Chapter 358: 359. Chapter 355: Just the Beginning

359. Chapter 355: Just the Beginning

The Professor is a very clever man, whether in managing a gang or in business operations.

Other gangs' bars are named randomly, or the names are left to the cadres or team leaders in charge of the bars.

This results in the names of bars under a single gang being almost entirely different, with all sorts of names.

But the Professor is different; all his bars use the same name: "Wolf Bar." It is easy to recognize and has high brand recognition.

This is actually a process of cultivating brand identity that is very worth advocating. Once a customer has been drinking at Wolf Bar and has developed this habit,

then in the future, when they have a choice, they will very likely choose Wolf Bar.

They might even identify with the Wolf Gang as a gang because they identify with the bar's brand!

No one hopes to be a gangster forever. The Professor's goal is grand; he hopes the Wolf Gang is just a stage in his life, not the end.

He wants to use the Wolf Gang as a platform to reach higher places, for example... the political arena.

It sounds a bit incredible, but if he doesn't intend to run for governor or senator, and just wants to be a municipal councilor or something similar, there is actually no problem with that.

The Professor himself has always believed that being a high school teacher is not the limit of his abilities, but the limit of his family background and social connections. If given more opportunities, he could be even more outstanding!

But it is a pity that he is just an ordinary person from an ordinary family, with no prominent background and no noble person willing to lend him high-interest loans. He could only end up becoming a gang leader.

Now, he vaguely sees a glimmer of hope again!

With the Workers' Club sealed off, the bars in the Port District have also started to become lively. Almost as soon as noon passes, customers start arriving.

In just these few days, both Wolf and the Professor have felt the joy of making big money!

Stuffing ten to twenty thousand dollars into their pockets every day, Wolf's eyes have turned red. He finally understands why people like to run to prosperous places.

Because here, money is everywhere!

He didn't believe it before, but now he does.

Therefore, besides confronting Lansi, the Wolf Gang's main focus is now on the bars.

After two o'clock in the afternoon, someone suddenly knocked on the bar's gate. The doorman glanced outside; there were several people, one of whom he had seen before—someone who had come to drink a few times. He even remembered the other person's name.

It seemed to be... Dave something?

"You're not working today?" The doorman didn't open the gate immediately. His gaze swept over the few people behind Dave and finally returned to Dave.

Dave was a bit nervous, his palms full of sweat. "You know, we're on strike."

The doorman slapped his forehead. "I forgot about that!" He smiled. "Are these all your colleagues?"

Dave nodded and said, "Yes, the club was sealed off, and they want to have a drink."

"I like your liquor; it's not watered down too much. At least it's worth the money!"

The doorman couldn't help but laugh out loud upon hearing this. "You know your liquor!" As he spoke, he opened the gate, though his gaze remained fixed on the people behind Dave.

They were wearing the blue work uniforms common at the docks, and they indeed didn't look harmful.

In the end, he decided these people had no issues. "Know the rules here?"

Dave let out a sigh of relief. "I know, don't cause trouble."

"You seem very nervous?" The doorman took another look at Dave.

Dave shook his head. "No, I just thought about the strike. I'm dying for a drink right now!"

The doorman felt his answer was fine, and Dave had indeed been here a few times and followed the rules.

He stepped aside from the gate. "Have a pleasant journey, gentlemen."

"Thanks!" Dave nodded and brushed past him. After everyone had entered, he began to re-bolt the gate.

Although the Hazardous Materials Bureau wouldn't likely come to check on them, they still had to be wary of Lansi's group.

Just as he closed the gate and was about to sit back in his chair, someone suddenly wrapped their arm around his neck from behind and forcefully lifted his head upward.

Suddenly attacked, his whole body shuddered. By the time he wanted to resist, it was already too late.

A knife sliced open his throat, along with his carotid artery.

In less than twenty seconds, he collapsed to the ground.

The "Girl's Fantasy Travelogue" he had placed on the chair was knocked down by him, landing right beside him...

Dave left the place with a pale face. Although he had mentally prepared himself, seeing these people kill someone right in front of him was still too much of a shock!

When he ran out of the bar, several cars that were parked at the alley entrance with their engines running drove rapidly toward the place.

Once the cars stopped steadily, a group of people got out.

Enio held a submachine gun in one hand and a half-smoked cigarette in the other. His face carried an indelible hatred!

A large group of people entering with guns caused everyone in the bar to lose their ability to think for a moment. When a thug reached for his clothes, Enio raised his hand and fired a shot!

The sound of the gunshot woke up the drunks who had gotten too much to drink in broad daylight. The entire bar instantly turned into a mess!

The manager, still groggily sleeping, was startled awake by the gunshot. He shuddered, and while directing others to go out and see what was happening, he dialed the headquarters' number.

"What's wrong?"

It was Wolf who answered the phone. The manager said in a panicked tone, "They've killed their way in..."

"Who killed their way in?"

"Who else could it be besides Lansi's people?"

