Chapter 70: A Fight Has Broken Out!

“Bringing money?” After a glass of wine, Zhang Qiang and Yang Meng curiously eyed the paper bag on the table, judging by its thickness that it held about one hundred thousand yuan. “Brother Yang, what’s the meaning of this?”

Yang Meng pushed the bag toward Zhang Qiang. “I won’t beat around the bush. Li Xiaoqing’s parents came to see me.”

“Hmm?” Both men were sharp; Zhang Qiang immediately caught Yang Meng’s drift.

“Brother Yang, let me tell you, I’m really angry about this. What I hate most are those who betray their own. When Li Xiaoqing left home, I took her in. I treated her better than anyone else would. Do you think my nightclub lacks lead dancers? If I wanted, I could hire only dance school graduates.” Zhang Qiang spoke bitterly. “The reason I kept her, despite her mediocre skills, was to help her. And how did she repay me?” He raised his glass and downed it in one gulp. “When I found out she sold me out, I was furious enough to kill.”

Yang Meng took a sip as well. “I understand how you feel.”

Zhang Qiang continued, “Her parents came to see me, hoping to settle things privately. It’s not a big deal, but not a small one either. But I insisted she was in league with Zhai Dacheng and the others. Not for any reason, just to vent my anger! For people like her, if I don’t go after them, I’ll feel I betrayed myself.” At this point, he suddenly changed tone. “But since you’ve spoken up, Brother Yang, I’ll give you this respect and let it go.”

Yang Meng sighed. “Brother Qiang, honestly, I dislike people like her too. When I found out what she did, I regretted ever knowing her. Who acts like that? I didn’t want to get involved, but after hearing about her family’s situation, I thought I’d help her out.”

Yang Meng then explained Li Xiaoqing’s family situation to Zhang Qiang. After listening, Zhang Qiang fell silent for a moment. “Well, consider it as being bitten by a dog. Fine, I’ll tell my lawyer not to pursue her.”

Yang Meng placed the money in front of Zhang Qiang. “Her family gave this as compensation.”

Zhang Qiang laughed. “Brother Yang, you underestimate me. I’m not rich, but I don’t care about a hundred thousand yuan. When Li Xiaoqing’s parents came to me, they offered the same amount, and I threw the money back in their faces. After hitting a wall with me, they came to you.”

Yang Meng smirked. “So I’m the backup option.”

Zhang Qiang replied, “Brother Yang, that just means you’re kinder than me. Take the money back, I can’t accept it.”

“Why?” Yang Meng asked, puzzled.

Zhang Qiang shook his head with a smile. “You give me money? If anything, I should give you money. Brother Yang, you don’t know how grateful I am. I used to have to give Zhai Dacheng a share, but now what he did is criminal evidence. The money he took from me over the years—once the court rules, I might get it back, and even if not all, it’s fine! It’s a substantial sum. They took a lot from me over the years. When the money comes back, I’ll even share it with you!”

Yang Meng waved his hands quickly. “No way, I can’t take it. Just keep it yourself.”

“We’ll talk about it later. Let’s not dwell on unpleasant things. You’re here to have a good time. Why sit here drinking alone? I’ll get a few girls who can drink to accompany us, and tonight we’ll drink until dawn!”

Yang Meng objected, “Come on, Brother Qiang, what are you saying? If we bring girls over to drink with us, whose drinking is it—ours or theirs? I’d feel bad letting them drink such expensive wine!”

Zhang Qiang burst out laughing. “Brother Yang, you’re hilarious! Fine, tonight I’ll do nothing else but drink with you. By the way, Brother Yang, I don’t know what your line of work is.”

Yang Meng waved a hand. “We’re friends, no need for formality. I’ve opened a barbecue shop at the Dragon Soar Fitness Club, it’s being renovated. When it’s ready, I’ll invite you to support the opening.”

Zhang Qiang was stunned; he hadn’t expected Yang Meng to say he was opening a barbecue place. The people from Dragon Soar treated Yang Meng so respectfully, and he was just a barbecue shop owner? Who would believe it?

But Zhang Qiang recovered quickly. “That’s great! To be honest, we nightlife folks love skewers. My staff often go for skewers after work. From now on, I’ll tell them your place is our base.”

Yang Meng laughed. “So you want me open twenty-four hours? No way, I can’t work that hard.”

Zhang Qiang replied, “Then just open at night.”

“That’s worth considering! Come on, Brother Qiang, let’s drink!”

