Chapter 125: Encountering Bandits on the Road

The wheels rolled on, and the southbound train traveled through the slightly desolate fields.

He Yuzhu leaned against the train window, looking at the wilderness rapidly receding outside, his gaze somewhat unfocused.

Zhao Ying leaned in, a teasing smile on her lips: "Zhuzi, being so attentive to your cousin—is it really just cousinly affection, or is it something else?"

He Yuzhu shot her an annoyed glance: "We are long past the five degrees of mourning; what kind of cousins are we? Naturally, it is the affection between a man and a woman."

"Yo, you start panting the moment someone praises you?" Zhao Ying raised an eyebrow, "Don't think that just because I'm leaving, I won't call Xiao Si."

He Yuzhu looked indifferent: "What if she knows? I'm not her subordinate."

Zhao Ying shook her head helplessly: "That's true. Xiao Si still has to rely on you now." She paused and added: "We'll be stopping in Shanghai for three days. Your boat ticket is being processed; tickets are hard to come by right now, so it's not certain you'll get one."

"Whether there's a ticket or not doesn't matter," He Yuzhu said nonchalantly, "I'll be able to get on the boat regardless."

At this moment, Zhao Ying's father, Zhao Meiting, paced over and sat down opposite him.

This Cambridge-educated scholar pushed up his gold-rimmed glasses and sized up He Yuzhu: "I heard from Xiao Ying that your views on the current situation are similar to mine?"

He Yuzhu said solemnly: "Uncle Zhao is a man who understands. Money is becoming less and less valuable now; if the government continues like this, it would be strange if it didn't collapse."

Zhao Meiting took a few deep puffs from his pipe and nodded slowly: "Then why did you think of starting a shipping company? Doing real industry in this day and age is not a good path."

He Yuzhu straightened his back, his voice clear and forceful: "If it were just to make money, we could very well buy stocks in Coca-Cola or tobacco companies. Thirty years from now, this money could easily turn into one hundred million. But what would be the point of that? Running a shipping business can also contribute to the country. A person cannot live thinking only of themselves; when one has the ability, one should do something for everyone."

After listening, Zhao Meiting's eyes showed approval, and he nodded repeatedly.

The train crawled like an old tortoise for three days before slowly pulling into Shanghai Station.

The platform was packed with people, and the hawkers' cries mixed with the train whistle in a jumble.

An old friend of Zhao Meiting's came to pick him up in a black sedan, and as soon as he saw him, he apologized profusely: "Brother Zhao, I am truly sorry. There were supposed to be two cars, but one broke down halfway."

Zhao Meiting smiled: "Brother Ma is too polite; I am very grateful that you could come to pick me up."

"How about this, I'll take Brother Zhao over first, then come back for another trip!" Ma Danian said.

"No need! Let Xiao Ying and Zhuzi take the luggage and go first; I'll just take a rickshaw," Zhao Meiting said.

Seeing Zhao Meiting say this, He Yuzhu felt that Zhao Ying's father was indeed a straightforward man, and he quickly spoke up: "Uncle Zhao, you go first. Take the essential luggage, and I'll handle the rest."

Zhao Meiting was still a bit hesitant; after all, he knew what was in the suitcase He Yuzhu was carrying.

Zhao Ying said: "Dad, you just go first. With Zhuzi here, there's no problem!"

Zhao Meiting understood his daughter's meaning and did not decline further, leaving directly with his wife and Bodyguard.

Only He Yuzhu, Zhao Ying, the butler Zhao Ming, and five large suitcases remained on the platform.

He Yuzhu personally picked up the suitcase containing the US dollars—though the real money inside had long been replaced by him with spirit money of the same size.

Zhao Ming hired a few porters to move the luggage.

As soon as the three of them left the station, more than a dozen rickshaws quickly surrounded them.

Seven or eight rickshaw pullers seemed to be in a group; they glared and shouted, scaring off the other pullers.