"Fuck, send people over quickly, at... the street here!"

The gunfire in the receiver was very intense; it sounded like the other side was using submachine guns, and more than one.

The manager was trembling all over. He was a cadre, and he hadn't experienced this kind of battle in many years!

He didn't even have time to hang up the phone; he threw it aside, his hands trembling as he pulled open the drawer and took out a pistol!

Between rushing out and being killed, or hiding, he chose to hide.

He crawled under the table, gritting his teeth to keep himself from making any sound.

The gunfire outside the door did not last very long; in less than two minutes, the only sound left in the entire room was the "Hello? Hello?" coming from the receiver.

As the office door was kicked open, even the "Hello? Hello?" sounds vanished.

Whether it was the manager or Wolf on the other end of the receiver, both held their breath.

The footsteps approached from afar, and the manager suddenly had a desperate urge to defecate; his stomach felt terrible, too. He was too nervous!

He had been like this since he was a child; whenever he got nervous, he either wanted to pee or poop. After all these years, he still hadn't grown out of it.

He had thought that by joining a gang and becoming a small leader, he could change this, but now it seemed he was wrong.

Perhaps he wouldn't be nervous when killing others, but when others were about to kill him, he couldn't help but be nervous.

He prayed that those people wouldn't find him; after all, if they didn't come behind the desk, they wouldn't see him hiding underneath it.

But it seemed God was not on his side this time: "Come out from under the desk, if you don't want to be turned into a sieve!"

"Let me see your hands, drop your weapon on the ground!"

The manager complied, "Don't kill me, I'm coming out right now!"

He placed his weapon on the floor, pushed it out, and then crawled out from under the desk with his hands raised high, looking quite disheveled and embarrassed.

Enio looked at him and walked over to the side of the safe, "What's the code?"

The manager gave a number; he didn't dare lie now. The safe was opened quickly, but there wasn't actually much money inside.

Enio glanced at it and drew his pistol. A look of terror immediately appeared on the manager's face, "Don't kill..."

Bang!

The bullet opened a hole directly in the manager's head. He probably hadn't expected until his dying breath that the person in front of him wouldn't even give him the chance to finish his sentence!

A pitch-black hole began to seep blood—not much of it—and he seemed to want to reach out and touch it, but the next second, he fell heavily to the ground.

There was no gushing blood, nor did it spray out; just a little blood flowed along the small hole, trickling down bit by bit.

He collapsed to the ground just like that. In truth, he hadn't completely died yet; the remaining tissue in his brain was still desperately trying to reboot the system.

His eyelids flickered slightly, closing rapidly, his eyes filled with nothing but fear!

Enio walked over, stood in front of him, and emptied the magazine into his head before letting out a heavy sigh of relief.

He glanced at the receiver on the desk, picked it up, and held it to his ear, "Whoever you are, it will be your turn soon!"

Wolf, who had been quietly listening to all of this, cursed in a rage, but immediately after, he heard the sound of the phone being hung up.

Incensed, he rushed out of his office, "Someone, come here! Someone!"

The Professor also came out, "What's wrong?"

"Lanse's people attacked our bar on... Street. Everyone was wiped out. What do you think I'm going to do?"

"Of course, we retaliate!"

The Professor frowned, "Tell me what happened."

Although Wolf had lost his composure a bit due to anger, he still respected the Professor. He recounted what had just happened. The Professor's brow furrowed tightly, and it grew tighter and tighter, until it could almost hold a flower!

Because he realized that Lanse had given him a difficult problem!

The Professor's silence caused Wolf to gradually calm down. He hadn't seen the Professor like this in many years.

"Is it very troublesome?"

The Professor nodded, "Let's talk in my office."

"Call the other bars first and have them stop business."

Wolf was stunned for a moment, clearly somewhat unwilling, "Just because of this... we're making the other bars stop business? Won't this make people think we're too cowardly?"

"Cowardly?" The Professor lit a cigarette, his brow furrowed, his two eyebrows seemingly about to meet, "The result of not being cowardly is that all the bars will be wiped out by them. Now is not the time to be stubborn."

Wolf cursed a couple of times. The phone rang suddenly again. The two looked at each other, and the Professor picked up the phone.

"It's me."

His voice was very distinctive, and his enunciation was extremely clear and standard, which was very rare among gangsters.

Most gang members are exposed to street gang culture from a young age, and they clearly carry some gang style and accent when they speak.

Before the other party could speak, the Professor heard gunfire, "Lanse's people have attacked. I can't hold on much longer. Can you send some people over?"

The Professor was silent for a while; he recognized who this person was, "Do you think if we send people over now... can you hold on until they arrive?"

The man suddenly fell silent.

If Lanse's people were outside the bar, it would be one thing, but once the other side entered the bar, there was no such thing as holding the line or being able to hold on.

The violent sound of the door being rammed brought the manager back to his senses. He cursed twice, "I'm afraid it's too late."

After a brief silence, he suddenly said, "Give my money to my family. This is my last wish, Professor."

