As the instigator of all this, he was now hiding in the corner of the wall, snickering to himself.
His plan had been to take out Chen Wenhai and those foreign dogs of his, but he never expected it would lead to this.
"Brother Xu, no need for you to come down. I'll personally deliver the money right now."
Snapping back to reality, Chen Wenhai immediately put on a fawning smile and signaled the two burly men behind him to go back and get the money.
A few minutes later, Chen Wenhai walked out of the courtyard alone, carrying a bag.
"Perfect timing."
Liu Tiezhu, still lurking in the corner of the wall, grinned at the sight.
He had thought capturing Chen Wenhai would be a hassle, but here he was, walking out on his own.
It really proved the saying: when luck is on your side, anything impossible can become possible.
Just like this moment—Liu Tiezhu was drowsy, and the heavens had sent him a pillow.
Chen Wenhai had no idea that a man was hiding in the narrow alley just a few meters away.
Determined not to let Xu Dalin jack up the price again, Chen Wenhai quickened his pace.
The moment he stepped into the alley, a pistol pressed against his forehead.
"Stay quiet. If you make a single sound, I'll blow your brains out."
Chen Wenhai froze in terror, abruptly stopping in his tracks.
"Boss, let's talk this out. If you want money, I can give it to you."
"Cut the crap. Come with me now."
Liu Tiezhu grabbed Chen Wenhai by the collar, quietly led him out of the alley, and then veered toward the civilian housing area in the northern part of the city.
"Boss, where are you taking me?"
As the distance from home grew, Chen Wenhai's legs trembled with every step.
Liu Tiezhu shot him a glare without a word and kept moving forward.
Meanwhile, Xu Dalin was furious. He loaded another round of bullets and fired wildly into Chen Wenhai's courtyard.
Chen Wenhai had been gone so long without showing up—clearly, he was messing with him.
When word reached the courtyard that Chen Wenhai hadn't arrived, the burly men panicked. They grabbed their rifles and rushed out to search for him.
After scouring the area without finding him, they quickly called in more men to expand the search.
By then, Liu Tiezhu and Chen Wenhai had already reached the woods on the northern outskirts of the city.
"Is your brother-in-law, Jiang Tianliang, in contact with the Li family?"
Once inside the woods, Liu Tiezhu stared at Chen Wenhai and cut straight to the point.
Hearing this, Chen Wenhai's face crumpled into a pitiful expression.
"Boss, I haven't been in touch with him for months. I don't know what he's up to."
"If you want to know about him, why not kidnap him? I'm innocent."
Chen Wenhai's acting was surprisingly on point.
With that mournful look, it was a waste he wasn't in movies.
Liu Tiezhu knew the best way to deal with someone like this was to make them suffer.
Once they'd tasted pain, they'd spill everything without needing further questioning.
With that in mind, Liu Tiezhu didn't waste any more words. He pulled out a dagger and stabbed Chen Wenhai in the thigh.
The blade sank in, and bright red blood splattered out. Chen Wenhai's face twisted in agony.
"Ow, my dear mother, it hurts like hell!"
Hearing that wasn't the answer he wanted, Liu Tiezhu yanked the dagger out and stabbed again.
Chen Wenhai clutched his thigh tightly, his whole body going numb.
Before he could catch his breath, Liu Tiezhu pulled the dagger out once more.
Chen Wenhai's soul nearly fled his body. He frantically waved his hands and stammered, "I'll talk! Boss, what do you want to know? I'll tell you everything!"
Liu Tiezhu was a ruthless man; Chen Wenhai didn't dare play any more tricks, or he'd really die here.
"What's the deal with Jiang Tianliang and the Li family?" Liu Tiezhu asked.
"He's in a partnership with them."
"Starting in '77, the Li family sent people to contact him."
"They funneled him money, and he gave them intelligence."
Chen Wenhai didn't dare hide a thing, spilling everything he knew in one breath.
"What businesses does Jiang Tianliang own?" Liu Tiezhu pressed on.
"This... this..." Chen Wenhai hesitated.
He had a stake in many of Jiang Tianliang's ventures, and Liu Tiezhu was clearly out to cripple them.
If he revealed those businesses, he'd take a huge hit too.
Seeing Chen Wenhai stammer, Liu Tiezhu didn't hesitate. He stabbed the dagger into Chen Wenhai's thigh again.
"Boss, I'll talk!"
Chen Wenhai's face contorted in pain as he blurted out all of Jiang Tianliang's businesses.
Between his assets and his life, Chen Wenhai wisely chose the latter.
He had hundreds of thousands in wealth now—even if he did nothing, it was enough to last him the rest of his life.
If he pissed off Liu Tiezhu and got killed, he'd lose everything.
Wasn't there a saying that the worst thing is to die before you've spent all your money?
He didn't want to be the one to prove that true.
"Boss, I've told you everything I know. Shouldn't you let me go?"
"I've lost so much blood—I'll really die."
Chen Wenhai put on a pitiful look, pleading with Liu Tiezhu.
"One last question: why did Jiang Tianliang want to kill me?" Liu Tiezhu asked.
This question had been nagging at him.
He had no prior connection to Jiang Tianliang, no conflict of interest, and certainly no grudge.
Logically, Jiang Tianliang, a stranger, shouldn't have been plotting to kill him.
But from how Zhang Guofeng and his two men acted that night, it seemed Jiang Tianliang had targeted him the moment he entered the Ming family camp.
Chen Wenhai said, "It was a big shot from the Li family who wanted you dead."
"My brother-in-law took his money and handled the job."
A big shot from the Li family?
Hearing that, Liu Tiezhu was baffled. His gaze locked back onto Chen Wenhai's face.
"You bastard, are you trying to screw with me?"
As he spoke, Liu Tiezhu raised the dagger again.
He didn't know anyone from the Li family and had no feud with them.
Were they so bored they'd waste resources to kill him?
Chen Wenhai's soul nearly jumped out of his body. He waved his hands frantically and said, "Boss, no, no, no..."
"I'm telling the truth! The one who wants you dead really is from the Li family."
"His name is Li Chenyang, the third-in-command of the Li family."
"As for why he wants you dead, I don't know either."
"But I heard Jiang Tianliang say that you and some kid from the Ming family killed Li Chenyang's grandson."
Liu Tiezhu frowned, mulling it over.
The only time he'd crossed paths with the Li family was the night he ran into Yang Hua at the tavern.
Back then, to escape the Li family's encirclement, they'd killed quite a few of their men.
But those takedowns were done in secret—how did Li Chenyang find out?
Oh, right—the guy who got away had seen his face.
Putting it together, Liu Tiezhu immediately understood everything.
Jiang Tianliang was the Li family's partner. As long as he remained, Liu Tiezhu would always be in danger.
But that old dog Jiang Tianliang was well-hidden. Without solid evidence, no one would believe he was working with the Li family.
Liu Tiezhu thought for a moment, and his eyes lit up.
If Jiang Tianliang could use one force against another, why couldn't he?
With a plan in mind, Liu Tiezhu shot Chen Wenhai dead on the spot.
After searching his body for anything useful, he quickly headed back toward the camp.
Now that he knew why Jiang Tianliang wanted him dead, Yang Hua was definitely in danger.
He had to hurry back and warn him.
In his plan, Yang Hua was a key piece—he couldn't let anything happen to him.