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Chapter 94: No Shame, No Regret
"This is what they call online bullying. In a diverse world, it's not just one rule at play."
The next morning, Xiao Mu drove leisurely past Seaview Tower with Small Gourd and Big Gourd. The interior was under renovation, and a sign indicating it was temporarily closed was already up. Big Gourd took a picture. If he had once admired it, now he felt a blind devotion, a kind of fervent blind following. He handed his phone to Xiao Mu and asked, "Wood Master..."
"Don't call me that. Just call me Brother. We brothers should be equal; the world isn't fair, but we can be fair among ourselves," Xiao Mu replied with a smile.
"Ah... Brother Mu, oh no, Brother... I think I understand now. Since this place is closing down, won't it be easier for the others?" Big Gourd finally grasped Xiao Mu's intention.
"Of course! To kill the chicken to scare the monkey; who would dare to disobey?" Xiao Mu said proudly.
Erhu Lu chimed in, "Wood Master... oh no, Brother, they won't get too worked up and beat us up, right? Lezi is still lying in the hospital."
"Just let him be; he still has to lie down. Being the bad guy doesn't mean you have to go all out. For instance, if we trick those who are looking for hookups, they might grumble and pay three to five hundred without much fuss. But if you ask for three to five thousand and they report you to the police afterward, they'll definitely fight back if you try to extort thirty to fifty thousand," Xiao Mu explained.
"Oh, I get it now. Slow and steady wins the race. Lame Brother often tells us that we should just scare them a bit and not actually fight," Big Gourd said.
"Ah, I wonder how Lame Brother is doing," Erhu Lu said nostalgically, his tone unexpectedly filled with concern.
Xiao Mu casually asked, "So how does Lame Brother treat you guys?"
"Pretty good; he often takes us to the police station," Big Gourd replied.
"That's great! He brought us back from the train station," Erhu Lu added.
"Oh, we mustn't forget our roots. We need news about Lame Brother; when we have money, we'll take care of him. Once we have some cash flow, we can cook for Lame Brother; and that girl can also help take care of him," Xiao Mu chuckled.
Unexpectedly, an offhand comment prompted Big Gourd to reminisce about old times. "Does Lame Brother really need that little bit of money? That business is a losing venture; he can't make any money... At least not before you came."
"No way! Is Lame Brother running a charity? Taking in those with no means?" Xiao Mu questioned skeptically.
"Well..." Big Gourd hesitated for a moment before bluntly stating, "Brother, you don't understand; Lame Brother doesn't rely on selling himself... What he relies on is something else. Do you know what it is?"
"I can't know that. Oh, wait, selling people," Xiao Mu said.
Erhu Lu was so shocked he nearly jumped up, exclaiming, "Damn, you really know."
"Isn't Panzi just the guide? Pick someone with a good background and go steal?" Xiao Mu replied.
"Look, this isn't even a secret; the big brother saw it at a glance," Erhu Lu said.
"It seems like it's not a good thing either. Panzi, Lame Brother, Ma Ye, and Brother Mao—how did they all disappear at once?" Big Gourd said sadly. Erhu Lu added, "They must have gone in. No point in thinking about it; we might end up going in as classmates too."
"Get lost! I'm not going in," Big Gourd retorted.
"Well, you can't help it. Being this fat, you'll just wait for the police to chase you down; you won't even be able to run," Erhu Lu said.
The two exchanged curses and then started to poke each other. Xiao Mu didn't intervene; these guys were already blood brothers through their bickering—more than just friends.
Before long, they arrived at the second-floor hotel, Yueke Sichuan Restaurant. It seemed like the extortion was about to continue.
But just as they were about to act, the two brothers looked at him eagerly and finally couldn't hold back, blocking his way. Big Gourd said earnestly, "Big brother, you can't take this on yourself; it's dangerous."
"Yeah, if it comes to a fight, at least we brothers can take a beating better than you," Erhu Lu added.
"Do you think I'm such an ungrateful person that I'd leave the danger to my brothers? I already feel guilty about what happened to Lezi yesterday. Today it has to be me; are you not listening to your big brother? Step aside," Xiao Mu said sternly. The two didn't dare oppose him and reluctantly stepped aside, feeling moved.
"Big brother is truly loyal; he's more loyal than Old Cripple. Old Cripple is just a friend at most; Mu Shao is a real brother," Big Gourd said emotionally.
"I feel like they might think we're stupid and won't talk," Erhu Lu sensed something was off.
"Shut your mouth! You think you can talk?" Big Gourd shouted back at him.
