The male supporting character was actually myself.

"A really hard beating!"

Jiang Chen: ...

"When did you become so violent? Have you been corrupted by gangster scripts?" He glanced at the cat strangely. "I was just saying if. There's no need for this now that things aren't out of control."

White kitten: (???)

I misunderstood, sorry, I'll have to figure it out myself...

Chapter Seventeen: Alcohol Embraces the Coward

Thursday—one day before the Grand Prix de Sentessé, Joyce finally invited Bella to accompany him.

He paid her ten pounds so she could choose a beautiful dress and high heels according to his requirements.

Around noon, Joyce was sitting in his office studying how to manipulate horse racing when a young man knocked on the door and came in. "Mr. Owen, Bella bought a movie ticket at the movie theater on Fourth Street fifteen minutes ago. That's not our territory, and our men couldn't get too close to her when they went in."

The movie she watched was called "Midnight Lover," and it was a newly released film with a large audience.

The movie theater was poorly lit, and she could only barely make out that there were people sitting around her, both men and women.

No suspicious persons have been identified so far.

"Keep an eye on it, especially when the show ends."

“Okay, Mr. Owen.”

The young man put on his hat and went out again. Joyce put down his pen and frowned slightly. "It's problematic that he went so far instead of watching a movie nearby."

“The people you use are very reliable. We should know who she met with.” Jiang Chen continued writing and calculating without looking up. “After all, I didn’t even notice the people you sent last time by the river.”

Joyce gave a confident smile. "Of course, Daniel. The person keeping watch is my old comrade-in-arms. He was a scout on the battlefield."

“Usually, when a man meets a certain woman, he suddenly becomes brainless. Many people tell me that this is love.” Jiang Chen thought for a moment and asked, “Joyce, tell me honestly, do you feel this relaxed when you're with Bella?”

"Love?" The other person chuckled, the fine lines around his eyes making him appear very gentle. "Let me tell you, Daniel, what people call love at first sight is nothing more than a nicer way of saying lust at first sight."

When you meet a woman, you instantly feel your heart race, your brain feel oxygen-deprived, and you forget what you're doing. It seems that if she beckons with her finger, you would willingly drop everything and go with her.

Don't mistake that for love, darling.

You just want to have sex with her because she looks like you, and your brain immediately releases strange substances that influence you.

That's it.

If you still can't wake up, and feel like you've been struck by Cupid's arrow.

Just imagine her growing old and ugly, even panting and looking ferocious under other men. Trust me, you'll quickly give up on the idea of ​​love.

This method works well for me because I know what I want.

Beauty is merely the easiest thing to gain and lose; power is eternal!

I am a very single-minded person; from beginning to end, I have only loved one thing: power.

Jiang Chen shrugged and joked, "Women will only slow you down when you draw your gun?"

"Hahaha! That depends on which gun it is."

........................

Jiang Chen was a little worried because the little white cat, who was supposed to come back to report, hadn't returned by mid-afternoon.

It's not that I'm afraid it will encounter danger, after all, the protagonist of this world doesn't have a system or anything, and no one else could possibly have the ability to harm it.

He was worried that Xiaobai wouldn't be able to handle any unexpected situations.

Just as Jiang Chen was worrying, Joyce's informant finished his report and left.

The movie theater was too crowded and not under the jurisdiction of the Owen family. To avoid trouble, their actions were restricted in every way, so they failed to find out whether Bella had been in contact with other people.

No suspicious persons were found.

“Although we haven’t found any clues, the description makes it seem like the work of a fake cop.” Joyce took out a cigarette from his silver cigarette case, lit it, and took a puff. “We finally got news about the sheriff who tried to kidnap me. It should be the former special commissioner chief inspector named Oliver Rowland.”

He's obviously a tricky guy.

I heard that he hasn't been idle since he got his comeuppance here.

Other gang members were subjected to varying degrees and methods of interrogation. Rumors circulated that he was searching for a boat that had mysteriously disappeared on the Sentis River.

As he spoke, he looked up at Jiang Chen and lowered his voice to ask, "What suggestions do you have regarding this?"

“Once the weather gets a little warmer, we’ll do some serious renovations on the house and the cemetery,” he said with a slight smile. “Perhaps we should also hire a caretaker for the family cemetery.”

The words had barely left his mouth when Ed burst in, slightly tipsy, slamming his bottle on the table and glaring at Joyce. "Hey kid, I heard you invited Bella to the horse race?"

"Is there a problem?" Joyce looked at him with her deep eyes.

Ed ran his fingers through his new hair, his expression turning slightly dejected. "Why didn't you tell me? You all like to do things behind my back!"

I was planning to invite her to dance at the horse race!

Don't you guys think it would be more appropriate for me, the eldest brother, to be with such a beautiful female companion?

