"Who are you?"
As Zhao Hu asked this question, the other thugs in the yard also took a step forward, staring warily at Xiao Jingcheng, who was leading a dog and strolling casually as if in his own backyard.
In the eyes of Zhao Hu and the others, Xiao Jingcheng's face was unclear at the moment, but his aura was extremely oppressive. No one would really regard him as an ordinary intruder. This was the natural alertness and instinct of males towards danger.
Xiao Jingcheng glanced around the yard, and then his gaze fell on Zhao Hu.
Xiao Jingcheng gave a soft laugh. "You ask who I am?"
"I'm the one who's here to kill you."
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone in the yard changed their expressions, including Zhuang De.
"You're courting death!" Zhao Hu roared angrily, waving his hand. "Brothers, attack! Whoever can kill him, I'll make him the supervisor of the gambling house!"
The supervisor of the gambling house was a lucrative position!
Everyone immediately got excited. They picked up their weapons and rushed towards Xiao Jingcheng.
In their eyes, Xiao Jingcheng was alone at the moment and posed no threat at all. It would be easy to kill him!
However, the next moment, many dogs suddenly rushed in from outside the yard. Those dogs had green - glowing eyes and fierce expressions. They pounced precisely on the scattered thugs in the yard and bit them.
No one expected such a change, so no one had time to resist. Before they could come to their senses, they felt tearing pain in their legs, waists, and bodies.
"Ah—"
The scene in front of him made Zhao Hu's eyes almost pop out. He roared, "I'll kill you!" Then he grabbed a machete and rushed towards Xiao Jingcheng.
However, how could Zhao Hu be a match for Xiao Jingcheng, who had received formal martial arts training? The next moment, with a "bang", Zhao Hu was sent flying. He knocked over the tables and chairs placed in the yard, and the bowls, dishes, and fruits on them were scattered all over the ground.
Zhao Hu spat out a mouthful of blood. Two broken teeth could be clearly seen in it. He was both shocked and angry. He stared wide - eyed as Xiao Jingcheng walked towards him step by step. Then Xiao Jingcheng stepped on his head, bent down slightly, and grinned.
"Well, are you convinced?"
Zhuang De was crouching on the ground. He looked at the thugs being attacked by the pack of dogs and then at Zhao Hu, who was being stepped on by Xiao Jingcheng like a rotten vegetable leaf. He couldn't help but feel scared in his heart.
Who on earth was this person? How could he be so ruthless? If he hadn't been sensible, he might really have become a dead man!
Zhao Hu had several broken ribs, and his head was being stepped on. How could he not be convinced? He wailed and said, "I'm convinced. I'm convinced. From today on, you're my big brother. From now on, we'll do whatever you say!"
A moment later.
Zhao Hu, covered in wounds, squatted in front of Xiao Jingcheng with Zhuang De. Behind them were the other thugs who had also been bitten on their legs by the dogs and had completely lost their combat effectiveness. Even the woman in very revealing clothes who had been hugged by Zhao Hu earlier was among them.
Sang Biao and Da Huang led the other dogs and surrounded everyone in the middle. They growled menacingly from their throats, scaring everyone into not daring to move.
Xiao Jingcheng sat on the chair that Zhao Hu had sat on before. His eyes scanned the faces of the people in front of him one by one.
Zhao Hu was really unwilling to be defeated like this, but when he was scanned by this gaze, he couldn't help but tremble.
"Boss, from today on, I'll give you my gambling house. I'll also give you all my businesses in the south of the town. Please, please spare our lives and let us have something to eat."
"Yes, I have a family to support. Please, boss, spare our lives!"
Hearing everyone calling him "boss" one after another, Xiao Jingcheng tossed a stone in his hand and gave a soft laugh. "How much income does your gambling house have every day?"
Zhao Hu said with a flattering smile, "On a good day, it can have more than fifty taels of business. Even on a slow day, it can have twenty or thirty taels!"
The gambling house run by Zhao Hu usually only opened at night. It couldn't be compared with the large gambling houses in Tianyuan County, but it was quite well - known in Dongli Town.
Since the bets were small, the daily income was not much. However, when accumulated day by day, it was a huge fortune in a small town.
Gambling was really addictive. Those who had no money but a strong addiction would naturally lose more and more, which was a good thing for Zhao Hu.
When calculated like this, the money in his hands was not much less than that of the Chen员外.
Xiao Jingcheng said lazily, "What about those 'businesses' you mentioned just now?"
Zhao Hu laughed dryly. "That's less money. It's all the rent and protection fees paid by the nearby neighbors. Every day, it's probably only three or five taels."
The next moment, the stone in Xiao Jingcheng's hand disappeared. Zhao Hu let out a wail and covered his swollen and bleeding forehead, crying,
"Boss, did I say something wrong?"
Xiao Jingcheng said coldly, "You bully and exploit the common people, collect high - priced protection fees for yourself, but never fulfill your responsibility to protect them. What do you think you did wrong?"
Zhao Hu was stunned.
Huh?
Was this person not here to seize territory but to uphold justice?
"Then, then I won't collect it in the future?" Zhao Hu asked tentatively.
Xiao Jingcheng snorted. "Did I say not to collect it?"
Zhao Hu almost cried. So what should he do then?!
"Since you call me boss, the rules must follow mine." Xiao Jingcheng said, "The gambling house will still be yours, but I'll take 30% of the profit. The protection fee will be halved, and it can only be collected once a month. Once you collect the money, you must protect the common people. If anyone dares to collect the protection fee and still bully others, they will either be childless or become the food of the dog soldiers. Think it over carefully."
He glanced at Sang Biao. Sang Biao led the other dogs and approached Zhao Hu and the others. They barked loudly, scaring everyone into huddling together.
"I promise you, I promise you. Just get them away!" Zhao Hu cried.
Xiao Jingcheng picked up another stone and smiled. "A verbal promise doesn't count. You have to sign a written agreement. Once it's signed and sealed, I'll spare you today."
Zhao Hu had no choice but to agree. He looked at his "scheming advisor". That person crawled up忍着 the pain, fetched the writing tools, and in front of Xiao Jingcheng and Zhao Hu, listed all the terms that Xiao Jingcheng had just mentioned.
Finally, Zhao Hu pressed his fingerprint on the agreement, and this matter was settled.
After dispersing the others and leaving only Zhao Hu, Xiao Jingcheng looked at him with a half - smile. "I have another thing I'd like to ask Brother Huzi for help with."
Zhao Hu was now completely obedient to him. He quickly said, "Boss, just tell me what you need."
Xiao Jingcheng took out the 5,000 - tael silver note he had taken from Xiao Yixuan and said with a smile, "This is a 5,000 - tael silver note. However, the source of this money is unclear, so it's not easy to use directly."
"I'd like to ask Brother Huzi to use your brain and help me figure out a way to exchange all of this into silver notes from other banks for easy circulation. After it's done, I'll give Brother Huzi a 10% bonus."