Chapter 1486

Xicheng!

Baiwan Village, formerly called Baiwan Tombs, because in the 1950s, two Liao dynasty tomb chambers were unearthed here.

In the 1970s, China's first batch of planned and constructed modern residential areas was built here.

Not only did it combine Western neighborhood units with Soviet street block patterns, but it also integrated traditional Chinese feng shui concepts, adopting the earthly branch naming method.

From an aerial view, the overall layout of the residential area is a swastika-shaped square, with nine districts—Zi, Chou, Yin, Mao, Chen, Si, Wu, Wei, Shen—surrounding the central area containing the school, grain store, barber shop, and green space.

The Zi, Chou, Yin, Mao, Chen, Si, and Wu districts are mostly dormitories for various major ministries, all red Soviet-style pointed-roof old buildings.

Meanwhile, the Shen district adjacent to the Zi district stands independently from the others, consisting entirely of two-story red-brick small buildings, belonging to row houses, with security guards.

Those living here are at least deputy department-level officials, many of whom frequently appear in newspapers and on television.

A melodious piano sound emanated from within one of the two-story red-brick small buildings.

Seeing Tong Huaiyu stood by the window, and this time he was holding not a wine glass, but a cigarette.

Behind him was a living room, not large, but the sofa and chairs could seat over a dozen people, shouting and laughing as they played dice.

By the staircase leading upstairs stood a piano, and a long-haired woman wearing a white elderly sweater was playing it.

"Huaiyu!" Wei Fatty held a beer can, swaying as he walked over: "Did you find out about that guy named Hong Rong?"

Seeing Tong Huaiyu snapped back to attention, glanced at the cigarette in his hand, put it to his lips, and took a puff.

"Found out, and his background isn't small either."

"Oh?" Wei Fatty raised his eyebrows: "How big is his background, so big that even we can't move against him?"

Seeing Tong Huaiyu chuckled lightly: "When I say he has background, I just mean he's a somewhat bigger rat, calling himself king and emperor underground."

Wei Fatty understood, smirking and saying: "Then what the hell are we waiting for? If we don't wipe him out, I can't vent this anger in my chest."

"Not in a hurry!" Seeing Tong Huaiyu pressed the half-smoked cigarette into the ashtray on the windowsill.

"Why not in a hurry?" Wei Fatty complained: "Are we supposed to let him celebrate the New Year?"

Seeing Tong Huaiyu's smile grew brighter and brighter, his heart suddenly feeling very good: "Tonight we'll first watch a play."

Wei Fatty blinked: "Watch a play? What play?"

Seeing Tong Huaiyu couldn't help but laugh out loud: "That day, Nie Wen extorted fifty thousand from us, and that Hong Rong pulled out twenty-five thousand—he must be very unwilling, so he wants to burn down the first bar."

"Damn!" Wei Fatty cursed, then immediately laughed: "Since he can call himself king and emperor underground, couldn't he investigate whose the first bar is?"

"How could he not find out?" Seeing Tong Huaiyu said: "Just that he has a rat from Jisheng Province beside him, with very sharp teeth."

That day, before we arrived, he took a liking to the sweet song queen singing at the bar, tried to smash it with money but failed, and was then embarrassed by the service staff, so that guy has been plotting revenge against the first bar.

Wei Fatty understood: "Hong Rong is just going with the flow, letting that Jisheng Province rat take the fall—no matter if things succeed or fail, in the end he can wash his hands clean."

"Exactly!" Seeing Tong Huaiyu said: "This Hong Rong still has some brains; otherwise he couldn't make those ghosts and monsters in Jingcheng call him Hong Ye."

"Hong Ye?" Wei Fatty snorted: "That Jisheng Province guy probably doesn't even know who owns the first bar."

"Whether that guy knows or not, I think he doesn't care."

At that moment the piano music stopped, and Seeing Tong Huaiyu slowly turned around to look.

"Because he thinks, after finishing this job, he'll return to Jisheng Province, and no one can touch him."

Wei Fatty sneered: "He truly doesn't know how formidable the iron fist of dictatorship is."

"Being a king in a small place, he probably thinks he deserves respect regardless of black or white." Seeing Tong Huaiyu slightly shook his head: "So he believes that as long as he runs home, nothing will happen to him."

Wei Fatty glanced at the darkening sky outside: "This play is about to start, right? Let's go early. This year fireworks aren't allowed, but this fire burning the first bar is far more spectacular than fireworks—don't miss it."

Seeing Tong Huaiyu said: "I reckon the first half of the night is impossible; we'll have to wait until after midnight at the earliest."

"We still need to go early, just in case that guy is an idiot and burns the first bar in the first half of the night—if we miss it, I'll have a terrible year."

Wei Fatty turned and clapped his hands: "Alright, stop playing, we're going out to eat, and then there's a big show waiting for us to watch."

"What big show?" someone asked curiously.

Wei Fatty hehe-laughed: "I won't say, I guarantee you'll get a surprise."

……………………

Anqi Hutong, Zhou Andong stepped out of the car and immediately smelled the aroma of braised meat drifting in the air.

"So fragrant!" Li Yuan sniffed and said.

Li Fang was observing the surroundings: "Big brother, is this your home?"

Zhou Andong asked: "Is there a problem?"

"Yes!" Li Yuan also noticed: "This entire hutong seems to be just your household."

"Yes!" Zhou Andong greeted Li Yunfei and Li Yunhai: "Come on, let's go inside and talk."

Li Yunfei and Li Yunhai were stunned—this house was too big, far beyond their imagination.

A group entered the courtyard, Zhou Andong shouted: "Li Fang and Li Yuan have arrived."

Then, a large group emerged from the second courtyard.

"You've finally come." Yuan Liying warmly greeted: "Yunfei, Yunhai, you've ridden in the car for over ten hours, tired? Hurry inside to rest."

Meanwhile, Li Mu and Li Ye, looking at a bunch of little kids, felt some urge to go over, but seemed also a bit timid.

Zhou Andong called over the fourth: "This is Li Mu and Li Ye, they call you Auntie Li, you're responsible for taking them to play, heard?"

"Heard." The fourth patted his chest, promising: "Li Mu and Li Ye, let's go, follow Auntie Li to play."

"Go ahead!" Li Yunfei and Li Yunhai released the hands of the two children.

The crowd walked toward the second courtyard, Zhou Andong bringing up the rear, Wu Chao quickly walked over and spoke softly.

"Chairman, take a look at this."

Zhou Andong stopped, Wu Chao handed over a slip of paper, he took it and frowned.

"Where did this come from?"

Wu Chao again took out a military knife from his body: "The note was pinned to the gate with this military knife."

Zhou Andong looked at the note again: "How credible do you think it is?"

"Better safe than sorry," Wu Chao said: "Taking precautions costs nothing."

Zhou Andong tore the note into pieces, then kneaded it and threw it onto the snow pile beside him.

"Have someone inform Tang Lin—he knows what to do."