In the Su family courtyard, laughter and smoke mingled in the night air.
Facing Bai Hongbo's half-joking, half-accusatory tone, Su Tianyu calmly filled his glass—two and a half shots of strong baijiu—then rose to his feet.
"Brother Bai," he said earnestly, "even if you hadn't mentioned the depot mess, I still owe you a proper thank-you."
"Oh?" Bai arched a brow, his tone frosty. "And what exactly are you thanking me for?"
Truth be told, he was still a little bitter. Su had jumped into the fray without warning anyone, then somehow left Bai to take the beating. No one likes to get punched for someone else's heroics.
Su met his eyes, voice steady and sincere. "Brother Bai, I acted rashly at the depot. I should've held back when Lu Feng came for me. After the fight, I regretted it. But if you hadn't stepped in—if your men hadn't blocked Lu Feng for those few seconds—I probably wouldn't have made it out. So really… thank you."
Su Tiannan blinked. "Wait, it was Bai who blocked Lu Feng for you?"
"Yeah," Tianyu nodded. "We got split up when we ran. Lu Feng came straight for me after leaving the main building, but Bai stepped in and bought me time."
Su Miaomiao's eyes lit up. She raised her glass immediately. "Brother Bai! I didn't know you saved my little brother! Let's be honest, hardly anyone in Zhanan dares cross Lu Feng. You're the real deal—a true man. Just for that, you've earned a drink from me."
For a second, Bai froze. Wait… that's how they see it?
He couldn't very well correct them now. Admitting he got hit because he was too slow to run? That would destroy his carefully curated image of "literary elegance."
"Ah, it was nothing," Bai said lightly, waving a hand. "Xiao Su and I just happened to run together. When Lu Feng came charging out, I had more men nearby—what, you think I'd just stand there? The four of us are allies now; we've got to look out for each other."
"Brother Bai, a real man indeed!" Tianyu said with a respectful smile, raising his glass. "You knocked down several of Lu Feng's guys yourself. I owe you a toast for that."
"Yeah, come on—everyone, to Brother Bai!" Su Tiannan called out.
Chairs scraped back. The Su brothers and cousins all stood, glasses raised.
Bai had planned to use this dinner to guilt the Sus—to remind them that they had started this war, so they needed to lead the next charge.
But before he could even make his point, he found himself drinking to cheers of admiration, hailed as the hero of the fight.
"To the capable person!"
The room echoed with laughter and clinking glasses.
Half an hour later, Bai was swaying, drunk as a lord, slurring into Tiannan's shoulder.
"After the fight at the depot… I called Lu Feng… wanted to—"
"You called him after the fight?" Tianyu cut in smoothly.
Bai froze, brain stuttering, then caught himself. "Uh… no, he called me! And I cursed him out! Everyone else is scared of him, but not me. Anyway, the point is—if we can't negotiate, then we stand together. The four families are tied to one rope now. Let's settle this quick and get the old man out. Tiannan, you've got my support."
"Appreciate it, Brother Bai," Tiannan said, nodding.
Tianyu smiled faintly, raised his glass again. "Then here's another for you, Brother Bai."
Bai grinned through the haze. "Xiao Su, don't take this the wrong way, but when it comes to drinking—three of you together still couldn't outdrink me."
"Then I'll risk my life drinking with a true man."
"Come on! Bottoms up!"
They downed it.
Twenty minutes later, Bai Hongbo was face-down on the table, lips foaming slightly, mumbling incoherently.
"Damn… forgot I've got stitches… Doctor said no alcohol… Xi, my heart's pounding… am I dying?"
His lackey leaned in. "You're fine, boss. No alcohol reaction. The meds don't mix."
"No, no, my heart's too fast. Miaomiao, you're a nurse, right? Check my pulse, sweetheart…"
Even drunk to oblivion, the man never forgot to flirt.
When the banquet ended, Bai's men half-carried him home, leaving the Su siblings in the courtyard pavilion.
Tiannan lit a cigarette. "Xiao Yu, be honest. Will this company shutdown really save Second Uncle?"
Tianyu sipped tea instead of liquor, eyes steady. He was one of those drinkers whose face never flushed, no matter how much he had. "It will," he said simply. "Changqing doesn't care about killing anyone—they care about profit. No profit, no reason to push. Once their bottom line bleeds, they'll stop. But it only works if we hold our long enough—let the clock and the headlines do the work."
Tiannan nodded slowly. "I just worry we can't hold out long."
"The management is the key," Tianyu said. "As long as the mid-levels stand firm, the pressure will build. Changqing will have to blink first. But that's also where we're weakest—they'll know that too."
"True," Miaomiao said softly.
"So, Second Brother," Tianyu continued, "keep an eye on our management these next few days. They can't waver. If they crumble, so do we."
"And the other three families?" Tiannan asked.
Tianyu paused, then answered quietly. "We can't control them. They can't control us. All we can do is hold our ground and wait for the storm to move."
Tiannan said nothing.
"Big Brother," Tianyu added, "In this city, you protect yourself first—then you protect others. I'm still learning Dragon City's ways, so final calls are yours. But if it were me, I'd keep our people steady and wait."
Tiannan took a deep drag, exhaled slowly. "Alright. We'll do it your way."
Tianyu smiled, setting down his cup. "Then tomorrow, I'll visit the freight yard. Been in this business so long, and I've never seen how it actually runs."
"Be careful," Su Tianbei warned. "Lu Feng's missing an ear—he'll come looking for it."
Tianyu chuckled. "Let him."
The next day, the strike continued.
The paralysis of the sanitation system had started to ripple through the district. By now, residents were beginning to notice the uncollected trash piling up. The management-level workers from the four companies had also staged an official protest outside the Zhanan Administrative Bureau—no violence, no banners—just a unified demand to "meet the leadership."
Hundreds stood at the gates. Police had been stationed there since morning to keep order.
In Dragon City's twisted democracy, as long as you didn't smash things, your "freedom to protest" was technically protected.
At 1 p.m., a black business van with tinted windows rolled to a stop in front of the building.
Lu Feng sat in the middle row, legs crossed, scanning the crowd.
"Find out which one's shouting the loudest," he said coldly.
Meanwhile — Bai Residence
Bai Hongbo sat on the edge of his bed, clutching his temples. "Hey… what the hell were we even doing at the Su place last night? I can't remember."
His bodyguard blinked. "No clue, boss. Everyone got plastered. The only thing I remember is people saying you're a capable person."
Bai scowled. "Tch—everybody knows that. They didn't need to remind me."