Tianjin, starting with unorthodox methods to achieve immortality

Chapter 267 Supporting the Small Swords Society

The noise in the courtyard suddenly stopped.

The middle-aged man stammered for a long time before finally managing to squeeze out a sentence, "It's a stone mill passed down from Lao Liu's father. He said it's from the Ming Dynasty and worth several tens of silver dollars—"

'

"7

Chen Mo withdrew his hand expressionlessly, his lips twitching slightly. "I'll pay for it later."

No one around dared to speak.

Shen Qi swallowed hard, turning his gaze away from the rubble and back to him.

"What exactly is Mr. Chen here for today?"

The question was blunt, and he himself felt it was a bit rash after asking it, but he couldn't care less at the moment.

He wouldn't mind dying himself, but if he implicated the dozens of brothers behind him, he wouldn't be able to close his eyes in peace before the King of Hell.

Chen Mo glanced at him, then stood with his hands behind his back.

"I have some grudges against the Green Gang and don't want to see them again in Linhe County."

Shen Qi was stunned for a moment.

That's it?

Because of some past grievances, why should we revive the Small Knife Society and suppress the Green Gang?

Shen Qi stared at Chen Mo's face for several breaths, trying to find something else in that expressionless face.

"Mr. Chen, then please tell me the truth."

Shen Qi licked his chapped lips, his expression constantly shifting. "Just how powerful are you? Who's backing you? If things escalate, won't the Zhenyi Division get involved?"

He asked carefully, but every question hit the nail on the head.

Although Linhe County is small, it is under the jurisdiction of the joint government.

On the ground, ordinary fights and brawls fall under the jurisdiction of the patrol police.

But once it involves gang warfare, resulting in deaths, or other issues, then it depends on the whims of the investigation bureau.

"You don't need to worry about the Zhenyi Division."

Chen Mo pondered for a few seconds before speaking, "As long as we don't cause too much of a commotion, no one will care who's collecting protection money in Linhe County."

Shen Qi's eyes narrowed slightly.

"As for how capable I am."

He paused, his gaze sweeping indifferently over the few people in the courtyard. "To be honest, if I wanted to, I could wipe out all the Green Gang members in Linhe County tonight."

"Even the Green Gang in Tianjin isn't invincible..."

""

If Chen Mo hadn't shown that skill, the members of the Little Knife Society might have thought he was bragging.

But now, the courtyard is completely silent; even breathing is deliberately suppressed to a minimum.

Shen Qi leaned against the bedding, closed his eyes, and his mind raced.

The Green Gang was a behemoth in Jinshi, but in Linhe County, Zhao Jiyan only had fifty or sixty men under his command.

The Small Knife Society now has about twenty members, which isn't too far off.

If we can fill the gaps in manpower, and with Chen Mo backing us up... it's not like we can't fight.

But being able to fight isn't enough.

Shen Qi had worked his way up from the bottom, and he knew better than anyone that replacing the Green Gang wasn't as simple as just driving them away.

They also need the ability to take over their business and withstand the Green Gang's subsequent counterattack...

He opened his eyes and looked at Chen Mo.

"Master Chen, I, Shen Qi, am a rough man, but I understand some principles."

"The Green Gang has about fifty or sixty members in Linhe County, but only about twenty or thirty of them are actually capable fighters; the rest are just there to make up the numbers."

"We don't lack courage, we lack equipment, money, and manpower."

"Master Chen, if you want to help our Little Knife get promoted, I won't ask you how, I just want to ask one question."

"After we pull off this job, what do you need us to do?"

Everyone was looking at Chen Mo.

That night, on East Street in Linhe County, at the headquarters of the Green Gang.

The main house in the backyard was brightly lit and reeked of alcohol.

Several heavily made-up women sat on the man's lap, cracking sunflower seeds and laughing hysterically.

Zhao Dezhu was reclining in a grand chair, his left arm around a woman in a red silk jacket.

He was just over thirty years old, with triangular eyes, earning him the nickname "Zhao the Chicken-Eyed."

But in Linhe County, no one dares to call him that to his face.

Three people sat to his left.

On the left is Liu Dadan, nicknamed Liu Si, the number two figure in the Linhe Hall of the Green Gang. He is big and burly with a face full of menacing features.

He had a seventeen or eighteen-year-old girl in his arms, and his big hands were pinching her waist.

On the right is the accountant, Sun Wenqing, wearing round-framed glasses. There are no women beside him, only a plate of peanuts.

He was in charge of collecting debts and handling official matters.

After a few rounds of drinks, Zhao Dezhu put down his wine cup, narrowed his triangular eyes, and tapped the table with his finger.

"Any news from the Small Swords Society?"

Liu Shouye was gently rubbing the little girl, who was trying to dodge him, when he heard this and finally looked up.

