Chapter 068: Two Families Join Forces—The Fierce Debt Collector Arrives

After a long silence, Xu Kuangdao finally said, “Wait a moment, let me change to another private room.”

“You’re the host, I’m the guest—whatever you prefer,” Chen Yuanhua nodded, stepping aside and following Xu Kuangdao out.

They switched to a new room. Xu Kuangdao took the opportunity to make a phone call and check on Chen Yuanhua’s background. Since the man was from a clan, both his name and appearance would surely be recorded in the ancestral hall. Conveniently, Xu Kuangdao had a few business contacts in Huicheng; one call was enough to confirm everything.

Once certain of his identity, Xu Kuangdao smiled and asked, “You’re a few years my senior. May I call you ‘brother’?”

“Of course. Can we get straight to the matter?” Chen Yuanhua asked.

Xu Kuangdao shook his head. “No rush. Let’s sit and chat a while—get to know each other before discussing business. Please, brother, the new room is ready. I even ordered your favorite sashimi, made with the best ingredients and techniques straight from Japan.”

“I’m surprised you knew that.” Chen Yuanhua smiled and nodded, strolling into the room.

Once they were seated, Xu Kuangdao asked, “Brother, how did that little bastard end up crossing your Chen family?”

“Are you familiar with exile punishment?” Chen Yuanhua replied.

“I am, of course.” Xu Kuangdao nodded repeatedly.

Exile was a punishment commonly seen in clan conflicts, meted out by the losing side. The clan’s strict rules forbade shedding kin’s blood, but internal strife was unavoidable, so such internal penalties arose.

Chen Yuanhua continued, “My cousin, Chen Wuyun, and I have always had business disagreements. We’ve been at odds for over a decade.”

“Two years ago, we both reached our limit. With the clan chief as witness, we made a wager—the loser would go to the Nanyang archipelago to expand the clan’s territories.”

“My cousin lost, but refused to accept it. He ran off with his wife and mistress, leaving his son and daughter behind.”

“According to clan rules, the children pay the parents’ debts. But these two kids had no ability to run a company, so we exiled them to Tangwan Town for three years.”

“During that time, no one was allowed to help them. Under the pressure of clansmen, they had to survive on their own.”

A glint of cunning flashed in Chen Yuanhua’s eyes as he spoke.

Two years had passed, but no one had ever dared challenge the Chen family’s authority. Even those who helped out of kindness withdrew at a warning.

The first act of retaliation was meant to be mild. Chen Yuanhua had hired Hongmao and his petty ruffians to stir up trouble, just to give Zhang Tianfeng a warning.

But Zhang Tianfeng showed no fear of the Chen family. Not only did he help the two sisters, he gave them work and let them earn money. Wasn’t this a blatant slap in the face for the Chen family?

Xu Kuangdao sat beside him, outwardly calm but laughing inwardly.

The Chen family’s way of punishing their own was notorious among the coastal clans—the most outrageous of all. Even children barely ten years old weren’t spared. They called it “children paying the parents’ debts,” but in reality, it was little more than a vendetta in disguise.

Many clans sneered at such cruelty, but none spoke out. After all, it was an internal affair—no outsider would meddle.

This time, Zhang Tianfeng had truly humiliated the Chen family. All the better.

Xu Kuangdao was starting to feel overwhelmed on his own. After all, the Xu family’s resources weren’t for his sole use; whatever he spent, he’d have to repay double. With the Chen family’s help, bringing down Zhang Tianfeng would be a sure thing.

“With your help, Brother Chen, taking him down will be effortless,” Xu Kuangdao said with a smile.

“Don’t underestimate him, Old Xu. I’ve been watching that brat for a long time—he’s not as simple as he looks.”

After suffering defeat last time, Chen Yuanhua had been quietly gathering information on Zhang Tianfeng, keeping a close record of his actions. He even knew about Zhang Tianfeng opening two branch companies in Hong Kong.

