Chapter 303: Spring Breeze at Eighteen Degrees

Zheng Dan's face darkened. "What does Chief Chen mean by this?" she asked. This request was truly outrageous, and she couldn't help but wonder why he would propose it.

Chen Xuan laughed heartily. "It means exactly what I said," he replied. "Your figure alone is captivating, so I've always been curious about the peerless beauty hidden beneath your veil."

"Chief Chen," Zheng Dan retorted, now thoroughly enraged, "I treated you as a guest, but you're being utterly disrespectful. From this moment on, all previous agreements between the Giant Whale Gang and Black Wind Fortress are null and void. Guards, escort our guest out!"

She even considered using her home advantage to kill him on the spot, but after much hesitation, she decided against it. After all, Chen Xuan's cultivation was exceptionally high; he had lived a carefree life despite being besieged by various masters over the years, and she didn't know what other trump cards he might possess.

Since she wasn't confident she could keep him, expelling him from the island was the only option.

She was even worried about what would happen if he became completely enraged and started causing trouble on the island frequently.

However, the eerie silence around her quickly brought her back to reality. She instinctively sat up straight and looked at Liu Chan, who was seated below her. "Manager Liu, didn't you hear me?"

Liu Chan chuckled. "Of course I heard you. It's just that we're also quite curious about what the Gang Leader looks like beneath her veil."

Zheng Dan's pupils contracted. She finally understood why she had felt an unsettling strangeness ever since coming to the island. These men had already harbored ill intentions.

Ya Xiao, who had returned with Zheng Dan, slammed his hand on the table. "Liu, what do you mean by this? How dare you disrespect the Gang Leader?"

"Don't get so worked up, Ya Xiao," Liu Chan sneered. "Everyone knows you admire the Gang Leader, but after being her lackey for so many years, have you ever seen her face?"

"This..." Ya Xiao's breath hitched. He had to admit he hadn't, and the thought was quite disheartening to him.

"Constantly fawning will get you nowhere in the end," Liu Chan laughed heartily. "Why not join us for a big score? You'll naturally get your share then."

"Shut up!" Ya Xiao trembled all over, finally unable to tolerate the insult to the goddess in his heart.

At this point, Zheng Dan spoke. "Liu Chan, I believe I've treated you all well. Why betray me?"

"Not bad?" Liu Chan scoffed. "Objectively speaking, you have treated us well. But you are, after all, a woman, and you're only on the island for a few days each month. Even when you are here, you always wear a veil. It's already absurd enough to have a woman as gang leader, but you make yourself so mysterious. Which of the brothers below isn't suspicious? Many worry you might sell us out without us even knowing."

"Just because of that?" Zheng Dan frowned. She knew that being absent from the headquarters for extended periods could lead to losing control over her subordinates. However, as the eldest daughter of the Zheng family, she couldn't stay on the island indefinitely.

This was an insoluble problem.

Yet, she had tried to mitigate this influence in many ways, employing a mix of kindness and strictness. She had believed her methods were effective, but reality had delivered a harsh slap to her face.

"Of course, there's more," Liu Chan continued. "Our illicit salt business has been thriving these past few years, but for some reason, Gang Leader, you've deliberately kept our output low. Refusing to make money just shows how timid women are. It's fine if you're timid, but blocking the path to wealth for so many brothers is unacceptable. Therefore, we'll simply find a more capable leader."

"What do you know? That's because... because..." Zheng Dan was furious, but halfway through her explanation, she trailed off, unable to continue.

Some reasons simply couldn't be stated.

Her main purpose in establishing the Giant Whale Gang was to generate income for the Zheng family. However, as official salt merchants, the Zheng family couldn't act recklessly.

Furthermore, the Sang family controlled the River Defense Camp. If the illicit salt smuggling became too blatant, would they intervene or not?

Only in the last two years, when the Sang family needed to deal with the Chu family, did they start to relax the output limits.

Yet, Sang Hong was still a prefect of the imperial court, and he couldn't make things too obvious, so the output volume was never maximized.

All these combined reasons led to the current situation, but could these reasons be voiced?

The various managers of the Giant Whale Gang sneered inwardly, assuming she had been rendered speechless.

At this moment, Chen Xuan spoke. "Gang Leader Guan, you needn't be angry. In truth, it's quite tiring for a woman to be out in the open like this. From now on, you can be my 'fortress mistress.' You'll still have everything you desire, and these men will remain your subordinates. Not just them, even my men from Black Wind Fortress will respectfully call you 'Madam.' Imagine how much more formidable that would be than your current position."

"You want me to be your fortress mistress? A toad trying to eat swan meat!" Zheng Dan spat, her voice filled with contempt.

She came from a wealthy and prominent family, and her fiancé's family held the position of a prefect of a commandery, with an illustrious background. How could she possibly look favorably upon a bandit from the criminal underworld?

No matter how famous Chen Xuan became, he was still just a bandit leader.

Sooner or later, he would be annihilated by the authorities.

"A toad..." Chen Xuan's expression turned cold, and his tone changed. "Guan, who do you think you are? Me letting you be my fortress mistress is an immense blessing for you. Otherwise, once the drug takes effect, after I'm done with you, I'll throw you to your subordinates for a round. I imagine they'd be very interested in serving their former big sister."

The men led by Liu Chan all gazed at her with fervent expressions.

Ordinarily, this beautiful and mysterious gang leader was high above them all. Which man on this island, in the quiet of the night, hadn't fantasized about pinning her down and ravishing her?

Before, it was just a fantasy, but today, they truly had a chance to get close to her.

"Drug? What drug?" Zheng Dan's heart skipped a beat.

Chen Xuan couldn't help but laugh. "I'm always cautious in my actions. Although I don't believe your cultivation is higher than mine, you are, after all, a gang leader. Fearing you might have some special abilities, I specifically had them put a little something in your tea just now."

Even upon learning of her subordinates' betrayal, Zheng Dan hadn't panicked much before, but now her face truly changed completely. She suddenly looked towards the teacup she had just used.

How could she have anticipated being drugged by her own people, on her own territory?

She hastily tried to circulate her energy to force out the poison, but Chen Xuan, standing nearby, shook his head. "It's useless. This drug of mine is called 'Eighteen Degrees of Spring Breeze.' Its effect is very peculiar. While 'one degree of spring breeze' is common, after taking this drug, one must experience eighteen 'degrees' to completely detoxify. Otherwise, you'll be consumed by lustful fire and explode."

After speaking, he paused and added, "To be honest, I'm not even sure if I have the ability for eighteen times in one night. But luckily, you have these subordinates to help out, hahaha~"

"Shameless!" Zheng Dan was both mortified and enraged. She found herself completely unable to expel the poison, and her body was growing hotter and hotter. She simply lunged at Chen Xuan, intending to fight him to the death before the drug fully took effect.