Chapter 50: The Painted Garment Gang

The Suzuki RG500, especially the red edition, was an exceptionally rare machine. Having made a brilliant appearance in the movie *A Moment of Romance*, it was the dream bike of countless young people.

In his past life, after his legs were broken, Xiao Ziguang became a lackey for the Xue family. While doing their dirty work, he accumulated a vast fortune, and by a twist of fate, he once came to own one. Back then, however, Xiao Ziguang could only touch it, never ride it—a lifelong regret.

To actually lay eyes on a Suzuki RG500 again was surreal. If the rider holding a gun hadn't been sitting on it, Xiao Ziguang would have jumped on and taken it for a spin right then and there!

He shook his head to clear away these wandering thoughts. Before his eyes could fully adjust to the sudden darkness, Xiao Ziguang felt Qian Hao struggling violently beside him. Deliberately, Xiao Ziguang pulled Qian Hao in front of him and pressed the scorching barrel of his gun against Qian Hao's skin.

*Sizzle!* The barrel, having just been fired, was searingly hot like a branding iron, making Qian Hao shriek in agony.

*Bang! Bang!* Two consecutive gunshots rang out, and Qian Hao immediately let out a cry of pain.

When human eyes are robbed of sight in total darkness, other senses become heightened. Especially during life-or-death struggles when adrenaline surges, hearing a sound from a certain direction invariably triggers an instinctive reflex to shoot toward it.

As Qian Hao was hit, Xiao Ziguang also pulled the trigger toward the spot where the muzzle flash had just bloomed.

*Bang! Bang!* Two more shots echoed. One sounded like it struck metal, while the other made a dull *thud*, drawing a muffled groan from the person opposite.

*Vroom! Boom!*

An engine roared to life. A yellow van smashed directly through the bamboo walls, and its dim headlights cut through the darkness. Spotting the red Suzuki RG500 once more, Xiao Ziguang immediately squeezed the trigger at the figure on the bike.

*Bang! Bang! Bang!* A hit!

Xiao Ziguang could tell that two out of the three shots had connected, yet the rider merely staggered before managing to keep the bike moving. Was he made of steel and iron?

Seeing the target about to escape, Zhou Huajian aboard the van raised his modified square-barreled shotgun and pulled the trigger without hesitation.

*Boom!* With a thunderous roar resembling detonating dynamite, the square barrel spat tongues of fire, sending a hundred steel pellets spraying toward the rider and the motorcycle.

The fleeing rider was instantly blasted off the bike and onto the ground. The motorcycle was riddled with craters, some of its plastic fairings shattered, fuel leaking steadily from the punctured gas tank, and both tires instantly blown out.

A flash of elation crossed Xiao Ziguang's eyes as he lunged toward the fallen figure, intending to take a prisoner alive, when the roar of more motorcycles suddenly echoed.

The bamboo partition wall was smashed open once again. Two riders on Suzuki GS125 motorcycles burst through, hurling strings of firecrackers in all directions!

Flames erupted and smoke filled the air, making it impossible to tell whether the chaos came from firecrackers or gunfire. Everyone hit the dirt!

Even Xiao Ziguang was forced to shrink back, pinning Qian Hao down as he waited for the right moment.

When the firecracker noise finally died down, Zhou Huajian leaped from the van, only to find that the ground held only a damaged motorcycle—the rider had long since vanished!

Qian Hao had taken a bullet to the chest. His breathing grew increasingly faint, and his eyes began to roll back.

Xiao Ziguang circled the Suzuki RG500 twice before pulling out a lighter to inspect the ground. "There's blood here! That bastard was hit!"

After a moment of contemplation, Zhou Huajian figured it out. "The guy was wearing body armor on his upper body, but nothing below. He took the steel pellets in the lower half!"

Realizing this as well, Xiao Ziguang took out his phone. "Team Leader Luan, we need a crime scene investigation. There's been a shootout at the Old Factory Street billiard hall. Qian Hao has been shot, and the gunman was hit by Qian Hao's shotgun. We need a citywide manhunt."

After hanging up, Xiao Ziguang felt two pairs of eyes fixed on him. He looked up to find Pheasant and Ho Nam staring at him.

Pheasant looked utterly bewildered. "Didn't you say you weren't a cop?"

Ignoring him, Xiao Ziguang used a rag to wipe the fingerprints off the square-barreled shotgun before forcefully jamming the weapon into Qian Hao's hands.

