How could the gang leader possibly let his prize get away? 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

There was no way he would let the woman in his grasp go free. If he did, what was the point of being in this line of work? Would his reputation mean nothing?!

Gangsters have reputations too, you know. Especially a minor leader like him who had been in the game for years.

Years ago, after his father died and his mother remarried, he had no choice but to become a beggar. Back then, his body was frail and weak.

Any food he managed to beg for was snatched away by other beggars, leaving him to do nothing but hide in a corner and weep.

He knew he wouldn’t survive long if this continued. He thought about dying, but he couldn’t bear to leave this world.

And so he lived day by day, torn by this conflict. On one hand, he longed to live; on the other, he felt there was nothing worth living for.

But he still wanted to survive, even though life as a beggar meant he was starving far more often than he was full.

So, he started robbing people with the others. But as a newcomer, it wasn’t easy. He was beaten black and blue every day.

Two years later, he had mastered the skill of taking a beating and slowly became a heartless, callous person.

But he would also pretend to protect the beggars who came after him, hoping to win their loyalty.

He actually succeeded. More and more people rallied behind him, so he took his band of brothers and moved to a new territory.

Unexpectedly, he managed to establish a firm foothold there, though not without the help of Zhang Zhiming, of course.

Now, he was considered a minor leader in the underworld. When his benefactor asked him for a favor for the first time, how could he not give it his all?

He still remembered the first time he met Zhang Zhiming. He had just been beaten to within an inch of his life.

A pair of large hands had pulled him up. When he looked up and got a clear view of the man’s attire, his heart skipped a beat.

When he learned the man was the town mayor, his ambitious heart began to POUND wildly.

After that, he often engineered "accidental" meetings with his benefactor. The mayor didn’t remember him, but that was to be expected. He had been so black and blue back then that even his own mother wouldn’t have recognized him.

The town mayor had always been a "good old boy." As long as nothing major happened, his favorite thing to do was smooth things over.

In his own words, there were too many messy affairs in the villages. If he took every single one seriously, the anger would kill him.

Back then, he thought the mayor was a wise man. On the rare occasion they "ran into" each other, they would share a couple of drinks.

One day, he was waiting for someone at the mouth of an alley, as usual. After waiting a long while with no one showing up, he turned to go home.

Just then, he saw his benefactor stumbling drunkenly out of a car. He immediately rushed forward to help him.

The man haltingly poured out all his grievances, and listening to him made the gang leader want to kill that Hu Meili.

Would he feel any pity for her now?

Impossible.

But he absolutely could not implicate his benefactor. He tormented Hu Meili for two whole days, instilling in her an instinctual fear of him.

Then, he dressed himself up to look imposing, put Hu Meili in gaudy clothes, and rode his motorcycle to Shuanghe Village.

He told the Hu family that he and Hu Meili were married and that they were moving to the big city to live.

Hu Meili had been drugged mute by him and couldn’t speak. She pleaded with her family with her eyes, but no one understood.

Because the gangster was a smooth operator. He had bought high-end cigarettes and liquor, and even gave Mr. Hu two hundred yuan.

Mr. Hu and Old Mrs. Hu couldn’t have been happier. This new son-in-law was ten years younger than the other man, and rumor had it he was rich and had no children.

This was especially true for Old Mrs. Hu. Her daughter often complained to her that her old son-in-law was no good in bed.

She smiled and whispered to her daughter, "Meili, you can tell this young man has some real vigor. You should be satisfied this time!"

Hu Meili was so furious her beautiful, delicate face flushed red, her brows knitting together tightly.

But she couldn’t speak. Old Mrs. Hu thought her blush was from shyness. ’Since my daughter is too shy to speak, she must be very satisfied.’

She leaned in and whispered again, "No need to be shy in front of your mom. From now on, you just live a good life with him."

Hu Meili wailed inwardly, ’What kind of good life could I possibly have with him? I’m living in a pigsty and sleeping on the floor.’

’His men even take turns abusing me. I’ve endured it all, just hoping to find a plan to escape.’

’But I know... after today, they’re probably going to send me far, far away...’

She couldn’t speak. The gangster never left her line of sight. And her family was a house full of morons.

The only one with any sense, her older brother, wasn’t home. Her attempts to signal her family with her eyes were like a blind man swatting at mosquitoes—a complete waste of effort.

The gangster didn’t dare to linger at the Hu Family’s home. He dropped off the gifts and money, then hastily drove off with Hu Meili.

And just like that, Hu Meili was gone from the Hu Family. They all assumed she was living it up in the big city, forgetting all about them eating husks and wild greens back home.

Poor Hu Meili suffered in the remote mountains, all while her family would occasionally bring her up just to curse her for getting rich and not sharing the wealth.

「But that is a story for another time.」

At that moment, Shuanghe Village was bustling like never before. The older brother Hu Meili had been thinking of, Hu Yungeng, was directing everyone as they reclaimed wasteland.

Su Ermei and her eldest daughter were following behind, gathering firewood. Her second daughter and youngest son had gone to the city with her parents.

She, her husband, and their eldest daughter lived in the west wing of the Su family home, while her big brother naturally occupied the east wing.

Because her big brother was home, they never ran out of pork or chicken, all of it sent over by the villagers of their own accord.

The villagers were grateful for Su Shuochi’s generosity; he had found them paid work even in the cold of winter.

The Hu family, intimidated by Su Shuochi, didn’t dare come around to sponge off them, so Su Ermei was living a very comfortable life.

Hu Yungeng had always listened to her, and now he was completely at her beck and call. Even the young wives in the village came to Su Ermei to curry favor with her.

Her family ate meat at every meal, and occasionally they even got to enjoy the braised pork belly her big brother made himself.

Living this kind of life, the resentment in Su Ermei’s heart turned to ash. She became pleasant and cheerful toward her husband and eldest daughter.

But despite her cheerful mood all day, Su Ermei was growing more and more afraid of her big brother. Whenever no one was around, his face would darken, and he looked like he could devour someone at any moment.

Su Ermei made up her mind. ’I’ll never live with Big Brother in the future. He’s too terrifying.’

’Living in our hometown, raising medicinal herbs and pigs with my husband... that would be perfectly fine.’ She no longer dared to be as arrogant as she once was.

She was afraid that as soon as her brother left, everyone would go back to walking all over her. She now understood the importance of treating the villagers with kindness.

Because she had secretly seen her big brother when he was alone, his face as black as the bottom of a pot. But the moment he saw her, the expression vanished completely.

Although he was still expressionless and stern, she couldn’t tell that he was unhappy.

Even though she knew her brother’s face had been full of rage just a moment before, he was perfectly calm when he saw her, even if he wasn’t smiling.

He wouldn’t scowl at her family of three. Occasionally, he would even force a smile and make them braised pork belly.

Her big brother would certainly never scowl at the villagers, which was why everyone admired him so much.

Those aunties in the village even privately said her brother had a good temper and was very friendly to the villagers.

Su Ermei learned a lesson from this. ’No matter how unhappy you are, you should never scowl at your own family.’ She couldn’t quite manage it yet, but she would learn from her big brother.