Chapter 145 Internal Strife

Seven thirty in the evening, inside the conference room of the Ma Gang headquarters in Longkou District.

Gu Tongshan's wife and children, along with the Ma Gang's Council of Elders and six or seven gang leaders from each district, were all gathered.

Xu Hu sat next to Gu Tongshan's wife, smiling broadly as he greeted everyone.

"Is there anyone else who hasn't arrived yet?" a man in his sixties asked, folding his arms.

"Everyone's been notified. Those who haven't come probably don't want to voice their opinions and are avoiding trouble," the Longkou District leader, who was secretly colluding with Xu Hu, said with a sneer.

"Then let's not wait any longer. These are all the people we have. Let's make it clear in advance: whatever happens today, we'll discuss it openly. Once we leave this room, no one is allowed to hold grudges or badmouth others behind their backs." The man in charge, Zhang Zhengfang, was the Covenant Elder of the Ma Gang.

What is a Covenant Elder? It sounds intimidating, but in reality, it's equivalent to the head of the etiquette department in a company. They are mainly responsible for accepting new members, the formal entry ceremonies, and teaching them the "rules of the gang." In simple terms, they are witnesses to new memberships, hence the name Covenant Elder.

This title is very ancient, from the Heaven and Earth Society to the Qing Gang during the Republic of China, and even the Hongmen in modern times, all had Covenant Elders. Even overseas before the Age of Exploration, some organizations had such people, but later, when the organizations became parties, the title changed slightly.

The Ma Gang is a Jianghu (martial arts world) social organization, and they adopted these ancient rules and etiquette to enhance the organization's cohesion.

Even pyramid schemes shout slogans every day, which looks quite idiotic to outsiders, but at the time, those who shouted the slogans believed in these rules. So sometimes, these formalities still have some value.

Although Zhang Zhengfang had long stopped being responsible for the specific affairs of the Ma Gang, he had a high reputation within the group and was a member of the Council of Elders. If he were to speak out, his words would carry significant weight.

"Alright, let's talk face-to-face about whatever's on our minds," Zhang Zhengfang said, taking a sip of tea before starting to organize things.

Xu Hu organized his thoughts and prepared to express his ideas.

"Bang!"

Just then, the door was pushed open, and Wei Xiangzuo walked into the room with Xiao Feng.

"When holding a meeting to discuss the affairs of Zhan Nan, you should at least call the leader," Xiao Feng said first, having had a bit to drink.

As everyone turned to look at Wei Xiangzuo, the Longkou District leader immediately replied, "It's not like we didn't include you. Didn't we notify you a long time ago? We've been waiting for a while. We started only after seeing that you hadn't arrived."

Wei Xiangzuo found an empty seat and sat down, while Xiao Feng stood behind him.

"Alright, Xiangzuo is here too, so let's continue," Xu Hu said, nodding at Wei Xiangzuo before looking at everyone and saying, "Here's what I'm thinking: Zhan Chui's (Warhammer) goods are both expensive and limited, and we have to maintain exclusivity. To be honest, these conditions are a bit harsh, and the brothers below really aren't making much money. So I want to change this rule and find new channels."

Hearing this, Zhang Zhengfang turned to look at Gu Tongshan's wife.

"We support Hu Zi," Gu Tongshan's wife immediately replied. "When Lao Gu was around, Hu Zi managed Zhan Nan very well. His ideas won't be wrong, and it's for everyone's benefit."

"Yes, I've also discussed it with Shiniang (martial aunt)," Xu Hu continued.

"Brother Hu, Gu Lao's body is still cold, and we don't even know who harmed him. Is it a bit too hasty to talk about finding new channels now?" Xiao Feng suddenly interjected.

Wei Xiangzuo turned back in surprise, "What are you doing?!"

"Brother, I've wanted to say some things for a long time," Xiao Feng replied to Wei Xiangzuo, looking up at everyone in the room and continuing, "I'm definitely the lowest in seniority here, but no matter what, I've been in the Ma Gang for six or seven years, so I'm qualified to offer suggestions, right?!"

Hearing this, Xu Hu stared at Wei Xiangzuo.

"I think talking about new channels now is bullshit!" Xiao Feng continued to fire away. "There's only one thing that's obvious: Gu Lao is dead. What should the Zhan Nan Ma Gang do?! Shouldn't we first catch the murderer and make them pay with their life, and then talk about other things? The person just died, and you can't wait to make money?"

