CHAPTER 35: 35. THE STRUGGLE FOR POWER (NEW BOOK SEEKING READERS AND FAVORITES)

His previous actions have probably reached many people’s ears.

There are rumors in the streets that his status as a pretty boy might not be secure.

Obviously, these people’s information isn’t very clear.

Chen Che quickly organized his thoughts in his mind.

Xu Ziang, An Nishang, the banquet, the Military Department, pursuit...

These things drew a picture together.

It formed a complex web in his mind.

A simple romance between a man and a woman, mutual carnal desires, this Xu Ziang appearing out of nowhere, stunned by An Nishang at first sight, sounds quite normal, right?

After all, everyone loves a beautiful woman.

But, if it’s between power and politics.

This contains too many variables.

After a brief silence of a few seconds, Chen Che reviewed all the known information.

No wonder Wood dared to meddle in his business.

Estimates say the street rumors made everyone believe he was losing favor.

And with the sudden appearance of Xu Ziang.

How long can he, this pretty boy, keep his position?

Without An Nishang’s protection, Chen Che is just an insect ready to be crushed at any time.

So, they couldn’t wait to make a move on him.

But, an information gap can lead to irreversible consequences.

These guys simply know too little.

Chen Che sat back on the sofa, tapping his fingers on it, and calmly replied, "I’ll send someone to help you."

After saying this, Chen Che hung up the communication.

His expression turned somewhat heavy.

Up to now, An Nishang’s killing intent towards him wasn’t high, showing that An Nishang was gradually favoring him again.

The sudden situation left Chen Che somewhat uncertain.

He was about eighty percent sure that An Nishang and Xu Ziang attending the banquet as partners was because of certain political reasons.

He’s likely not interested in Xu Ziang.

But, better be safe than sorry.

However, for now, he’s still An Nishang’s man, and this matter needs to be dealt with, as Wood’s backing is Bode.

If he allows Bode’s people to disgrace him, it’ll be a blemish on An Nishang’s reputation.

No matter what, he needs to deal with this issue first.

If he really backs down in this matter, it will truly confirm Wood’s claims.

Chen Che made a call.

"Master Chen, what are your orders?" Bobby’s voice came from the other end of the line.

Chen Che calmly said, "The Sixth District is my business, there’s a captain named Wood under the Fifth Brigade of the Security Team, who’s gone to collect my protection fee, and my people are in a standoff with him now. Go and resolve this."

Bobby, seeking a new patron, knew he couldn’t rely on Chen Che without showing his worth.

Bobby, despite sometimes not being quick-witted,

was very clear on interpersonal relationships.

Hearing the name Wood, his mind quickly made the connection.

Wood? His father is a close confidant of Bode, and Bode is Director An’s archenemy... Bobby instantly understood Chen Che’s intention.

This is a clash between the subordinates of two big shots.

Faced with provocations from the opposite side, if Chen Che’s side shows weakness, it’ll be a loss of face for An Nishang.

Bobby also knew this was an opportunity to demonstrate his ability and loyalty to Chen Che.

Ever since Moore’s downfall, many had been openly and covertly targeting him.

Fortunately, Bobby quickly allied with Chen Che, leveraging his name to secure his current position.

No one dared to make things too difficult for him.

"Master Chen, don’t worry, I’ll head over immediately," Bobby said without hesitation.

The call ended.

Chen Che leaned back against the sofa, deep in thought.

He was pondering the relationship between him, An Nishang, and that so-called Xu Ziang.

As for the Sixth District, having Bobby there was sufficient.

Bobby, both in position and authority, surpassed Wood.

If Bobby couldn’t handle Wood, then there would be no reason for Chen Che to keep him.

Thus, he had time to contemplate the deeper entanglements of interests involved.

...

Sixth District.

Chen Che’s trusted aides, including Xiong Da and Monkey, were under immense pressure, confronting a few people up ahead.

In front of them stood a short man, only about five-foot-three, named Wood, a squad captain under the Fifth Brigade of the Security Team.

The Security Team consists of five brigades, each brigade has ten squads, and each squad is divided into ten patrol teams.

Additionally, there is a general reserve force.

They had strong forces.

Xiong Da was just a patrol team leader, but Wood was a squad captain.

Though they didn’t belong to the same brigade,

Wood’s rank was higher than Xiong Da’s.

Besides the confrontation between the two groups, between them were the owners of various shops in the Sixth District.

These shopkeepers, wanting to conduct business smoothly, have to pay a protection fee.

Previously, this district was under Chen Che’s protection, and they only needed to pay him the protection fee which Xiong Da and his people came to collect every month.

This was one of Chen Che’s largest sources of funds.

Today was the day to collect the protection fee, and as usual, Xiong Da and his team came to collect money. But this time, the usually prompt-paying shopkeepers hesitated and stammered.

Xiong Da was puzzled why these people suddenly had the audacity to delay the protection fee.

It wasn’t until Wood’s arrival that Xiong Da understood why.

Wood had preemptively informed all the shopkeepers that henceforth, he would be collecting the protection fee for the Sixth District.

For these shop owners, paying the protection fee was inevitable regardless of who they paid it to.

But they couldn’t be treated like crops to be harvested repeatedly.

One collects, and then another comes along.

Even if they had money, they couldn’t afford to keep spending like this.

Thus, the shopkeepers who initially paid taxes to Chen Che could only politely tell Xiong Da that they would first work things out with Wood.

Wood, from the start, placed enormous pressure on Xiong Da.

"Even a small patrol team leader dares not salute me? How dare you be so arrogant! Since when did the Security Team dare to disrespect superiors?"

"According to Security Team rules, not saluting a superior could justify killing you in the street without consequence."

Faced with Wood’s threats, Xiong Da couldn’t argue well verbally and could only bring out his boss.

"Wood! This is my boss’s territory. My boss is backed by Director An. We’re all following the rules. Are you trying to break them?"

"Do you even dare to mention your pretty boy boss? Let me tell you, your pretty boy of a boss will soon be kicked out by An Nishang. Without her, he’s nothing but a loser..."

Wood smugly revealed what he knew, and when the other shop owners heard it, they shivered.

If Chen Che no longer had An Nishang’s backing, what would he be worth?

They might as well pay the protection fee to Wood and avoid paying it twice for nothing.

Seeing the shop owners falter, Xiong Da was desperate.

He had to call Chen Che, and after the call, felt slightly at ease, pointing to the shop owners, "What do you mean by this? Are you planning to side with him? Regardless of whether what he says is true or not, hasn’t my boss treated you well? Others charge exorbitantly high protection fees, but my boss charges at least 20-30% less!"

Under Xiong Da’s reprimand, the shopkeepers were again indecisive.

Wood disregarded this and returned the pressure on Xiong Da, sneering, "Xiong Da, captain of the Fifth Patrol Team of the Fourth Squad of the Third Brigade, I order you, as the captain of the Sixth Squad of the Fifth Brigade, to take all your subordinates and patrol Ant Street with my men."

Xiong Da’s face turned pale.

This guy intended to have them eliminated.