When in doubt about internal affairs, ask Baidu; for external affairs, ask Google. But combine Baidu and Google, and they're still not as good as having Bobby Brooks on your team!
Bobby, that chubby genius, is truly a talent—a combination of housekeeper and intelligence chief. No wonder Jonathan Black relies on him so much. Soon enough, Bobby burst into Jonathan's office, panting. "Boss, I've got two things to report. First, the blood sample analysis you requested is done." With that, he handed Jonathan a file folder.
"Oh?" Jonathan immediately sat up straight, grabbed the folder, and eagerly opened it. While flipping through the contents, he asked without looking up, "What's the second thing?"
"The second thing is, The Queen—the undefeated underground fighting champion—seems to have found something she’s really happy with and wants me to look into its origin."
"Then go check it out."
"I've already investigated. Turns out the goods came from a company in Heilongjiang. Originally, they tried to sneak a wild boar in with the other beasts they sold us, but The Queen was more interested in the boar than the bear. So I dug deeper and found out the real supplier was a hunter from a mountain village. After collecting samples of his other products, The Queen said she loved his stuff and specifically told me to buy everything he has—no matter how much."
"If she wants it all, then buy it all. As long as she's happy," Jonathan replied absentmindedly, still flipping through the test report.
Ben Wang wasn’t one for fancy talk—he just spat out his terms, thick country accent and all: “Lemme tell ya, I gotta give that no-good Frank Wang a proper whuppin’! He didn’t just leave me hangin’, he went and double-crossed me!”
"Oh?" Jonathan looked up. "What about goods from other local hunters?"
"To hell with you, you old coot!" Ben Wang hollered, barreling into Frank Wang and laying into him with fists and boots, beating him so bad the man was rolling and howling. After a spell, Frank went limp, his yelps fading, but Ben kept on swinging. Charlie and the crew just watched, faces blank.
Jonathan finally found what he was looking for. The analysis result: the two tested samples are blood relatives within three generations.
After a spell, Ben Wang finally quit swinging, huffin’ and puffin’ as he tossed Frank Wang aside like a sack of feed. "I want three hundred grand, and I want it right this minute!"
"But boss, our intel network on the mainland is wide, but not exactly packing heat. Plus, you know the saying—outsiders don't mess with the locals. If we go in guns blazing, won't people start talking?"
"No way, you pay up front! Ain’t no two ways about it! My old man’s laid up sick, hospital says three hundred grand or they won’t touch him. I’ll get you the good stuff, but you gotta cough up the cash first!"
Mainland China, Heilongjiang, Greater Khingan Mountains. At the foot of the endless range lies a small village. Once, this place was home to hunters living off the land, getting by just fine. But as the economy grew, laws changed, and government policies shifted, things gradually went downhill.
"Deal!" Ben Wang bit out, stubborn as a mule. "I need my shotgun and all my huntin’ gear. Them bastards took everything—if I’m gonna wrangle you critters, I need my stuff back."
Charlie tossed a military pack at his feet. Ben popped it open—inside was a full set of hunting gear. Bobby Brooks had wrangled it from somewhere else. In three words: built tough, sharp as a tack, and country-approved!
Soon, the convoy arrived at the small village. At the edge of this unknown place, the five vehicles paused briefly. In the lead car, the passenger turned to the back, roughly dragged a bald, chubby man—tied up like a dumpling—to the front, and yanked the gag from his mouth. "Now, we can talk, Boss Wang." The speaker's voice was cold, his eyes icy—it was none other than Charlie, the white-haired old man.
"Yes, yes!" The chubby man nodded frantically, eager to cooperate. He had no choice—earlier tonight, he'd been sleeping soundly in his mansion in the county seat, surrounded by women. Then, these guys swooped in out of nowhere, snatched him up without alerting anyone. All his wealth, all his lackeys, suddenly meant nothing. Out here in this remote village, honestly, if they killed him, no one would even know.
He just couldn't figure out why these big-city tough guys were making trouble for a small-time boss like him.
