As soon as Shawn Young stepped onto the third floor, he was stunned by the scene—a riot of graffiti in red and black screamed from every wall: "Pay your debts! It's only fair!" "Don't pay, you die!" "We'll kill your whole family!" Near a door locked with heavy padlocks, rotting ducks and cats dangled, reeking of death. Worst of all, a gang of punks in loud clothes and surgical masks, directed by a burly man in a black tank top wielding a watermelon knife, were busy dumping a bucket of sewage through the crack in the security door.
The stench was overwhelming, and from inside came the sounds of a woman sobbing and coughing violently. The masked thugs started kicking the iron door, making a deafening 'BANG BANG' that echoed down the hallway.
"Please—I'm begging you, stop! Take me if you want, do whatever you want to my husband, but let my daughter and me go. This is our ancestral home—I can't sell it! If I do, we'll lose everything—sob, sob..." the woman inside pleaded, her voice breaking with tears.
"Ha! Old lady, you don't get a say in this. Goldtooth gave the orders—if your husband doesn't pay up in three days, we'll burn this place down! Then you won't be able to sell it even if you want to! Got it? Three days. I don't care if you steal, rob, or sell yourself, but you better pay up, or we'll kill your husband and torch your house! Do you hear me, old lady? Say something if you do!" The big guy shoved the punks aside, kicked the iron door hard, and smacked it with his knife, making loud 'CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!' noises. The woman inside broke down in tears, coughing even harder.
Shawn Young couldn't take it anymore. He knew Joanna Gong's mom was inside. Stepping out from the stairwell, he strode forward and said coldly, "Enough! You guys are pushing them too far. Owing money doesn't mean you have to ruin people's lives! It's not like they did anything to deserve this!"
The punks spun around to glare at Shawn. The burly guy ripped off his mask, revealing a scarred face with a slashed eyebrow—Scarface Ma. He eyed Shawn's neat clothes and confident look, figuring he might be loaded. Waving his watermelon knife, he sneered, "Who the hell are you? You planning to pay off the Gong Family's debt?"
Shawn shot back, "Who I am isn't your business. Just tell me—how much does the Gong Family owe you?"
"Oh! Ha ha—so you wanna take on the Gong Family's debt, huh? If you've got the cash, we can talk. The Gong Family owes Goldtooth one and a half million! If you pay up now, I, Scarface Ma, promise we'll leave them alone!" Scarface Ma grinned wickedly at Shawn.
"One and a half million? That much?!" Shawn's heart skipped a beat, but he kept a straight face and told Scarface Ma, "I'll pay off their debt as soon as I can. But I'm warning you—don't mess with the Gong Family again!"
Scarface Ma raised his battered eyebrow, grinning with pride. "Hahaha, easy! The Black Tiger Gang always keeps its word—if you pay off the Gong Family's one and a half million, we'll leave them alone for good!"
Just then, the iron security door creaked open. A middle-aged woman, pale and sickly, with more white hair than black, poked her head out in pajamas and shouted, "You're lying! Yesterday you said we only owed you one million two hundred thousand! How did it suddenly jump to one and a half million? You're nothing but thieves—bandits—crooks!"
"Heh heh—listen up, old hag! Goldtooth said—thirty grand is interest, and thirty grand's for our labor fees! Think about it: every day we come here, spray paint, hang dead ducks and cats, dump sewage—none of that's easy! Plus, food, smokes, running around, all those expenses—don't think being in the mafia is a walk in the park! We're all busting our asses! So yeah, it's one and a half million, not a penny less! Got it?!" Scarface Ma snarled, spitting as he yelled at her.
"Sob... Go ahead and kill Samuel Gong! You criminals—lawless thugs!" The woman clung to the doorframe, wailing uncontrollably.
"One and a half million, right? Fine. I'll bring the money to Goldtooth within three days. But you all need to apologize to this lady—right now! And clean up this mess! Or you'll regret it!" Shawn said coldly to Scarface Ma.
"Ha! This kid's got jokes—asking us to apologize to the old lady? Problem is, we only know how to curse, not say sorry! What are we supposed to do now? Wahahaha!" Scarface Ma and his crew burst out laughing at Shawn.
A cold glint flashed in Shawn's eyes—he was about to make a move when Chicken, having rushed upstairs, grabbed Shawn's arm and said, "Shawn, what are you doing? I told you to stay out of the Gong Family's business. You can't handle this! Let's go downstairs."
But Shawn turned to Chicken and said, "Don't worry, Chicken. I'm not backing down from the Gong Family's troubles! You'd better distance yourself from these guys—trust me, their days are numbered!"
Hearing this, Scarface Ma's face twisted with anger. He gripped his watermelon knife, ready to step forward, but Chicken quickly blocked Shawn, plastering on a smile and pleading, "Let's talk this out, Scarface Ma. He's my buddy, just got back from out of town, doesn't know the rules. Do me a favor—don't hold it against him, I'm begging you!"
But Shawn pulled Chicken behind him and said, "Chicken, step aside. Today, I'm making them apologize to the lady and clean up this filth! Or I won't let them off easy!"
Scarface Ma glared, shouting at Chicken, "Chicken, are you deaf? Your so-called favor means jack shit! Even if this kid was your ancestor, I'll show him what happens when you mess with us! I'll beat him, then beat you! Damn traitor!"