The door of the courtyard house has been welded dead

"From the capital!"

"From the capital?"

"The fierce tigers of Northeast China, the wild wolves of Tangshan, the chilled pomelos, the delicious food of Weizui, and the mud-legged men of Nandou Tangshan!"

Banggeng clasped his hands together, a relaxed smile on his face, and gave a cutting-edge information about the connection. People who don't usually go through the motions wouldn't know this.

"Wow, our Cleaver Gang has become so famous now, it's even spread to the capital!"

The kitchen knife in his hand was sharpened until it gleamed, and he twirled it around his wrist. Third Master, who was leading the team to collect the money, chuckled and approached Banggeng step by step, trying to put more psychological pressure on him.

The other hooligans followed along, laughing and joking, their eyes brazenly scanning the stick, as if to suggest where to bleed it out.

The Flying Eagle brand razor blade flashed at his fingertips. While Third Master tilted his head and looked at himself for a moment, a cut appeared on the crossbody bag slung across his lower abdomen.

Inside was the protection money collected this morning, which was easily picked out by Bang Geng's fingers.

"Third Master, right? You've dropped your money!"

When the time is right, you have to act decisively. A true expert's skill is immediately apparent with a single move, something Lei Zi can't do.

Looking at the few banknotes in Banggeng's hand, the third brother, who was in charge, looked down at the satchel at his waist. Wow, there really was an opening. After 'opening the mouth', the remaining banknotes inside could be seen clearly.

Whether Zhen could calm him down or not, those few laughing and joking younger brothers all subconsciously looked at Bang Geng's fingertips after seeing this scene.

In this situation, to be able to smuggle money from a bag without any psychological burden makes it seem like they're really stealing from an empty house.

"Things are getting tense in the capital lately. I'd like to seek refuge in Tangshan. Could you please introduce me, Third Master?"

After returning the money and valuables to their rightful owners, Banggeng picked up the razor blade and, in front of everyone, put it into his belt. However, Third Master's expression was rather unpleasant.

The other party acted so fast that he didn't even feel it, but this confirmed the other party's identity.

They came from out of town, to pay their respects to the locals.

"What should I call you?"

"Korean!"

Seeing that the atmosphere had finally changed and the other party was starting to take him seriously, Bang Geng gave a nickname from the underworld.

"Then let's go!"

The bag had a hole in it, but the third brother didn't seem to mind. He put the cleaver back in the bag. Paying respects to the elder brother was his job, and it had little to do with him.

People in the martial arts world go out to make a living, so referrals are normal. Whether it's opening a branch or joining a business, this skill in making bao (a type of steamed bun) is acceptable.

The abandoned factory was filled with ruins.

Banggeng's gaze swept over everything around him, and it all seemed quite novel.

People were playing cards, gambling on dominoes, squatting on the ground sharpening kitchen knives, or sunbathing; each of them carried a small shoulder bag.

There were quite a few of them, no wonder the common people outside didn't dare to bare their teeth at them. The menacing aura emanating from these people was far superior to that of the so-called gangsters in the capital.

To be honest, fights in Beijing are mostly about scale, a contest of numbers, and often don't even escalate into a physical brawl.

The area around the Workers' Stadium is considered a relatively chaotic place in Beijing. People from high-ranking families or other privileged backgrounds often meet there. Bang Geng has seen him there quite a few times since he came out of the orphanage.

Often, under the influence of a middleman, or the so-called "big brother," the two distinct groups will eventually shake hands and make peace.

People like Zhou Changli, who were stabbed to death in the street, are mostly a minority. And this wasn't even done by one person; it was a group of people rushing in.

The number of people gathered in the fight seemed large, but it couldn't compare to the ruthlessness of the people from Tangshan; they were the kind of people who had actually seen blood.

Treating human life like dirt, one might even have blessed the kitchen knife in their hand with a human.

"Third brother~!"

"Third Master~!"

Along the roadsides of the abandoned factory area, each person who saw the group collecting protection money returning would greet them loudly, and then glance at Bang Geng, because he didn't have a bag on him, giving the impression that he was ready to chop someone up on the spot if they disagreed.

"Third brother, how was today?"

In the office at the factory gate, a middle-aged man sat, perhaps hearing the greetings from outside, but he didn't even look up, still fiddling with the abacus beads on his desk.

Bang Geng, who was blocked outside the door, watched as the group of people collecting money went into the room one by one and dumped the money they had received that day from their bags onto the table.

"Accountant Yin, could you please take a count? I don't know the exact amount. I'll take some men to see Big Lockhead!"

Only then did the bespectacled accountant, Yin, raise his head, glance at the door, and then at who the third brother had brought back. He looked at the table piled high with loose bills and coins, and weakly waved his arm. In Bang Geng's eyes, well, this organization seemed quite professional, even having a dedicated accountant. This operation made those old hands in Beijing seem rather amateurish.

Inside the factory, there were far fewer people. Water still lingered in the pools on the ground. The load-bearing columns and beams supporting the factory roof had peeled cement shells, and the iron frames were rusted and peeling.

The people sitting on the shelves on both sides had eyes that looked down like hawks. When they saw the third person in front, they didn't even bother to greet him, so he seemed to be of a higher rank.

