Casting immortality in the furnace

Chapter 18 Dispute

Seeing the cold stares of the crowd, and their restless expressions, he broke out in a cold sweat.

"Damn it, if they're all swayed by this kid, my plan will be ruined!"

Zhang Kai initially volunteered to be the squad leader in order to gather a group of people.

If you can bring seven or eight people with you, working under those deacons will be much more valuable than working alone. Getting a position as an inspector or leader won't be difficult.

The reason he was so furious with the chubby boy for being late today was because he realized that his subordinates were not behaving themselves and he wanted to make an example of them.

But to his surprise, the chubby boy threw down his stall and overturned the table, leaving him no choice but to use force to suppress him.

Although this would cause resentment among his subordinates, he had to nip this rebellion in the bud, otherwise who would listen to him?

That would have been the end of it. He could have treated everyone to a drink later, comforted them, and with Cao Biao playing the good cop/bad cop, everything in the team would have continued as before.

But to everyone's surprise, Liu Ergou and Fan Zhou actually came out to stand up for this chubby boy!

Zhang Kai didn't want to escalate the situation, because he knew he wouldn't get away with it in the end.

Thinking of this, Zhang Kai forcefully suppressed his anger, and his tone became less harsh:

"I disciplined the chubby boy because he was late and didn't know how to behave. I didn't originally intend to beat him up."

"But I never expected him to quit. If he doesn't continue, and the task isn't completed, the responsibility will fall entirely on my shoulders!"

"I hit him out of anger, not on purpose."

Zhang Kai adopted a humble attitude and appeared sincere.

He said these things to appease people and prevent them from harboring resentment towards him.

But Liu Ergou still shook his head, his face stern, and said:

"What you did was wrong; you need to apologize to him."

Zhang Kai's expression froze. Of course, he couldn't apologize, let alone make amends.

Because wouldn't that prove he really did something wrong?

How could he possibly admit that he made a mistake? He still needed to establish his prestige and continue to win people's hearts!

Fan Zhou glanced at the chubby boy on the ground. He was still unconscious, lying motionless, his face covered in bruises and swollen bruises.

"Zhang Kai, you beat someone up like this, it's not something you can explain away with just a few words."

"I'm going to find Deacon Liang and ask him to uphold justice."

Before he finished speaking, Zhang Kai's expression had already turned cold.

"These two brats are clearly trying to drive me to my death!"

Zhang Kai clenched his fists tightly, frantically searching for a solution in his mind.

"Don't push your luck!"

At this moment, Cao Biao roared angrily and shouted with righteous indignation:

"This is our team's business, it's none of your concern, you two brats!"

He pointed at Old Sun, who was smoking behind him, and said without any politeness:

"Old man! Take your men back right now, or don't blame us for being impolite!"

Old Sun walked over with a gloomy expression.

Cao Biao crossed his arms and looked at Fan Zhou and Liu Ergou with disdain:

"Damn it, you two brats are showing off here, thinking you're so tough! Let me tell you, get out of here, or if you dare say another word about me, I'll slap you across the face!"

Old Sun walked up to Fan Zhou and the others. Cao Biao was about to make a sarcastic remark when he saw Old Sun raise his arm.

Snapped!

A crisp sound, like a firecracker exploding!

Old Sun slapped Cao Biao hard across the face, sending his nearly 200-pound body flying. Cao Biao rolled twice on the ground, his face contorted in pain, his left cheek swollen with a bruise over an inch high. He lay on the ground, unable to get up.

"You son of a bitch! Calling me 'old man' all the time, do you think I don't have a temper?!" Old Sun roared.

His move stunned everyone.

No one expected that this old man, who looked like a farmer, would have such strength.

Their pupils shrank as they opened.

He was standing closest to Cao Biao, and he saw the moment Old Sun made his move. He knew that with his strength, he would never have been able to dodge it.

"Could it be that Old Man Sun is at the fourth level of the embryonic breathing cultivation stage?"

Thinking of this, Zhang Kai broke out in a cold sweat.

Old Sun took a few deep drags on his pipe, then turned his gaze to Zhang Kai.

He didn't want to meddle in other people's business, and he wouldn't have taken action if Cao Biao hadn't insisted on targeting him.

After all, he's getting old and just wants to work hard and earn some money to support himself in his old age.

But now that we've made our move, we have to go all the way.

Old Sun exhaled a puff of smoke, his wrinkled face grim.

