Siheyuan: Hang Jia Dongxu, smash Banggeng to death!

On the Shenzhou River.

A dilapidated fishing boat moved slowly forward in the darkness, carrying a dozen or so people, men and women, young and old, all of whom were smuggling themselves from the mainland to Hong Kong.

They huddled in the cabin, afraid to make a sound, afraid to turn on the lights, and even kept their breathing very low.

Zhang Shiyu sat at the very back of the cabin, leaning against a pile of burlap sacks, clutching a cloth bag tightly in her arms.

The bag contained all her belongings: a few hundred yuan, a few changes of clothes, and the identity document the system had given her.

She dared not let go, dared not close her eyes, and dared not even breathe.

This was her first time illegally crossing the border, her first time leaving the mainland, and the first time entrusting her safety to a group of strangers.

The small boat drifted slowly in the middle of the river. The boatman lit a cigarette, the flame flickering in the darkness, and his gaze fell on Zhang Shiyu.

"Young lady, judging from your accent, you're from Beijing, right?"

Zhang Shiyu paused for a moment, then nodded: "Yes, boatman."

The boat captain took a drag of his cigarette and exhaled a smoke ring: "Beijing is great, right under the emperor's nose. What brings you to Hong Kong?"

Zhang Shiyu hesitated for a moment: "I'll go stay with relatives."

"Oh? What kind of relative?"

"My cousin," Zhang Shiyu said, "my cousin does business in Hong Kong."

The boatman nodded, asked no more questions, flicked his cigarette ash, took another puff, but his eyes remained fixed on the cloth bag in Zhang Shiyu's arms.

Zhang Shiyu felt his gaze and subconsciously hugged her bag even tighter.

The boatman smiled; it was a kind and benevolent smile, like that of a friendly neighbor.

"Young lady, don't be nervous. I've been doing this for over ten years and I've never harmed anyone. I'm known for my honesty and integrity, and no one has ever complained about me."

Zhang Shiyu breathed a sigh of relief and forced a smile: "Thank you, boatman."

The boatman waved his hand, turned his head, and continued to drive the boat forward. Zhang Shiyu leaned against the sack and closed her eyes.

She was exhausted. She had taken the train from Beijing to Shenzhen, and then traveled from Shenzhen to find this boat captain. The journey was bumpy, and she barely slept a wink.

She didn't know when she fell asleep, only that when she woke up, the ship had already stopped.

"arrive."

The boat captain's voice came from above.

Zhang Shiyu opened her eyes and found the boat anchored on a desolate shore, surrounded by darkness with no lights in sight.

The outlines of several houses can be vaguely seen in the distance, but it is impossible to tell where they are.

"Where is this?" someone asked.

"New Territories".

The boat captain said, "Get off here and walk a few miles to Yuen Long. Once you get to Yuen Long, you'll have to figure things out yourselves."

People stood up, grabbed their luggage, and jumped ashore.

Zhang Shiyu was the last to get up. Her legs were a little numb. She slowly stood up while holding onto the gunwale. Just as she was about to go ashore, the boatman suddenly grabbed her arm.

"Young lady, you haven't paid for the boat yet."

Zhang Shiyu was taken aback for a moment and said, "Didn't I already pay when I boarded the ship?"

The boatman frowned and said, "That's not enough. That's the fare for boarding. What about the fare for disembarking?"

"Disembarkation fee?"

Zhang Shiyu's expression changed. Looking at the boat captain's smiling eyes, an ominous premonition suddenly welled up in her heart.

"Boatman, this is all I have left. Please, have mercy and let me go."

The boat captain didn't say anything, he just looked at her and smiled, "The price has gone up now, so hand over all the money you have on you."

Two boatmen walked over, one on the left and one on the right, blocking her way.

Zhang Shiyu's heart sank.

This is no ordinary smuggling boat; it's a pirate ship.

What a load of rubbish about integrity! And yet no one's complaining. I bet all the people who complain have become fish droppings in the river.

"What do you want to do?"

The boatman flicked his cigarette ash and said slowly, "Girl, don't be afraid. We just want more money."

Do you have anything valuable on you? Hand it over and we'll let you go.

Zhang Shiyu gritted her teeth, remained silent, hugged the cloth bag tightly, and took a step back.

A boatman rushed up, snatched her cloth bag, and tore it open. Inside, there were only a few old clothes and a piece of paper.

He rummaged through it but found nothing, so he threw the bag on the ground.

"Boss, this woman has no money."

The boat captain's face darkened. He walked up to Zhang Shiyu and looked her up and down as if she were a lamb to the slaughter.

"No money? Why are you taking a boat if you have no money? Since you have no money, then use something else to pay for it."

Zhang Shiyu's mind went completely blank.

Understanding what the boat captain meant, she trembled as the three men approached step by step.

Even after being resurrected, she was still just a girl with no strength to even kill a chicken; she wasn't a martial arts master at all.

The special ability is just mind reading; it has no combat power.

"Help!"

Zhang Shiyu shouted and tried to get help from the few illegal immigrants who had disembarked, but they didn't turn around and seemed not to hear her.

The boatman laughed: "This is the middle of nowhere. You can shout at the top of your lungs and no one will hear you. And even if someone does hear you, do you think they'll dare to help you?"

He reached out to grab Zhang Shiyu.

Zhang Shiyu instinctively stepped back, lost her footing, and fell off the boat into the water.

The water wasn't deep, only up to her waist, but she was terrified and thrashed around in it, swallowing several mouthfuls of dirty water.

Two boatmen jumped down, dragged her out of the water, and threw her onto the shore.

Zhang Shiyu lay on the ground, soaked to the bone. She looked up and watched the three men approach step by step, tears streaming down her face.

It's over, she's finished.

Just then, footsteps could be heard in the distance.

It wasn't just one person, it was several.

There were also voices.

"Brother Haonan, there seems to be some movement over here."

Zhang Shiyu suddenly looked up and saw several dark figures walking towards them from a distance, with a young man at the front.

"Who is it?"

The boat captain turned around and looked at the people warily.

Chen Haonan ignored him, walked up to Zhang Shiyu, looked down at her, then at the three men, and slowly frowned.

"What are you doing?"

The boat captain's face changed, and he roared, his voice trembling with fear, "What's it to you? I'm doing my job, so get lost if you know what's good for you!"

Chan Ho-nam didn't speak, but Chicken rushed up from behind and grabbed the boat captain by the collar:

"Who the hell are you talking to? Do you know who this is? This is Chan Ho-nam, the boss of Causeway Bay!"

The boat captain's face turned pale instantly.

He was a sailor; he'd heard of the name Chan Ho-nam.

He was the leader of the Hung Hing gang in Causeway Bay, a ruthless character who single-handedly killed seventy or eighty members of the Tung Sing gang.

"Nan... Brother Nan..." His voice trembled, "I didn't know it was you... I... I'll leave now..."

He turned and ran.

The pheasant kicked him in the butt, and he fell face-first into the mud.

The two boatmen tried to run away, but Baopi and Jiaopi blocked them and beat them until they screamed in pain.

Chen Haonan squatted down and looked at Zhang Shiyu.

Are you alright?

……