The sky collapsed, and in the blink of an eye, I found myself transported to Nanluoguxiang.

The same two men that Ma Xiaohai sent last time were keeping an eye on Hu Laoliu's stall.

The moment Li Kaixin appeared, the two of them recognized him immediately; the beating they'd suffered last time was still fresh in their minds.

When they looked into each other's eyes, they both saw an uncontrollable hatred in each other's eyes.

The sleazy-looking man lowered his voice and said, "Erhu, you keep a close watch here. I'm going to inform Brother Ma."

"Hao Jian, hurry up! It would be best to have Brother Ma bring more brothers over," Erhu added through gritted teeth.

Hao Jian nodded, then crouched down and ran out of the black market.

......

Hu Laoliu moved quickly. Not long after Li Kaixin lay down on his previous chair, he returned with eight brothers and four carts.

Hu Laoliu stepped forward, a smile plastered on his face: "I'm sorry, Brother Zhou, you're shipping a lot of goods this time, so I called a few more brothers."

"It's alright, Brother Hu Liu." Li Kaixin stood up from his chair. "Come with me."

As he spoke, he walked ahead and led the way.

Seeing that Li Kaixin and his group were about to leave, but Hao Jian had not yet brought them, Erhu, who was hiding in the shadows, became anxious.

This was an opportunity he had been waiting for for days. He cursed Hao Jian under his breath, but didn't care about anything else and quietly followed him.

To their surprise, as soon as they stepped out of the black market, they saw Hao Jian and Ma Xiaohai leading five or six brothers waiting in the shadows.

Erhu leaned closer and whispered, "Hao Jian, why are you and Brother Ma both outside? I thought you hadn't arrived yet."

"Are you stupid, Erhu!" Hao Jian chimed in. "With so many people crowding into the black market to guard it, wouldn't it have been exposed long ago?"

"Stop talking nonsense and stick close," Ma Xiaohai snapped, interrupting the two.

Erhu and Hao Jian immediately fell silent, and the group of nine quietly followed.

Li Kaixin led Hu Laoliu through several alleys until they arrived at their destination.

Upon seeing the chickens, ducks, and rabbits scattered all over the ground, Hu Laoliu immediately waved to his underlings behind him, and everyone began to get busy.

Just like last time, he carefully packed the prepared tickets in his satchel and handed them to Li Kaixin: "Brother Zhou, these are the tickets you requested. Please take a look."

Li Kaixin took the handbag and slung it over her shoulder: "No need to count, just tell me the money."

"readily!"

Old Hu glanced around and tentatively asked, "By the way, Brother Zhou, why are you thinking of changing land again? Wasn't the last piece of land quite good?"

Li Kaixin didn't hide anything and sighed, "Last time we made a deal, we were targeted by two petty thieves who even robbed me."

"Brother Zhou, are you alright?" Hu Laoliu's heart tightened upon hearing this.

Li Kaixin smiled and said, "Brother Hu Liu, do I look like something's wrong?"

Hu Laoliu immediately breathed a sigh of relief, then said, "Should I have someone inquire and teach you a lesson?"

It wasn't that he had a deep relationship with Li Kaixin, but he was afraid that Li Kaixin would suspect that he had set up the scheme right after the transaction.

He's made a lot of money from these transactions thanks to Li Kaixin's goods. If he doesn't come back in the future, he'll have no one to blame but himself.

"No need for that. They were just a few petty thieves. I took care of them on the spot." Li Kaixin refused directly.

Upon hearing this, Hu Laoliu was taken aback at first, then a flattering smile spread across his face: "Yes, yes, Brother Zhou is clearly a capable person."

At this moment, a henchman quickly walked over and whispered in Hu Laoliu's ear, "Sixth Brother, the goods have been counted and packed, and the quantity is the same as you instructed."

"Alright, you can continue loading the truck." Old Hu nodded, turned around, and took out a cloth bag from his pocket.

"Brother Zhou, after deducting the cost of your tickets, there are three large yellow croakers in total, plus 550 yuan in cash. Please count them."

"No need to order. We've done business together before, I trust you." Li Kaixin took the cloth bag and casually stuffed it into his pocket. "I have something to do, so I'll be going now."

Watching Li Kaixin's departing figure, Hu Laoliu waved to a young man who was carrying goods next to him.

The young man immediately put down what he was doing and ran up to Hu Laoliu: "Brother Liu, what can I do for you?"

"You've got connections, kid. When you get back, find out which bastards were hanging around in the place where I made the deal with Brother Zhou last time."

Hu Laoliu lowered his voice, a ruthless glint in his eyes, "After we find out who they are, take a few brothers and give them a good beating."

"Understood, Sixth Brother," the underling replied immediately.

Old Hu waved his hand and said, "Go on with your work."

He didn't care whether those petty thieves acted intentionally or unintentionally; touching this line meant cutting off his source of income.

At the alley entrance, Ma Xiaohai, seeing Li Kaixin emerge, immediately waved to his underlings behind him.

After walking for a while, Li Kaixin sensed that something was wrong.

He raised the corners of his mouth almost imperceptibly, then turned and deliberately walked deeper into a quieter alley.

A moment later, Li Kaixin stopped in front of a dilapidated courtyard house and turned around abruptly.

"You've been following me all this way, come out now!"

"Clap!" "Clap!" With two crisp claps, Ma Xiaohai led eight of his men out of the shadows: "Brother Zhou, good hearing! We were so careful, but you still noticed us."

"It's you!" Li Kaixin frowned slightly, looking at the group of people in front of him. "What do you want with so many people?"

As he spoke, his body tensed slightly, ready to strike at any moment.

He didn't believe that Ma Xiaohai could have brought anything good by leading such a group of people all the way.

"Don't be nervous, don't be nervous!" Ma Xiaohai waved his hand, forcing a smile. "I just want to have a proper business talk with you."

But the hand he had behind his back was rapidly gesturing to his underlings.

At Brother Ma's signal, Erhu, Hao Jian, and their henchmen immediately surrounded Li Kaixin.

Seeing this, Li Kaixin didn't move. He had been worried that someone might slip away in the chaos if a fight broke out, but this was perfect, saving him the trouble of chasing after them.

"We don't have anything to talk about. If there's nothing else, I'll be going now," Li Kaixin said, making a move to leave.

However, by this time, Ma Xiaohai's eight henchmen had already surrounded him.

"Brother Zhou, I'm afraid you're not getting away." Seeing that the crowd was already tightly packed, Ma Xiaohai, feeling confident of victory, pushed past one of his underlings and stepped forward. "Now, can we have a proper chat?"

"What are you doing? Aren't you afraid I'll tell Boss Guan?" Li Kaixin feigned surprise and anger, deliberately raising his voice.

"Boss Guan? He's nothing! It won't be long before I take his place."

Ma Xiaohai chuckled, then glanced around at his men: "Tell me, do you think I, Ma Xiaohai, would be afraid of him?"

"Brother Ma is right, what is that guy surnamed Guan anyway!" Hao Jianli immediately chimed in obsequiously.

The other underlings echoed the sentiments, and for a time the scene was filled with flattering voices.