Golden Scale [EN]: Chapter 140

The Great Southward Advance

Hou Longtao supported himself on the table with both hands, slowly climbing onto it.

Marry followed his movement and lay down on the table, waiting to be with him.

Hou Longtao didn’t stop at the optimal entry point but continued to climb, his knees pressing on her splayed arms.

“What are you going to do?” Marry stared at his thick, throbbing member above her face with a half-smile.

Hou Longtao used his left hand to support the back of her head, and his right hand gently guided his large cock, pointing diagonally upwards, down onto her lips.

Marry opened her mouth wide, taking the head of his penis into her mouth.

Hou Longtao slowly moved forward, his buttocks shifting off her breasts, his cock inching into her mouth, eventually forcing its way into her throat until only about a centimeter remained outside, unable to go any further. “Your mouth is quite big.”

Marry couldn’t even make a sound, her face flushed, her eyes rolling back. Her arms were pinned down, her hands clenched into tight fists. Throughout the process, her long legs kicked incessantly, clearly enduring great pain.

Hou Longtao held the back of her head with both hands, pausing in that position for five or six seconds, feeling the squeezing of her throat as it pulsed, then slowly withdrew, sitting back on her breasts.

Marry’s face returned to its normal color. Judging from her expression, she showed no dissatisfaction.

Hou Longtao repeated the same action more than ten times before completely withdrawing from her mouth, tapping her on her nose. “How does it feel?”

“Huff… huff…” Marry inhaled deeply, as if trying to make up for lost air. “It feels great.”

“Heh heh heh,” Hou Longtao retreated, inserting his knees between her thighs, put on a condom, and thrust into her. “You slut.”

“Ah… it feels even better this way,” Marry kneaded her breasts. “Fuck me now.”

Hou Longtao was taller than his beloved wives. Usually, when doing it in this position, he could completely cover them, but Marry was too tall, making it difficult to kiss her. From the side, it looked like a boy with a tall, buxom adult woman…

On the seventh day of negotiations, the two largest titanium manufacturers in Russia sent representatives to Beijing, signing two secret contracts with Dongxing Group, agreeing to sell one thousand tons of sponge titanium to Dongxing Group annually.

The Russians stayed in Beijing for a total of ten days. With the support of both governments, all preliminary procedures for cooperation with Dongxing Group were completed, waiting only for the Russian State Duma [Russian parliament] to pass the new vehicle emission standards proposed by the Russian Ministry of Environment…

On the first day of March, Hou Longtao led a large group of people to Guangzhou: the “Dongxing Seven Great Warriors,” Tian Donghua, Ru Yan, the Xingyue sisters, five staff members, plus thirty bodyguards.

This time, Hou Longtao was even more relaxed than his last trip to Shanghai because he had Tian Donghua with him, and the negotiations with the Guangdong Provincial Government were his responsibility.

Three parties benefited from this deal: Dongxing Group, the Guangdong government, and the Guangdong military, although the military’s benefits could not be written in black and white in the contract.

The day after arriving in Guangzhou, Hou Longtao couldn’t wait to rush to the Guangzhou Detention Center with several of his brothers. The main members of the Mai crime syndicate were being held there pending trial, and a key player from the Chinese national men’s football team, who had been arrested a few days earlier for tax evasion, was also temporarily staying there.

Today, in the large indoor exercise area, there was no one else besides Hou Longtao and his group. He stood alone in the center of the hall with his hands behind his back, while the rest of his brothers sat scattered behind him.

After the sound of an iron gate opening and closing, several prison guards led three handcuffed prisoners into the exercise area.

Hou Longtao only recognized two of them: Mai Zude and Hao Zhiyi. Their former arrogance and high spirits were completely gone, replaced by the dejected expressions of prisoners.

Although he hadn’t met the remaining one, it must be Mai Zuxian.

Mai Zude saw the smiling, approachable young man across from him, and a smile appeared on his face. “Longtao, you…”

Hou Longtao waved his hand. “You’re mistaken. I’m not here to save you. I’m here to gloat.”

