Chapter 26: A Gentleman’s Agreement

Liu Dahua blurted out a curse, causing Zhao Feng’s expression to instantly darken.

Zhao Feng’s voice was icy: “Liu Dahua, did you just insult me? Do you believe I won’t make you regret this?”

“Bah!”

Liu Dahua spat at the ground. “Don’t try to scare me! Do you think I, Liu Dahua, grew up being frightened by people like you?”

Zhao Feng let out a cold laugh, half amused and half angry. “Well, well, Liu Dahua, you’ve certainly grown bold!”

“Hmph!” Liu Dahua’s stance was unwavering. “I’m done wasting words with you! Today, you either pay back the money or hand over the family heirloom!”

Zhao Feng shook his head, thinking this Liu Dahua truly had a death wish.

But Zhao Feng also sensed something was off. Based on his understanding, Liu Dahua was nothing but a paper tiger, never this brazen. What had gotten into him today? Why was he so aggressive?

Zhao Feng glanced at the gathered crowd.

“Uncle Zhao, someone’s here to make trouble in our village. What should we do?” he called out.

Uncle Zhao was the head of Little River Village.

Uncle Zhao snorted. “Don’t be afraid, Feng! I’d like to see who dares cause trouble here today.”

Liu Dahua, now anxious, jabbed a finger at Uncle Zhao’s nose and started swearing. “Hey, you old fool! Haven’t you heard the saying, ‘the bird that sticks its head out gets shot’?”

Uncle Zhao’s smile didn’t reach his eyes as he replied, “Liu Dahua, is it? Let me tell you this—today, I’ll be that bird.”

“Screw you!” Liu Dahua cursed again.

Uncle Zhao’s face instantly turned dark.

The villagers’ tempers flared.

“He actually insulted the old village chief!”

“Beat him up!”

“That’s right! Give him what he deserves!”

“Let’s go!”

The villagers, armed with shovels and pitchforks, rolled up their sleeves, itching for action.

About forty or fifty villagers quickly surrounded the twenty or thirty dyed-haired thugs Liu Dahua had brought with him.

Seeing this, Liu Dahua was visibly startled. He shrank his neck and took two steps back.

Zhao Feng chuckled. “What’s wrong, Liu Dahua? Are you scared?”

But Liu Dahua’s mouth remained defiant. “Hmph! Me? Scared? Liu Dahua, afraid?”

Zhao Feng rolled his eyes. “Liu Dahua, I won’t waste words with you either. Either come for the money tomorrow, or you can stay here forever.”

At the mention of “stay here forever,” fear flashed across Liu Dahua’s face. Others might not know, but he did—Zhao Feng and his father both had a reputation for being ruthless!

Liu Dahua’s face turned ashen, like pig’s liver.

From the crowd, Zhao Xiao quietly slipped over to Liu Dahua’s side. In a low voice, he asked, “Brother Dahua, what do we do now?”

Liu Dahua, already fuming, lashed out. He raised his hand and slapped Zhao Xiao across the face.

“Damn it! Didn’t I say we’d come for the money tomorrow? You just had to insist on today!”

Zhao Xiao stood there, stunned, clutching his left cheek. “Brother Dahua, I—I didn’t say that!”

“Hmph!” Liu Dahua kicked him. “Still denying it, are you? Still denying it!”

Zhao Xiao fell to the ground, and Liu Dahua, not yet satisfied, began to rain kicks and punches on him. Zhao Xiao curled up, arms over his head, groaning in pain.

“Hmph!”

After venting for a while, Liu Dahua finally stopped, letting out a cold snort.

He looked at Zhao Feng. “Zhao Feng, I won’t waste words either! Tomorrow, I’ll come for the money! But what if you don’t have it?”

Zhao Feng sneered, “If I don’t have the money tomorrow, you can take the heirloom.”

“Good!” Liu Dahua slapped his thigh. “You said it yourself!”

Zhao Feng nodded. “That’s right, I said it.”

“Hmph!” Liu Dahua let out a smug laugh. “We can’t just take your word for it! How about we make a gentleman’s agreement?”

Zhao Feng shrugged. “Fine by me.”

Liu Dahua chuckled and walked over, extending his right hand. “Let’s seal it with a handshake!”

With an air of calm, Zhao Feng placed his hands behind his back, then slowly extended his right hand. “Alright, let’s shake on it.”

“Excellent!”

A crisp clap rang out as their hands met.

Liu Dahua laughed triumphantly.

Zhao Feng calmly placed his right hand behind his back again and glanced at Liu Dahua. “Are you done now? You can leave, can’t you?”

“Hmph!” Liu Dahua replied with a self-satisfied snort. “We’ll see each other tomorrow.”

Zhao Feng responded with a faint smile, “See you tomorrow.”

To an outsider, it might have seemed as if the two were old friends bidding each other farewell.

Liu Dahua waved his hand. “Let’s go!”

The dyed-haired youths Liu Dahua had brought filed out behind him.

After they’d left, Zhao Feng waved to the villagers. “Alright, everyone, you can all disperse.”

The villagers responded in turn.

“Alright!”

“Feng, we’ll head home for now!”

“If you need anything, just let us know!”

“That’s right, don’t hesitate!”

Zhao Feng nodded. “Don’t worry, if I need help, I’ll call you.”

“Haha, good! Anytime!”

The forty or fifty villagers left in an orderly line as well.

Once the crowd was gone, Zhao Jun grew anxious.

“Feng, how could you be so reckless? How could you gamble with our heirloom?”

Zhao Feng smiled, patting his father’s shoulder. “Dad, don’t worry. I’ll pay the money back tomorrow.”

Zhao Jun looked at Zhao Feng with exasperation. “How? That’s a million!”

Zhao Feng smiled again. “Isn’t County Chief Wang bringing a million tomorrow?”

Zhao Jun shook his head, growing agitated. “But what if he doesn’t show up?”

Zhao Feng was momentarily stunned.

As reality set in, Zhao Feng realized his father was right. He couldn’t pin all his hopes on Wang Meng. He couldn’t afford to take such a chance.

But then—where was he supposed to find a million?

At that moment, Chen Ying approached Zhao Feng.

“Zhao Feng, if you really need a million, I can lend it to you,” Chen Ying said, blushing.

Zhao Feng was surprised.

He looked at Chen Ying in astonishment. “I never really knew who you were, what your background is. I sense traces of ancient martial arts in you, and you can casually offer a million. I suppose your family must be quite influential.”

Chen Ying shook her head. “I was just born into a big family. But it’s not easy to make a place for yourself, even in a big family.”

Zhao Feng nodded. “I understand.”

Chen Ying smiled. “Let’s not talk about that. Do you need the money? If you do, I’ll call my father right now.”