Charlie slapped a photo in Frank Wang's face. "This man's name is Ben Wang. Born in this village, three generations of hunters in his family—and, turns out, he's your nephew. Two days ago, you kidnapped him. According to our investigation, you should be hiding him somewhere in this village. We need to see him, so you're going to take us to him. If he can give us what we need, you'll walk free when we leave. If we can't find him, or he can't deliver, I'll kill you. Now—where is he?"
"Got it, I understand! Gentlemen, I'll cooperate for sure!" Frank Wang, sweating bullets, pointed out the way. He'd always thought Ben Wang was just a lucky kid—heard he went missing for a while, then suddenly came back with top-quality deer antler that would sell like crazy. Blinded by greed, Frank had snatched Ben up, never expecting to get targeted by these killers.
Now all he could hope was that his lackeys hadn’t roughed Ben Wang up too badly.
(This chapter isn't finished yet~.~ Click next page to keep reading the exciting story!)
The off-road vehicles didn’t drive into the village—they hid outside for now. The engines were just too loud for this quiet place. One by one, fully armed men got out, moving swiftly and silently as they surrounded a large courtyard at the back of the village.
No surprise—the five people sleeping soundly in the courtyard were all captured instantly, not one escaped. Charlie strode toward the cellar, flung open the door, and sure enough, Ben Wang was inside. He was a short, stocky guy, covered in bruises and lash marks, but his eyes were stubborn as ever, staring in surprise at Charlie.
Once Ben Wang was freed, Charlie got straight to the point: "Ben Wang, I want to make a deal with you. We don't care where you got your game, but we need it—fast and as much as possible. Now, name your terms."
Ben Wang wasn’t one for fancy talk—he just spat out his terms, thick rural accent and all: “Me, I gotta wallop that old bastard Frank Wang! He didn’t just leave me high and dry, he set me up, too!”
Frank Wang—that’s the boss. Charlie waved his hand, and Frank was dragged in, tossed in front of Ben Wang, looking pale. Frank forced out a crooked grin: "Nephew, your uncle’s here to set things right—uncle’s sorry, really—"
"To hell with you, you rotten old goat!" Ben Wang bellowed, charging in and laying into Frank Wang with fists and boots, beating him so bad the man was rolling and hollering on the ground. After a while, Frank went limp, his cries dying down, but Ben Wang kept pounding away. Charlie and the others just watched, stone-faced and silent.
Killing someone—or a few people—really didn’t mean much to them.
After a spell, Ben Wang finally quit swinging, huffing and puffing as he tossed Frank Wang aside like a sack of potatoes. “I want three hundred grand, and I want it right this minute!”
Charlie shook his head. "You give us the goods first, then you get the money. If what you bring is good and enough, 300,000 is no problem."
"No way, you pay up front! Ain’t no two ways about it! My old man’s laid up sick, hospital says three hundred grand or they won’t touch him. I’ll get you the good stuff, but you gotta cough up the cash first!"
Charlie’s face stayed cold, unmoved. "We can front your dad’s hospital fees. Once you deliver, you pay us back from the sale. But I’m only giving you five days. If you don’t come up with goods worth the price in five days, deal’s off."
"Deal!" Ben Wang bit out, stubborn as a mule. "I need my shotgun and all my huntin’ gear. Them goons took everything—if I’m gonna get you critters, I need my stuff back."
Charlie tossed a military pack at his feet. Ben popped it open—inside was a full kit of hunting tools. Bobby Brooks had wrangled it from somewhere else. In three words: top-notch, sharp as a tack, and built to last!
"Remember, you’ve got five days. And we only want the fiercest beasts."
"Five days?" Ben Wang slung the pack over his shoulder, stomping out with a country swagger. "Shoot, I only need two!" (Jill Young’s real-world adventure is wrapping up, and Jack Young’s about to take center stage again. By the way, I’m starting a ‘background character’ thread—toss me names for extras, boys or girls. Heads up: extras don’t get much screen time, and most’ll bite the dust, so don’t give ’em fancy names or I’ll feel bad offing ’em~~ Also, question for y’all: how’d you even find this book? I couldn’t track it down through the normal search myself...)