"Zhang Kai, your wanton humiliation of your fellow disciples is a serious violation of the sect rules! Will you voluntarily come with me to see Deacon Liang, or shall I take you there?"

"No……!"

Zhang Kai was so frightened that he retreated repeatedly. The previous troublemaker had already been thrown into iron ore mining by Liang Yong, and he didn't want to end up like that.

His mind raced for a moment, and he stubbornly insisted:

"Don't make false accusations! I'm their leader, and I have the right to discipline them!"

"Besides, this chubby kid insulted me first, that's why I hit him! Everyone saw it!"

Zhang Kai shouted to the people in his squad:

"Hey, you all saw that, right? You have to be my witnesses!"

No one responded to him.

Zhang Kai panicked: "I'm your leader! If it weren't for me, who would lead you to get those extra monthly bonuses?"

"Have you forgotten how many times I've treated you to drinks? You can't be ungrateful!"

But no matter how much he shouted, no one responded; they just watched coldly.

Zhang Kai was in despair; he hadn't expected that not a single person would stand up for him.

"You bunch of ungrateful wretches! Even if I fed a dog, it would bark twice!" Zhang Kai cursed angrily.

Suddenly, taking advantage of a moment when no one was paying attention, he took off running and fled down the mountain.

"Quick, after them!"

"Don't let him get away!"

Someone shouted, and those who had been watching coldly rushed over. Judging from their expressions, they were clearly not going to let Zhang Kai go.

Old Sun was even more agile, overtaking them in a few leaps and closely following behind Zhang Kai.

Liu Ergou watched from afar, then suddenly asked:

"Fan Zhou, do you think it's that hard to get him to apologize?"

Fan Zhou squatted down to check on the chubby boy and casually replied:

"It's difficult. He'll only blame you for meddling, and won't reflect on whether he made a mistake."

Liu Ergou hung his head in disappointment. "I thought I could be like Uncle Huang, using reason to persuade others and get them to admit their mistakes and apologize."

Fan Zhou replied without turning his head, "When your magic reaches the heavens, everyone will listen to your reasoning."

Liu Ergou was stunned.

Fan Zhou didn't say much. He reached out and pinched the little fat boy's waist, waking him up in pain.

The first thing the chubby boy did upon waking up was to burst into tears:

"Waaaaah!! I want to go home!!"

"I'm quitting this job!"

The chubby boy got up from the ground and walked down the mountain while crying.

Fan Zhou watched his retreating figure, wanting to say something, but then gave up.

Liu Ergou spoke up, "It seems he doesn't intend to thank us either."

Fan Zhou shrugged and said, "That's more like it."

Liu Ergou pursed his lips and remained silent.

Fan Zhou looked at him and asked, "If there were a next time, would you still help others like this?"

Liu Ergou hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

Fan Zhou laughed heartily and patted him on the shoulder forcefully: "Well done!"

The two joked around as they returned to their workstations and continued working.

But suddenly someone behind me asked:

"Why are there only the two of you? Where did everyone else go?"

Fan Zhou turned around and saw that it was Liang Yong.

Liang Yong had come to collect stones, but was surprised to find only Fan Zhou and Liu Ergou at the quarry. That's why he came over to ask.

"Uncle Liang, it's like this..."

When Fan Zhou saw him arrive, he told him everything that had just happened.

Upon hearing this, Liang Yong's face darkened. "You cause trouble whenever no one's watching you!"

A cloud of sand surged around him, carrying him away in the direction Zhang Kai had fled.

Not long after, Lao Sun returned with his team.

Old Sun walked proudly at the front, with the others following behind him, saying things like flattery.

When Old Sun saw Fan Zhou, he greeted him:

"Young Fan, you've been promoted! Deacon Liang said you'll be taking over Zhang Kai's sergeant position from now on!"

Fan Zhou responded with an "oh," without showing any particular feeling.

Old Sun, however, smiled and said:

"The sergeant can receive an extra spirit sand every month, which is a good thing."

Fan Zhou then showed a look of joy.

A raise is a good thing.

Those who had originally followed Zhang Kai and Cao Biao also came over to congratulate him, saying they would treat him to drinks that night to thank him and Liu Ergou for speaking up for justice.

But Fan Zhou politely declined them all.

He just wanted to get some rest tonight so he could learn swordsmanship from his Uncle Huang Yi early tomorrow morning.