Chapter 3019: Stubbornly Tamed 36

Sixth floor.

The young man in front of them sat on that chair from start to finish, posture relaxed, expression cold, as if attending a tea party unrelated to him.

They used threats and inducements, employing almost every conceivable method.

First they tried inducement; seeing he was unmoved, they began threats, repeatedly reminding him that the ship was on the high seas, where law and rules were null and void, and he could disappear at any moment into the waves.

They almost pointed the gun directly at Jin Chen's temple.

But the young man in front wouldn't utter a word.

Not a single word.

He showed neither anger nor fear, even his expression lacked deference.

Jin Chen silently calculated, confirming that Chenshu's side had probably succeeded, then put his phone back in his pocket, having had enough of the cat-and-mouse game.

Xie Chang had completely lost his patience.

His cane thumped on the floor, his finger tapped the table, and the smiling tiger mask on his face was torn away, revealing a face corroded by greed and anger.

"Jin Chen! Don't think you can refuse a toast and avoid punishment! What do you think this place is? This is the high seas! It's my ship! You're in our hands now—life and death are mine! And that little lover of yours who doesn't know the immensity of heaven and earth—do you think he can escape? I tell you, everyone on this ship, top to bottom, is my people! He..."

"Jiu Shu said," Jin Chen suddenly spoke, cutting off his roar; Xie Chang's voice cut off abruptly, as if his throat were being choked.

A distinct line showed in the whites of Jin Chen's eyes beneath his pupils: "Jiu Shu once told me some old stories—he personally witnessed an unfilial son, who, to curry favor with the powerful, spared no effort in betraying his own kin, stepping on their corpses to climb upward."

He then turned his gaze to Peng Wenqiang, a chilling scrutiny: "And you—back then you betrayed Jiu Shu, selling all his trump cards for the wealth and honor you enjoy today. Now you repeat the old trick, turning Zhou Cheng against us, trying once again to destroy the bridge after crossing the river."

"Seniors," Jin Chen curled the corner of his mouth, instead revealing a chilling hostility: "Your methods are truly base, despicable. Though I am untalented, today I intend to emulate them a little."

Bang bang bang bang bang!!!

Xie Chang jerked his head around, his pupils contracting sharply!

Half of the bodyguards behind him suddenly switched sides mid-battle, turning their guns on their comrades; before the rest could react, they were taken down, blood blossoming in succession on the expensive wool Carpet.

In just two or three seconds, more than half of Xie Chang's elite bodyguards, whom he thought infallible, had become corpses lying in the blood pool. The remaining half still had their guns aimed, but now they were pointed at the ashen-faced Xie Chang and Peng Wenqiang.

The situation reversed.

Jin Chen sat comfortably in the chair, raising his hand.

On one side wall of the meeting room, the previously black LCD screen suddenly lit up, snow flickered a few times, and the image became clear.

On the screen, the call had already been connected.

The screen showed Jin Chen's private port, the sea wind howling. In the center, the families of Xie Chang and Peng Wenqiang were all bound to the high platform at the edge of the port, beneath them surging turbulent waves, each person suspended by a rope, hanging in midair, swaying on the verge of falling.

Before them stood expressionless bodyguards wielding sharp military swords, ready at any moment to cut the rope.

From the screen came the terrified cries of the women and the heart-rending wails of the children, echoing in the quiet meeting room like knives slicing into the hearts of Xie Chang and Peng Wenqiang.

The two old men's faces turned ashen as paper, their lips trembling; after a long while they burst out in anger: "Jin Chen! How dare you!!"

Peng Wenqiang could no longer stay calm, he fixed his gaze on the screen at the boy who had been frightened into wetting his pants—his sole grandson—whose crimson eyes almost popped from their sockets, wanting to lunge at Jin Chen, but held immobile by the cold gun muzzle pressed hard against the back of his head from behind.

Jin Chen leaned back in the chair, his brows and eyes cold: "Quite familiar, Lord Fifth Xie. The matter back then, Jiu Shu only mentioned it in passing, but figuring it out isn't hard for me."

"Back then you used similar methods, driving Uncle Nine's wife and daughter to desperation, right?"

Xie Chang seemed to have been struck in his most shameful secret, his face ashen as paper, his body swaying, on the verge of fainting.

Peng Wenqiang tried a last-ditch resistance, reaching for his sidearm at his waist, but he was no match for his former self—his body couldn't keep up with his mind's reactions. Before he could draw his gun from its holster, two bodyguards from behind simultaneously pinned his shoulders and arms, slamming him face-down to the ground.

Xie Chang finally slumped, sighing deeply; his whole body seemed to have aged ten years in an instant, sliding uncontrolled back into his chair, shoulders drooping, spine no longer straight. He closed his eyes, and after a while opened them, his voice hoarse to the point of being barely audible: "You…… what exactly do you want to do……"

Only now did he finally realize: this young man before him had, in just a few years, established a firm foothold in Yucheng, tidying up those tangled underground forces to be obedient—just how ruthless his methods were, how meticulous his thinking.

Jin Chen furrowed his brow, that hint of cold sharpness retracting; his attitude instead became rather pleasant. He took a thick stack of documents already prepared from the cabinet under the conference table and laid them on the tabletop. Seeing Jin Chen's move, Xie Chang's eye corner twitched violently—what else could be unclear?

Jin Chen pushed the documents toward them, saying, "Exchange."

"Sign a document, release a person. Until you are penniless, clean and clean."

Xie Chang: "……"

His hand trembled as he tried to flip through the stack of documents, but his fingers shook so badly they wouldn't obey. These documents represented the fruits of his lifelong labors—even the sacrifice of his parents' lives and brotherly bonds—his very lifeblood! They were his lifeline!

Jin Chen: "I know, you beasts who would even scheme against your own kin—you may not truly care about your family's fate, after all, profit comes first."

He leaned forward slightly, his dark pupils reflecting Xie Chang's terror-stricken face: "But you'd better also consider that if you don't sign, you, along with these remaining loyal followers of yours, won't even think of walking out of this door alive."

Extremely ruthless and merciless, leaving no room for mercy.

Xie Chang took up the pen with trembling hand; each stroke felt like cutting his own flesh.

Jin Chen glanced at the agreement, confirmed it was correct, then picked up the walkie-talkie and said lightly: "Release one, Xie Lao San."

"Next." Jin Chen expressionless.

Peng Wenqiang watched Xie Chang sign, then looked at the screen at his own grandson who had been frightened nearly to faint, his eyes also crimson, gritted his teeth and picked up the pen.