Xu Hu didn't say anything upon hearing this. Instead, one of his brothers standing behind him became displeased and directly retorted, "Who said we're not looking for the murderer?! Can you figure this out in a short amount of time? But the Ma Gang needs to work and make money, or what will the brothers below eat?"

"Can't figure it out, is it?" Xiao Feng questioned.

"Can you figure it out?!" The other party glared back, "On the surface, the Yu family did it, but if you want to move against them, shouldn't we be sure? Have confirmation? Find the gunman? We can't just blindly act, right?! And you're narrow-minded. Can't we talk about new sources while catching the gunman? Do we have to do things one by one? Can't you be flexible?!"

"You can't figure it out, or you don't want to figure it out?" Xiao Feng asked with a smile, "You said the Yu family did it, but I think that's not necessarily true."

"What do you mean?!" Zhang Zhengfang asked with a frown.

"I don't mean anything! What he can't figure out, we figured out." Xiao Feng said, raising his eyebrows. "The car used by the gunman appeared in Tianhong Port six days before Gu Lao's incident. Brother Wei thought things were a bit strange, so he had us inquire within the port. We found out that six people entered the port a week before Gu Lao's incident, first going to the Xishuiting Foot Massage City, and then renting a house on Third Street in the port. On the day of or the day after Gu Lao's incident, this group of people ran away, even cleaning up the garbage in the house. We can't say for sure that this group of people were the gunmen who killed Gu Lao, but based on various signs, we're at least 60-70% sure that we can identify them, right? Because the details are too similar, aren't they?!"

Xu Hu was completely stunned upon hearing this.

"If this group of people really are the murderers who killed Gu Lao, then they arrived in Tianhong Port more than a week in advance, which indirectly proves that they are not necessarily people from the Yu family." Xiao Feng stared at Xu Hu, knocking on the table with his right hand and shouting, "A week in advance! A week before, was there a need for Yu Jinrong to plan the assassination of Gu Lao? Even if there was a need, why didn't they act earlier? Why did they have to wait until the critical moment of capturing Nick and rescuing Zhou Yaoxiang's son to act? And why did they have to open fire in two locations? Does that make sense?"

"What the hell do you mean?!" Xu Hu's brother shouted, "What are you trying to say?!"

"I want to say that there might be a ghost among our own people." Xiao Feng shouted, knocking on the table, "Whoever is the most anxious is probably the ghost!"

"Bullshit!" Xu Hu's brother stepped forward and grabbed Xiao Feng by the collar. "You son of a bitch, have you been trying to smear us all along?! I'll kill you!"

Wei Xiangzuo slowly stood up, expressionless, and said to the other party, "Let go."

"Why should I let go?!" Xu Hu's brother retorted head-on.

"Pa!"

Wei Xiangzuo grabbed the other party's wrist with his right hand and forcefully twisted it down, causing the lackey to let go on the spot.

"Crack!"

Immediately afterward, Wei Xiangzuo grabbed the other party's chin with his left hand and twisted it to the left with a precise force, dislocating the latter's jaw on the spot.

"Bang!"

Wei Xiangzuo raised his leg and kicked him directly behind Xu Hu. "What's wrong? Am I not even allowed to speak in Zhan Nan now?!"

...

Inside a high-end restaurant in Longkou District, Su Tianyu whispered to the leader friend introduced by Wang Daolin, "Brother Dong, after we finish eating, let's not rush to leave. There's a relaxing program later. Please don't decline, or I won't be able to explain when I get back."

Brother Dong touched his bald head and looked at Su Tianyu with drunken eyes, "Where are we relaxing?"

"On a boat, there are enthusiastic little sisters. Everything's been arranged," Su Tianyu replied with a smile.

"...Hehe!" Brother Dong smiled ambiguously, casually placing his left hand on the root of Su Tianyu's thigh and whispering, "Little Su brother, there are too many enthusiastic little sisters...It's not very interesting!"

Su Tianyu immediately shuddered, glanced at the other party's palm with the corner of his eye, and asked with a stutter, "Then...then what's interesting?"

"What is a brother? You know my preferences, and I know your strengths. That's what you call brotherhood." Brother Dong moved closer, with a faint fragrance emanating from his body.

Su Tianyu looked stunned, goosebumps rising all over his body, "Ah, this...this...I didn't prepare for this!"