When Lu Feng followed Yang Ming to the second floor, Chen Bo was already waiting for them.
When Yang Ming brought someone over, one of his guys downstairs had sent him a message. Knowing they had arrived carrying a bag, he had a pretty good idea of what was going on. After all, they had made a deal once before.
Chen Bo was a little surprised when he saw the duffel bag in Lu Feng's hand. "Brother Ming," he said, "looks like you're bringing some big business my way."
'It seems the last time was just a test,' he thought.
If this duffel bag was filled with the same gold jewelry as last time, then Yang Ming must have found some new channel. He was on the verge of making it big.
In this day and age, money is everything. Even for those running the streets, you had to make money for your crew to follow you. Not everyone could be like the man before him, holding a group of brothers together on loyalty alone.
Otherwise, even if you started as a small fry, as soon as you found a way to make money, people would flock to you.
There was a guy in the county just like that. He was delivering food six months ago, but then he found some gray-area online hustle. Dozens of people immediately gathered around him. Half a year later, he was driving a Ferrari and raking in 300,000 yuan a day.
But he was too flashy and had already caught the police's attention. He was about to go to prison.
Yang Ming might not have made much money, but he was still a formidable figure. If he now had a new channel for profit, his rise would be unstoppable.
"This time, we really do have a batch of goods for Boss Chen," Yang Ming said, signaling for Lu Feng to open the duffel bag.
Even though he had been expecting it, Chen Bo's face was still filled with astonishment when he saw the gold jewelry inside.
The tangled pile of gold glittered dazzlingly under the light.
"Brother Ming, you're really looking out for me," Chen Bo said, eagerly beginning to inspect the gold jewelry.
Based on his experience, this batch had to be at least eight or nine jin.
The more Chen Bo examined the gold, the more amazed he became.
The purity was excellent, and some of the pieces were even exquisitely crafted. Once they were cleaned up and put on the market, he could charge an extra craftsmanship fee.
'I have no idea where Yang Ming got gold jewelry of this quality,' he wondered.
Chen Bo quickly finished his inspection. After weighing the gold, he said with a joyful expression, "Brother Ming, this batch of yours weighs in at nine jin and four liang—a total of 4,702 grams. At my rates, that comes to 1,589,000 yuan, but I'll round it up to a nice even 1,590,000 for you."
"Deal," Yang Ming nodded.
Chen Bo smiled and asked, "Same account number as before? I'll make the transfer now."
"Yep, send it to that account," Yang Ming confirmed.
Once he had confirmation, Chen Bo took out a bank security token, plugged it into a computer, and began processing the transfer.
These days, transfers of over a million yuan could easily be flagged and frozen if you didn't use a security token!
A few moments later, Lu Feng's phone buzzed with a notification from the bank: a deposit of 1,590,000 yuan had been received.
The transaction was complete.
Chen Bo immediately spoke up again. "Brother Ming, you've done me a huge favor. To show my thanks, starting tonight, I'm booking the 'Martell Perfect Ten' package at the Ultimate Bar for three straight nights. Bring your brothers and come have a good time."
The "Martell Perfect Ten" meant ordering ten bottles of Martell cognac at once, a single purchase of over 10,000 yuan.
When that happened, the bar would make a special announcement over the speakers, send out beautiful dancers, and put a spotlight on your table with a shout-out on the big screen. It was all about making you look good, making you the center of attention for the entire bar.
It was an experience most people would never have.
But Chen Bo didn't mind spending 30,000 yuan at all. After he processed and sold this gold, the total revenue would be close to two million. Even after splitting the profits, he'd still walk away with 300,000 for himself.
Spending thirty grand to build a relationship was nothing to him, especially since Yang Ming had just made him so much money.
"Alright, we'll be there," Yang Ming agreed with a smile.
In their world, relationships and etiquette were paramount, and some of the strongest bonds were forged over drinks.
That way, if any of their underlings had a conflict, they could step in, say a few words, and smooth things over. It made life easier and kept things from escalating to the point where people ended up in prison, eating three squares a day and working the machines.
After all, society had changed. Nowadays, keeping the peace was what mattered most.
This time, Chen Bo personally escorted Yang Ming and Lu Feng downstairs, even walking them all the way out of the teahouse. "Brother Ming," he called out, "see you tonight at the Ultimate Bar!"
"Yeah, we'll be in touch," Yang Ming nodded.
After leaving the teahouse, he drove off in a car, taking Lu Feng to the hospital.
