The Sihai Hall of the Sand Ship Gang.
Guo Donglin fell in a pool of blood with a look of shock on his face. He could clearly feel his life slipping away rapidly.
In a daze, he seemed to be back to the moment when he failed the sixth provincial examination, jumped into the river in despair.
He felt his whole body getting colder and colder and it was becoming more and more difficult to breathe.
But this time, there was no cheerful old man to lend him a helping hand.
Gradually, Guo Donglin's eyes lost their luster and finally became motionless.
Chen Huaixiu didn't dare to look back. That angry attack just now had used up all her courage and strength.
Hearing that Guo Donglin behind him no longer made any sound, Chen Huaixiu burst into tears and covered her mouth and cried silently.
All the helplessness, loneliness and collapse I had felt over the past year finally found a way out at this moment...
Seeing Chen Huaixiu crying, none of the men in the hall dared to underestimate her.
The scene just now of a weak woman killing her enemy was so shocking that they would probably never forget it in their lifetime.
He thought that at the critical moment, the lady's decisiveness and ruthlessness were much better than those of the men.
~~
Now that the culprit is dead, there is no need to worry about the consequences.
Master Ma swung the large golden ring knife, and with a "swish", he cut off the thief Guo's head and placed it at the front of the row of heads.
Then Chen Huaixiu and the two elders burned incense to the two gang leaders again and led the remaining eight hall masters to pay their respects again to comfort their souls in heaven.
After everyone stood up, the two elders Niu and Ma exchanged glances and nodded at the same time.
Elder Niu glanced at everyone in the field and shouted:
"Everyone, a snake cannot survive without a head, and a bird cannot fly without wings. The criminal who usurped the throne has been executed, but the Sand Ship Gang cannot be without a leader for a day. Let us elect a new leader today under the witness of the two former leaders!"
Everyone was whispering to each other, and they had to consider the candidate carefully.
First of all, he had to be able to convince the people and quickly appease the gang members so as to minimize the negative impact of the fight.
Then he must be capable enough to find a way out for the entire gang after the Shachuan Gang breaks with the Xu family.
Finally, he had to be reliable enough and not be like Guo Donglin, an ambitious man who plotted to take over the Shen family's business.
Thinking about it this way, it seems that there is only one suitable candidate left.
Someone raised his arm and shouted, "I propose that Madam take over!"
"Good idea!" Everyone in the hall's eyes lit up when they heard this.
"That's right, we don't trust anyone else! Only Madam is the most suitable!"
"Yes, yes, please don't refuse, ma'am!" The hall masters quickly reached a consensus.
The two elders laughed with satisfaction. Elder Niu looked at Chen Huaixiu and said, "Madam, this is what everyone wants!"
"Yes, ma'am," Elder Ma nodded and agreed, "This gang leader must belong to you!"
"That's inappropriate," Chen Huaixiu said with an unmoved expression, "How can a woman like me take on such an important responsibility?"
"Madam, you are as brave as any man. You have made a great contribution to the Shachuan Gang by catching the traitor Guo Donglin. How can you not take on this important task?" Elder Niu snorted.
"That's right! If Madam hadn't noticed the conspiracy of the thief Guo, we would still be kept in the dark today. How can we be worthy of the successive gang leaders?" Elder Ma glared.
"Yes, yes!" The hall masters also shouted, "Madam is the current head of the Shen family. You are the only one who will not harm Master Teng."
"Yes, Madam, you only need to temporarily take over the position of gang leader. When Young Master Teng grows up and is able to take on important responsibilities, you can hand over the position of gang leader to Young Master Teng." Everyone continued to persuade:
"As for the affairs of the gang, Madam, you only need to stay at the headquarters and make the decisions. We will do our best to handle them, and you don't have to show up in public all day."
"Madam, we will never disobey your orders and swear to obey them!"
"Yes, Gang Master!" Elder Niu immediately changed his address and said loudly, "We swear in front of the spirit of the former Gang Master that we will be loyal to him till death!"
As he spoke, he made another gesture to Elder Ma.
"We are here to greet the new gang leader!" Elder Ma also started to clamor, and the two of them, along with all the hall masters, knelt in front of Chen Huaixiu.
"If you don't agree, we won't get up!"
"Alas..." Chen Huaixiu sighed helplessly.
"If it were any other time, I would not agree to it even if you said it to the sky. But at this time when the Sand Ship Gang is in turmoil, I can only reluctantly accept the position of gang leader for a while."
As she said this, she turned around and kowtowed to the spirit tablets of her father-in-law and her late husband:
"This is just a temporary solution. When Xiao Teng grows up, I will definitely not stay here anymore."
Seeing that she finally came to her senses, everyone was ecstatic.
~~
"Ding, ding, ding..."
The century-old bronze wall bell in the center of Sansha Town was rarely rung.
That was a call for the whole town to assemble; something vital must be happening.
The gang leader and his family members, who were still in the dark, quickly dropped their work and rushed to the center of the town.
In just the time it takes to eat a meal, nearly 30,000 people in Sansha Town gathered in the large square in front of the headquarters, and were shocked by the scene before them.
I saw a wooden platform set up on the large square, with a white curtain on it. On it was written a shocking word "甸" (meaning "dian"), which was more than one meter tall.
On both sides of the word "甸" there were many white banners and hanging banners with words like "Great revenge was avenged" and "Smiling in the grave" inscribed on them.
The gang members were all stunned. Didn't the gang leader just return victoriously? Didn't they say no one died? Why was there another funeral?
Could it be Master Teng?
Suddenly, a mournful suona sound was heard, and the band took off their red clothes and put on white clothes, playing sad funeral music, and the gang members burst into tears.
Amid the sound of mourning music, the two elders and all the hall masters, all in mourning attire, appeared on the wooden stage, surrounding Madam Shen and Xiao Teng, who were in full expression of loyalty and filial piety.
“Uh…” The crying gradually stopped and people rubbed their eyes in shock. Wasn’t Young Master Teng not dead?
Why are all the senior executives in mourning?
Fortunately, they didn't have to wait long before the second elder, Niu Ma, explained the whole story to the gang members in a concise and emotional manner, and then announced Guo Donglin's ten major crimes.
The gang members have always been centered around the Shen family... Those who supported Guo Donglin have been killed or imprisoned... Naturally, they have complete faith in the two highly respected elders.
After a moment of surprise, the gang members and family members began to curse Guo Donglin angrily.
When they saw the heads of Guo and his gang, they were so excited that they wanted to rush up and kick the evil thieves' heads as if they were balls!
The gang members who were maintaining order were pushed to the ground and shouted loudly, creating a chaotic scene.
It was Chen Huaixiu who spoke up to calm everyone down and prevented them from collapsing the wooden platform.
After everyone calmed down, the second elder Niu Ma announced the decision to invite Madam Shen to succeed the position of gang leader.
Chen Huaixiu already had a very high prestige in the gang and was Xiao Teng's guardian, so naturally he received unanimous support from the gang members.
Then everyone went together to pay homage to the ninth leader of the Shachuan Gang!
Looking at nearly 30,000 people bowing down to him in unison, Chen Huaixiu finally realized what a burden he had shouldered.
She couldn't help but look to the west, towards the direction of the Xisha Islands.
She had already done what she was supposed to do, and all she could do now was hope that the young man would keep his word.
P.S. Sorry everyone, I'm so late today. Because tomorrow is the first day of kindergarten for the little monk, my wife is busy preparing things for him. So she asked me to check the little monk's homework. Oh my god, why is there so much homework for the first grade? I worked until half past ten. The child is so pitiful, and it's not easy for my wife...