This time, it was a major transaction, so they decided Fan DeBiao would take the lead. Cai QingChong and Young Master Liu protected him as the three made their way to the office. Fan DeBiao knocked, and the door swung open to reveal a strange young man who greeted them with a smile. Seeing the trio, he paused, then quickly said, "I was waiting specifically for you. Get in the car with me. The exchange isn't here; it’s not safe."

Fan DeBiao clutched the woven sack, and the group followed him into an old Jeep. The vehicle drove out the back door of the auto repair shop and ascended the mountain road. After a short drive, they spotted two dazzling sets of headlights not far ahead. The young man stopped their Jeep directly in front of that vehicle. The three stepped out.

As soon as they alighted, they saw the "Smiling Tiger" boss, flanked by several burly men. "Did you bring the goods?" the Smiling Tiger asked.

Young Master Liu nodded. Fan DeBiao patted the woven sack in his hand and asked, "Did you bring the money?"

The Smiling Tiger nodded, his gaze flicking toward a combination lockbox resting on the hood of the car. "Let's see the merchandise!"

Fan DeBiao lifted and unfastened the woven sack, carefully placing four bronze bells out one by one. The Smiling Tiger pulled out his magnifying glass again and scrutinized them under the harsh glare of the headlights for a long time. Finally, he declared, "Hmm, excellent. These are all treasures!"

"Fine," Fan DeBiao replied, thinking, Even that smallest one is worth fifty thousand; these four should fetch at least a few hundred thousand.

The Smiling Tiger calmly took the combination box from the hood, pushed it toward Fan DeBiao after opening it, and Fan DeBiao hastily grabbed it, only to be utterly dumbfounded. The box was packed tight, stack upon stack, with nothing but joss money—hell bank notes. Although the color was very similar to Renminbi, it couldn't be spent. Fury instantly flared in him. "You dare to trick me?!"

At that exact moment, he felt something cold and hard pressed against his head. Fan DeBiao reacted instantly: it was a gun! The burly men immediately closed ranks, trapping the three of them in the center.

The Smiling Tiger chuckled, "It's not a trick. This is for when you get down below. I’m being benevolent."

Fan DeBiao panicked, his head buzzing, but after two quick glances, a flash of quick wit struck him: "With such a massive establishment, you still dare to pull a stunt like this? Aren't you afraid of retaliation from our people?"

"Your people?" The Smiling Tiger laughed harder. "Don't try to fool me. Do you think I’d make a move without investigating your background? It’s just the three of you, out-of-towners, with no connections in Beijing. I even know which hotel you’re staying at. Let me tell you frankly, if I move against you here, I move against you, and even the King of Heaven couldn't say a word about it!"

Fan DeBiao ground his teeth and said, "So, you intend to double-cross us?"

"Brother, you finally said something clear just before you die," the Smiling Tiger nodded, then turned his face aside. "Gentlemen, send them on their way."

This sentence was delivered so lightly, as if their lives held less value than ants. Fan DeBiao closed his eyes, sighing over his acute premonition. Cai QingChong and Young Master Liu had sensed something was wrong the moment they got out of the car. Both were skilled veterans; what kind of scene hadn't they seen? These petty sparrows thought they could play the local ruffians in front of them? Impossible.

Cai QingChong reached behind him, grasping a short dagger. He exchanged a look with Young Master Liu, and the two suddenly moved forward in a crisscross pattern. The brute holding the gun to Fan DeBiao's head was just about to fire when Cai QingChong ducked low, sweeping his right hand horizontally. In a flash too quick for the eye to follow, the tip of the dagger sliced across the man's gun hand. The brute first froze in confusion, then a sound like a slaughtered pig erupted from his throat. The gun clattered to the ground. His hand hung limply at the wrist, like that of a decapitated rooster, utterly useless.

Immediately following, Cai QingChong launched a flying kick from behind Fan DeBiao, sending the combination box straight into the Smiling Tiger's face. The joss money scattered everywhere. The Smiling Tiger stumbled, falling heavily to the ground, likely in serious pain. Then Cai QingChong followed with a side kick that landed squarely on the face of a charging henchman, spitting out several crystalline teeth mixed with fresh, red flesh.

Young Master Liu was no slouch either. Moving with agile speed, he sprinted toward the remaining thugs. Those men raised their pistols, but Young Master Liu launched a flying kick, knocking down the one in front, causing the rest behind him to fall like a row of dominoes. Young Master Liu gave them no chance to recover, surging forward with a flurry of kicks and heavy blows, holding nothing back. In less than two minutes, Young Master Liu and Cai QingChong simultaneously ended the fight. The group lay on the ground, groaning mournfully. Both men had struck viciously; all of them had lost all fighting capability.

