Chapter Twenty-One Three Halves

  Strictly speaking, Ding Kui's side was doing quite well. The military households of Wei Suo didn't have the guts to fight bandits, but their fighting and brawling skills were still decent. After all, Ding Kui had followed Song Qing to kill people back then and had seen real bloodshed. The three men who were temporarily called over were also unstable elements within the Wei Suo military households, with considerable combat strength.

  However, their opponents were not weak either. They were all handpicked by Wu Laohei and consisted of six people. Added to that, they didn't have Song Qing's ferocity when fighting, nor did they have the ruthlessness of those four kids. As a result, both sides were at a stalemate, unable to determine victory or defeat for a long time. The only one who made any progress was Ding Kui, who used his long knife to injure one person.

  Song Qing rushed out, first knocking down the man who was fighting with Ding Kui, then stabbing another person in the thigh. The remaining four were not fierce bandits and saw blood after which they all panicked, trembling with fear and didn't dare to move forward. Song Qing also stopped taking action, coldly saying: "This side has nothing to do with you, those who don't want to die should roll away quickly!"

  Those four thugs hesitated for a while, but in the end they didn't dare to come forward. They dragged away the two injured men and fled from the gambling den like flying. Song Qing thrust his spear backwards and re-entered the den with a swagger. Ding Kui and others naturally followed him in, just in time to see Wu Laohei being chased by two big dogs, running all over the place. Luo Xiaobei was still holding his spear, constantly looking for opportunities to poke him, almost laughing out loud.

  Song Qing leaned his long spear against the wall and kicked out with one foot, striking Wu Laohei's chest. The big man instantly flew out and heavily crashed into the wall behind him. The noisy and chaotic gambling den was completely silenced by this kick. Eight large dogs and Lei ran to Song Qing's side in small steps, while everyone else maintained their original posture, not daring to make a sound, standing still on the spot, waiting for the victor's orders.

  "Everyone stand against the wall, anyone who dares to move is a transparent hole!" Song Qing did not let those innocent gamblers go, this time he came not only for wealth but also for fame, and these three teachings and nine flows of gamblers were undoubtedly the fastest way to help him gain fame.

  The gamblers around witnessed a fierce battle, and no one dared to disobey Song Qing. They surrounded the four walls of earth, with Luo Xiaobei and others taking care of each side. The bloody gun tips occasionally swept across everyone's face, making these gamblers tremble with fear. Their curiosity about Song Qing and his men also grew stronger, as they were indeed ruthless, but not well understood by people. Except for Song Qing, who was a famous figure in recent days, the others didn't have much of a reputation, and Ding Kui was said to be just skilled in some boxing moves.

  The older ones are fine, but these four ruthless kids are even more unexpected. Although it's not uncommon for teenagers to start their own households at this age, it's not normal for them to commit murder and arson. Song Qing won this battle cleanly and efficiently, and it seems like he's about to make a comeback. These four young masters will likely follow suit and rise with the tide. Who knows who will be useful to whom in the future? Some people with keen intuition have even started trying to get close to Luo Xiaobei and others, hoping to establish some connections early on.

  Song Qing lazily didn't bother with those trivial matters, and instead faced the trembling Wu Lao under his gun: "What else do you have to say now?"

  "No, nothing to say, the winner takes all. Since you've been beaten by Qing Ge, I'll listen to you from now on!" Wu Laohei was still somewhat defiant, although his face was still full of resentment, but he nodded silently and said in a low voice: "From now on, we'll hand over 20% of the shares every ten days."

  "It's not two tenths, it's three tenths. And today I'm going to take away all the silver money you've earned. Come over tonight to collect."

  "Wu Laohei suddenly raised his head, his eyes red with rage, as if he had suffered a great injustice. His chest heaved violently as he shouted: 'You, Song Qing, are also a man of reputation, how can you be so untrustworthy?'"

  "How can this be? I did say 20%, but that was before we started fighting. Who made you want to fight me with a knife? Now that we've started, the 20% doesn't count anymore. Since I've knocked you down, I want 30%! Song Qing pointed his gun at Wu Laohei's throat and smiled: "If you're not satisfied, you can continue to challenge me. My brothers will accompany you in a fight until you surrender. Every time I win, the stakes will increase by one layer. By tonight, your shop will probably be named 'Song'! What do you want to do is up to you, I won't interfere. If you want to fight, stand up now and pick up that knife on the ground and come at me. Song Qing will accompany you to the end today!"