The henchmen who had been following this Third Master earlier were quite self-disciplined; none of them continued to follow.

"Hey San'er, you're just collecting money on the street, how come your bag got slashed? Hmm, this kid did it?"

A young man flipped down from the shelf next to him, landed on the ground, did a somersault, walked over, looked at the gaping mouth on the third brother's bag with a mocking expression, and then examined the stick that had been brought over.

"Brother Min, this guy is from Beijing. I had him show off his skills, and he did alright. He wants to pay his respects to Big Lockhead!"

The third brother, no longer arrogant as he was at the breakfast stall, took out the Beidai H brand cigarettes he had gotten for free from the store from his pocket and respectfully handed them over.

"In the capital, does Elephant know anyone?"

Pushing aside the cigarette Third Master offered, the newcomer raised his chin toward Bang Geng and tentatively announced a name.

“I’ve heard of him, but I don’t know him. He works in the Xizhimen area, while I’m working in the east. Our area is near the Workers’ Stadium, and Luo Ning is there.”

"What about Shawna?"

"I'm not familiar with the people in Ping'anli either, they're too far removed from my hometown!"

These two seasoned veterans of the Beijing underworld, being street hustlers, couldn't possibly be completely ignorant. Since the other party could call them by name, it was clearly a deliberate test to see if they were insiders.

"Alright, San'er, take him in!"

After checking, it was pretty much the same, confirming that it was a petty thief from the capital. Min Ge lost interest, put his hands in his pockets, and went back up the iron stairs.

"Fan Qinmin, next time you see him, you have to call him Brother Min. Look, the one next to the stairs, Chen Kui, Brother Kui. And the one brushing his teeth downstairs, He Xuedong, Brother Dong. You need to get to know these big shots if you want to make a living in Tangshan!"

Third Master was quite decent in his dealings. Now that his identity had been verified, Lei Zi's suspicions were further cleared, and he generously introduced the big shots in the factory.

The large office inside the factory building, which was probably used by the workshop director, had a faded wooden sign. The door was half-open, and a noisy sound could be heard coming from inside.

I pushed open the door and saw a bunch of guys playing dominoes inside. Their breakfast was still on the table next to them. They looked like they were from the underworld.

In the office, there were several girls carefully standing by her side, dressed up in their finest attire, much prettier than Yingzi.

The bald man in the middle seat right opposite the door, probably having won his hand, was laughing heartily and, with his arm around the woman next to him, gave her a big kiss on the cheek.

The woman, half-heartedly resisting, nudged the bald man and giggled as she pulled her winnings toward her older brother.

"Third Brother, all the money's collected!"

They continued arranging and dealing the cards. Several men nearby, smoking cigarettes, also exuded a江湖 (jianghu, a term referring to the world of martial arts and outlaws) vibe, which they had noticed when the third brother brought his men in.

Before the bald man could speak, he flicked the ash from his cigarette and asked the third brother.

"Brother Yuan, the work is done, and the money has been given to Accountant Yin. This is a guy from Beijing, working for Luo Ning at the Workers' Stadium. He came here hoping to make a living, and his skills are alright, so I brought him along!"

"Buddha, you're just a thief, hahaha! Oh, what are we? Taoist priests, highway robbers!"

The famous thief from Beijing was well-known in the north, and Tangshan was no exception. The group was no longer in a hurry to play Pai Gow. They were all very curious about this thief from Beijing. One of them, like Brother Min from outside, noticed at a glance that the third brother's satchel was open.

"This stab wound of yours, it's almost bigger than your mouth, San'er, hahaha~!"

The bald man wiped his head, stood up, and carefully examined Bang Geng. Bang Geng showed no fear, guessing that the people here must be the core members of the Cleaver Gang.

"Gentlemen, please excuse my poor skills. I'm not quite there yet. I do know a little lock picking, but things are getting tense in the capital lately, and I can't make a living here. I hope you gentlemen can lend me a hand. If you have any brothers who are willing to learn this skill, I can teach you a little bit of this humble craft!"

Similar to interviewing HR in later generations, if you want to integrate into a team, you have to show off your skills.

"San'er, close the door and lock it from the inside. Let him go out and open it. If he can get in after I finish this cigarette, he'll have something to eat. If he can't get in, he can go back to where he came from!"

The bald man in the middle examined the razor blades flying up and down on the barb's fingertips, which was a preliminary approval. However, the cleaver gang's skills in cutting bags were not very useful. On the contrary, the big lockhead paid more attention to their skills in picking locks and opening doors.

"Clang, crack!"

Banggeng didn't say much, but walked outside on his own. After Lao San locked the office door, he took out his lock-picking tools.

This skill is either there or it isn't. The old lock is quite easy to open, and it's not a big problem for Banggeng. In no time, he pushed the door open again and entered the house openly.

"Good, good, you've got some skills. You can stay. Our cleaver team is really lacking someone like you!"

"These guys—Liu Hongming, Lü Zhenyuan, Lan Jianting, and Zuo Jiyi—are the four vice-captains of our team. You've managed to stay. As for whether you can become the fifth, that depends on yourself!" (End of Chapter)