Chapter 563: Which Shen Yu?

"So arrogant, and the night belongs to you? Aren't you afraid of being beaten to death?"

His gaze darkened; the way these two burly men spoke so fluently, it was clearly not a matter of just a day or two.

The night belongs to the Xinghai Gang—what a big mouth they have. It seems this ground in Anzhou City needs a good cleansing!

"Kid, I think you're looking for death. From which corner of the world did this silly son of a wealthy family come from, daring to act like a big shot on our Xinghai Gang's turf!"

"Either pay up or get lost, otherwise, this master will show you what's what!"

Slowly walking in front of Shen Yu, the three men surrounded him. If the previous words were a warning, then now the burly man was preparing to take action.

"What, you actually dare to make a move?"

"We're moving against you, so what! Kid, do you still dare to resist? Believe it or not, I'll hack you to death!"

One of them shoved Shen Yu, expecting someone with such a small frame to fall at a push, but the burly man used all his strength and couldn't move Shen Yu even a fraction.

In the end, even though he was red in the face from straining, he couldn't make him take a single step back. Feeling that something was wrong, the burly man looked up and met Shen Yu's playful gaze, and he immediately shivered.

At this moment, the burly man also realized that they had encountered a tough nut to crack, the kind that shouldn't be provoked!

He thought of the martial arts experts they usually bragged about when chatting together—those who would draw their blades at the slightest disagreement and hack people down when they were in a bad mood.

That kind of "brushing off one's clothes and leaving, hiding one's merit and fame"—just thinking about it was exciting.

At the time, they spoke with surging hearts and listened with boiling blood, wishing they could be as carefree as those wandering martial artists.

But when it actually fell upon oneself, it wasn't quite the same, especially when it was others who could draw their blades at will, while it was oneself who might get slashed at any moment.

It was said that these martial arts people acted without any scruples, some even killing people simply because they didn't like the look of them. Could the person in front of him be such a ruthless character?

He looked up at Shen Yu again and found that he had no intention of making a move, so the burly man gathered his courage and quietly took two steps back.

"Kid, this young girl is wanted by our Hall Master. Our Hall Master is not as easy to talk to as I am. Are you sure you want to wade into these muddy waters?"

"Those who go against our Xinghai Gang never have a good end!"

"Is that so? Then today I want to try it. I'd like to see just how arrogant your Xinghai Gang really is!"

"Fine, very fine, kid, you just wait for me!"

Glaring fiercely at Shen Yu, the men exchanged glances and hurried away, with no intention of clashing head-on with him.

When they first started running away, they would cautiously look back from time to time, fearing that Shen Yu might suddenly strike them.

Once they discovered that Shen Yu had no intention of chasing them, they ran madly toward the distance with long strides.

They were just a bunch of small fry, tender little flowers who hadn't yet experienced the baptism of the martial world, and they couldn't withstand the ravages of martial arts experts.

"They just ran?" He had thought they would get hot-headed and fight him, but they turned and ran immediately.

However, one can run from the monk but not from the temple. Under his Super Perception, everything was within his awareness. As a reward, he would go and wipe out their lair later.

"Young master, you should leave quickly. The Xinghai Gang has no humanity!"

Trembling as they walked forward, the elderly couple supported each other, saying to Shen Yu with faces full of worry.

"Yes, don't let our affairs implicate you!"

"It's fine, you two elders can rest assured. A bunch of small-time thugs can't hurt me!"

"Young master, you aren't a local, are you? You might not know how terrifying the Xinghai Gang is. They cover the sky with one hand in Anzhou City."

"There were people who were dissatisfied with the Xinghai Gang's extortion and chose to resist, only to be found dead in the river the next day."

"Outwardly, they claimed it was a drowning, but we all know they were beaten to death and thrown into the river!"

"Moreover, it is said that even the officials in the yamen have to look at their faces. If the Xinghai Gang doesn't nod, they can't even sit securely in their own positions, so they are not to be provoked!"

"So arrogant?" He frowned slightly. Even the yamen had to look at their faces? The Xinghai Gang really considered themselves masters. Anzhou City didn't need such arrogant people!

"Rest assured, you two elders, they can't do anything to me. Instead, how did you end up provoking the Xinghai Gang?"

"This... it's shameful to say! Sigh!" Unable to hold back a sigh, the old woman among the two had a look of sorrow on her face.

"Young master, to tell you the truth, I have a cousin who works in the yamen. My old man and I usually run a tea stall to make a living, and it's inevitable that we get exploited, so we used his name."

"Who would have thought that a few days ago, we heard that the former Governor He Yuan was arrested, and many people up and down the yamen were also arrested. My cousin was among them!"

"Since then, for a period of time, people kept inexplicably getting stomach aches from eating here and demanding compensation. We paid out all the money we had earned over the years, and it still wasn't enough."

"That's when the people from the Xinghai Gang appeared, saying they could lend us money and let us pay it back slowly. We were forced into a corner and had no choice but to borrow two taels of silver from them."

"Who would have thought that only five days later, they would come to collect the debt. We really had no money, so they wanted to sell Xiao Si to a Brothel."

"We have lived our lives honestly and never provoked anyone, why is it so bitter!"

