Reborn in 1878: America's Number One Bandit

Chapter 96 You think I'll just hand it over? Not so easy.

The air solidified at this moment.

Jing Hai's massive physique slowly straightened up.

The matter has been decided.

"Boy..."

"Why don't you guess whether we want to leave Chinatown or not?"

Jinghai stared intently at Qingshan with his bloodshot, beastly eyes.

"How many parts will I tear your delicate skin and flesh into?"

At the same time, his three men behind him also drew their Mongolian scimitars from their waists.

The gleaming blade flashed a chilling light under the oil lamp.

Wei Ye and his men took half a step back, clearing the area.

Just as Jing Hai's fist was about to be thrown.

Aoyama smiled.

"Pfft!!"

A dull thud as a sharp weapon pierced flesh.

Jing Hai's pupils dilated suddenly, and he lowered his head in disbelief.

A shiny, greasy silver fork was stuck deep in his neck.

Two of the fork's four sharp teeth pierced his throat completely, while the other two severed his carotid artery.

At the same moment the fork pierced Jing Hai's neck, Qingshan's left hand had already grasped the meat cleaver, and he slid smoothly off the chair.

The first Mongolian man to rush up behind Jing Hai only saw a flash of silver light before his eyes, and the blade precisely sliced ​​through his throat.

Just as the second burly man's fist was halfway through its swing, Qingshan was already close to his side, and with a backhand motion, he stabbed the knife into his jaw, all the way to the hilt, shattering his brainstem.

The third burly man instinctively turned to run, but Qingshan's blade followed him like a shadow, piercing his heart from behind.

The three bodies fell to the ground almost simultaneously.

Warm blood instantly stained the floor red.

Until then—

Jing Hai's massive body finally lost all its strength and crashed heavily onto the heavy rosewood dining table.

Plates, bottles, bones, and broth were smashed all over the floor.

Jing Hai clutched his bleeding neck, convulsing violently amidst the chaos on the floor. His desperate eyes stared fixedly at the ceiling, eventually losing all their luster.

Wei Ye and his dozen or so henchmen stood motionless, like puppets under a spell.

Aoyama slowly took out a clean white handkerchief from his pocket and gently wiped the knife, which was still stained with meat juice and blood.

"you wanna die!"

He Wei suddenly pulled a pistol from his waist.

The dozen or so henchmen behind him also drew their weapons almost simultaneously.

"Qingshan!"

He Wei gritted his teeth: "You shouldn't have killed Jing Hai on my turf. I'm going to tie you up and hand you over to Feng Haitang, otherwise I won't be able to explain myself!"

Jing Hai died here, at his headquarters.

Feng Haitang and his gang of unreasonable mad dogs will definitely hold Heweitang accountable for this.

That would mean infighting, with rivers of blood flowing.

Qingshan finally wiped the knife clean, and casually tossed the expensive handkerchief onto Jing Hai's wide-open eyes.

Facing the dozen or so gun barrels, he calmly retorted, "Who do you want to explain to?"

Wei Ye roared, "Of course it's against Feng Haitang and his dozens of men. Nobody wants to mess with those lunatics, you understand? Even those reckless Irish bastards have to give Feng Haitang's men a wide berth!"

"Oh."

Qingshan looked around at the gun barrels pointed at him and shook his head: "Put away your fire sticks, be careful of accidental discharge and hurt yourselves."

"As for your concerns..."

Under the oil lamp, Aoyama's dark eyes appeared even more unfathomable.

"Feng Haitang's revenge? There's no need for that."

The voice just fell.

The oak door that represented the face of Heweitang was once again violently kicked open.

Two tall figures blocked the light from the doorway.

Then, one, two, five...

One after another, muscular men in black trench coats walked in silently.

They carried a strong stench of blood.

"Boom."

A burlap sack was left in the hall.

Then one after another.

Wei Ye's pupils contracted to the size of pinpoints.

Those pockets were bulging and dripping blood.

A man in black walked forward expressionlessly, untied the rope of one of the pockets, and then grabbed the bottom of the pocket and gave it a sharp shake.

"Gululu..."

One, two, three...

A furry, still warm head rolled out like a rotten potato.

They piled up on the floor, and the foul-smelling blood spread rapidly.

Wei Ye's stomach clenched suddenly; he recognized those faces.

Mad Dog Atai...

Batu with scars...

Bloodhand Tura...

Those were all Feng Haitang's core members, the most ruthless henchmen under Jing Hai.

