Chapter 114 It’s hard to guard against domestic thieves
As dusk approached, in front of a secluded courtyard in the eastern suburbs of Yingchuan, a man with thick eyebrows, big eyes, and a sturdy build was waiting carefully.

On the sparsely populated street, the cold wind howled violently, and it felt like a knife cutting my face, painful and cold. The gatekeeper was frozen stiff, and he kept rubbing his hands in the biting wind to get rid of the chill.

"Da da da……"

At the end of the street, there was a sudden sound of a carriage shaking, coming from far away and approaching slowly. After a while, the carriage slowly stopped in front of the courtyard gate.

The man guarding the gate was immediately alerted when he saw this. He quickly stepped forward and bowed to the person in the carriage and said with a smile, "Madam, the gang leader has been waiting for you for a long time."

"Hmm!" With a vague response, the curtain slowly opened, and a petite woman with a black veil covering her face and wearing a black cloak leaned out cautiously and looked around. With the careful support of the gatekeeper, she slowly got out of the car and walked quickly into the courtyard.

After the woman entered the yard, the gatekeeper closed the gate again, led the carriage to the back alley and hid it.

The woman seemed to be familiar with the route, passing through the courtyard and heading straight for the north room. She quickly pushed the door open and entered, then hurriedly turned around and closed the door. She was extremely cautious in her every move, as if she was afraid of being seen by outsiders.

Only after she had firmly bolted the door did her uneasy heart relax.

"Cui Er, you made me wait so long!"

Before the woman could turn around, a figure suddenly flashed out from the room and hugged the woman's delicate body from behind, scaring her so much that she almost screamed.

"You want to scare me to death?" The woman struggled to break free, turned around and glared at the man behind her, but there was a hint of coquettishness in her eyes. Although this look was not as clear as that of a young girl, it had a mature and charming charm, which made it even more attractive.

The man in the room was about fifty years old, with a leopard head, round eyes, a swallow chin, and a bushy beard. With a shiny dark complexion, he looked like a ferocious god, intimidating without even getting angry, and scary.

But his fat body was slightly ridiculous compared to his ferocious appearance. He was broad and fat, extremely bloated, dressed in silk and satin, with jade rings and gold bracelets shining brightly, and his whole body exuded a vulgar and money-minded aura.

Don't be fooled by his big belly, he looks like a drunkard. He is the leader of the East Lake Gang, who is feared by the people of Yingchuan, nicknamed "Li Lao Hu".

Back then, Li Lao Hu was also a mighty and strong hero, with a body like an iron tower, arms like fine steel, copper skin and iron bones, and as solid as a rock.

However, in recent years, the East Lake Gang has become increasingly prosperous, and Li Lao Hu has long stopped charging into battle and killing people. Now he sits back and enjoys the fruits of his labor, living a life of luxury, drinking wine and feasting on women. Over time, he has become this greasy and slippery person.

In terms of martial arts, he is no longer the "ferocious tiger" of the past. But in terms of viciousness and greed, Li Lao Hu today is even worse than he was back then.

"Cui'er, there are only you and me here, why do we have to hide?" Li Lao Hu ignored the woman's complaint and showed a wicked smile on his face. After saying that, he was about to take off the black veil in front of the woman. But the woman's eyes changed and she turned her head away quickly, clearly intending to dodge.

"Cui'er, what are you doing..."

"Brother Hu, please let me continue to wear this black veil!" There was a hint of crying in the woman's voice. At the same time, she subconsciously stroked her cheek.

Li Lao Hu's face changed, and his smile slowly faded. Taking advantage of the woman's unpreparedness, he suddenly stretched out his left hand, grabbed the woman's wrist, and then used two fingers of his right hand to tear off the black veil. In an instant, a handsome face covered with scars emerged.

But the most surprising thing was not the shocking redness, swelling and bruises on the woman's face, but her identity: she was the wife of the second master of the Pan family, Pan Wu, and his wife, Ding Cui.

