Chapter 333: The Purpose of Coming to Sijiucheng

Hearing Zhu Sheng say that,

I only then understood the matters here.

I said, "What position does that Mei Ge hold in Sijiucheng?"

Zhu Sheng replied, "A neither big nor small position—deputy director of the office, limited authority. If the authority were great, would we find it so difficult?"

Now he has already helped us to the limit.

We must recruit new allies; otherwise, we are no match for Zhou Renfeng.

"Recruit new allies. Zhu Sheng, it seems we have oversimplified this. I thought that relying on Mei Ge behind you would let us easily deal with Zhou Renfeng."

Zhu Sheng smiled,

"Jianqiang, nothing in the world is that easy. You are far from Sijiucheng and do not know how deep the waters are here.

You think of people like Niu Ju or Kong Shi wanting to be removed; Zhou Renfeng can do it with a single word, showing how powerful he is.

Let me tell you, Sijiucheng is divided into many factions; they form various small groups through fellow hometowns, classmates, marriage alliances, and the like.

These small groups fight each other internally and sabotage one another.

Here everyone is busy digging pits to deal with others.

Anyone who is a little careless will fall into a pit.

There are especially many who are attached to Zhou Renfeng,

but there are also opponents of Zhou Renfeng; they just dare not speak up.

There is another type: the centrists, also called fence‑sitters; when one side is powerful, they side with that side.

Now in Sijiucheng, it is a time of change,

We now need to win more friends, to cooperate in confronting Zhou Renfeng.

Do you know that a newly risen Second Master Wen in Sijiucheng is named Wen Han?

His father is a person of roughly the same rank as Zhou Renfeng.

Wen Han's prominence now already surpasses the original four great young masters of Sijiucheng.

However, the relationship between Wen Han's father and Zhou Renfeng is merely adequate, with no conflict of interest,

What we need to do now is to sever Zhou Renfeng's ties with the Wen Family completely.

Allow the Wen Family to reach out and help us.

I sent you to Sijiucheng so that you could befriend Wen Han, and through him, win over his father.

It was the first time I heard of Second Master Wen and the Wen Family of Sijiucheng.

"Befriending Wen Han is possible, Zhu Sheng. Where does Wen Han usually appear?" I asked.

"Wen Han, He Zuming knows," Zhu Sheng said.

"Mr. He knows him. How could he know someone of that rank?"

"Don't underestimate He Zuming; over the years he has also made connections in Sijiucheng. He relies on Divination and Feng Shui, gaining the appreciation of some people, and he can help us meet Wen Han."

"Then can we go directly through He Zuming to Wen Han's father, tell him about Zhou Renfeng, and have him help us?"

Zhu Sheng shook his head,

"He Zuming is just a Divination man; how could he have that much face?"

Jianqiang, in Sijiucheng, both the older and younger generations have relationships; no one would openly turn hostile.

Does Wen Han's father not know about Zhou Renfeng? He certainly does.

However, the well water does not interfere with the river water; as long as you do not touch my interests, I will not touch yours. Everyone can live peacefully.

People at this level pursue stability, and they also need to look after each other's face.

Do you understand? He would never offend Zhou Renfeng for our sake.

Unless the two families become mortal enemies, fighting to the point of no reconciliation, then no one will care about each other's face; it will be a life‑or‑death struggle.

Why I have you befriend Wen Han is for one purpose: to find a way to make the matter between Second Master Wen and young master Zhou blow up.

Only then will we have a chance. Otherwise, no one wants to wade through this murky water.

I nodded,

"Zhu Sheng, I understand. I'll go see He Zuming tomorrow to discuss how to befriend Wen Han."

"Jianqiang, befriending such a person requires money; how much cash do you have now?" Zhu Sheng asked.

"This time I came to Sijiucheng with over one million cash; I still have more than ten million in hand. Now Qi He Kuang is under our control, bringing in money every month."

Zhu Sheng took a drag of his cigarette,

"Tomorrow have Ding Li go back and bring that over ten million cash in full. The money from Qi He Kuang should also be ready to be taken at any time.

Only money can win over such a young master."

"Alright, Zhu Sheng. I'll arrange for Ding Li to go back tomorrow."

"We must take a gamble now. Jianqiang, this is our last chance.

I told Shangguan Zhuren that there would be news by March,

but the information I got from Mei Ge was that there would be no change in March.

Tomorrow I'll ask Mei Ge again whether there have been personnel changes this year.

If personnel remain unchanged, it is unfavorable to us.

Alas, there's no other way for now; I could only bring you into Sijiucheng.

We will take the initiative to strike.

Otherwise we can only passively take hits.

I said, "Zhu Sheng, I'm already in this state, my status is that of a fugitive. I have no choice but to take a gamble.

At present, Lei Lei has temporarily restrained Kong Shi."

Zaocheng doesn't need any worrying.

I can go all out and properly deal with them in Sijiucheng.

"If we mess up their relationships, only then will we have a chance."

"By the way, in Sijiucheng you must be careful everywhere; after all, you've had surgery to look like Fu Hai."

I said, "I'm nobody now. Zhu Sheng, do I look more like Fu Hai or like Zhao Jianqiang?"

Zhu Sheng looked at me carefully,

"How should I put it? Your face is a bit like Fu Hai, your body like Zhao Jianqiang. It would be better if you lost some weight."

"Alright, Zhu Sheng, I'll start dieting from tomorrow and slim down."

"Jianqiang, sigh, it's hard on you. To make you look like Fu Hai, you had surgery and got fat yourself, and now you have to lose weight again," Zhu Sheng said.

"Zhu Sheng, from what you say, this is also for my own sake. Otherwise there would never be a day when I could stand out. A person lives a whole life—what for,

to live openly and honorably, not sneaking around like a mouse,

they've schemed against me and made me like this; I must repay them double, let them taste the bitterness of being schemed against."

"Right, an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth," Zhu Sheng said excitedly.

Early the next morning, I got up and arranged for Ding Li to return to Zaocheng, bringing back the more than ten‑million cash that was stored at Shanghu for use.

Ding Li drove back to Zaocheng.

I went alone to find He Zuming to ask about Second Master Wen.

When I arrived at He Zuming's shop, He Zuming had not yet opened.

I called out as I opened the door; He Zuming opened the door and, seeing it was me,

smiled and said, "Jianqiang, I guessed it was you. Old Zhu already told you."

I nodded,

"Yes, Mr. He. I didn't sleep at all last night, and as soon as daybreak I came to see you to discuss what to do."

He Zuming yawned,

"Jianqiang, you're too impatient; impatience can't eat hot tofu."

"Mr. He, I can't afford to be impatient any longer; I'm now a fugitive, and the whole clan in Zaocheng is counting on me, otherwise we'll all be finished."

"Jianqiang, even the biggest matters become manageable when you face them. You need to learn to endure, not to be too calculative about gains and losses.

'Sigh, I've been drifting in Sijiucheng all these years, and I've long become accustomed to the world's cycles of life and death, its ups and downs; many people watch as someone builds a tall building,

only to see his building collapse.

Life is just like that. Eat your fill, drink your fill, and who cares if today the wind blows or the rain falls.'

"Mr. He, you still don't understand me. We've known each other so long in Zaocheng; whatever the matter, I can't let it go. I want to resolve it as quickly as possible, so this affair has a good outcome." I finished and pulled out a cigarette.

"Everyone wants to resolve it as quickly as possible. Let this matter have a good result." I finished speaking and pulled out a cigarette.