Hong Kong variety show: The mastermind behind the scenes is emerging.

For the next whole week, Kowloon's underworld felt like it had been thrown into a meat grinder.

Because of the tip-off from that "helpful thief," the big boss lost 50 million yuan worth of drug money and the entire packaging line, turning him into a wounded, mad tiger. He was convinced that Wang Jiuqian was behind it, so he tore off the mask and began an indiscriminate purge of Wang Jiuqian's influence.

Wang Jiu's place was burned down, his henchmen were hacked to pieces, and even his prized sports car was bombed and blown to bits. Although Wang Jiu was at a disadvantage, his madness got the better of him, and he didn't care about anything else. He led his remaining die-hard fans in a guerrilla war against the boss, stabbing him in the back one day and burning down his shop the next, making quite a scene!

The sound of sirens never stopped in Kowloon after nightfall. The police station's lines were overwhelmed with complaints from citizens. The officers of the Organized Crime and Triad Bureau were working overtime every day until they were exhausted, but they still couldn't control these two gangs who were bloodthirsty.

"If this continues, Kowloon will be finished before these gangsters are all dead!"

The police leadership was finally enraged.

A death order was issued: by any means necessary, these two groups must stop! If they don't stop, then eradicate them completely!

Under intense pressure from the police, and with both sides suffering heavy losses, a "peace talk" that had to be held was finally put on the agenda.

……

A restaurant with integrity in Sham Shui Po.

This restaurant is extremely famous in the martial arts world, not only for its authentic cuisine, but also for its name – "You Gu Qi" (meaning "Upright"). For decades, countless feuds in the martial arts world have been settled over a cup of tea here.

Tonight, the area outside the restaurant was heavily guarded, with sentries every few steps. Countless gangsters were staring at each other, as if they were about to start a fight at any moment, but in the end, they all managed to keep quiet.

The atmosphere inside the "Grand Ambitions" private room on the top floor was so heavy it was almost palpable.

Three people were sitting at a huge round table.

On the left was the big boss. He wore a brown jacket, his face was terribly gloomy, and he was twirling two iron balls in his hand, making a clicking sound. Behind him stood four stern-faced Vietnamese mercenaries, their waists bulging.

On the right is Wang Jiu. He was still wearing those sunglasses, not even taking them off indoors. He was chewing betel nut, sitting casually with one leg propped on the chair, followed by "Rotten Teeth" who had become Lu Chen's pawn and several confidants covered in wounds.

Seated in the central seat was a burly, middle-aged man with a fierce face, exuding an imposing aura. He had a scar over his left eye and wore an open floral shirt, revealing a ferocious tiger head tattoo on his chest.

Tiger.

Besides the tornado, another large Buddha statue in Kowloon Walled City was also the "peacemaker" who was forced to come out of seclusion this time.

"Brother Tiger, it's not that I'm disrespecting you," the big boss spoke first, his voice hoarse. "This kid broke the rules of the underworld, colluding with the cops to steal my goods, a full fifty million! And there's the resettlement money for my dozens of brothers! If he doesn't pay, we can't have tea today."

"Hehehe..." Wang Jiu let out a strange laugh, spitting out the betel nut residue in his mouth. "Big boss, you can eat whatever you want, but you can't say whatever you want. What do I care if the police raid your place? Who told you to run your business so shadily, turning your drug factory into a marketplace?"

"You're talking nonsense!" The boss slammed his hand on the table. "That thief who called the police has confessed! It was your men who ordered him to do it!"

"Where's the evidence?" Wang Jiu pulled down his sunglasses, revealing bloodshot eyes. "You call a confession forced out by beating someone half to death evidence? What if I beat up a beggar and said you ordered him to rape a sow? Would you admit it then?"

"You bastard! You're asking for it!" The Vietnamese guy behind the boss instantly reached into his coat.

Wang Jiu's men were not to be outdone, and they all brandished their machetes.

"Snapped!"

A loud bang.

Tiger slammed the teacup in his hand to the ground, shattering it into pieces.

"Sit down, you fucking idiots!"

