Strongest Counterattack

Zhuang Zhou and Nan Gong didn’t fully understand Qin Changan’s arrangement. Maybe it was because Qin Changan was at a higher position, and he definitely thought in different ways. The only thing they could do now was do as Qin Changan asked.

Qin Sheng and others arrived at the gate of the west branch of the Public Security Bureau. Qin Sheng had contacted Xue Qingyan on the way, finding out the time that Chang Baji and his followers had left and telling Xue Qingyan that he had sent Lin Su back to Ningbo.

Xue Qingyan was kind of surprised by this news, but still showed her empathy toward Qin Sheng. It was obvious that Qin Sheng had made up his mind to leave, which made Xue Qingyan upset. But she still respected Qin Sheng’s decision. She had the ability to help Qin Sheng, but she was not sure how much she should do. If Qin Sheng stayed here and something happened to him during this time, she could never take that responsibility.

Temporary endurance and withdrawal were required to pave the way to a brighter future. Qin Sheng would be safe by leaving Hangzhou, the battleground. And she would take this time to think about how she could ask somebody for help.

At half-past 10, Chang Baji and his followers were finally released. They had been trapped for almost two days. Apart from Chang Baji, everybody looked tired. They had more or less gotten hurt and suffered in the Public Security Bureau.

Qin Sheng didn’t let his underlings drive to the gate, but walked there to welcome Chang Baji and the others. He walked in front of everybody and said with guilt, “I’m really sorry for making you all suffer.”

Qin Sheng looked at everybody—from Chang Baji, Hao Lei, Gu Qingyang, and Gu Xiaobo to Tang She. They really suffered a lot this time. Qin Sheng himself was also in a difficult situation now. If he became a big shot one day, he would never forget these people, who had followed him and suffered with him.

Hao Lei walked toward Qin Sheng and made a brother-like gesture. He said, “Don’t say sorry. It’s not our first time to be put in there. It’s not that bad. And we also recalled some old memories. Hahaha…”

Tang She laughed and said, “Brother Qin, it’s all right, not a big deal. At least we vented our anger that day.”

Since Qin Sheng was dressed decently, he was obviously not released on this day. Gu Xiaobo realized this and asked, “Brother Qin, when were you released?”

“Yesterday morning,” Qin Sheng answered honestly.

Gu Xiaobo got it, but still gazed at Qin Sheng suspiciously. But nobody knew what he was thinking about.

Gu Qingyang said nothing, but he still felt uncomfortable since it was his first time to be held in the Public Security Bureau. Although he didn’t suffer a lot in there, those policemen’s words had offended him.

“Let’s go. We can talk elsewhere,” Chang Baji said, looking at Qin Sheng. They both realized what the other one was worrying about since they knew the truth of this incident.

Qin Sheng and other people all got in the car. Qin Sheng had booked rooms for everybody in the Four Seasons Hotel, preparing clean clothes for them to take a shower and relax. Besides that, he had booked seats at the Golden Sand Hall restaurant. Qin Sheng held this feast to celebrate their getting out and to say goodbye to them.

In a private room of the Golden Sand Hall in the Four Seasons Hotel beside West Lake, Qin Sheng sat alone, smoking and waiting for others. He had ordered many dishes and two bottles of red wine for his guests. He was pleased to know Chang Baji, Hao Lei, and the rest. Though he was not a lucky dog, he had made a lot of good friends.

10 minutes later, Qin Sheng’s guests entered the room and took their seats. Chang Baji was sitting to the left of Qin Sheng and Hao Lei to the right. The others also took their seats one after another.

Then the waiters began to serve the dishes and pour wine for everyone.

“Thank you for your help with the matter of Yuerong Manor. I’m sorry for what you had suffered these days,” Qin Sheng looked at everyone and said slowly. “Among all of you, Hao Lei was the first one I got to know, Lao Chang the second, and Tang She the last. All of you have never disappointed me. You’re my real friends, so I will be straight and honest. Today, in addition to welcoming your return, I have something else to say.”

Everybody looked at each other and they all had no idea about what Qin Sheng was going to say.

“Apart from Lao Chang and Hao Lei, the rest of you might be wondering what happened in Yuerong Manor. You must be curious about what kind of enemy had such incredible power to design a trap for me and make us suffer so much.” Qin Sheng looked at the other three people, who had curious looks, and said, “It’s is a long story. Yan Chaozong was our enemy when we were in Shanghai. And he is exactly the reason why we left Shanghai for Hangzhou. We didn’t expect that he would even chase us here. As for Qu Huanxi, he had some conflicts with us before and he had resentment toward us. So he cooperated with Yan Chaozong to fight against us. Now, I totally have no room to talk with them.”

Gu Xiaobo squinted and said, “Brother Qin, what are you going to do then?”

“You all more or less know about the power of the Qu Family in Hangzhou, and even in the entire Zhejiang Province. The Yan Family took up roots in Shanghai. It power is not less than that of the Qu Family in Hangzhou. Besides, the Yan Family is from Ningbo and has influence in Zhejiang Province. Now, the two big families are cooperating to beat me down. Obviously, I have no chance in Hangzhou and all of you might also become their targets because of me,” Qin Sheng said directly.

