Chapter 1701: Who Teaches Whom a Lesson?

In a nightclub in Cheongdam-dong, the lights were bright and the crowd was noisy.

South Korea's nightclub industry is highly developed; every evening, people who have been busy all day like to come here to relax and unwind.

Where there are nightclubs, there are naturally gangsters.

Of course, Korean gangs are not like what they are portrayed as in movies and TV shows.

Ordinary people mainly learn about Korean gangsters through films and TV dramas, but films are commercial products, and their images are artistically processed, thus creating a false impression.

Society has many misunderstandings about gang organizations, thinking they are all about loyalty and risking their lives, parasitic in entertainment venues, favoring massage and entertainment businesses, drug trafficking, and fighting over territory, with betrayal inevitably leading to retaliation.

But in reality, Korean gangsters are not that strict. Generally, members can leave whenever they want, open conflicts are not allowed within the same domain, and drug involvement is strictly prohibited.

Strangely enough, during the 1997 Asian financial crisis, Korean gangsters accumulated some capital through usury and other means. With this money, they not only directly invested in and operated entertainment venues but also ventured into construction and real estate development, bidding, show business, and job placement.

Of course, traditional mainstays like usury and debt collection, running casinos and illegal horse betting, and protecting street vendors still account for a large share. Gang members generally prefer to run restaurants, especially rib joints, rather than the entertainment industry that the public misunderstands, because restaurants can conceal the source of funds.

In short, Korean gangsters do not live as comfortably as depicted in TV dramas and movies.

More often than not, these people are like office workers, taking orders from their superiors, and occasionally, when the boss needs them, they follow him out on business.

Now, in a nightclub in Cheongdam-dong, a man with a white tiger tattooed on his body sat watching the performance below.

Suddenly, his phone rang.

Glancing at the number, the man was startled and quickly answered.

Director Choi, what are your orders?

A fawning smile hung on the man's face.

Okay, okay, I understand. Near SM Company, right? I'll be there right away!

Hanging up, the man turned to his underlings behind him and ordered, "Gather the men immediately. We have work to do!"

"Yes, boss!"

Several underlings behind him bowed in unison.

A moment later, several cars drove out of the alley behind the nightclub.

"Brother Jintae, where are we going?"

Sitting in the car, one of his underlings asked Jeong Jintae.

"Just teaching a few clueless bastards a lesson!"

Zheng Zhentai said indifferently, "A few out-of-towners actually dare to disrespect Director Cui."

Director Cui was his benefactor; whenever there was something to handle, he would get a handsome reward.

Since he was being summoned now, and it was just to teach a few clueless guys a lesson, Zheng Zhentai naturally couldn't ignore it.

The car soon arrived near the Fool Company. As soon as he got out, he saw a crowd standing in front of a barbecue restaurant, including Director Cui, who had called him.

"Let's go, inside!"

Zheng Zhentai got out of the car and ordered the gang behind him, "Go in and smash everything; don't hold back!"

"Yes, boss!"

A large group bowed in agreement. There were over twenty of them, all holding baseball bats and wearing black suits, looking quite imposing.

Lee Byung-hun and the others, seeing this group get out of the car, quickly stepped aside. As entertainment industry figures, they naturally didn't want to be associated with gangsters.

To put it bluntly, entertainment people are stars, public figures, while these gangsters are all on file with the police. Once involved with them, it would inevitably attract police attention, and if it reached the media, it would cause a huge uproar.

And in South Korea, if a star is linked to the mafia, they are sure to be finished.

This is no joke. Koreans have extremely low tolerance for celebrities. They might think that stars make money too easily—just show up on stage and get paid handsomely—while they themselves work hard every day but earn little.

Under such circumstances, once an artist has a stain on their record, it gets magnified by the media and the public.

At that point, aside from completely retiring, the artist has no other choice.

Some artists, unable to bear the pressure, might even commit suicide.

It sounds ridiculous, but that's how it is.

There was a South Korean actor named Choi Min-soo, who was quite famous in Korea and starred in many hit TV dramas.

But because he got into a conflict with an elderly man and laid hands on him, he was forced not only to kneel and apologize but also to withdraw from the entertainment industry and go into seclusion in the mountains to reflect.

If this had happened in China or the West, it would be unimaginable.

But in South Korea, it actually happened!

Of course, Korean gangsters aren't powerless. Their relationships with agencies and artists are complicated. Just like now, after Lee Byung-hun suffered a loss in front of Zhao Fusheng and the others, a hint from him made his agent summon Zheng Zhentai and his crew.

