the sight of twenty or thirty people standing in the courtyard, bristling with murderous intent. Li Banfeng thought at first that the Jiangxiang Gang had come for revenge, but looking closer, the crowd included young, old, strong, and weak alike. In their hands, they held daggers, cleavers, iron rods—every sort of weapon imaginable. These people were clerks from the Yu Family Cloth Shop; Li Banfeng even recognized a couple of them. What was this about? Yu Nan stood in the center of the crowd, wearing a gray fedora and a gray vest. Between her teeth, she still held that dark red lady's pipe, and tucked into her waist was a revolver. There were guns in Puluo Province? This was the first time Li Banfeng had seen one here. He wondered if Feng's Grocery Store sold them. Li Banfeng stepped forward to ask what was going on. Yu Nan answered, "Geng Zhiwei, the eldest young master of the Geng Family Medicine Shop, sent an invitation inviting me to dinner. He wants to talk things out openly. I'm taking my brothers along to attend the banquet today. As long as we come to terms, this whole business ends today." They could actually talk it out? Was this the way of the jianghu? Li Banfeng looked at the imposing lineup and couldn't help being surprised. "Just for a meal, do you really need to bring this many people?" Yu Nan bit on her pipe and smiled faintly. "When you talk reason with blades and guns out in the open, even if you have reason on your side, you still need weapons. Without some muscle behind you, where's your leverage to speak?" Li Banfeng caught the underlying meaning: if they could reach an agreement, they'd talk; if not, they'd fight. He looked at the clerks again. "The clerks at your cloth shop are quite unusual. They can't be earning much in wages, yet they're genuinely ready to lay down their lives for you." Yu Nan looked rather proud. "They're the brothers and sisters I've sworn blood oaths with. They're my own flesh and blood. As long as I have a bite to eat, I won't let them go hungry; as long as I have a coat, I won't let them freeze. If they're in trouble, I shoulder it; if I'm in trouble, they stand with me to bear it." Li Banfeng still couldn't quite wrap his head around their relationship. This was one of the reasons he hadn't been able to find a job in Puluo Province. The Yu Family Cloth Shop wasn't merely a store; it was also a gang run personally by Yu Nan, which could be called the Yu Family Gang. In ordinary times doing business, Yu Nan was the proprietor and the rest were clerks. In times of crisis, Yu Nan was the gang leader and the others were gang disciples. How could a shop like this ever hire a stranger like Li Banfeng? The Yu Family Gang lacked real strength; the only person worth mentioning was Yu Nan, a first-tier Smoke Cultivator. But having a gang was still better than having none. In all of Puluo Province, from businesses trading fortunes down to two- or three-dollar street stalls, there was always a gang backing them up. Even the steamed bun shop Xiaopang frequented had a Steamed Bun Gang behind it. Someone like Li Banfeng, who had no gang and struck out on his own, had to resort to desperate, life-risking ventures like Bitter Mist Mountain if he wanted to make decent money. Yu Nan cupped her fists. "Seventh Master, stay here with Boss Qin so he can recover properly. I'll take my leave." Li Banfeng turned to Yu Nan and said, "Proprietress Yu, would it be alright if you just didn't go?" Yu Nan lifted her pipe and took a deep drag. "I understand what you mean, Seventh Master. I know Geng Zhiwei might harbor bad intentions. If he stabbed at me in the dark, I could avoid him. But he gave me an invitation out in the open. If I don't go, it's equivalent to pulling down the Yu family banner. After that, I'd never be able to hold my head up in Yaowanggou." "You make a good point," Li Banfeng nodded. "So... could you just not go?" Yu Nan gave a bitter smile. "It would be one thing if I swallowed my pride alone. But what about the face of all my brothers? Are we supposed to throw that away?" "Face is indeed important," Li Banfeng agreed completely with her sentiment. "So, how about just not going?" Yu Nan pulled the cigarette from her pipe and stuffed it into Li Banfeng's mouth. "Seventh Master, whether I want to go or not, I have to go today. That's the jianghu." With that, Yu Nan led the group of clerks out of the compound. Today she hadn't constrained herself. Two buttons on her vest were undone, though whether she had unfastened them or they had popped open was hard to tell. Her trousers were relatively loose, yet the exquisite curves sculpted by those plump peaches still firmly held the gaze of every man behind her. "She certainly speaks with an imposing aura," Li Banfeng muttered to himself as he watched Yu Nan's retreating figure. "Just what on earth is this 'jianghu'?" …… Yu Nan arrived at Wangchun Tower with thirty-three clerks. Wangchun Tower was the largest restaurant in Yaowanggou. More than twenty clerks from the Geng Family Medicine Shop were waiting downstairs to receive them. Seeing that the other side had fewer people than hers, Yu Nan felt somewhat more at ease. However, Geng Zhiwei hadn't come out personally to greet her, which made Yu Nan a little displeased. Still, Yu Nan understood that in Geng Zhiwei's eyes, the two of them were not equals. At today's banquet, she was bound to swallow some humiliation. Swallowing a little humiliation was fine, as long as the matter reached a resolution. Yu Nan strode up into the restaurant, followed by only two guards. The