Jiang Chen rubbed his temples and asked, "Ed, what's wrong with you? You didn't say anything to Bella in private, did you?"

"What are you talking about? What's there to say in private?" Ed was clearly confused that the other party was worried that he might inadvertently leak information. He shouted loudly, "Please, she sings in bars every night. Of course I like to chat with her."

What else can you say to a beautiful woman?

Of course, we should talk about things she's interested in, like art, dance, and music.

Daniel, you don't talk to girls about gang warfare when you're on a date, do you?

That would be so foolish!

Joyce and Jiang Chen both breathed a sigh of relief.

Ed was still stroking his beard and grumbling that since his brother had beaten him to it, he would probably have to find a prostitute to take him to the horse race.

“You don’t need to bring women.” Just as he was rambling on, Joyce reminded him, “You are the role model, of course you should bring our brothers and be ready to fight at any time.”

Ed was even more confused. "Guys, aren't we going to a grand horse race? Why are we fighting?"

Jiang Chen patiently explained, "We packed a gift for Anderson, and he was very happy with it."

That's why we were invited to discuss a deal.

Think about it, Ed, what do we have that Anderson would even consider?

A deal can only be negotiated when both sides are evenly matched.

Anderson will definitely give us some trouble. Daniel and I will negotiate; Ed, you're our strong support.

"How many people can you bring?" Ed became excited upon hearing this, his brown eyes sparkling. "I'll go pick out the men right now!"

Ha, want to see the Owen family's skills?

"Then let's brothers show them how our ancestors conquered the world with razors!"

"Bring a gun!" Jiang Chen hurriedly corrected, "Times have changed. Don't be blindly confident. A razor is only an advantage in hand-to-hand combat; guns and ammunition are the only way to win."

Joyce added, "Fifty men are enough, thirty will stay on the perimeter."

The remaining twenty will stay with you and go to the warehouse to retrieve a batch of guns and ammunition for distribution.

I don't want any of our people to be injured or killed on Saturday.

Ed took a big gulp of wine, patted his chest, and said boldly, "Leave it to me!"

You two, go for it!

Forget Anderson and Anderson, if they're not happy, I'll take them on!

After saying that, he excitedly picked up the wine bottle and went out. Jiang Chen twitched his lips and asked, "Didn't he say he didn't want to offend Anderson before?"

Joyce continued with her own business, replying quietly, "Alcohol emboldens cowards."

Chapter Eighteen: The Three Brothers Go to War

As it turns out, the eldest brother, Ed, is also a strangely conflicted individual.

He had been so excited about taking down Anderson, but after dinner he looked worried and complained to April about his concerns.

"Big brother, is there a phase to depression?" Jiang Chen rubbed his temples, a little worried that such an unstable guy might cause trouble.

Joyce remained calm. "Don't worry, he's been like this ever since he came back from the battlefield."

Ignore him.

When the time comes and blood is drawn, Ed will go crazier than anyone else.

Faintly, cheers could be heard coming from the bar outside, growing louder and louder. Bella was clearly very popular, though whether it was her singing or her beauty was anyone's guess.

Ed rambled on for a while, and Aunt April offered a few words of comfort. He probably found the excitement outside more appealing, and soon perked up, grabbed a cigarette and a bottle of liquor, and went out.

“In the evening, I met someone.” Jiang Chen leaned closer to his second brother and lowered his voice, “My comrade’s sister also went to see that movie.”

After all, cinemas only show one or two movies a day.

She didn't see Bella, but she did see someone who left a deep impression—the person's face was covered by a hat, but a horrible, fresh scar ran from their eyebrow to their cheek on their right side.

“Oliver!” Joyce immediately became alert.

“That’s right, too many coincidences are no longer coincidences. I found out that Oliver now lives at 17 Two Horn Alley, and his landlady used to be a prostitute.”

Joyce exhaled a smoke ring and sneered, "The Bloodthirsty Gang's territory is far from the banks of the Sentis River."

He's offended all the gangs along the river, so he's retreated inside.

We should consider giving him a gift to show our hospitality.

After reporting the intelligence, the little white cat licked its host's cheek and asked for praise: "Host, wasn't I great?"

After the show ended, I figured the female lead wouldn't have any more activities, so I immediately decided to follow Oliver. That guy is cunning; he kept changing clothes and taking detours along the way. Anyone else would have lost him if they were following him.

I'm so amazing, I sat on his shoulder and followed him all the way back to my place.

Those burly men weren't with him; they probably have other secret hideouts. Also, I suspect Oliver has quite a few men under his command, just all lying in wait, but I have no proof.

"Don't keep an eye on Bella for now. Go and keep an eye on Oliver. Let me know immediately if anything happens," Jiang Chen whispered as he went out to get some wine.

The little white kitten obeyed and hopped away.