Chapter 565

Lanse was sitting in his office discussing the evening's firefight with Councilor Williams, as well as the potential chaos in the city over the next period.

Just as he was explaining his general way of handling these issues, Erwen knocked on the door and stood at the entrance looking at him.

The two stared at each other for about three to five seconds, and Lanse said, "I have something to deal with now, let's talk later."

"Alright, call me when you have time," he said, and then hung up the phone.

Erwen only then said, "They caught Shi Dong."

"Shi Dong?" Lanse also felt somewhat surprised; he wasn't sure if Bandi's people would have any important figures leading the team tonight, and he didn't think core members would go, at most just some "managers" or the like.

Yes, they no longer used the more common gang titles like "cadres"; these people were all "managers," "assistants," and so on.

People who didn't know them would surely think they were a very formal enterprise if they suddenly heard their conversation.

Only those who truly understood them knew that, in essence, they were just a gang in the process of laundering their image.

Catching a manager was highly probable, but the possibility of catching core members of the Koda family, like Bandi, Gao Li, Fleming, and Shi Dong, was extremely slim.

The more noble one's status, the more one fears death; this point has been verified in countless people.

In fact, it wasn't just the ancient emperors of another world who were always seeking the path to immortality; those modern rulers were also troubled by this.

This was a problem almost every ruler would face—

How can "my" rule last longer?

How can "I" live longer?

Including now, in medical laboratories that Lanse didn't know about, but some others did, they had already begun trying to extend human life through medical scientific methods.

Organ transplant surgery was a byproduct of the research process; they believed that replacing people with younger organs was a way for humans to achieve immortality.

But the fact was that rejection reactions would kill the recipient earlier than aging; although it couldn't be applied to immortality, it was fine for use in the general medical field.

But this type of research was not without any meaningful technological achievements; in fact, there were some.

For example, a certain medical group discovered some interesting phenomena: younger blood, in all aspects, provided more vitality to the body than aging blood.

In order to better attempt and find a return on the massive annual capital investment from investors, they discovered through research that transfusing blood from younger carriers with fewer genetic changes into the bodies of the elderly...

could better ensure the activity of the elderly's organs and maintain their physical state.

In those young blood samples, there also existed things that scientists had not yet discovered, but which were effective and playing a role.

And this point happened to provide a better way out for the naturally disabled children produced by inbreeding within those great families—a blood bank.

However, these things had nothing to do with Lanse; he couldn't touch this class yet.

The more powerful one is, the more one fears death; Bandi and his brothers were also among those who feared death.

Those who suffer think death is a release, but for them, death is the end of happiness and the beginning of fear, so they wouldn't risk leading the team personally.

But he never expected that Shi Dong would actually be at the scene.

"Was the person brought back?"

Erwen nodded, "He has already been sent to the old house."

Lanse stood up, took the coat hanging on the back of the chair, draped it over himself, and casually took a pistol from the drawer and inserted it into the holster, "Let's go take a look."

He said this and then gave an order for Erwen to notify the people at the manor to all withdraw.

He didn't really want to storm Feijiaer's manor; even if the defensive strength at the manor was relatively weak now, storming it would still require paying a considerable price.

Their mission this time had been successfully completed, and there was no need to continue wasting ammunition and risking danger to engage with Feijiaer's people.

Soon, a motorcade consisting of several cars emerged from the back door of the bank and drove into the night, disappearing from sight.

The intense gunfire made the streets much emptier of cars, let alone pedestrians.

Soon, the group arrived at the old house, where Shi Dong was tied to a chair.

His face was a bit swollen, and his eyes were narrowed into slits.

If one looked closely, the swollen part looked like a footprint; the situation didn't actually look too bad, at least he was still quite spirited.

Seeing Lanse enter, Shi Dong raised his head, his eyes flickering; he looked at Lanse wanting to say something, but in the end, he didn't say it.

"This is our first meeting; has anyone told you that you and Fleming are quite similar?"

As the "dark side" of the Koda family, Bandi wouldn't bring Shi Dong along when attending political or social activities, and even Gao Li rarely appeared in public with him.

So Lanse had met Fleming, but had not met Gao Li.

However, he was quite like Fleming; they were indeed brothers.

Gao Li didn't speak and had been maintaining silence.

He believed that whether it was Bandi or his father, they would find a way to rescue him; what he needed to do now was wait.

Lanse saw him not speaking and couldn't help but smile; he looked at the people beside him, "Mr. Shi Dong seems to look down on us; he doesn't even want to talk."

"Who can help him correct his perspective?"

A young man stepped out, "Boss, let me teach him to respect others."

Lanse didn't refuse; this young man was named Taide, a newly promoted captain; he walked to the wall and lit a cigarette.

In Shi Dong's incredulous gaze, Taide walked over and punched Shi Dong in the stomach.

