"Lian Ho-lung is confined to this small patch of territory. The future you want is something he cannot provide. If you stay with him, you will only remain trapped within Chung Sing Yee. Besides, it’s hard to say how long you’ll even have a life to live in the future," Luo Yuchen said calmly.
"Pfft! You talk as if you’re some big shot yourself! What right do you have to judge others? You’re just the Dragon Head of a small outfit right now! Come back and talk when you’ve reached the same height as Brother Lung!" Ah Hang scoffed, unable to stop himself from retorting.
This remark, however, showed a certain degree of concession. While not obvious, it was a vast improvement compared to his earlier refusal to yield an inch.
Luo Yuchen smiled slightly. "You’re right. I am just the Dragon Head of a small outfit today. But how do you know I won’t make great strides in the future, devouring the competition and rising to the top? The tides of fortune change every thirty years; never mock a young man for being poor."
Ah Hang sneered, "Big talk is useless. Only results and status are real."
Luo Yuchen shrugged. "True! Let’s set that aside and go back to what I was saying—why I claimed that staying with Lian Ho-lung leads only to a dead end..."
"Just because you say so doesn't make it true!" Ah Hang snapped back.
Luo Yuchen spoke calmly. "Because you’ve touched things you shouldn’t have. Drugs—that is an absolute taboo. Even if you look like you’re making a fortune right now, sooner or later, disaster will strike. Can you guarantee that every transaction will go smoothly? Do you really believe the police won't score a win just once? One slip-up, and you could face heavy losses. Two, and you could be completely wiped out."
Ah Hang fell silent. He couldn't refute that. In truth, even though he didn't get involved in those affairs personally, he had dealt with them. He knew exactly what the police’s attitude toward drugs was. Heaven might not destroy them, but the police definitely intended to. It was an irreconcilable conflict—it was either them or the law.
Could he guarantee the favor of the gods every single time? Impossible. He had already imagined what his end would look like. It was a predictable future, and likely not very far off. Unless, of course, they gave up this lucrative business. But would Lian Ho-lung agree? Would Lian Ho-tung? Would So-so? Let alone them, even the crippled Loh Ting Fat would never agree to it.
Hoodlums go from rags to riches overnight. Even though they were already bosses, they couldn't escape their nature. They were just more powerful, more ruthless, and more famous than the others. And what do bosses need? Money and power. Money to support their underlings, and power to maintain their reputation so more people would follow them, allowing them to keep making money.
Luo Yuchen was right. Selling drugs could lead to sudden wealth, but the consequences were endless. The police would never stop fighting the trade—they would fight it to the death. Chung Sing Yee looked like a colossus, but that was only because the police hadn't found enough evidence yet, and because they had so many men that the police didn't want to move rashly. Any smaller gang would have been wiped out long ago. But how long could this brilliant facade last? It was impossible to foresee.
Seeing Ah Hang deep in thought, Luo Yuchen knew his words had struck a chord. "Have you figured it out?"
Ah Hang came back to his senses, his tone stiff. "So what if I have? When you live this life, you expect this outcome. At the very least, I’ve had my glory days! Worst case, I’ll be a hero again in eighteen years!"
Even as he said it, he felt his own tone was weak. He was just forcing it out to spite Luo Yuchen. Everyone knew that for people in their line of work, the ending was rarely good.
"Do you even believe that yourself?" A mocking smile appeared on Luo Yuchen’s face. "Who truly fears no death? If you could survive, who wouldn't want to live to enjoy this vibrant world? 'Better to live a shameful life than die a good death'—that’s the truth! A hero again in eighteen years? Forget whether reincarnation even exists; even if it did, are you sure you’d be reborn as a human?"
"Hmph!" Ah Hang grunted, unable to find a comeback.
"But if you follow me, I promise you a bright future. At the very least, our Dragon Gate doesn't touch that stuff. We will definitely last much longer than Chung Sing Yee," Luo Yuchen said slowly.