Tiger roared, shaking the chandelier in the private room. His tiger-like eyes widened as he scanned the people on either side: "This place has backbone! It's not your gang! Anyone who dares to draw their sword or gun here is slapping the face of the entire underworld!"

The boss and Wang Jiu glared at each other, but finally sat down reluctantly. After all, they had to give Tiger face, and the police had also hinted that if a fight broke out, no one would be better off.

"That's more like it." Tiger lit a cigarette, took a deep drag, and said, "We're all in this for the money. Fighting and killing are for kids. So, what do you want in return?"

"I want my boxing gyms," Wang Jiu stated his conditions. "They're my lifeline, so the big boss has to give me those two gyms. Also, my venues were ransacked so much, I want two nightclubs as compensation."

"Dream on!" the big boss sneered. "I can give you back the boxing gym; it was yours to begin with. But you want my disco? And you want me to pay compensation? Wang Jiu, are you crazy? You caused me to lose fifty million! That debt hasn't been settled yet!"

"That's just your bad luck!"

"You used underhanded tactics!"

At the negotiating table, the two engaged in a fierce verbal battle, neither giving an inch.

They argued from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m., and the tea was changed three times, but there was no real progress.

The big boss only agreed to let Wang Jiu keep his current territory, but demanded that Wang Jiu compensate him for half of the losses from the police raid on his home—25 million. For Wang Jiu at this point, this was simply a pipe dream.

"So there's nothing to talk about?" Tiger said impatiently, stubbing out his cigarette.

"Nothing to discuss." The big boss stood up, straightened his collar, and looked at Wang Jiu with a cold gaze. "Wang Jiu, I'll give you three days to raise the money. If you don't have 25 million by then, I'll chop you up and feed you to the dogs, even if it means getting caught by the cops."

"Hehe, then I'll wait and see." Wang Jiu also stood up, laughing maniacally, "Let's see if your coffin lid is harder, or my life is harder."

The first negotiation ended unhappily.

Tiger watched the two figures disappear into the distance, shaking his head helplessly. He knew this negotiation would drag on. But what he didn't know was that this was the last time these two would ever meet.

……

The boss led his men out of the "Honest and Resolute" restaurant.

The rain outside has stopped, but the air is still damp and cold.

The big boss got into his executive version of the Mercedes-Benz S-Class. The moment the door closed, the outside noise was shut out.

"Drive, Baisha Bay." The boss leaned back wearily in his seat, took out his mobile phone, and dialed a number.

That was his "sugar daddy," a powerful figure with connections in both the legitimate and underworld circles on Hong Kong Island. The big boss's smooth sailing over the years was all thanks to the protective network provided by this sugar daddy, while he was responsible for handling the dirty work and handing over funds to his sugar daddy on Hong Kong Island.

"Hey, boss, it's me." The big boss's voice became extremely respectful. "That Wang Jiu is a mad dog, we can't reach an agreement... Yes, I know the police are watching... but I need your help to put pressure on him. Just give me a week... Yes, as long as the police loosen their grip, I have a hundred ways to kill Wang Jiu..."

The person on the other end of the phone seemed to be scolding him for his poor performance. The boss nodded repeatedly in agreement, cold sweat dripping down his forehead.

The car slowly drove away from Sham Shui Po and onto a quiet road leading to the Mid-Levels.

While the big boss was still explaining on the phone, his attention completely focused on how to please the big spender, he didn't notice that on the top floor of an unfinished building 300 meters away from the highway, a black figure lay like a sculpture on the damp cement ground.

Xiao Zhuang.

He was wearing a black raincoat, and his long sniper rifle was propped up on the concrete fence, its dark muzzle like the eye of death.

In the scope, the Mercedes was moving at a steady speed.

Although it was an armored vehicle, the intelligence Lu Chen provided specifically noted that it was an older model, and the bulletproof glass was only designed to withstand pistol rounds. Against large-caliber armor-piercing rounds specifically designed for snipers, that glass would be as brittle as a potato chip.

"Wind speed 3, humidity 90%, distance 320 meters."

Xiao Zhuang silently recited the data in his mind. His breathing became extremely slow, and his heartbeat seemed to blend into the night.

The crosshairs steadily locked onto the figure in the back seat who was holding a phone.

