87: Eat melons, eat big melons

Early morning, the mist had not yet dispersed.

The streets and alleys of the Shanghai rang out with the crisp yet slightly panicked cries of the newsboys.

"Extra! Extra! Breaking news!"

Today, the newsboys' slogans were more urgent and louder than usual:

"Zhang Fayao, son of Green Gang tycoon Boss of Hooligans, was killed last night!"

"The eldest young master of the Zhang family was shot dead by a Little Jap at his own 'Xinli' Casino!"

"Japan ronin shot Zhang Fayao in the head; read the 'Shen Bao' to learn about the tragic scene!"

The newsboys waved newspapers that still smelled of ink, running and shouting.

This explosive news was like a sudden clap of thunder, instantly waking the sleeping streets.

Early risers stopped in their tracks, their expressions filled with suspicion and uncertainty.

"What? Zhang Fayao is dead?"

"Killed by the japanese? In his own casino?"

"Quick! Buy a paper and see!"

"My god... something big is going to happen!"

People lined up to buy newspapers, and as soon as they got one, they couldn't wait to open and read it.

While reading, they whispered to those around them, their faces full of shock and disbelief.

At breakfast stalls, rickshaw driver gathering spots, and alleyway entrances... everyone was discussing the same topic: Zhang Fayao's death!

The murderer was a japanese man named "Takebe Shijin"!

As the sun rose in the east, the entire city jolted awake in shock.

The news of Zhang Fayao being shot by a japanese gambler spread rapidly to every corner of Shanghai along with the newsboys roaming the streets.

It became the most explosive and heart-pounding topic of conversation of the day.

The entire Shanghai was shaken.

Meanwhile, the culprit, Lu Fan, was currently oblivious to the outside world, focused solely on sleeping soundly.

Over four hours of surgery, a one-on-three gunfight, transforming into a japanese to cause a scene at the Xinli Casino, and headshotting Zhang Fayao to pull the weeds out by the roots.

Each of these events was quite energy-consuming; sleeping a bit longer was perfectly reasonable.

It wasn't until noon that he woke up leisurely, leaning against the headboard to light a cigarette as the scenes from last night clearly resurfaced.

To be honest, while treating A-Fu, he hadn't yet intended to kill Zhang Fayao.

A Traitor is a Traitor, but at least for now, there wasn't enough evidence to prove the Zhang family had already defected to the Little Japs.

Besides, the other party had the halo of one of The Three Tycoons in the Shanghai; a complete falling out would not be beneficial for his life in the Shanghai.

But the moment the three brothers, Long, Hu, and Bao, ambushed him, Zhang Fayao officially entered his kill list.

And it was the kind that had to be uprooted completely.

Thus, the japanese "Takebe Shijin" came into being, and the grand play began.

Finally, the exciting plot at the Xinli Casino was performed brilliantly under the witness of the crowd.

This grand play not only allowed him to pull the weeds by the roots but also avenged A-Fu.

More importantly, it pinned the blame on the Little Japs, letting the Traitor and the Japs fight like dogs.

Even if it couldn't change the fact that they would collaborate in the future, it was still excellent to disgust them.

It wasn't an exaggeration to say it killed four birds with one stone.

Perfect!

With his thoughts clear, Lu Fan's steps downstairs were much lighter.

He had a quick piece of bread and drank some tea for a while.

Just as he was thinking of going out to see A-Fu.

Tang Jifeng rushed into the study, waving the newspaper in his hand.

"Brother Fan, have you heard? That bastard son of Boss of Hooligans, Zhang Fayao!

Last night at his own casino, he was shot dead by a Little Jap!

Hahaha! He's dead as a doornail!"

Lu Fan's hand pouring tea paused slightly, then immediately returned to calm. He pushed the teacup over and said in a flat tone, "What's the situation?"

"Heh! It's truly satisfying!" Tang Jifeng picked up the teacup and drained it in one gulp.