Fan DeBiao hadn't even managed to react before he saw the once swaggering thugs now howling across the ground. He steadied his racing heart, musing that he might need to go to Shaolin Temple someday to learn martial arts.

The Smiling Tiger poked his head out from under the combination box, raising both hands high above his head. "Masters, spare me! Spare my life!"

Young Master Liu picked up a gun from the ground, inspected it briefly, spat on the dirt, and walked up to the Smiling Tiger. "You son of a bitch! You wanted to double-cross us? If you’re going to play rough, at least use real guns! Using those homemade relics to scare us?"

Saying that, he pressed the muzzle to the man's head.

The Smiling Tiger turned pale, his voice cracking with tears. "A misunderstanding, it was a misunderstanding! I was blind, trying to steal a bite from the mighty Taishan! Masters, spare this wretched life!"

Young Master Liu pointed at the bronze bells on the ground. "Speak! How much are all these worth in total?"

The Smiling Tiger, out of professional habit, raised his hand and held up four fingers. Fan DeBiao slammed a punch toward him. "Damn your ancestors! Our small bell was worth fifty thousand; you only offered us forty thousand for these four? Are you trying to die?!"

The Smiling Tiger clutched his face, wiping the blood trickling from his mouth. "Masters, you misunderstood. I meant four hundred thousand."

Young Master Liu smirked, thinking they were indeed quite valuable. He poked the man's head again with the gun. "Four hundred and fifty thousand! You tried to cheat us like this; don't you owe us some compensation for emotional distress?"

Fan DeBiao looked at the prone figures on the ground, thinking that even in this situation, they were still demanding emotional compensation. Young Master Liu truly had a way of thinking. The Smiling Tiger immediately agreed without hesitation, nodding furiously. "Yes! No problem! Come to my shop tomorrow, and I will prepare the cash for the Masters!"

"Hah!" Young Master Liu spat onto the ground. "Still trying to pull a fast one? Let me tell you, this place is remote! We could just finish you off right here! Kill you, clean up the mess, and walk away. Where would you find us? Behave yourself!"

The Smiling Tiger looked utterly miserable. "I really didn't bring it! It’s this late; where can I find the money now?"

Young Master Liu pulled out his dagger and gently stroked the Smiling Tiger's face, saying with deceptive tenderness, "You have two choices! One, I cut off your ear, or two, I cut off your thumb. You pick!"

The Smiling Tiger instantly collapsed onto the ground, timidly asking, "Is there a third option?"

Young Master Liu laughed. "There is! Hurry up and call your man to bring four hundred and fifty thousand!"

The Smiling Tiger had no choice. He pulled out his phone and called Gunzi to bring the money. Young Master Liu commented, "If you had been this cooperative earlier, you wouldn't have suffered half as much!"

Before long, Gunzi arrived with the cash. Fan DeBiao counted it carefully. Then they boarded the beat-up Jeep they arrived in. After starting the engine, even though Fan DeBiao was usually careless, he was surprisingly thorough when it came to business. He collected all the guns lying on the ground and tossed them down the mountain. Then, using the dagger, he punctured all four tires of the car with the dazzling headlights. Only after confiscating the phones belonging to Gunzi and the Smiling Tiger did they drive away.

Back at the hotel, they packed their luggage and checked out immediately, moving into a small, inconspicuous inn. The next morning, Young Master Liu woke them all up. Fan DeBiao grumbled reluctantly as he got up. "Hey, Young Master! We were so tired yesterday; why such an early start?"

Young Master Liu ignored his complaints, tossing each of them a damp towel to wipe their faces, then dumped the stacks of cash from his bag directly onto the bed. Cai QingChong and Fan DeBiao stared blankly at Young Master Liu, completely baffled. Young Master Liu divided the money on the bed into several piles. "We sold these goods for a total of four hundred and fifty thousand this time. Here's what I'm thinking: we take three hundred thousand to cover Da Guoguo's medical expenses, and the remaining one hundred and fifty thousand, we split evenly among us! That’s four shares, and we’ll set aside one share for Brother Su Yougui. Haven't seen him in over a decade; I miss him, hehe."

Cai QingChong naturally had no objections. Fan DeBiao was overjoyed at the prospect of getting a share too, and the decision was approved without a hitch.

After breakfast, the three divided the money. To avoid being tracked, they deposited their shares in different banks across several trips. Only then did they call a minivan, preparing to head to the hospital where Da Guoguo was being treated.

Just as the three were about to leave for the hospital, Young Master Liu’s cell phone rang.

"Hello, who is this..."