Qian Hao, whose life was slipping away faster than it entered, desperately wanted to cast the gun aside, but he had already lost control of his body. With a final surge of bitter resentment, he drew his last breath.

Ho Nam's question was much simpler. "Why call the police?"

Xiao Ziguang's methods did not befit a policeman. After all, no ordinary cop would wield a heavy-caliber handgun or a homemade shotgun, let alone frame a dying man right after shooting him!

Yet, Xiao Ziguang's actions were equally uncharacteristic of a street gangster. Anyone in the underworld who suffered such a heavy blow would use underworld methods to save face, rather than calling the police for help like Xiao Ziguang had just done.

Facing Ho Nam's inquiry, Xiao Ziguang shrugged with utter disdain. "You got the money. Keep your mouths shut. Some things are better buried in your graves, lest you end up dead without a whole body."

A light flickered in Pheasant's eyes as sudden realization dawned upon him. "I know who you are! You're from the Floral Shirt Gang! You're an undercover cop sent into the police force by the Floral Shirt Gang!"

A decade ago, the largest gang in Tianhai City was the Floral Shirt Gang. Its high-ranking members loved wearing floral print shirts, and because their leader's surname was Hua, he was respectfully addressed as Boss Hua.

Ho Nam had also heard the legends of the Floral Shirt Gang. At the height of its power, the gang would recruit underlings from every high school, send them to police academy, and then help secure their assignments back in Tianhai City upon graduation.

Back then, out of every one hundred people in Tianhai City's public security, procuratorate, and judiciary systems, five were undercover members of the Floral Shirt Gang. One could say that within Tianhai City's law enforcement apparatus, the Floral Shirt Gang held absolute sway. By nightfall, every entertainment venue in Tianhai City answered to them.

It wasn't until Boss Hua provoked someone he shouldn't have that he was swiftly and severely dealt with, dragged to the execution grounds, and put before a firing squad. Only then did the monolithic Floral Shirt Gang collapse, plunging Tianhai City into a new era of warring states.

It all fit. Everything made complete sense now!

Why did Xiao Ziguang act like a mobster yet call the police when things went south? Wasn't this classic Floral Shirt Gang behavior?

Ho Nam's breathing grew heavy, and a golden light glittered in Pheasant's eyes. Wasn't the Xiao Ziguang before them the legendary boss they had been desperately searching for, the one who could lead them to wealth and glory?

Ho Nam and Pheasant dropped straight to their knees, speaking in unison, "Boss, we want to follow you."

Xiao Ziguang had not expected Tianhai City's two most loyal yet gullible fools to pledge allegiance to him. Out of sheer habit, he refused. "Aren't you two minors? You're not even eighteen yet; this is the age when you should be studying hard..."

Pheasant spoke up first. "Boss, I'm just not cut out for studying. I even tried taking the police academy exam, but I honestly couldn't pass."

Ho Nam was rather cleverer. "Boss, my grades aren't great, but I know people who get top grades. Just let me follow you, and I'll make sure they all take the police exam so they can come work under you too!"

*Damn it!* Xiao Ziguang felt the hairs on his body stand on end. Were these two trying to speedrun their own deaths?

"Stop right there. I can take you in, but let's get one thing straight first. The old ways of the Floral Shirt Gang are outdated. If any of you dare to mess with students at school, don't blame me for cleaning house myself."

"From now on, we aren't gangsters; we run a trading company. Everyone keeps their hands clean and plays it straight..."

Pheasant and Ho Nam exchanged glances, knowing smiles curving the corners of their mouths.

Xiao Ziguang sighed helplessly. From their expressions, it was obvious they had completely misunderstood his meaning, though fortunately, there was still time to steer them right. "Since you want to follow me, I'll lay down the rules first: no going near schools, no bullying minors, and absolutely no recruiting kids as foot soldiers!"

Seeing how serious Xiao Ziguang was, Pheasant and Ho Nam nodded to indicate they had memorized every word.

"Now, go dig up the guy who got away. I want to see him alive, or his body if he's dead!" With that, Xiao Ziguang reached out and gently closed Qian Hao's unblinking eyes.

Underworld rules dictated that the strong preyed upon the weak. It wasn't that Xiao Ziguang was cruel; rather, he was simply playing by the rules of natural selection—finding the person who deserved to be eliminated and thoroughly weeding them out.