After some investigation, he confirmed two things.

First, Zhang Tianfeng had close ties to Qin Lin from the piracy syndicate.

Second, he had a strong connection to the Huo family in Hong Kong.

Hearing this, Xu Kuangdao nodded slightly. “I’m aware of the Huo family. Before we took action, our family contacted them. They personally stated it had nothing to do with them.”

“So even if he’s connected to the Huo family, what of it? They won’t get involved. If they do, it will only disgrace them.”

“But this Qin fellow…I hadn’t considered him,” Xu Kuangdao mused. “Do you already have a plan?”

“Of course. But first, we must share information—find out exactly how formidable he is, then strike accordingly,” Chen Yuanhua said cautiously. “We’ve both failed once. Another failure would bring shame to our families.”

Xu Kuangdao felt the sting of this truth—they had both stumbled badly. Either of them, in the outside world, could shake up the local business scene at will. Yet now, both had been outmaneuvered by a youngster.

He was anxious to rescue his son and had underestimated the opponent; his plan failed before it even began. Chen Yuanhua had similarly misjudged Zhang Tianfeng and suffered for it. Now, who knew how many people were waiting in the shadows to laugh at their misfortune.

After proposing to share information, the two men laid out everything they had gathered, filling in the gaps for each other.

Half an hour later, Chen Yuanhua spoke. “I’ve got an idea.”

“Let’s hear it, brother.”

“The human resources angle is no longer viable; we should use the overwhelming power of our clans to crush him—make it impossible for his factory to continue.”

“You’ve already taken over the factory alliance, haven’t you? Gather the factory owners and put pressure on him.”

“It won’t work. I’ve already tried that, and it only pushed the kid to confront me directly,” Xu Kuangdao replied with a bitter smile. “All my years, this is the first time a youngster’s threatened me—and I couldn’t do a thing about it!”

“Then isolate him—make sure he can’t get any resources from his peers,” Chen Yuanhua said. “I’ll have someone cut off his supply lines, send the material suppliers to stir up trouble—make it impossible for his factory to operate peacefully.”

“Will that work?”

“Do you know how that toy factory survived in the first place?” Chen Yuanhua asked.

The toy factory had originally been a plastic plant. Poor management and an unpopular manager left it out of favor in Tangwan Town. Later, when Zhou Yuan took over, even sending gifts to other toy factories wasn’t enough to get them to reveal their suppliers.

Eventually, with help from a Hong Kong spy, Zhou Yuan found a formidable figure from the sea, who provided him with overseas supply channels. Since then, he’d always sourced materials from that man.

“Brother, where did you hear all this?” Xu Kuangdao was astonished—he’d never imagined a toy factory would have such a tangled web.

Chen Yuanhua raised an eyebrow with pride. “Would I dare join forces with you unprepared?”

“As it happens, that man recently asked our Chen family for a favor. I can use this as leverage to sever his ties with Zhang Tianfeng.”

“No raw materials, no support from his peers—what good is money then? He can’t possibly source supplies from farther away at a loss.”

“That’s a good plan! You’re brilliant, brother!” Xu Kuangdao gave a thumbs up, delighted.

Chen Yuanhua waved him off. “There’s more to come. The toy factory still owes the supplier a large sum—tens of thousands, at least. The man doesn’t even know the factory has changed hands.”

“Imagine his reaction when he finds out about such a huge loss—he’ll be furious, won’t he?”

“A man of the sea, once provoked, could do anything—you know that better than I do.”

Xu Kuangdao nodded, grinning. He knew all too well. Growing up in Huicheng, right by the sea, he’d heard countless legends of sea warriors—men who braved storms, accustomed to bloodshed, who’d dare face gun-wielding foreigners with nothing but a blade.

When they were riled up, blood would be shed.

Xu Kuangdao was already looking forward to the coming drama, eager to see how Zhang Tianfeng—the little lamb with hidden thorns—would respond.