  Wu Laohei fell silent, slowly lowering his head. Song Qing continued, "Don't think you're being wronged too much. You know what kind of business you're in. In this line of work, the strong are respected. When you first opened your shop, didn't you drive out all the surrounding shops? Now if I were to open a gambling den next to you and steal your customers every day, eventually we'd have to fight it out. If you lost, you might even lose the whole shop. But now I'm only asking for 30% of the profits. You're actually making a profit. Although this shop was built up by your own hard work, that's just how it is when you're living off the streets. Who knows what will happen tomorrow? You might not even have your head."

  "Alright, I'll give in. Three-tenths of the shares are no problem, and during holidays, there's still filial piety to consider, I've given it all!" Wu Laohei seemed to have opened up, or perhaps he had no choice but to lower his head. In any case, for a moment, he looked like he had aged ten years, yet also carried a hint of faint relief. Although the hard work he had put in over the years would be taken away, from now on, he had someone to rely on and wouldn't have to bear everything himself. This was indeed what made Wu Laohei willing to lower his head.

  Taking down Wu Laohei, Song Qing's mind also felt a huge stone falling to the ground. After all, he was using a small force to achieve a big victory, and everything relied on his own men being ruthless enough, catching the opponent off guard. But as long as they thoroughly defeated Wu Laohei, he wasn't worried that he would resort to any tricks. After all, after this battle today, his reputation would definitely rise another level. Although he couldn't recruit many more soldiers, he could win over the idle military households in the Wei camp, and even those idlers on the streets, his power would only continue to increase.

  At the end of the day, Weizhou is still a world where might makes right. Whoever has the bigger fist gets to call the shots. Once he can truly command thousands of people, even if his status remains that of a small flag, those bigwigs above won't dare look down on him. Not to mention commanding and whatnot, Commander Qian will definitely treat him with courtesy. Only then will it be the true beginning of his realizing his ambitions. The top priority now is how to accumulate such strength as quickly as possible onto himself.

  Song Qing gathered the team again, and first gave a few leaders some silver to cover their travel expenses. The rest of the people naturally also received a sum of money, and he guaranteed that they would not be treated unfairly in the future. This was actually said to the three people brought by Ding Kui, who were all famous troublemakers within the Wei camp. Song Qing wanted to spread his own affairs through their mouths, letting more ambitious idlers know, making it convenient for him to continue expanding his power in the future, so he gave a considerable amount of silver.

  With a large sum of money in hand, beyond their own imagination, the three men's eyes were red, and they patted each other on the chest to guarantee that they would let all the brothers know about Qing Ge's reputation. After flattering Song Qing for a few more sentences, they followed Ding Kui away. Song Qing didn't delay any longer, and first sent off the four young men who had come out with him. He walked back home with some excitement, leading several dogs. When he was about to reach the door of his house, he saw his father, Song Hu, standing there from a distance, looking around in all directions.

  Since Song Qing went out, Song Hu's heart has never been put down. This seemingly rough man actually has a very delicate mind, especially for his only son. In the past, he was angry that he didn't fight back, but after Song Qing showed his strong side, he was afraid that something would happen to his son.

  Today, he knew how dangerous the matter was, but he didn't dare to tell Song Li. There wasn't even one person around him who could share his worries. At this moment, seeing Song Qing return safely, with only two bruises on his body and no other injuries, he finally put down his heart, made an effort to put on a stern face, and maintained the dignity of being a father. However, that slightly trembling voice completely betrayed the coldness he was trying to pretend, and in the end, he couldn't help but let out a sigh and smile wryly: "My son has come back from killing people and setting fires?"

  "I'm back, didn't kill anyone, didn't set any fires, but got the job done." Seeing Song Hu's genuine concern, Song Qing felt a warmth in his heart and smiled: "Dad, from now on, let's add two more meat dishes to every meal at home. This is what your son earned with his big gun, consider it filial piety for you and mom!"

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