At the Third Master Tiger's residence in Shunyi Fang, this time, Su Xin was not required to have an appointment. The two gatekeepers directly let him and Huang Bingcheng in.
Having met with such great success at the Happy Forest, even if Su Xin is not an honorary son of Third Master Tiger, he earns their respect.
When they entered the parlour, the Third Master Tiger was already seated in his position of authority. It was as if he expected Su Xin's arrival. Adviser Lee was standing behind him.
"I pay respect to my father," Su Xin said as he quickly moved forward to bow in ceremony.
Third Master Tiger, holding the teacup, chuckled, "Get up. You have been doing a great job at Happy Forest lately. I was right about you."
Su Xin replied with humility, "You flatter me too much, father. My success today is all because of your influence. If it wasn't for your backing, I wouldn't have been able to impress the merchants."
"Alright, no more self-denigration. You are the most capable among the younger generation in the Flying Eagle Gang. After this reform at Happy Forest, even the Gang Leader himself had nothing but praise for you," Third Master Tiger said.
"Father, do you know about how my men were killed by the members of the Green Bamboo Gang yesterday?" Su Xin asked.
Third Master Tiger responded, "Of course, I know. It was all a misunderstanding. The Gang Leader of Green Bamboo Gang, Dai Chong, has already paid an apology and compensated us with 10 taels of silver. Let's consider this matter settled."
Trying to subdue his irritation, Su Xin said, "Father, they killed my men in the Green Bamboo Gang. Can we, the Flying Eagle Gang, just let this go? Can an apology suffice for a life?"
"And what do you propose then? You are still young; conflicts between gangs are not that simple," Third Master Tiger said with weighty words.
Su Xin attempted to argue further, but Third Master Tiger simply interrupted, "Alright, Happy Forest has just started to grow. Don't focus your energy on this trivial issue. I'm tired. Adviser Lee, please see Su Xin off."
Hearing those words from Third Master Tiger, Su Xin realized that it was unlikely that the Flying Eagle Gang was going to seek any retribution. He left the place with Huang Bingcheng.
Adviser Lee, following them behind, chuckled, "Young Master Su, don't hold this matter to heart. Why not increase the compensation for the funeral of the deceased gang member? Let's just bury the past."
"Adviser Lee, please refrain from addressing me that way. Just use my name," Su Xin said.
He knew better than to underestimate Adviser Lee, who had been with Third Master Tiger for several decades.
Adviser Lee shook his head, "No, that won't do. Customs must be observed. You are the honorary son of the Third Master, I should address you as Young Master."
With that, Su Xin pulled Adviser Lee to a corner near the door and signaled Huang Bingcheng.
Being an astute man, Huang Bingcheng immediately took out a silver note worth 1,000 taels and skillfully slipped it into Adviser Lee's hands.
Adviser Lee looked at the denomination on the note. He was pleasantly surprised and discreetly stashed it in his sleeve.
"Ahem, you are indeed too kind, Young Master Su," Adviser Lee said with a smile.
Su Xin gave a gesture of salute, "Adviser Lee, I am not just being polite here. I genuinely want to understand why the upper echelon of our gang is not seeking retaliation after a member of ours was killed by the Green Bamboo Gang. Is it because my father doesn't want to lose more men?"
Adviser Lee looked around to ensure no one was around before sighing, "Young Master Su, I won't hide this from you. This has less to do with Third Master Tiger and more to do with the wider issues within the hierarchy."
Su Xin raised an eyebrow. If it wasn't entirely irrelevant, it meant that there was some involvement.
"The Green Bamboo Gang killed one of ours, which was a direct insult to us. We won the battle at Changle Square last time, so why are we being the ones to step down and tolerate this now?" Su Xin asked.
Winning the battle but having to play nice afterwards was what puzzled Su Xin.
Adviser Lee shook his head, sighing, "Young Master Su, do you know why we waged war against the Green Bamboo Gang last time?"
"Wasn't it because we were fighting for the territory of Changle Square?" Su Xin asked.
"Nonsense," Adviser Lee curled his lips disdainfully. "That was just an excuse to pacify the regular gang members. Besides Happy Forest, there is nothing precious in that ghost place of Changle Square.
Moreover, Happy Forest flourished only after you took over. Prior to that, the monthly income at the very highest was a few hundred taels, which didn't even cover the reward money we had to give after the battle at Changle Square.
We actually waged war against Green Bamboo because of a jealousy feud between Young Sect Leader Sha Yuandong and their young sect leader. After Sha Yuandong was slighted, he sought revenge. Wars between gangs lead not only to the loss of members but also a sizeable amount of money."
"There was reward money for the successful gang members, compensation to those who were injured or killed, arrangements to silence the official residence when things got heated. All this expenditure was quite significant.
The battle at Changle Square was meaningless. It was only due to the quarrels between the two young masters."
"Neither we nor the Green Bamboo Gang wanted a full-out struggle. They voluntarily pulled out, which merely saved face for the Flying Eagle Gang."
