Chapter 103: Today, the Card Must Be Returned

These people were all dressed as farmers, wearing gray jackets with short sleeves; some had scarves tied around their heads, others wore straw sandals. There were men and women alike, spanning all ages from young to old. Yet what astonished Chen Huajiang most was that the leader was a woman, about twenty years old, with a red scarf tied around her head and a carrying pole in her hand.

“What’s going on? What are you all doing?”

“You dare make trouble on Black Tiger’s turf? You must be tired of living!”

Black Tiger was instantly furious; one look at these people and he knew they were here to cause trouble. He glared, rolling up his sleeves and preparing for a confrontation.

At his words, the many underlings in the shop quickly caught on, standing up one by one, rolling up their sleeves, shaking their legs, and shooting hostile glances at the newcomers.

“Everyone, calm down. If there’s something to discuss, let’s talk it out. Don’t let tempers flare and end up fighting, only for the issue to remain unresolved.”

Chen Huajiang hurriedly spoke, positioning himself in the middle and gently pushing Black Tiger back.

Turning to the others, Chen Huajiang gestured for them to step back as well. Since they were women, he couldn’t very well push them aside himself.

Fortunately, the other side was reasonable. Seeing Black Tiger pushed back, the woman also led her group to step back.

“You want to talk? That’s exactly what we came for today.”

“Your shop cheats people—charging three yuan each for a chicken drumstick from Zhao San, Wang Erdan, and Sun Shitou. This is outright robbery! If you don’t refund their money today, you might as well close your shop!”

The woman glared at Chen Huajiang, her face filled with anger.

Clearly, she took Chen Huajiang for the owner, the one in charge here.

Chen Huajiang immediately understood; this must be about the membership cards—Black Tiger’s scheme was still the same old routine.

Only, Chen Huajiang’s shop allowed both top-ups and withdrawals on membership cards, whereas Black Tiger’s was clearly one-way.

“May I ask who you are?”

Chen Huajiang scanned the group, noting how they all followed the woman’s lead, which piqued his curiosity.

With so many able-bodied men present, why was a woman the leader?

“Hmph, trying to get information out of us?”

“No harm telling you. We’re from Five-Star Township, Third Labor Brigade. I am Zhao Hongmei, captain of the Third Brigade.”

“No matter what you say today, you must refund the money.”

Zhao Hongmei announced her identity, her gaze toward Chen Huajiang full of loathing and hostility.

“Refund the money!”

“Refund the money!”

As Zhao Hongmei spoke, her team members behind her raised hoes and carrying poles, loudly echoing her demand.

The commotion drew a crowd outside, people gathering at the doorway to watch.

“Brother Tiger, it’s only a few yuan. Just give it back to them,” Chen Huajiang said to Black Tiger.

“Ahem, Brother Chen, come here a moment.”

Black Tiger’s expression soured. He pulled Chen Huajiang aside by the arm.

“Brother Chen, it’s not that I don’t want to refund them. The truth is, there’s no money left.”

“If I open this door, what happens when others come to refund their cards? Where will I find the money?”

Black Tiger’s face was grim. In the beginning, the membership card scheme brought in plenty of funds, but easy money made him careless, spending lavishly without restraint.

Later, business declined, and the remaining funds went to pay his underlings’ wages; even the ingredients he got from Chen Huajiang lately were on credit—there was simply no money left to refund.

Chen Huajiang had foreseen things would turn out this way, but he hadn’t expected Black Tiger’s spending to be so extravagant, burning through over eight thousand yuan in such a short time.

“Brother Tiger, let me ask you one question: do you intend to keep running this shop or not?”

“If you want to continue, I can lend you money, but from now on, the shop must follow my rules. If someone wants to refund their membership card, you have to pay them back. If you don’t want to continue, then close the shop—I’ll handle everything and cover the costs.”

Chen Huajiang spoke sternly; if things kept going like this, Black Tiger’s operation would be a bottomless pit.

By making things clear in front of everyone today, he could refuse Black Tiger’s future appeals for help outright, avoiding being dragged down.

Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Black Tiger’s face turned pale, then flushed. Chen Huajiang was giving him no face at all.

But in this situation, Black Tiger knew he had to make a choice—he only had himself to blame.

“So you’re the real owner of this shop!”

Zhao Hongmei had figured out the situation, pointing at Black Tiger.

“Captain Zhao, last time it was indeed him. He’s the real owner.”

“Yes, yes, last time it was him.”

“That dark-faced, thick-browed man is the shop owner; Captain Zhao, you just got the wrong person earlier.”

Several team members nodded in agreement.

“You’re not the shop owner, so why did you speak up earlier? What business is it of yours?”

“I see you’re working together—one plays good cop, the other bad cop. So, you’re playing tricks on us!”

Zhao Hongmei pointed at Chen Huajiang in anger, convinced she’d seen through their act.

Chen Huajiang rolled his eyes at her—this woman was certainly quick-tempered.

Still, he understood her fury; nine yuan between three people was no small sum.

“Alright, Brother Chen, I’ll do as you say. I won’t take advantage—you can have half the shares in the shop.”

“I’ve finally figured it out—I’m just not cut out for business. From now on, you’re in charge here.”

After some hesitation, Black Tiger gritted his teeth and agreed.

A week locked up had worn down his spirit; now, the shop seemed nothing but a source of bad luck, a hot potato.

In modern terms, it was a negative asset, with no hope of profit in sight.

“Very well, since that’s the case, I’ll take over the shop for now.”

Chen Huajiang understood Black Tiger’s thoughts and accepted without hesitation.

“Captain Zhao, rest assured—I’ll refund your money. Now that I’ve taken over, not a penny will be withheld.”

He approached Zhao Hongmei and spoke with certainty.

Then he had Black Tiger arrange the refunds.

“Ermao, make a sign: Anyone wishing to refund their membership cards, please come back in three days for unified processing.”

“The refund window will last for a week; after that, no more refunds will be accepted. Also, membership cards in the future will cost more, and there will be no more ‘buy one, get one free’ offers.”

Chen Huajiang instructed Ermao, then smiled at Zhao Hongmei and her group.

Zhao Hongmei looked disdainful—the goods here were outrageously expensive. If not for the cheating, only fools would buy membership cards.

But since Chen Huajiang promised refunds, Zhao Hongmei could only grumble inwardly, not aloud.

“At least your shop is reasonable. If you weren’t, I’d have smashed it today.”

As she left, Zhao Hongmei threw a provocative glance at Chen Huajiang and waved her team away.

They marched off like roosters celebrating a victory, full of pride.

Chen Huajiang smiled, knowing she spoke the truth.

The people of Five-Star Township were notoriously fierce—the most troublesome in Nanming City—and took pride in their martial spirit.

Their creed was simple: Don’t provoke others, but if provoked, retaliate without hesitation.

“Wait a moment.”

“What, changing your mind?”

Chen Huajiang called out to them. Zhao Hongmei turned, cocking her head and shooting him a sideways glance, her posture brimming with challenge.