Zhao Liang, seeing Xue Lianming and his group of workers storming in, rushed to inquire about the situation.
Xue Lianming looked at Zhao Liang and asked, "Are you Zhao Xintian?"
Zhao Liang shook his head and said, "I am Zhao Liang, the chairman of Xiaohan Group. Zhao Xintian is my son. If you have any matters, please discuss them in the reception room."
Xue Lianming nodded and followed Zhao Liang towards the reception room of Xiaohan Group.
After everyone was seated, Xue Lianming said, "I am Xue Lianming of the Huaxia Martial Alliance. Your Xiaohan Group owes my brothers their wages, and I've come to collect them."
Zhao Liang was familiar with the names of the core disciples of the five major families in the capital. Although he hadn't met Xue Lianming, he knew that Xue Lianming was the third son of Xue Zhongyue, the eldest master of the Xue family, and a highly regarded disciple of Ming Tianya, the vice president of the Martial Alliance.
"So, it's Young Master Xue..."
Whether it was the third son of the Xue family or a disciple of Ming Tianya, Zhao Liang knew he couldn't afford to offend such a person.
Zhao Liang did not dare to delay. He quickly sent for the finance manager and instructed him to accompany Fatty to calculate the wages.
After Fatty left with the finance manager, Xue Lianming turned to Long Xiao and said, "Brother Hu, my master sent me to find you. He wants you to join the Martial Alliance. Are you willing?"
For a martial artist, joining the Martial Alliance was an immense honor, and most people would agree without hesitation.
Long Xiao hesitated for a moment and asked, "If I join the Martial Alliance, do I have to become a disciple of someone in the alliance?"
Xue Lianming smiled and shook his head, "Generally, yes. But you don't have to."
"Am I joining the Donghai Martial Alliance or the Beijing Martial Alliance?" Long Xiao asked again.
Long Xiao was not averse to joining the Martial Alliance, but he didn't want too many entanglements with it. He had disliked being constrained since childhood.
Xue Lianming shook his head again, "Neither. You'll be joining the Martial Alliance Headquarters. In ten days, martial artists selected from various regions will gather in Beijing for a competition. If you join the Martial Alliance, you will be assigned a position based on your performance."
"If I join the Martial Alliance, will I have to stay in Beijing or somewhere specific?" Long Xiao asked again.
Xue Lianming shook his head, "The Martial Alliance is a league of martial artists, registered as the Huaxia Martial Artists Association, a non-governmental organization. Members of the Martial Alliance have their own jobs. Except when gathering for events, the Martial Alliance does not interfere with their personal activities."
After asking over a dozen questions and gaining a thorough understanding of the Martial Alliance, Long Xiao said, "Alright, tell your master that I am willing to join."
Xue Lianming said joyfully, "That's great, Brother Hu. I'll call my master right away."
Xue Lianming informed Ming Tianya of Long Xiao's agreement to join, and Ming Tianya was also very pleased. Ming Tianya then asked Xue Lianming to inquire if Hu Lei could persuade Long Xiao to join the Martial Alliance as well.
When Xue Lianming brought up Long Xiao, Hu Lei shook his head and said, "Young Master Xue, Long Xiao and I are just ordinary friends. We don't meet often, and we rarely talk on the phone. If you want him to join the Martial Alliance, it's best to go directly to Xinglin Caotang to ask him."
Xue Lianming nodded and said, "Alright, we'll go and ask him tomorrow."
As they were chatting, Fatty walked in with a smile on his face.
"Brother Hu, the wages have been settled," Fatty said, walking up to Long Xiao.
Long Xiao stood up and said, "Let's go."
As they reached the door, Long Xiao turned back to look at Zhao Liang, who had stood up to see them off, and said, "Chairman Zhao, if you ever dare to owe our brothers' wages again, I will take action."
Zhao Liang had heard Long Xiao and Xue Lianming's conversation clearly. He knew that the Martial Alliance appreciated Long Xiao and wanted him to join, and Long Xiao had agreed.
"Never, such a thing will never happen again," Zhao Liang said with a smile.
