Zheng Tang and Luo Song nervously extended their hands.
After a polite thank you, Brother Wei waved goodbye and left with the others.
Zheng Tang and Luo Song remained where they were, looking anxious, waiting for Chen Jing's instructions.
Chen Jing patted Zheng Tang on the shoulder and asked about their current situation. He learned that they had only been in Huacheng for less than half a month and were currently just helping Brother Wei and others with odd jobs such as sorting goods. They were temporarily renting a house in Huacheng and understood.
He pulled out ten ten-yuan bills and stuffed them into Zheng Tang's hand: "We'll be staying in Huacheng for about five or six days. I'll trouble you and Brother Song to take good care of me these few days, especially my fiancée."
He pointed to Ji Xia behind him, saying that he had given them 100 yuan for a meal and tea, and that he would make up for their hard work by giving them a few days' worth of money after they left safely.
Although Zheng Tang and Luo Song wanted to do business, they didn't have the capital. Right now, they were just doing odd jobs with a group of big shots. They were offered 100 yuan to protect the two of them for a few days, so of course they agreed without hesitation.
After settling the two of them, Chen Jing returned to Ji Xia's side and took her back to the guesthouse.
After the two returned to the guesthouse, Ji Xia asked in confusion, "What happened? When did we offend that group of people?"
"I'll explain when we get back to the room."
Chen Jing escorted Ji Xia back to her room before quietly explaining the criminal gang in Huacheng to her.
Hearing that she had been targeted at the train station, someone who was attracted to her beauty and planned to kidnap or force her into prostitution, Ji Xia was so angry that her face turned pale.
This was an utterly undeserved disaster. Who was this "boss"? She had absolutely no recollection of him.
Moreover, in order to avoid attracting attention, she deliberately dressed herself up as a rustic village girl and darkened her face when she arrived.
These criminals are too brazen to even let this go.
The more she thought about it, the angrier she became, trembling with rage: "So, what are we supposed to do now? Just keep wandering around with two bodyguards every day? Is that all?"
"Of course we won't let this go, but they're a gang, and they outnumber us. We can't handle them with just one or two people."
Chen Jing hugged her and comforted her for a while before Ji Xia gradually calmed down, but her expectations and joy for Hua Cheng were greatly diminished.
She had heard in her past life that the outside world was very chaotic, with rampant theft, robbery, and kidnapping, and that one could easily fall victim to such schemes if one was not careful, but she had never seen it with her own eyes.
Because of her mother and daughter, she stayed in that small commune for more than ten years in her previous life. After her divorce, she worked herself to death to make money, and it was not until the late 1990s that she left the small town.
By the time she left her small town for a big city, public security had been severely strengthened and was much better than in the early 1980s.
After feeling disappointed for a while, Ji Xia thought for a moment and then said, "I'll visit the markets and attractions in Huacheng tomorrow and the day after, and then head to Fengcheng and other places!"
Chen Jing readily agreed, adding, "Don't worry, I will remember all the people I met today, and one day, none of them will ever try to escape."
Ji Xia nodded with a melancholy expression, then suddenly remembered the farce on the bus: "By the way, that man on the bus said your wallet was stolen, is that true?"
"It's true, but there's only a few dozen yuan left inside. I've put the rest of the money in separate places."
As Chen Jing spoke, he pulled out several other bills, some hidden in his socks and others in the front pocket of his underwear.
Seeing his action, Ji Xia blushed and looked away.
Of course, I only carried two or three thousand yuan with me; the majority of the money was still in my savings account, which was in my backpack.
If it's not enough, you can go to the bank with proof and your passbook to get more.
Ji Xia shook her head inwardly: "I thought he was just trying to fool you when he said your wallet was stolen."
Chen Jing sneered a few times: "Of course they would make it look more realistic in order to separate us. But I knew someone was watching you all along. How could I possibly leave you on the bus and rush off to catch the thief myself?"
"Even if I only have a few dozen yuan in my wallet, or even several thousand yuan, I would never separate from you and let them take advantage of the situation."
So, she deliberately stole Chen Jing's wallet on the bus, forcing him to lose his temper and chase after her off the bus. Then she was left alone, while there were several criminals on the bus.
Ji Xia thought of the men who had been jeering on the bus, all of whom had been there just now, and couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat.
Fortunately, Chen Jing wasn't the type to act impulsively, so he didn't forget everything just because his wallet was stolen.
...
A group of thugs returned dejectedly to their headquarters, the courtyard where Boss Liao rented a place.
The weather was hot, and even late at night, the courtyard, filled with a group of men, was as stuffy as a steamer.
In the courtyard, a group of people sat in twos and threes, playing cards and dominoes. Liao Laoda and Geng Lao Er, along with their two underlings, sat shirtless around the table outside the living room, dealing cards while cursing.
Seeing the group return, someone excitedly waved to them: "Ah Can, Ah Qi, you're back."
Liao Laoda leaned back in a chair, a cigarette butt between his fingers and a deck of cards in the other, his big feet casually propped up on a stool next to him.
He looked over when he heard the sound, and his expression darkened slightly when he saw the expressions of Ah Can, Ah Qi, and the others.
"You're back? How did things go?"
Ah-Can and his brothers reluctantly approached Boss Liao and said, "Boss, we failed."
Liao, the eldest brother, glanced at everyone and said, "With so many brothers here, how could they possibly separate us?"
"Boss, that man is as slippery as a monkey, there's no chance at all."
"Yes, he's too shrewd. We deliberately let Ah Qi steal his wallet, and then tricked him into getting off the bus when it stopped, but he didn't fall for it..."
"And, boss, he seems to be one of Boss Song's men..."
Upon hearing the last sentence, Boss Liao closed the cards in his hand and turned around in surprise to stare at his underlings.
"One of Boss Song's men?"
"Yes, they drank with Boss Song tonight..."
After the henchmen recounted what had happened that night, Boss Liao frowned and unconsciously glanced at Boss Geng.
"Second brother, what do you think about this?"
Geng Lao Er leaned back in his chair, clutching a hand full of cards, and pondered, "He's so alert, skilled, and knows Boss Song. He's probably from the underworld. But why didn't any of us know him before?"
Upon hearing this, Liao the eldest turned around and glanced at everyone in the courtyard: "Where's the third brother? Where did the third brother go?"
Someone immediately went to look for Qiu Laosan, and after a while, Qiu Laosan was called back from outside.
Upon hearing that the boss was looking for him, Qiu Laosan hurriedly returned to Liao Laoda's side: "Boss, you were looking for me?"
Boss Liao grunted in agreement: "Who knows the background of that girl's man from yesterday?"
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