Friends, have you ever heard the saying? If you really want to "handle" someone, if you want to mess them up bad, you don't use a machete.
When handling people, you use a dagger, a triangular scraper, a bayonet, or an axe.
That's because these short blades are meant for stabbing. One thrust, and you leave a blood hole in the body.
A machete might look majestic and intimidating with its gleaming blade, but unless it's a heavy-backed chopper, a standard machete doesn't actually do that much deep damage.
So, when my blade landed on Tumor's cousin's shoulder, it only left a long gash.
It didn't cause him any substantial, critical harm.
And he just glared at me viciously, his eyes looking like they wanted to swallow me whole and skin me alive.
While I was hesitating over whether to give him another chop, Xu Rang rushed over and smashed a fist into his face.
Then, Xu Rang snatched the machete from my hand, slashed him twice with a backhand swing, grabbed him by the hair, and slammed his face hard against his knee.
Instantly, his face looked like a spilled soy sauce shop—a bloody, colorful mess.
Xu Rang gripped his hair, stared straight into his eyes, and pressed the machete against his neck.
"You little bastard! Stare! Keep staring! Stare again and I'll bleed you dry right here!"
Xu Rang's aura was ferocious, but he was using the back of the blade. He was probably afraid the kid would struggle and actually get his throat cut.
Clearly, the kid was intimidated by Xu Rang. He lowered his head, not daring to look at either of us again.
"Number Two, go drag that old geezer over here. I'll handle this little bastard."
I hurriedly agreed, walking over to Chen Xiang's father, who was curled up in a ball. I kicked him hard a few times, then, copying Xu Rang, grabbed him by the hair and dragged him toward Chen Qiang.
I admit I have a heavy hand, but I only strike those I have a grudge against.
At least, before I became a boss, I never went out of my way to handle someone who had nothing to do with me.
Facing Tumor's cousin, I couldn't bring myself to be truly ruthless.
But with this old coot, I didn't hold back at all. I didn't care if he could stand or not; I just grabbed his hair and dragged him along.
If not for him, Tumor and I wouldn't have become enemies, and maybe I wouldn't be here tonight.
By the time Xu Rang and I dragged the two of them over, Chen Qiang was already done with his side.
Fifteen or twenty young men were kneeling in a row. Behind each of them stood a man with a blade. If they dared to move, the blades would fall.
Chen Qiang and Goatee stood in front of them, watching as Xu Rang and I brought over the last two captives.
When Chen Xiang's father saw Chen Qiang, it was like seeing his own daddy. He struggled desperately. My hands were stained with blood from somewhere and felt greasy, so I lost my grip.
He broke free, scrambling and crawling to Chen Qiang's feet. He knelt and cried out:
"Brother Qiang! Brother Qiang, I really didn't know Chu Shanhe was with you! I never thought of opposing you! Please let me off this one time, just this once!"
Chen Qiang squatted down and slapped Chen Xiang's father across the face. "I ran all this way in the dead of winter, and you think a few words from you will make me let you off? You think your balls are huge? You think you're untouchable?"
"Get over there and kneel properly, or I'll handle you first."
Chen Xiang's father wanted to say more, but Goatee shot me a look. I immediately stepped forward and clamped my hand over the old man's mouth.
"I'm the Chu Shanhe you told Tumor to handle. Speak. Come on, keep speaking. I'm listening. If another half-word pops out of your mouth today, I'll rip it apart."
I hated Chen Xiang, and I hated his father.
If not for these two pieces of trash, why would I have been forced down this path?
The old man shrank his neck. He seemed to realize I wasn't joking and didn't dare resist anymore. I dragged him over to kneel with the others.
After pinning him down, I noticed Xu Rang was furiously kicking Tumor's cousin in the knees.
The kid's face was covered in blood, but he stood ramrod straight. No matter how Xu Rang kicked, he wouldn't kneel. Even when Xu Rang forced his head toward the ground, his legs wouldn't bend. He wouldn't kneel.
I was about to step in and help Xu Rang when Chen Qiang walked over.
Chen Qiang wore a black trench coat, his bald head gleaming conspicuously in the night.
I thought he would say some tough words to force Tumor's cousin to his knees.
But his expression was calm. He walked up to the boy and spoke softly. "You're called Wang Hai, right? I know you. Do you know me?"
So his name was Wang Hai. It seemed Tumor's surname was Wang as well.
Wang Hai spat viciously. A mixture of saliva and bloody foam sprayed right into Chen Qiang's face.
I was shocked, terrified that Chen Qiang would pull his gun and drop him right there.
I stepped forward and slapped Wang Hai across the face several times.
"Fuck your mother! Stop acting tough! Kneel down and apologize to my Boss!"
Wang Hai let out a creepy laugh, revealing a row of blood-stained white teeth. "Heh, you're Chu Shanhe, right? Old Second Chu. I'll remember you. If you don't handle me to death tonight, the first chance I get, I'll handle you to death."
My anger flared instantly. A knife is on your neck, and you still dare to say you'll kill me?
You and your cousin are truly like Pan Jinlian—you think you're unkillable?
I raised my hand to slap him again, but Chen Qiang caught my wrist.
I expected a boss like Chen Qiang to be in a murderous rage after being spat on.
But Chen Qiang remained calm. He simply wiped the spit from his face, and there was even a hint of a smile at the corner of his mouth.
"Number Two, do you see that? This Wang Hai is about your age, but he's much more ruthless than you. He dared to chop people with a knife at sixteen."
"When he says he'll handle you to death, he really means he'll handle you to death."
Fear rose in my heart. Generally speaking, phrases like "I'll kill you" or "I'll kill your whole family" are just trash talk.
Even now, after nearly thirty years in the jianghu and finishing my time in "college," looking back, there were very few bosses who actually killed entire families.
But that night, I believed him. I believed that when Wang Hai said he would kill me, he really meant to kill me.
My heart hardened. Tumor wanted to handle me, and his cousin said he would kill me. Fine. Let's see who handles whom to death first.
I was about to speak, but Chen Qiang pulled me aside.
Chen Qiang stepped forward and looked at Wang Hai indifferently.
"Wang Hai. Kneel down and kowtow to me three times. I'll let you off today. I won't handle you."
The corners of Wang Hai's mouth were split open, making his smile look terrifying.
He spat another mouthful of bloody saliva onto Chen Qiang's face. "Baldy Qiang, same goes for you. You better handle me to death today, or once I flip this over, I'll handle you right after Old Second Chu."
Chen Qiang took a deep breath. He stopped talking to Wang Hai and turned to walk away.
"Goatee, do the work!"
Goatee acknowledged the order. He led a few men to unload several large drums from the HiAce vans.
I didn't know what was inside, but the stench was foul. They rolled the drums to the edge of the fish pond and poured the contents in.
Ten minutes later, masses of fish were floating on the surface, bellies up.
Two other men took gas cans and doused the shacks and the house at the fish farm with gasoline.
A flick of a lighter, and flames shot up instantly.
As Chen Qiang walked past me, he stopped and handed me a dagger.
"Number Two. Wang Hai said he's going to kill you, and he's going to kill me, your big brother. You tell me, what should be done?"
I closed my eyes in anguish, my whole body trembling as I took the dagger from Chen Qiang's hand.
"Rest assured, Boss. I'll handle him first. I'll make sure he can never hold a knife again in this life."