Li Qing had no time to listen to Lü Zong spouting nonsense about how awesome or impressive he was.

What he was more concerned about right now was exactly what had happened to Lü Zong’s injury!

Without a doubt, he was implicated.

Yet Lü Zong had kept this from him, never mentioning a word about it.

"Lü Zong, how serious is this injury? I want to hear the facts," Li Qing said gravely.

"Look at you, hardheaded as always, I’ve already told you it’s nothing serious, I’m fine," Lü Zong said with a smile, glancing at Li Qing.

But noticing Li Qing’s solemn face, he hesitated, then said helplessly, "Honestly, it’s not a big deal, just ran into a hot-headed kid."

"Got slashed in the head by that bastard. I was foolish, just lifted my arm thinking I could block someone’s knife."

"Ended up getting both my head and arm sliced, took a few dozen stitches."

"But seriously, just for this cut, I exchanged it for three clubs at an incredibly low price, I didn’t lose out at all. Moreover, those Qi Family brats didn’t get the better of me, I took out two of them on the spot."

"Though I engage in legitimate business now, back in the day I fought my way out properly, I’m no stranger to such scenes."

Li Qing felt a complex mix of emotions upon hearing this.

This was clearly a trouble he had brought upon Lü Zong.

"Let me tell you, you shouldn’t feel any guilt about this, this is exactly why I didn’t dare tell you," Lü Zong said solemnly, "I consider you a brother, don’t you dare not see me as one, hesitating and holding back with me."

"Besides, when you live in the underworld, everyone should be prepared to take some risks."

Lü Zong delivered this preemptive strike so well that Li Qing didn’t know what to say anymore.

But he still felt uncomfortable.

"Stop with that sad, sympathetic look. It’s just a slash and a couple of cuts, no big deal!" Lü Zong said sternly, "Compared to what we’ve gained now, I should be thanking you. The Qi family’s major shake-up has led to many opportunities falling into our laps,"

"Not only did I gain three clubs, but even the prospect of taking over the whole county’s new rural project, soon we’ll make a big splash together, netting a quick one or two million first."

Seeing this, Li Qing had no choice but to hold back the gestures he was preparing to make.

No matter what he expressed, Lü Zong would probably actually get angry.

He chuckled lightly and said, "If I’d known you’d ended up like this, Lü Zong, I should have brought some nourishments when I came."

Lü Zong burst out laughing, "You can go down and buy some later, that’s what I want!"

"That’s more like it, something a brother of mine should say. If you were to do something out of guilt, then you wouldn’t have me as a brother. I’m a stubborn man and I stick to my guns."

"Alright, alright, I’ll go down and buy some later!" Li Qing said with a helpless smile.

"Come on, let’s go have a drink," Lü Zong said, getting to his feet and patting Li Qing on the shoulder.

"With you in this condition, should you really be drinking?" Li Qing said.

After an injury, one can normally do most things, but definitely should not drink alcohol.

"I’ll drink tea, and later I’ll have Lao Gong accompany you for a proper drink, don’t you dare refuse today," Lü Zong said gravely.

"We have to drink well for our grand plans ahead."

"Alright," Li Qing said with a light laugh, nodding his head.

The man had been chopped up like this; the drink was definitely owed.

At this time, guests were gradually arriving at the dance hall.

Lü Zong led Li Qing to his exclusive booth, ordered some snacks like crayfish for drinking, and got a few bottles of alcohol.

They had just sat down for a moment when Brother Gong arrived in a flurry.

"Brother Gong, looks like you’ll need to drink a bit more today," Li Qing said to the suit-clad Brother Gong with a wicked grin.

Brother Gong sat down beside Li Qing, "Shouldn’t you, Qingzi, be the one drinking more? Why do I need to drink more?"

Lü Zong lit a cigar and, pointing at Gong Ge, said, "You really need to drink more today."

"Lü Zong, why is that?" Gong Ge asked, puzzled.

"Lü Zong got chopped up like this, why didn’t you tell me?" Li Qing asked in a grave tone.

Gong Ge shrank his neck, "This is... what Lü Zong instructed!"

Lü Zong nodded with a smile, "So, you’ve got to drink up."

Gong Ge: ...

The explosive music started playing.

One after another, scantily clad girls took to the stage, passionately displaying their enchanting figures with hot dances.

They twisted their waists and shook their hips, working hard to stimulate the men’s hormones in the audience.

Cheers and whistles rose and fell in waves.

In the midst of this sudden wave of heat, Gong Ge had already downed two bottles of alcohol.

"Is this about enough? If I drink any more, I’m afraid I’ll be close to gone," said Gong Ge, belching from the booze.

Li Qing calmly sucked on a crayfish, "Drink one more bottle, and we’ll consider this matter settled."

"Just one bottle. I think Qingzi has been quite generous already," Lü Zong, sipping his tea, didn’t think it was a big deal at all.

Gong Ge wore an expression of utter desolation, taking a good while to muster the strength to pick up the bottle again.

"Great tolerance, Gong Ge!" Li Qing laughed.

Gong Ge let out a long burp and said gloomily, "It’s always the little brother who gets hurt!"

"So, add one more bottle, and I’ll also consider the matter settled," Lü Zong said indifferently.

Gong Ge: ...

He lightly smacked his own face, muttering, "This darn mouth of mine."

After Gong Ge forcefully poured another bottle down himself, the rhythm finally slowed down.

The three chatted sporadically, watching as the nightclub grew livelier with the descent of night.

The men and women on stage were starting to get restless.

Some were sneakily getting it on right in their booths.

In front of Li Qing’s table sat six or seven young people who looked like college students, each with a ’little sister’ they had ordered.

They drank and played, concocting a rich variety of tricks.

This was the colorful nightlife of Tongcheng.

Don’t think it’s just a county, but it was even more bustling than the city it belonged to.

"Lü Zong, do you allow this kind of thing here?" Li Qing glanced at the booth in front and asked.

Lü Zong put on a profoundly meaningful smile and said, "I run a legitimate business, so of course I forbid any of that mess."

"But my manpower is really limited, and supervision isn’t that thorough. They do things sneakily, and it’s hard for me to catch them."

Li Qing shook his head with a smile, thinking that this was a tale for the naive.

What sneakily.

He had just seen with his own eyes a girl sitting down at the booth in front.

It’s just that the place was slightly more conservative, stopping short of stripping outright, but what happened was still quite blatant.

"Stop watching them; it’s not interesting. Let’s move to a quieter spot. I’ll take you to check out some of the fine tea I’ve newly acquired!" Lü Zong stood up, signaling the waiter to prepare a few more dishes to be sent to the private room.