Li Jin arrived at the construction site less than ten minutes after receiving the call. Seeing Xiong Er’s men lying on the ground, he was utterly shocked. He had heard that Yang Jian was good at fighting, but his combat power was truly terrifying.
“Brother, long time no see. Why didn’t you call me in advance when you came to Xunsi River?”
Li Jin ignored the bruised and swollen Xiong Er and embraced Yang Jian as soon as he got out of the car.
Yang Jian, grateful to Li Jin for saving his life, did not reject the gesture. “Brother Jin, long time no see. How have you been?”
“I’m alright. I just couldn’t get in touch with you. Xiao Peng called saying you were here, and I didn’t quite believe it. Is the boss of this construction site related to you?”
“Of course. The boss of this construction site, President Zheng, was my former boss. I opened a template factory in my hometown and came to deliver templates to him today.”
“Is that so? I’m subcontracting the earthwork for this construction site, but I took it from the client. Xiao Peng is mainly in charge here, and I haven’t met President Zheng yet. Don’t leave today; let’s have a good chat.”
“Judging by your tone, are you working for yourself now?”
Li Jin glanced at Xiong Er, who was still on the phone, and said in a low voice, “After Brother Xiong died, I started working for myself. I’ve contracted more than half of the earthwork in this area.”
“Damn, so you’re the boss here. Then hurry up and clean up this mess so the police don’t bother me.”
Although he had subdued Xiong Er, Yang Jian was still a little worried about police involvement, as he had injured too many people.
“Don’t worry. Once you’re on my turf, you won’t have any trouble. Let’s go to my place. Xiao Peng will handle this.”
Li Jin never paid any attention to Xiong Er. After making a call and giving a few instructions to Xiao Peng, he took Yang Jian and the other three to his company.
To Yang Jian’s surprise, Li Jin’s company address was the same place where Xiao Wu used to work, only it had been renovated and was more luxurious than before.
“Xiao Yang, why didn’t you tell me you changed your phone number? Did something happen?”
As soon as they sat down in the office, Li Jin began to inquire about Yang Jian’s situation.
“A lot has happened in the more than a year since I left here, and I had to change my phone number.”
Yang Jian briefly recounted his experiences.
Li Jin was greatly surprised. “My god, in just one year, so much has happened to you, it’s enough to write a novel.”
“What about you? How did you get ahead? What happened after Brother Xiong chased me?”
Yang Jian was very interested in Li Jin’s rise to power.
“After I cooperated with Brother Xiong to get rid of Xiao Wu, Brother Xiong let me manage Xiao Wu’s territory. However, Brother Xiong didn’t trust me and didn’t fulfill his promise. Moreover, seeing more and more brothers around me, he actually developed murderous intent towards me.
In this situation, I had no choice but to fight back. After Brother Xiong’s accidental death, I established this company myself, monopolizing the demolition of the Fifth and Sixth Districts, and most of the earthwork in the Seventh District.”
“Going by what you’re saying, you should be the boss of Xunsi River now. What’s the deal with Xiong Er?”
“After Brother Xiong died, Xiong Er took over. However, this guy is a wimp. Relying on the huge assets his brother left behind, he used money to win over some brothers to compete with me for territory and also interfered with the development of the Seventh District.”
Yang Jian chuckled, “Then why didn’t you eliminate him and monopolize the development of the Seventh District yourself?”
“It’s not that easy. In the end, it’s still his money. He also inherited some of Brother Xiong’s connections. The police already suspect I had something to do with Brother Xiong’s death, so I don’t dare to touch him for now. Mainly, my foundation is too weak, and some things have to be done slowly.”
Li Jin was a meticulous person. He knew his foundation was too shallow and he couldn’t be too arrogant. Xiong Er, even a starved camel, was bigger than a horse; he couldn’t push him too hard for now.
“Brother Jin, since you’re the boss here, can my templates be sold here?”
“What are you talking about? We are brothers. As long as you are willing, I’ll give you half of my shares. As for the templates, I won’t say every construction site will use yours, but arranging for two residential projects should be fine.”
Seeing Yang Jian’s terrifying combat power, Li Jin decided he had to keep him no matter what.
“I don’t want your shares. I’ll be satisfied if I can sell my templates.”
This was an unexpected surprise. This trip today was too worthwhile. The Seventh District had thousands of acres of land, and it would take a while to develop. Later, there would be demolition and development in the Fifth and Sixth Districts. As long as Li Jin didn’t fall, the sales of templates would be guaranteed within five years. Which construction company in this area would dare to ignore him?
Li Jin pondered for a moment and said, “Brother, since you’re not willing to join my company, let’s find another way to cooperate.”
“Cooperate? Cooperate on what?”
“Didn’t you say you’ve been hanging around casinos for the past year? Then let’s continue with the casinos. After Brother Xiong died, there haven’t been any relatively large casinos in the Xunsi River area. We can fill this gap.”
“Open a casino?”
Yang Jian exchanged a look with Biao Biao, both surprised.
Biao Biao was a little excited. “Brother Jin, the people in the Seventh District have all moved away. Where will we open the casino? And there are no gamblers!”
“The people in the Seventh District haven’t all left. After demolition, they are renting houses nearby. The developers are providing subsidies, and they will move back after the resettlement buildings are completed. The Sixth District is also preparing for demolition, and some have already signed contracts. There are many wealthy people in this area now. Once the casino opens, gamblers will naturally come. As for the venue, it’s even simpler; there are plenty of empty houses here.”
“Brother Jin, how should we cooperate?”
Yang Jian was also a little tempted. He desperately needed to make quick money now. Opening a casino was much more stable than being a Zhuang and a king.
Li Jin could tell Yang Jian was interested and said with a smile, “You will be responsible for the operation of the casino, and I will handle the police. I only want a thirty percent stake.”
“Are you saying you’ll also handle the safety on the streets?”
Yang Jian knew that this place was a mixed bag of various forces intertwined. Li Jin was not the sole dominant power, and opening a casino could easily attract trouble.
“Brother, why worry about street safety? With your reputation and the fight with Xiong Er today, who in the entire Xunsi River dares to mess with your establishment?”
Afeng, who had been silent, nodded and said, “That’s right, Brother Jian, let’s do it. We were bored anyway. We’ll all help you. With our skills, not to say sweep Xunsi River, there aren’t many people who can stop us.”
Anan also stated, “Yes, anyway, we can’t go back to Jiangbei for a while, and we’re tired of staying in the countryside. We’re familiar with running casinos. With Brother Jin smoothing things over with the police, what is there to worry about?”
Li Jin added, “Once the casino opens, I will use my connections to invite wealthy bosses from nearby to come and support the Zhuang. Once the reputation is established, it’s not impossible for the casino to reach Lao Pan’s scale. However, you need to find some powerful emperor companies to act as Zhuang.”