“You’re here to gloat?”

“If my presence had nothing to do with your misfortune, it would be called gloating. But your arrest was entirely orchestrated by me. I’m the mastermind, so I’m not gloating. I screwed you over, then came here to laugh in your faces. That’s called gloating, hahaha.”

“…” The three prisoners didn’t know how to respond, just staring blankly at Hou Longtao.

“Don’t understand?” Hou Longtao shook his head. “You’re really a bunch of idiots. Let me tell you, this Wang An,” he pointed at Hao Zhiyi, “what is he? Daring to offend me. I wanted to deal with him, but you two old guys jumped out to stop me. Are your brains broken? Running to Beijing to threaten me,” Hou Longtao spread his arms, turning his head left and right to look at his brothers. “Did you think our Dongxing is fake? Damn, did you think you could act like emperors in Guangdong and go to the capital to act like big shots? In Beijing, three people die in car accidents, and two of them have some kind of background. You guys just barged in blindly, isn’t that courting death?”

“Are you fucking crazy?” Mai Zuxian was, after all, a local tyrant. Although he was a tiger in a cage, he still felt his power, and of course, he couldn’t tolerate a younger generation yelling at him like this. “What are you? How dare you yell at me?”

“Awesome!” Da Pang sat there, one foot on the bench, giving a thumbs up. “You’re already in this state, and you’re still so confident. It seems you’re living too comfortably here.”

“Who do you think you are? This major earthquake in Guangdong started from the highest levels of the central government. What big shots are you kids pretending to be? Who sent you here? What exactly do you want?”

“Are you fucking senile?”

Ma Lian jumped out, rushing in front of Mai Zuxian, grabbing his hair and poking his temples twice. “If someone wasn’t deliberately targeting you, why would they punish corrupt officials and gangsters together?”

“You’re courting death!?” Mai Zuxian suddenly raised his hands, pushing Ma Lian away.

Mai Zude also rushed over to help his boss, but he was immediately restrained by Wu Da and Liu Nan.

Er Dezi kicked Mai Zuxian in the stomach.

Although Mai Zuxian was a leading figure in Guangdong’s organized crime, he was, after all, over fifty years old, and his hands were cuffed, so he couldn’t compete with a twenty-something-year-old at all. He was immediately knocked to the ground.

“Dang, dang, dang,” a prison guard tapped the iron bars with a baton.

“Hey,” Hou Longtao pressed his hands in the air, signaling his brothers to control their emotions. “We are civilized people. Don’t get physical with these gangster thugs. They’re not young ladies.”

“Hahaha…” The Dongxing people all laughed.

“Why, Longtao?” Mai Zude didn’t doubt Hou Longtao’s role as the mastermind, but he still thought his relationship with the other party was good. “We have a ten billion deal.”

“I just told you why.”

“Why do you have to hide it?” Mai Zude didn’t believe that anyone would really cause such a big storm over a teenage love rivalry. “Did we offend you in some way?”

“Yes,” Hou Longtao put a cigarette in his mouth. “I’ve always resented you for protecting Hao Zhiyi. That’s what offended me.”

“Really just because of Hao Zhiyi?”

“Really, there’s no need for me to lie to you right now. Let me put it this way, you two are probably facing the death penalty, hehehehe, just because you didn’t let me mess with him. Do you regret it?”

“Are you crazy?” Mai Zuxian glared at Hou Longtao.

“What do you mean?”

“According to normal people’s standards, we not only have no grudges against you, but we could also become the best partners. You disregarded all of this and stirred up the entire Guangdong over a trivial matter. Do you know how many people you’ve harmed?”

“Hahaha,” Hou Longtao threw the half-smoked cigarette on the ground and crushed it with his shiny leather shoe. “Those who obey me live, those who defy me die. Aren’t all the people I killed the ones who deserved to die?”

