Chapter 8: Xi Sheng Becomes an Official

  Time passed bit by bit like this, the light rain outside stopped, the sun was about to rise, Yu Ze Cheng climbed onto the rooftop, continuing his daily morning lesson.

  His actions still had to be the same as before, and he absolutely couldn't show any abnormal phenomena. This was Yu Ze Cheng's idea. Sitting on the rooftop, the eastern sun slowly rose, and in an instant, the first ray of sunlight shone onto Yu Ze Cheng's face. Yu Ze Cheng began to circulate the "Mighty Tiger Roars at Heaven" technique. The technique circulated within his body, one cycle after another, and through last night's cultivation and events, the previous bottleneck had completely disappeared. Yu Ze Cheng smoothly reached the Great Completion Realm.

  Yu Ze Cheng's entire body shook, and in an instant his true energy surged greatly. Yu Ze Cheng suddenly broke through the "Mighty Tiger Roars at Heaven" technique's Great Completion boundary, opening his mouth to spit out a stream of white mist.

  As the white mist spewed out, Yu Ze Cheng opened his mouth and let out a long howl, lasting for five whole minutes. This was the manifestation of the Tiger's Roar to the Heavens technique being fully mastered. Yu Ze Cheng was extremely excited, finally mastering the Tiger's Roar to the Heavens technique after eight years of bitter practice, catching up with others' progress, proving that he wasn't a cultivation idiot after all. It seemed that this was definitely a benefit brought by the Blood Ring Technique.

  Breakfast was already prepared by mother, and when eating, mother said:

  "This morning I went to buy vegetables and heard that Li Da Guan Ren had an accident last night. His wife and Ma Fu Ping eloped, and they even killed him, taking all his money with them. Now everyone is talking about this."

  Yu then silently listened, after finishing breakfast, he deliberately went out to take a walk around the street, and indeed the news was all over the streets, in tea houses, and alleys, where everyone was discussing the murder of Li Da Guan Ren.

  What they portrayed was as if I had seen it myself, vivid and lifelike, with a clear motive. However, it's indeed the case that the Li family's wealth disappeared, the carriage driver and his wife also vanished, and the carriage is gone too. The carriage driver bought dog medicine at the pharmacy the day before yesterday, and Mr. Li often beat his wife after drinking wine. In the past, others had seen them having an affair, so it can be said that the evidence is overwhelming, and everything points directly to the two of them.

  Li Da Guan Ren died without an heir, and his family's property was left without anyone to inherit it. All the relatives of the Li family gathered at the Li mansion to fight for the inheritance, but no one cared about how Li Da Guan Ren actually died.

  Yu then turned around and saw that his framing had succeeded, so he headed to the Black Tiger Hall. He was a bit late, and today's work started a bit later than usual. Chef Wang Xuesen would definitely use this as an excuse to make things difficult for him, but he could endure it.

  Who knew Yu Ze Cheng had entered the kitchen, Wang Xue Sen walked over with a smile and said:

  "Xiao Yuzi has arrived, you don't have to go to work today, go to the main hall, Master Ma is looking for you."

  Yu then became frightened and said:

  "Is it Master Ma's residence looking for me?"

  Wang Xuesen said:

  "Yes, yes. Alright Little Yu Zi, Uncle was a bit overboard in the past, please forgive me. You also know that we are all chefs, and it's hard not to be curious when seeing something you can't do. Now thinking back, I really owe you an apology, this is Uncle's way of making amends with you."

  After finishing speaking, he handed over a red envelope. Yu Ze Cheng took it and pinched it with his hand, the weight was not light, at least two taels, and it wasn't copper coins, probably silver. He immediately replied with a smile all over his face:

  "What did Uncle say? I was wrong, if you hadn't taken me in back then, I wouldn't be where I am today. Actually, Zhen Cheng also has his own faults, please forgive him. If you have anything to say, Uncle, just speak up and Zhen Cheng will definitely take care of it."

