Urban Martial Saint

Zhou Yong only knew that Ye Qing had good connections with the Lin Corporation in Shenchuan City, but he wasn’t at all aware of Ye Qing’s exact status here. Therefore, he couldn’t guess that Da Fei was actually Ye Qing’s lackey; he assumed Da Fei was Ye Qing’s friend who went to pick someone up for him.

When a group of classmates met, it inevitably led to some pleasantries. Among these classmates, Zhou Yong was considered quite successful, being a teacher at Northern University and involved in various projects, his career was quite accomplished. Therefore, many classmates stayed closely connected with him.

After Zhou Yong began working on Lin Corporation’s projects, he connected more with classmates in Shenchuan City, so everyone knew each other’s situations. After some small talk, the group arranged themselves by importance and sat down, and Ye Qing instructed the waiter to start serving the dishes.

Ye Qing didn’t speak much, simply listening while others chatted. Although these classmates were enthusiastic when they first met, as the evening wore on, Ye Qing noticed there were still some differences among them.

Just like Wang Tong, who ran his own company and often needed to deal with government departments, he always seemed slightly ingratiating in front of Ding Ling and He Guoen. Moreover, since Zhou Yong arrived, Wang Tong kept inquiring about Zhou Yong’s project with Lin Corporation to see if there was any connection with his company to find some business opportunities.

He Guoen and Ding Ling, both government workers, spoke confidently and humorously among classmates, yet their tone carried an unconsciously superior air. Perhaps due to too many people seeking their help regularly, they had developed such an attitude, unable to shed that official demeanor even around old classmates. Also, it was evident that their speech, guarded and reserved, showed caution toward others.

As for Yuan Yuan, who worked in a foreign enterprise, she was noticeably inclined to flaunt her wealth. When she sat down, she casually talked about traveling to some resort destination or buying a bag worth thousands, speaking of extravagant lifestyles incessantly.

Among these people, only Lu Jun seemed unchanged. Teaching at a university in Shenchuan City, perhaps due to staying in school for so long, he hadn’t picked up much social awareness. However, it was evident that he often seemed to keep his head down in front of these classmates. He was also a lecturer at a university, but there was a vast difference between him and Zhou Yong; Zhou Yong had many projects outside, whereas Lu Jun earned a meager salary at the school, which naturally bothered him. Especially when Yuan Yuan talked about luxury goods, he was mostly silent, having no idea what Yuan Yuan was talking about.

As for Zhou Yong, he was quite the charming person, able to chat well with everyone. Most importantly, after Ye Qing’s incident in the Capital, he became more humble and low-key, no longer as arrogant and profit-driven as before.

During the conversation, Ye Qing didn’t speak much, just listened to the chit-chat, feeling somewhat sentimental. He initially thought the classmates from Shenchuan City might be better than those in the Capital, but now he realized he was wrong. Actually, there wasn’t much difference between the classmates from both places. It’s just that Shenchuan City didn’t have heirs like Lin Haoqi, so there wasn’t as much overt and covert strife as in the Capital. However, disparities were still quite pronounced here. Some flaunted wealth, others maintained their official tone, and others ingratiated themselves, the once pure relationships of classmates had long gone and were replaced by endless interest relationships and status differences.

Ye Qing sighed lightly, perhaps because he served in the army for five years, he didn’t enter this society too early. Or perhaps because he entered society so smoothly, reaching his current position overnight. Thus, he wasn’t corroded by society, and he couldn’t understand why there was now a hierarchy among former classmates.

This gathering was centered around Zhou Yong, after all, he was the guest from the Capital. Next to him were Ding Ling and He Guoen, whose positions were quite good now. As for Ye Qing, except for Zhou Yong, no one paid any attention to him, after all, he was merely a wine seller, the lowest in status among the classmates. Even Lu Jun, rarely ever showing confidence, somewhat had it in front of him.

Among these people, only Zhou Yong knew Ye Qing was doing quite well in Shenchuan City. Although he did not know exactly what Ye Qing did here, he had heard in the Capital about Ye Qing arranging for Gao Shibao to become a secretary to Director Su at the city’s Finance Bureau. Although Zhou Yong didn’t know Su Guoli’s background, he knew that this transfer skyrocketed Gao Shibao’s career, making him very envious. Thus, Ye Qing had become someone Zhou Yong most wanted to befriend, at least Ye Qing’s connections in the Capital were enough for him!

”By the way, Old Zhou, I’ve heard that you’ve finalized the project with Lin Corporation, what’s the situation now?” Wang Tong, who had been hinting around several times without getting the crucial details, finally couldn’t hold back and asked outright.

