Yang Jian naturally could not accept Meng Meiyun's request. He was a wanted man nationwide and already preferred not to get too close to people from his hometown. Meeting his old classmates today was a coincidence, and there was no way he would become her assistant.
"Meng Meiyun, thank you for your kindness. My friend has already made arrangements with the boss, and the interview is just a formality. I'll be officially starting tomorrow, so I can't be your assistant."
Yang Jian politely refused.
"Alright then, if you're not happy there, you can always come to me."
Meng Meiyun was understanding and showed no displeasure.
As they spoke, the car stopped in front of a seafood restaurant.
Meng Meiyun was clearly a regular at the restaurant and had reserved a table in advance, ordering a large spread of expensive seafood. Yang Jian and Dai Mengmeng didn't stand on ceremony and enjoyed the feast.
The three of them stopped talking about work and instead reminisced about their high school days, filling the private room with laughter.
In Yang Jian's memory, Meng Meiyun had always been a cool, goddess-like figure in high school. Although she had many admirers, she was independent and self-respecting, focusing solely on her studies without any gossip.
After a few years, her personality had changed significantly. She was casual, cheerful, and unpretentious. She wasn't condescending despite her wealth, nor did she look down on him as a down-on-his-luck classmate.
The meal was very enjoyable for all three. In the end, Meng Meiyun drove Yang Jian and Dai Mengmeng to the entrance of Liuqiao Village.
Yang Jian then took Dai Mengmeng to her rental apartment, which was less than fifty meters from the chess and card hall. He himself took a motorcycle taxi back to Jiarong Residential Area.
Because of this unexpected encounter, Yang Jian had to change his work hours. He would go to the chess and card hall after eight in the morning and leave at five in the afternoon, thus avoiding Dai Mengmeng.
Although Yang Jian had a good impression of both his high school classmates, as they had both worried about his job and were willing to help him, his current awkward status meant he could only keep them at a distance and avoid too much contact.
Dongjiang Fruit Wholesale Market.
In the security department office, Buddha's obese body occupied half of the three-seater sofa.
A Chao sat opposite him, pouring tea. "Buddha, I found Yang Wu. He's indeed in league with Fang Zhicheng and his group."
A fierce glint flashed in Buddha's eyes. "Where is he?"
"He and Ma Yuan appear at the chess and card hall at the north end of Liuqiao Village every day. It's a betting point, with Ma Yuan acting as the cashier. Yang Wu isn't doing anything, but I suspect the owner of this betting operation is Yang Wu, or at least Yang Wu is responsible for its security."
"Yang Wu is a migrant worker. He can't be the owner of a betting operation. It's clear he's been taken in by Fang Zhicheng. Hmph, do they think we won't dare to touch him just because he's joined Fang Zhicheng? The more they act like this, the less we can spare him. With Fang Zhicheng and Zheng Jingfa having such a formidable fighter as him, he's a huge threat to us."
"What should we do then? Should we ask the police to investigate him?"
"That tactic won't work now. That's Fang Zhicheng's territory, and he has good relations with the local police station. You take your men and raid that chess and card hall directly."
A Chao's expression changed instantly. "Buddha, Yang Wu's martial arts are terrifying. My men won't be able to even touch him, and they might even be killed by him."
"Don't worry, I've already hired four experts from my hometown martial arts school at a high price. They will specifically deal with Yang Wu. Your men just need to smash up the chess and card hall."
"Experts from a martial arts school?"
"Yes, they'll arrive tomorrow. Arrange for the action to take place on Tuesday night at 8:30 PM. That's when the Mark Six lottery numbers are drawn, and there won't be many customers in the chess and card hall."
"Alright, I'll try to bring more men. This time, we'll fight to the death to eliminate Yang Wu, otherwise, we'll face even more ferocious retaliation."
A Chao actually didn't trust these so-called experts. He himself came from a martial arts school and had fought alongside Cheng Guang, gaining extensive combat experience. He feared nothing.
But after encountering Yang Wu, he felt fear. That person had clearly practiced traditional martial arts, and his moves with the two extendable batons were derived from swordsmanship.
This wasn't the most terrifying thing. What made him despair was Yang Wu's extensive combat experience, his incredibly quick reactions, and his fearlessness of death. During the incident outside the restaurant, facing eight opponents, he advanced rather than retreated, launching a proactive attack.
From these aspects, Yang Wu must have undergone countless real combat experiences, remaining calm and composed, striking ruthlessly, and possessing extraordinary offensive power. Without firearms, he could probably break through any encirclement, no matter how many people were involved.
As for the experts Buddha had invited, A Chao didn't believe they could handle Yang Wu. Those who came from martial arts schools might have participated in many competitions, possibly even national-level Sanda or combat sports events, and perhaps achieved good rankings.
However, such competitions were fundamentally different from life-and-death struggles in the underworld. Fights without rules were about who was more desperate.
Moreover, Yang Wu used two extendable batons, which were incredibly lethal. Every strike was aimed at the opponent's joints with extreme precision. As soon as he hit, the opponent would immediately lose their fighting ability.
The only way now was to corner Yang Wu in the confined space of the chess and card hall and use sheer numbers to chop him to pieces.
If he escaped again this time, A Chao had no intention of staying in Dongjiang. Therefore, in the next two days, he would not only prepare manpower to deal with Yang Wu but also make plans to return home for the New Year at any time. If Yang Wu didn't die, he would never come to this place again.
Perhaps due to the beverage promotion, more people came to buy lottery tickets on Saturday. Coupled with the holiday, people entering and exiting the chess and card hall to buy tickets were non-stop throughout the day.
By nine o'clock in the evening, A Nan, looking dejected, found Yang Jian with the account books.
"Brother Jian, today's sales exceeded one hundred thousand yuan, but two local people who bet ten thousand yuan each won. They bet one thousand yuan per ticket and hit the special number. Those two alone require a payout of eighty thousand yuan."
Yang Jian looked at the ledger and frowned. "Are we making or losing money today?"
"We lost thirty-eight thousand yuan. I feel like running a betting operation is like being an emperor sitting on the throne in the past; it's not a guaranteed profit. If those two locals had bet ten thousand yuan directly on the special number today, we would have lost over eight hundred thousand yuan. This ratio is a bit unfavorable."
After selling lottery tickets for two days, A Nan finally understood the risks of this business. Yesterday, he thought it was a business with no capital involved, but today he understood why Fang Zhicheng had asked them to prepare sufficient capital.
Yang Jian nodded. "This is indeed similar to being an emperor, but it's more stable than being an emperor. In the long run, it will definitely be profitable."
"The problem is that our location is too conspicuous, right on the main road. It's easy to be reported. I'm afraid we'll be shut down by the police before we can even reach profitability, and then we'll lose a lot. This business is really not as stable as running a casino."
"You have a point. We need to be flexible and not put all our eggs in one basket."
Yang Jian thought of Yang Fan's senior brother.