"Now, it's only one gang member who has died. The Green Bamboo Gang has already apologized, giving us our due respect. Why would the upper ranks want to spend vast amounts of money attacking the Green Bamboo Gang, all for the sake of trivial justice for a man?" Adviser Lee told Su Xin.
Adviser Lee's words left Su Xin and Huang Bingcheng dumbstruck. They never expected that the big gang war from a month ago actually started because of a jealousy feud between the two young masters.
Checking his surroundings, Adviser Lee whispered, "Young Master Su, let me be blunt with you. If the higher-ups don't intend to send men for retaliation, it's not only due to this reason. There's also some measure of targeting towards you."
"You, with your Happy Forest, are making almost a hundred thousand a month. That's even more than what some of the big bosses earn, and many people are envious, wanting to put a squeeze on you."
Su Xin said solemnly, "Didn't my foster father stand up for me?"
This month, he made eighty thousand taels of silver, of which he gave Third Master Tiger thirty thousand taels.
On one hand, it was out of respect for him, and on the other hand, it was to deter anyone who might be eyeing his money, relying on Third Master Tiger to shield him.
Officially speaking, Su Xin, the junior boss, was under Third Master Tiger's charge, and the Third Master was also his foster father.
If anyone upstairs wanted to suppress Su Xin out of jealousy, the Third Master, who had received the silver, would naturally need to stand up for Su Xin.
Instead of answering this question directly, Adviser Li asked, "Young Master Su, you gave Third Master thirty thousand taels of silver last month, right?"
Su Xin nodded.
"Third Master only found out later that you earned eighty thousand taels of silver last month!"
After saying this, Adviser Li bowed his hand and turned to leave directly.
"People are never satisfied, always wanting more!" Su Xin understood the meaning behind Adviser Li's words. A cold gleam flashed in his eyes as he left with Huang Bingcheng.
"Damn it! What the hell are these people! They were willing to have a big fight with the Green Bamboo Gang for some young masters, but when their own people get killed by Green Bamboo Gang, they don't even fart!" Huang Bingcheng was fuming all the way, showing his extreme indignation.
He was a part of the battle at Changle Square. Even with his personality, he wouldn't would take part in the fighting, but it made him feel sympathetic for their fallen comrades.
The high-level members of the Flying Eagle Gang didn't regard them, the ordinary gang members, as humans!
Compared to Huang Bingcheng's anger, Su Xin seemed very calm, "Look at the broad view, those in high positions are only interested in two words, interest.
Obviously what we want to do doesn't align with their interests, so they wouldn't care and might even suppress us. It's better to rely on ourselves than on others."
This was something Su Xin had already understood in his previous life: never entrust your fate to others.
If Third Master Tiger doesn't care, and the high-level leaders of the Flying Eagle Gang don't make a move, then how could he, Su Xin, just accept it?
"Boss, you're thinking about…" Huang Bingcheng looked at Su Xin in shock.
Su Xin didn't say a word, but a hint of coldness flashed in his eyes.
When they returned to the Happy Forest Hall, his men were all eagerly waiting. They wanted to know whether the higher-ups were going to send someone to seek justice for them.
But seeing Su Xin and Huang Bingcheng, the only two people return, they all felt a sudden sinking feeling in their hearts.
Facing everyone's gaze, Su Xin calmly said, "The higher-ups have said that the Green Bamboo Gang has already apologized. The matter is settled, and they won't have a big fight with the Green Bamboo Gang."
At this news, everyone under Su Xin's command became extremely agitated. Despite having guessed the news, they felt stifled.
Ji Gang, in the crowd, shook his head, a scornful smirk on his lips.
As one of Third Master Tiger's confidants, he naturally knew a bit about the high-level leaders of the Flying Eagle Gang.
Once this incident happened, he knew that the higher-ups wouldn't send anyone to help Su Xin seek justice.
With the scene in chaos, Su Xin struck the table, silencing everyone immediately.
Although Su Xin had only been their boss for just over a month, his clear sense of rewards and punishments won their respect.
But seeing their comrades get killed by the rival gang, only receiving an insincere apology and ten taels of silver in return, gave them a feeling of shared sadness.
Even though this incident didn't have much to do with Su Xin, they still held some resentment in their hearts.
How could they respect and admire a boss who couldn't even protect his own people?
Seeing this scene, Su Xin took a deep breath.
This must be what the high-level leaders of the Flying Eagle Gang or Third Master Tiger wanted to see, right?
To be a boss that has money but whose gang members are disloyal, and can be manipulated at will?
Su Xin laughed coldly, knocking on the table, declaring loudly, "If the higher-ups won't send anyone, that's their concern. They have their worries, but I, Su Xin, will not let my brothers die in vain!
At this time tomorrow, I will bring back the heads of Zhang Hong and Dai Chong to honor our fallen brothers!"
The whole hall suddenly fell silent.