The first thing Lu Feng did was pay 500,000 yuan for the surgery fee and the subsequent hospitalization costs. Only then did he go with his cousin to his mom's hospital room.
His mom was still in a coma, hooked up to a ventilator. The ventilator alone cost 3,000 yuan a day, which was half a month's salary for many people.
'You really have to take care of your body,' he thought. 'Otherwise, one person getting sick can truly drag down the whole family.'
When Yang Qingxue saw Lu Feng return, she immediately came over. "Lu Feng, the doctor just left. He said Auntie's condition isn't looking good."
Lu Feng comforted her, "It's okay. I've already paid for my mom's surgery."
Sure enough, it wasn't long before the same doctor returned. He said to Lu Feng, "Mr. Lu, your mother's surgery has been scheduled. The visiting specialist is already here, and the operation will be tomorrow evening."
"Also, the patient's condition is quite serious. She'll be highly susceptible to vascular and blood infections after the surgery, so she'll need to be in the ICU for a period of observation. The costs will be significant. With the addition of blood circulation therapy, it will be around 20,000 yuan a day. Mr. Lu, you should prepare the funds in advance. The bill will be settled when the patient is discharged from the ICU."
"Okay, thank you, Doctor," Lu Feng nodded, taking a deep breath internally.
'Honestly,' he thought, 'if I couldn't enter that game world, I would have no idea how to handle my mom's illness.'
Beside him, Yang Ming had already put an arm around the doctor's shoulder and, without a trace of his movement, slipped a thick red envelope into the pocket of the doctor's white coat. He was still smiling as he said, "Doctor, we'll be counting on you to take care of our auntie."
"It's no trouble at all. Saving lives is our duty," the doctor said, his face clearly breaking into a much wider smile as he waved his hand dismissively.
Lu Feng saw this and sighed to himself, realizing he hadn't even thought of this aspect.
He'd always felt a sense of righteous indignation when he saw news online about doctors accepting bribes, but now that it was happening for his own family, he was surprisingly calm. He felt no anger at all.
In fact, seeing the doctor accept it made him feel a little more at ease.
'How strange,' he thought.
At the very least, now that the doctor had taken the money, he would surely be a bit more attentive.
"Qingxue, you should go home and rest for now. I'll need your help looking after my mom after the surgery," Lu Feng said. He then took out a bank card and handed it to Yang Qingxue. "And take this 50,000 yuan back."
Yang Qingxue immediately refused, "Lu Feng, I haven't spent any of it. Auntie needs money for her treatment right now, you should use it first."
Lu Feng smiled. "Qingxue, I really don't need your money. I've already paid the surgery fee in full."
Yang Qingxue said anxiously, "But Lu Feng, I looked it up online! This kind of vascular disease requires a lot of money for follow-up treatment. You're still going to need money."
Hearing his girlfriend's words, Lu Feng couldn't help but gently brush her cheek with a tender expression. "Don't worry, I have enough for the follow-up costs too."
"Really?" Yang Qingxue asked, only half-believing him.
"Really. Would I lie to you? Go home and get some rest," Lu Feng said with a smiling nod.
"Well, if you run short, you have to tell me. I'll come back to be with you tomorrow," Yang Qingxue said, finally putting the bank card away. She left the room, her face still etched with worry.
As soon as she stepped out of the hospital, her phone rang. When she saw the caller ID, her expression soured.
It was her mother.
She hesitated for a moment, took a deep breath, and answered. The moment the call connected, a furious voice roared from the other end: "Yang Qingxue, are you trying to kill me? I told you long ago to stop seeing that Lu Feng! Why don't you ever listen?"
"What's the difference between his family and what your father's was back then? I wouldn't say a word if he could at least buy an apartment for you two to live in, but are you planning to work yourself to the bone for the rest of your life like your mother did? Jiajia told me you were even planning to give him the money you worked so hard to save. Are you a complete fool?"
Hearing her mother's tirade, Yang Qingxue could only sigh. 'Jiajia must have told on me,' she thought. 'That best friend of mine has such a big mouth.'
The voice on the other end of the line sighed, finally saying with resignation, "Forget it. His mother has that illness, and 50,000 yuan might just save her life. But listen, you need to go on that blind date with the guy Jiajia's boyfriend introduced you to. He owns a house worth over a million yuan in the county, fully paid off. He drives a BMW and makes twenty to thirty thousand a month."
Yang Qingxue was about to protest, but she heard the click of her mother hanging up.
She couldn't help but sigh, her heart filled with anxiety.