  It seems that Bai Dage really has credibility, and today Ma Laohei came to find himself, it must be a good thing. Wang Xuesen heard the news and knew that he had left the kitchen, so there was no conflict of interest, why bother making enemies, so he bribed him. Yu Zecheng went to Heihu Hall for a meeting, but before he even reached the entrance, he saw Cui Renxiong, who rushed over to him and said:

  "Xiao Yu Zi, come here."

  Yu then hastily walked over and said:

  "Have met Master Cui Da Shu of the Cui Hall."

  Yu Ze Cheng knew that Cui Ren Xiong liked others to call him Tang Zhu, so he deliberately said it. Cui Ren Xiong was very satisfied with Yu Ze Cheng's greeting and said:

  "I heard that you roared in the mountain forest this morning, it seems that the fierce tiger's roar has been successfully cultivated. I specially reported to the master, and the master will definitely promote you and give you important tasks. Uncle has spoken highly of you."

  Yu Zhe then stood up and bowed slightly, extending his hand to pass over the red envelope he had received from Wang Xuesen, saying:

  "Thank you, Uncle Cui. Little Yu will definitely repay you in the future."

  Choi In-ho took over and nodded his head saying:

  "Alright kid, don't worry I'll help you. Come on, hurry up and get in, the master has been waiting for half a day, what took you so long to arrive?"

  Yu Ze Cheng said:

  "I caught a bit of a cold yesterday, so I'm late today. Uncle, what work can you arrange for me?"

  Two men walked into the main hall, Ma Laohei sat in the middle, seeing him, Yu Zecheng bowed and said:

  "Participate in the hall master."

  Ma Laohei said:

  "Yu Ze Cheng, you've been in my Black Tiger Hall for four years since you were ten. I'm considering White He Xi's face and the fact that you're a descendant of an old member of our organization, so I'm assigning you a good task. However, whether you can do it well depends on yourself. That's all I have to say. Tomorrow, report to the Shanhu County City's Shantian Branch. At that time, you will become one of the executives of the Shantian Branch, so work hard."

  Shanzhu County is thirty miles away from Linhai City, located on the edge of the Ten Thousand Great Mountains. It's the last small town of the Tang State before entering the Ten Thousand Great Mountains.

  There, in the seven branches of Hei Hu Tang, the profit is not bad because of its transportation location, which is very prosperous. However, the power of Hei Hu Tang is not good there, with only 200 disciples, because it was originally the territory of the Wild Wolf Gang, and Hei Hu Tang was compressed to occupy only three streets, almost being driven out of the county. This is still because the branch owner's surname is Shi, who is the younger brother of the concubine of the master of the Shi family in Linhai City, otherwise they would have been annihilated.

  In fact, the most powerful force there is Shi's family, but according to Tang Guo's convention, all these underworld transactions must be controlled by the gang, and the Shi family will not step over the boundary. This is an unspoken rule in Tang Guo, formed by countless bloodshed over hundreds of years, which no one dares to violate.

  Just like the Shi and Yu families, who are wealthy, but neither of them has their own ironworks. All their weapons are made by the Tie family. The Tie family's transactions, whether it's to the State of Mu or the Ten Thousand Great Mountains, all follow normal channels and pay taxes to these two families. This is the result of countless generations, countless battles, and countless compromises between these families.

  Yu Zecheng heard this order and didn't know what to say, Ma Laohei continued:

  "You're a bit young, but it doesn't matter, Lei Bangzhu was only twelve when he founded the Fierce Tiger Gang."

  Yu Ze Cheng replied:

  "Yes, yes."

  Ma Laohei continued:

  "There, the power of the Wild Wolf Gang has disappeared, but the remnants are still there. You've just arrived and taken over someone else's position, so there must be people who are dissatisfied. Therefore, when you go there, listen to Shi Zhu's orders and get in touch with the local Shi family. Bai Shao Menzhu must have instructed the Shi family before he left, with their support, everything will be easy."

