The bearded man was genuinely delighted. After listening to his men, he hesitated for a moment before agreeing, thinking that since they had already found the items, it wouldn't matter if they were left overnight.

That evening, the bearded man brought out several jars of liquor to celebrate, but in order not to delay tomorrow's business, each person was only allowed to drink a small bowl.

A small bowl was hardly enough to satisfy these drunkards, who kept clamoring that after moving all their stuff tomorrow, they would head straight to the provincial capital for a good time.

However, this time the bearded man was not so easy to talk to. Shaanxi seemed to be in chaos, as if anyone could raise a flag and fire a couple of shots, but the Jingguo Army, which was firmly guarding the area, was not to be underestimated. It was one thing to secretly transport things out, but if they were discovered, they could very well end up losing both their money and their lives.

The next morning, the bearded man directed his men to start moving the remaining items, but when they reached the point where only the coffin of the tomb's occupant remained, they encountered a problem.

"Platoon leader, this coffin looks valuable, but we're out of space in our vehicle, and moving it like this would be too conspicuous on the road. How about we open the coffin now and take the valuables out?"

The bearded man thought about it and agreed with his subordinate's reasoning. "Alright, then get the shovels and open the coffin!"

Upon hearing the news from the bearded man, everyone was so excited that their hands trembled. The tomb owner had so many burial items; the burial items placed in the coffin must be even more precious and priceless.

So everyone got to work, and after a series of simple and straightforward actions, they all shouted in unison, "Open!"

With a loud crash, the heavy coffin was overturned and smashed to the ground.

Achoo!

"Ptooey! Ptooey! Ptooey!"

A cloud of dust rose high, and the person opening the coffin was choked by it.

Once the dust settled, everyone eagerly crowded around it.

!!

The coffin lid was missing, and the coffin that should have contained the body of the deceased was empty. Only four large, blood-red characters could be seen at the bottom of the coffin: "Those who open the coffin will die!"

"Ah!" The timid person was so frightened that they immediately took two or three steps back.

"Yes, it's a curse!"

"Platoon leader! This..." The others also lost all color in their faces, their eyes filled with panic and uncertainty.

The bearded man's eyes were filled with malice. "It's just a bunch of petty tricks, what's there to be afraid of! Damn it, have you never killed anyone before? Huh!"

Seeing that his men were stunned by his few words, the bearded man continued to curse: "Damn it, you think you can be intimidated by someone who's been dead for hundreds of years? He was so powerful, but he's still dead. We took all his stuff and he didn't even fart. Damn it, a bunch of cowards."

The crowd was so intimidated by the bearded man's domineering aura that they cowered like quails, forgetting even their fear.

"Let's go! What are you all standing there for! Stay here and spend the New Year with this bastard!"

The bearded man roared, and everyone's faces tensed up. Then they rushed out of the tunnel.

The bearded man didn't rush out. He looked around the tomb chamber and finally his gaze fell on the coffin.

He stepped forward and, with a bold gesture, extended a finger to touch the bright red writing.

The tentacles were a little sticky and damp. When you brought them to your nose, they had a completely indescribable smell, but they could never be blood.

"Hmph! Just as I thought, it's all just a charade!"

With that, the bearded man strode out of the tomb.

His men were already waiting on the truck. The bearded man climbed into the passenger seat and directed the driver to head south.

Two hours after the bearded man left, Commander Hu's interception force arrived. However, upon seeing the traces of a camp that had been set up in the open space and the tire tracks left on the ground, the battalion commander in charge turned pale.

"We're too late, they've already run away."

"Battalion Commander, should we give chase?"

"Chase? Chase my ass! Don't you even look where the wheels are going!"

"Governor Chen's territory?"

"Hmph, do you think our stuff is so easy to take? Let's go back and report to the commander!"

······

At this time, Chen Ke, who had dug the pit for the puppet army, had already boarded a cargo ship bound for Shanghai, and the 1,000 silver dollars he had transferred from Jufengdong to Zhou Shanhuai's account in Shanghai had also arrived in his account.

Zhou Shanhuai went to the money exchange to pawn the last valuable thing in his house, only to be told that 1,000 silver dollars had been transferred into his account. He was shocked and wore a tattered long gown. His wrinkled face showed deep confusion.

"Excuse me, are you sure you're not mistaken? Why would someone send me money?"

The teller behind the counter was not impatient. She carefully checked the transfer slip and the recipient's account again, and only after confirming that there was no mistake did she tell Zhou Shanhuai that someone had indeed transferred 1,000 silver dollars to him.

"Yes, can you see who forwarded it to me?" Zhou Shanhuai asked this question with a vague guess in his mind, but he quickly dismissed it.

Would someone who could disregard their own brother and his family's lives and abscond with all their assets have a change of heart and send them money?

So when the staff at the counter behind him said the name "Chen Ke," Zhou Shanhuai was completely stunned.

"What did you say?" he asked again in disbelief.

“I said, the account we found that sent you the money belongs to a person named Chen Ke.”

······

Zhou Shanhuai was speechless for a long time. He couldn't explain how he felt. If it were before, after Chen Ke did that, even if the money was handed to him, he would have sneered and thrown it in Chen Ke's face, and told him to get as far away as possible.

But... his wife is sick at home and waiting for him to get medicine. In a few days, Chen Zhuo's school will also open and tuition fees will be due.

Although Chen Zhuo had already stated three times that he would no longer study and would continue to work as a doorman in a Western restaurant to earn money, Zhou Shanhuai, who had a certain level of education, knew that going back to school would not only allow Chen Zhuo to learn to read, but more importantly, it would broaden his horizons and change his thinking.

Knowledgeable and cultured people are respected wherever they are, and they always have the ability to change their predicament. He didn't want Chen Zhuo to be forced to do manual labor to support himself after they brought him to Shanghai.

Although Chen Ke's absconding with their family fortune made their already bankrupt situation even worse, and their lives became extremely difficult, Chen Ke is Chen Ke, and Chen Zhuo is Chen Zhuo. They would not confuse the two brothers.

So no matter what, he still wanted Chen Zhuo to continue studying at the school.

In the end, Zhou Shanhuai took away 500 silver dollars.

In Shanghai, 50 silver dollars would be more than enough for an ordinary family of three to make ends meet if they were frugal. So, after Zhou Shanhuai took 500 silver dollars to buy medicine for his wife and pay Chen Zhuo's tuition, it should still be enough for the three of them to live on for several months.

In a dilapidated and crowded alley, Zhou Shanhuai carefully avoided the sewage on the ground and went up to the second floor. This was their home now, which was like heaven and earth compared to their previous beautiful and exotic villa.