Perhaps because she had touched upon her own pain, the old woman couldn't help but sob in a low voice, and the old man beside her was also sighing and lamenting.

Life is not easy. Facing a behemoth like the Xinghai Gang, ordinary people like them have no other way but to endure in silence.

However, in Shen Yu's view, it was likely that those who got sick from the food and those who provided the loans were the same group of people. This was clearly sucking the marrow from the bones, using up every last bit of value a person had.

A fine Xinghai Gang, they really have done everything to the extreme.

On the other side, Shen Yu's Super Perception had been following the few who had fled. At this moment, they had arrived at a luxurious courtyard and were standing respectfully before a thin man with a sharp mouth and monkey cheeks.

Upon hearing the report from the two, the thin man was so angry that he threw the teacup in his hand directly onto the ground, and the broken shards scattered everywhere.

"Where did these small-time losers come from, daring to snatch my woman? What have you two been doing? You can't even handle a small matter!"

"Hall Master, it's just that the kid is a tough nut to crack, not easy to provoke!"

"Not easy to provoke? Is our Xinghai Gang easy to provoke? Offending me, Jia San, is offending the Xinghai Gang. Offending the Xinghai Gang means no one can walk out of Anzhou City alive!"

"I have five or six hundred brothers in my hall, all of them are good hands. I want to see if he has three heads and six arms, and if he can withstand a beating!"

"Tell the brothers to grab their weapons, kill this blind thing, and snatch back my ninth concubine!"

"Hall Master, didn't you say to sell her to the Brothel? We've already negotiated the price!"

"Smack!" A slap landed on the face of the person who had just spoken. Jia San said with some anger at his lack of ambition, "The price is negotiated, but I didn't say to send a virgin there!"

"Send her to my bed first so I can have some fun for two days, and after she's done serving me, then send her to the Cuiyu Pavilion!"

"Hall Master, this, this isn't good, is it!"

Damn it, isn't this a one-time deal? How are we supposed to do business with the Cuiyu Pavilion in the future?

If it weren't for your sister climbing into the Deputy Gang Leader's bed, with business as bad as yours, I would have slapped you twice with the soles of my shoes already, damn it.

"What's so bad about it? My favorite concubine was sold to their Cuiyu Pavilion; do you know how much my heart aches?"

"You tell Cuiyu Pavilion that not a single copper coin of the silver can be missing. No, no, they have to pay more; after all, that was my favorite concubine, my dearest bedfellow!"

"Yes, yes, Hall Master, you are right!"

"Tell the brothers to grab their weapons, we're saving the boss's wife!"

Hoisting a broadsword from nearby, Jia San led his men directly toward the alley where Shen Yu was located.

With a rush, among the hundred or so men, there was no lack of experts; hundreds of burly men brandishing swords and blades walked down the street with fierce and menacing looks.

Along the way, the commoners who saw them retreated one after another; their manner was as arrogant as could be.

Sensing the group of people coming from that direction, Shen Yu raised his eyebrows slightly. "They're here!"

"They're here? Young Master, what is here?"

"Those here to die!"

"What?" Before the old couple could understand what Shen Yu meant, the crowd of people had already surrounded them, scaring the old couple so much that their legs began to tremble.

They were all honest, law-abiding people; they had never seen such a display before.

"Young Master, Young Master, you should leave quickly!"

"Uncle, Auntie, it's fine. You go inside first; it will be over in a moment!"

"Kid!" Strutting up to Shen Yu, Jia San looked him up and down, then let out a disdainful snort.

He had seen plenty of high-ranking officials and nobles, and he could see those experts from time to time; he considered his ability to judge people to be perfected.

The moment he saw Shen Yu, he made his judgment: the person in front of him was just a weak scholar, at most a weak scholar who knew a few moves. Nothing special, just a good-for-nothing.

"So you're the one who dares to go against us? Do you know who I am?"

"Isn't it just the Xinghai Gang? Those few people just said so!"

"Kid, knowing we are the Xinghai Gang and still daring to provoke us, you are courting death. If you're sensible, hurry up and hand over the money on you as a hardship fee for the brothers, otherwise, I'll make you regret it!"

"Make me regret it? I'd like to see how you intend to do that. A mere Xinghai Gang, you really are a toad yawning—what a big mouth!"

"This..." The young man opposite him was even more arrogant than he was, and for a moment, Jia San was left speechless.

Those who could be this arrogant in front of him were either truly fearless or just putting on a bold front to fool him. Looking at the one in front of him, he seemed to be the fearless type.

Could it be that he had kicked an iron plate?

"Kid, do you dare to state your name?"

"What? You want to know who I am so you can take revenge? Then listen clearly: I am Shen Yu!"

"Shen Yu? Which Shen Yu?" He thought for a long time but couldn't think of who this was. He had never heard of this name among those in the underworld; was this kid trying to fool him?

He, Jia San, had been hanging around the streets for so long and considered himself well-informed; did he really think there was anyone he didn't know? Shen Yu—he had never heard of him!

"Listen clearly, I am the Shen Yu who is the new Xichuan Governor!"

"What, Xichuan Governor? Could it be, you, you are Shen Yu, you..."