The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 817 Reincarnation
It was already dawn when Qi Meng returned to the slum.

There’s a saying in old Beijing: “East City is expensive, West City is rich, and South City and North City have open-crotch pants.”

South City was a large area where poor people lived. Jugglers, performers, crosstalk artists, rickshaw drivers, patrolmen, and small businesses all gathered in South City.

The compound where Xiangzi lived was in the south city. In a large compound, it was difficult not to know every household well; if there was a noise in one house under the same eaves, it would be impossible to hide it from the neighboring house because the roofs were all connected.

As Qi Meng walked into the courtyard, a drunk man came out and bumped into him head-on.

"Xiang-zi, where did you go to make your fortune?"

Qi Meng looked the man up and down. He was in his forties, wearing a brand new cotton-padded jacket and even new cloth shoes. He had a toothpick in his mouth and reeked of alcohol.

"Chongwenmen, work with the car dealers to arrest the rebels."

Qi Meng didn't want to bother with the drunkard, nor did he want to have any contact with him.

The man didn't hear what was said clearly, so he patted Xiangzi on the shoulder and muttered, "Xiangzi, pull the rickshaw well, you can do it! You can do it!"

As he said this, he walked out drunkenly.

Er Qiangzi went to the pub again.

Relying on the host's memory obtained from the butler, Qi Meng began to sort out all the past about Er Qiangzi.

Er Qiangzi was originally a rickshaw driver. He raised two sons and a daughter. His wife died early. He had his own rickshaw. Thanks to his strong body, he could earn 80 cents or 1 yuan a day by pulling the rickshaw. He could support his family of five by himself and make ends meet.

A few years ago, I took on a monthly contract job. The customer was a [ ]. Er Qiangzi would wait outside with his rickshaw driver friend at night and often drink at the stall. At first, it was just to keep warm and get through the long night. Later, he drank not only at night, but also during the day.

Because of drinking heavily, sometimes we have to go out to drive at 9 or 10 in the morning.

As he drank more and more, he became a drunkard. Not only did he not save any money, but his health also deteriorated. He relied on having his own car and not having to pay membership fees, so he could not make long-distance trips and was unwilling to make short distances. He quarreled with the patrol police every now and then. As time went by, he could no longer make a living by pulling a rickshaw.

One day, drunk and unable to find a dime, he pawned his car to a dealership for a little over fifty yuan, which he used to continue drinking. Two months passed, and when his money ran out, Er Qiangzi woke up. His gaze darted from inside the house to outside, then back inside, finally settling on his daughter, Xiao Fuzi.

Little Fuzi was as thin as a stray cat, but her features were fairly regular, with a round face and well-proportioned eyebrows and eyes. There was nothing particularly remarkable about her, but there was nothing to fault either. In this crooked, shabby South City compound, she was truly acceptable. Her upper lip was short, and whether she was about to smile or anger, she would first part it, revealing her perfectly white, even teeth. Just like all girls who are poor but not ugly—like flowers and plants, as long as they have the slightest fragrance or color, they will be picked up and sold in the market. That's the way things are.

Er Qiangzi sold Xiao Fuzi, who was nineteen years old, to a soldier.

Got two hundred dollars.

After his daughter left, Er Qiangzi became quite generous for a while. He redeemed all the things he had pawned before and made a few new clothes. The whole family was dressed neatly.

In the blink of an eye, Er Qiangzi was over forty and decided to stop pulling a cart, which was for young men. So he bought a pair of baskets and a carrying pole for groceries, carrying fruits, pears, peaches, peanuts, and cigarettes, and became a peddler. After two months, he found that he had not only lost money, but also lost a lot of money. Trading and pulling a cart are two different things.

Qi Meng cares very much about Xiao Fuzi.

It’s not because he’s gentle with women—Qi Meng has seen all kinds of women—the most important thing is that this girl has two younger brothers.

These two children can be treated as food to feed you, or as the first pot of gold to make a fortune.

As long as these two kids are given a few pieces of cake, they will follow Qi Meng to fight through fire and water - Shen Lian and Zhu Youjian are nowhere to be seen, perhaps they are digging potatoes in Siberia now.

From this perspective, Er Qiangzi is undoubtedly a stumbling block.

Qi Meng planned to throw Er Qiangzi into the river to make it look like he fell into the water, then use the money he got from Detective Sun to buy some guns on the black market (he could no longer exchange weapons from the housekeeper), and then train Xiao Fuzi's two younger brothers to be professional killers.

After completing this set of operations, you can roll up your sleeves and get to work.

Young people have great prospects, especially in the chaotic Beijing (at least that's how history books describe this period of history).

Relying on his spirit of "never forgetting his original intention", he swallowed up Hu Niu's father's car factory, then saved money to buy him several courtyard houses in Beijing, formed gangs and factions to live out the value of united front work, and after waiting for a few decades, he transformed himself into a rich man among the people.

(End of this chapter)