As soon as Luo Xiu spoke, the two Dragon Heads shuddered and elegantly stopped in their tracks.

Tao Laosi turned to look at Luo Xiu, forcing a brilliant smile onto his face.

"Er... Boss Luo, my apologies, but an emergency just came up at home. How about this? We'll come back for the payment tomorrow. We'll be heading out for today."

Luo Xiu walked up calmly. "That won't do. After all, it's thirty billion. I won't be able to rest easy until I hand it over to you two in person."

"You two should wait until five o'clock. No matter how urgent things are, they can wait a little while longer, right? Then we can do this properly: money in one hand, goods in the other."

"This... this..."

The smile on Tao Laosi's face was uglier than if he had been crying.

At that moment, he was fuming with anxiety.

But he knew how formidable Luo Xiu was, so he didn't dare to lose his temper or turn hostile on the spot.

Gritting his teeth, he forced himself to say, "Boss Luo, I won't hide it from you. We just received news... our transport convoy ran into some trouble on the road, so you see..."

Hearing this, Luo Xiu frowned in displeasure.

"Boss Tao, are you telling me you can't deliver our medicinal herbs today?"

"This..."

Tao Laosi looked down, not daring to meet Luo Xiu's gaze.

Suddenly, Luo Xiu chuckled coldly, staring at the two of them. "Do you two perhaps think that Mr. Luo is young, naive, and easy to bully?"

"No, no, no, we absolutely didn't mean that!" Tao Laosi frantically waved his hands.

Luo Xiu's laughter was laced with fury. "I let it slide the first time you messed with me. But to try it a second time... you think this is a game?"

Then he suddenly bellowed, "You sons of bitches! Should I even bother running this damn company?!"

Luo Xiu's sudden roar was so overwhelming that even Lin Xiyue and Xu Qianqing were stunned into silence.

The two women exchanged strange glances, looking at Luo Xiu. It's a real waste of talent that this guy hasn't won an Oscar, they thought. Look at his exquisite and genuine acting. He really makes it seem like he's been terribly wronged.

Xiang Laoer glared at Luo Xiu and gritted his teeth. "Luo Xiu, don't go too far! Remember your place!"

SMACK!

Luo Xiu sent a slap across his face.

"Too far?"

"When you suggested my wife should keep you company, did you think you weren't going too far?"

SMACK!

He struck him again with another slap.

Xiang Laoer's nose and mouth started to bleed.

Luo Xiu's gaze was piercing. "When you proposed signing that share transfer agreement, did you not think you were going too far?"

"What the hell are you? A low-life gangster? A piece of societal scum? And you're telling me to watch my status?"

Faced with such a domineering and volatile Luo Xiu, the two Dragon Heads didn't dare utter another word.

There was nothing they could do. They couldn't beat him.

Even if all their top fighters were here, it would be useless.

If you can't win, you just can't win.

After blowing off some steam, Luo Xiu seemed to calm down. He returned to the sofa, crossed his legs, and said, "Dragon Heads, I believe now is the time for you to ask me how we're going to solve this."

Tao Laosi glared at Luo Xiu, his eyes filled with resentment. "How do you want to solve it?"

"An excellent question." Luo Xiu smiled. "Let's follow the contract. First, return the 900 million deposit. Then, based on that deposit, pay us a penalty of three times that amount for breach of contract."

"Let's see... three times nine hundred million is 2.7 billion, plus the 900 million deposit... that makes a total of... 3.7 billion."

Xiang Laoer, his mouth full of blood and his face a ferocious mask, snarled, "It's 3.6 billion!"

"Ah... my apologies, my deepest apologies," Luo Xiu said, tapping his forehead. "You can laugh if you want, but I'm just a guy from the mountains. I never even finished elementary school. My mistake, my mistake."

Nearby, Xu Qianqing couldn't help but stifle a laugh behind her hand.

Lin Xiyue also shook her head with a smile.

The two women were momentarily speechless at Luo Xiu's performance. He calls other people 'Dragon Head,' but right now, he's the one acting like an underworld boss!

...

"So, 3.6 billion. The two of you settle the bill, and then you can leave."

Tao Laosi said coldly, "Our two districts can't come up with that much money right now."

"How can you be so damn self-righteous when you're broke?" Luo Xiu asked, feigning disbelief.

Tao Laosi turned his head away, simmering with frustration.

Luo Xiu said, "Are you kidding me? You hold the title of a district's Dragon Head and you can't even come up with 3.6 billion?"

"Look at Boss Huang and Qian Laoyao. For them, that kind of money is nothing."

Tao Laosi's face was a mask of bitterness, and for a moment, he didn't know what to say.

He suddenly felt that his position as a Dragon Head was truly pathetic.

