"Jianghe, you're going to give all this money away?"
Zhang Peng was shocked; twenty thousand yuan was enough for Chen Jianghe to buy the 'new three items' and get a wife.
It would be too much of a waste to just give it away like that.
"You can't catch a wolf without sacrificing a cub. If the money is too little, those 'wearing tiger skins' won't even look at it. We're going to do big things in the future, so this bit of money is nothing!"
Chen Jianghe knew clearly that if he wanted to avenge his father and reclaim the game hall, it would be impossible without paying a price.
He had no power or influence; besides paving the way with money, he had no other options.
Otherwise, if he were to lay a hand on Li Jindi, Li Jindicould make a single phone call and have him arrested.
"Alright, if you have a plan, I'll listen to you!"
Zhang Peng was silent for a moment, then nodded slightly.
"Let's go!"
Chen Jianghe packed the money, took Zhang Peng to a public phone, first called Director Tang, and then, according to the address An Jianguo gave him, found Director Tang's home.
Chen Jianghe went over and knocked on the door. A slightly plump man in his thirties opened it.
"You're Little Chen, right? Old An called me. Come in and sit!"
Tang Aiguo looked at Chen Jianghe, then at Zhang Peng, and motioned for them to come in.
Chen Jianghe followed him inside, while Zhang Pengstood outside without moving.
"Uncle Tang, this is my first visit. I don't know what kind of tea you like, so I bought two boxes of Maojian. I hope you like it!" Chen Jianghe followed him in, handing over the tea.
"Maojian? Maojian is good!"
Tang Aiguo took it casually, but as soon as he held the tea, he felt the weight was off. These two boxes of tea wouldn't be this heavy; there was something else inside besides tea.
Tang Aiguo calmly placed the tea on the table, his attitude becoming a bit more enthusiastic, "Old An told me that you have some conflict with Li Jindi, the owner of Yonggui Game Hall on North Street. You said he took over your family's game hall. I just asked, and the legal representative registered with the Industrial and Commercial Bureau for Yonggui Game Hall is Shao Wan!"
"Shao Wan is your stepmother. She and your father got their marriage certificate, so they are a legal couple. It's legal for her to manage your father's shop!"
"At most, this is an economic dispute, and the police station isn't well-suited to handle it!"
"Uncle, I didn't come for this. I'll get the game hall back myself. I just want you to be able to help me a little if something comes up!" Chen Jianghe relaxed when he saw Tang Aiguo didn't refuse the tea.
As long as he accepted it, things would be easier. The most difficult ones were those who were impervious to persuasion.
"You're Old An's nephew, so don't worry, I'll definitely help you if I can!"
Tang Aiguo spoke in officialese, without any straightforward words.
"Uncle Tang, then I'm relieved. I've already told my Uncle An that once the game hall is back, I'll give him two shares, and I'll give you two shares as well!"
Chen Jianghe said suddenly.
"How can that be? How can that be? We are public servants, we can't do that!"
Tang Aiguo's smile became even warmer.
"Uncle Tang, my Uncle An said you two have a good relationship, that's why I'm being so direct. What you're saying is too formal. I don't have any other intentions, I just want to make friends with you and Uncle An!"
Chen Jianghe once again brought up An Jianguo, implying that since An Jianguo had accepted, what was there for him to worry about?
Chen Jianghe currently had no power or influence, so he could only use An Jianguo's influence as a banner.
"Little Chen, what you're saying, we're all not outsiders. In the future, if you have something, Uncle will definitely help you if he can!" Tang Aiguo finally stopped speaking in officialese after hearing Chen Jianghe's promise.
"Uncle, thank you then. I'll be leaving now. Next time I have a chance, I'll call Uncle An and treat you to a meal!"
Chen Jianghe stood up.
"Little Chen, you're too polite. Next time, I'll treat!"
Tang Aiguo smiled, even giving Chen Jianghe his office phone number and pager number.
If he couldn't be reached at the office or home, a message could be left on his pager.
Chen Jianghe exchanged a few polite words and left with Zhang Peng.
"They left?"
As soon as they left, a middle-aged woman wearing a gold necklace and fashionably dressed came out of the kitchen. She eagerly tore open the tea box, her eyes immediately lighting up, "It's money! This young man is quite generous. I think there's about twenty thousand here!"
"This child has spirit, he handles things better than his father!"
Tang Aiguo lit a cigarette, glared at the woman, "Take a little, put the rest in the cabinet, and be discreet!"
"Discreet my ass! Look at Liu Mei from your station, she wears imported goods! I heard her family even replaced their TV with a plasma one, that must have cost tens of thousands. When can our family get a plasma TV? Let me save some face too!"
The woman said, dissatisfied.
"Alright, stop talking about all this nonsense. If you're not discreet, if something happens in the future, her whole family will be the ones to suffer!" Tang Aiguosaid impatiently.
"Jianghe, will it work?"
Zhang Peng followed Chen Jianghe, thinking about the twenty thousand yuan, still feeling it was a waste.
What couldn't that much money be used for, why was it just given away for nothing?
"We'll know soon enough if it works!"
Chen Jianghe and Zhang Peng walked for half an hour, returning to the alley outside the small building.
In those days, taking a taxi was considered high consumption, and neither of them had a motorcycle. It was the early stage of their venture, so they had to save where they could and spend where they had to.
"How will we know?"
Zhang Peng looked puzzled.
"Li Jindi is sending people to block us!"
Chen Jianghe stared into the dim alley. Several red dots flickered faintly in the alley; someone was hiding inside smoking, and the red dot would light up with each puff.
"Jianghe, what do we do? I didn't bring any weapons!"
Zhang Peng patted himself, then frantically looked around, but couldn't even find half a brick.
"We don't need to do anything. We'll soon see if the money we spent earlier was worth it. Let's go, make a call!" Chen Jianghe turned and left, went to a nearby convenience store, and used a public phone to call Tang Aiguo.
Tang Aiguo answered the phone, readily agreeing to arrange it immediately.
In the alley, Chen Gang, with four young men, was guarding the entrance of the small building, puffing away on cigarettes.
"Gang Ge, what time is it? Why hasn't that kid come back yet? He didn't run away with the money, did he?"
A scoundrel with a tattoo on his arm stubbed out his cigarette, looking annoyed.
They had been feeding mosquitoes here for half the day.
"It's even better if he ran away, then we'll take over this building!"
Chen Gang sneered, greedily staring at the small Western-style building.
"Gang Ge, isn't this building Sister Shao's?"
"Her ass! This building belongs to Chen Zhiming. Chen Zhiming's son, Chen Jianghe, took Manager Li's money and ran away, so this building must belong to Manager Li now!"
This building was worth at least several hundred thousand. If he took over this building, wouldn't Li Jindi give him some benefits?
As the scoundrels were talking, two law enforcement vehicles suddenly stopped at the alley entrance.
Several law enforcement officers immediately rushed out, and before Chen Gang and his group could react, they were all pinned down.