In an instant, that intense pain, as if his intestines had snapped, began to assault him, giving him an urge to vomit.

His body was tied to the chair, and the only thing he could do was curl up as much as possible, as if doing so could alleviate the pain in his stomach.

But Taide didn't give him more opportunities to experience these feelings; instead, he grabbed his hair to make him raise his head, and then fiercely punched him in the face.

The huge force made it so Taide couldn't even hold onto his hair, leaving a tuft in his hand, while Shi Dong was knocked backward.

Fortunately, the people beside him held the chair, otherwise, this fall would certainly not have been light.

His eyes looked at this young man in front of him with pain and hatred, but soon his eyes became soft and even somewhat foolish.

He recalled the people he had dealt with; when they looked at him with such eyes, he would only make those people suffer more!

As a former perpetrator, he knew very well that when he stood in that position, he would subconsciously develop a desire to "tame."

He wanted to make those who were unconvinced become convinced, to make those who wouldn't bow their heads bow them; for this, he could make people suffer endless torture!

Now the positions of both sides were swapped; he couldn't be stupid.

His eyes were clear yet confused, looking like there was nothing ruthless at all; this gaze could even be selected for an acting textbook—"How to express a blank and ignorant look."

But deep in his heart, he kept these people firmly in mind; he would pay back the pain he suffered today many times over!

Taide looked at his eyes with a sneer; he spread his palm, curled his four fingers inward, and slapped Shi Dong across the face; his entire face became even more swollen in an instant.

He couldn't even feel the existence of his cheeks anymore!

Everything he had in the past was telling him to hold on.

He gritted his teeth, trying not to focus his attention on his painful and numb cheeks, his eyes still appearing as blank as before.

However, this couldn't save him from being beaten; Lanse smoked his cigarette and looked at him with a half-smile; his "game event" had only just begun.

At least he had to wait until he finished this cigarette before the game time would end.

On the other side, when those who escaped back told Bandi and Gao Li that Shi Dong might also be finished, Bandi and Gao Li's first reaction was disbelief.

Because only a few people knew about their plan to secretly ambush Lanse's rear.

The head of the Tita family knew, Feijiaer knew, and on their side, it was the two brothers, plus Fleming and Shi Dong; altogether, only six people knew.

They couldn't have leaked the secret themselves, and if Feijiaer leaked it, he would only die more miserably; after all, he was the bait.

As for the Tita family...

Bandi shook his head; he wasn't sure.

"The most important thing now is to determine Shi Dong's situation!" He looked at Gao Li, "Don't be anxious yet; I'll give Lanse a call."

"If Shi Dong is really in his hands, no matter what conditions he sets, I will trade him back."

Gao Li nodded, not saying a word, just sitting there appearing calm.

But this apparent calmness was actually not calm at all; after all, it was his son, after all, he had raised him for so many years, and he would inherit everything he owned in the future.

Now, to be caught just like that, he couldn't quite accept it.

His current composure was only to avoid affecting the forced composure of others; he was actually very panicked inside.

Bandi looked at his appearance of not being able to listen to anything and finally sighed.

Lanse's phone number hadn't changed; it was still the old number, just transferred.

The call was quickly connected, but Lanse wasn't there; however, fortunately, they seemed to have other contact methods for Lanse, and after dialing a few more numbers, the call was finally connected.

"I want to find Lanse!"

Someone came in and said something in Lanse's ear, and Lanse, with a cigarette in his mouth, said "Don't worry about me" and left the room.

He went to another room and picked up the phone, his tone still carrying a hint of light pleasure, "It's me, what's the matter?"

"Mr. Bandi?"

Bandi took a deep breath, "Lanse, hand Shi Dong over to me; you can set any conditions."

Hearing the emotion he was suppressing, Lanse laughed twice, "I don't quite understand what you mean, Bandi; Shi Dong is not here with me."

Bandi's breathing in the receiver became heavier, and his voice became deeper, "Come on, don't play this game with me; we both know he's in your hands, hand him over."

"How much money do you want, or what do you want, name your price."

Lanse waited for a moment, as if thinking, and then asked, "You seem very sure he is in my hands; why?"

This sentence made Bandi pause for a moment; he actually didn't know how to answer, so he could only say, "Don't say these meaningless things; tell me, what do you want to let him come back?"

"He is not here with me; I am busy fighting a war with Feijiaer's people and can't attend to you, Bandi, so you should go ask others if Shi Dong went to them."

"If that doesn't work, you can call the police; the police might be able to help you."

"I have other things to do, and don't forget, we are still at war; don't fucking call me as if we have a good relationship!"

He hung up the phone with a bang and then couldn't help but laugh.

Bandi on the other end of the phone cursed a few times; he glanced at the expectant Gao Li and had to patiently say, "He said Shi Dong is not with him; I don't think he's telling the truth; I'll talk to Williams."