Ah Hang waved his hand impatiently. "Spare me the grand theories. Don't try to lure me with empty promises—show me some results first!"
A flicker of a smile appeared in Luo Yuchen’s eyes. Finally, he wasn't being so cold anymore. "Fine. You’ll see them soon enough! Focus on healing. Once you're better, I’ll need you to carry out a mission immediately."
Luo Yuchen left the private room in a leisurely manner. Watching his back, which didn't look particularly imposing, Ah Hang’s eyes flickered, his mind racing with memories and thoughts he never would have entertained before.
Luo Yuchen left Ah Hang in the room without fear of him escaping. He had struck with perfect precision: Ah Hang was seriously injured and incapacitated, but he would recover in time. Ah Hang couldn't even walk out of the room now, let alone return to Chung Sing Yee. He couldn't even beat a few underlings; how could he go back? Besides, Ah Hang wasn't foolish enough to be blindly loyal. Had Luo Yuchen not spoken those words, Ah Hang might have persisted, but after that relentless deconstruction of his reality, the desire to return to Chung Sing Yee had essentially vanished. What would happen next was another matter entirely.
"Brother Chen..." "Brother Chen..."
Not long after leaving the room, he saw A Zha, Tian Yangli, and the others returning.
"Any good news?" Luo Yuchen opened a few beers himself and handed them over. A Zha and the others grabbed the bottles and drank them down in one breath, clearly parched.
"Refreshing!" A Zha and the others exhaled after draining their bottles. Luo Yuchen signaled for the bartender to bring more.
Once their thirst was slightly quenched, A Zha reported their progress. "Brother Chen, we successfully found nineteen small factories and signed contracts under the name of Plum Blossom Apparel. For eighteen of them, I negotiated a twenty percent down payment. The nineteenth one was really strapped for cash, so we gave a bit over ten percent. We spent all 1.05 million. But those owners were so happy to see such a large order that they were easy to talk to. As for the unit price, we got them down to 28 yuan, two lower than the 30 yuan cost you mentioned. They’ve already stopped all current production and will work exclusively on our order for the next five days."
Luo Yuchen nodded with a smile. "Well done! Beautiful work."
Tian Yangli chuckled. "Brother Chen, the method you taught us worked perfectly. Those owners didn't want to accept a twenty percent down payment, but once Brother Zha put the money on the table, their eyes lit up. After a few words from him, they had no choice but to agree."
Luo Yuchen laughed. "Negotiation requires skill. Those small factories are barely scraping by; when we dangle such a huge order in front of them, of course they're tempted. But businessmen are greedy. If you hadn't negotiated, they would have pushed for forty or fifty percent. By throwing the money down, you showed them your strength. Once they saw the initial cash and the promise of the remaining hundreds of thousands, they couldn't help but yield. You seized the initiative, and that put them on the defensive."
"Brother Chen, I'm curious," Tin Yeung-ho asked. "Were you born a natural businessman? I never heard you were this good at it before."
Luo Yuchen laughed. "What? Is it a bad thing that I'm good at business? Do you think it’s better for me to lead you out hacking people to death every day?"
Tin Yeung-ho smiled sheepishly. "Of course not..."
"You little punk, talking nonsense!" A Zha and Tian Yangli each gave him a thump on the head, sending him scrambling. The atmosphere became lively.
After the laughter died down, A Zha asked, "Brother Chen, is that guy inside really Ah Hang from Chung Sing Yee? Why keep him? Are you interested in him?"
"What do you mean 'interested in him'? Can you speak properly?" Luo Yuchen rolled his eyes.
A Zha scratched his head. "I mean, do you want to take him on as an underling?"
Luo Yuchen nodded, then shook his head. "Half and half. If he’s smart, I don't mind taking him in. If he isn't, then don't blame me. Besides, keeping him around for now adds a thorn in Chung Sing Yee’s side and builds our reputation. Why not?"