Chapter 1460: The Bicycle Is Gone

Dong Lai Shun.

Come to think of it, Wang Yan hadn't come here to eat hotpot mutton for quite a while; the last time he visited, counting from his own perspective, traced back a hundred years...

"There are only four of us; isn't this too much?" Zhou Xiaobai, seeing Wang Yan order three jin of meat without a second thought, spoke up to advise him.

"It's fine; if we can't finish it, we'll take it home," Wang Yan said with a smile, waving his hand as he twisted open a Beibingyang soda and passed it to the other three.

Zhou Xiaobai hesitated for a moment, then pulled money from her pocket and placed it on the table: "I have five yuan here, plus meat coupons."

"Oh my, Xiaobai is feeling the pinch," Luo Yun teased, making fun of her good sister.

Wang Yan smiled and shook his head: "Really, no need. I'm not overreaching; if I have it, I have it, and if I don't, I don't. I won't let myself eat vegetarian meals every day for the rest of the month just because of this one meal. I certainly won't compromise my own comfort for the sake of so-called face."

"Besides, it's actually not that much. How much can the two of you eat? My brother and I are the ones eating most of it. Since we rarely get to enjoy this, we must eat comfortably and to our heart's content."

Luo Yun gave a thumbs-up: "Generous."

"What generosity? It's just a broken jar given up on because one person is full and the whole family isn't hungry. But don't worry, Xiaobai; once we're married in the future, we'll certainly live diligently. I'm a person who knows what's what."

"Get lost! Who said anything about marrying you and living together?" Zhou Xiaobai sat there glaring, the ruddy blush on her cheeks not yet faded.

After putting away the money, she changed the subject: "Then what about your bicycle?"

"I'll go look for it myself later."

Luo Yun curled her lip: "Definitely going to pick a fight again."

"Don't talk nonsense; you make it sound like I love fighting so much, ruining my image in Xiaobai's heart," Wang Yan said. "I know exactly who stole the bike; I have to find people first. And even if it does come to a fight, wouldn't that be justified? Do you really think if I found them and simply said, 'That bike is mine, give it back,' they would? You don't think bike thieves are that reasonable, do you?"

"If you really find them, go to the police," Zhou Xiaobai said, blinking her big eyes. "Absolutely do not go alone; it's not worth it."

"I'm not stupid."

Sipping his soda, Wang Yan added, "When the time comes, I'll do a good deed: assist our police comrades, crack down on thief gangs, get them all arrested, and have them executed."

Luo Yun shook her head: "With so many people, how will you find them? It's like looking for a needle in a haystack."

"Hey, Luo Yun, that's underestimating my Brother Yan," Li Kuiyong said. "My Brother Yan is..."

"Is what?"

"Hey, Wang Yan, don't interrupt him. Li Kuiyong, you speak," Luo Yun said curiously.

Li Kuiyong looked left and right: "Ah, it's nothing much. My Brother Yan still has some connections over in our Xuanwu district; if we want to find someone, we can always ask around."

"Is that so?" Zhou Xiaobai looked thoroughly skeptical.

"It's nothing major. There are quite a few little hooligans and alleyway drifters in our area; every household has them. They have no proper business all day and fight everywhere. If I even glance at them twice, they gang up to beat me. As you can see, I'm not one to suffer losses willingly, so I certainly wouldn't just surrender; I'd knock them all flat on the spot."

"They definitely wouldn't accept that, so they'd gather even more people to ambush me, and I'd knock that bunch flat too. Then there are the 'Buddhas' in our area—that is, thieves. My family never locks the door; when they come to steal from us, I catch them and beat them up. Back and forth like this, isn't it natural that I've become well-known?"

The two women looked at Li Kuiyong, who nodded: "That's about right. The 'Buddhas' in our area have nearly vanished, especially in the two alleys near our home; nothing has been stolen there for over a year. They're all terrified thanks to Brother Yan cleaning house."

Luo Yun exaggeratedly exclaimed: "Good heavens, so you're the tyrant of Xuanwu Gate!"

"Is that a good reputation?" Wang Yan shook his head helplessly.

"Oh, I just remembered; that surname Li you mentioned earlier, aren't they going to seek revenge against you?" Zhou Xiaobai looked at Wang Yan with worry.

"I feel the care; it truly warms the heart," Wang Yan said with a grin.

"I'm talking about serious matters," Zhou Xiaobai said unhappily.

"Revenge is certain. This group of people only allows themselves to bully others but won't tolerate being bullied. The beating I gave them yesterday was incredibly light compared to how they beat others, yet they act as if I harbor a hatred so deep we cannot live under the same sky."

"I'm not afraid of fighting. No matter how many people they gather, most are just there for the spectacle; few dare to actually lay hands on someone. And those willing to kill, like that little bastard, are even rarer."

