Zhang Tao stared silently at Li Sansan for several seconds.
Suddenly, he laughed.
It wasn't the mocking smile from before, but a laugh of extreme disappointment mixed with absolute fury.
"Heh... Hahahaha..."
"Li Sansan, oh Li Sansan, you really make me look at you in a new light time and time again!"
As one of the earliest followers of the Eldest Miss, they were also the first to learn legal knowledge from top lawyer Zhao, and Brother Snake, Li Sansan, was naturally no exception.
What Zhang Tao didn't expect, however, was that after all this time, Li Sansan could still remember these legal provisions so clearly. This only made him angrier, absolutely enraged.
Bang! He slammed his hand hard on the mahjong table.
"You fucking knew everything, yet you still dared to do this!"
"Since you knowingly broke the law! Deliberately committing a crime! Then I have even less reason to let you off!"
The more Zhang Tao spoke, the angrier he got. He suddenly kicked Li Sansan flying and shouted sternly.
"Take them away! Take them all away! Execute them on the spot!"
"Yes, Brother Tao!"
The men in black instantly swarmed up, directly subduing the limp Li Sansan, Sun Neng, and the rest, dragging them out.
Li Sansan probably still understood what the Ten Thousand Dragons Society's "execute on the spot" meant—most likely, they'd beat them up first and then send them behind bars.
But Sun Neng and his crew didn't know that.
What did "execute on the spot" mean? Did it mean they were going to be offed right then and there? Assuming they hadn't failed their language classes, that is.
At this thought, Sun Neng and the others were instantly scared out of their wits, howling like pigs being slaughtered.
"No! Spare us, Brother Tao! We'll never dare to do it again! Don't kill us! Don't kill us!"
"Boss! Boss! We just scammed a little money, it's not a capital offense!"
"Please let us go!"
The underling named Xiaojun was the most bewildered. "Wait, boss, I'm just an errand boy! Ten bucks really can't buy Chunghwa cigarettes and a leg of lamb, don't kill me!"
This group cried and screamed miserably. Especially in the dead of night, the penetrating power of their voices was much stronger than during the day, instantly spreading all around and alarming quite a few people.
Some nearby residents and punks loitering on the streets heard the commotion and ran over to peek secretly.
"Good heavens, are they catching pigs in the middle of the night? Screaming so miserably?"
"What catching pigs, they're catching people! See that? Black clothes, black cars, looks like people from the Ten Thousand Dragons Society."
"Holy crap! It really is the bosses from the Ten Thousand Dragons Society!"
"Who's so unlucky to have offended the bosses of the Ten Thousand Dragons Society?"
"Must have clashed with their people. The ones getting caught are probably some arrogant fools who kicked an iron plate."
"Did I hear wrong, or were they yelling about not killing people? Does the Ten Thousand Dragons Society really kill people? I heard they were doing legitimate business now? Some formal company?"
"That's just on the surface. You guys haven't seen the Ten Thousand Dragons Society make a move in too long. If you knew their history, you'd know how fierce and dark these guys used to be. Back in the day, even Niu Ben, the local tyrant who dominated Wushui County for years, was offed by them, let alone a few small fries like these."
"Damn! We better be careful in the future."
"Sigh, I thought the Ten Thousand Dragons Society had restrained themselves and were doing proper business, bringing daylight to Wushui County. I didn't expect them to still be so dark."
"Tell me about it."
"........"
After catching the men and sending them to the police station, Zhang Tao called the Eldest Miss to report the situation.
This incident served as a wake-up call for them. As the Ten Thousand Dragons Society grew larger, there would always be scoundrels using their name to do evil.
Liu Yutong subsequently notified Ma Da to conduct a massive sweep. If anyone was found scamming people under the banner of the Ten Thousand Dragons Society, every single one of them was to be sent to jail without leniency. They absolutely could not let those rats ruin the Society's reputation.
Hearing this, Ma Da felt a bit weird. Did the reputation of their Ten Thousand Dragons Society even need maintaining?
However, he immediately stated that he would notify the heads of all departments tomorrow to conduct an in-depth inspection.
.....................
The next morning, Duan Village.
A group of elderly people had already gathered in the village square, each looking worse than the last.