However, he and Xiang Laoer were different from Boss Huang and Qian Laoyao.

Their masters were different!

He and Xiang Laoer were basically just salaried employees. The profits from every business under their name had to be handed over each month.

But Boss Huang and Qian Laoyao were different. No matter how much they made, it all went straight into their own pockets. That was the difference in their masters.

"Luo Xiu, we really can't come up with that much money."

Luo Xiu said, "If you can't come up with the money, then deliver the medicinal herbs."

"The herbs... we can't do that either."

Luo Xiu tilted his head, thinking for a moment before saying, "Then how about we do it your way? Transfer some of the businesses from your two districts to me to cover the debt."

"And don't blame me for being heartless. After all, Shen Luo Company isn't a charity."

Luo Xiu's words stung Tao Laosi and Xiang Laoer.

With his emotions on full display, Luo Xiu continued, "To start this company, my wife was everywhere making contacts, hiring professional teams, and even paying a fortune to poach talent from other companies!

"That's not even counting advertising, equipment, and everything else. All that shit costs money!

"Now, we have everything ready and waiting, and you two pull a stunt like this and lose my herbs?

"My company can't operate, and I have a whole crew waiting to be paid. How am I supposed to pay them?"

Tao Laosi took a deep breath and asked, "Which businesses in our two districts do you want?"

"Straight to the point!"

Luo Xiu snapped his fingers with a smile. "Actually, I don't really understand this stuff, so you two should have a good, long talk with my wife."

"Just now, wasn't it Xiang Longtou who wanted a 'chat' with my wife? Well, now's your chance."

"Xiyue, Qianqing, you two have a good long chat with these bosses. I'm heading out."

With that, he looked at Lin Xiyue and added, "And don't be too... harsh... on our bosses." He drew out the word 'harsh,' his tone dripping with meaning.

Lin Xiyue flashed a knowing smile and nodded lightly.

"I know."

...

...

「As night fell.」

Lin Xiyue and Xu Qianqing returned to Sea City Riviera.

Lin Xiyue felt as though she were walking on air.

And the smile on Xu Qianqing's face seemed to be permanent.

Luo Xiu, wearing an apron, walked out of the kitchen and asked, "What's with you two? Looks like those two bosses really made your day, huh?"

Lin Xiyue said nothing, simply pulling a thick stack of contracts from her bag and handing them to him, jutting her chin at him smugly.

Xu Qianqing laughed. "The Western District and South District each gave us a plot of land. Plus, all of their entertainment venues—more than a dozen, big and small—are now ours!"

"It's all thanks to President Lin. Luo Xiu, you'd better cook us a feast tonight!"

Luo Xiu just smiled and said nothing.

Xu Qianqing added, "But you were really something else this afternoon. You scared us all."

She exclaimed, "I mean, those were two Dragon Heads! I never would have dreamed of doing something like this before."

Luo Xiu smiled faintly. "It's the Dragon Heads that I was bullying."

Just then, Lin Xiyue asked, "Where are the medicinal herbs we seized now?"

Luo Xiu said, "They're all with Boss Huang. With that much stuff, only he could hide it all on such short notice."

Lin Xiyue's fine brows furrowed. "Can we get them back, then?"

Luo Xiu took the stack of contracts and smiled. "We'll trade these for them."

Xu Qianqing, however, looked reluctant. "The value of these contracts is far greater than the herbs. Won't we be losing too much if we just trade them away?"

"Actually, even if we don't start the pharmaceutical company, we could make a fortune just by focusing on the businesses we got today."

"Putting everything else aside, I heard President Lin say that just the land for the Mountain Forest Park in the South District is worth over ten billion."

Luo Xiu shook his head gently. "I'm not interested in any of that. For now, give me the contracts. I'm going to see Boss Huang tonight and give them all to him."

Lin Xiyue said indignantly, "And you call me a spendthrift? I think you're an even bigger one!"

Luo Xiu's tone turned serious. "If you two want to play around, you can do whatever you like once the company is bigger. But for now, I absolutely have to give these properties to Boss Huang as a sign of respect."

Lin Xiyue asked, "Are you really going to get involved with that kind of person..."

"Enough!"

Luo Xiu cut her off abruptly. He shot a quiet glance at Wu Xin, who was sitting on the living room sofa, and said in a low, stern voice, "He's my big brother, and he treats me like his own flesh and blood. So don't ever speak ill of him behind his back again! Otherwise, don't blame me for flipping out!"

Xu Qianqing was so scared she lowered her head, not daring to make a sound.

Lin Xiyue's eyes reddened with anger. She stomped her foot, grabbed her purse, and stormed upstairs.

Luo Xiu watched Lin Xiyue's retreating back as she went upstairs, a feeling of helplessness washing over him.

...

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