Top-Notch Enforcer

Late 1980s and early 1990s. It was an era of restlessness and innocence. In the rough-around-the-edges city of Jianghai, mainland China. several serious injuries and several street fights occur almost every month. Low-level tough guys are scattered throughout the city, each carving out their own territories and ruling their respective areas. Meanwhile, those eighteen or nineteen-year-olds who want to make a name for themselves wander the streets all day, hiding pipes, large knives, machetes, and watermelon knives, hoping to encounter a famous tough guy or a master of the underworld, and then insanely stab them down with a single s***h to gain fame overnight, becoming a revered leader by everyone. So, on Jianghai Avenue in those years, it was common to see groups of delinquents stirring up trouble and fighting randomly, getting into fights over trivial matters, acting arrogantly on the streets, and strutting about. However, these tough guys are mostly just delinquents, not even close to the fringes of the underworld. They are just a group of ignorant teenagers whipped into a frenzy; when it comes to fighting, they lack any real skill and rely solely on numbers. When they fight, if they encounter someone kind, they go all out to bully them, but when they really run into someone tough, they get scared and run away in a crowd, rarely achieving any real success, let alone giving birth to any soulful figures. That's why true tough guys in the underworld look down upon fighting these people. Of course, there are exceptions. Yang Lei is the exception. "Yanzi Yi" first saw Yang Lei at the Carrefour Night Club in the military club. The military club was the most central entertainment area in Jianghai North City during that era, housing an ice skating rink, an electronic game hall, a billiards room, a swimming pool, and a cinema. The Carrefour Night Club was the first night club to open in Jianghai and was in high demand, serving as a gathering place for the underworld. Almost every few nights, a full-blown fight would break out there. In the six months since Carrefour's opening, one death had occurred, and numerous serious injury incidents had taken place due to violent altercations. "Yanzi Yi" was the most powerful underworld boss in Jianghai at that time. "Yanzi Yi" was in his thirties, unremarkable in appearance, and was already a notorious troublemaker in Jianghai in the early 1980s. He had fought countless fierce battles to establish his underworld status. Later, he served four years in prison for his brother. Upon his release, he had a team of formidable subordinates and his power was at its peak. Black Panther is currently sitting on the second floor of the Carrefour Night Club, looking down. Yanzi Yi is a relatively low-key person; from the moment he entered to the time he went up the stairs, people respectfully called out, "Brother Yan." He nodded, occasionally smiled back at people, and they felt honored. Yanzi Yi was just here for some leisure today, so he kept quiet. Those who didn't see him didn't know that the biggest boss in the city was currently on the second floor of this night club. Just as the dance was heating up, some trouble started. A fat, gourd-like person was pulling and tugging a young, pretty girl. "What are you doing?!" The girl grew impatient and wanted to break free. "Sister, let me take you out for a late-night snack!" Fat Dongguo grinned, looking like a rogue. "Are you sick? Who knows you?" The girl got angry. "I'm doing you a favor by taking a liking to you!" Fat Dongguo said viciously. Fat Dongguo's nickname was simply "Dongguo." He was a lackey of Liu Luoguo, the big shot on the west side of town. He might have been ugly as sin, but he was absolutely a dangerous character — a real fighter, who had stabbed plenty of people and had a criminal record with the police. "Bastard!" the girl cursed. "Who the hell are you cursing?" With so many of his boys watching, Fat Dongguo couldn't let that slide. "If you don't come with me right now, I'll tear your skirt off! Believe it?" Fat Dongguo stared fiercely with his triangular eyes, pulling the girl who was too scared to speak any more hard: "Let's go!" Fat Dongguo dragged the girl a couple of steps before someone stepped in front of him, blocking his path. "Get out of the way!" "The lady doesn't want to go with you. What gives you the right to take her?" Fat Dongguo froze. He never expected anyone would dare block his way. He sized the guy up. “Don’t you f*****g know who I am? How dare you block my way?” Fat Dongguo was every bit as tough as they said. "I just blocked it. So what?" The other guy was just as tough. “Kid, you think you’re pretty tough, huh?” “I’m used to being tough—can’t change that.” Hearing that, Fat Dongguo went on the attack.He was no ordinary street thug. He was the most ruthless enforcer under Liu Luoguo, with seven or eight aggravated assault charges on his record. What did he care about adding one or two more? Fat Dongguo's fist shot straight for the guy's face. Although he was overweight, but his movements were incredibly fast and precise—which was precisely why he’d made a name for himself. Fat Dongguo's signature combo was textbook: first, a blindingly fast punch straight to the nose; then, while the guy was clutching his face, grab him by the hair and drive a knee hard into his gut; and if he still wouldn't go down, pull out a blade and stab. Not many people could dodge that first punch. but this time Fat Dongguo missed completely. The guy he was facing was even more quick-witted than he was—he dodged it instantly and instead grabbed Fat Dongguo’s fist, yanking it forward. Fat Dongguo lost his balance and took several hard, precise jabs to the stomach—the blows were both fierce and accurate. Fat Dongguo gritting his teeth against the excruciating pain, reached into his jacket for his knife. But before he could pull it out, something slammed hard against his face with a sharp “crack”—it was half a shattered beer bottle! That bottle left Fat Dongguo's face drenched in blood, and his jaw was dislocated—he couldn’t even close his mouth.Fat Dongguo’s henchmen were stunned; they’d rarely seen him at a disadvantage, so they all rushed in. The other side had a dozen or so men as well, and a brawl broke out between the two groups. Upstairs, Black Panther watched it all unfold. Fat Dongguo's crew were all from Liu Luoguo’s crew, but the other group consisted entirely of unfamiliar faces—clearly not affiliated with any big shot, just street thugs Still, it was the first time Black Panthe had never seen street thugs fight this hard. Fat Dongguo's men pulled out their weapons, and quite a few flashed machete-like cleavers. Those big chopping blades didn't actually do all that much damage, but they were terrifying to fight against — one swing could carve a gash twenty or thirty centimeters long. They were perfect for gang beatdowns, and the kind of weapon that real underworld types carried. Fat Dongguo's crew figured that just flashing these blades would scare off the street thugs. Experience had taught them that street punks were all bark and no bite — take two cuts and they'd scatter for sure.