“You… you… you didn’t have to do this at all. If you really didn’t want to let Hao Zhiyi go, you could have told me, and I wouldn’t have refused you.” Mai Zuxian also knew that there was no point in being stubborn now, especially in front of a madman who didn’t care about human relationships.

“Really?” Hou Longtao sniffed and glared. “Back then, Mai Zude didn’t talk to me like that in Beijing. You came to my house, bossing me around and threatening my family’s safety. You not only didn’t give me face, but you didn’t even know what face was.”

“What exactly do you want?”

“Do you regret it? Do you regret going against me, against Dongxing?” Hou Longtao asked again.

“Okay,” Mai Zuxian gritted his teeth. “I regret it.”

“Too late,” Hou Longtao shrugged. “You’re a big shot. It’s no problem for me to arrest you, but it’s not up to me to let you go. This matter has already exceeded the scope of my control.”

“You… you give me a way out.” Mai Zuxian felt that these guys must have come today with some purpose, perhaps entrusted by someone to give him some instructions.

“A way out? What way out? Just stay in prison honestly.”

“Then what did you come here for?” Mai Zuxian was a little exasperated.

“Are you guys stupid? How many times have I said it? I’m here to gloat! Are your ears bad or your brains bad?”

“Pa, pa, pa,” Long clapped his hands. “It’s really boring. Let’s go, or I’ll just beat them up.”

“Okay, okay, let’s go, let’s go.” Hou Longtao waved his hand. He walked to Hao Zhiyi, who had been hiding in the corner, but didn’t say anything, just stared at him with a mocking smile.

“I… I…” Hao Zhiyi was terrified. “I was wrong.”

“Heh heh,” Hou Longtao smiled coldly. “Big star, tax evasion is only a matter of two years. I’ll make sure you live very comfortably.”

Watching Hou Longtao’s departing figure, Hao Zhiyi’s legs went weak. His tone and eyes clearly told him that this matter was not over…

“You’re really fucking bored,” the guys walked out of the detention center, Long pushing Hou Longtao’s shoulder from behind. “What did we come here for? It’s a waste of time. Don’t tell me about gloating. Are you hiding something from us again?”

“No, I really just came to show off. Tell me, why do you want revenge?”

“What do you mean why?” Long didn’t fully understand Hou Longtao’s question.

“The ultimate goal of revenge is to make yourself feel better, to make the enemy suffer, to make him regret having you as an enemy. Otherwise, you won’t get the greatest happiness from revenge. Just now, I saw regret in the eyes of those three idiots. They will live in regret for the rest of their lives, maybe even regret it in their dreams. That’s the ultimate enjoyment.”

“The two named Mai might, but Hao Zhiyi is only staying for two or three years. As long as he takes care of himself, he might be able to play football again after he gets out. Once the pain is gone, the scar is forgotten. I think his regret is limited.”

“Heh heh, probably not.” Hou Longtao laughed…

The Dongxing people all stayed at the five-star White Swan Hotel near the American Consulate. In the evening, close to dinner time, Tian Donghua poked his head out of his room, looked left and right, confirmed that there was no one in the corridor, and then quickly walked out.

Tian Donghua called a taxi and went to a lively restaurant on the outskirts of the city, walking to a table with two men sitting at it.

“Mr. Tian,” the man with the crew cut stood up and shook hands with Tian Donghua. He pointed to the other man. “This is the person you’re looking for, Mr. Shi Chun.”

Tian Donghua sized up Shi Chun. His appearance was nothing special, except for a diagonal scar on his forehead, which was not obvious. The two shook hands and then sat down. “Mr. Shi, do you have anything to prove that you are the person I’m looking for?”

Shi Chun put his ID card and a photo on the table.

Tian Donghua picked up the photo. It showed several punks carrying sticks, smoking cigarettes, and posing arrogantly. The background was the gate of a school, and the wooden sign hanging by the gate clearly read “Beijing XXXX Middle School.”