"Besides, I know their families hold considerable power; their parents occupy high positions and have great influence. If they dare to act that way, I'll go to Tiananmen Square and ask the Instructor to preside over the matter. Let's see which parents are that mighty."

Wang Yan waved his hand, calm and indifferent: "Don't worry; it's all trivial."

Zhou Xiaobai didn't know how to respond, while Luo Yun couldn't help but give another thumbs-up: "You're awesome!"

"Thank you."

Wang Yan laughed heartily: "The meat is here! Let's eat, let's eat! On such a cold day, enjoying a hot meal of hotpot mutton is truly one of life's great pleasures."

The four of them sat at the table, chatting and laughing, very happy, and ate with great relish.

Zhou Xiaobai and Luo Yun together ate one and a half jin of meat, while Li Kuiyong alone ate one and a half jin, and he still wasn't full. Wang Yan himself ate over two jin; nothing too astonishing, just maintaining an ordinarily large appetite.

The entire meal, including food and drink, cost Wang Yan over eight yuan, equivalent to ten days' wages.

Yet, neither Zhou Xiaobai nor Luo Yun saw a trace of reluctance on Wang Yan's face. After the meal, Zhou Xiaobai still tried to press money into Wang Yan's hand, but naturally, she failed.

The four of them walked together along Chang'an Avenue, from east to west, before bidding farewell.

"See you next Sunday," Wang Yan said with a smile. "Of course, if you miss me too much, you can also come to the Fengtai Furniture Factory; I've already told you my address, so you can visit anytime."

"Pah, I'm not missing you at all."

"Your words belie your heart."

Zhou Xiaobai snorted, then rode away on her bicycle with Luo Yun.

"Xiaobai, I think you've fallen for him," Luo Yun said.

Zhou Xiaobai didn't respond at all, just pedaled her bicycle on her own.

"Hey, did you know this guy is incredibly formidable? While you two were being all lovey-dovey, I..."

"Who was being lovey-dovey?"

"Oh, anyway, I asked Li Kuiyong, and he told me everything. Let me tell you, this Wang Yan didn't used to live near Xuanwu Gate..."

Zhou Xiaobai listened to Luo Yun's chirping as they rode their bikes far into the distance...

"What about the bicycle, Brother Yan?" Seeing the two women depart, Li Kuiyong asked.

"Let's go check near the ice rink again. When we left earlier, I spotted a few shifty-looking characters; let's ask them."

Li Kuiyong wore an expression of deep anguish: "We should have questioned them back then; by now, they've probably left."

"It's fine. There are many 'Buddhas' over there; if we catch one, we can follow the vine to get the melon. We'll root out all the 'Buddhas' in this area. I refuse to believe we can't retrieve my bicycle."

"That's our Brother Yan for you; those words sound truly domineering..."

Li Kuiyong was indeed skilled at flattering...

Wang Yan smiled, and the two chatted idly as they walked two li before returning to the Beihai ice rink.

Even though it was noon, there were just as many young men and women here, including a large group of veterans wearing woolen overcoats; truth be told, this was a magnificent sight of this era. Decades later, such Young Masters would be hard to come by, and even hearing about them would be difficult; if one wasn't part of that circle, trying to catch wind of them would take some effort.

Stopping where a large number of bicycles were parked, Wang Yan scanned the area again, searching for the few faces he had noted earlier.

Spotting one person, he led Li Kui straight over.

This was a young man wearing a tattered cotton-padded jacket, leaning against an old tree with a cigarette dangling from his mouth, shaking his leg, looking every bit like a hooligan; yet the way he glanced at others was furtive and shifty, not open and honest in the least, practically writing 'I am not a good person' on his face.

A Buddha, but certainly not one with a truly Buddhist countenance.

Seeing Wang Yan approach, the lad was confused: "Brother, what's the trouble?"

"Looking for trouble."

"Heh~" The lad laughed, "I'll give you three counts to disappear from my sight, one..."

With two sharp slaps, Wang Yan decisively slapped the boy twice across the face, knocking him to the ground.

Without a second word, Li Kui rushed forward and unleashed a barrage of punches and kicks.

Just as the fight broke out here, seven or eight people from the surroundings closed in, pulling knives from their pockets or satchels.

One man stepped in front of Wang Yan: "Brother, what's..."

Wang Yan delivered a straight kick, sending the man flying; without much talk, he immediately launched an attack on the remaining seven, and in the time it took to throw three punches and two kicks, they were all lying on the ground.

Ignoring the crowd that had gathered to watch the spectacle, Wang Yan walked over and grabbed the ringleader by the hair.

"Are you a thief?"

"You bastard..."

With two sharp slaps across the face, Wang Yan repeated once more: "Are you a thief?"

