The moment Liu Tiezhu spoke, Jiang Tianliang spilled everything he knew. At that instant, his only thought was to get it out quickly and let Liu Tiezhu grant him a swift end.
"Brother, I've told you everything I know. Please, just give me a quick death."
This time, Liu Tiezhu didn't keep torturing Jiang Tianliang and readily obliged his request.
Guo Qixing told everyone to head back first, while he returned to the barracks with Liu Tiezhu. Once they sat down, Guo Qixing handed Liu Tiezhu a cigarette. "Brother Tiezhu, what are you thinking next?"
From Jiang Tianliang's revelations, Ming Tianfeng had over a dozen secret assets. Together, they were worth millions. If they could take all of them down, the Guo family's strength would rise another level. But these assets were heavily guarded, making them tough to crack. With the Guo family's resources alone, even taking one would come at a heavy cost. Besides, Ming Tianfeng wasn't a fool—once these hidden assets were hit, he'd surely reinforce his other operations. Guo Qixing felt a headache coming on and wanted to hear Liu Tiezhu's take. He knew that with Liu Tiezhu's ambition, he wouldn't let these assets slip by.
Liu Tiezhu took the cigarette, lit it, and started smoking. He understood what Guo Qixing meant. But he'd already thought through what Guo Qixing was considering. To seize these assets, the key step was first dealing with Ming Tianfeng's hidden personnel. The best approach now was to use Ming Zhenglong and Ming Jiacheng. By exploiting the conflict among the three, they could drag Ming Tianfeng back into the mire. But Ming Jiacheng and Ming Zhenglong weren't fools either—they wouldn't always follow his plan. He'd have to see how Ming Tianfeng reacted after his deployed men were taken out by his own brothers before he could come up with a countermove.
After a moment's thought, Liu Tiezhu said, "Brother Qixing, my idea is to wait and see. Let's see how Ming Tianfeng responds after tomorrow, then we'll plan from there."
Guo Qixing paused, then caught on to Liu Tiezhu's thinking. "Alright, let's watch Ming Tianfeng's reaction before we decide. Losing so many men, I bet Ming Tianfeng will go crazy."
Hearing this, Liu Tiezhu couldn't help but grin. "If he goes crazy, that's even better—saves us some brainpower. Also, have someone keep an eye on Ming Tianfeng's hidden assets. If there's any movement in their personnel, let me know immediately."
While they were plotting to take down Ming Tianfeng's assets, Ming Tianfeng himself got the news. Learning that his deployed forces had been wiped out in one go, he lost his balance and hit the floor hard. Those men were his strong backbone, built with immense effort and resources. Without them, his status as the Second Master of the Ming family would soon be hollowed out, and he'd be quietly eliminated. Now, Ming Tianfeng was completely panicked.
"Who did this?" he finally asked, picking himself up after a long pause.
"Ming Jiacheng and Ming Zhenglong," Chen Zhiqiang reported truthfully.
"Them..." Ming Tianfeng froze, his eyes turning bloodshot. "How is this so coincidental? How did they know I wasn't around? Could it be... Liu Tiezhu? That bastard must have set this up—kept me chatting here while letting those two animals hit my men. I'll grind his bones to dust..."
Ming Tianfeng screamed in fury, his hatred for Liu Tiezhu reaching its peak.
Chen Zhiqiang said, "Second Master, the most urgent thing now is to fill these vacancies. Otherwise, Ming Jiacheng and the others will come for you next."
"How do I fill them?" Ming Tianfeng asked, realizing the gravity of the situation. He was also worried about Ming Jiacheng and Ming Zhenglong joining forces. If they did, he'd have no defense.
Chen Zhiqiang thought it over and said, "The best move now is to pull people from our hidden assets. If Ming Jiacheng and the others see us suddenly bringing in so many men, they'll think twice."
Hearing this suggestion, Ming Tianfeng frowned. "That would leave those assets unguarded. If those two go after them, our escape route is gone."
Chen Zhiqiang replied, "Rest assured, Second Master. We've been running those assets in secret for years. If they knew about them, they'd have struck already. I suspect they don't know about these hidden assets, which is why they attacked our deployed forces. We'll secretly move personnel to plug this hole, scare off the two of them, then quietly send some back. Next, we'll recruit more people, and once we're back to strength, we'll settle the score."
Ming Tianfeng thought it over and found it reasonable. If the two knew about his hidden assets, they'd have hit those instead of his deployed men tonight. Besides, this was the only viable path left.
"By the way, send someone to contact Jiang Tianliang and see what's happening there. If they catch Liu Tiezhu, make sure no one kills him—I want to break his bones and tear his tendons," Ming Tianfeng said through gritted teeth, his face twisted.
Chen Zhiqiang said, "Second Master, I've already sent men. Jiang Tianliang's entire force was wiped out."
What?!
Ming Tianfeng shot to his feet, coughing up blood in rage. "That bastard planned this all along. Once I recover my sight, I won't let him off."
Chen Zhiqiang said, "Second Master, calm down. Let's throw some money out and get others to handle it. The Li family hates Liu Tiezhu too, don't they? We can set a trap and get them to act."
Ming Tianfeng waved his hand. "The Li family? Probably not. After the Huaiyang Hook incident, they suspect I set them up. Those bastards want me dead now."
Chen Zhiqiang said, "Then let's use the Zhang family to go after him. To be honest, Second Master, I have a relative working under Zhang Mingtao. If we hand this to him, it'll be solid. Plus, I've heard Zhang Mingtao has a grudge against Liu Tiezhu, so he'd be happy to cooperate."
Hearing this, Ming Tianfeng's mind stirred again. After a moment's thought, he pulled out thirty thousand yuan and handed it to Chen Zhiqiang. "Get this done immediately. Tell me what support you need. My only requirement is that Liu Tiezhu is taken alive."
Chen Zhiqiang took the money, secretly pleased. He was already a Zhang family mole planted beside Ming Tianfeng, and this task was just a few words for him. He'd pocket the cash, earn credit with the Zhang family, and gain Ming Tianfeng's trust—a triple win.