During the Republic of China era, I achieved unparalleled success by returning to the past.

No! The murder scene was clearly recorded in the luxurious ballroom in the Book of Impermanence, so why does the newspaper say she died in the Grand Hotel?

"Newsboy, give me a copy of every newspaper about Su Xiaowan."

The thin newsboy's face, red from the cold, immediately broke into a smile. "Okay, no problem, sir. Just a moment." As he spoke, he quickly took all the newspapers out of his canvas bag and started flipping through them one by one.

Song Beiyou read through the newspapers one by one. The reports were getting more and more outrageous, and the information he could get was limited: Su Xiaowan died three days ago at the Fugui Hotel, and the cause of death was unknown. Some said it was murder, while others said it was a sudden illness.

Shen Daguan scratched his head, his eyes filled with sadness, and sighed, "I never thought you, Ayou, were so deeply in love. If I had known you liked her too, I would have definitely given her to you. Now it's too late."

Song Beiyou glared at the show-off, casually folded the newspaper with Su Xiaowan's photo in half, stuffed it into his pocket, and retreated back into the rickshaw shed. "Let's go, Shen Qingsheng." He thought to himself, now that he knows who the calamity is, he'll go to the Dafugui Restaurant tomorrow to check it out in advance.

The rickshaw drove away, casting a long shadow.

street corner.

"Sis, you're here."

"Come back with me quickly, you have school tomorrow!"

"It's alright, sister. Look, that customer was so generous; he gave me a silver dollar and didn't ask for change."

……

Shen Daguan had intended to take a night run along the Suzhou Creek to see the night view, but unexpectedly received devastating news and remained silent the whole way. Before he knew it, he was back on Taomi Street.

Most of the shops on the street were closed, except for the gambling dens, opium dens, and brothels, which were still brightly lit. There was also a tailor shop upstairs with its lights on.

Song Beiyou patted the frame of the vehicle: "Daguan, stop at the tailor shop."

Shen Daguan responded, slowed down, and casually asked, "Making clothes?"

"Clothes make the man, and gold makes the Buddha. I'll make you a set too. Once you have money, you won't have to worry about not having women." Song Beiyou jumped off the rickshaw and headed straight for the tailor shop.

Suddenly, a loud, exaggerated shout rang out: "Hey! Brother You've come out of the police station? How about coming over to my place for a bath to get rid of the bad luck?"

Song Beiyou raised his eyelids slightly. Under the red lantern, a woman's head, heavily made up, peeked out. He laughed, "Sister Cui, you can't handle this murderous aura of mine, so let's just forget about it."

"Oh dear, I think it's the smell of foreign women!" Sister Cui looked around. "I think we should boil some orange leaves in water, three pots in one pot, and wash it thoroughly to remove the fishy smell."

Upon seeing Sister Cui, Shen Daguan's dejected expression vanished, and he grinned, saying, "Sister Cui is truly experienced. Ayou, why don't you go take a shower?"

Sister Cui's chest heaved as she pointed a finger at him: "You, Shen Daguan! Everyone knows you're still a virgin, what are you pretending to be a seasoned veteran for? If you're a man, come at me! I'll personally deal with you, you matchstick!"

Shen Daguan's face flushed red with embarrassment: "Sister Cui, don't talk nonsense and ruin my reputation!"

A burst of laughter came from the house under the red lanterns.

Shen Daguan's eyebrows twitched, and he gritted his teeth: "Ayou—"

Song Beiyou said casually, "Don't look at me. I'm not your mother. You can't just go whenever you want." With that, he walked into the tailor shop. He wanted to order a high-end suit and a Zhongshan suit.

……

Chen's Tavern. A kerosene lamp casts ripples of light, illuminating three figures sitting around the table.

Shen Daguan spoke with great enthusiasm, praising Song Beiyou as a god descended to earth, a martial saint reincarnated. A young man wearing iron-rimmed glasses and a gray cloth robe stood nearby, his mouth agape, finally managing to utter:

"Damn, you two really struck it rich?"

Shen Daguan shook the money pouch at his waist, revealing forty gleaming silver dollars stacked on the table.

The young man's small eyes gleamed, he swallowed hard, and cursed, "You two went to make a fortune and didn't take me with you!"

Shen Daguan grinned, his thick lips parting slightly. "Whose fault is it that I haven't seen you for the past two days?"

The young man rubbed his greasy hair; he was only in his early twenties, but already had a few gray hairs: "These past few days, I've been working the night shift every single day."

Song Beiyou put his hand on his shoulder, squeezed his muscular shoulder, and said with a smile, "How could I forget you, Brother Kuan, when there are benefits?" As he spoke, he picked up the black cloth bag at his feet, counted out twenty silver dollars, "This is to repay you. It's my fault for dragging you into this mess."

Then he counted out fifty more, one by one, and laughed, "These fifty are to help my brothers win."

"Really?" Chen Kuan's voice trembled slightly. "You won fifty yuan in one go? That's almost half a year's salary for me!"

"Uncle Kuan, laborers are like oxen and horses, driven by whips and forced to work silently, only to barely scrape by. On the second day of the twelfth lunar month, Uncle You is going to box, and who knows, he might even become a boxing champion. So, are you coming or not?"

Chen Kuan rubbed the silver coin in his hand, his small eyes gleaming with intelligence: "Of course I'll go if I want to make money. There are still four or five days until the second day of the twelfth lunar month, I'll take leave and go then. But, like gambling dens, the bookmaker can't possibly lose money in underground boxing matches."

He glanced at the two men and continued, "You were able to come back safely tonight because you didn't earn much and because of Second Master's influence. But if we're too conspicuous next time, the boxing ring might notice us."

Shen Daguan's thick eyebrows twitched: "There's such a saying? What should we do then?"

Chen Kuan slowly removed the thin cotton string hanging from his ear, took off his iron-rimmed glasses, and carefully wiped the lenses with the corner of his inner shirt as he said, "Second Master invited Ayou to perform boxing; he's the biggest gambler. As long as we have wins and losses and spread our bets, we should be fine."

Shen Da looked at Song Beiyou.

Song Beiyou twirled the wine in his glass, the clear liquid swirling slightly: "Ah Kuan's analysis is correct, Second Master is the biggest player. You guys should take it slow, there will be winners and losers. As for me..."

He put down his wine glass, leaned back in his chair, and laughed, "It's only natural for me to bet on myself to win; that's called winning openly."

Of course, he had other plans in mind. The second mission was with Su Xiaowan, and he could enter the mission by the day after tomorrow at the latest. Once the mission was completed, his strength would definitely improve, and he would have a higher chance of winning the underground boxing match.

"Then let's do it this way!" Shen Daguan slammed his fist on the table. "Once we win the money, Master Kuan, your fiancée will no longer have to worry about the ten tables of Western-style banquet she requested."

Chen Kuan smiled shyly: "A-Zhu said that marriage is a once-in-a-lifetime event, so of course I will try my best to satisfy her."

Shen Daguan downed a cup of wine, his mind heavy with worry: "Alas, Master Kuan is getting married soon, and Master You has plenty of women who like him, only I... am all alone." His tone changed, "Seeing the beautiful face of the painted screen, the foolish boy in the alley longs for a red silk..."

Song Beiyou tapped him with his chopsticks and laughed, "Money emboldens people. Is Master Guan getting a little restless now that he's got some money in his pocket?"

Suddenly, the curtain to the inner room was lifted, revealing Manager Chen's head: "You little rascal, you made your fortune without even calling me?"

……