"... Yes."

"You see, wouldn't it have been better to do this earlier? Did you really have to get beaten up?"

Wang Yan yanked his hair, spun him around, and pointed to a tree not far away, "Do you see that tree? I came skating here this morning and parked my bicycle right there; now I can't find it, so you'd better give me an explanation."

"Big Brother, it wasn't us who stole it..." This ringleader of the thieves felt extremely aggrieved.

Wang Yan narrowed his eyes at him: "Really not?"

"Really not, Big Brother!" The thief leader said, "Since you are so formidable, there's no need for me to hold out; wouldn't it be great to just return the bike to you!"

Wang Yan nodded: "Judging by your lot, you should be frequenting this area often; could you point the way?"

"I can't do something like that; it would be too unrighteous."

"You're already stealing things, yet you're talking to me about righteousness?"

"So what? Can't a Buddha speak of loyalty?" The thief leader craned his neck defiantly.

With two sharp slaps, Wang Yan smiled and asked: "Really can't point the way?"

The thief leader looked around; although he was beaten to tears, he still stubbornly wiped his snot with his sleeve: "Won't point!"

"Good!" Wang Yan nodded, "Da Yong, go find the police."

"Got it." Li Kui responded crisply, dashed out of the crowd, and ran to the nearby police station.

The thieves didn't take it seriously; after all, catching a thief requires catching them red-handed, so the police couldn't do much to them. Besides, for those living by the sword, who hasn't been inside a station before?

Wang Yan laughed: "Let me say this to you first; in a few days, I'll come here asking about you, and someone will surely know where your home is. If you get taken away by the police and aren't sentenced to three months, then you'll be in deep trouble. This city of Four-Nine is not small, but then again, it's not so big that one can't be found.

I guess you certainly don't believe me, thinking you'll track me down later for revenge. You don't need to waste effort investigating me; I'll tell you directly. I live on Nanheng Street... and work at the Fengtai Furniture Factory; if you're unconvinced, come find me.

No, wait, rest assured, even if you don't come looking for me, I will come looking for you. However, our next meeting won't be this friendly. I really don't believe in this evil.

Also, let me tell you something else: I'll be around here constantly during this period, and I'm going to beat up every single thief until I find my bicycle. You can spread the word, look for the old veterans in your trade, and let's see how this plays out."

Wang Yan's gaze swept over, spotted a pack of Huazi cigarettes sticking out of the thief leader's pocket, let out a shout, picked it up, lit one for himself, and naturally pocketed the rest.

Standing up, Wang Yan scanned the crowd of onlookers, thought for a moment, and then spoke loudly.

"Let me tell all you comrades something: my bicycle was stolen around here, and these people are thieves; they claim they didn't steal my bike. I know that among those present, there must be the thief who stole my vehicle. Do you see that tree over there? That's exactly where my bike was stolen.

Wang Yan pointed with his finger, then used the hand holding the cigarette to point at a few spots, "You few with your shifty eyes don't look like good people. When the police arrive shortly, you won't get off easy; just you wait.

Glaring at me, are you? I've memorized you. Also, no need to waste effort investigating; my name is Wang Yan, I live on Nanheng Street... and work at the Fengtai Furniture Factory. If you don't come looking for me, I'll come looking for you, so I think you might as well come find me directly, saving everyone some trouble.

To sum it up in one sentence: if my bicycle isn't found within a day, this matter isn't over. What the hell is a 'Buddha'? Buddha your mother! A bunch of thieves who can't see the light, acting like important people now? Angry, are you?

It's good that you're angry. I get off work at four-thirty; tomorrow afternoon, five hundred meters west of the Furniture Factory, there's a spot; pass the word to your bosses behind the scenes, and we'll settle this together."

Wang Yan spoke these arrogant words, provoking discussion among the onlookers, who all laughed at Wang Yan for overestimating his abilities.

Being able to fight ten people is indeed awesome, but can you fight a hundred? Even if you can beat a hundred, can you beat guns? Guns aren't prohibited right now; who among those roaming the Jianghu doesn't have a few guns in hand?

Wang Yan listened with a smile, offering not a single word of defense.

They waited until the police arrived, who took away these thieves whom Wang Yan had beaten so badly they hadn't recovered, and also took away Wang Yan and Li Kui to the police station to make a record.

Wang Yan naturally did not conceal anything; he was the victim, after all. He explained the matter of his lost bicycle and filed a report; if the bicycle was found, the police officers would contact him.

But given the current environment, of course, it would not be found.

Thus, Wang Yan could only resolve the problem using his own methods, properly meeting the Jianghu of Jingcheng in the late sixties...

?? Daily thanks to the good brothers who generously donate, cast monthly tickets, recommendation tickets, and silently read the book for their strong support!

? (End of Chapter)