“This was taken ten years ago.”

Tian Donghua could see that one of the punks was indeed Shi Chun. He took out a kraft paper envelope from the inner pocket of his suit and handed it to the other man.

“Crew Cut” opened the envelope and looked at it. It was a thick stack of RMB [Chinese Yuan], about fifteen thousand. He pocketed the envelope. “Mr. Tian, I’m very happy to serve you. Please continue to take care of me in the future.”

“Of course.” Tian Donghua stood up and shook hands with “Crew Cut” again, sending him away. “Mr. Shi, do you know why I invited you here?”

“I know it’s not because of Ren Jingyao?” Shi Chun smiled slightly.

A few days ago, after the private detective with the crew cut reported that he had found the person he was looking for, Tian Donghua instructed him to invite Shi Chun to meet, and to attract him, he threw out Ren Jingyao’s name plus ten thousand yuan.

“Mr. Shi guessed it?” Tian Donghua offered a cigarette.

“It’s not hard to guess,” Shi Chun tapped the cigarette filter on the table. “But I haven’t heard the name Ren Jingyao for ten years. No one would look for me because of her. But I’m really very curious, tsk tsk tsk, Ren Jingyao, she really is a very outstanding woman, and you even gave money.”

“Okay, okay, let’s get straight to the point. Mr. Shi, do you know Lin Long?”

“Lin Long?” A confused expression appeared on Shi Chun’s face…

Almost at the same time, one of Guangzhou’s most upscale restaurants, the Litchi Bay Restaurant, was very quiet. It had been reserved, and the lobby on the first floor was full of people who looked like bodyguards. The main players were all in the largest private room on the second floor.

The twenty or so “fish that slipped through the net” from the crackdown were all here. They came from Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and several other cities with promising real estate businesses.

“Everyone, everyone.” Sha Bi stood up.

Sha Bi had been “exiled” to Guangzhou by Hou Longtao a few months ago to develop Dongxing’s business. It was unknown whether he really had some ability or just had good luck, but not only was he not taken down by the local gangsters, but he also used Dongxing’s 500,000 yuan capital to open two motorcycle dealerships, making a good profit, and even had some fame among the speed racers in Guangzhou.

This time, Hou Longtao didn’t want to have direct contact with the local underworld himself, so he had Sha Bi do it. Sha Bi booked the restaurant, notified the Guangdong police in his name, and then the Guangdong police helped to gather these gangsters who had no connection with the Mai group.

“Today, I am representing Changqing Teng Group and Dongxing Group to invite everyone to dinner. As for who I am, I believe the police have already told you when they notified you to come.”

The people in the room quieted down. Originally, they were all “local tyrants” who “dominated one side.” At another time, they would never listen to a “newcomer” lecturing them, but now the Guangdong underworld was in a bloody storm, and everyone was in danger. It was best to listen to what a gangster who could invite other gangsters to dinner through the police had to say.

“Everyone, relax. Being able to sit in this room means you’re not on the blacklist. I’m here to give everyone a reassurance. As the saying goes, a strong dragon can’t suppress a local snake. You are the local snakes. Changqing Teng Group and Dongxing Group are new to Guangdong and definitely not here to compete with you for territory. To be honest, we’re not interested in illegal business either. We don’t touch gambling, drugs, or prostitution. We just hope that you won’t interfere with the normal business of the two major groups. If there’s anything you need help with, please lend a hand if you can. What do you say, big brothers?”

“It’s just a piece of cake.”

“It’s just a drizzle.”

“No problem.”

“Just ask if you need anything.”

The people in the room were all expressing their opinions. The other party was powerful, and they had strangled the largest local snake in Guangdong as soon as they arrived. Naturally, there was no need for these little snakes to go against the strong dragon, especially since the strong dragon didn’t seem to have any intention of eating snakes…

“Did you teach him all those words?” In another private room, Wu Da watched the pleasant banquet on the TV screen, patting Hou Longtao, who was feeding Ru Yan shrimp.