"What other news could there be? I've sent word to several doctors in the county town: anyone who dares to treat them will have their legs broken."

"Those injured ones are probably just waiting to die right now."

He chuckled twice, "It's been three days already, I reckon it's completely cold by now."

Sun Wenqing put down the peanuts in his hand, patted off the crumbs, and said, "We can't be too sure of things. Although the Little Knife Society hasn't been in Linhe for long, it still has some foundation."

"They're just a few worthless lives anyway, next time we'll just kill them outright."

Liu Dadan slammed his hand on the table, not taking those people seriously.

Sun Wenqing didn't respond to that, but turned to Zhao Dezhu and said, "Boss, Master Zhou from Jinshi has sent a message."

Zhao Dezhu raised an eyebrow, and his hand on the woman's shoulder paused.

"What did Master Zhou say?"

Sun Wenqing pulled a slip of paper from his sleeve and handed it to him: "That student who cursed Master Gu in the newspaper hasn't stopped these past few days."

"Still not quiet?"

The smile on Zhao Dezhu's face slowly faded, and a cold glint flashed in his triangular eyes.

"Looks like I didn't beat her mother enough last time. Tomorrow I'll break both her legs."

"I guess we can't find them."

Sun Wenqing shook his head. "That widow Li has already been taken away."

1

The room fell silent instantly.

Even the women who were eating sunflower seeds sensed that something was wrong, so they stopped smiling and sat properly without daring to move.

"Who picked her up?"

"I heard it was a woman," Sun Wenqing recalled. "It should be her daughter. It seems she was heading towards Jinshi. I've already told Master Zhou about this."

"Damn it, that wretched woman is fast."

Zhao Dezhu's face turned ashen, and he slammed his hand on the table.

The wine cup jumped high, spilling wine all over the table.

The woman in the red silk jacket in his arms trembled with fright and quickly slid off his lap, standing obediently to the side.

Liu Dadan was also taken aback by the sudden outburst of anger. The little girl in his arms took the opportunity to break free and shrink into the corner.

"If those coffin makers hadn't stopped me that day, I would have broken that woman's legs!"

"A bunch of rats who deal with the dead dare to meddle in the affairs of our Green Gang?!"

As he spoke, he stood up, paced back and forth a couple of times, and the room reeked of alcohol.

"Let Widow Li run away if she wants, but we can't forget about those people on Funeral Street."

Zhao Dezhu stopped, his triangular eyes flashing with a cold light.

Liu Dadan perked up immediately, rubbing his hands together eagerly: "Master Zhao, shall we smash their shop tonight?"

"What's the rush?"

Zhao Dezhu glared at him. "We should smash it, but we can't be reckless. The inspection bureau already came to warn us about what happened a few days ago."

"If we're going to smash things, we'll have to find some shady characters from other towns."

Outside, the red moon hangs high in the sky.

A night breeze swept across the rooftops, carrying the coolness of early autumn.

Chen Mo stood on the roof, listening expressionlessly to the conversation inside the house below. He then raised his right hand and gently tapped his index finger in the moonlight.

A wisp of extremely thin purple light shot out from the fingertip, silently and gently landing on the back of the head of a guard at the courtyard gate.

Before the man could even groan, his body went limp and he slid down against the door frame.

Another guard was squatting in the corner eating sunflower seeds when he heard a noise behind him. As soon as he turned around, a burst of true energy pierced through his forehead.

Before the person could even see what it was, everything went black, and they knew nothing more.

In just three breaths, all six guards in the courtyard collapsed to the ground.

Even the sound of him falling to the ground was gently suppressed by Chen Mo's magic, so as not to disturb the people in the main room.

After dealing with these people, he slowly withdrew his right hand and glanced in the direction where the Little Knife Society was hiding.

Chen Mo did not intend to personally deal with the main figures inside the house.

Today, he was just giving Shen Qi a chance to see if the other party dared to step through that door and had the guts to face the wrath of the Green Gang.

If so, Chen Mo wouldn't mind lending them a hand.

If you don't even have the guts to kill these people, then you might as well go with the Green Gang.

On the second floor of the warehouse, Shen Qi put down his monocular telescope and took a deep breath.

"Let's go, get ready to make our move?"

"Seventh Brother, are you really involved with the Green Gang?" someone asked in a low voice from behind.

Shen Qi looked down at the gauze around his waist. The wound was still painful, but his hands had stopped trembling.

"Damn it, let's do it. Whether we can live a life of luxury from now on depends on that guy."

He pulled the gun from his waist, muzzle down, and said, "Don't speak once you're in the yard. Shoot anyone you see."

A dozen or so dark figures filed out from the back door of the warehouse, hugging the wall and silently making their way towards the Green Gang's stronghold.

They were still laughing inside the main room.

Zhao Dezhu said something, and Liu Dadan slammed his fist on the table and burst into laughter.