"For Jenny."

Xiao Zhuang gently pulled the trigger.

"Bang!"

A muffled gunshot, silenced by a silencer, was drowned out by the distant rumble of thunder.

Three hundred meters away.

The big boss, who was on the phone, suddenly felt a blur before his eyes.

"Crack!"

A spiderweb-like bullet hole instantly appeared on the hard bulletproof glass. Immediately afterwards, a spinning high-speed bullet pierced the glass without hindrance and precisely entered the boss's temple.

"puff!"

Red and white things splattered, covering the leather seats and that expensive cell phone.

The boss's body stiffened abruptly, then he slumped limply into the back seat as if his bones had been removed. His mobile phone slipped from his hand, and an angry roar still came from the other end: "Hey?! Are you listening?!"

The driver and the bodyguard in the front passenger heard the sound of shattering glass, turned around, and were instantly terrified.

"Boss! The boss got shot!"

"There's an ambush! Drive!"

The Mercedes veered wildly in an S-shape, hurtling towards the nearest hospital.

On the unfinished building, Xiao Zhuang expressionlessly put away his gun, skillfully disassembled it, and put it into the seemingly ordinary violin case.

He didn't even glance back at the results of the battle.

That's the confidence of a top assassin.

He lowered the brim of his hat in the night, like a musician who had just finished playing, and disappeared into the vast darkness.

……

Half an hour later, at Wang Jiu's secret hideout.

"Bang!"

The door was kicked open, and Rotten Tooth Colt rushed in, panting, his face showing an exaggerated mix of terror and excitement.

"Ninth Brother! Ninth Brother! Something terrible has happened!"

Wang Jiu, who was lying on the sofa sulking, suddenly sat up: "What's the panic! Is the sky falling?"

"It's bigger than the sky falling down!" Rotten Tooth Colt ran up to Wang Jiu, lowered his voice, and said urgently, "My men just reported... the big boss was shot in the back on his way back!"

"What?!" Wang Jiu jumped to his feet in shock, his sunglasses askew. "Is he dead?"

Rotten Tooth swallowed hard and began his performance, following the script that Shin had taught him.

"I don't know!" Rotten Tooth swallowed hard. "I heard he was shot in the head. He's been taken to the hospital and is being treated. But the most conservative estimate is that he's seriously injured and unconscious. It's uncertain whether he'll wake up!"

"Damn it, who did this!" Wang Jiu frowned, pacing back and forth in the room. "Shooting someone in the back at this crucial moment, the whole world will think it was me!"

"Ninth Brother, now's not the time to worry about who's doing it!" Rotten Tooth Colt urged anxiously. "Think about it, if the Big Boss isn't dead, he'll definitely hold you accountable when he wakes up! He'll use this as an excuse to gather all his forces to hunt you down! Then we'll be lambs to the slaughter!"

"Then... what if he dies?" Wang Jiu asked.

"His death would be even more troublesome!" Rotten Tooth Colt analyzed logically. "If he dies, whoever wants to take over will definitely use the excuse of 'avenging the boss' to wipe us out! Anyway, whether he's dead or alive, this mud that's fallen into our crotch is still shit even if it's not shit!"

Wang Jiu broke out in a cold sweat. This was a dead end.

"Then what do you suggest we do?"

"Strike while the iron is hot! Since he'll definitely be identified as the murderer anyway, waiting any longer is the same as certain death, so we might as well take the plunge!"

A ruthless glint flashed in Rotten Tooth's eyes as he leaned close to Wang Jiu's ear. "Brother Jiu, the big boss is in the hospital, his life hanging in the balance. His gang is leaderless and in chaos! This is a golden opportunity! Let's take some men and storm over there, seize his territory!"

Seeing Wang Jiu still hesitating, Rotten Tooth continued, "Brother Jiu, think about it. If we don't fight for it, we'll definitely be dead once the big boss comes to his senses. But if we fight for it and take over the territory, then if the big boss comes back to life, we'll have land and men, which we can use as leverage to force him to retreat! If the big boss is dead... hehe, then we'll just run away with the money! To Thailand, to Southeast Asia, where can't we go with money?"

