Period drama: Old Cao's carefree life

Chapter 104 is too much of a challenge to a man's willpower.
Cao Weida fiddled with his Browning, looked at the four trembling men crouching on the ground, walked up to them, slapped Tong Mazi across the face, and said coldly:

"I just want to cough with you, what are you going to do about it?"

Tong Mazi, his face flushed with anger after being slapped, gritted his teeth and said, "If you're a man, put down your gun and let's have a one-on-one spar. What kind of skill is it to rely on a gun!"

"Damn it, you dare to talk back?!" Cao Weida laughed. You really aren't afraid of death.

He pulled out a wooden stick from the side, his eyes cold, and slammed it down.

huh~~
The stick made a whooshing sound as it hit him on the head with a 'thud'.

boom! !

With a muffled thud, countless tiny stars appeared before his eyes. Tong Mazi didn't even utter a sound before collapsing to the ground.

"Damn it, I'm a soldier, you're a bandit. You think I'm going to lecture you on the rules of the underworld? You idiot!" He cursed as he threw the broken stick on the ground, his gaze sweeping over the other three.
"What about you guys? Would you like to tell me about the rules of the underworld?"

"No, no." The three were startled and immediately shrank back like turtles, shaking their heads vigorously, afraid that if they answered too late, they would suffer a severe beating like Tong Mazi.

"Hey, you there." Cao Weida looked at the neighbors who had stood at a distance to watch the commotion after hearing it, "One of you go and make a call to the police. Tell them that it's me, Cao Weida, here, and ask them to send someone over right away."

After a long while, a series of hurried footsteps came from the alley.

"Make way, make way, everyone! The police are on patrol, please move aside!"

Little Ears and his brothers rushed over quickly. After dispersing the crowd, they saw the furniture on the cart and four people—three squatting and one lying on the ground—and then looked at Cao Weida, who was unharmed. Little Ears breathed a sigh of relief.

"Brother Cao, what's going on?"

Cao Wei Da briefly recounted what had happened.

Upon hearing that it was Tong Mazi, Xiao Erduo immediately flipped Tong Mazi over and couldn't help but laugh, "Oh ho, it really is that bastard, he's got some nerve. I've been looking for him several times before and couldn't find him. I thought he had run out of the outer second district. I didn't expect him to still dare to hide here and commit crimes here."

"Come on, tie them up!"

That's right, they were tied up with rope.

Handcuffs have existed for a long time, but they are not widely used as official equipment and are generally only used in more formal occasions.

Police officers at the grassroots level usually use ropes, which are easy to carry, inexpensive, and versatile, making them a commonly used tool.

"Brother Cao, what should we do with all this furniture?"

After pondering for a moment, Cao Wei Da said listlessly, "Just take them all back; they're not worth much."

He whispered, "This is where Fu Decheng's mistress lives. She should have hidden a lot of money here. Take the brothers and search the house carefully again. Once you find any 'stolen goods,' take them all with you."

"Also, they have an accomplice following the owner of the house. He's probably trying to delay the woman from returning early. Have someone go and bring him back to me."

"Alright!" Little Ears immediately told the group to stop. "Don't tie them up yet. You three, go and move all the furniture back to its original place! Anyone who slacks off, I'll beat them to death!"

The three dared not utter a single complaint, and could only reluctantly carry the items they had taken out back one by one. With patrolling police officers watching them the whole time, they dared not run away, nor could they escape.

In his mind, he had already cursed Tong Mazi's ancestors for eighteen generations. Damn it, I really believed your nonsense!

I followed you because I wanted to live a good life, but who would have thought I'd end up like a homeless dog.

You could have just run away, but you had to tell me you made a fortune before you ran!

They still made their fortune from the mistress of the former boss, Master Fu!
I knew it! If you don't follow the code of honor, you're bound to get into trouble!

A moment later, Little Ears rushed out of the house, ran to Cao Weida, and excitedly whispered in his ear, "Brother Cao, we found it!"

"That bastard Fu Decheng is really cunning. He actually built another wall outside the wall and put three wooden boxes inside, filled with nothing but yellow croakers! I didn't count the exact number, but it was definitely a lot! There were about a hundred silver dollars too!"

One hundred silver dollars per letter, one hundred letters, wouldn't that be ten thousand silver dollars?
This is quite a windfall!

"Good job. Tell the brothers to find some sacks and call a rickshaw. Load all of this up and put it on the rickshaw. I'll take it with me later. Take Tong Mazi and the others back to the police station. Don't let any outsiders get close to them. We'll talk about it when I get there."

"I'll do it right now!"

Before long, the rickshaw that had been called was stuffed full of sacks, with no room to even sit down.

After giving Xiao Erduo some instructions, Cao Weida walked and rode the rickshaw to Straw Hat Alley.

After Cao Weida left, Xiao Erduo personally led the team, escorting five prisoners in a grand procession towards the police station.

The rickshaw made quite a spectacle, attracting curious glances from many people along the way. On the other side, after the rickshaw arrived at Straw Hat Alley, Xiangzi, who was sitting at the door waiting for Xinghong's instructions, immediately ran over.

"Huh? Xiangzi?" the rickshaw driver exclaimed in surprise.

