sbdcsierra Chapter 523 Getting Serious
Chapter 523 Getting Serious
As soon as Han Xi finished speaking, the air in the restaurant seemed to freeze.
The breathing of Han Shuo and his group was trembling.
Some people even secretly touched their phones in their pockets, wanting to contact Han Shuo, but as soon as their fingertips touched the cold metal casing, they were stopped by a look from the person next to them.
Everyone knows that contacting people back home at this time would be like pushing their family into a fire pit.
Although they've all been with Mamba over the years, they've heard plenty of rumors about Han Xi.
At such a young age, being able to take the Han family from his father and uncles clearly indicates that he is not a simple character.
Rumors circulate that he is ruthless and that anyone who dares to provoke him will eventually disappear without a trace. Some people may not believe it, but his fellow Mamba members dare not disbelieve it.
Every year, a few people mysteriously appear in the mining area.
They all saw it.
They followed Han Shuo out to make their way in the world precisely because Mamba was a place far from the central government's reach, allowing them to escape the complexities of life back home.
But now I understand that once the roots are planted there, there will always be a weakness that others can exploit.
Han Xi's headquarters are in the capital.
As long as their family members are in the country, they will never be able to avoid him.
Everyone harbored their own ulterior motives and pondered their own plans.
Han Xi's leather shoes rolled over a small piece of broken glass on the floor, making a piercing sound.
He swept his gaze across the group's pale faces, a cold smile playing on his lips: "What, do you want me to read out the address of our domestic branch so you can remember where your family lives?"
These words pierced his heart like an ice pick. The deputy manager in the front row, wearing a gold watch, almost collapsed to his knees.
Han Shuo's businesses in China are deeply entrenched, and the wives, children, parents, and in-laws of these people almost all live within that vast network.
If things really come to a head, Han Xi has plenty of ways to make every penny they earn at Mamba turn into a death sentence for their families.
"Young Master, there's no need... This matter really isn't something we can decide..."
Someone stammered a word of advice, but before they could finish speaking, Han Xi glared at them and froze them in place.
"It seems you don't want the opportunity I gave you."
Han Xi's voice was flat as he reached out and snatched the gun, still smelling of gunpowder, from Jiang Dong's hand.
The gun was heavy, gleaming coldly in the light of the restaurant's overhead lamp. As he raised his hand, the barrel was firmly pressed against the mine manager's temple.
The mine manager's bravado vanished instantly, cold sweat trickling down his forehead, leaving two white streaks on his blood-stained face.
His eyes were wide open as if they were about to burst, his Adam's apple bobbed up and down, and he wanted to shout "Don't be impulsive," but only managed to make a hoarse sound.
Someone nearby gasped, and the chair legs scraped against the floor with a screeching sound.
No one expected Han Xi to actually get serious here.
"You've already wasted ten minutes of my time."
"..."
"Last chance, where's the key?"
Han Xi's thumb gently rested on the trigger, his fingertip grinding against the cool metal trigger guard.
The mine manager's pupils suddenly contracted, his lips trembled, and his gaze drifted toward the ventilation vent in the corner of the restaurant.
That was the secret code he and Lao Zhang had agreed upon for hiding the key.
But the words caught in his throat as the gun barrel pressed against him. He saw the impatience in Han Xi's eyes, as if Han Xi were looking at him like he was a dead object, and he finally broke down completely.
"It's...it's with Old Zhang...it's really with him! I swear!"
Han Xi didn't say anything. With a flick of his wrist, he threw the pistol back to Jiang Dong with a "thud," the butt of the gun hitting Jiang Dong's palm with a dull thud.
He turned and sat back in his chair, crossed his long legs, and tapped his knees lightly with his fingertips. The rhythm was neither too fast nor too slow, but it felt like tapping on everyone's heartbeat.
The mine manager collapsed to the ground, his trouser legs soaked with cold sweat, his blood-stained hands gripping the hem of his trousers tightly.
Half a minute later, he shakily stood up, supporting himself on the table, and dragged his limping right leg out.
Every step felt like walking on a knife's edge; his trouser leg rubbed against his wound, causing him to grimace in pain, yet he dared not utter a sound.
Han Shuo's men kept their heads down, none of them daring to look at Han Xi. Only out of the corner of their eyes did they secretly glance at the second hand of the wall clock, which ticked away like a countdown.
The mine manager shakily got up from the ground and dragged his injured leg step by step toward the ventilation duct outside.
During this process, no one dared to move.
A few minutes later, the restaurant door was pushed open, and the mine manager practically stumbled in.
He was holding a palm-sized sandalwood box in his arms. The surface of the box was carved with lotus scrolls, and the clasp was made of brass. It looked quite old.
"Young Master, the key to the original stone warehouse is in the box, but the key to the box is really...really with Old Zhang, I'm not lying to you..."
When he handed the box over, his hands trembled so badly that the box hit the table in front of Han Xi with a soft "thud".
Han Xi glanced at it but didn't move.
At that moment, the restaurant door was kicked open again.
Jiang Bei pulled an old man in by the back of his collar. The old man was only wearing loose floral pajama pants, his upper body was bare, and his wrinkled belly swayed with his steps. He was also muttering to himself.
"Who is it... disturbing my drinking..."
The restaurant was eerily quiet; no one dared to speak.
The mine manager turned pale and kept giving him meaningful glances.
Before Old Zhang could finish speaking, he looked up and saw the mess on the ground, especially the blood on the mine manager's face and the guns in everyone's hands. Only then did he realize what had happened.
Old Zhang sobered up considerably in an instant. When his gaze fell on his leg, which was still bleeding from the mine, his legs went weak and he collapsed to the ground.
The waistband of his pants slipped down, revealing half of his loose underwear.
"What...what happened?"
"Old Zhang! The keys!"
The mine manager was so anxious that his voice cracked. He rushed over to kick him, but then hesitated because of Han Xi. He dragged his injured leg and stopped halfway through.
Seeing this situation, Old Zhang dared not ask any more questions.
He frantically rummaged in his pajama pockets, and after a while pulled out a copper key with a small gourd pendant hanging from the keychain.
He lay on the ground, trembling as he handed over the keys. When his fingertips touched Han Xi's hand, he flinched as if he had been electrocuted.
Han Xi took the key, inserted it into the lock, and turned it half a turn. With a soft "click," the box opened a crack.
He glanced at the contents, closed the box, stuffed it into his pocket, and as he stood up, the chair legs scraped against the floor with a screeching sound.
"The accounts for the mining area, the equipment, and the goods that haven't been transported away."
Without turning his head, he said to Jiang Dong, "Get things sorted out before dawn."
Jiang Dong nodded in agreement, his gaze sweeping over Han Shuo and his group, his eyes carrying a warning.
Han Xi glanced at Deng Xiulin, who hadn't said a word, and Deng Xiulin lazily lifted his eyelids and followed in his footsteps.
As the two walked out of the restaurant, the wind outside had stopped at some point, and the moon peeked out from behind the clouds, shining on the pebbles scattered on the ground like scattered silver.
Behind them in the restaurant, Han Shuo's men watched them disappear into the night. Finally, someone dared to breathe heavily, but no one dared to speak.
They all knew that from the moment Han Xi pulled the trigger, this mining area was no longer under Han Shuo's control.