These words struck a chord with Wang Jiu, the gambler.

Take a gamble, and you might turn a bicycle into a Rambo. Don't take a gamble, and you're doomed.

"Good!" Wang Jiu slapped his thigh, a ferocious smile spreading across his face. "Since someone is using us as pawns, then I'll grant their wish! Rotten Tooth, pass on my order: gather all the brothers! Tonight, we're going to take over the big boss's inheritance!"

"Yes! Ninth Brother is wise!" Rotten Tooth Koi lowered his head, a barely perceptible sneer curling at the corner of his mouth.

……

This night was destined to be bloody and absurd.

Wang Jiu, along with his remaining few dozen or so desperados, pounced on the boss's various gangs in Yau Ma Tei and Tsim Sha Tsui like a pack of hungry wolves.

Just as Rotten Tooth had predicted, the boss's men were thrown into chaos by their leader's sudden assassination attempt. The various underlings distrusted each other, making it impossible for them to mount an effective resistance.

Wang Jiu swept through the area like a whirlwind, conquering half of the boss's territory in just three hours.

This robbery completely confirmed Wang Jiu's suspicion.

In the eyes of the underworld, Wang Jiu was utterly unethical: he had just negotiated with Brother Hu, then sent assassins to kill the boss, and even seized territory while the boss's body was still warm.

Before dawn, the entire martial arts world was in an uproar.

First, there's the big boss's backer—the powerful figure whose phone was hung up on. After learning that the big boss had been murdered and his territory seized, he immediately issued a "kill order."

"A one million US dollar bounty! I want Wang Jiu's head!"

Next up was Tiger. As the middleman, Wang Jiu killed someone immediately after the negotiation, which was blatantly humiliating Tiger. Tiger slammed down the phone and declared, "Anyone who helps Wang Jiu from now on is going against me, Tiger!"

Finally, and most fatally, was the police.

If the previous fighting was merely a matter of poor public order, then this time, choosing not to stop after police warnings and openly carrying out assassinations is a blatant slap in the face to the police.

The Commissioner of Police personally ordered that Wong Kau be listed as the number one wanted criminal. The Organized Crime and Triad Bureau (OCTB) and the Major Crimes Unit were all mobilized to search for Wong Kau throughout the city.

In an instant, Wang Jiu became a rat crossing the street, hated by everyone.

……

Hillside villa, early morning.

Lu Chen stood on the terrace, breathing in the fresh air after the rain.

Xin stood behind him, holding a newspaper that had just been delivered, her expression full of admiration for Lu Chen.

"Ah Chen, Wang Jiu is completely finished this time." Xin Yi looked at Wang Jiu's wanted photo in the newspaper and sighed, "Now both the underworld and the legitimate world are looking for him. The territories he just seized were shut down by the police before he could even settle in. His underlings are either dead or crippled, and he himself ran off with a sum of money."

"As expected." Lu Chen took a sip of coffee. "When someone breaks all the rules of the game, he loses the right to survive in that game."

"So what do we do next?" Shinichi asked. "Should we go and kick a man when he's down?"

"No rush," Lu Chen shook his head. "Wang Jiu is a poisonous hedgehog right now; anyone who touches him is doomed. Let the police and that sugar daddy deal with him first."

Lu Chen turned around and straightened his suit.

"Shin-Yi, go back to the Walled City and keep an eye on things. Wang Jiu may be crazy, but he's not stupid, especially now that he's just swindled a large sum of money. He'll definitely try to leave Hong Kong Island. If you find any signs that he's trying to escape, notify me immediately."

"Don't worry, Chen. I've met a lot of snakeheads with Brother Long, so I'll definitely be able to find out!" Xin Yi knew the importance of eliminating the root of the problem and assured him confidently.

"Yes, Mark will help you with this too. As for me..." Lu Chen looked towards Central in the distance, where skyscrapers stood tall and money never slept.

"The underworld business is mostly settled. I should go back to being a 'legitimate businessman' now," Lu Chen put down his coffee cup, a glint of shrewdness in his eyes. "It's time to get things ready for the 'Garreau' brand from Jiahe Textiles."