Chapter 512: Poisoning in the Dead of Night

At 10 PM, in the hallway of a small inn, Zhang Kui leaned against a door, a cigarette dangling from his lips. From inside, there were screams, “Help! Rape!”

A passerby glanced over, but Zhang Kui glared menacingly, “What are you looking at? Want to die?”

The passerby quickened his steps, and Zhang Kui yelled at his retreating back, “I remember what you look like. Report this, and you’re dead.”

The passerby waved nervously as he descended the stairs, “I won’t, I won’t!”

Zhang Kui exhaled a puff of smoke and knocked on the door, “Dad, keep it down. They can hear you outside.”

“Don’t bother me!” a voice roared from inside.

Zhang Farong was inside, struggling to undress the girl. He was sweating profusely, frustrated by the new style of bra. The girl continued to struggle, and he snapped, “Stop screaming. If people find out about this, you’ll be too ashamed to face anyone!”

The girl’s face was pale with fear. Finally, Zhang Farong managed to unfasten the bra. Seeing her exposed, he felt a surge of excitement and started fumbling with his “tool,” but age had taken its toll, and he couldn’t get ready.

He regretted not buying a blue pill beforehand, cursing his own misjudgment.

Just then, a loud bang from outside startled him. Three large men burst in, dragging a beaten Zhang Kui, who was barely conscious.

The leader glared, “Broad daylight, and you’re raping my wife, you old scumbag? Get off the bed!”

Zhang Farong looked at the crying girl on the bed and the men who had stormed in. He quickly realized it was a setup. He had been too easily lured into this trap.

Feeling vulnerable without clothes, he stammered, “Misunderstanding, misunderstanding, sir. She didn’t say anything!”

“What do you think we should do, settle this legally or privately?”

Glancing at his son, Zhang Farong gritted his teeth, “Don’t pull that crap with me. My son and I are also from the streets. You think you can scare us with threats of calling the police? Neither of us have jobs. Go ahead and report it. We’ll be out in a couple of days. I know you won’t dare call the police.”

“Haha!” the leader laughed. “So you understand, then. No need for pretense. How about I break your leg here and now? Think you can report that?”

Zhang Farong felt deeply humiliated. He ripped off his remaining piece of clothing, revealing a dragon tattoo on his chest. The once fierce dragon now looked saggy and deformed with age.

He pounded his chest, “You think you can intimidate me? Go find out who Zhang Farong from the South Gate Market used to be. You dare to extort me?”

“Fine, you want to play tough?” the leader gestured. Within a minute, Zhang Farong and his son were on their knees, beaten and bruised. The leader kept slapping Zhang Farong’s face, “Still feel tough, old man?”

“No, no more,” Zhang Farong mumbled.

“Break a leg or pay up. Choose!”

The father and son exchanged swollen looks and began handing over money. Zhang Farong offered a bank card, “The password is XXX. There’s 200,000 in it. I know the market rate. That should be enough.”

The thugs had a portable POS machine. After a quick swipe, the leader slapped Zhang Farong again, “You think I’m stupid? There’s only 3,000 in here.”

Zhang Farong clasped his hands together, begging, “That’s all we have. Really.”

“Anything valuable on you?”

After rummaging around, the son handed over a thick gold chain. The leader’s eyes lit up, but when he bit into it, the gold paint flaked off, revealing the iron underneath. Furious, he whipped Zhang Kui across the face with the fake chain, leaving a bloody mark, “You dare trick me?”

Zhang Kui shielded himself, crying for mercy.

“Figures. If you weren’t so poor, you wouldn’t be doing this. Hand over your IDs.”

Zhang Farong, feeling resigned, pulled out his ID, while Zhang Kui shook his head desperately, “Dad, don’t!”

The leader used the ID to process something on his phone, then smiled, “Alright, you’ll pay this back in your own time.”

“Pay back what?” Zhang Farong asked, confused.

Zhang Kui said miserably, “He took a small loan in your name.”

“A loan? You can borrow money with just a few clicks on a phone now?” Zhang Farong was still in disbelief.

“How much? Which company?” Zhang Kui asked.

The leader showed him the amount. Seeing the 200,000 figure, Zhang Kui nearly fainted.

Having secured the money, the thugs packed up to leave. Before going, the leader threw Zhang Farong’s underwear at him, “Take care of yourself, old man. Don’t disgrace yourself.”

Once they were gone, Zhang Kui slumped to the floor, “Dad, 200,000! If we don’t pay it back immediately, the interest will skyrocket!”

Zhang Farong’s lips trembled. He started beating Zhang Kui, “You useless piece of crap… can’t handle anything… fooled so easily… should have shot you against the wall!”

Zhang Kui, enraged, shoved Zhang Farong, “You’re the one who wanted to mess with a woman without paying! Now you’re satisfied? That loan is in your name. I won’t deal with it!”

He stood up, “Where are you going?” Zhang Farong asked.

“None of your business!” Zhang Kui stormed out.

Zhang Farong left the inn, the light rain mirroring his mood. Somewhere, a Peking opera played, making him feel like a defeated hero.

He walked aimlessly until he found himself at his nephew’s shop, a place deeply embedded in his childhood memories.

Seeing the familiar two-story building, his anger flared again. Everyone was taking advantage of his old age. He used his last bit of money to buy some supplies and returned at night.

With the streets deserted, he wrapped a brick in a handkerchief and broke the shop window. Clearing the shards, he climbed inside clumsily.

Upstairs, his nephew’s family was fast asleep. In the dim light, Zhang Farong moved around the shop. He found several trays of prepared meat in the fridge.

He sprinkled some powder into the meat, mixing it in to make it less noticeable, a satisfied grin on his face.

“Let’s see how you run this shop now!”

Before leaving, he cleaned up the scene, planning to fix the window later and dispose of the shards.

Crouching to pick up the pieces, he cut his hand and quickly sucked the blood.

A thunderstorm masked the sound of someone descending the stairs. The person saw Zhang Farong crouching and, enraged, picked up a kitchen knife.

A flash of lightning cast their shadow on the wall. Zhang Farong looked up in shock…