With a smile, Qingshan walked up to the pile of heads and gently poked the top one with the tip of his leather shoe.

"Feng Haitang, a total of fifty-two people."

"Look, the head is right here."

He looked at Wei Ye, who was already deathly pale, and gave him a kind smile.

"Brother Wei, do you want to count them?"

"Clang."

One of Wei's henchmen could no longer hold onto his revolver and dropped it to the ground.

Wei Ye stared intently at the smiling young man in front of him.

The moment Jing Hai stepped into his door, the entire Feng Haitang family was wiped out?
There wasn't even a whisper of wind.

Wei Ye suddenly realized an even more terrifying fact.

He listened.

The entire Heweitang, no, the entire street, was dead.

It's so quiet.

There were no barking dogs, no sound of night patrol gongs; it was as quiet as a tomb.

Hewei Hall, his stronghold that he had run for twenty years, had unknowingly been taken over by this devil.

Wei Ye's Adam's apple bobbed violently.

"Qingshan, what exactly do you want?"

"take it easy."

Aoyama smiled, then glanced at the mess on the ground with disgust.

"I heard that the chef at your Heweitang restaurant is quite skilled at making Buddha Jumps Over the Wall. Clean this place up and open a new table."

"Let's talk slowly."

……

Ten minutes later.

The corpses, heads, blood, and entrails scattered all over the ground had been dragged and hauled away by Wei Ye's men, and the floor had even been scrubbed twice with hot water and alkaline water.

The table that Jing Hai had smashed was also taken away and replaced with a larger eight-immortal table.

Steaming hot dishes were served in a continuous stream.

Roast goose, poached chicken, steamed grouper...

And a bowl of fragrant Buddha Jumps Over the Wall.

However, the people eating at this meal had changed. At the enormous table, Aoyama (Losen) sat leisurely in the head seat.

Mr. Wei and his son, Little Wei, sat awkwardly at the other end of the table, looking extremely uncomfortable.

Behind them stood those silent, statue-like men in black.

"Eat, you're welcome."

Aoyama picked up a pair of clean silver chopsticks, took a piece of roast goose, put it in his mouth, and chewed it slowly.

"Crispy skin, tender meat, and cooked perfectly."

He ate slowly as he began to speak.

"Brother Wei, He Wei. From Taishan, Guangdong, right?"

Wei nodded blankly.

"In 1858, you arrived in San Francisco on a 'piglet ship' of the Pacific Shipping. You worked as a porter at the docks for three years, but after killing a white overseer who was withholding your wages, you ran away and went to Chinatown."

"In 1861, you followed the then leader of Fu'an Hall, Lame Tiger. You were very clever and ruthless. In 1863, you set a trap to make Lame Tiger and Yisheng Hall fight each other, resulting in both sides suffering heavy losses."

"In 1864, you personally cut off the head of the lame tiger, swallowed his territory, and established Hewei Hall. It has been fourteen years since then."

With each word Qingshan spoke, Master Wei's face paled a little more.

Qingshan took a sip of soup and continued:

"He Wei Tong controls seven blocks of Chinatown. Two casinos, four brothels, and twelve opium dens."

“Brother Wei, just because you’re in the opium business, selling those damn things to your compatriots and letting them rot on their beds, I should have chopped off your heads and stuffed them into the toilet, just like I did with Feng Haitang and his gang of scum.”

Serena Williams slid off the chair and collapsed to the ground.

Wei Ye's face was ashen.

"but……"

Aoyama changed the subject.

“I’ve looked it up. In 1868, during the white riots, those bastards stormed into Chinatown and burned and killed people. Your Hewei Church didn’t close its doors to protect itself like other churches.”

"You led a group of men who killed three white thugs and sheltered thirty-two ordinary civilians."

A hint of amusement flashed in Qingshan's eyes: "Although you were also trying to protect your own business, you still saved someone, no matter what."

"This insignificant act of kindness has given you and your son a chance to live."

He leaned forward, his fingers interlaced on the table.

"Two choices, Mr. Wei."

"First, right here, let's fight it out. You, your son, and your hundred or so brothers outside, none of them will live to see tomorrow morning. Your Hewei Hall will be expelled tonight."

Wei Ye's breathing stopped.

"second."

Aoyama held up one finger: "Take your people and get out of San Francisco. Get out of Chinatown."