Xiangzi turned his head and grinned, "Oh, it's Brother Zhu! Hello, hello, it's been a long time!"

"Isn't that right? I heard you were on a monthly contract. So, you're on a monthly contract with Master Cao?"

"Yes, Master Cao thinks highly of me and has taken care of my monthly expenses," Xiangzi nodded with a simple smile. Seeing Cao Weida about to move his things, he immediately stepped forward to stop him.
“Master, please rest, let me do it.”

Xiangzi stopped Cao Weida from doing it himself and diligently carried the sacks down.

A rickshaw driver surnamed Zhu, who was nearby, also helped carry the load. He received a cigarette from Cao Weida, smelled it under his nose, and put it in his mouth but didn't light it.

Cao Weida lit a cigarette and laughed, "You little rascal, didn't you say from the beginning that I'd pay you for the whole month and you wouldn't do any other work?"

As Xiangzi carried the load, he chuckled and said, "Boss, ever since I gave you a monthly contract to pull the rickshaw, I've been idle all the time, only occasionally going out to work. With so much money every month, if I don't work more, I'll feel anxious about my monthly salary."

“You are a kind and honest landlord, and I, Xiangzi, cannot let others speak ill of me behind my back.”

Upon hearing this, Zhu, the rickshaw driver, showed a hint of envy in his eyes. He and Xiangzi were quite familiar with each other, having previously worked together at the Renhe Rickshaw Factory, helping Master Liu with his fares.

Looking at him now, Xiangzi's skin is noticeably fairer. Although he was quite muscular before, he was rather thin, but now he has become much more robust.

All of this demonstrates that Xiangzi is living quite well here.

It's not scarcity that's the problem, but inequality. We live here, barely surviving, and even getting sick is a luxury. Why do you suddenly live such a comfortable life?
He couldn't help feeling a little jealous and said half-jokingly, "Ever since you left, our boss Liu Siye's precious daughter has become quite irritable. She's been asking about you constantly. I reckon she's taken a liking to you."

"Master Liu only has one daughter, and he dotes on her rotten. The rickshaw shop will be hers in the future. Xiangzi, this is an opportunity you can't miss. If you're interested, I'll go back and talk to Miss Liu."

"Hey, Xiangzi, I didn't expect you to be so popular. Even the boss's daughter wants to marry you. You're something else, kid. If you agree, you'll be on your way to the top!" Cao Weida looked surprised when he heard this, but he was secretly overjoyed.

He had happened to read the novel "Camel Xiangzi" and remembered the description of Liu Siye's daughter, Hu Niu'er.

Round eyes, short and thick eyebrows, angular and prominent, all of which, combined with her strangely pink face, exuded both allure and domineering charm.

With a large nose, square mouth, and a pair of big fangs, it looks like a tiger when it opens its mouth, giving people a fierce feeling.

His skin was dark, his face was dark red, like a withered black leaf, and his complexion was like a piece of overcooked pig liver. Even with powder on, he still looked very strange.

He was very tall, like a big black tower, tall and strong, with a fat body, a protruding belly, and a neck almost as thick as his head. At first glance, he gave people a heavy and sturdy feeling.

His head wasn't very big, but it was always shaved shiny, like a man's.

With that image, Cao Wei Da Guang didn't even know how he would start eating her that night; it was too much of a challenge to a man's willpower.

Zhu the rickshaw driver was overjoyed and immediately agreed, "That's right, Xiangzi! Master Liu only has one daughter. If you marry her, all of Master Liu's property will be yours. From now on, you, Xiangzi, won't be called Xiangzi anymore. You'll have to call him Master!"

"This is a good thing that others would dream of, what are you hesitating for? If it were me, I would have pounced on it long ago!"

"No, I'm not that lucky. Brother Zhu, please don't joke around. I think it's fine to pull a rickshaw for the family on a monthly contract now, so I won't try to climb that high."

Cao Wei Da could only describe it through his imagination. He had seen her often, but he was not fortunate enough to be with Liu Siye's daughter.

Putting aside his unappealing appearance, his shrewish and cunning personality alone would make him want to avoid her at all costs.

Xiangzi knew that Hu Niu'er had feelings for him, but at the same time she looked down on him from the bottom of her heart. She always had a cold smile on her lips and her eyes revealed a look of disdain and eagerness. She was vulgar and fierce. Just thinking about facing such a wife every day made him shiver.

Not daring to think any further, he quickly changed the subject, "Master, where are these sacks being transported?"

Cao Wei Da didn't make any more jokes.

"Just move it to the study and put it anywhere."

"Okay, I'll move it right away." Xiangzi immediately picked up a sack and ran into the yard.

It has to be said that people these days are hardworking and energetic. That sack was full of gold and silver dollars, and it was quite heavy.

Hearing the commotion, Xinghong came out and looked at Xiangzi busily carrying sacks. A look of doubt flashed in her eyes, but she didn't say anything.

When it's just the two of them, she might ask a couple of questions out of curiosity, but if there are outsiders present, as a woman, she would absolutely not say a word.

After the goods were unloaded, Cao Weida gave the money to Zhu the rickshaw driver. Seeing that Xiangzi hadn't fallen for the trick, Zhu the rickshaw driver could only reluctantly take the money and leave.

(End of this chapter)