Chapter 35: Whether You Want To or Not, You Have To

“Guo Pengcheng, didn’t you say that Cross-eyed Xiao promised you we’d never lose money? Now that things have come to this, why are you still standing here in a daze? Hurry and bring him here to fix this mess!”

A stall owner, still managing to stay calm, shouted at Guo Pengcheng.

“Oh, right, right. I’ll go find Cross-eyed Xiao now.”

Guo Pengcheng snapped out of his stupor and dashed off at once.

“Pitiful people always bring misfortune on themselves,” Wu Ya said, shaking his head at the chaos engulfing the six stalls.

Self-inflicted suffering is inescapable.

He had no intention of showing mercy to any of them.

Just as they had imagined—if they dared to act, he would make Chai Yanfan cut her prices again! Not for profit, but simply to vent his anger!

Complicit with evil.

If anyone was despicable, they were more so than Cross-eyed Xiao himself! When they acted like this, did they ever consider what would happen to Chai Yanfan? That she might lose everything because of them?

“Wu Ya, maybe you should leave first! It looks like Cross-eyed Xiao is coming soon. There’s no sense in being a hero and suffering for it.”

Watching Guo Pengcheng’s retreating figure, worry flooded Chai Yanfan’s face.

“Don’t worry, Sister Chai. If I dare to come, I’m not afraid. You go ahead and tend to the customers. I’ll look around on my own.”

With that, Wu Ya turned and disappeared among the crowd.

“This little brat, such a show of bravado, when he’s really just a coward,” Chai Yanfan smiled faintly at his back. She thought he was hiding out of fear, but he still insisted he wasn’t afraid.

“I wonder what Cross-eyed Xiao will do when he gets here.”

But soon, anxiety crept into her heart again.

After all, this price war had started under abnormal circumstances. If his people suffered a loss, would they really just let it go?

But what was done was done.

Chai Yanfan could only swallow her unease and keep serving customers. Soon, the bustle of business drowned out her worries.

It was hard to say how much time had passed...

“Look! Guo Pengcheng is back with Cross-eyed Xiao!”

Suddenly, an excited voice rang out across the marketplace, even louder than the constant hum of customers.

Eight local thugs in two lines surrounded a short, swaggering ruffian as they strutted toward them, causing everyone in their path to step aside.

Guo Pengcheng trailed at his side, grinning wider than if he’d met his own father.

“Cross-eyed Xiao is really here, we’re saved!”

“Yes, he’s promised he wouldn’t let us lose money! If he dares make such bold claims, he must have a solution.”

“That’s right! Cross-eyed Xiao might be a tyrant here, but at least he keeps his word!”

Excitement burst from everyone in an instant, their words full of praise for Cross-eyed Xiao. The bitterness and humiliation from being bullied for refusing protection money was long forgotten.

Now, Cross-eyed Xiao was regarded as a chivalrous hero of noble character.

Some even glanced toward Chai Yanfan in the distance.

“Haha, let’s see how smug Chai Yanfan can be now! She’ll have to hand over today’s profits and pay us back!”

“That’s right! If she hadn’t slashed her prices, we wouldn’t have lost so much!”

“This is all her fault! Cross-eyed Xiao must get our losses back from her!”

They’d completely forgotten that their predicament was entirely of their own making.

“Cross-eyed Xiao, you need to give us an explanation, or I’ll give up my life right here today!”

Bu Jing suddenly stood up, his bloodied head held high, face full of anguish.

Cross-eyed Xiao stopped, eying Bu Jing up and down for a long moment.

Then—

Smack!

He slapped Bu Jing hard across the face.

Bu Jing was stunned. He’d only wanted to voice his grievance—how had he offended the boss?

“You old fool, are you threatening me with your worthless life? Believe it or not, I’ll solve everyone else’s problems and leave you to rot!”

Having cursed him out, Cross-eyed Xiao strode forward.

Poor Bu Jing, an independent businessman nearing fifty. Once a man of status, now struck by double misfortune—first a head injury, now a slap in public. He dared not utter another word.

“Bu Jing, you really have no sense! If Cross-eyed Xiao actually leaves you out, you’ll have brought it on yourself!”

As Guo Pengcheng passed by, he couldn’t resist taunting Bu Jing. After all, Bu Jing had just threatened to bash his own head in. Well, why not do it again now?

“Guo Pengcheng, gather them all here for me.”

Cross-eyed Xiao dropped into a chair at Guo Pengcheng’s stall, posture imperious.

“You all heard that? The boss is calling for you!” Guo Pengcheng’s voice rose dramatically, as if relaying Cross-eyed Xiao’s words was the greatest honor imaginable.

“We’re all here, boss. My name is Li Jianming,” said a man in his thirties, squeezing forward with a beaming smile.

“I’m here too, boss. My name is Si Boqing.”

“And me, my name is Qian…”

One after another, the stall owners introduced themselves, eager to make an impression and be remembered by Cross-eyed Xiao—hoping it might put them in his good graces when the problem was resolved.

But—

“You’ve all been in this market for years and must have built up quite a bit, haven’t you? If Chai Yanfan can sell her clothes for twenty-eight each, why can’t you? Afraid of losing to a woman? Aren’t you worried about being laughed at?” Cross-eyed Xiao opened his mouth, only to berate everyone. Not a word about solutions.

The crowd grew uneasy.

Was he really going to make them throw all their capital into a price war with Chai Yanfan? That was outrageous! They’d be burning through their own money—who would actually benefit? Only Cross-eyed Xiao!

“Boss, making money isn’t easy for us. From the look of it, Chai Yanfan could lower her prices even more. If we cut ours and she follows suit, we’d lose everything and still not beat her!” Li Jianming, ever the spokesman, voiced his concern first.

“That’s right! The root of the problem is Chai Yanfan.”

“Yes! Unless we can get rid of Chai Yanfan, our clothes won’t sell—no one would even take them at clearance prices!”

“Boss, you need to deal with Chai Yanfan! How can you expect us to compete with her by burning through our savings?”

The others quickly chimed in, voicing their refusal. Amid the commotion, Cross-eyed Xiao’s authority wavered. Some even raised their voices in protest.

Cross-eyed Xiao would have none of it.

He leapt to his feet. “Let me tell you the truth! This is all on my boss Huazi’s orders! Today, you’ll fight whether you want to or not! Otherwise…”

At this, he waved his hand.

With a swish, the eight thugs behind him stepped forward, fierce as demons, closing in around the crowd.