Chapter 199: 199 The Cost of the Truth

Xu Leigang’s trip to the Imperial Capital this time was to provide support for his second brother.

The money he had raised had already been sent over, but his second brother’s rivals hadn’t backed down and continued to suppress his enterprise.

Fatty Xu managed to bring 45 million to the Imperial Capital, and almost 20 million was spent in an instant; the remaining money was just enough for his second brother to hold on for a month, theoretically enough to get through this difficult period.

However, the opposition, not willing to let up, dragged their feet at the bank and also mobilized upstream and downstream businesses to delay payments wherever possible and to call in debts ahead of schedule.

Although his second brother believed he could endure, being passively beaten like this was not an option, so he summoned the youngest brother to make a trip to the Imperial Capital—just show up and make an appearance, to prove that the Xu Family still had influence in Funiu Province.

“Don’t think that just because you’ve got me cornered in the Imperial Capital, you can sit back and watch my misfortune. We have roots in Funiu, and we can find money!”

Those with an interest could verify that the new funds in the company’s accounts indeed came from Funiu.

Of course, Xu Leigang would go to the Imperial Capital to support his brother.

After arriving in the Imperial Capital, he didn’t really do much, just moved around with his two brothers and two sisters, and paid visits to some of Commander Zhu’s old acquaintances.

Xu Leigang wasn’t familiar with the Imperial Capital, but his mother, the wife of Commander Zhu, was someone he had personally bid farewell to—making him seem like a very filial child in the hearts of those who knew his mother.

As he roamed about the Imperial Capital for a few days, the pressure on his second brother indeed lessened significantly.

At the very least, there were two companies now in contact with his second brother’s company, hoping to buy the patent for the coating material.

The prices offered by these two companies weren’t high, just above the minimum acceptable level, obviously looking to score a bargain.

But even so, it was already quite impressive; two months prior, their offers had been less than a third of the current ones, and they had an air of “I’m not that interested; take it or leave it.”

Second Young Master Xu certainly wouldn’t agree to sell—”Our company can completely hold up now, sell for what!”

When Xu Leigang learned that the company’s financial situation had improved, he told his second brother that he was going back to Funiu.

His second brother even wanted to invite him to have fun at Merrick, to show that the Xu Family wasn’t just financially secure but also had leisure to spare.

But Fatty Xu was concerned about his cultivation and said that if he returned to Funiu, his deterrence would only be greater—as he could get money anytime.

That’s why his second brother let him return.

Upon hearing the word “Merrick,” Feng Jun’s heart stirred, but after the other person finished speaking, he asked, “Is it easy to get a visa to Merrick?”

“That’s easy to say,” Fatty Xu laughed and nodded, “but you have to wait for a while and must go to the Imperial Capital for an in-person interview.”

Upon hearing that he would have to wait, Feng Jun lost interest, “We’ll talk about that later… Didn’t you bring me any gifts from the Imperial Capital?”

“I brought you an Omega watch,” Xu Leigang replied with a smile, “I noticed you don’t wear a watch, so I bought one on a whim. It’s not worth much… Please, don’t reject it.”

Feng Jun wasn’t the type to be hypocritical. He could give Sister Hong and Wang Haifeng jade, so he certainly dared to accept gifts from others, but the gift he wanted to inquire about wasn’t this one, “Thanks for that, didn’t you bring back any other gifts?”

Li Xiaobin, hearing this, felt even more puzzled by his junior high school classmate: You’re really not shy about asking.

Xu Leigang had an idea of what Master Feng was hinting at; casting a thoughtful glance at Li Xiaobin, “This is…”

“This is Li Xiaobin, he was the class president in junior high and now he’s my personal assistant,” Feng Jun introduced, “Xiao Bin, this is Xu Leigang, the owner of this villa, the son of Zhu Renxia, Commander Zhu… none of us are strangers here.”n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

Xu Leigang gave a meaningful smile with a squint, “Oh, just call yourself a secretary, the kind that does the work, right?”

Before Li Xiaobin could speak, Feng Jun spoke first, “No, just a pure personal assistant. You know me, Lao Xu, I have OCD, and I like to keep things pretty clear… I don’t mess around with people close to home.”

“Just joking,” Xu Leigang laughed, not showing the slightest embarrassment. Instead, he winked at Feng Jun again, “Shall we sit down in the sitting room?”

Feng Jun, sensing an opportunity, responded, “Feel free to take a seat. This is your house, I’m just temporarily staying.”

When they reached the small sitting room and sat down, Xu Leigang went straight to the point, “Master, the gift you wanted, were you talking about weapons?”

“Mainly explosives,” Feng Jun shifted his request a bit, “Weapons can be included, but the small caliber ones aren’t very interesting.”

“I was saying, I got some connections for sniper rifles,” Xu Leigang said, shaking his head in disinterest, but then he nodded with a smile, “However, you have a point, there’s no need to use low-power weapons frequently. As a cultivator, improving oneself is the most important.”

Eh? Feng Jun looked at him strangely, the words somehow instilled a faint sense of guilt in his heart—buddies are all aiming for cultivation, always thinking about getting weapons for self-defense, it really seems… a bit like missing the forest for the trees.

