The door had just closed when Wang Hao felt himself being lifted into the air; it turned out a bunch of brothers had hoisted him up. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

"Hey, what are you guys doing?"

Wang Hao tried to stop them, not understanding their intentions, when he was suddenly thrown into the air.

Swiftly after, the three brothers, Gao Ye, were tossed up as well.

From today on, these four would become the pillars of their brotherhood.

The group played well into the night, everyone drinking quite a bit until they were sprawling unconscious on the tables.

Sun Lao San’s face was also flushed from drinking, as he leaned against the door and smoked.

Seeing his brothers so happy, he smiled contentedly.

Wang Hao had also drunk a lot, but he wasn’t affected. The dragon tattoo in his body was swimming through his blood, absorbing a lot of the alcohol.

"Third Brother, don’t you want to go inside and rest for a while?"

Wang Hao asked with concern. Sun Lao San had been the happiest and drunk the most today, but he seemed quite sober.

"Hehe... I, the Third brother, am well-known in the entire Mud Pit... as the man who never falls, regardless of a thousand cups!"

Upon hearing Wang Hao speak, Sun Lao Er shakily stood up, his steps weaving unstably.

Before he could finish his sentence, he stumbled and fell into the arms of a nearby brother and resumed his deep slumber.

With a smile in his eyes, Sun Lao San helped Sun Lao Er and Gao Ye into the sofa of the inner private room so they could lie down more comfortably.

"Wang Hao, do you want to rest for a while too?"

Sun Lao San looked at the steady steps of Wang Hao beside him and was rather surprised to see him walking normally, showing no sign of drunkenness.

"I’m fine."

Wang Hao smiled and waved his hand naturally, showing no hint of being drunk.

Sun Lao San was curious. After so many years on the streets, he had never seen anyone who could outdrink him.

While he wasn’t drunk now, he could only maintain awareness, with his limbs starting to disobey and feeling weak and powerless.

Seeing Wang Hao drinking just as much but still able to walk steadily was something he couldn’t help but admire.

"Wang Hao, I’m thinking of having the brothers follow you in the future, letting you lead them—I’m sure you’ll be better than me!"

Suddenly, Sun Lao San stared into Wang Hao’s eyes and said.

"What? Me?"

Wang Hao was greatly surprised and quickly waved his hands in refusal.

"Third Brother, don’t make jokes about me. Are you thinking they would follow me to plant medicinal herbs?"

"Wang Hao, I know you have greater aspirations, and growing medicinal herbs is just your current transition. Have you considered that becoming their boss could be helpful for your future herb planting?"

Sun Lao San said with a matter-of-fact look.

"Boss?"

Wang Hao couldn’t help but burst into laughter.

"Third Brother, stop teasing me. I’m not cut out for that. Are you testing me?"

"No, every word I’m saying is from the heart. You as the boss would have more cohesion, really! Or else..."

"Or else, Third Brother, let’s just drop it. I will never become that boss. In their hearts, you’ll always be their boss," Wang Hao stated firmly.

"But having said that, if someone dares to touch my brothers, I’ll also come forward without hesitation, making sure that they won’t have a place to be buried."

"Third Brother, what’s wrong with you today? Why are you suddenly proposing me as the boss? Has something happened?"

Wang Hao was also curious why Sun Lao San suddenly spoke to him this way today. He looked sincere, not like he was telling lies, and as the saying goes, "In wine there’s truth."

Sun Lao San smiled but did not answer, yet his expression seemed to betray some unspeakable secret.

"We’re all from the underworld, where we can’t even decide our own fates, and anyone might end up dead at any moment. Entrusting my brothers to you makes me feel a bit more at ease."

After a moment of silence, Sun Lao San suddenly blurted out such a phrase.

"Then you can’t die. If you die, I’ll have to figure out how to take revenge for you. How would I have any time to look after your brothers?"

Wang Hao teased.

After hearing this, Sun Lao San also cracked a knowing smile, realizing that Wang Hao didn’t want to continue discussing this issue, so he changed the subject, and the two chatted casually.

Without realizing it, they talked until dawn and fell asleep as tiredness crept in.

The other drunken brothers didn’t wake up until nearly noon and felt dizzy upon awakening. Wang Hao was also disturbed by their noise, got up, washed briefly, and prepared to leave.

Walking on the street, it was already bustling with people, filled with vendors’ shouts. When he saw the caramel candy stall at the corner, he went over to buy a pound to take back for Ya Ya.

Wang Hao felt very content seeing such lively scenes, only the uneven muddy road back home was a bit troubling to him.

But all this was only temporary; once Wang Hao made it big one day, he planned to start by completely revamping these roads with concrete.

Then he would reorganize the streets here, turning this place into the busiest area.

"Wouldn’t you know it, speak of the devil. Tiger Bro, help me deal with that kid. It was he who got me sent to the police station last time."

Just as Wang Hao was fantasizing about a better future, the mayor’s son, Zhao Xiaoming, appeared with a tall fellow, followed by a dozen or so youths from society.

"Tiger Bro, beat him to death!"

Zhao Xiaoming suddenly stopped and yelled angrily, not more than five steps from Wang Hao, feeling more confident with Tiger Bro backing him up.

However, to everyone’s surprise, Wang Hao just glared at Tiger Bro, who stepped forward and slapped Zhao Xiaoming.

Holding his face, Zhao Xiaoming looked on puzzledly at Tiger Bro, as dumbfounded as a monk who couldn’t find his head.

"You really took me for a fool, daring to order me to hit Brother Four; do you have a death wish?"

Tiger Bro, clearly reeking of alcohol, came to apologize to Wang Hao.

"Brother Four, I’m sorry, I’ve offended you. How should we deal with this kid? I’ll do whatever you say."

Confusion spread across Zhao Xiaoming’s face as he looked at Wang Hao in disbelief.

He couldn’t understand what role Wang Hao played in all this. His own father had hit him for the first time because of this guy, and now even people under Sun Lao San were addressing him as "Brother Four"?

Moreover, with just one look from Wang Hao, Tiger Bro turned around and slapped Zhao Xiaoming.

"You decide what to do with him!"

Wang Hao, seeing that Zhao Xiaoming still hadn’t changed his ways, simply let Tiger Bro by his side teach him a lesson.

Hearing this, the few youths behind Zhao Xiaoming were immediately scared out of their wits and turned to run away.

"You think you can run? Let’s see where you can go. Don’t ever let me catch you again, or you’ll be in for it."

Tiger Bro bellowed, and the youths were so scared they stopped in their tracks.

These youngsters were panicking inside and glared angrily at Zhao Xiaobo, as it was his instructions that led them to offend Wang Hao.

"You go beat up this blind fool, and don’t you stop until I say so."

Tiger Bro, not wanting to get his own hands dirty, let these youths take action.

Feeling aggrieved and stifled, the youths rushed forward at Tiger Bro’s command, fists raised and ready to attack.

Just as the punches were about to land on Zhao Xiaoming, a sharp rebuke came from not far away.

"What are you doing, stop it right now!"