Shen Qi climbed over the wall and landed on the ground, immediately spotting the guard lying there.

He crouched down and checked her breathing. She was dead; her body was still warm, but her heart had stopped beating.

He looked up at the rooftop; the eaves were empty, the red moon shone on the neat tiles, and there was no one there.

Shen Qi no longer hesitated and made a few hand gestures.

The dozen or so people dispersed, four guarding the doors and windows of the main house, while the rest followed him and charged in.

Dim light shone through the crack in the door to the main house, and the smell of alcohol mixed with the scent of perfume wafted out.

Shen Qi pressed the muzzle of his gun against the door, took a deep breath, and kicked the door open.

"Bang!"

The door slammed against the wall, causing the candlelight to flicker violently.

The laughter and chatter inside were abruptly cut short by the loud noise.

"Who?"

Zhao Dezhu was reclining in the armchair, his left hand resting on the shoulder of the woman in the red silk gown.

Upon seeing Shen Qi and the others, his right hand instinctively reached for his waist, but found nothing.

He Changshan, crouching in the corner, was the quickest to react among everyone.

In the last instant before the gunshot, the gaunt old man sprang up from the ground with a speed that belied his age.

His previously cloudy eyes suddenly sharpened, and he grabbed a stool with his left hand to shield himself while reaching for his waist with his right.

Shen Qi didn't shout anything; he held the gun level and pulled the trigger in the first breath.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

The three gunshots rang out almost in quick succession.

The shock still lingered in Zhao Dezhu's triangular eyes. He was about to call for help when the sound of gunfire silenced his voice.

The bullet entered his right neck, and blood splattered everywhere.

He tumbled backward from the armchair, crashing to the ground along with the chair.

The woman in the red silk jacket screamed and rolled away from him.

"Cao..."

"7

Liu Dadan had barely uttered his curse when two bullets struck him in the face simultaneously, splattering blood and bits of flesh all over the table.

He Changshan was the only one who survived the first round of shooting.

The moment the gun fired, his body had already rolled away, skimming the ground.

As he rolled, he drew a narrow-bladed dagger from his waist, and with a flash of cold light, he pounced on the nearest member of the Small Knife Society.

Once you get close, guns lose their advantage.

But Shen Qi brought more than one person with him.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

Three guns were simultaneously pointed at He Changshan.

His body suddenly stiffened, and he fell straight forward, motionless.

From the first shot to the last, it took only a dozen or so breaths.

The main room was filled with the pungent smell of gunpowder and a strong stench of blood.

Shen Qi glanced at the corpses on the ground, then looked at the women huddled in the corner and under the bed.

"Seventh Brother, these women..." a brother next to him asked in a low voice, pointing his gun at the women.

Upon hearing this, the three women cried out even louder, their foreheads thumping against the brick floor.

"Sir, spare us! Sir, spare us! We didn't see anything, we really didn't see anything!"

""

Shen Qi glanced at them, her eyes icy cold.

"Leave no one alive."

"Spare me...!"

""

"Bang."

"Bang! Bang!"

Three gunshots rang out.

The main room fell completely silent.

Shen Qi lowered the gun, his face devoid of pity.

Having spent so many years working at the bottom, he understands one principle better than anyone else.

In matters like this, there is no such thing as innocence.

If we let a woman go, the whole of Linhe County will know tomorrow that the Little Knife Society has taken down the Green Gang.

At that point, they won't even know how they died, let alone take over the company.

"Clean up the scene quickly."

Several brothers behind him began to move, rummaging through the corpse, searching cabinets, and opening boxes, their movements swift and efficient.

A young man walked up to Shen Qi, his eyes gleaming with excitement: "Brother Qi, there are several thousand silver dollars, five gold bars, and more than a dozen pieces of jewelry. It's worth a fortune."

Shen Qi glanced at the iron box and nodded.

"Move them all away, and later throw their corpses into the river to feed the fish."

"clear."

Shen Qi turned around and walked out of the main room.

The crimson moon hung overhead, turning the entire courtyard a dark red.

The wound on his waist reopened, and blood dripped down his clothes, leaving tiny dark red dots on the blue brick floor.

He glanced down, frowned, and pressed his left hand against the wound.

"Seventh Brother," someone called from behind, "It's all cleared out, not a single one alive."

Shen Qi nodded. "Tell the brothers to keep what happened tonight a secret."

"If anyone utters a single word, the fate of those three women will be his fate."

One hundred meters east of the Green Gang's headquarters, at the crossroads.

The night wind blew in from the alley entrance, carrying with it the faint fishy smell from the distant river.

Chen Mo stood in the middle of the road, his hands behind his back.

He now had a different face; he was in his forties, with a sallow complexion and a short mustache on his chin, looking like an old schoolteacher.

"Captain Yue, this road is blocked."