Zhao Liang personally escorted Long Xiao and his group downstairs. As they reached the entrance, several Japanese people swaggered towards them.
"Chairman Zhao, I heard someone came to Xiaohan Group to cause trouble?" asked a middle-aged Japanese man standing behind Kameyama Yaguchi.
Zhao Liang looked at Long Xiao and Xue Lianming and did not dare to speak. Xue Lianming said, "What business do you Japanese have with the affairs of us Chinese?"
"Of course, it's our business. We are partners with Xiaohan Group. If you come to cause trouble for Xiaohan Group, you are causing trouble for our Yamato Overseas Development Company."
Xue Lianming sneered and said, "Why are you Japanese acting so arrogant in our China? It's not a hundred years ago anymore."
Long Xiao looked at Xue Lianming with some admiration, thinking that this Xue Lianming had some backbone, and that not all Xue family members were driven by money.
"The past is the past. If you don't apologize to Chairman Zhao today, no one will leave this door," Kameyama Yaguchi said coldly.
Xue Lianming smiled, looked back at Long Xiao, and asked, "Brother Hu, how do you think this should be handled?"
"I will not apologize. It is only right to pay debts. We are not wrong to come for our money. If they don't let us leave, we'll have to fight our way out."
Xue Lianming nodded and said, "Brother Hu is right. When has it ever been the turn of these Japanese to be arrogant on Chinese soil? Beating them teaches them a lesson."
Long Xiao waved his hand to the workers, "You all step back. Leave this to me."
Fatty led the workers back. The middle-aged Japanese man behind Kameyama Yaguchi walked towards Long Xiao.
"Brother Long, you take this one. The next one is mine," Xue Lianming said.
Long Xiao nodded and walked directly towards the middle-aged Japanese man. He was still a meter away and showed no intention of attacking.
The middle-aged Japanese man couldn't resist and threw a punch at Long Xiao's head. Long Xiao shifted his feet and used the 'Gui Xuan' (Ghost Profound) Step, dodging the Japanese man's punch.
The middle-aged Japanese man threw over a dozen punches, but he didn't even touch Long Xiao's clothes.
Long Xiao's peculiar 'Gui Xuan' Step surprised not only Xue Lianming but also Kameyama Yaguchi.
Kameyama Yaguchi thought, "How is it that all Chinese people know such strange footwork? Even a migrant worker's footwork is so exquisite."
The middle-aged man punched faster and faster, his fists whistling through the air.
Long Xiao dodged dozens more punches and then delivered a slap. This time, his identity as a migrant worker meant he shouldn't cripple this Japanese man.
Crippling a Japanese man would cause collaborators to swarm in, rendering this identity useless. However, it was perfectly fine to bully him.
After a series of slaps, the middle-aged Japanese man stopped attacking and began to dodge. But Long Xiao gave him no chance to evade, and the sound of slaps continued to ring out.
Xue Lianming watched with satisfaction. He hadn't expected Long Xiao's strength to be so high, and that he enjoyed slapping people.
"Stop, stop, stop immediately!" Kameyama Yaguchi shouted in Japanese.
Long Xiao couldn't understand what he was saying, and the slaps continued to ring out.
"Hurry up and stop! If you keep hitting him, he'll become an idiot!" Zhao Liang shouted.
Long Xiao quickly retreated. The middle-aged Japanese man's head had become a pig's head, his eyes were slit, and his mouth was so swollen he couldn't open it.
Zhao Xintian had just come downstairs and saw the middle-aged Japanese man's head swollen from Long Xiao's blows.
"Dad, Long Xiao's swelling reduction medicine is very effective. It can reduce swelling in just a few minutes," Zhao Xintian whispered to Zhao Liang.
"Hurry up and contact Long Xiao to buy the medicine. No matter the cost, we must get the medicine," Zhao Liang whispered.
Long Xiao's hearing was far superior to that of ordinary people, and he heard everything Zhao Xintian and Zhao Liang said.
Long Xiao pretended to give Zhao Liang face and said, "Chairman Zhao told me to stop, so I'll let you go. If it weren't for Chairman Zhao, I would have slapped you to death."