The two stopped their bickering and nervously watched as Xiao Mu entered the restaurant. This was about extorting money—a mix of intimidation and deceit that required someone with their looks. With someone as harmless as Xiao Mu, they were genuinely worried...
……………………………
Isn't it just extortion? Isn't it just blackmail?
For someone studying psychology, this is not difficult at all, because they can accurately glimpse your weaknesses, your fears, and the things that terrify you the most.
So, having gone through this many times, Xiao Mu sat calmly in the private dining room of the hotel, dressed in a suit and tie, with a bright press badge. He was definitely not the kind of casual artist that Lezi was; he walked in and immediately intimidated everyone. When he asked for the boss, the boss came out personally to greet him.
Now, there were plenty of tools at his disposal. The conversation between Lezi and the owner of Seaside Tower Hotel from yesterday had been recorded.
From yesterday to today, the troubles faced by Seaview Tower were public knowledge. That sign announcing the temporary closure made the owner's eyelids twitch.
The comments circulating online made the owner’s heart race.
Without needing to say a word, the video had already presented a complete story; those who refused to cooperate found their doors closed for business.
"We absolutely do not have such issues here... Hey, Xizi, bring in two packs of cigarettes, Su Yan." The owner trembled as he hurriedly tried to appease him.
"Really not? Our Press is looking to report on similar in-depth stories; food safety is a concern for the public. Just last night’s post received over sixty thousand comments," Xiao Mu said with an air of feigned righteousness.
"Really not... Oh, I’m sorry for troubling you. These two packs of cigarettes, you..." The owner smiled ingratiatingly, clearly trying to play along with unspoken rules.
Xiao Mu chuckled lightly; those cigarettes were quite valuable. He smiled and said, "If there’s nothing wrong, then don’t be so polite. It makes me feel like I’m here to solicit bribes... People like me working in Press have much higher standards than those in relevant departments; we absolutely wouldn’t take things for free."
"Oh, indeed... But we really don’t have such matters; you..."
"I certainly believe that. However, it seems something else happened here."
"Did it?"
"Yes, four days ago you hired a dishwasher who only worked for three days before leaving yesterday... His name was Liu Yang, right?"
"Uh..."
The boss was so shocked that he choked on his words. Wasn't the owner of a restaurant supposed to be sharp as a tack? He immediately contacted the Seaview Tower, fearing that if this was a deliberate act of troublemaking, it would truly scare him.
Xiao Mu fell silent, holding up another phone and playing a short video. It showed the restaurant's kitchen, where the hot pot broth was being filtered. The chili peppers, Sichuan peppercorns, and ginger slices were being sorted again. Even more disgusting was that the filtered broth wasn't discarded; instead, it was allowed to settle and then reused. Having attended the Culinary School, Xiao Mu recalled what the Master had said: that broth enhances flavor and is perfectly safe—no one would die from it.
"This... this... I... I... this..." The boss wiped the sweat from his forehead, trembling with fear. He quickly closed the door, recognizing that it was his own establishment. Bowing slightly, he pleaded, "Brother, I've invested my entire fortune in this restaurant. If I have to close it down, my family will be stuck for ten or eight years without recovery. I spent three hundred thousand just on renovations."
"But it can't be like this," Xiao Mu replied softly, his expression cold.
"This industry is just like this. Please show some mercy; let’s leave some room for each other," the boss begged.
"Look at you! I clearly want to establish a good reputation, yet you force me into a corner. This is something that angers both gods and men," Xiao Mu said seriously. The boss looked troubled and nearly cried. Then Xiao Mu's expression changed as he softly said, "Alright then, just be careful in the future. You can pay for your own experience and lessons; I'll give you a chance."
The boss's face fell; he felt like he was bleeding money. The problem was he didn't know how much to offer. He pleaded, "I really can't afford fifty thousand right now; public funds don't allow for dining expenses, and business is tough. Isn't this just cutting costs? Look..."
"You misunderstood," Xiao Mu said as he pulled out a printed document—a standard contract—and smiled as he handed it to the boss. "I'll give you a quarter-page advertisement in the newspaper for your grand opening or anniversary celebration to attract some customers—discounts or promotions are up to you... What do you think? Let’s turn this bad situation into a good one?"
"This... this... twenty-nine thousand eight?" The boss stared wide-eyed as if he had swallowed an egg whole.
"Will you sign or not?" Xiao Mu asked with a smile.
After a long silence, when Xiao Mu stood up to leave, the boss finally couldn't hold back any longer and pressed down on the contract paper: "Yes, I'll sign."