Of course, he wouldn't admit that these people were connected to him. He was a legitimate artist; how could he be involved with the mafia?

"Let's go, let's go!"

A group of artists walked away. As Lee Byung-hun walked, a cold smile curled at the corner of his mouth.

He wanted to see just who these people really were.

……

……

Inside the barbecue restaurant, Zhao Fusheng was chatting with a few girls when suddenly a commotion came from outside.

He frowned, his expression somewhat unpleasant. What was going on today? He was just having a meal, yet he had been disturbed twice already.

“Looks like something’s happened!”

Hearing the noise outside, Wu Sijie said quietly to Zhao Fusheng.

Zhao Fusheng nodded. “Go take a look.”

Wu Sijie got up and went out. A minute later, he came back with a strange expression.

“Chairman, it’s a bunch of thugs.”

Wu Sijie said to Zhao Fusheng with a wry smile. “They’ve already been taken care of by Old Chen and the others.”

A few retired special forces soldiers dealing with a group of thugs armed with baseball bats was no big deal, even if the thugs outnumbered them. Without using knives or guns, Chen Zhen and his men had no trouble at all beating down Zheng Zhentai and his crew.

“Interesting.”

A strange smile appeared on Zhao Fusheng’s face. “I didn’t expect someone would actually make a move.”

“It’s most likely people sent by Lee Byung-hun and his group.”

Wu Sijie said coldly.

In his view, this was clearly that Lee guy's personal vendetta—having suffered a loss here, he secretly called gang members to cause trouble.

"Evidence!"

Zhao Fusheng shook his head. "Don't speak without evidence."

"But..."

Wu Sijie hesitated for a moment, but under Zhao Fusheng's gaze, he swallowed his words.

Zhao Fusheng turned his head, looked at Xiujing and the others who were stunned at the mention of Lee Byung-hun's name, and gently shook his head. "You all go first."

"Huh?"

The girls were dumbfounded. Exchanging glances, Xiujing said softly, "Mr. Zhao, perhaps you should leave quickly."

Clearly, she was worried that Zhao Fusheng would get into trouble.

Zhao Fusheng smiled and shook his head. "It's fine. In this Korea, there's no one I can't afford to offend."

What bold words!

They all froze, looking at Zhao Fusheng with great surprise.

But since he had already said so, no one else could say much more, and the few of them got up to take their leave.

"Xiao Song, you should go too." Zhao Fusheng thought for a moment and said to Song Qian.

Unexpectedly, Song Qian shook her head. Although her face was somewhat pale, she said earnestly, "Mr. Zhao, I'd better stay. After all, this matter has something to do with me..."

"It has nothing to do with you."

Zhao Fusheng smiled and waved his hand: "You weren't the one who threw the punches, so what does it have to do with you? Go on, head back to the dorm. This matter has little to do with you. We'll meet again when there's a chance."

"But..." Song Qian still hesitated; she was genuinely worried.

Zhao Fusheng chuckled softly and said to Wu Sijie, "Have them leave through the back door."

It was close to the SM company, and the girls were familiar with the area, so they could get away quickly.

As for himself?

Zhao Fusheng thought for a moment and said to Wu Sijie, "Call Liang Jingyu and have him send Park Sun-young over to me."

He remembered that when he came to Korea before, Liang Jingyu had sent his chief secretary, Park Sun-young, to serve as his translator and guide. This time, Zhao Fusheng thought of her.

"Okay."

Wu Sijie quickly nodded, turned around, and went out to make the call.

Meanwhile, Zhao Fusheng sat there with Fan Beibei, carefully grilling meat for the little girl.

Soon, Wu Sijie finished the call and returned to the private room.

"Chairman, I've notified him," Wu Sijie said.

"Mm." Zhao Fusheng nodded. "Let's wait."

Wu Sijie thought for a moment and asked Zhao Fusheng, "What about those thugs?"

"Throw them out."

Zhao Fusheng said bluntly, "Don't be too rough. Keep the ringleader and have him call the person behind this."

"Make a call?"

Wu Sijie was taken aback, looking at Zhao Fusheng in confusion, clearly not understanding his intention.

Zhao Fusheng laughed: "Since we've beaten the dog, we ought to meet its owner."

Wu Sijie nodded, understanding Zhao Fusheng's meaning.

In the end, since they had beaten up the thugs that Lee Byung-hun had brought, this matter had to have some conclusion. Regardless of whether Lee Byung-hun was involved, this time Zhao Fusheng intended to make an example of him.

As for whether this actor-turned-mister had the ability to bear his wrath, that would depend on his luck.