“I’ve found you a piece of land in Northern California, in Sonoma County, about 160 acres, with good soil. Go there and be a good farmer.”

"This land will be your own property in a few years."

"Choose."

A full half minute passed.

"Qingshan, you really underestimate me, He Wei!"

Wei slammed his fist on the table, trying to regain some of the dignity of the company's leader.

"My He Wei Tang has over a hundred brothers and dozens of guns. Even white police officers in this Chinatown have to be wary of us. What makes you so arrogant?"

Qingshan gracefully spat out a tiny fishbone.

"Stop bragging. Don't you know your place in front of white police officers? Do you think your influence dares to leave this Chinatown?"

“I don’t have much patience. For the sake of this meal, I’ll give you ten minutes. Go, let’s discuss whether you want to leave with dignity or die an ugly death.”

Wei Ye's face turned ashen, his chest heaving like a broken bellows.

Finally, he pulled his son up from the ground and went into the accounting room at the back.

"Father! Fight him!"

As soon as he entered the house, Xiao Wei lowered his voice and said, "We have so many brothers outside! We have guns! Let's shoot him to death! I don't believe he's made of iron!"

Wei slapped Little Wei hard across the face.

"Idiot, did you see those people just now? Did you see the look in their eyes?"

"Feng Haitang and his fifty-two men, in less than an hour, all of them had their heads rolled!"

Serena Williams was stunned by the insults.

Wei leaned against the wall, as if all his strength had been drained away.

"We are not in the same league as each other."

"Now I understand why Lung Chi Tong, that old rival who had been entrenched in Chinatown for decades, disappeared without a trace overnight. The difference is too great."

"What should I do? Dad, I don't want to go farming! I don't want to be a country bumpkin!"

Wei closed his eyes.

After a long while, he and Xiao Wei went outside again.

Qingshan continued to sip his soup at a leisurely pace.

"Have you considered it?"

Wei Ye walked to the table, but instead of sitting down, he stared intently at Qingshan.

"Qingshan!"

he said viciously.

"I, He Wei, have been in the business for twenty years, experiencing countless fierce battles! I've survived countless near-death experiences to achieve my current status and business empire! You think you can just make me hand over everything with a few words? Not so easy!"

Aoyama raised his head with a half-smile: "Oh? So?"

The temperature in the hall seemed to drop a few degrees.

The men in black behind Wei Ye had already reached for their waists.

Wei clenched his teeth; he could feel the gaze of death fixed on the back of his head.

"so……"

He slammed the table.

"You have to pay more!"

Wei Ye roared.

Aoyama's expression froze, seemingly somewhat surprised.

"what?"

"I said I need more money!"

Wei Ye was going all out. Like an old wolf cornered on the edge of a cliff, he bared his last teeth: "All the properties, all the neighborhoods, all the businesses, including that damned opium shipping route, I'll give it all to you!"

"But! My men, all of my hundred or so brothers from Hewei Hall, I'm taking them with me! They're the ones who make a living with me! I can't abandon them!"

"160 acres is not enough; it's simply not enough to feed so many people!"

He held up three fingers: "We want 320 acres, double that!"

After Wei Ye finished yelling, he stared nervously at Qingshan.

This was his last gamble.

The air froze for five seconds.

Qingshan suddenly smiled.

That smile was like a gentle spring breeze.

"make a deal."

In the early morning in San Francisco, the thick fog clung to the eaves and cobblestone streets of Chinatown like a soaked gray shroud.

The world changed overnight.

Feng Haitang, the gang that had been entrenched between Sacramento Street and Clay Street, thriving on exorbitant loan sharking and the lowest form of prostitution, was gone.

It wasn't just crippled, it wasn't just severely injured, it was gone.

From top to bottom, from the gang leader Jing Hai to his nephew who loved to brand women with hot irons, and then to every thug who swaggered around the streets, they were all wiped out.

A deathly silence, carrying the smells of blood and lime, replaced the clamor.

The vermilion doors of Feng Haitang's main hall were wide open.

A group of Chinese men dressed in matching black overalls and with expressionless faces were carrying buckets of water out of the room.

The water was dark red, and when it was splashed into the drainage ditch in the center of the street, it formed a glaring stream.

They didn't make a lot of noise, and they didn't have the thuggishness and brashness of ordinary gang members.

The group of men stood silently, like a group of well-trained butchers cleaning their workshop.

Some early-rising vendors and laborers huddled at the alley entrance, barely daring to breathe.

(End of this chapter)