Chapter 478

"You're extorting people!" Zhou Zhou Anqin immediately grew agitated.

"Hey, how dare you speak like that?" The vendor, around thirty, wore a military-style coat, a cotton cap, and sunglasses. "I clearly marked it—high-end merchandise, no touching. If you can't watch your kid, who's to blame?"

Zhou Andong walked over: "What's going on?"

Zhou Zhou Anqin said: "Little Four was just looking at this. He says it's high-end merchandise, can't be touched, and if you touch it, you have to buy it."

Zhou Andong smiled faintly and asked the vendor: "How much?"

The vendor said: "!"

"?" An Jing walked over, "Over there, you?"

The vendor sneered: "What's that junk? Let me tell you, mine's imported—of course it's expensive."

"Ha!"

Zhou Andong couldn't help laughing: "I've never heard that Panpan, the mascot of the Asian Games, was made overseas."

"Never heard of it?" The vendor picked up a box of cigarettes from his stall, lit one, then pointed arrogantly at Zhou Andong. "You've heard it now."

Zhou Andong shook his head, took Panpan from Little Four's hand, and tossed it casually onto the stall. "Let's go!"

"Go?" Hearing Zhou Andong, the vendor's true nature showed. "Motherfucker, I hate you outsiders—poor bastards who act all tough."

At that moment, several other vendors gathered around, blocking Zhou Andong's path.

"No money, no one leaves."

The surrounding crowd, seemingly used to this, merely glanced at Zhou Andong and his group with pity, then went back to what they were doing.

Zhou Andong narrowed his eyes: "Fine, I'll give you money."

Then he pulled An Jing aside and whispered: "How much cash do you have?"

An Jing said: "!"

Zhou Andong blinked: "Why do you have so much cash?"

An Jing said: "You said today we'd bring Uncle and Aunt here to have fun, so I withdrew this money from the bank, planning to stroll around the mall and buy them gifts."

Zhou Andong said: "Give me the money."

An Jing pulled out a bulging wallet from her bag. Zhou Andong took it, opened it, then walked back.

"Too few bills—after all, it's imported. I thought at least..." He tossed the wallet at the vendor. "Take it!"

The vendor reached out, dazed, to catch the wallet—then Zhou Andong roared: "Robbery!"

Immediately, Zhou Andong kicked the vendor hard in the stomach. The vendor screamed, flew backward, and crashed heavily over three meters away. The wallet flew into the air; hundred-yuan notes burst out, fluttering everywhere.

Everyone stared, stunned—especially the vendor's accomplices, who stood frozen after hearing Zhou Andong's shout of "Robbery!"

Zhou Andong stepped forward two paces and kicked the half-risen vendor again, sending him crashing down. Then he grabbed the vendor's arm and wrenched it backward.

"Robbery? On me? You've got guts."

"Money! It's all money!" Someone shouted. The crowd surged forward, frantically snatching up the scattered bills.

Yuan Yuan Liying panicked: "That's our money! That's our money!"

An Jing quickly reassured her: "Auntie, don't worry. Dongzi wouldn't do this without a plan. Besides, when the police come, just say they robbed us."

An Jing's words calmed Yuan Yuan Liying. Then something unexpected happened: many people began returning the money.

"This is yours—take it!"

"I've got some too!"

"And me!"

Not just Yuan Yuan Liying—even An Jing was stunned. Zhou Andong watched, sighing inwardly: people in this era were still so pure-hearted.

Hands reached out toward An Jing and Yuan Yuan Liying; both bowed quickly in thanks.

"Thank you, thank you!"

In the end, they counted three thousand one hundred yuan. Though they'd still lost nineteen hundred, both An Jing, Yuan Yuan Liying, and Zhou Andong felt warmth in their hearts.

"What's going on?" Two young men ran over.

Zhou Andong recognized them as plainclothes officers but still asked: "Who are you?"

One youth pulled out an ID: "We're police!"

"This guy robbed us!" Zhou Andong said. "My sister just looked at the Asian Games souvenir, Panpan. He claimed it was high-end imported merchandise, couldn't be touched, and if touched, had to be bought. He then extorted me."

"When I refused to pay, he called his accomplices to threaten us. We're outsiders and didn't want trouble, so we decided to pay to avoid conflict. But the moment I took out my wallet and he saw how much cash was inside, he turned greedy and snatched it all!"

"Bullshit!" The vendor shouted, furious. "You gave it to me willingly!"

Zhou Andong turned to the two plainclothes officers: "Do I look mentally ill?"

These vendors often extorted outsiders. They knew it well. But it wasn't their jurisdiction, and they favored locals, looked down on outsiders—so they turned a blind eye.

But this time, violence had erupted. They had to intervene. Still, from Zhou Andong's words, they sensed he wasn't easy to fool. Trying to smooth things over wouldn't work.

Zhou Andong grinned: "My wallet had three thousand one hundred yuan. I'm not crazy. He's not my son. Why would I give him so much money?"

"Besides, after he stole it, during my struggle to subdue him, he threw the wallet—money scattered everywhere. Kind citizens picked it up and returned it to us. Still, nineteen hundred yuan is missing."

One plainclothes officer said: "Who can prove it was robbery?"

Zhou Andong narrowed his eyes: "Why does that sound so off to me? You really think outsiders are easy to bully?"

The other officer hurried to say: "Don't misunderstand—he didn't mean that."

"Then what did he mean?" Zhou Andong sneered. "Extortion, blackmail, robbery—huge sum, facts are right here. Yet you demand proof. Tell me, what proof do you want?"

The officer coldly replied: "Who can prove your wallet had three thousand one hundred yuan?"

Zhou Andong smiled, pulling An Jing close: "This is my fiancée. We're getting married next month. This money was withdrawn from the bank yesterday, meant for buying appliances and furniture today. The bank has records—can't be faked."

The officer, thinking he'd found a flaw, said: "You're outsiders, coming to Beijing to buy furniture and appliances? Must be rich."

"Exactly!" Zhou Andong said. "Honestly, there aren't many people in China richer than me."

"Motherfucker!" The vendor cursed. "Blow your own horn, but check your damn location!"

"Whether I'm bluffing doesn't matter. The truth is, I'm an outsider—but my fiancée is from Beijing. We bought a house here."

Zhou Andong turned to An Jing: "Show these officers your ID."