At Jiang He's barracks, Liu Tiezhu walked in and was immediately hit by the rich aroma of meat.
Inside, Jiang He had prepared a lavish table of food and drink to celebrate Liu Tiezhu's arrival.
"Brother Tiezhu, have a seat."
Jiang He patted the wooden chair beside him, signaling Liu Tiezhu to sit next to him.
Once Liu Tiezhu sat down, Zhang Zhiliang produced a pistol, fifty rounds of ammunition, two uniforms, and a medal, handing them over.
"These are items issued to you by the higher-ups. The medal is proof of your identity."
"From now on, you'll be Brother Jiang's assistant. Your living quarters have been arranged, and I'll have someone take you there later."
After speaking, Zhang Zhiliang shot Liu Zhigao a meaningful glance.
Liu Zhigao understood and brought over a prepared personnel roster and ledger.
"These are the personnel records and accounts. Take a look."
Liu Tiezhu smiled and directly pushed back what Liu Zhigao offered.
He knew full well what the three old foxes were up to.
Although Ming Zhenglong had assigned him a position, whether he could stand firm depended on these three.
Handing him the ledger and roster now was clearly a test.
If he took them and acted officiously, he'd have no good future ahead.
So the safest move was to play along and go with their flow.
Seeing Liu Tiezhu return the ledger and roster, the three exchanged glances, their faces finally showing satisfied smiles.
Liu Tiezhu's tactfulness meant he could be won over.
"Brother Tiezhu, I owe you an explanation about the arena incident."
"When you were surrounded by Chen Gang and his men, we were about to step in."
"But Third Master wanted to see your true strength and ordered us to hold back until the critical moment."
"Unexpectedly, you didn't need us at all and took out all three of them."
Jiang He spoke with a smile, seemingly explaining, but in reality, he was shifting all the blame onto Ming Zhenglong.
His words carried a hidden meaning, aiming to make Liu Tiezhu resent Ming Zhenglong.
"We were really anxious at the time, but we didn't dare defy Ming Zhenglong's orders."
Zhang Zhiliang fanned the flames further, deepening Liu Tiezhu's hatred for Ming Zhenglong.
"I understand the Ming family's rules. I don't blame you for the arena matter."
Liu Tiezhu kept his composure on the surface, but inwardly he was alarmed.
These three old foxes were truly cunning—with just a few words, they cleared themselves and redirected the fire at Ming Zhenglong. It was a beautifully played move.
Hearing Liu Tiezhu's response, the three secretly smirked.
As long as they made Liu Tiezhu hate Ming Zhenglong, he wouldn't serve him sincerely in the future.
Jiang He smiled and raised his bowl of wine.
"Brother Tiezhu is truly wise and understanding. Enough talk—today, we just drink."
"From now on, we're a team, helping each other out."
Zhang Zhiliang followed suit, raising his wine to match Jiang He.
Two hours later, they were full and satisfied.
Jiang He ordered his subordinate Lin Heshan to take Liu Tiezhu to his new residence.
The new place was on the left side of the camp, about two hundred meters away.
Liu Tiezhu's home was a two-story brick house—two rooms and a living room downstairs, three rooms and a living room upstairs.
The house was already cleaned, and daily necessities were fully stocked.
"Brother Tiezhu, I need to report back to Brother Jiang."
"If you need anything, just call on Yan Wanli and Yan Wanshan, the two brothers."
After his instructions, Lin Heshan left the house.
Liu Tiezhu surveyed the area and noticed several other houses of the same style.
Besides these brick houses, there were dozens of wooden cabins around.
Each wooden cabin had a guard stationed at its door.
Behind the cabins was a large open space where hundreds of men were training.
As Liu Tiezhu entered the house, the guards in charge of security, the Yan brothers, immediately saluted and asked about his daily needs and habits.
They were Ming family security personnel, responsible for the daily affairs and safety of the family's higher-ups.
