Chapter 98: This is the intimidation won through force

William looked at Lin Yu's deep, dark eyes, his heart turned cold, and he hurriedly lifted his wine glass: "Director Lin, you guys chat, I'll go to the balcony to get some air."

After saying that, the British Concession's representative practically fled in panic. He didn't want to provoke this madman; that day's bloodbath at the Great Three Elements had made the entire Shen City tremble with fear.

Lei Nuo watched William's retreating back, his Adam's apple involuntarily bobbing.

"Director... Director Lin," he forced himself to stay calm, "that day's incident was a misunderstanding. I and Muto Chiaki were just..."

"A misunderstanding?" Lin Yu gently swirled his wine glass, cutting him off: "Mr. Lei Nuo, do you think I'm the kind of person who can be fooled?"

He leaned in close to Lei Nuo, his voice soft as a whisper: "The rules of the French Concession, I, Lin Yu, have never taken them to heart. But sincerity, this kind of thing..."

Lei Nuo saw the cold light flashing in Lin Yu's eyes and involuntarily stepped back. That day at the Great Three Elements, how Muto Chiaki's head was blown apart—he knew it all too well.

"Two... twenty thousand taels!" Lei Nuo gritted his teeth and said, "I personally am willing to donate twenty thousand taels to help Director Lin maintain peace in Shen City."

Lin Yu's expression then eased, revealing a false smile: "Mr. Lei Nuo, you truly understand the greater good."

He raised his wine glass and lightly tapped Lei Nuo's cup: "Come, let's drink to our friendship."

Lei Nuo forced down his fear, smiling as he drained his glass. He knew those twenty thousand taels bought not friendship, but his life.

Seeing Lei Nuo's forehead bead with cold sweat, Lin Yu smirked inwardly. These foreigners, accustomed to running amok in Shen City, thought they were superior. Little did they know, before true strength, they were nothing but a bunch of petty clowns.

Lei Nuo's hand trembled slightly as he signed his name on the check.

"Secretary Zhou," Lin Yu took the check and casually handed it to Zhou Wei beside him, "please announce this for me."

Zhou Wei took the check, cleared his throat, and announced: "Ladies and gentlemen, Lei Nuo, Director General of the French Concession's Public Administration Bureau, in support of Director Lin's efforts to maintain peace in Shen City, has personally contributed twenty thousand taels!"

Upon these words, the banquet hall erupted in an uproar.

"Twenty thousand?"

"Good heavens, that's Lei Nuo!"

"Has the Director General of the Public Administration Bureau gone soft?"

Everyone stared at each other, eyes wide with shock. Know that Lei Nuo is a towering figure in the French Concession. Even the prominent Chinese businessman Huang Genrong present is merely a Chinese director of the Public Administration Bureau. Put bluntly, in the French Concession, Huang Genrong is at most a docile dog raised by Lei Nuo.

Yet such a high-and-mighty foreign bigwig actually lowered himself before Lin Yu.

What's more shocking, the British Concession's William seemed likewise infected by the atmosphere, quickly stepping forward: "Director Lin, I too am willing to donate twenty thousand taels to do my bit for Shen City's peace."

The murmurs in the banquet hall grew louder.

"This... this is too exaggerated, isn't it?"

"The representatives of the two concessions just came up with forty thousand taels all at once?"

"What trick does Director Lin have? Even foreigners have to give him face?"

The notables present silently reckoned. Even when Security Commander Qin Dongzhi was alive, he never had such influence. That old fox, though he had operated in Shen City for years, still had to be polite before the concession powers.

But what about Lin Yu? This young man, having been in Shen City only a short time, has already made the two concessions' representatives wary. This intimidation far exceeds what a Fourth Bureau Chief ought to possess.

"It seems the rumor of that day is true," someone whispered, "the Great Three Elements bloodbath was indeed Director Lin's doing."

"Shh! Keep it down!" the person beside him quickly interjected, "You dare gossip about this? Do you have a death wish?"

Indeed, that day's bloodbath has spread throughout Shen City. The Japanese Empire's envoy Muto Chiaki's head was blown into a mist of blood, and several of his guards were killed on the spot. Although the authorities never admitted it, anyone with eyes knows who did it.

Now it's clear that Lin Yu not only has the courage, but also the strength. Otherwise, Lei Nuo and William wouldn't be so sensible.

"This Director Lin," an old merchant shook his head and sighed, "he's likely to become a major figure in Shen City."

Indeed, being able to make the two concessions' representatives bow so low, this young chief is clearly no pushover. Those forty thousand taels are less a donation and more like blood money.

As for Lin Yu, he watched it all with a calm face, holding his wine glass, a faint smile playing at the corners of his mouth, as if everything were under his control.

The banquet hall's guests departed one by one, each lost in thought. Tonight's events are destined to stir up a great commotion in Shen City.

"Sir," Zhou Wei approached Lin Yu with the ledger, his voice tinged with barely concealed shock, "I've tallied tonight's donations... a total of twenty million taels!"

That figure, even for Zhou Wei who's seen big scenes, made him suck in a breath of cold air.

Twenty million taels! That's no small sum. Know that even Shen City's largest silk shop brings in only three or four million a year. Yet tonight, a single banquet yielded twenty million taels in "donations."

"Heh," Lin Yu chuckled, slowly lighting a three-barreled cannon, "just some blood money, that's all."

He walked to the window, gazing at the night-shrouded Shen City, his eyes deep: "Remember when we hadn't yet shown our strength, how did these foreigners behave?"

Zhou Wei recalled the scene, scoffing: "No? Back then Lei Nuo and William were arrogant, hoping we'd fight the Japanese to the death. Now look, they've all turned into big philanthropists."

"This is strength," Lin Yu exhaled a smoke ring, "before we wiped out the Ninth Division, these foreigners looked down on us from the bone. They thought we were lowly folk, fit only to be their slaves."

He turned, a flicker of coldness in his eyes: "But now they lack that courage. A single Muto Chiaki's head is enough to make them understand who truly rules Shen City."

"You're absolutely right, sir," Zhou Wei agreed wholeheartedly, "these foreigners are bullies who fear the strong. Today Lei Nuo and William led the donations of forty thousand taels—who else would dare not be sensible?"

Lin Yu looked at the check in his hand and sneered: "Twenty million taels—just consider it their ransom for years of running amok in Shen City."

"But sir," Zhou Wei worried, "this much money, the imperial court..."

"The court?" Lin Yu scoffed, "You think after Qin Dongzhi's death they could still stir up trouble in Shen City?"

He walked to the window, gazing at the distant lights of the French Concession: "These foreigners have dominated Shen City for decades, long forgetting what reverence means. Today's twenty million taels are merely a beginning."

Zhou Wei watched Lin Yu's back and suddenly understood something.

Yeah, this isn't a donation at all—it's Lin Yu declaring to everyone: from now on, the heavens of Shen City will change.

Those foreigners who once held their heads high now have no choice but to lower their arrogant heads and obediently hand over their blood money.

This is the intimidation of strength. This is the respect Lin Yu earned with the blood of the Ninth Division.