The Professor knew that the only thing he could do now was to promise the other party, "Don't worry, your money, and the gang's pension, will be delivered to your family without a single cent missing."

The manager let out a long sigh, "Damn it, why did we have to come to New Jincheng?"

"So many brothers have died..."

Before he could finish his sentence, he heard the sound of the door being smashed open. He hung up the phone immediately, pulled the trigger, and was met with a storm of bullets!

In an instant, he was turned into a sieve.

Although he died, at least he died like a character, not a spineless little brat.

The Professor held the phone. He suddenly felt the same rage Wolf had felt just moments ago. These people were all old brothers who had followed them from Fides.

When competing with the gangs in the Port District, and when competing with the Red Dog Gang, a batch had already died.

The death of a stranger wouldn't cause the Professor any emotion or unease, but now, the one who died was someone he knew, a brother who had been with him for several years.

He also fell silent.

The receiver was quickly picked up by someone, "I don't know if anyone said anything to you just now."

"But I still want to say, soon, it will be your turn!"

The Professor pursed his lips, "Who are you?"

"Remember your father's name, my name is Hiram!"

With a bang, the phone was slammed onto its base. The Professor stared at the silent receiver in his hand, dazed for a while.

He looked at Wolf, wanting to say something, but not knowing what to say.

He took a deep drag of his cigarette, hung up the phone, and quickly dialed other numbers. Some were busy, others went unanswered.

The more he dialed these numbers, the more uneasy he felt. When he dialed the last number and it was answered, he let out a sigh of relief, "Is everything okay on your end?"

"Fine, no one is causing trouble. What's wrong?"

The Professor suddenly didn't know what to say.

Should he say that all the other bars had been wiped out by the Lanse family?

Should he say that a large batch of their old brothers had died again?

For a moment, the Professor didn't know how to answer this question!

But he quickly came to his senses, "Close the bar, now. Something has gone wrong."

"Lanse's people somehow found out where our bars are located. They are retaliating against us!"

Manager No. 3 on the other end was also shocked, "Is it that serious?"

"I'll go immediately..."

Suddenly, the Professor also heard some noisy sounds coming through. Manager No. 3 said, "Something seems to be happening outside. I'll go take a look. Don't hang up."

The Professor wanted to say "Don't go," but the words were stuck in his throat and wouldn't come out.

His mouth was full of bitterness now. Lanse's people moved too fast; he hadn't had a single reaction, not a single piece of news!

Intense gunfire came through the receiver again. The Professor's tense body suddenly relaxed.

He looked as if he were looking at Wolf, but there was no focus in his eyes.

The gunfire didn't last long. Clear footsteps came through the receiver, and some laughing and joking could be faintly heard.

The receiver was picked up again, and a gentle voice came through, "Wolf?"

"Or Mr. Professor?"

The Professor had regained some consciousness, his eyes slightly red, "... Lanse!"

Lanse sat down in the chair, legs crossed, his people filling the room.

The manager was being dragged on the floor by his hair; he had been shot twice, but he wasn't dead yet.

"It's the Professor."

"How does it feel?"

Lanse beckoned to Erwin, signaling him to drag the manager over.

The manager let out sounds of pain as he was dragged along the floor by his hair.

The Professor didn't speak, but Lanse could hear his breathing grow heavier.

"Want to say a few last words to your brother?"

The Professor was rarely like this, filled with a desire for destruction!

If Lanse were in front of him now, he could bite Lanse to death alive!

He gritted his teeth and said, "Give him the receiver."

"No, I will relay it for you. This is your last chance to speak to him. You don't have to say anything."

"You son of a bitch!" the Professor couldn't help but curse. This Lanse was too evil!

But the answer he got was a gunshot. Lanse raised his hand and pulled the trigger, the bullet hitting the manager's shoulder, "One more sentence, and I'll kill him."

All of the Professor's anger and hatred finally turned into helplessness, "Mr. Lanse, help me tell him that Wolf and I are sorry."

Lanse looked at the manager, who was already on the verge of death, "The Professor says that he and Wolf are sorry."

A smile of relief appeared on the manager's face, "It's okay... you bastard!"

Lanse picked up the phone, "He said 'It's okay, you bastard,' but I don't know if this bastard refers to me or you. What do you think?"

The Professor had never hated anyone so much, "He's talking about me."

Lanse continued to provoke him, "You killed him."

The Professor stopped talking. Lanse also let out a breath of stale air, "Time's up, Professor. Say goodnight to your brother."

He couldn't say it. How could he possibly say it?!

Lanse looked at the manager, "The Professor didn't say anything."

His muzzle pressed against the manager's head, "See you in the next life!"

With a bang, a gunshot rang out. Even though he was a great distance away from the Professor, he suddenly shuddered, as if the shot had hit him!

Lanse's voice rose again, "This is just the beginning, Professor."

"You are very smart, everyone says so, but you, a smart man, did one stupid thing: you came to provoke me!"

"This is just the beginning!"