The second wife of the Pan family actually had an affair with the leader of the East Lake Gang. If this matter were to be made public, it would definitely cause an uproar in Yingchuan.

In fact, Ding Cui and Li Lao Hu did not have an affair halfway. On the contrary, they had known each other long before Ding Cui married into the Pan family. What's more, before Ding Cui became Pan Wu's woman, she was actually Li Lao Hu's woman.

In fact, Li Lao Hu played an "indispensable role" in Ding Cui's marriage into the Pan family.

More than 20 years ago, when Li Lao Hu was still an unknown person, the Pan family had already gained both fame and wealth in Yingchuan. He coveted the Pan family's huge wealth, so he used a trick to deliberately marry his mistress into the Pan family.

Later, Li Lao Hu and the Donghu Gang emerged as a powerful force. In fact, it was the Pan family that provided them with financial support without their knowledge.

It’s just that the obscurity in it cannot be told to outsiders.

"Did Pan Lao Er beat you again?" Li Lao Hu asked sternly. Ding Cui forced a smile and sighed weakly, "I don't know why, but Pan Wu's temperament has changed a lot in the past few years. He is not as considerate and gentle to me as before. Since he started practicing Xuanshui swordsmanship, he has become more and more abnormal. Not only is he taciturn, but he is also very irritable and will beat me up if he disagrees with me. It was the same today. I just said a few fair words, but Pan Wu, this coward, not only did not help me, but also beat me up. I think he is the stupidest person in the world. His eldest brother is about to take over all the family property, but he turned a blind eye? He is still practicing some crappy swordsmanship wholeheartedly! If this continues, as soon as his father dies, we will be kicked out by Pan Wen. Humph!"

Upon hearing this, Li Lao Hu frowned slightly and asked, "How is his swordsmanship?"

"What else can you do?" Ding Cui sneered with disdain, "In my opinion, they are just some fancy moves, far inferior to you, not to mention the Hexi Qin family..." At this point, Ding Cui suddenly realized that she had said something wrong, and quickly changed her words, "What I mean is... Pan Wu, that loser, no matter how much he trains, he is only brute force, and can never be compared with you, Brother Hu..."

Li Lao Hu waved his hand indifferently and said thoughtfully: "Pan Chuba is a stubborn person. He asked Pan Wu to practice Xuanshui swordsmanship hard, and he must want to fight Qin to the death. But from what you said, Pan Wu seems to be far from Qin's opponent. The ten-year deadline is approaching, and it seems that the Pan family can't escape this catastrophe."

Li Lao Hu had been having an affair with Ding Cui for many years, so he knew everything about the Pan family.

"Brother Hu, I don't want to die with the Pan family." Ding Cui said bluntly, "If I hadn't been reluctant to part with my millions of family fortune, I would have left that damn place long ago to avoid being wronged by them all day long!"

Li Lao Hu gently stroked Ding Cui's hair and comforted her, "If the Pan family loses the battle next year, Pan Chuba will definitely fight to the death and make a mess. As the saying goes, no egg will be left intact when the nest is overturned. By then, the Pan family's wealth will be crushed into dust and nothing will remain under the purge of the Hexi Qin family."

"That's exactly what I'm worried about." Ding Cui nodded repeatedly, "Although I have been secretly accumulating wealth over the years, the power of Pan Huai Shipping Merchants is in the hands of Pan Wen and his wife, and I have only gained a few petty profits. Now I have to watch my hard work go to waste, which is really unbearable." After saying that, Ding Cui's eyes changed, and she said viciously, "Brother Hu, why don't we just go all out and take over the Pan family's property before Qin makes trouble, how about it?"

"what do you mean……"

"The East Lake Gang has a lot of people and power. Brother Hu can just send some people to break into Pan Huai's shipyard and rob everything." Ding Cui suggested viciously, "What do you think, Brother Hu?"