They had been arriving one after another since the crack of dawn, eagerly waiting for their deposits to be refunded and to receive their welfare benefits. But they waited and waited. Watching the sun gradually rise, there was no sign of the two cars from yesterday on the road, only the occasional agricultural vehicle and passing villagers.
"What time is it already, why aren't they here yet?"
"Could they have been delayed on the road?"
More than half an hour passed, and there was still no news. The crowd began to grow restless.
"Something's not right. Didn't that Manager Sun leave a business card yesterday? Why can't I get through on the phone?"
"I called too, couldn't get through at all. It's an empty number."
"I called as well, empty number."
"Oh no, could they have run away?"
The moment the words "run away" came out of a villager's mouth, everyone instantly panicked.
"That can't be, right? They looked quite professional, and they even had that certificate from some international association."
"My son-in-law in the city said you can get those certificate things made at any random print shop."
"But they said they would come again today, and they even said they'd give us big gift bags and bring more good stuff..."
"You actually believed words meant to coax you?"
"Oh my God! My money, my three thousand yuan!" A middle-aged woman was the first to break down, slapping her thighs as she cried and shouted.
With her crying, others quickly followed suit.
"I spent five thousand, bought some decoration that just hurts my body."
"I spent one thousand.........."
"And me..."
Just then, an old man couldn't bear the blow. His body suddenly convulsed, and he collapsed toward the ground.
Fortunately, the people next to him were quick to catch him, preventing the back of his head from hitting the ground. However, the old man's face looked terrible, his lips were trembling, and it looked like he was about to stop breathing, terrifying everyone.
"Old Man Wang! Old Man Wang! What's wrong?"
"Quick! Pinch his philtrum!"
"We're doomed, we're doomed. If he dies from this shock, what are we going to do?"
"Quick, go find a doctor, hurry!"
The square instantly devolved into a mess.
Just then, a cold, clear voice sounded behind them.
"Everyone, don't panic. Spread out a bit and let Grandpa Wang get some air."
Everyone turned to look, only to see that Liu Yutong and Lan Die had somehow arrived behind them.
Liu Yutong walked over, squatted down, and first checked Old Man Wang's breath and pulse, then peeled back his eyelids to check.
"Yutong girl, Old Man Wang is suffering from a severe anxiety attack. His two thousand yuan was his pension money that he saved up for a long time, and now it's all been swindled."
Liu Yutong nodded, signaling everyone to be quiet.
"Everyone, don't worry yet. Grandpa Wang is fine, he's just too agitated. Also, those scammers were caught by my people in the county town last night. The money they swindled has all been recovered and is currently being verified and counted."
"At the latest by tomorrow, the scammed money should be refunded into everyone's hands."
As soon as these words were spoken, the expressions on everyone's faces instantly turned to pleasant surprise.
"They were really caught?"
"Is the money really coming back?"
"Is it true? Yutong, my dear, you're not lying to us, are you?"
Liu Yutong nodded firmly. "It's true, so please don't worry too much. Your money isn't gone."
Old Man Wang, who had been lying flat on his back, suddenly snapped his eyes open. With a swift kip-up, he leaped to his feet and cried out in agitation, "Girl! What did you just say? We can really get our money back?"
This sudden burst of agility gave everyone a fright. Was this some sort of medical miracle?
Even Liu Yutong was caught off guard. She hadn't expected Grandpa Wang, a man in his seventies, to still be capable of such an acrobatic stunt.
After making sure Grandpa Wang was truly alright, Liu Yutong turned her attention back to the elderly villagers and emphasized her point once more.
"We were just lucky to recover the money this time. Everyone needs to learn from this lesson and stop trusting strangers. From now on, whenever money is involved, you must keep your guard up and discuss it with your families first. I was fortunate enough to catch those scammers this time, but we won't be so lucky next time."
"We'll remember! We'll remember!"
"We definitely won't dare fall for it again!"
"I'm going to throw out those useless bottles and junk mattresses the moment I get home!"
..........
With the village's crisis resolved, Liu Yutong packed up that very afternoon. She gathered Yaya, bid farewell to her grandparents, and headed out.
Aside from the fact that Yaya needed to get back to kindergarten, there were two urgent matters waiting for her. The first was organizing the promotional campaign for the launch of Weibo.
The second was dealing with Ji Zhe and Chu Hai, her two investors, who were currently storming her way to aggressively demand an explanation.
..........
