Zhang Tianlong never dreamed that Liu Tiezhu would be so reckless as to dare to withhold two-thirds of the supplies.
"Is there a problem?"
Compared to Zhang Tianlong's shock, Liu Tiezhu remained utterly calm. No one knew the exact amount of these supplies except for him and Zhang Tianlong. Besides, he and his brothers in the camp had risked their lives to retrieve them—why should they hand them over to the Ming family? If not for the sake of gaining greater benefits, Liu Tiezhu wouldn't even have handed over a third.
Zhang Tianlong said, "No problem, but if we keep this much, won't it raise suspicion from above?"
"Relax, only we know how much there is. As long as we don't say anything, the higher-ups won't find out. Just do as I say—convert the withheld supplies into cash, and we'll split it."
Hearing this, Zhang Tianlong felt a bit relieved.
The next day, Guo Qixing arrived early at Liu Tiezhu's barracks.
"Brother Tiezhu, what happened last night?"
As soon as he sat down, Guo Qixing asked. The gunfire from the previous night had truly scared him. If Liu Tiezhu hadn't warned him beforehand, he would have thought the shots were aimed at him.
"The gunfire last night was caused by the Ming family's higher-ups."
Liu Tiezhu replied briefly, then asked about Jiang Tianliang's three properties.
Guo Qixing pulled out a stack of cash and handed it to Liu Tiezhu.
"This is the money from liquidating last night's supplies, totaling 138,000. Here's 70,000 for you—count it."
Liu Tiezhu glanced at the cash and was taken aback. Based on his estimate, the three properties of Jiang Tianliang combined would be worth at most a few tens of thousands. He hadn't expected to underestimate Jiang Tianliang's strength. The 70,000 in front of him, plus what he'd gotten from Ming Zhenglong and Ming Jiacheng, already exceeded 100,000. If he added the supplies Zhang Tianlong hadn't yet converted, that was another 20,000 or so. In just a few days, he'd made 120,000. Liu Tiezhu couldn't help but marvel—rich people's money was just too easy to earn. If he could bring in 100,000 a day, he could support not just a hundred-man army but even a three-hundred-man one. Still, he knew this was just a nice thought. Getting that 120,000 had come at the risk of his life and with a stroke of incredible luck.
The people who killed Jiang He and Ming Zhenglong would surely be suspicious. Fortunately, Ming Jiacheng could take the heat for him. But even so, he still needed to give a perfect explanation for both Ming Zhenglong and Jiang He to clear his name. Beyond that, he had to deal with Ming Tianfeng. Jiang Tianliang had lost three properties this time, and whether there was evidence or not, he'd pin it on Liu Tiezhu. Ming Tianfeng would definitely seize the chance to strike at him. So, earning this 100,000-plus came with huge risks. If his covert actions were exposed, he'd be dead without a burial place. Luckily, everything he'd arranged was going according to plan.
"Brother Qixing, you need to hurry up on that task I gave you last time."
After taking the money, Liu Tiezhu reminded him in a serious tone.
Hearing this, Guo Qixing dropped his playful demeanor and replied earnestly, "Brother Tiezhu, I've already sent out all of the Guo family's intelligence agents to investigate. Within a week at most, I guarantee I'll have detailed information for you."
Liu Tiezhu nodded and warned, "By the way, tell your people to be careful these next few days. There's going to be a storm in the Ming family."
Guo Qixing was startled and asked, "Is it because of last night's shootout?"
Liu Tiezhu nodded. "Sort of. Anyway, it's better to be cautious—no harm in that."
"Time's tight. I'll go arrange things now."
Sensing the danger in Liu Tiezhu's words, Guo Qixing left quickly.
After seeing Guo Qixing off, Liu Tiezhu lit a cigarette and mulled over how to handle the upcoming situation. No matter who won last night's gunfight, the cost was heavy. He was the only one who knew about the ambush on Jiang He and Ming Zhenglong's men, so he had to provide a reasonable explanation. But Liu Tiezhu wasn't panicked—he'd made all the arrangements before the plan began.
As the cigarette burned out, Lin Changxing showed up.
"Chief, Brother Jiang asks that you come over."
Liu Tiezhu nodded, knowing that what was coming had finally arrived. Jiang He sending Lin Changxing to fetch him so early could only be about last night.
Dozens of minutes later, Liu Tiezhu slipped quietly into Jiang He's barracks.
Inside, the faces of Jiang He and his two men were as grim as if they'd lost their parents, especially Liu Zhigao, whose eyes were fixed on Liu Tiezhu like he was trying to see through him. He'd nearly died last night, and thinking back, he found it hard to believe that such a hidden ambush spot could have been discovered. The only possibility was that Liu Tiezhu had sold them out.
Liu Tiezhu was mentally prepared. Facing Liu Zhigao's murderous glare, he remained completely composed.
"Brother Liu, you're not being straight with us."
"We treated you like a brother, and you pull something like this."
Jiang He's tone was aggressive, as if he had proof against Liu Tiezhu.
Treated me like a brother?
Liu Tiezhu sneered inwardly but put on a confused expression. "Brother Jiang, what do you mean by that?"
He could tell Jiang He was just testing him. As a shrewd operator, Liu Tiezhu wasn't fooled.
"What do I mean? That's what I should be asking you."
Liu Zhigao stood up abruptly, pointing at the wound on his arm. "I nearly died last night. Are you telling me you had nothing to do with it?"
Liu Tiezhu stood up too. "Brother Liu, I don't know what you're talking about. What does your injury have to do with me? Please explain."
He couldn't back down now. Showing weakness would only make Jiang He and the others more suspicious.
Seeing Liu Tiezhu's genuinely angry expression, Jiang He and Zhang Zhiliang exchanged glances and frowned in unison.
Could they have misjudged him? But aside from the three of them, only Liu Tiezhu knew about the ambush spot.
Jiang He decided to lay it all out and see how Liu Tiezhu reacted.
"Old Liu was ambushed last night. The spot he chose was known only to us."
The implication was clear: Liu Tiezhu had to give a reasonable explanation.
"Brother Jiang, you don't trust me?" Liu Tiezhu frowned, his voice laced with anger.
Jiang He said flatly, "It's not that I don't trust you, but I can't believe it's a coincidence."
"To be honest, the ones who ambushed Brother Liu were Ming Zhenglong's men, but they got ambushed later too. The second ambush was supposedly by Ming Jiacheng's people."
Liu Tiezhu knew that no matter how clearly he explained, it would still arouse suspicion from Jiang He and the others. So he decided to throw out a "smoke screen" to divert their attention to Ming Jiacheng. He'd planned this escape route long before approaching Ming Jiacheng. And Ming Jiacheng's involvement couldn't be hidden—if Jiang He and his men investigated thoroughly, they'd find something. Given Ming Jiacheng's resources, it wouldn't be hard for him to learn their ambush location. Besides, with so many of them heading to the spot through the northern part of the city, who could guarantee they weren't spotted by Ming Jiacheng's informants? That made their discovery at the ambush site perfectly plausible.
Still, that alone wouldn't clear Liu Tiezhu of suspicion. He knew that, but at least Ming Jiacheng could shift the focus of these cunning foxes like Jiang He.
"Where did you get this information?"
Jiang He's tone softened slightly, but he still doubted Liu Tiezhu.
Liu Tiezhu lied, "From Ming Zhenglong's steward, Zhang Shuntian. They caught one of Ming Jiacheng's informants and are torturing him for information. I'm sure results will come soon."