Li Lao Hu sneered and shook his head, saying, "How much cash can there be in the company? Thirty thousand or fifty thousand taels? Now the Pan family pays me at least ten thousand taels of tribute every year. There are also tributes every now and then, which is a long-term flow of money. Now you want me to rob Pan Huai's ship merchants, isn't that killing the goose that lays the golden eggs and cutting off my own financial resources? Moreover, once the news gets out, the situation that I have finally stabilized will inevitably be disturbed again. By then, the rich merchants in Yingchuan will be in danger. Who will be willing to pay tribute to us? Without these years of tribute, what can I use to pay tribute to the masters in the government? If the government is dissatisfied with me, it will definitely send troops to encircle and suppress the Donghu Gang, and I will be dead in an instant. Do you think this risk... is worth taking?"

"What should we do? Are we just going to watch mountains of gold and silver fall into the hands of the Qin family?" Ding Cui was extremely anxious and spoke with a rather unwilling tone.

"How smart is Pan Chuba? Will he just sit there and wait for death?" Li Lao Hu hesitated, "He should know better than anyone how capable his son is. From what I know about Pan Chuba, he will never place all the hopes of the Pan family on Pan Wu alone. He must have other tricks up his sleeve..."

"That's right!" Pan Chuba's words awakened Ding Cui from her dream. Ding Cui exclaimed and nodded repeatedly, "Today, three outsiders came to the Pan Mansion. They said they were from the Xianwang Mansion in Luoyang. From their conversation, it seems that the owner of the Xianwang Mansion has some friendship with the old immortal of the Pan family."

"Xianwang Mansion?" Li Laohu's face suddenly changed, and he asked hurriedly, "Are you sure it's Luoyang Xianwang Mansion? Their mansion master is called Luo Tianjin?"

"It's true that his last name is Luo." Ding Cui nodded confidently, "The old man even said that the man was the 'King of the North'..."

"That's it!" Li Lao Hu suddenly realized, "No wonder Pan Chuba is so confident, it turns out that he has climbed up the high branch of the Xianwang Mansion behind the scenes."

"Brother Hu, what is the Xianwang Mansion? Who is Gao Zhi?"

"Those are all well-known figures in the underworld. You wouldn't understand even if I told you." Li Lao Hu evaded the question impatiently. Suddenly, he changed the subject and asked hurriedly, "I heard that when Li Bao was collecting contributions at the dock today, he ran into three fools. In the end, it was Pan Wen who stepped forward to spend money to avoid disaster. Could it be that those three were from the Xianwang Mansion?"

Ding Cui was confused and shook her head ambiguously, "I don't know, but there were indeed three people who came to the Pan Mansion, two men and one woman."

"Two men and one woman?" Li Lao Hu was stunned. "Why did I hear there were three men?"

"That's unknown." Ding Cui was not interested, and murmured to herself worriedly, "Now there is the Qin family of Hexi on the left, who is eyeing us covetously, and the Xianwang Mansion on the right, whose origin is unknown. The Pan family is in chaos and may not survive at any moment. Brother Hu, if we don't take action now, when will we take action? I entered the Pan Mansion alone back then, do you want me to walk out empty-handed today? This is not only my hard work, but also your hard work over the years, Brother Hu!"

Li Lao Hu slowly shook his head and said, "I have always kept my distance from these martial arts sects. But I am not afraid of them. If they come to Yingchuan and don't provoke me, it's fine, but if they dare to make a move on me, my Donghu Gang will not be a pushover! As the saying goes, a strong dragon cannot suppress a local snake. Yingchuan City is my territory. Even if the king of heaven comes, he will have to keep his tail between his legs! Don't worry, I will go to the government to say hello in the next two days and make arrangements early to prevent any accidents. No matter who is more skilled between the Hexi Qin family and the Xianwang Mansion, I have a hunch that the Pan family's good days are coming to an end."

"The Pan family's property..."

"What you just said is right. We have put in more than 20 years of hard work and we cannot just give it away. The Pan family has too much money and the rice is rotten in Chencang. Even if I don't take it, someone else will. Instead of giving it to others, it's better to give it to me first!"

……

(End of this chapter)