Except for Chang Baji, everybody was astonished by the news.

“Are you going to leave Hangzhou?” Hao Lei asked surprisingly. He never expected that the thing had gone that far. Qin Sheng just developed his own business in Hangzhou, but now he had no choice but to leave.

Gu Xiaobo said with a disappointed look, “Brother Qin, is there no other way?”

“There is another way, but we can’t pay the price. So the best choice is for me to leave,” Qin Sheng answered honestly.

Gu Xiaobo couldn’t help asking another question, “What about us, since you’re leaving?”

“Xiaobo…” Chang Baji said in an irritated voice.

But Qin Sheng was not angry. He just smiled and said, “That’s fine, Lao Chang. Xiaobo is honest to say so. Since you followed me to Hangzhou, I should take the responsibility for you. You have two choices regarding my leaving. First, you can stay in Hangzhou. I have mentioned this to Mr. Cao so that you can continue doing your present jobs. Mr. Cao won’t trouble you. But the risk of this choice is that you might become targets of the Qu Family and Yan Family. Second, you can go to other places to avoid the current troubles. When I settle down, I’ll inform you so you can come and follow me as before. What do you think of these options?”

“I’m cool with the second one. It’ll be better to escape from the troubles for a while,” Chang Baji said casually. He had expected the result Qin Sheng would get and also believed that this would be the best choice. This was much better than being beaten to the grave and driven away from Hangzhou.

Hao Lei hesitated for a while and said, “Then I’m going back to Xi’an for some time.”

“I agree with Senior Uncle,” Gu Qingyang said. He didn’t have other ideas about this result. After all, he had learned a lot during his time staying in Hangzhou. And now he needed some time to think about it. It was a good chance for him to go back to Mount Tianmu to cultivate himself.

Gu Xiaobo and Tang She said nothing. Tang She was struggling, for he was different from the others. He just stepped into this core field not long ago, and he just occasionally was involved in this incident. Tang She was not sure if Qin Sheng had recognized and accepted him, so he was hesitating to show his attitude.

“Tang She, you’re different. You were born in Zhejiang Province. If you’re willing, you can then follow me with them. But if not, you can choose to hide from all these troubles for some time then go back,” Qin Sheng said thoughtfully, showing that he had treated Tang She as one of his underlings.

Hearing this, Tang She was firm in saying, “Brother Qin, I’m not a capable person now. I’m really moved since you don’t look down upon me. I trust you. You’ll absolutely become somebody. So I’m following you.”

Qin Sheng was happy about what he said. “Good. You just wait for me. And… don’t worry, everybody. I’ve prepared plenty of money for you to get through this difficult period. You have to take it, or I’d feel upset.”

Qin Sheng pulled out some debit cards from his pocket, each containing 500,000 yuan. He borrowed the money from Lin Su. Although she had been his woman, he would absolutely repay the money one day, for this was for his own business.

Chang Baji didn’t refuse and was the first one to pick up a card. Then others felt it hard to refuse and also took the cards one after another.

Qin Sheng said calmly, “Each card has 500,000 yuan on it. The PIN is 888888. You can spend it as you like. I hope it’ll be enough for you before I settle down there.”

“I don’t want to leave Hangzhou,” Gu Xiaobo, who had not voiced his opinion, said coldly. He had gotten used to this fantastic outside world. It was impossible for him to go back to the distant mountains and forest to lead an ascetic life.

Chang Baji was annoyed by Gu Xiaobo’s attitude. He said irritatedly, “You don’t want to leave? Then I’ll ask our master to take you back.”

Qin Sheng showed a forced smile and said, “It won’t be long.”

Gu Xiaobo heard Chang Baji and didn’t dare to speak anymore. Obviously, he had been totally disappointed by Qin Sheng. He thought that he could gain endless wealth after following Qin Sheng. But now, he was as panicked as a stray dog. He could not bear this.

Chang Baji frowned and said, “Where do intend to go after leaving Hangzhou?”

“Wuhan. I have contacts with the Zhang Family in Hubei and Hunan provinces, where it has a great influence. Hubei and Hunan are far from the Yangtze River Delta, so it’ll be a proper place for me to stay temporarily. The Zhang Family had conflicts with the Qu Family before. So I believe that it’ll help me to get through this.” Qin Sheng hid nothing and answered honestly. This was his exact plan now.

Chang Baji nodded. He never worried about Qin Sheng’s ability to deal with these interpersonal relationship things. After all, Qin Sheng had Old Master Qin behind. So he continued to ask, “When will you leave?”

“At dusk, tomorrow evening,” Qin Sheng answered directly. He didn’t dare to waste time anymore. The longer he stayed, the more danger he would face.

Chang Baji frowned and thought for a while. Then he said seriously, “I’m afraid you are being tracked by those people and they won’t allow you to leave easily. So we will back you up to guarantee that you safely leave Hangzhou tomorrow evening.”

Qin Sheng didn’t refuse, for this was exactly what he worried about. He didn’t expect that Chang Baji would mention this even before he did. Qin Sheng was grateful to say, “That’ll be fine.”

They looked at each other, and both of them knew what the other was worrying about…