Liu Tiezhu understood that these guards, while ostensibly protecting them, were actually monitoring them in secret.
Every move he made and everyone he met would be reported without reservation to the Ming family's higher-ups.
Liu Tiezhu sent the two off by asking about the surrounding security layout and the procedures for deploying personnel.
For now, though he had a position, he had no tasks, so he was quite idle.
In the afternoon, Yan Wanli brought lunch.
Three meats, two vegetables, and a soup—the standard fare for Ming family higher-ups.
After eating, Liu Tiezhu didn't have to worry about the dishes; the Yan brothers would clean up.
He headed to the training ground, carefully observing the surroundings.
He hadn't taken many steps when a man in his early thirties blocked his path.
"Brother Tiezhu, I'm Chen Jingyang, captain of the Third Action Team."
"Someone wants to talk to you. Do you have time?"
Liu Tiezhu paused and asked, "Who?"
"Guo Zhenlong, Guo Lin's older brother."
"He says he has important news for you," Chen Jingyang said.
Liu Tiezhu frowned. "Why doesn't he come himself?"
"Brother Tiezhu, you're new here and don't understand the situation yet."
"His status makes it inconvenient for him to show up here."
"If you trust me, come to my barracks."
Chen Jingyang finished speaking and walked off.
Liu Tiezhu hesitated for a moment, then followed.
This was the Ming family's military camp; Chen Jingyang wouldn't dare make a move on him here.
After about ten minutes, they arrived at a standalone wooden cabin.
Chen Jingyang carefully checked the surroundings, ensuring no one else was around, before opening the door.
"Brother Tiezhu, Guo Zhenlong is already waiting inside."
Liu Tiezhu nodded and stepped in to see a man around forty sitting inside, brewing hot tea.
Seeing him enter, the man stood up and extended his right hand.
"Brother Tiezhu, I'm Guo Zhenlong. I've been looking forward to meeting you."
Liu Tiezhu didn't put on airs and shook his hand.
"Brother Zhenlong, what business do you have with me?"
"Something big. Sit down first."
Guo Zhenlong gestured to the tea table, sat down, and poured Liu Tiezhu a cup of hot tea.
"I assume Brother Tiezhu already knows about Huaiyang Gou?"
Liu Tiezhu was taken aback, then nodded.
"Good, I won't beat around the bush."
"The Ming family's higher-ups have a new mission: send a team to Huaiyang Gou to wipe out the Zhang and Li family personnel stationed there."
"This task will fall to Ming Zhenglong's action team. As the coordinator and deployment officer, you'll definitely be involved."
At this point, Guo Zhenlong deliberately paused to sip his tea.
"Brother Zhenlong, how does this mission relate to me?" Liu Tiezhu asked.
After taking a sip, Guo Zhenlong looked around, then stood up, walked to the door, opened it, and checked again to ensure no one was eavesdropping before returning.
He sat back down at the tea table and lowered his voice. "Brother Tiezhu, this mission is a trap."
"Someone wants to use it to kill you."
Liu Tiezhu's expression shifted, his gaze fixed on Guo Zhenlong's face.
After a long pause, he lowered his voice and said, "Who came up with this? How do you know it's a trap?"
Guo Zhenlong replied, "It was Ming Tianfeng, the Ming family's second master."
"I know it's a trap because I've already figured out the number of Zhang and Li family personnel stationed at Huaiyang Gou and their positions."
"More importantly, I have evidence of Ming Tianfeng's contact with the Li family."
"To put it bluntly, Ming Tianfeng has gone all out to get you killed."
Hearing this, a chill ran down Liu Tiezhu's spine.
He never expected Ming Tianfeng to secretly collaborate with the Li family just to kill him.
"Brother Zhenlong, let's be straightforward. What do you want from me?"
Snapping back to reality, Liu Tiezhu didn't beat around the bush and asked directly.
There's no such thing as a free lunch.
Guo Zhenlong wasn't risking his life to help him out of boredom.
There had to be another motive.