“Not really,” Hou Longtao smiled. “This guy is also surprising me. He might be a talent.”

“Then why don’t you see if he has any potential for development?”

“Heh heh.” Wu Da nodded in agreement…

In the middle of the dinner, Sha Bi walked to two of the big brothers from Guangzhou and toasted them. “The two of you are considered to have a lot of influence in Guangzhou.”

“Just messing around.”

“The two of you must have many subordinates who frequently go in and out of the Guangzhou Detention Center, right?”

“What… what do you mean?”

“Hehe, there’s something I’d like to ask for your help with.” Sha Bi lowered his voice…

Hao Zhiyi was in the corner of the outdoor exercise area, throwing away the cigarette in his hand, his eyes staring blankly at a tree not far away. He had run into a jinx in his life. Although he was unwilling, he had no other choice. He knew that his lawyer was applying for bail for him, and he should be able to get bail pending trial in a few days. But that was only temporary freedom. He estimated that he would be sentenced to more than a year. Thinking about his life of luxury and extravagance outside, and then thinking about his current life, he thought that being in prison was probably worse than now. It was really heartbreaking.

“Are you Hao Zhiyi?” A slightly effeminate voice rang out.

“Huh?” Hao Zhiyi turned his head and saw four men in front of him, three burly and one thin. The one who spoke was the thin one. “I am. What’s the matter?”

“Have a cigarette.” The thin man handed over a Marlboro. “We’re all your fans.”

“Is that so.” Hao Zhiyi lit the cigarette, replying indifferently. He was usually very impatient with fans when there were no cameras around, and now he was even less in the mood to socialize.

“Let’s go inside and chat.”

“There’s nothing to talk about.” Hao Zhiyi waved his hand, frowning as he was about to walk away.

“You’re so bad at talking. No wonder someone wants to mess with you.” A large man stepped sideways, blocking Hao Zhiyi’s path.

“You… what do you mean?” Hao Zhiyi took a step back. He knew that the visitors were not friendly.

“What do you mean?” The three burly men rushed up together, pressing Hao Zhiyi face-out against the iron lock. Two of them pinned his arms, and the remaining one punched him hard in the kidney area first, and then continuously struck his back and waist.

Hao Zhiyi didn’t want to shout, but the people behind him were obviously experienced in fighting. The first blow knocked the wind out of him, and now, although it hurt terribly, he could only make “uh uh” sounds.

The person who was attacking pressed the back of Hao Zhiyi’s head, grinding his face against the iron lock, and also kicked his legs hard.

The thin man lit a cigarette, looking around nonchalantly. Seeing a prison guard looking in this direction, he gave him a slight smile.

The prison guard turned and walked away expressionlessly.

“Are you willing to go inside and chat now?” The thin man snuffed out the cigarette butt on Hao Zhiyi’s wrist.

“…” Hao Zhiyi opened his mouth wide in pain, but couldn’t make a sound.

“Talk.” The thin man pinched Hao Zhiyi’s butt hard.

“Okay… okay…” Hao Zhiyi squeezed out two words from his throat.

The two burly men supported Hao Zhiyi, and the thin man led the way. The five men entered the indoor exercise area, which was empty. This was different from usual.

The two prison guards in the room saw the men coming in, both looking up. One whistled, and the other lit a cigarette and walked into the corridor, to a place where they couldn’t see the situation in the room. The two men pressed Hao Zhiyi’s arms, pressing his face down on the table, and the other man pressed his back, making his upper body completely immobile.

“What are you doing… uh uh…” Hao Zhiyi shouted in horror, but his mouth was blocked before he could finish a sentence.

The thin man took off his pants and went over to pull off Hao Zhiyi’s pants as well. “Dongxing Prince sends his regards.” As he spoke, he thrust his hips forward…

A humble abode is all that is needed, fragrance does not depend on quantity (A Fish Leaping from a Small Pond) [idiom meaning quality over quantity].