Chapter 740: Jiaojiao 20

This one was good at seeing which way the wind blew, knowing to humble himself when the situation looked bad. Immediately, Ye Rong said in a hoarse voice, "Boss Lady, I was blind to have offended you... Boss Lady, I’m willing to pay one million..."

Chen Jiao just hummed, and Ye Rong immediately upped his offer. "Two million, two million..."

Chen Jiao flicked her fingers. "Two million is indeed a lot, but I... don’t need it."

She spoke as she leaned maliciously toward Ye Rong. "Right now, all I want is your life."

Her tone was soft, but everyone could hear the malice in her words. Ye Rong shivered involuntarily. "B-Boss Lady..."

"It doesn’t matter what you call me." Chen Jiao stood up. "Get out of here. Just standing there is dirtying my floor."

Yuan Sheng, having regained a bit of his strength, forced himself to sit up. "Boss Lady... we never intended to lay a hand on you. When we came looking for you yesterday, we wanted to apologize in person..."

Chen Jiao scoffed. "Do you really take me for an idiot? What was in that room, how you set it up... do I need to spell it all out for you?"

Yuan Sheng froze, a look of panic appearing in his eyes for the first time as he stared at Chen Jiao. Chen Jiao smiled. "Go back and settle your affairs. If you handle it to my satisfaction, I might just let you live."

Yuan Sheng latched onto this lifeline. "Boss Lady, what is it that you want?"

Chen Jiao thought of the ordinary people Ye Rong and his men had oppressed, and the actresses they had threatened. A flicker of pity crossed her eyes. "I destroyed your master tapes, but the actresses don’t know that."

"How many innocent lives have you ruined over the years, throwing your weight around? We need to settle every last one of those accounts."

She said just enough to make her point. Yuan Sheng was a smart man; he would understand what she meant.

Chen Jiao tied up her hair in front of the mirror. "You have three days. If it’s not done by then, don’t bother looking for me."

She was developing her own method for dealing with bosses like Ye Rong: never show fear. Even though Chen Jiao was terrified inside, she maintained a strong front, not daring to let any other emotion show.

’Who knew how these people might retaliate later?’

At that thought, Chen Jiao tossed a sachet next to Zong Qi’s head. Zong Qi couldn’t help but inhale, and within moments, he felt strength returning to his limbs. He quickly scrambled to his feet.

"Miss Chen..." Unlike the others who called her Boss Lady, Zong Qi addressed her as Miss Chen. This was a subtle indicator that he wasn’t just a common thug, a point Chen Jiao naturally understood.

"Give this one... this one... and these few the antidote," Chen Jiao said, pointing out the men Tan You had indicated. "These ones haven’t done too much wrong, and they have families waiting for them. No need to wipe them all out."

The seven or eight henchmen who had just escaped death were so grateful they started crying. After helping each other up, they bowed repeatedly to Chen Jiao. "Thank you, Boss Lady! Thank you for showing us mercy!"

Hearing "Boss Lady" over and over was giving Chen Jiao a headache. She looked at the men. "You’re all young men in the prime of your lives. Why get into this line of work? Couldn’t you find any other job? Did you have to become thugs?"

One of the quicker-witted ones spoke up. "Miss Chen, we didn’t want to. But we don’t have much education. Manual labor doesn’t pay well, and we kept getting our wages docked... We just joined not too long ago."

Chen Jiao gave a half-smile. "You should count yourselves lucky you haven’t had time to commit any major evil. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have let you off so lightly. Go on, and live honestly from now on. If you ever cross my path again, it won’t end like this. I’m not always this merciful."

She was just parroting Tan You. How would she know how to threaten people? Tan You would say a line, and Chen Jiao would repeat it. With her stern expression, she looked rather intimidating, but she was a total paper tiger who would fold at the slightest touch.

Tan You, however, stared at the eight young thugs, gradually lost in thought. ’I need people right now. Maybe I can use these guys?’ She planned for Zong Qi to be Chen Jiao’s bodyguard, but Tan You wanted to get involved in charity, and you couldn’t do that without a team.

’But that can wait. First, I need to take care of Ye Rong and his crew.’

Seeing the nine men, including Zong Qi, about to leave, Chen Jiao suddenly smiled. "Zong Qi, I happen to need an assistant. Would you consider coming to work for me?"

"Underground boxing is too dangerous, and the work isn’t stable. I’ll pay ten thousand a month, on time."

Zong Qi stopped in his tracks. "For real? Just as an assistant?"

Chen Jiao smiled. "That’s right, just an assistant. And a part-time bodyguard when needed. The workload isn’t heavy. You’ll just have to follow me around all day, except when I’m sleeping."

Zong Qi didn’t even blink. "Alright. I’ll go resign from the Black Boxing Hall in a bit."

Chen Jiao was surprised. "You agreed so easily? You don’t need to think about it?"

Zong Qi finally smiled. "No need. A person only gets so many opportunities in their life. If I miss this one, there might not be a next time."

Chen Jiao said, "Alright, go on then. I’m heading to the set in a little while. Just come find me there."

Zong Qi nodded and left the room. The eight remaining underlings looked at Chen Jiao, then at Zong Qi, and suddenly swarmed after him. It was clear now that Chen Jiao was the real big shot. Now that Zong Qi was the Boss Lady’s assistant, they had to find a way to get a job from her to make a living.

With the nine men gone, the room felt much emptier. Chen Jiao ignored Ye Rong and his remaining men. "Go back and settle your affairs. If I don’t see you in three days, I’ll assume you’ve forfeited your chance."

"I’ll be watching you, so don’t think you can pull a fast one."

Yuan Sheng stared at Chen Jiao. "Aren’t you afraid we’ll call the police, threatening us like this?"

"Be my guest," Chen Jiao said, the corners of her lips turning up. "In fact, you can call them for me. A big group of you broke into my room late at night. What exactly were your intentions?"

"I’ll have a nice long chat with the officers then, too."

With no way out, Yuan Sheng didn’t waste any more words on Chen Jiao. He just forced himself to his feet. "We’ll come find you in three days."

Chen Jiao slung her backpack over her shoulder and pushed open the door. "It doesn’t matter to me whether you show up or not. If you don’t, it saves me the trouble, and society will be rid of a few pieces of trash."

With that, Chen Jiao left. As for the cash Ye Rong and his men had delivered two days ago, she had left it sitting brazenly in the room. Ye Rong and the others all saw the familiar suitcase, but not one of them dared to touch it.

Ye Rong stared at the suitcase for a long moment before gritting his teeth. "Let’s go!"

As for Zong Qi, after he left the hotel, he was just heading to the Black Boxing Hall when he heard footsteps and shouts from behind. "Brother Qi! Brother Qi!"

Zong Qi stopped and glanced back, frowning as the men caught up to him. "What is it?"