He Yuzhu got into a rickshaw, always feeling that something was not quite right. He specifically placed the suitcase beside him and watched the puller's eyes from the corner of his vision. After a long time, seeing that these pullers paid no attention to the suitcase, he felt slightly relieved, thinking this was probably the rule of Shanghai Tan.

Six rickshaws lined up in a row, moving through the streets of Shanghai with quite an imposing air.

The sky was growing dark, and the cold wind swirled with fallen leaves.

When the convoy reached a remote section of the road, more than twenty burly men holding axes suddenly rushed out from the woods by the roadside.

"Good heavens! We've been targeted by the Axe Gang!" He Yuzhu immediately became alert.

"What should we do?" Zhao Ying asked anxiously.

"What else can we do? Run!" He Yuzhu quickly got out of the rickshaw, grabbed Zhao Ying, and ran while carrying the suitcase, not even looking at the other suitcases.

Zhao Ying looked back: "Those are my family's assets! We're just throwing them away!"

"Wealth lost can be regained; my dear lady, saving our lives is what's important right now!" He Yuzhu dragged her into the small woods.

Zhao Ying was not an ordinary woman after all; once she understood, she stopped caring about those suitcases and quickly followed He Yuzhu's pace.

The two were about to enter the woods when, at that moment, a team of men in black rushed out from the trees, each holding a Submachine Gun, looking fierce and menacing, and surrounded them completely.

He Yuzhu immediately understood they had fallen into a trap; the Axe Gang was just a front, and these people were the real deal.

He raised his hands and said loudly: "Good men, I know you are just after money. Take this suitcase, and how about you spare our lives?"

The short man in the lead sneered: "I intended to spare your lives, but this little lady looks quite nice. She could still keep us brothers entertained, but unfortunately, the higher-ups want you silenced, so don't blame us for being unrighteous."

"Since it's come to this," He Yuzhu shouted, "I won't hide it from you either. There is Explosive in this suitcase. As long as I press the button, this suitcase will explode, and no one will get this money!"

"Don't try to scare us here, who are you trying to fool!"

"Eight hundred thousand US dollars, equivalent to one point six million Big Ocean; do you think I wouldn't leave a backup plan?" He Yuzhu said loudly.

The short man stared at He Yuzhu's calm face and actually believed him a little.

"Fine, then let's make a deal. You put the suitcase down, and I'll let you go!"

He Yuzhu shook his head: "I really can't trust you. Once you take the money and shoot us, who would I go to for justice?"

"Then there's nothing to talk about." The short man raised his gun.

Zhao Ying whispered: "These people look like they are from the Military Statistics Bureau."

Upon hearing this, He Yuzhu immediately said: "I know you work for the Military Statistics Bureau, and so do we, but we each serve our own masters; why force us into a dead end? You throw your guns twenty meters away, I'll give you the money, you take the money and run, and we'll leave empty-handed. This is my bottom line!"

A big guy was tempted and advised: "Brother Ma, this kid makes sense. One point six million Big Ocean is enough for us to live happily for a lifetime!"

The others all chimed in.

The short man pondered for a long time and nodded: "I'll listen to you, but I must keep one gun for self-defense. If you have a gun hidden in your suitcase, wouldn't I be at a disadvantage?"

He Yuzhu knew he was going to play a trick, but there was no help for it. Even if this guy had a gun, he wasn't afraid; what he feared was these people firing at once. He could hide in his space, but Zhao Ying would be dead.

"Deal. I want to tell you in advance, this money belongs to Shen Shichang. If you play any tricks, Shen Shichang won't spare you either!" He Yuzhu said loudly.

"Don't try to scare me! I'm naturally timid!" The short man said dismissively: "Brothers, throw your guns 20 meters away; we'll do this one last time."

After they threw their guns and returned, He Yuzhu suddenly used a hand strike to knock Zhao Ying unconscious.

The gang of men in black were all stunned.

"I'm afraid she'll feel the pinch of the money and fight you all to the death. So I'll just let her rest for a moment!" He Yuzhu joked.

Several people immediately burst into laughter, as if they had forgotten what a tense moment this was.