Twelve hours ago, Li Qianfan had made it perfectly clear to Chen Canghai and Wei Shifang that they must come to him to apologize within the stipulated time.
If they were late, they would die!
Now, twelve hours had passed. People from the Chen family had come, and their attitude was quite good.
But the Ma family, whom Li Qianfan was most concerned about, had remained deliberately obtuse and hadn't shown up.
So why should he be polite?
Furthermore, he had just vented his anger on Su Nanyin, leaving him with nowhere to release his frustration. It was the perfect opportunity to unleash it on the Ma family.
"Received."
Jiao Yin readily agreed and then added, "Boss, I have a question and a suggestion. Hear me out first before you decide what to do."
Li Qianfan nodded. "Alright, speak."
"Let's start with the question."
Jiao Yin's originally somewhat coy voice instantly became serious. "I want to know if this operation is for Dark Blade, or for you personally?"
Hmm?
Li Qianfan paused, then understood.
With a glance at the woman beside him who was eavesdropping, he turned on the speakerphone.
Then he asked, "Is there a difference between me telling you to kill the Ma family according to plan and whether it's for Dark Blade or for me personally?"
"Of course there's a difference. A fundamental one."
Jiao Yin said calmly, "When Du Junlin transferred money to me just now, he told me. You had a falling out with Deputy Manager Su of Dark Blade over the Chen family's compensation. She insists the money should be handed over, while you believe the money has nothing to do with Dark Blade. Am I correct?"
Li Qianfan glanced at Su Nanyin.
On the surface, she appeared calm, but her knees were pressed together, and she unconsciously rubbed them back and forth, indicating inner turmoil.
"Yes."
Li Qianfan didn't feel it was wrong to tell Jiao Yin about his argument with Su Nanyin.
After all, Jiao Yin was a crucial part of the operation that night and had the right to know.
"Since that's the case, I'll state my position as well."
Jiao Yin said, "If I'm asked to go to the Ma family to kill someone, and it's for Dark Blade."
She paused deliberately.
Li Qianfan had to prompt her, "What then?"
"I won't do it!"
Damn it.
Li Qianfan cursed inwardly and asked, "Why?"
"The reason is simple. I'm not a member of Dark Blade, and Dark Blade has never paid me. Why should I risk my life to kill for Dark Blade? I rushed overnight last night because you are my man. As your woman, I have the responsibility and obligation to do anything for you."
Jiao Yin no longer hid her dissatisfaction with Su Nanyin as she spoke.
She began to speak sarcastically, "But if you had told me last night that I was serving the authoritative Deputy Manager Su, and what's more, working for her would yield no benefits whatsoever, why would I bother to go to the hospital and kill Ma Qiang, who has no grudge against me?"
Li Qianfan remained silent, simply looking at Su Nanyin.
Su Nanyin truly hadn't expected that her subjective insistence on Li Qianfan handing over the money would cause her so much trouble.
She guessed that Gao Lingwang and the others must also know about this.
Yao Yao would definitely not say anything, but Jiao Yin certainly would!
Gao Lingwang and the others must also be dissatisfied with her suggestion, but they wouldn't express it like Jiao Yin.
However, Su Nanyin's standing in the eyes of Gao Lingwang and the others would undoubtedly be affected.
The reason they left empty-handed in the first place was not to follow Su Nanyin.
It was to follow Li Qianfan!
Su Nanyin now deeply regretted not thinking carefully when she asked Li Qianfan to hand over seven hundred million yuan.
Jiao Yin continued, "Now you're asking me to kill again, so I must clarify who I'm killing for. Jiao Yin is willing to kill and do all sorts of evil for her man, and go to hell after death! But if it's for Dark Blade, then I'm sorry, I won't do it."
Li Qianfan still said nothing, just looking at Su Nanyin.
Su Nanyin's expression remained unchanged.
Jiao Yin added, "Boss, do you know why the Ma family treated your warning as utter nonsense?"
Damn it, who was calling whose warning nonsense?
Li Qianfan cursed inwardly and could only ask, "Why?"
"They thought that what you and Du Junlin did last night was executing a Dark Blade mission. As one of the elite forces of the Eastern Continent, Dark Blade must act within the law. Even if Wei Shifang and the others deserved death, Dark Blade would have to follow due process to deal with them during daylight hours. They couldn't just draw their swords at a moment's notice like settling a personal vendetta."
Jiao Yin sneered, "Therefore, the Ma family might fear the you and Du Junlin of last night, but they don't fear Dark Blade. It's like a cultured ruffian fears an uncultured ruffian, but not the special forces."
A cultured ruffian fears an uncultured ruffian because they know the uncultured ruffian might actually kill them.
However, a cultured ruffian doesn't fear special forces because they know that even if the special forces want to kill them, they have to follow procedures.
Now.
The Ma family is the cultured ruffian.
Last night's Li Qianfan and Du Junlin were the uncultured ruffians.
And Dark Blade is the special forces that deal with ruffians.
Jiao Yin's analogy was crude,
but it was spot on!
Li Qianfan truly hadn't considered this point.
"Alright, I understand. I'll think about this carefully later."
Li Qianfan said into the phone, "What's your suggestion?"
"My suggestion is regarding your personal business, which is unrelated to Dark Blade."
Jiao Yin stated her stance first, then said, "I suggest we don't kill the Ma family today."
