Volume 1, Chapter 24: Judging by the look of Sun Zifu, he had clearly come seeking revenge!

Such shops typically make a living by charging a five-yuan service fee per canister to transport gas from the depot on behalf of their customers.

"How much is a canister of gas now?"
"110 yuan!"

In Taoyuan Village, almost every household uses firewood. Lin Xiaoxu’s home and the place where Shen Yulian used to live are no exceptions. At 110 yuan a canister, and with it running out in less than half a month, wouldn't that cost two or three hundred yuan a month? Surely, no villager in Taoyuan would be willing to throw away money like that. The first step in Lin Xiaoxu’s plan to give Shen Yulian a better life was to have her switch to gas, so she would never have to climb the mountains to chop wood or rake pine needles again.

"Give me two canisters. I’ll transport them back to Taoyuan Village myself."
"Sure, but there’s a 100-yuan deposit for each gas cylinder!"
"Fine!"
"Do you need a gas stove? The appliance shop next door is mine too."
"Help me pick out a decent gas stove and add a rice cooker."

While the owner was grinning from ear to ear, busy selecting the stove and rice cooker, Lin Xiaoxu slipped into the pharmacy across the street to buy a pouch of acupuncture needles. By the time he returned, the owner had just finished loading the two gas canisters, the stove, and the rice cooker onto Lin Xiaoxu’s tricycle. After paying the 850 yuan and collecting his receipt, Lin Xiaoxu drove his motorized tricycle back toward Taoyuan Village. The wind on the road, carrying the faint scent of wildflowers, brushed against his face, making him feel exceptionally refreshed.

"Stop!"

Not long after Lin Xiaoxu turned onto the muddy path leading into Taoyuan Village, over a dozen figures lunged out from the brush, blocking his way. These men were either chewing on cigarettes or tucking them behind their ears, and they held iron rods or fiddled with butterfly knives, their faces radiating a hooligan aura.

A man with a thick plaster cast on his index finger emerged from the crowd, carrying an iron rod on his shoulder, and walked up to Lin Xiaoxu. Lin Xiaoxu sneered; he recognized this man as Sun Zifu, the agricultural market administrator whose finger he had broken the previous day. By the looks of it, Sun Zifu had come for revenge. Just then, another man slowly emerged from the bushes; his face was swollen and bruised, with a visible bloodstain on one cheek.

"Lin Xiaoxu, you god-forsaken hick!"

The man with the bruised face was none other than Li Daying. "If we hadn't wasted time tracking you down, do you think you'd still be alive? Brother Fu and I would have sent you to your grave last night!" Li Daying’s eyes were bloodshot, looking almost as if they were bleeding—a gruesome sight. Everything that had happened yesterday had made him feel humiliated and disgraced, and all of it was because of this damn hick, Lin Xiaoxu.

"Pah!" Sun Zifu spat his cigarette butt onto the ground, followed by a glob of phlegm. Having had his finger snapped by Lin Xiaoxu, he was furious. "Lin Xiaoxu, if you’re smart, you’ll crawl over here, kneel before me, kowtow to apologize, and break your own legs. Then maybe I’ll spare your miserable life!"

Before Lin Xiaoxu could speak, Li Daying lifted his chin triumphantly and added, "Lin Xiaoxu, see that big pit over there? The brothers dug it just for you. I suggest you stop stalling and do it yourself—trading your legs for a chance to live is a good deal!"

Lin Xiaoxu looked in the direction Li Daying was pointing. Indeed, there was a large pit. Judging by the color of the freshly piled earth, it had clearly been dug recently. Hmph, he had thought Li Daying and Sun Zifu’s group were just petty thugs playing around. He hadn't expected them to be deranged enough to commit murder.

"This pit is so small, it wouldn't even be enough to bury all dozen of you," Lin Xiaoxu said playfully.

"Lin Xiaoxu, if not for a moment of carelessness yesterday, do you really think you could have broken Brother Fu’s finger? Brother Fu may be an administrator at the agricultural market, but not long ago, he joined the Black Panther Gang! He’s under the protection of Boss Leopard—what the hell are you acting so arrogant for?"

Facing Lin Xiaoxu’s composure, and remembering the brutal ferocity he had displayed yesterday, Li Daying couldn't help but feel a twinge of fear. But then he remembered that Sun Zifu had brought over a dozen men who lived by the blade, and with the fearsome reputation of Boss Leopard backing them, Li Daying regained his confidence.

"What kind of bull-crap Black Panther Gang is that? I suggest you rename it the Black Cat Gang; it suits you bunch of losers much better!" Ever since Lin Xiaoxu had mastered the Nine Heavens Lingyun Technique, he hadn't had a real chance to fight. Now, these dozen men would serve as perfect practice.

"You’ve got guts, you hick! Let’s see how tough your mouth is when I start slicing the flesh off your bones one piece at a time!" Sun Zifu was livid. "Break his teeth first!"

"Yes!" The dozen men immediately surrounded Lin Xiaoxu on his tricycle. Lin Xiaoxu rolled his neck, his bones popping loudly. He hopped off the tricycle and took a step forward to meet the challenge.

Suddenly, a car horn blared from behind, followed by a man’s roar: "You fools! How dare you lay a hand on Divine Doctor Lin! Are you tired of living?"

Everyone’s attention was drawn to the sound. A Honda Odyssey pulled up next to Lin Xiaoxu’s tricycle. The door opened, and two burly men helped a man in a wheelchair out of the vehicle. When they saw who it was, Sun Zifu and the dozen thugs were stunned.

"Boss Leopard, what happened to you?"

The man in the wheelchair was none other than Chen Bao, the leader of the Black Panther Gang. Unlike his imposing self from a few days ago, Chen Bao now had sunken, dark-circled eyes, a gaunt face, and purple lips. It was clear at a glance that he was either severely injured or suffering from a grave illness.

"This is between him and me. All of you, get out of here!" Chen Bao mustered his strength, his finger trembling as he pointed toward Lin Xiaoxu.

Li Daying hadn't expected to see the legendary Boss Leopard in the flesh. His eyes darted around, and he concluded that Chen Bao must have ended up in a wheelchair because of Lin Xiaoxu. With his livelihood gone, if he could win Chen Bao’s favor, join the Black Panther Gang, and become a lackey by his side, wouldn't that be hundreds of times better than selling fruit?