"That's more like it... Please make sure to transfer the payment according to the contract within two hours. If I don't see the money by noon, I'll consider you untrustworthy, and you'll bear all consequences for what happens next," Xiao Mu said as he left behind a copy of the contract. The boss nervously stopped him, looking distressed. Xiao Mu understood his worries and smiled reassuringly: "Don't look at me like that—as if I've robbed your daughter! This is an era of mutual exploitation; it's all about taking advantage of each other. You can’t just exploit others without being exploited yourself... Remember, if I don’t see the money by noon, your face will be all over the internet."
Xiao Mu leisurely stood up and unceremoniously took two cigarettes before making a funny face and slipping away.
Behind him, the small boss sat there drenched in sweat and dejected. Moments later, he bolted out of the restaurant; at that point, who could still see anyone?
One restaurant after another, three people moved through different eateries in the city—one deal after another—like they were on an assembly line. Small Gourd and Big Gourd were completely clueless about what was happening until nearly noon when Xiao Mu's phone rang. Upon answering, it seemed someone on the other end informed him that Boss Mu had received the payment—thank you very much! How about we grab a meal together? We have some business we need your help with.
Xiao Mu declined but showed the payment notification on his phone to both gourds. They were so shocked they bit their fingers in disbelief; after listening for a while, they finally understood. Big Gourd exclaimed in astonishment, "Oh my god! Is this how it works? You can extort someone just by signing a contract?"
"Why should we give the money we extorted to Big Head?" Erhu Lu still didn't understand.
However, the two of them grasped Xiao Mu's deeper meaning. When they infiltrated the hotel with dozens of thugs posing as Traitors, and everyone was on edge, the evidence combined with the incident at Seaview Tower would be enough to scare those unscrupulous businessmen like mice. Yet, they felt a bit shortchanged about taking the small cut for themselves.
"You both need to learn something here. Directly taking money is called extortion, which is illegal income; indirectly taking money is called commission, which is legal income. What's there to be nervous about? It's not illegal," Xiao Mu instructed his two brothers.
But Jewel had already cast a vote in secret, and Big Gourd scoffed, "Who’s nervous? Not at all."
"Right? It’s just that without some excitement, it feels really dull," Erhu Lu also found it uninteresting.
Xiao Mu smiled silently. These two probably had never had any legal income before and truly couldn't believe there could be any legitimate way to earn money.
……………………………
……………………………
Guan Yiqing and Shen Lingchen met at the Overseas Chinese Hospital. The private hospital had an upscale decor and lobby. As they hurriedly parked their car, Shen Lingchen was already coming over to greet him.
"How did you confirm it?" Shen Lingchen asked directly.
"It was quite easy to confirm. Xiao Mu's old phone number had the most contacts with this person, Su Rongle... This is the police report from the Xiyuan Road station from the night before yesterday. The incident has had a significant impact and is trending online right now. So... here..." Guan Yiqing handed over some documents. Shen Lingchen quickly scanned through them; it was about a rich second-generation kid who got beaten up, with nine suspects summoned. Coincidentally, the incident occurred at Seaview Tower, which had just been exposed for such negative news. Guan Yiqing recognized this name from the report; he remembered seeing this guy at a wedding of one of Xiao Mu's friends.
This was the only lead discovered in recent days.
"But what does this have to do with Xiao Mu?" Shen Lingchen asked.
"It's precisely because I can't figure it out that I think it might be related," Guan Yiqing replied.
Indeed, if it were something that Xiao Mu did, then it would make sense. As they walked on, he handed his phone to Guan Yiqing, connecting several unrelated keywords: Seaview Tower, rich second-generation, chef beating someone, and then negative news online... How could they possibly connect? After a while, he paused in doubt and said, "The situation is unclear; Xiao Mu is currently like a startled bird... But what does it mean that Su Rongle got involved? He exposed the hotel's negative news... How could he end up being cornered in the kitchen and beaten?"
"By the way, I called and asked; the hotel manager said that Su Rongle extorted fifty thousand from him," Guan Yiqing said.
"And then?" Shen Lingchen asked.
"It’s impossible. Young Master Su's family is a real estate developer. How could they possibly extort him?" Guan Yiqing said, clearly not believing this story.
"What’s going on?" Shen Lingchen pondered, unable to comprehend the situation.
The two of them made their way into the hospital ward, and when they finally saw Young Master Su, they were genuinely taken aback. One side of his face was disfigured, and even the side that wasn’t disfigured didn’t look great. He was groaning in bed while a middle-aged woman, presumably a family member, comforted him.