accountant of the Geng Family Medicine Shop stepped forward and said, "Proprietress Yu, please hand over your weapons!" Yu Nan recognized this accountant and smiled. "A weak woman like me carrying a gun for self-defense shouldn't frighten Eldest Young Master Geng, should it?" The accountant smacked his lips. "Proprietress Yu, we came today to settle things, not to stir up trouble. You should know the rules of the underworld." Yu Nan was indeed familiar with the rules of the underworld, but today, she had to take this gun up with her. "Your young master picked the place, and your young master chose the time. He even arrived before me. How do I know whether he's carrying heat or not?" The accountant frowned. "Proprietress Yu, we're practically old friends. There's no point in talking like that. You're a first-tier Smoke Cultivator, while our young master has no cultivation at all. If hands are raised, we're the ones at a disadvantage!" Yu Nan let out a cold laugh. "This gun stays with me. Otherwise, I won't be going up." "Look at this..." Just as the accountant was in a bind, someone called down from upstairs: "Don't make things difficult for her. It's just a handgun. If Proprietress Yu wants to bring it up, let her." Geng Zhiwei had spoken. The accountant said to Yu Nan, "Proprietress Yu, our young master has made a concession. You can bring your handgun, but the two men beside you..." Yu Nan looked back at her two guards, and they handed their bladed weapons over to the other clerks. Each side gave an inch without pressing the other. In Yu Nan's eyes, Geng Zhiwei was someone who played by the rules. On the second floor, a single table was set in the enormous dining hall; Geng Zhiwei had reserved the entire Wangchun Tower. Seeing Yu Nan come upstairs, Geng Zhiwei rose to welcome her while eating watermelon. Beside Geng Zhiwei stood two guards as well, along with Jia Quansheng—the Young Master Jia who had initially tried to extort snake-spot pills from Qin Xiaopang, the very catalyst of this whole ordeal. Given the current situation, Yu Nan was confident she could handle it. "Proprietress Yu!" "Young Master Geng!" "Please!" Both sides took their seats. After exchanging pleasantries, Geng Zhiwei had wine poured. "Proprietress Yu, drink this cup of wine, and our past grievances will be put behind us." Yu Nan knew it wouldn't be that simple. Holding her wine cup, she said, "Young Master Geng, let's lay everything on the table at once. You say put the grievances behind us, so what are the conditions?" Two plates of watermelon sat on Geng Zhiwei's table. He picked up another slice, took a bite, and said, "If it were just me, out of respect for Proprietress Yu, this matter would be settled right here. But Rong Jin'an was a man of the Geng Family Medicine Shop. The man vanished just like that—alive, there's no trace of him; dead, there's no body. This touches upon the banner of the Geng Family Medicine Shop. With over a hundred people in the shop from top to bottom, relying on Proprietress Yu's face alone won't be enough of an explanation. Furthermore, my brother Quansheng suffered in this affair as well. Several brothers under him were beaten and injured by that Fat Qin. So this isn't just about me." Slick-haired and powdered-faced, Jia Quansheng also ate a slice of watermelon and wiped his mouth. "Proprietress Yu, I have to give an accounting to my men as well." Yu Nan didn't want to spare Jia Quansheng another glance; he was only here to fawn over Geng Zhiwei and play along. "Young Master Geng, there's no need to beat around the bush. Whatever your conditions are, just say them." Geng Zhiwei picked up another slice of watermelon and spoke as he ate, "Proprietress Yu is straightforward! I have three conditions. As long as you agree to them, the matter of Rong Jin'an and Qin Xiaopang will be wiped clean! "First condition: the Yu Family Cloth Shop will still be managed by Proprietress Yu, but our medicine shop gets a fifty percent stake. I won't take it for nothing. In the future, if trouble comes to your Yu Family Cloth Shop, it'll be Geng family business. Whoever crosses Proprietress Yu crosses our Geng family. From now on, our Geng family banner will be planted right at the front door of your Yu Family Cloth Shop. Proprietress Yu, what do you think?" Yu Nan's cheek twitched. Geng Zhiwei clearly intended to swallow the Yu Family Cloth Shop whole. This condition was hard to swallow, but if she refused, her cloth shop wouldn't survive in Yaowanggou either. A fifty percent share was far too high; she would negotiate that in a moment. Yu Nan took no stance: "Young Master Geng, please go on." Geng Zhiwei smiled, set down the watermelon rind, and said, "I'll take that as your agreement. Proprietress Yu, after this whole affair, I've come to admire you quite a bit. I like your pretty looks, and I especially like your bold, vengeful spirit. I'm inclined to take you as my sixth concubine. If you agree, we'll hold a wedding banquet right here in Wangchun Tower and enter the bridal chamber tonight. What do you think?" Yu Nan gritted her teeth, her face turning livid. "Keep talking." "All right, I'll take that as your agreement too. The third matter: over this business with Rong Jin'an, my family is rather upset. I'm worried your life won't be easy down the road. How about this: after we perform our wedding bows today, you strip off your clothes, and I'll whip you publicly with a lash. Once my family vents their anger, you won't suffer any grievances later on. I'm doing this for your own good. What do you think?"