“Cheers!”

The two drank and chatted, with Zhang Qiang regaling Yang Meng with tales from the nightclub. Despite just two men drinking together, the atmosphere was lively.

But the mood didn’t last long. Before they’d had much to drink, they heard arguing and glass breaking from the dance floor. The dispute sounded intense, even the DJ stopped the music.

“What’s going on?” Zhang Qiang gestured for Gao Pei, who came over. “Boss, there’s a fight on stage!”

“What are you waiting for? Kick them all out!” Zhang Qiang ordered.

Gao Pei replied, “Boss, there are a few women involved.”

“So what? Drunk women making a scene aren’t rare here. Just kick them out!” Zhang Qiang insisted.

But Gao Pei said, “Boss, it’s tricky. Both sides are our ‘Elite Partners.’”

Zhang Qiang frowned. Now it really was a problem.

At “Focus” Bar, there are five membership tiers. The lowest, regular members, must deposit ten thousand yuan. Platinum members deposit twenty thousand, black-gold fifty thousand. Above that are “Prestige Partners” and “Elite Partners,” requiring deposits of one hundred thousand and two hundred thousand respectively.

“Elite Partners” enjoy many privileges, such as signing for drinks, free fruit platters, snacks, and soft drinks.

Focus is mostly frequented by young people, and there are only thirty Elite Partner slots; currently, there are just twenty-one, including Yang Meng and Long Teng. Last time they spent so much that Zhang Qiang gifted each of them a card.

“Who are they?” Zhang Qiang asked Gao Pei.

Gao Pei replied, “On one side is Director Zhou from Norton Pharmaceuticals; on the other is Miss Qiao and her group from ‘No. 52 Lorett Street.’”

Yang Meng perked up. He knew “No. 52 Lorett Street”—an “art studio” with a prime location but poor business. That building could easily make money, but instead they opened this enigmatic place. If you want to waste money, you might as well throw it into the river. Everyone suspects the owner is someone with family wealth.

The name is odd, and everyone speculates what it means, but there are no answers. Yang Meng, reading in the library, guessed: among the three giants of Post-Impressionism, Paul Gauguin was born at 52 Lorett Street, Notre-Dame-de-Lorette, Paris.

With such a strange name, it’s no wonder the studio’s business is poor.

Zhang Qiang frowned. “Brother Yang, wait here, I’ll go check it out.”

Yang Meng, emboldened by drink, said, “No, sitting here alone is boring. I want to see the excitement, too. The music was too loud before, now it’s suddenly stopped and I feel weird. Let me see what kind of troublemaker ruined my evening.”

Zhang Qiang looked at Yang Meng swaying, hesitant to let him go, but he couldn’t stop him. So he smiled, “Alright, since you’re interested, let’s go together.”

In the dance hall, two groups faced off, ready to start a brawl at any moment.

“Please, everyone, calm down. What happened here? Can’t you give me some respect?” Zhang Qiang approached.

A girl turned and addressed him, “Boss Zhang! Finally, you’re here! Since when do you allow thugs to grope women on your dance floor?”

“Who are you calling a thug, Quan Yajing? What does my business with Qiao Yu have to do with you?” Zhou Chun retorted angrily, and the confrontation escalated.

As it turned out, these were none other than Qiao Yu and her two friends on one side, and Zhou Chun with his group on the other.

Here’s what happened: Zhou Chun had noticed Qiao Yu and her friends. At first, he had no intention of interacting, but after a few drinks and watching them dance, he started feeling interested—especially after Huo Yan took the little rookie “Wei Ge” drunk to a hotel, Zhou Chun’s mind began to wander.

He had a group of bar girls with him, but he wouldn’t waste time on them. People think it’s easy to pick up girls in nightclubs, especially bar girls, thinking their openness makes them easy targets.

But that’s a misconception. Bar girls are indeed open, but they’ve seen all types of men. If you want to win them over, you have to either spend like crazy, look like a movie star, or catch them on an off day.

Now, there are plenty of young, handsome, and wealthy men, and Zhou Chun can’t compete with them. Trying to win over bar girls costs a lot and isn’t guaranteed to succeed. Zhou Chun doesn’t want to waste his time—the return isn’t worth it.

So he wandered onto the dance floor to “catch up” with Qiao Yu. Isn’t that like lighting a candle in the restroom—looking for trouble where there’s none?

ps: It’s the start of the month, please vote for me.