Peerless Divine Doctor in the City of Flowers
Chapter 445: The Warming Tide of Jiangning

Chapter 445: Chapter 445: The Warming Tide of Jiangning

The daytime bar street was peaceful and quiet.

A street that every midnight was shrouded with explosive music.

Now carried a somber air.

Vehicles from several motorcades completely blocked the road.

Next to the cars, the men with cigarettes in their mouths all had unkind looks in their eyes.

Wearing earphones, they awaited orders at any moment.

And inside the bar, the normally dimly lit space was now bright as day.

Lu Feifei, dressed in a cheongsam, leaned back in her chair.

Her left hand holding a glass of red wine, her right hand clutching a cigar.

Behind her stood the Twelve Golden Hairpins, each tall and imposing.

In the chair opposite her sat three elders.

These men in their eighties, dressed in Tang suits, leaned on walking sticks.

Their bodyguards standing behind them were all tall and muscular.

These three had retired from the jianghu for over twenty years.

They had all once held sway over the world.

Even in their old age, their eyes were still sharp and spirited.

Although neither side spoke, the tension in the air was suffocating.

"Phoenix, we three old ghosts have watched you grow up, and since your adoptive father Sun Ba died, in this period you’ve virtually taken over Jiangning, it can be said you cover the sky with one hand. Now everyone knows that the muddy ground of Jiangning is yours to command. You’re really enjoying boundless glory, making us old ghosts feel a bit chilly on the beach."

The slender Mr. Ge in the middle had a gloomy expression.

His words sounded complimentary, but they also carried a veiled threat.

"Mr. Ge, I’ll take your words as a compliment."

Lu Feifei’s lips curved into a slight smile.

After exhaling a puff of smoke and swirling the red wine in her glass, she said, "Since you’ve watched me grow up, the three of you must also know I’ve always been roughing it in the streets, barely attending school for a few days. Most of what I know now has been learned from the storytellers and opera singers, there isn’t much I remember, but there’s one saying I haven’t forgotten, ’Empires long united must divide, long divided must unite.’ Now that we’ve united, there are rules for everything. My brothers no longer need to fight to the death on the streets, which should be considered a good thing, right?"

"Indeed, it is a good thing, but it’s dangerous for one person to hold absolute power. And the first you eradicated was the Elder Council. Disrespecting your seniors is taboo in the jianghu."

Mr. Geng, who resembled Maitreya Buddha, narrowed his eyes.

With a sharp look in his eyes, he fiddled with his prayer beads.

"If I disrespected my seniors, it’s because some of them didn’t consider themselves elders and didn’t leave me a way out; thus, we had to part ways. If they had cared for me like the three seniors before me, I wouldn’t have needed to get rid of them."

Lu Feifei didn’t look for any excuses.

Instead, she turned the argument back on the three elders.

"Feifei, leave some room for maneuver so you can meet again in the future. Although we’ve been out of the jianghu for a long time, friends from the jianghu have been coming to complain that you are too ruthless in your dealings, showing no mercy, causing many brothers to lose their livelihoods. Isn’t this a bit inappropriate?"

Mr. Meng, an elderly man wearing glasses, appeared gentle and refined.

Nobody would think that sixty years ago, he started with two knives.

Thus establishing his reputation as the Knife Brother of the western city.

"Mr. Meng, since you’ve withdrawn from the jianghu for so long, you shouldn’t meddle in affairs of the jianghu. After all, you both know that matters in the jianghu can be beyond our control. If I don’t take away their means of livelihood, I can’t protect the livelihoods of my brothers and sisters. In this choice, everyone is struggling for themselves. If it were peaceful, it wouldn’t be living off the jianghu."

With her eloquent rebuttal, Lu Feifei left the three men with a change of expression and no argument to make.

After all, they too had once walked the jianghu.

Knowing the rules of survival in the Jianghu is to respect the strong.

"Feifei, everyone has their moments of glory, but no one can escape the day of utter defeat. We worship Guan, conduct ourselves with loyalty and righteousness, and being too absolute is never good for oneself. That’s why we three have asked to meet with you today. We want to persuade you to consider taking up a legitimate profession while you’re still young. We could give you a hand, and you could leave this quagmire behind," said one of the three.

Mr. Ge spoke up again, "The days of fighting and killing should come to an end. Making money peacefully is the best option. Your strife with Wang Hu has put everyone in the Jianghu on edge. After all, everyone knows about Mr. Hu’s prestige, as the major powerholder in the province. Fighting him will only lead to more casualties. We three have no desire to see Jiangning drenched in blood and violence again, which is why we’ve sought to talk to you. If you let it go, we guarantee your well-being and assure that Mr. Hu won’t bother you again."

Mr. Ge’s words immediately earned nods from the other two men.

"The three of you are finally speaking the truth. Isn’t today’s meeting just to speak on behalf of Mr. Hu?"

After Lu Feifei drained the wine from her cup,

she looked at the three men again, "But this muddy ground in Jiangning is something I struggled through step by step. I’ve been on the streets since I was five years old. Over twenty years, I’ve seen and heard too much. If I’ve learned nothing else, at least I’ve learned to be tough. Since the three of you have left the Jianghu, you shouldn’t concern yourselves with its affairs anymore. If Wang Hu has a problem, let him come to me himself."

With those words, she effectively shut down all conditions for negotiation.

The bodyguards behind the elders instinctively reached for their weapons at their backs.

Lu Feifei’s twelve brooch-wearing guardians naturally also revealed their weapons.

A great battle seemed about to erupt at any moment.

"So you won’t back down?" Mr. Ge asked with a grim face, looking at Lu Feifei.

"A Jianghu life ends in a Jianghu death; that might just be my fate, so please don’t make it difficult for me," Lu Feifei replied, putting out her cigar.

Her phoenix eyes carried a sharp intensity.

"You really don’t know how to appreciate a favor!"

Before the elders could speak, a muscular man behind them shouted angrily.

He was Mr. Ge’s grandson, Ge Lei.

At over thirty years old, his face was cold and stern.

After his roar, the bodyguards behind the elders drew their long and short weapons.

"Ge Lei, you’re not qualified to speak to me!"

Lu Feifei was still leaning back in her chair.

But her tone had turned cold.

Her phoenix eyes were filled with murderous intent.

Her presence was no less formidable than that of her twelve guards, ready to fight to the death with their swords drawn.

"Lu Feifei, you ungrateful wretch! My grandfather is offering to let you step down to save face, and yet you remain obstinately ignorant. Do you really think you can dominate Jiangning just by leading a bunch of lousy thugs?" Seeing that Mr. Ge made no move to stop him, Ge Lei felt emboldened.

He stepped forward, reached behind his back, and pulled out a gun.

"If it weren’t for the fact that there’s less ’meat’ in the Jianghu these years, barely enough even for dogs, someone as lowly as you wouldn’t have had the chance to rise. My grandfather may give you face out of sentiment, but I won’t. Get down on your knees this instant, or I’ll shoot you dead!"

The dark muzzle of the gun was aimed directly at Lu Feifei, who was five meters away.

To anyone not blind, this shot could end her life.

This scene silenced everyone present.

All waited for the outcome.

Would it be a fierce battle, or a change of power?

It all hung in the balance.