Chapter 757 Decision

The next morning, Wu Shuang and I set off again for the small community in the west. The people from Longhu had given them three days, which gave us plenty of time to persuade them. We had already confirmed by eavesdropping last night that they were not actually willing to join Longhu. Now we just needed to get them to make a decision. As long as they didn't join Longhu, they would have the opportunity to join us.

When I arrived at the small community, it was only eight o'clock in the morning. The reason for coming so early was to get things sorted out as soon as possible. There was plenty of time in the morning, unlike in the afternoon when I was in a hurry.

This time, unlike last night, we didn't sneak around. We went to the door, knocked three times, and soon the person inside opened it. Seeing us two strangers, they looked suspicious and wary, asking, "Who are you?"

Before I could speak, Wu Shuang said, "We're from the main community. We've come to discuss something with you. Please let us in first."

The other party looked puzzled and stood guard at the door, seemingly unwilling to let us in, as if they didn't believe us.

Having anticipated this, Wu Shuang said, "We don't mean anything by it. We've come here to discuss something with you. If you don't believe us, we'll hand over our weapons. That should convince you."

The other person looked at the pistol Wu Shuang handed over, instinctively took two steps back, and hesitated to take it, asking, "What do you want to discuss with us?"

Just as I was about to speak, a question came from inside the room.

"Xiao Li, who's outside?"

Xiao Li, standing at the door, said, "I don't know who they are. They said they came from a large community."

Not long after, a middle-aged man came out of the house. He glanced at us and asked with suspicion, "You came from the big community? Come in."

The middle-aged man didn't suspect us at all, and we didn't hand over our weapons. After we came in, Xiao Li at the door closed the door.

However, things didn't go as smoothly as we had imagined. After we entered, all the people in the room came out with weapons. They all pointed their guns at the two of us. Then the middle-aged man said, "I'm sorry, I let you in not because I trust you, but just to make it easier to control you. How about this, hand over your weapons first, and then we can talk about the purpose of your visit."

Wu Shuang and I didn't hesitate and handed over our weapons. After all, we were there as intermediaries, and we had to gain their trust first. If they didn't trust us, they probably wouldn't even give us a chance to talk.

"Will you cooperate? Tell me, who exactly are you two, and what is your purpose in coming here?" the middle-aged man asked. Judging from his appearance and tone, he must be the boss here.

I said, "We are from a large community, and the purpose of our visit is very simple: to discuss what happened last night with you."

"What happened last night," the middle-aged man repeated. "You were sent by Longhu? Didn't we agree on three days? The first day has only just begun, what's the rush?"

I said, "We weren't sent by Longhu. We're from the larger community. We already know that Longhu came looking for you last night. We only have one request: don't join them."

The middle-aged man's expression turned strange. "Wait a minute, wait a minute, I'm a little confused. Aren't you from the same community as Longhu? Why are you suddenly going against them?"

I said, "We're going against them because they're too greedy. Originally, we just wanted to cooperate with them and didn't mean anything else. But recently, our spies planted in Longhu have sent word that Longhu wants to unify the entire city of Hangzhou. The reason they came to you last night and asked you to join them is for this. To put it simply, the people in Longhu want to use you as pawns."

The middle-aged man fell into deep thought, staring at us, seemingly lost in thought, before finally asking, "And then?"

I said, "Then, once you agree to Longhu's conditions, when the war breaks out, you'll probably be among the first to die."

The middle-aged man's expression changed drastically, but his eyes still revealed a look of doubt, clearly indicating that he did not believe what I said.

Wu Shuang then said, "Mr. Qi, I know you doubt what we say, but I can tell you with certainty that everything we say is true, without the slightest falsehood."

"You know me?" the other person asked in surprise.

Wu Shuang nodded, "Qi Zhongyuan, the leader here, am I right?"

Qi Zhongyuan nodded, "You're not wrong, but after all that you've said, I still don't know who you two are, so I don't believe what you're saying."

Wu Shuang said, "My name is Wu Shuang, and I am the person in charge of the community behind the scenes. His name is Lu Xiaonan, and he is my husband. I am currently managing the community."

"Wait a minute, isn't this the Du Xu territory? When did it become yours?" Qi Zhongyuan asked doubtfully.

I said, "Du Xu is just the person in the public eye; Wu Shuang is the one who actually makes the decisions. Besides, Du Xu isn't from Hangzhou; he came from Jiajiang. As for everyone in the large community now, they're basically all from Jiajiang as well."

"Jiajiang?" The other party looked puzzled.

I said, "I can't tell you the specifics right now, since you haven't answered whether you're refusing or agreeing. Longhu's purpose is already very clear. Their biggest obstacle in Hangzhou is us. Although we are currently outwardly submitting to them, Longhu probably doesn't trust us. So, what the future of Hangzhou will be depends on you."

Wu Shuang continued, "Longhu gave you three days to consider, and I'll give you three days as well. Oh, by the way, there's something I want to tell you. I used to live in Longhu, but a few months ago, all my people were killed by the people currently in Longhu. You can imagine what outrageous things they might do in the future."

Qi Zhongyuan hesitated, very obviously hesitated. Last night they were very conflicted about whether to join Longhu, but now they probably have made up their minds.

After Wu Shuang finished speaking, he turned and left.

Qi Zhongyuan called out from behind, "Wait a minute!"

Wu Shuang asked, "Is there anything else you want to ask?"