He dialed Councilor Williams's phone again; Councilor Williams had been on the phone with Lanse not long ago, so he definitely hadn't gone to sleep yet.

After stating his name, Bandi said, "Help me get Shi Dong out; you can set any conditions."

Councilor Williams knew very well that Bandi could call him, which meant he had hit a wall with Lanse.

He wouldn't make decisions for Lanse's affairs; this would only make the relationship between the two sides worse.

He smiled and said, "I don't quite understand what Shi Dong's disappearance has to do with Lanse."

"But I will help you ask, if he is willing to say."

Bandi was very irritable; after thanking him a few times, he hung up the phone.

Councilor Williams didn't call Lanse but picked up the newspaper again.

James, sitting next to him, asked, "Don't you need to touch base with Lanse?"

Councilor Williams shook his head, "Once the wheels of a train start moving forward, they won't stop easily."

James nodded thoughtfully.

Lanse returned to the room; Shi Dong had clearly received an extraordinary "reward," and when he saw Lanse come in, he even breathed a sigh of relief.

Lanse raised his hand to let Taide return to the wall to stand; he looked at Shi Dong, "Now, are you willing to talk to me?"

Shi Dong licked his lips, "What do you want to know?"

Lanse smiled, his white teeth seeming to glow in the night, "I am very interested in your next plans."

Feijiaer saw Lanse's people withdraw for no reason, which was clearly different from their plan; he hesitated for a moment, didn't dare to chase after them, and could only wait in the manor.

The Koda family's people didn't come, and the Tita family's people arrived later than planned; Feijiaer's face was very ugly.

He called Bandi, and the moment the call was connected, he started cursing!

"You fucking said you would come to support me as fast as possible, but until now I haven't seen your people; you son of a bitch are a lying fraud, Bandi!"

"I won't believe a single word you say anymore, take your lies and your ugly face to hell, asshole!"

Bandi waited until he was done cursing before asking, "Are you done cursing?"

This calm response made Feijiaer suddenly not know how to answer; he paused for a moment, and Bandi's voice continued to come from the receiver, "I had Shi Dong take people to support you, but Lanse's people set an ambush halfway, beat back our support, and captured Shi Dong."

"Not only have I suffered heavy losses here, but I also lost my nephew."

"Feijiaer, I understand your situation, so I won't argue with you now, but you need to watch your tone."

"If you talk to me like this again, I'll stand on Lanse's side!"

One sentence left Feijiaer angry, yet he had no good way to respond.

In fact, he overlooked that the relationship between Bandi and Lanse was not peaceful; they also had conflicts, so what he said didn't hold up at all!

"Sorry, I was too anxious."

"Is there anything I can help with?"

Bandi said in a muffled voice, "Not adding trouble for me is the greatest help you can give me!"

Originally, Feijiaer wanted to say something else, but in the end, he gave up.

He had a feeling that they were truly finished.

It wasn't that they were about to die, but that when facing an opponent like Lanse, they were already not up to the task.

The most precious quality in a person is recognizing one's own inadequacies and weaknesses; as long as one recognizes this point, many problems will be solved immediately.

After Feijiaer hung up the phone, he sat on the chair with a frown, lost in thought.

Late at night, Bandi called Lanse again, but Lanse didn't answer; the person who answered said Lanse had already gone to sleep, so he had to give up.

Early the next morning, he called Lanse again, but at that time Lanse hadn't gotten up yet.

It wasn't until after eight o'clock that Lanse answered his call.

"We both know Shi Dong must be in your hands."

"Lanse, let's talk honestly."

"Yes, I did arrange for him to take people to ambush you; I admit it, we are in a hostile state after all, and I did that only out of my own considerations."

"Now, he has fallen into your hands; no matter what happened to him, I have only one request: give him to me."

"If he is dead, give me his corpse."

"If he is still alive, hand him over to me."

"You can set any conditions; money, or anything else, it's all fine."

"He is my family, and for family, I will become crazy!"

"I just want him back now, dead or alive, that's all!"

This was to give Gao Li an explanation; for the whole night, Gao Li hadn't slept, and he looked much more haggard.

In the morning, he even took the initiative to tell Bandi that Shi Dong might already be dead.

He only wanted Shi Dong's corpse back now, so he could... bury him relatively intact in the family cemetery; this was his last wish.

So this time, Bandi's conditions became more relaxed; dead was also fine.

Lanse didn't interrupt his words this time; after waiting for him to finish everything, he asked, "Including having you hand over the licenses and leave Jincheng?"

Bandi suddenly stopped talking, because he really couldn't agree to this condition.

Hand over the licenses and leave Jincheng; then what would they have left, and what future could they have?

A moment ago, Bandi, who could do anything for his family, seemed to feel... that just a nephew wasn't actually that important to the entire family.