  But you must remember not to lose the morale of our Black Tiger Hall, if something happens, and you flee in a cowardly manner, betraying the hall's rules, I'll skin you alive.

  Yu Zhen said loudly:

  "Please rest assured, madam, I will absolutely not bring shame to the Black Tiger Hall, and I am willing to risk my life for it."

  Ma Laohei nodded and waved his hand, saying:

  "Go home and get ready, remember to come early tomorrow afternoon, don't be late like today. At that time, four disciples will be selected from the hall to go with you. Vice Hall Master Cui will send you over."

  Yu Ze then bid farewell and left. Watching him leave, Cui Renxiong said:

  "Boss, can he, just a little kid, really handle being a target?"

  Ma Laohei said:

  "There's no way, Bai Hezi has spoken to me, so I have to give him some face. I've already arranged for Old Shi to go tomorrow and assign him a nominal position as a ceremonial archer, just to make him look good. Later on, he'll get his monthly salary without having to do anything, it's just a puppet role, even a cat or dog could handle it. It's enough to satisfy Bai Hezi."

  Shan Zhu County would have been taken down by the Wild Wolf Gang if not for Lao Shi being the helmsman. Considering the face of the Shi family, they let it slide. Now that the Wild Wolf Gang is gone, but the local branch's strength isn't strong either. We're opening five new branches on this side and all the top hands have been dispatched, so there's no one to support him. The empty territory will inevitably attract some envy. This kid somehow got lucky and has Bai He Xi backing him up, so the Shi family has to give him some face. Later, they'll let him be the steward of that street's territory, and other gangs trying to take over the territory will be wary of the Shi family, who will also give him face. Who would dare say no? Wouldn't the territory be taken back in a legitimate manner then?

  Choi In-ung nodded along as he listened, flattering him by saying:

  "High, really high. First, it's worthy of Bai He Xi, second, it blocks the Shi family's request, third, it suppresses other gangs from occupying the territory. One stone, three birds. Hall master, you are truly impressive. It makes me admire you, like a flowing river..."

  Yu Zecheng left the main hall, no wonder Wang Xuesen's attitude towards him changed, it turned out that he knew he had been promoted.

  The core business of the Měnghǔ Bāng is collecting protection fees from territories, as well as controlling inland waterway and land transportation within Táng Guó. Within Táng Guó, there are two canals running from south to north, with well-developed roads, making the transportation industry thrive entirely under the control of underworld gangs.

  Hei Hu Tang is one of the four major halls of the Meng Hu Bang, controlling Lin Hai City. Under it are seven branches, controlling seven medium and small cities in the southern part of Tang Guo. Each branch has its own leader, under whom there are several executives who carry out specific tasks.

  Some attendants were responsible for water transportation, and such attendants were called "water dragons". Some were in charge of vehicle and horse management, managing land transportation, and such attendants were called "master of the line". Some attendants were responsible for managing streets, collecting protection fees and other charges within their own territory, while also protecting their own territory from being invaded by other gangs. There were battles within the gang, bloody fights, and such attendants were called "anti-targets".

  Each steward has at least thirty disciples under him, and those water dragons, masters, and stewards have hundreds of disciples. There are also teachers who are responsible for planning strategies, as well as the four rods of red, white, green, and gold, which are the most powerful gold rod fighters. Ordinary disciples are just ordinary fighters, the most basic members of the Black Tiger Hall, who can sacrifice their lives to fight for the gang. The stewards are the small leaders in control of them.

  Being a steward is not an easy job. Although you get a fixed monthly allowance, it's only a small amount. First and foremost, you need to be able to fight, so that you can protect your territory and others will fear you, allowing you to collect money. Apart from paying the fixed gang fee to the helmsman, everything else is yours. Don't think that all this money is for yourself to spend; although the apprentices under you also get a monthly allowance from the gang, if you don't reward them, buy their loyalty and take good care of them, who will risk their lives for you when it counts?