Upon hearing this, the other few people also turned their gazes toward Zhou Yong, most of them filled with envy. Everyone was well aware of Lin Corporation’s position in Shenchuan City. Zhou Yong, having secured a project with Lin Corporation, was bound to make a massive profit, something everyone understood clearly.

Ye Qing did not know that Zhou Yong’s project had already been finalized and was somewhat surprised to hear it. Previously, he had merely provided Zhou Yong with an opportunity to meet Liu Yuan and Mu Qingrong, not expecting that it would actually work out.

”Hahaha...” Upon hearing, Zhou Yong couldn’t help but laugh, looked at Ye Qing and said, ”Ah, this matter, I owe it to Ye Zi’s favor. Without Ye Zi’s help, all my hard work would have been in vain!”

”Oh?” Everyone was surprised, looking at Ye Qing in astonishment, not knowing what had happened, and how they owed it to Ye Qing. What kind of help did Ye Qing provide?

”As long as it worked out,” Ye Qing said with a light smile, not planning to let Zhou Yong say much more. In front of these classmates, he actually didn’t want to reveal too much.

Zhou Yong understood Ye Qing’s mindset and gave a slight smile, saying, ”I came here this time specifically for this project.”

”Why? Isn’t it settled?” Wang Tong said, ”I heard that Lin Corporation is establishing a branch in the Capital, and you’re handling this project at the branch?”

Zhou Yong said, ”I am handling this project at the branch, but there’s a small problem here.”

”What small problem?” Everyone was puzzled, Ye Qing also looked at Zhou Yong in confusion. Given that the project had been finalized, what more issues could there be?

Upon seeing Ye Qing’s puzzled look, Zhou Yong also appeared confused, surprisedly saying, ”Ye Zi, do you not know about the situation with Manager Liu and Director Mu?”

”What situation?” Ye Qing was even more surprised, what could have possibly happened with those two?

”You really don’t know!” Zhou Yong exclaimed, ”Manager Liu is currently lying in the hospital’s intensive care unit, and... you had no idea?”

”What!” Ye Qing stood up abruptly, completely unaware of this situation. What had happened to Liu Yuan, to end up in the intensive care unit?

”You really didn’t know?” Zhou Yong scratched his head cautiously, saying, ”I thought since you were in Shenchuan City, you’d know about this.”

”What exactly happened?” Ye Qing asked in a deep voice.

”Just the day before yesterday, Director Mu and Manager Liu’s group had just returned from out of town. It’s said that they sealed a big project, and upon returning, the company went out to celebrate. At the hotel, they had a conflict with another group, who wanted Director Mu to accompany them for drinks. Manager Liu stepped up to protect Director Mu, and ended up getting severely beaten, with Director Mu even getting abducted!” Zhou Yong paused, then continued, ”Fortunately, Lin Corporation has a significant influence in Shenchuan City, and the local police station immediately took action, rescuing Director Mu. Otherwise, Director Mu might have been in real danger. Director Mu is fine, but Manager Liu’s injuries are quite severe, reportedly with internal bleeding from the beatings. Those people were really heavy-handed!”

Upon hearing this, Ye Qing’s expression turned icy. He didn’t expect something like this to happen in Shenchuan City!

”This actually happened?” Yuan Yuan frowned, speaking with aversion, ”It’s broad daylight, yet such things still happen, Shenchuan City’s law and order is really deteriorating!”

Wang Tong gloated, ”Even daring to mess with Lin Corporation’s people, those punks are in big trouble now!”

”I heard about it too,” He Guoen sipped his tea calmly, adding, ”I’m at that precinct, and I’m most familiar with the situation back then. To be frank with you, those who beat them were not so easy to deal with.”

”Why say so?” Ye Qing asked in a deep voice, his fists already clenched.

When Ye Qing first arrived in Shenchuan City, the people who helped him the most were Mu Qingrong and Liu Yuan. Mu Qingrong gave him a job when he was at his lowest, and Liu Yuan, under various pressures, still supported him. So he couldn’t understand why former classmates would have such distinct status differences.

This gathering was truly centered around Zhou Yong, after all, as he was a guest from the Capital, and then it was Ding Ling and He Guoen, considering their current positions were quite good. As for Ye Qing, except for Zhou Yong, nobody paid any attention to him, for being just a liquor seller made him the lowest in the class hierarchy. Even Lu Jun, usually humble, had an unusually confident demeanor.

Among these people, only Zhou Yong knew that Ye Qing was doing quite well in Shenchuan City. He didn’t know exactly what Ye Qing was doing here, but he had heard about Ye Qing arranging for Gao Shibao to be the secretary to Director Su at the City Finance Bureau. Although Zhou Yong did not know what sort of background Su Guoli had, he understood that this transfer was indeed like a meteoric rise for Gao Shibao, and he felt a great deal of envy. Therefore, Zhou Yong had already marked Ye Qing as someone he absolutely needed to befriend, at least Ye Qing’s connections in the Capital were something that Zhou Yong deemed necessary for himself!