They lingered at the door, and Guan Yiqing called for someone to accompany her. Once a person came out, she pretended to inquire about the patient's condition. Seizing this opportunity, Shen Lingchen stepped in and revealed his identity. Young Master Su lamented painfully, "Officer, look at what they did to me... It’s outrageous! I want to sue them for three hundred thousand... no, fifty thousand... Oh my face... They really beat me! How could I possibly extort them? I discovered issues with their hotel and was just demanding they stop their illegal activities... These bastards didn’t even ask anything and just attacked me..."
His speech was slurred; he was clearly injured. However, to Shen Lingchen, it didn’t seem severe enough. The way he was whining reminded Shen Lingchen of Xiao Mu. As Young Master Su continued to complain, Shen Lingchen suddenly asked, "Did Xiao Mu teach you this method?"
"Huh? How did you know?" Young Master Su was taken aback and asked in return. Shen Lingchen smiled; he looked like he was about to cry. Denying it with one side of his face still swollen, he said, "Who is Xiao Mu? I don’t know him."
"Look at you! Xiao Mu and I are buddies; we met in Suzhou and Hangzhou. If it weren’t for him speaking up for you, I wouldn’t have bothered helping you," Shen Lingchen said without batting an eye.
Young Master Su watched Shen Lingchen warily; this wasn’t part of the script. Xiao Mu hadn’t told him anything like that—only to call the police and then lie in bed waiting for compensation. After being beaten like this, surely even his father couldn’t ignore it?
Shen Lingchen smiled and gestured, "Tsk... Let’s make a phone call to verify this. Don’t say I’m deceiving you; I’ll arrange for an injury assessment."
Oh, this was essential; they had to rely on this to extort some money. Young Master Su pulled out his phone and dialed Xiao Mu's number. As soon as he made the call, his injuries seemed less severe; he sat up and asked over the phone, "Mu, where are you? Oh man, you guys brought back several tens of thousands? Press wants to hire you as the advertising department head... Hey, let me tell you, I want my share of that money! I can’t be the one getting beaten while you guys feast! Okay, okay, I know; I’m lying down... By the way, there’s a police officer here; did you arrange that?"
Shen Lingchen reached over and took Young Master Su's phone away. Young Master Su stared blankly at him, feeling a bit anxious as he looked at the receiver. Shen Lingchen simply asked calmly into the phone, "Where are you?"
After seemingly getting an address, he tossed the phone back to Young Master Su and started walking away. Young Master Su nervously shouted after him, "Hey! Are we on the same side? Why act all cool? You look like a dirty cop!"
No one paid him any mind anymore. Feeling frustrated by himself, he dialed Xiao Mu again but ended up getting scolded as an idiot before angrily throwing his phone.
Guan Yiqing and Shen Lingchen hurried downstairs. Shen Lingchen's expression was quite grim. Guan Yiqing asked with concern, "Master, what happened? Is there trouble?"
"He’s fine; but many others might be in trouble... I understand," Shen Lingchen suddenly stopped.
"What’s going on?" Guan Yiqing pressed.
"It’s He Shi—Old Cripple—and Widow Ma along with Mourning Hair's men; they’ve all been brought here by him. No wonder those people have disappeared—they came here in groups," Shen Lingchen said in astonishment.
"He brought it? But I couldn't find anything at all," Guan Yiqing said.
"At South Huai Culinary School, in the suburbs," Shen Lingchen replied.
"Oh, that's where he hid it. No wonder... Hey, that's a good thing! He wouldn't be trying to train these unqualified people through a vocational school to give them a way out, would he?" Guan Yiqing instantly elevated Xiao Mu's image.
"It's already been found," Shen Lingchen thought for a moment, then understood and started walking.
"Really? Xiao Mu actually has a good heart," Guan Yiqing smiled.
"Good heart my ass! He brought a bunch of ruffians from Suzhou and Hangzhou to Binhai to extort money. Plus, with Su Rongle, that bad seed, stirring the pot, I bet they've already made quite a haul... That guy just said that the press wants to hire Xiao Mu as their advertising director... This guy must have had a hand in the restaurant's troubles..." Shen Lingchen hurriedly walked, his words painting a terrifying picture in his mind. Organizing dozens of thugs with a half-baked psychologist who knows crime so well could lead to massive destruction—just thinking about it gave him a headache.
Hastily getting into the car, Guan Yiqing started the engine and skeptically said, "It can't be that serious, right?"
"Let's hope so. It seems I've done something foolish. I need to go back and switch cars, then wait for him at the Culinary School."
Shen Lingchen leaned back against the seat with a bit of a headache. The worst fear for an informant is becoming a suspect. And Xiao Mu had severed ties with his father and was now being recognized by Ma Yubing's group. Now that he had his own crew, Shen Lingchen seriously doubted whether he could still keep hold of him if this person transformed...
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