The Path of the Martial Arts BOSS
Chapter 175 - 166: The Dock in the Early Morning

Chapter 175: Chapter 166: The Dock in the Early Morning

The sky had just begun to brighten, and the great sun was rising as the entirety of Linchuan Prefecture slowly awoke from the quiet.

However, at one corner of Linchuan Prefecture, everything had been bustling since before dawn. On the docks, strong men were continuously moving back and forth, carrying cargo that had just arrived at dawn to be loaded.

Lian San placed down the fifth heavy crate he had moved that day, stacking it in a corner of the warehouse. He then stood up to stretch his limbs and said to another man who had just set down a wooden box,"Hai Zi, tell me, why has there been so much cargo recently? It’s been several days now; the goods ship arrives at the dock before dawn. By the end of the day, I’m too exhausted to even have the energy to go home."

The man called Hai Zi also stretched his somewhat sore shoulders and teased him,"What, does your sister-in-law complain that you’re too tired?"

"Get out of here," Lian San retorted, pretending to kick him, but Hai Zi dodged with a laugh.

"My body is still strong. I’m not just talking about that one woman at home—if there were ten more, I could fight through the night and leave them unable to leave the bed," Lian San boasted loudly, smacking his chest with thundering pops.

"Really now? Who was sneaking around yesterday buying Dragon Essence Tiger Vigor Pills at Songren Pharmacy?" Hai Zi teased further.

"That’s... that’s..." Lian San’s face turned red, and he stammered without finishing his sentence,"It’s just that I’ve been earning more recently, had some extra cash, and thought to try those aphrodisiacs those rich merchants like—it’s not that I lack the energy..."

Seeing Lian San looking embarrassed like an honest man, Hai Zi chuckled without further teasing. As he moved his shoulders around and walked on, he said,"Brother San, you know we’ve been making extra money recently because of all this cargo. Work harder, earn more. My childhood friend, a true member of the Cao Gang and not like us doing grueling labor, told me that a major trading company from the East Sea wants to set up here in Linchuan Prefecture. Loads of cargo are coming, one after the other. Look, these profitable days won’t be short. Soon, they might even hire more hands to work. Our days of doubling our efforts are..."

"What’s wrong?" Lian San saw Hai Zi suddenly stop talking, briskly walked a few steps to catch up to him, and looked in the direction of Hai Zi’s fixed gaze toward the outside of the warehouse.

He saw groups of men dressed in black clothing, with steel sabres at their waists, surrounding the entire dock. The workers were being pushed by these newcomers toward the center where the cargo was stacked.

"It’s growing," Hai Zi uttered these final words and was also hurried by the arriving black-clad constables toward the rest of the workers.

"Wait."

From a nearby house where the managers usually stayed during nights guarding the docks, a man who looked like a scholar emerged. Behind him, Butler Lin, who usually carried himself with his nose in the air and never showed a good expression to the workers, was now bowing low, looking every part the obsequious lackey.

It was Feng Duozhu. Hai Zi, mouth opening and closing silently, formed the name with his lips for Lian San. He recognized this significant figure, once having caught a glimpse of him from a distance when his childhood friend had taken him there.

Yet, what puzzled Hai Zi was why such a significant figure would show up at the docks, as usually only the managers handled things there. Moreover, Hai Zi had been moving cargo since early that morning and didn’t see anyone entering or leaving that house all day; it was possible that Feng Duozhu had been there since before them, possibly even having spent the night there.

"Brothers of Six Gates," Feng Yixian approached the workers, bowed, and said,"I’m not sure what misunderstanding has brought you all here so early to stir up trouble in my area. I urgently need to unload this cargo, as three more cargo ships will soon arrive, and we really can’t wait."

"Feng has some acquaintances among the Six Gates arrest officers, Mr. Lin Tengyuan in Linchuan Prefecture. How about letting my workers continue unloading now, and I’ll personally go and clarify this misunderstanding with Mr. Lin later."

Feng Yixian’s speech seemed exceedingly polite, even addressing the constables as ’brothers’, but his words carried an unmistakable air of authority. He firstly characterized the situation as a mere misunderstanding; then, he brought up his connections with Lin Tengyuan, suggesting the constables just stand down.

However, after hearing Feng Yixian’s speech, the black-clad constables remained silent, hands on their sabres, coldly observing Feng Yixian and the workers behind him. They were neither angered by Feng Yixian’s authoritative tone nor moved by the mentioned connections with local Six Gates leadership.

Seeing the constables remain unresponsive, Feng Yixian furrowed his brows in irritation, though he was always deep, and kept his anger from showing on his face as he prepared to continue speaking.

"There is no misunderstanding."

Clear words came from not afar as Feng Yixian saw two handsome young men, one dressed in black and the other in white, accompanied by a black-clad constable, walking leisurely into the harbor.

As they approached, the young man in white examined Feng Yixian from head to toe and said with a smile,"You’re Feng Duozhu, right?"

As the other party smiled, Feng Yixian also maintained his own smile, bowing and responding,"That’s indeed I."

Despite this, his heart gradually sank; Feng Yixian had never seen these two young men before, certain they weren’t locals from Linchuan Prefecture. Anyone capable of commanding Six Gates constables was someone he would undoubtedly know.