Chapter 130: Cooperation (Part one)
Hearing Xu Cheng’s words, Chang Qing’s face changed right away. “You had been following me?”
Xu Cheng said, “You are indeed the head of the four kings of West Gate. Despite your old age, your brain is still alright. No wonder West Gate reached this level of scale, you four sure contributed a lot.”
Chang Qing’s eyes narrowed. “You found us four?”
Xu Cheng: “Aren’t the other three arrested already? With that cargo ship captain’s testimony, those people’s charges are inescapable. But as for you, do you think you are guilty?”
Chang Qing snorted, “Guilty of what?”
Xu Cheng smiled. “Azure Dragon, Vermilion Bird, Black Tortoise, and White Tiger. You four became sworn brothers that year and all got a tattoo to show your faith towards the bond. But, I noticed that among the four, the Black Tortoise tattoo was missing. Mr. Chang, can you explain why that is to me?”
Chang Qing’s face changed dramatically, and he stared at Xu Cheng in shock. If he had a gun right now, he would kill Xu Cheng right away for sure! But, he had nothing.
After a long time, Chang Qing finally came to his senses. Then, he looked at Xu Cheng with hate. “Initially, I thought you were just someone with all muscles and no brain, someone that were dumb enough to first offend North Gate and then West Gate. Now that I think about it, you really are a piece of work!”
Not knowing if it was a compliment or something else, Xu Cheng didn’t reject the comment. He just laughed. “Back in the military, a soldier must catch a big fish to advance. The four Gates had been a pain in the azz of the government officials for years, and it would’ve been fine if you guys actually washed your hands clean and transitioned to only legal businesses. You have nothing but yourself to blame.”
Chang Qing snorted, “The rules are dead, but the people are alive. With the same logic, the laws are dead, and it all depends on how you work it. As for you, I just regret not killing you earlier!”
“You talk like you didn’t try to kill me. The a.s.sa.s.sin group you sent earlier is still having tea at the police station. You guys sure have guts, even daring to a.s.sa.s.sinate officers,” Xu Cheng replied.
“Not to mention a little officer, no matter how high your level is, you will get hurt if you get in someone’s way!” Chang Qing replied.
Xu Cheng sighed. “So, it’s not enough to just seize your businesses when dealing with guys like you. We must eradicate the roots too, or you guys will grow back just like weeds!”
Chang Qing looked at him with disdain. “I have to admit little brat, you got lucky and took down North Gate, and now you are trying to take down West Gate as well. But, let me tell you, even if you take down all four Gates, you won’t eradicate the dark side of human hearts. With North Gate and our West Gate as precedents, you think East and South Gate wouldn’t be on alert? The moment they decide to focus on dealing with a little team captain like you, you won’t even know how you died!”
Xu Cheng suddenly began laughing.
Chang Qing frowned. “What are you laughing at?”
Chapter 130: Cooperation (Part two)
Xu Cheng: “I’m laughing at how familiar those words sound. The thugs of North Gate used to tell me that too back when I was just a patrol officer. Back then, they couldn’t be more arrogant, as if killing me would be as easy as stepping on an ant. Faced with people like them, you don’t have to argue because it’s pointless, and I just like to answer with my actions. For thugs like them, I would arrest them whenever I saw them and then beat them if they didn’t cooperate. Later on, they got beaten so much that they got scared. The lesson I learned was, when dealing with people like you guys, there’s no need to get wordy. If talk is all that’s needed to save your corroded hearts, then you wouldn’t be the four Gates. The only solution is to fight first. In the past, maybe because of my t.i.tle, even your lackeys looked down at me. But now, do you think I’m qualified to speak with you face to face?”
At that moment, Xu Cheng mockingly glanced at Chang Qing, and Chang Qing faintly replied, “Why do you have to deal with the four Gates? We have no grudges with you.”
Xu Cheng: “Isn’t that simple? It’s just that when you guys are doing your usual bullying of ordinary citizens, you accidentally bullied someone with a bad temper. I’ve always been looked down upon in my childhood, and when I went to the army, I told myself that I will teach whoever looks down on me again a lesson. After I got out of the army, I thought, if I’m going to make some changes to my life, then I should set a small goal first. For example, why not just erase all four Gates of Shangcheng first.”
Chang Qing almost coughed up blood upon hearing this. How did the power giants that had been deeply rooted into Shangcheng for centuries become a small goal in your mouth?
“Little Brat, I wasn’t even as arrogant as you when I first stepped into society.”
Xu Cheng sneered and looked at him with disdain. “That’s because you guys were on your bare feet, but I have the nation behind me. Isn’t it obvious who can be more arrogant?”
Poof.
This time, Chang Qing really wanted to cough up blood.
Xu Cheng: “Cooperate with me.”
Chang Qing: “Are you joking? You want me to cooperate with you? Is cooperating with you going to excuse me from jail time?”
“It’s fine if you don’t want to. You have two options. First, you can choose to not cooperate. However, know that I already got all the evidence of back when you and your three bros robbed the bank, caused a huge number of deaths and injuries, and then found four scapegoats to close the case. The charges you can get from that alone are enough to get you a death sentence. As for the second option, if you cooperate with me and fish out the big underground money house, then you can get some redemption and live out the rest of your life in prison.”
Chang Qing was furious. “What’s the difference then? My freedom is gone either way!”
Xu Cheng smiled. “Of course there’s a difference. If you are alive, there will still be countless possibilities. But, if you are dead, then you truly lose everything. Just think about it, it’s not hard to see why you four wanted to stay behind the curtains to control West Gate. In fact, everyone will become more terrified of death as they grow older. You still have kids and grandkids, and if you are still alive, then you can at least see your families on a schedule. But if you choose the first option, then your crime from 20 years ago will surface, and what would your family think of you even after your death sentence? I don’t even have to use that case from 20 years ago to give you the death sentence. How long do you think you can survive with how things are looking right now? Although you are blackmailing East Gate, that’s just pushing yourself towards death even faster.”