Chapter 311 — Money Over Life

A thunderous crash rang out. Wei Zhao stood exactly where he was, not so much as swaying, while Ah Huang's body flew backward in a straight line. Another "bang" followed as it slammed into the corridor wall right outside the room, denting the plaster. Framed pictures rattled down from above and struck Ah Huang square on the head, but by then he was already unconscious. A thin thread of black blood seeped from the corner of his mouth as he lay utterly still.

Wei Zhao had not used his full strength. An early Yellow-tier fighter was not worth the effort. All Wei Zhao had done was reflect Ah Huang's own force right back at him -- in essence, the man had punched himself.

Still, one such blow was not enough to kill Ah Huang, though it would keep him bedridden for quite some time. Wei Zhao had come to negotiate with Xie Guangbo; he had no intention of killing him. And as for the man's bodyguard, Wei Zhao was not about to do him in either.

"You... you... who on earth are you?" Xie Guangbo had never imagined that his own bodyguard would not even survive a single exchange against Wei Zhao, let alone finish one. Of course, he did not know Ah Huang was still alive.

From where he stood, Ah Huang had gone flying and then fallen silent. If that was not death, what else could it be?

"I already told you -- I am Gu Mengyao's personal guard. Or perhaps not a personal guard. Honestly, I don't even know what I'm here to do." Wei Zhao shrugged. "But now, can you sign the equity transfer agreement? I don't want to kill anyone. Don't force my hand."

Xie Guangbo slumped in defeat. Ah Huang had been his only hope. He knew full well how powerful Ah Huang was -- a legendary Yellow-tier master. If Ah Huang hadn't owed him a favor from years past, no fighter of that caliber would have agreed to protect him.

Yet such a fighter had been "killed" by Wei Zhao. Xie Guangbo was stunned, and in the same breath, utterly terrified.

"The shares cannot be transferred to you," Xie Guangbo shook his head. "That is absolutely out of the question."

"So you're asking to die?" Wei Zhao's patience began to fray. Was this man really choosing money over his own life? First time he'd seen anything like it -- clearly terrified beyond measure, yet when it came to his shares, he wouldn't budge an inch.

"I don't want to die..." Xie Guangbo shook his head, but a look of steel resolve flashed in his eyes. "The shares I cannot give you. Even if it means death, I will not give them to you."

"..." Wei Zhao truly did not know what to say. He almost wanted to slap this wretch right out of existence.

Wei Zhao picked up the safe door lying on the floor, intending to put on a bit more of a show for Xie Guangbo. He planned to bend the steel plate in his hands, just to rattle him. But Xie Guangbo clearly misread the gesture -- he thought Wei Zhao had lost his patience and was about to finish him off. "Wait! Don't kill me... I can give you the shares, but you must wait a few days."

"Wait a few days?" Wei Zhao blinked.

"At the very least, after Jin Gubang becomes chairman of the group. After that, I can hand over all my shares to you." Xie Guangbo said. "Even if it means going to prison, I don't care anymore. You can kill me -- the shares will still be yours. But right now, absolutely not..."

"Hmm?" Xie Guangbo's words left Wei Zhao baffled. Give him the shares -- but only after Jin Gubang became chairman? And he was even willing to be killed afterward? Could anything be more absurd? Was this Jin Gubang his father or his grandfather, that he would go this far?

"What has Jin Gubang offered you?" Wei Zhao frowned.

"My son was studying abroad, but he picked up gambling and drugs. He owes the local mafia nearly a hundred million in loan-shark debt. He is already in their hands. If we don't pay, they will kill my son." Xie Guangbo knew that unless he explained himself clearly, Wei Zhao would never let this go -- he might, in a fit of rage, simply kill him on the spot.

"Oh? So you're saying Jin Gubang is paying off your son's debts?" Wei Zhao frowned. So that was the reason behind this wretch's stubbornness? The thought made him smile bitterly. How true it was -- there was no love like a parent's love for their child. To save his son, Xie Guangao would rather die than transfer his shares to Wei Zhao; and having saved his son, he was willing to part with his shares and his life alike...

"He didn't. He doesn't have that much cash on hand, and neither do I." Xie Guangbo smiled bitterly. "My son's debt is in US dollars. The forty million in my bank account, sent over, was a drop in the bucket. But Jin Gubang has already promised me -- once he becomes chairman, he will allow me to draw on the company's funds..."

"Fuck." Wei Zhao really wanted to curse out loud. This Jin Gubang was plenty rotten -- agreeing to terms like that? Clearly the man had stopped at nothing to claim the chairman's throne, willing to sacrifice the company's interests for the sake of that one seat.

"Where is your son? I will bring him back, and you will transfer the shares to me." The second half of Wei Zhao's sentence was no question at all -- it was a command, delivered with an authority that allowed no dispute.

"That..." Xie Guangbo froze.

"What, you don't trust my abilities?" Wei Zhao narrowed his eyes, fixing Xie Guangbo with his gaze.

"No, of course not..." Xie Guangbo hurriedly shook his head. As if he would dare doubt Wei Zhao's strength now -- Ah Huang had been beaten half to death! Such fearsome power was almost unheard of in this world. But no matter how powerful a single man might be, he was up against the mafia abroad. Could he really bring his son back?

"Do you really think that if you give that gang their money, your son will come home safe?" Wei Zhao regarded Xie Guangbo with mockery. "Use your head. With a money tree like that, why would they ever let him leave the country? Drug addiction and gambling addiction are the hardest things to break. As long as he is still alive over there, you had better start saving up for the next payment."

"That..." Xie Guangbo did not deny it, for in his heart he had already come around to Wei Zhao's view. It was not the first time his son had asked for money; the reasons had varied each time, only the sums had not been as large as this. Something about offending powerful local figures, something about buying a car, something about a girlfriend running off with another man, and so on and so forth. Though after sending the money Xie Guangbo always urged his son to come home as soon as possible, the boy seemed utterly deaf to it. Now that he thought it over, Wei Zhao's words were probably the truth: time after time, the money had gone to settle gambling debts and loan-shark interest.

"I will give you one second to decide. Die here and now, or bring your son home and hand your shares over to me?" Wei Zhao watched Xie Guangbo and slowly raised the safe door in his hands. "All right, one second is up..."

"Wait..." Xie Guangbo shuddered and hurriedly waved his hands. "I... I agree."

Xie Guangbo did not doubt for a moment that Wei Zhao would bring that door down and smash him dead on the spot. Had there not been Ah Huang as a warning before him?