Landlord in the Arctic

Chapter 417: Chapter 305: Purpose (Part 2)

"That’s unfortunate. In my opinion, Texas is better. It might be a bit dry, but that makes it convenient for burying people. It only takes a week to dry out a body. Douse it in gasoline, light it up, and no one will ever know who the person was."

Bao Wen grabbed the meat cleaver and slammed it into the table. The blade dug deep into the wood, making the atmosphere even more tense.

He then picked up his beer, tilted his head back, and took a big gulp. With a fierce glint in his eyes, he stared straight at Feng Shan, his meaning clear.

’Don’t push your luck. Texas isn’t a place where you can run wild.’

At this point, the air was already thick with the scent of gunpowder.

’Since they’re after money, I might as well be direct and see what they really want.’

Feng Shan shook his head slightly, his expression still as calm as ever. He slowly began to speak, "We’ve eaten the barbecue, we’ve drunk the beer. Let’s stop beating around the bush and get down to business. Fiona’s custody—how much money do we need to pay for Ms. Valerie to let it go?"

"NONONO!!"

Bao Wen immediately raised a finger and wagged it, an angry expression on his face.

"Fiona is a lovely angel. How can you put a price on her? That’s immoral. I also think Fiona would be happier with Yves. Valerie really isn’t fit to be a mother. She has many flaws—she does drugs, drinks too much, gambles, and is a little too... ’generous with her love.’ Even I can barely stand her."

"Bao Wen, how could you..." Hearing Bao Wen say that about her, Valerie became angry. ’Everything I did was to please you,’ she thought.

And so, Valerie started to step out from the side, wanting to confront him.

But after just a few steps, she saw Bao Wen turn to look at her. His eyes were ice-cold, carrying a chill that felt like a blast of cold air from an air conditioner, piercing her straight to the heart.

Valerie was all too familiar with that look. It was the look Bao Wen got only when he was about to kill someone.

It was with that same look in his eyes that Black Eye had gotten his throat slit, collapsing on a desolate stretch of desert.

That’s right. Everyone in Baird Town thought that after Yves had crippled Black Eye, Bao Wen had betrayed him and personally sent him to prison.

But only Valerie knew the truth.

After Yves injured Black Eye, Bao Wen had driven with her to take Black Eye to the hospital in Clyde City for treatment.

But who would have thought that halfway there, Bao Wen would suddenly change direction and drive the car out into the desert.

It was night, and the moon was bright—so bright it was almost blinding.

With the meat cleaver in hand, Bao Wen expressionlessly slit Black Eye’s throat and, while Black Eye stared in disbelief, forcibly took her.

After that, Bao Wen naturally became the new boss of the Baird Town gang.

And she became his woman. All this time, he had possessed her. She wanted to resist but didn’t dare, so she could only let him do as he pleased.

Seeing Bao Wen with that bone-chilling look in his eyes again, Valerie’s heart skipped a beat, and she understood instantly.

’He’s going to kill Feng.’

’All that talk about Fiona, custody, and notifying the Sheriff—it was all a lie to trick me. His real target is Feng, the rich bastard who flew in on a private jet.’

Bao Wen seemed to realize that Valerie had guessed his plan, but he didn’t care at all. Instead, he grinned, his smile exceptionally sinister, enough to make one’s hair stand on end.

"Honey, go get Mr. Feng’s friends out of the car. Have them join us for some barbecue."

"O... okay!" Valerie felt a chill run through her, as if she were in a freezer. Not daring to disobey Bao Wen’s command, she immediately turned and walked toward the SUV.

She was so terrified that halfway there, her steps faltered, and she almost lost her balance and fell.

Valerie struggled to steady herself and forced herself to keep walking toward the SUV.

Then, Bao Wen turned back to Feng Shan, who was still sitting in his chair drinking beer, a smirk on his face.