Don't kill the Ma family?
Li Qianfan frowned slightly but didn't rush to ask.
"The reason is simple."
Jiao Yin explained, "I think it's best to make them bleed before we eliminate Wei Shifang and the others. If the Chen family can come up with so much money, why not the Ma family? If we just eliminate a few members of the Ma family without obtaining any substantial benefits, it would be a huge loss. We should first make the Ma family pay a heavy price for their mistakes last night. Once the money is in hand, when we want to kill them, it will be our decision!"
Extort wealth first, then kill!
This was Jiao Yin's suggestion, and it truly made Li Qianfan understand what the most venomous female heart was like.
But he couldn't entirely blame Jiao Yin.
The blame could only be placed on the Ma family, who, with the knife already at their throats, were still jumping around recklessly.
On the internet, a storm of public opinion had erupted over Ma Qiang's tragic death.
In just half a day –
Tens of millions of netizens, unaware of the truth, were indignantly exclaiming: "What is the background of that young couple? They are simply insane! Not only did they cause a tragic car accident, but they also assaulted the victim's family at the scene of the accident. Even worse, they subsequently dangled the victim from a tall building and let him fall to his death! If such people aren't punished, then darkness truly has arrived!"
The major media outlets, led by the Yuan family, and countless self-media influencers with hundreds or even thousands of followers were furiously reposting images, strongly condemning the young couple.
The images primarily featured the wreckage of the red sports car, Wei Shifang and others who had been beaten, and the corpse of Ma Qiang after he was thrown to his death.
One word described it: "Tragic!"
"And I discovered something even more laughable."
Jiao Yin added, "Even now, the Ma family doesn't know that the people they provoked last night were you and Du Junlin."
Li Qianfan exclaimed in surprise, "No way?"
"It's true. My people have investigated and confirmed it."
Jiao Yin said, "Therefore, I suggest that the two of you personally go to the Ma family now. I estimate that when they realize that the people they slandered last night were the infamous scoundrel, the prodigal son of Longxu, and the renowned 'Little God of War,' Du Junlin, they will be dumbfounded and terrified. Ha, ha."
Damn it.
Li Qianfan cursed President Jiao San for the third time.
However, he also felt that her words made a lot of sense.
"Alright, I've said what I needed to say. As I said before: if it's for your personal matters, I'll do it without hesitation. If it's for Dark Blade, to add color to Manager Su's cap, I won't get involved."
After Jiao Yin finished speaking, the call ended.
Li Qianfan picked up a cigarette.
He needed to carefully consider what Jiao Yin had said.
In other words, he had to define the car accident incident.
If it was personal business, he and Yao Yao would visit the Ma family, demand a large sum for emotional distress first, and then discuss other matters.
If it was official business –
The car accident that occurred last night had absolutely nothing to do with Dark Blade (Deputy Manager Su)!
Dark Blade seizing this opportunity to take down the Ma family's venture in Modu, and Li Qianfan seeking retribution from the Ma family, were also unrelated matters!
Then, did Li Qianfan still need to negotiate with Deputy Manager Su?
Naturally, there was no need to cater to her mood.
Li Qianfan extinguished the half-smoked cigarette in the ashtray, stood up, and quickly walked to the bedroom door, pushing it open.
He saw Yao Yao sprawled out on the bed, sleeping soundly.
"So when Yao Yao sleeps alone, she sleeps like a man. This sleeping posture is truly unworthy of her pure and innocent appearance."
Li Qianfan was stunned for a moment, finding it quite amusing.
He walked over, raised his foot, and kicked the end of the bed. "Get up, stop sleeping."
"Go away."
Yao Yao mumbled without opening her eyes, "I want to sleep. If you disturb me again, I'll get mad at you."
She was indeed very sleepy.
Even if the sky were to fall, she had to sleep first!
Li Qianfan kicked the end of the bed again.
Yao Yao shrieked, "You, get, away!"
It's better to provoke a drunkard than to provoke a sleeping person.
This was a common saying among ordinary people.
When a person who only wants to sleep is annoyed, they can truly lose control and lash out at others.
"Sigh. I wanted to take you with me to the Ma family to get rich. But if you don't want to go, then so be it. I'll have to find Jiao Yin."
Li Qianfan sighed, turned, and started to leave.
He heard a rustle behind him. Yao Yao flipped over and sat up, jumping down as lightly as a swallow. She grabbed his wrist, "Who says I don't want to go? You're not leaving me behind when you go to the Ma family to get rich."
Li Qianfan turned back, looking at Yao Yao, whose mouth still had a bit of drool, but her eyes were bright and full of greed. He was speechless.
He just couldn't understand why Yao Yao was becoming more and more obsessed with money.
"Then put on some clothes. You can't go out in your underwear and barefoot, can you?"
Li Qianfan shook off her hand and quickly walked out. "I'll wait for you for five minutes. When the time's up, I'm leaving."
Five minutes?
Heh.
He really underestimated Yao Yao's desire for money.
Forty-six seconds later, Du Yao Yao, fully dressed, opened the door, stepped out in black mid-calf boots, and walked out with a clatter.
She looked incredibly energetic!
Li Qianfan was speechless again.
He could only look at Su Nanyin and say, "Call Su Xin and the others to come back and protect you. Yao Yao and I need to go out on personal business."