Chapter 5: The Teahouse! Worth Over a Million!
Chapter 5: The Teahouse! Worth Over a Million!
Lu Feng casually grabbed a handful of gold jewelry and placed it on the electronic scale, handling it as if it were nothing more than the store’s fruit.
After a moment, the scale showed a total weight of 9 jin, 4 liang, and 2 grams—equivalent to 4,702 grams. With the current gold price at 420 yuan per gram, these gold pieces could fetch 1,777,356 yuan if sold to a jewelry store.
Even if the origin of the gold was unclear and there were no receipts, selling it to Chen Bo at 80% of the price would still yield 1,579,872 yuan.
Knowing his mother’s vascular disease, even if the condition was severe, spending 500,000 yuan on surgery would leave enough for subsequent treatment.
The money his cousin and Brother A Lin had previously pooled together could be repaid, but that debt of kindness would always be remembered.
Honestly, in today’s world, if something happens to you and your family is destitute—knowing full well you might not be able to repay anyone for a long time—and yet someone still manages to gather 200,000 yuan for you, that is a debt of gratitude to be cherished for a lifetime.
Try it yourself; borrow 10,000 yuan from a friend you consider very close and see if they lend it to you.
How many friendships have been broken over money lending?
As Lu Feng was lost in thought, his phone suddenly chimed with a message alert. He quickly checked it and saw a bank deposit notification:
“Your account number xxxxxxxx… has received an interbank transfer of 165,000.00 yuan. Current balance: 541,476.00 yuan!”
He was stunned. Suddenly, 165,000 yuan had been deposited into his bank card, making the balance more than enough to cover his mother’s surgery.
He immediately recalled his cousin mentioning at the hospital that he planned to sell his car. A BMW 3 Series could easily fetch that price.
His cousin acted so quickly—had he really sold the car already?
Just then, his phone rang. The caller ID showed it was his cousin, and he answered right away.
As soon as the call connected, Yang Ming’s voice came through: “Xiao Feng, I just transferred 165,000 yuan to your account. Use it to pay for Auntie’s surgery. We’ll figure out the rest of the treatment costs later.”
Hearing this, Lu Feng was silent for a long moment, overwhelmed with gratitude and at a loss for words.
After a while, he finally said into the phone, “Cousin, can you come to the fruit shop for a moment?”
“Sure, wait for me there,” Yang Ming replied before hanging up.
Lu Feng stepped out of the private room and waited outside the fruit shop.
Soon, Yang Ming stepped out of a taxi in front of the shop.
Seeing this, Lu Feng knew his cousin had truly sold the car, and he hurried forward to greet him, unable to hold back a big embrace.
Such a friendship from his cousin could not be repaid with words—only by keeping it close to his heart.
Fortunately, he now seemed capable of returning the favor.
Yang Ming appeared slightly embarrassed by the sudden hug and quickly pushed him away, complaining, “Two grown men hugging and cuddling—don’t you find it embarrassing?”
Lu Feng laughed and nodded, then said, “Cousin, come with me.”
Leading Yang Ming inside the fruit shop, they returned to the private room.
---
Yang Ming entered the room and immediately spotted the bag of gold on the bed, his face registering surprise. “Xiao Feng, you still have gold?”
Previously, he had thought his cousin’s discovery was just luck—finding a batch of gold from a tomb site. After all, following the exploits of that notorious leader, countless tombs in You City had been ransacked by many.
But it seemed that what Lu Feng had shown earlier was not all; he had kept some in reserve.
Still, Yang Ming felt relieved.
Once in society, it was crucial not to stake everything on one thing or trust anyone completely. At least his cousin understood this, which comforted him somewhat. Even if he got cheated in the future, it wouldn’t be a total disaster.
Lu Feng quickly said, “Cousin, I plan to sell this gold to Chen Bo again. That should cover Auntie’s surgery and follow-up treatment costs.”
Yang Ming nodded and asked, “How much gold is there?”
Lu Feng explained, “Weighed it already—9 jin, 4 liang, 2 grams. Chen Bo can pay over 1.58 million for it.”
Without further questions, Yang Ming pulled out his phone and dialed. Once connected, he said, “A Lin, you and A Pao bring some people over to my aunt’s fruit shop.”
Nearly 10 jin of gold was a huge sum, enough to stir greed, especially when selling to Chen Bo’s teahouse, where all kinds of dubious characters mingled.
It was wise to be cautious—better safe than sorry.
After hanging up, Yang Ming told Lu Feng to pack the travel bag, and the two left the fruit shop to wait outside.
Before long, three everyday sedans pulled up in front of the shop. Several men stepped out of each car and greeted Yang Ming warmly.
“Ming, what’s going on?”
“Yeah, who upset Ming?”
“…”
Some of these men also greeted Lu Feng.
“Xiao Feng!”
“Don’t pressure yourself too much. Auntie will be fine.”
“…”
Lu Feng nodded in response.
Most of these people he recognized. Because of his father’s reckless past, these men had often followed behind him when they first entered society, back when his father fancied himself impressive.
The most familiar, of course, were Brother A Lin and the scar-faced man, A Pao, whom his cousin had mentioned.
In the past, when Lu Feng was bullied at school by a self-proclaimed school tyrant, it was A Pao who scared the bully into tears—so much so that the bully would avoid him from then on.
“Come with me to Chen Bo’s teahouse,” Yang Ming said as the men arrived, then gestured for Lu Feng to get into a car.
The others followed suit, and they headed to Qingshui Street.
After parking, Yang Ming led Lu Feng back inside Chen Bo’s teahouse.
---
The teahouse’s main hall was still filled with people brewing tea, most of them tattooed and looking rough.
Not once had they seen any ordinary customers.
With such a crowd, normal patrons wouldn’t come, and the business was likely poor.
But for someone like Chen Bo, profit was not the primary goal. The teahouse existed to give his brothers a place to gather and brew tea.
His men would buy a box of tea leaves and bring friends from all walks of life to brew tea there, gradually forming an influential network and connections.
These people became accustomed to gathering here over tea, strengthening their bonds.
The teahouse owner naturally held the most sway within this circle.
So, whether the teahouse made money was irrelevant—breaking even was enough.
Usually, people from the same hometown gathered together, like Yang Ming, A Lin, and the others—all from the same township.
When younger fellows from the same place were bullied, they would come to these veterans for help, naturally trailing behind them.
Chen Bo and his crew were no different.
Chen Bo clearly had a better standing, likely because he had fewer scruples.
The most influential were reportedly from Xianlin Town, where three such teahouses existed, along with bars, KTVs, and nightclubs run by their people.
Yang Ming and his group, relying on loyalty alone, struggled more and had to rent an office where everyone brewed tea, losing ground in prestige.
When Yang Ming and his entourage entered, the teahouse regulars instinctively stood.
Two familiar men immediately stepped forward.
“Ming, got time to brew some tea?”
“Brother A Lin, Brother A Pao, long time no see.”
“…”
“Hmm!” Yang Ming nodded to both and instructed, “A Lin, A Pao, bring a box of tea and brew some with everyone.”
Hearing this, the two relaxed, knowing they weren’t there to cause trouble.
They joked, “Ming, you’re joking. Why would we need to buy tea to brew?”
“Yeah, we have tea leaves. Asking you to buy some makes it seem like we’re bad hosts.”
As they spoke, they led A Lin and A Pao to a tea table, followed by others.
Yang Ming then signaled Lu Feng to follow him upstairs to Chen Bo’s office.
(End of chapter)