Chapter 54: The Waiting Du Jiu

Su Pingnan and his group didn’t go to the top-floor private room. Instead, they found a quiet smaller private room on the third floor.

When Xiuxiu bowed and withdrew, she even boldly glanced at Su Pingnan a few times, then deliberately sashayed away, swaying a waist every woman envied.

Guo Guangyao smiled slyly, as if transported back to a year ago when they whistled at pretty girls together.

Su Pingnan smiled. “This girl is a bit scheming, don’t provoke her.”

“Got it.” Guo Guangyao nodded at once, his expression serious.

Poor Xiuxiu would never imagine that Su Pingnan’s casual remark had sentenced her to death in Guo Guangyao’s mind.

Everyone had arrived: Su Wenwen, Yang Qianli, Zhang Tong, and Xiao Zhuang sat upright, waiting for Su Pingnan’s arrival.

Su Pingnan naturally took the head seat. Xiao Zhuang respectfully brought cigarettes and lit one for him.

Su Pingnan tapped the table and smiled. “Don’t be so serious, we’re just having a drinking party today.”

“I’ll say a few things before we drink. If you have objections, wait until I finish.”

“Okay.” All five nodded seriously in agreement.

“We are not doing charity, nor are we gangster bosses. Remember those two points.”

Su Pingnan looked at Yang Qianli and Zhang Tong, pointed at them with his finger, and continued, “You two, pay attention — don’t go messing with a bunch of people thinking you’re so tough.”

Saying that, he took a thick stack of papers from his jacket and threw them on the table.

“The arcade needs people, so each of you will recruit people. The rules are all printed here. Anyone who can’t do the job or can’t take the work has to leave immediately — I’m serious about this.”

Guo Guangyao picked up the papers. “Wage deduction system,” “error accumulation system,” “suspension and rotation system,” “rules for the layoff period”… All sorts of regulations made the others’ scalps tingle.

Su Wenwen looked up and smiled, “Brother Nan, if all this can be achieved, they’d definitely be elites.”

Su Pingnan’s gaze was calm, his tone steady. “If they want to earn the highest wages and best benefits in Tiannan Province, they must be worthy of doing so.”

“We have no backers to fall back on. When we were street ruffians, we could get by with taking decisive action and being as ruthless as possible to scare others. But now we all must change. Do you understand?”

“Understood.” They exchanged glances and all nodded in unison.

Su Pingnan’s eyes sharpened as he looked at each of them. “We are not hooligans. We are a special collective. If you must define us, I’d call us a collective of Jinxiu Group.”

“By day we wear suits, dine on Western food with anyone, listen to music, and enjoy romantic moments.”

“At night we can turn vicious in secret, roll up our pants and fight our rivals to the death.”

“We can shake hands with the mayor, chat and laugh while investing and doing business. We can smile and joke in front of a crowd of reporters and donate to charity.”

“We can also be utterly predatory, devouring any enemies who stand in our way.”

Su Pingnan slowly took a bite and said, “This is the Jinxiu Group that follows me, Su Pingnan. I’ll say it one last time: follow the rules, know when to advance and retreat.”

Having said that, he raised his glass. “I’m done talking — if you agree, drink.” After the toast, Su Pingnan laughed, “We won’t discuss details now, let’s focus on drinking.”

Guo Guangyao jumped up: “No going home sober!”

……

“My name is Du Jiu.” Du as in ‘cut off everything,’ Jiu as in ‘long-lasting.’

Du Jiu was a member of the Sihairen gang. Standing at nearly two meters tall with smooth muscles, everyone described him the same way after taking one glance at him: formidable.

He was the most unusual of the Sihairen members. He scorned the pickpocketing methods they relied on and survived by force alone.

He had a very flashy nickname among them: “Invincible Everywhere”.

Du Jiu had a job that would be very profitable in later times: debt collection. He always collected debts alone. No money? No problem. Break an arm for 3,000, break a leg for 5,000.

Then he’d leave. When you were almost healed, he’d come back with the same-priced package, repeating until you paid.

He never wanted to kill anyone — Du Jiu wanted money, not murder.

Right now, he was wearing a blue denim jacket that only an old farmer would wear, and a pair of yellow rubber boots on his feet.

Motionless, he stared at the brightly lit Jinxiu Pavilion, a Tiannan Province Daily clamped under his arm.

If someone unfolded the newspaper, they’d find a sketch of Su Pingnan tucked inside.

This time, Du Jiu wasn’t here for money. He wanted one of Su Pingnan’s arms.

He had been hired by Chen Tianfu in Xiangnan and the price was very high. Though this kind of revenge seeking work wasn’t in his usual scope, when he recalled his sister Du Ruolan’s pale, bloodless face and thought of the imminent dialysis costs, he still nodded and agreed to taking up the job.

After Du Jiu agreed, Chen Tianfu showed him Chen Liu and, pointing at Chen Liu’s arm, said sullenly, “Exactly the same — sixty thousand.”

Du Jiu only had to take one look to know that this Little Red Robe was definitely a hard opponent — a wrist was shattered by a single impact like that… This person was trouble for sure.

Snowflakes began to fall, yet Du Jiu remained motionless across the street, his eyes like a lone wolf in the desert, fixed on the spotless glass doors of Jinxiu Pavilion. He had plenty of patience. He was waiting.