Chapter 147 — The Long-Awaited...

Yang Ce shook his head and was about to leave with Zhang Bin and the others, when unexpectedly the situation behind them took a slight turn.

The waitress's stammering only made the man in glasses more arrogant: "You East Asian sick men are all like this—always out to cheat and swindle people. No wonder counterfeit goods are everywhere."

Those words were rather hard to stomach. Yang Ce's brow furrowed at once, and he stopped in his tracks. He wanted to demand of this man in glasses just what country he was from.

But before Yang Ce could speak, someone else had already spoken up to challenge him: "What do you mean, East Asian sick men? Then what country are you from?"

"I'm an ethnic Chinese with Japanese nationality," the man in glasses said proudly.

"Motherfucker, so he's a Han traitor—beat him to death!" Someone, no one knew who, shouted, and the restaurant instantly descended into chaos. Pots, bowls, and pans clattered and clanged in a din, accompanied by the man's repeated screams.

Yang Ce was taken aback, then smiled. Wherever one went, in whatever place, people's patriotic fervor never changed.

Yang Ce lifted his foot to continue on his way. Zhang Bin, however, wanted to go join the fun and take a look, but the thought that Wang Mei's parents had not yet been rescued made him obediently follow Yang Ce upstairs.

Back in the room, seeing that Wang Mei was too embarrassed to speak up, Yang Ce took the initiative to ask for her phone and dialed Liu Jihao's number.

Liu Jihao had also risen early today; he attached great importance to this matter. If it succeeded, he would have rendered a great service in Ouyang Junwei's eyes.

In fact, Liu Jihao had also considered what the consequences would be if Yang Ce came here today. Liu Jihao understood Ouyang Junwei's character and the forces behind him quite well, so once Yang Ce came today, there was basically no going back.

And he, Liu Jihao, would become an accomplice to murder. Still, Liu Jihao weighed the pros and cons and decided it was worth it. First, Yang Ce was just an outsider—if he died, he died; so long as it was well covered up, there would not be much trouble.

A pleasant ringtone sounded from his phone. Liu Jihao's heart stirred; looking at that familiar number, he was so excited he could scarcely hold the phone steady.

"Hello, Yang Ce?" Liu Jihao picked up the phone. He knew the caller couldn't possibly be Wang Mei—it had to be Yang Ce.

"Yes, it's me. The check is ready," Yang Yanzhou said.

"A check?" A thought struck Liu Jihao like a thunderbolt. If Yang Ce died today, cashing that check would be a real headache. Alarmed, he blurted out, "Forget the check this time. I'm not letting you pull any more tricks on me—I want cash."

"Cash? That much—how am I supposed to carry it?" Yang Ce was taken aback. He hadn't expected Liu Jihao to make such a demand out of the blue.

"Get it in thousand-dollar notes. Two hundred bundles in a big suitcase—shouldn't be a problem," Liu Jihao said.

Only then did Yang Cenbin recall that Macanese pataca notes came in denominations up to a thousand—unlike the mainland. Twenty million in Macanese currency took up no more space than two million in mainland notes.

The demand seemed bizarre, but Yang Shuoxuan didn't give it much thought. He could understand how Liu Jihao felt. Tricked once already, the man had no choice but to be cautious this time.

"All right, I agree. But you'll have to give me some time to get it ready," Yang Ce said.

"Fine, but make it quick. Any delay, and—heh." Liu Jihao gave a cold snort. "Call me once you've got the money together."

He hung up, then said to Zhang Bin and Wang Mei, "Liu Jihao wants cash, not a check. I'm going out to make the withdrawal now. I'll take your phone—you and Zhang Bin wait at the hotel for my word. Don't go wandering off, and don't call me. If anything comes up, I'll call you."

"Got it, boss. Don't worry about us." Zhang Bin nodded, moved. He knew this was no time for words of thanks.

Yang Ce was a VIP client of Union Bank of Switzerland and held their VIP card, which let him withdraw directly at the counter. Twenty million in cash was nothing to a bank as renowned as UBS. In this great gambling city of Asia, the daily cash flow through the banks was staggering; Yang Puqi's withdrawal of twenty million was hardly cause for surprise.

The paperwork was done in no time. Yang Ce left the bank and, once in a place with no one around, called Liu Jihao again.

"Is the money ready?" Liu Jihao asked eagerly when he saw it was Yang Ce calling. Whatever fine promises Ouyang Junwei had made, none had been honored—only this twenty million was real and tangible. Just thinking that the money would soon be in his hands sent a thrill through him.

"It's ready. I just withdrew it from the bank. Where do we make the exchange?" Yang Yanchuan said.

"Take a taxi and come to the Fragrant Leaf Hill villa district on Coloane Island," Liu Jihao said. "When you get here, give me a call, and I'll send someone to collect you."

"All right, no problem." Whatever Liu Jihao said now, Yang Ce obeyed. First things first: get Wang Mei's parents out alive.

"Remember, no tricks. That would go very badly for you." Yang Puqi added a warning: "Come alone."

Yang Ce hadn't intended any tricks in the first place. Macau was not Songjiang—not Yang Juehuan's territory. After one incident like this, Yang Ce was doing his utmost to keep things steady rather than stir up complications.

He took a taxi to the Fragrant Leaf Hill villa district on Coloane Island, an upscale residential area where each villa stood far apart from the next. Yang Moyi couldn't help wondering—wasn't this Liu Jihao a little too cautious?

After getting out of the taxi, Yang Ce called Liu Jihao to tell him he had arrived at Fragrant Leaf Hill and to describe the buildings nearby.

Liu Jihao told him to wait a moment while he sent a car for him.

Before long, a black Honda Accord glided up and pulled to a stop beside Yang Juehuan.

The driver rolled down the window and poked half his head out. "Mr. Yang Ce?"

"That's me." Yang Yuting nodded.

"Get in. Boss Liu sent me to pick you up," the driver said.

Yang Shuoxuan said nothing more. He pulled open the rear door and climbed in. The car eased forward, threading through the villas, and finally stopped beside a house that did not look especially luxurious.

This villa, of course, did not belong to Ouyang Junwei or Ouyang Kanqi. It was Liu Jihao's, bought years ago with his private savings. The price had not been high then, and the location was not particularly good—he had even gotten a ten percent discount. Liu Jihao had treated it as a real estate investment; he never dreamed it would come in handy now.

Then again, Liu Jihao had no real desire to lure Yang Ce here. He knew full well what Ouyang Junwei intended. This was his own house—how unlucky would it be to have a man die inside it?

But Liu Jihao truly had no other option. Neither Ouyang Junwei nor Ouyang Kanqi owned property in Macau, and meeting at a hotel or anywhere else would only cause more trouble.

If anyone saw Yang Ce being killed, that would be a real mess. So for his own safety, and for his own future, Liu Jihao had no choice but to offer up his villa.

Fortunately, no one lived in the villa, and it was slated for sale anyway—if he kept his mouth shut, no one would ever know. And as for a villa's value—if Ouyang Junwei showed him a little more consideration in business from now on, this house would be nothing at all.

Weighing the pros and cons, Liu Jihao had led Yang Ce here.

"Boss Liu is waiting for you upstairs. Go on up," the driver said. He was one of Ouyang Junwei's men; Liu Jihao had deliberately kept every one of his own people out of it. Ouyang Junwei, too, feared that too many people would spoil the plan.