”By the way, Old Zhou, I heard you’ve closed the deal with Lin Corporation, how is it going now?” Wang Tong asked indirectly a few times but couldn’t get the key information out, so he simply asked straightforwardly.

Upon hearing this, the other people also quickly looked towards Zhou Yong, most of them with envy. They all understood very well Lin Corporation’s status in Shenchuan City. The fact that Zhou Yong had managed to secure a project with Lin Corporation meant that he was going to make a lot of money this time, something they were all acutely aware of.

Ye Qing didn’t know that Zhou Yong had already closed the deal, and upon hearing this, he was a bit surprised. He had only provided Zhou Yong with an opportunity to meet with Liu Yuan and Mu Qingrong before, and he hadn’t expected that it would actually lead to a successful deal.

”Hahaha...” Upon hearing this, Zhou Yong couldn’t help but laugh, looking at Ye Qing, he said, ”Ah, this matter, I owe it to Ye Zi. If it weren’t for Ye Zi’s help, all my efforts over such a long time would have been in vain!”

”Oh?” Everyone was surprised, they all looked at Ye Qing in astonishment, and nobody knew what had happened, why was it that they owed it to Ye Qing? What kind of help did Ye Qing provide?

”It’s good that it worked out.” Ye Qing replied with a faint smile, not planning on letting Zhou Yong elaborate. Among these classmates, he actually preferred not to reveal too much.

Zhou Yong understood Ye Qing’s intent and gave a slight smile, saying, ”I’m here for this project this time.”

”Why? Hasn’t it been finalized?” Wang Tong asked, ”I heard that Lin Corporation wanted to set up a branch in the Capital and you’re meant to be working on that project, right?”

Zhou Yong said, ”I am working on it in the branch, but there’s been a little problem.”

”What little problem?” Everyone was taken aback, and even Ye Qing looked at Zhou Yong curiously. Since the project was settled, what was the problem?

Surprised to see Ye Qing also looking confused, Zhou Yong said, ”Ye Zi, don’t you know about what happened with Manager Liu and Director Mu?”

”You don’t know!” Zhou Yong exclaimed, ”Manager Liu is still in the intensive care unit in the hospital, and you didn’t know?”

”What!” Ye Qing exclaimed, immediately standing up, completely taken by surprise. What had happened to Liu Yuan to put him in the intensive care unit?

”You really didn’t know!” Zhou Yong exclaimed in disbelief, ”Manager Liu is lying in the intensive care unit in the hospital right now, and you… you didn’t know?”

”What happened!” Ye Qing asked anxiously.

”Just two days ago, Director Mu and Manager Liu got back from out of town. Apparently, they had struck a big deal, and when they were celebrating at a hotel, they got into a conflict with another group. That group wanted Director Mu to drink with them. Manager Liu stepped up to protect Director Mu and was severely beaten for it. He was taken to the intensive care unit with internal bleeding. Those guys were really brutal this time!” Zhou Yong explained.

Upon hearing this, Ye Qing’s face turned icy. He hadn’t anticipated such an event. What on earth had happened to Liu Yuan that he ended up in the intensive care unit?

”How could this happen?” Ye Qing asked in a serious voice, his fists clenched tightly.

When Ye Qing first came to Shenchuan City, the people who helped him the most were Mu Qing and Liu Yuan. Mu Qingrong provided him with a job during a low point, and Liu Yuan, despite facing immense pressure himself, had stood by him. Therefore, Ye Qing couldn’t comprehend how old classmates had managed to form hierarchies of superiority and inferiority amongst themselves.

During this gathering, Zhou Yong naturally became the center since he was the guest from the Capital. Next came Ding Ling and He Guoen, both holding commendable positions. As for Ye Qing, aside from Zhou Yong, no one paid him much mind. After all, being a liquor salesman, he ranked lowest among the classmates. Even Lu Jun, usually more reserved, appeared unexpectedly confident in front of him.

Among these people, only Zhou Yong was aware that Ye Qing was doing very well in Shenchuan City. Although he didn’t precisely know what Ye Qing was doing, having heard about how Ye Qing arranged for Gao Shibao to be the secretary to Director Su at the City Finance Bureau in the Capital, he realized that this move had allowed Gao Shibao to soar. Zhou Yong was truly envious and had thus listed Ye Qing as a person that he must associate with, not least because Ye Qing’s connections in the Capital were good resources.

”””