"Mr. Feng, you don’t seem scared at all. It would have been so much better if you’d just agreed to the 5 million US Dollar demand. We could be having a friendly chat and eating barbecue."

"It’s not too late. Your barbecuing skills are really good. It’s just 5 million. If you need it, I can give it to you right now. Do you take cashier’s checks?"

But Feng Shan, as if he hadn’t caught the deeper meaning in Bao Wen’s words, still looked intrigued. He set down his beer bottle, leaned back in his chair, and waited for Bao Wen’s answer.

’5 million US dollars.’

’I just threw that number out casually back then.’

’And now, it could be mine so easily.’

But what Bao Wen was thinking about right now wasn’t a mere 5 million, but more. He wanted to squeeze countless riches from Feng Shan.

Thinking of this, he suppressed his excitement and forcefully threw the beer bottle in his hand into the distance.

The beer bottle traced an arc through the air and landed with a CLANG on the gravelly ground.

Immediately after, he swiftly drew a pistol from his waist.

He aimed at the bottle on the ground and, without hesitation, pulled the trigger. BANG! BANG! BANG!

For a moment, the gunshots echoed across the open space.

The beer bottle, lying not far away, instantly shattered into countless fragments of glass that glinted coldly in the sunlight as they scattered everywhere.

Afterward, as if he had just accomplished something incredibly satisfying, Bao Wen turned around smugly.

He looked at Feng Shan, who was still sitting in his chair.

A slightly neurotic smile spread across his face, revealing a mix of madness and greed.

"Sir, you know, in this dazzling land of Texas, there are two kinds of people you don’t mess with. The first is the local drug lords. The second is the heads of the oil companies."

"And I, Bao Wen of the Zorro Gang, happen to be the first kind. I own the entire market in Callahan County. And 400 kilometers away is the Mexico border. Do you know what that means?"

"What does it mean?" Feng Shan remained perfectly calm. Not only did he show no fear, but he also wore a look of keen interest, as if listening to an amusing story.

"It means... I own all of you." Bao Wen’s lips curled up slightly, his eyes filled with the smugness of certain victory. "What’s 5 million? That’s just a small sum. I believe you can give much more. Once I take you across the border into Mexico, not even the FBI can do anything to me. Then, you’ll have no choice but to obey me, hahaha..."

Bao Wen laughed arrogantly.

His laughter sounded particularly jarring on the side of the empty highway, as if he was already certain that Feng Shan could not escape his grasp.

"So that’s your plan. It’s very cliché, like one of Roland’s trashy movies." Feng Shan’s face was full of contempt. He then turned to Nash, a hint of resignation in his voice, "Did Roland tell you to find backup?"

"There just happened to be some Indian brothers herding nearby. Jeff gave me their number and said to call for help if we ran into trouble."

Nash nodded seriously, his eyes warily watching the Zorro Gang members as he spoke.

"Jeff is such a meddler. I wanted to play for a while longer. This is no fun."

Feng Shan shrugged, a look of disappointment on his face.

He had been thinking of using a little Witchcraft to open the eyes of these Texan hillbillies and show them something truly powerful.

But now that Nash had stepped in and found backup, he had no choice but to give up on that idea.

Feng Shan got up, picked up the bloody beef from the plate, walked over to the grill, and put the beef back on it, grilling it seriously.

Bao Wen stood to the side, watching Feng Shan’s actions, feeling more and more that something was wrong.

’I’ve already explained my plan to kidnap him and take him to Mexico so clearly.’

’How can this guy still have no reaction at all?’

’What did that Indian, Nash, the one with the tattooed face, just say?’

’Herding Indian brothers.’

’Have they already called for backup?’

The more Bao Wen thought about it, the more uneasy he became, and his gaze grew even more vicious.

At this thought, he turned without hesitation and quickly raised his arm to his men, making a specific gesture.

Instantly, all the members of the Zorro Gang understood.

They all drew their weapons.

In an instant, the atmosphere at the scene became extremely tense.

...