"What was that Little Jap called... right, Takebe Shijin. He won a mountain of money at Zhang Fayao's Xinli Casino.

That bastard Zhang Fayao couldn't afford to lose. When acting tough failed, he directly cheated at the gambling table.

As a result, his cheating method was seen through by someone with superior skills.

That Jap was also a ruthless character; he just sent Zhang Fayao on his way with a single shot.

Satisfying! Truly damn satisfying!"

Lu Fan asked nonchalantly, "Looking at you, do you have a grudge against Zhang Fayao?"

"Not exactly a grudge, I just couldn't stand him." Tang Jifeng lit a cigarette and spoke with righteous indignation, "You have no idea.

Relying on his father's power, that kid bullied the markets and the people in the Shanghai, doing every bad deed imaginable.

Forcibly taking women, lending money at usurious rates to drive people to their deaths, helping the japanese with futures speculation... he was simply scum!

This time it's great, evil people are dealt with by other evil people, and he got finished off by an Eastern Devil!

Haha, karma! It's truly karma!"

The more he spoke, the more excited he became, making no effort to hide his schadenfreude, wishing he could set off a string of firecrackers right then and there to celebrate.

Lu Fan listened quietly, the expression on his face not fluctuating much.

He just nodded slightly, occasionally giving an "mm," playing the role of a proper listener.

After Tang Jifeng finished speaking heartily, he finally spoke calmly: "Sounds like this person was indeed... notorious.

However, to openly kill someone in a casino, and the son of Boss of Hooligans at that, this Little Jap's guts are a bit too big."

"Big? The bigger the better!" Tang Jifeng slapped the table and said indignantly, "That old thing Boss of Hooligans isn't anything good either!

Among The Three Tycoons, he's the worst of the lot. He'll do any evil deed just to rake in money.

On the surface, people call him Tycoon Zhang, but behind his back, who doesn't call him a leader of hooligans.

Let him and the Little Japs fight like dogs; we'll just watch the show!"

Tang Jifeng handed the newspaper in his hand to Lu Fan, "Brother Fan, look at the paper. The description of the scene... tsk tsk, it's truly satisfying!"

He then crossed his legs and leisurely drank tea and smoked, immersed in great pleasure.

Lu Fan took the newspaper and began to read it carefully. The study suddenly fell silent, leaving only the curling smoke of sandalwood incense.

"Fourth Young Master!" Lu Fan put down the newspaper and turned to the main topic, "There's something I need your help with."

"Oh? What is it? As long as I can do it, I won't refuse." Tang Jifeng lit a Huazi and agreed readily.

"I want to choose a piece of land in your defense zone to build an industrial park." Lu Fan came straight to the point.

With the war starting in a few months, the matter of the industrial park had to be implemented immediately.

"I know about this. Seventh Miss Sheng already mentioned it to me. How big do you want it?"

Tang Jifeng didn't even look up, focusing on playing with his tea pet.

Seeing this, Lu Fan said unceremoniously, "I need quite a bit of land, about... three thousand mu."

"Three thousand mu?" Tang Jifeng's hand holding the teacup paused, his eyebrows raised slightly, "Brother Fan, for a textile mill, why do you need so much land?"

"Initially, it will be in three areas: spinning, weaving, and dyeing. Later, more projects will be added.

So I want to settle the land issue all at once to avoid wasting effort later." Lu Fan stopped there without going into detail.

If he were to explain the overall master plan in detail, it would not only shock Tang Jifeng but even Old Man Jiang would be startled.

Tang Jifeng frowned and asked, "Are there any requirements?"

Lu Fan spoke eloquently as the topic opened up: "There are two key requirements:

First, shipping must be convenient, preferably along the Xiang River with the potential for a deep-water pier;

Second, there must be a foundation for power supply, or a nearby water source where a small power plant can be built for supplementation."

Tang Jifeng put down his teacup, looked at Lu Fan, and spoke leisurely, "Brother Gen, don't hold back. Tell me where you've set your sights on."