However, the next moment, his curiosity got the better of him, “What kind of sniper rifle? Do you have Barretts? What kind of channels?”

If it wasn’t for explosives, he wouldn’t be interested in ordinary sniper rifles at all, only anti-matériel rifles could excite him.

“I knew it, you only have eyes for Barretts,” Xu Lei Gang laughed as he spoke, “No problem with explosives, Barretts are no problem either, but the delivery must be made abroad, like… Myanmar.”

“Myanmar…” Feng Jun stroked his chin, musing, “In that place, has anyone been equipped with Barretts?”

“Who knows?” Xu Lei Gang said nonchalantly, raising his eyebrows, “Maybe they come from Thailand, Thailand has Barretts.”

“Thailand?” Feng Jun glanced at him obliquely, asking thoughtfully, “Isn’t it said that Thailand’s black market guns all come from Myanmar? Are you getting it backwards?”

“I don’t know who told you that,” Xu Lei Gang frowned slightly and shook his head slowly, “Of course, the Thai military is better equipped than Myanmar, but you should also be aware of the corruption in the Thai military… Have you never heard of the Mekong River massacre?”

Feng Jun nodded thoughtfully, “So you’re saying, the Barretts you’re talking about might have come from the Thai military?”

“I can’t be sure of that, I just know they’re available,” Xu Lei Gang said with a smile, shaking his head, “A Barrett that can be acquired is a good Barrett, who cares where it came from?”

Feng Jun nodded, “Well said, prepare another hundred tons of explosives for me, with a thousand detonators.”

Xu Lei Gang might have been frightened by the quantity, his eyes widening as he hesitated before nodding, “Understood.”

Feng Jun glanced at him sideways, “How much? Give me a figure.”

With a spread of his hands and a wry smile, Xu Lei Gang spoke, “Master Feng, do you really think… this is a matter of money?”

Feng Jun actually had guesses in his mind already. Before this, Fatty Xu had been elusive even about getting a mortar, but now not only were Barretts available, there was no hesitation with the explosives as well—clearly, there was an explanation.

However, he wouldn’t easily reveal his stance, merely nodding slightly to signal the other party to go on, “Oh.”

Xu Lei Gang had expected the other party to ask at least one question so he could continue his explanation, but all he got was a casual “Oh”, an attitude of indifference.

A master truly is a master, capable of keeping such composure; it really is true that only those with strength have confidence.

However, while the master could wait, he couldn’t, so he had to cautiously ask, “Can this… be traded for Body Tempering Pills?”

I knew it would be this! Feng Jun sighed helplessly, “Continue.”

Xu Lei Gang had caused quite a stir on his trip to the Imperial Capital, but it wasn’t just because he had helped his second brother.

His two elder brothers and sister were all baffled by the changes in his body size.

His mother had been of advanced maternal age when giving birth to him, and he was the only one with inherent deficiencies among the five Xu siblings, making him the sole fat one.

His siblings were very familiar with his conspicuous body size; although Lei Gang didn’t develop his career in the Imperial Capital, he would take his family there to visit relatives during the holidays, and during Qingming Festival, people from the Imperial Capital would occasionally come to Funiu to tend to their ancestral graves.

Last Chinese New Year, Fatty Xu’s older sister-in-law had nagged him for several days, telling him to watch his diet—”If you don’t take care now, it’ll be too late to regret later.”

As the saying goes, an elder brother is like a father, and an elder sister-in-law like a mother. Faced with such admonishment, all he could do was nod in submission—and then… firmly refuse to change.

This time, when he went to the Imperial Capital, his sister-in-law was startled to find that the youngest brother had actually lost weight; although still overweight, there was a noticeable difference between 250 pounds and 220 pounds.

Faced with her question, Lei Gang had been unwilling to reveal his fortune and simply claimed he took his sister-in-law’s advice to heart—not only being careful with his diet but also sticking to exercise—”Looks good, doesn’t it?”

But some tall tales really can’t be sustained. He made this excuse offhandedly and then forgot all about it during his days in the Imperial Capital, where he ate and slept as usual.

He forgot, but his sister-in-law didn’t. After observing for a few days, she noticed that Lei Gang’s weight hadn’t changed and that he seemed especially energetic.

So, she suggested to her husband that they take the youngest brother to get a medical checkup, suspecting that there might be an issue with his health.

The eldest brother called Lei Gang over and said as much, emphasizing, “Your sister-in-law is very concerned about your health. Our mother is no longer with us, and we can’t just stand by if you have a problem.”

Lei Gang was moved. His brother and sister-in-law had always treated him well, and now that he had helped his second brother raise money, which had been well received, they were even kinder to him and more willing to show concern for his well-being.

So, after much hesitation, he told his elder brother, “I have encountered a benefactor who gave me a pill that cleared my meridians, that’s why I’ve lost weight and my health has improved. I won’t gain much weight back in the future.”

His elder brother nodded and said nothing more, but then at noon that very day, the elder brother and sister-in-law brought two strong young men to him, “Little brother, let’s still go for a checkup, let’s go to Anding Hospital…”