Chapter 202: Aiming

He Yuzhu felt secretly happy upon hearing this, but on the surface, he feigned a look of great difficulty: "If I go back this time, I will definitely have to endure my sister's whip again. Remember, that meal was on me."

"Look at how stingy you are!" Xu Damao laughed and scolded, shaking his head.

It turned out that just a minute ago, seeing his Siqiang slowly regain consciousness, Xu Damao had hurriedly stepped forward to hold his hand, crying out: "Siqiang, you've finally come back, you scared me to death! If you were gone, how would I go on living?"

Hu Yunbin looked at Xu Damao's wailing and felt that the world was a bit unreal; he asked weakly: "Child, have I arrived in the underworld?"

"You are alive and well!" Xu Damao stopped crying.

"Then why are you crying?"

"The people who saved you said, said they suffered heavy losses and demanded to raise the price to fifteen thousand Big Ocean. If you don't pay, they will..." He stopped mid-sentence and made a throat-slitting gesture.

"Damao, stop crying. Isn't it just money? Your Siqiang is not short on money. In the Houyuan of your residence in Nanluoguxiang, there are five thousand Big Ocean hidden in the kang flue of the East Wing; take them to get it. The key to the door, the key, should be behind the third brick on the door frame. It really wasn't easy for them to rescue me."

"I'll go do it right now. Siqiang, don't stay here long, you must find a safe place as soon as possible."

Just as Xu Damao was about to leave with red eyes, Hu Yunbin said: "I am going to Number 9, Xiaojinsi Hutong, Shichahai. Come find me there after you finish your business."

"Got it!" Xu Damao responded and headed out.

He Yuzhu loaded four thousand Big Ocean onto a truck, drove to Kaorouji, enjoyed a hearty meal, and then returned to the Siheyuan in high spirits.

But just as he entered the front courtyard, he saw the Wang family busy moving their belongings.

This family had treated him well in the past, so He Yuzhu stepped forward and asked with concern: "Uncle Wang, you were living here just fine, why are you moving all of a sudden?"

Wang Zhifu sighed, his brow full of sorrow: "I lost my job at the Lou Steel Rolling Mill. Originally, our family of four could barely make ends meet on my salary, but now that I have no steady work, relying only on odd jobs, I really can't support the family! There's no other way, we're preparing to return to our hometown in Yutian."

Wang Shenzi, standing to the side, wiped her tears and added: "The savings we scraped together by living frugally in the past—now that prices are skyrocketing and changing by the day, we simply can't hold on..."

Seven-year-old Wang Shujuan had red eyes and must have been crying; Wang Shucheng, who was the same age as He Yuzhu, had been in school, but would likely drop out after returning to their hometown.

He Yuzhu took out a piece of candy and handed it to Wang Shujuan; the little girl took it shyly but did not eat it.

He Yuzhu pulled Wang Zhifu and Wang Shenzi into his home, thought for a moment, and said: "Uncle Wang, my Siqiang's shop is reopening after the New Year. We will be very short-handed then; how about you come to the shop to help? Whatever you earned at the factory, I will pay you the same. Wang Shenzi can also come to the kitchen to help. With two people working, life should be a bit more comfortable."

"This... will it work? Can you make decisions for your Siqiang?" Wang Zhifu asked hesitantly.

"No problem. Besides, I have some grain stored at home, and I don't cook often, so you can take it all and make do to get through the New Year." After He Yuzhu finished speaking, he took Wang Zhifu into the storage room and pointed to the white flour in a large bag.

Wang Zhifu lifted it and found it weighed seventy or eighty jin, then moved to tears, he said: "Zhuzi, you are a good child. I know that although you like to fight and don't like to study, you have the kindest heart in this courtyard."

"I wouldn't dare claim that. I can help you because I have a decent job, driving a car for a wealthy family, and the monthly pay is quite good, so please feel free to accept it." He Yuzhu said with a smile to comfort him.

"Driving a car? That's a good trade!" Wang Shenzi also chimed in.

He Yuzhu took out another ten Big Ocean and stuffed them into Wang Zhifu's hand: "It's the New Year, buy the children some clothes. Remember, there will be work after the New Year; I keep my word."

Wang Zhifu declined repeatedly, but finally accepted the money with gratitude.

Xu Damao was well-versed in the principle of a wily hare having three burrows. He spent two days dividing ten thousand Big Ocean and hiding them in three places: the Siheyuan, his rented house, and the residence at Qianmen.

After hiding them, he still felt uneasy, but he couldn't think of a better way and could only ask his stepfather if he had a better solution. He also entrusted his stepfather to retrieve his Siqiang's body; firstly, to increase his favor with his stepfather, and secondly, to prevent his stepfather from thinking that the people who raided the prison were hired by him. His stepfather was a cunning man, and it wouldn't be good to show any flaws.

Sure enough, as soon as Luo Jiangtao saw Xu Damao, he looked at him with a strange expression.

"Dad, what's wrong? Is my face not washed clean?"

"Your Siqiang was snatched away; is this something you did?"

Xu Damao's heart tightened, secretly shocked by his stepfather's well-informed nature, but on the surface, he feigned a look of grief: "What are you saying? Wasn't my Siqiang executed by firing squad? I came here today for that very reason, to see if I could get the body back so I could fulfill my duty as a disciple."

"Damao, do you really not know who did this?"

"Dad, you think too highly of me. I couldn't even visit my Siqiang in prison; how would I have such ability?"

"I heard some influential figures chatting at the theater, saying that the people who did this were the same group that bombed the Military Statistics Bureau Beiping Station a few years ago, and now they have returned," Luo Jiangtao said. "You must never get mixed up with those people, or you will lose your head sooner or later."

"If he was really rescued, do you think those people would let my Siqiang go?" Xu Damao asked tentatively.

"I doubt it. Actually, those people weren't trying to save your Siqiang, but to save those seven Communist Party members! Saving your Siqiang was just a side task."

Xu Damao was shocked: Could He Yuzhu be a member of the Communist Party? Impossible. Even if He Yuzhu had supernatural powers, he couldn't have known that his Siqiang was with the Communist Party. Even if the Communist Party members were rescued, they should have saved his Siqiang first; saving the Communist Party members was just incidental.

He continued to press: "Dad, you said my Siqiang was rescued by the Communist Party, so my Siqiang might still be alive!" Xu Damao suddenly became happy. "Dad, can you tell me how they rescued him?"

"I heard that this escort team was no simple matter. Not only were they well-equipped, but they also carried a Machine Gun. However, the other side was even more ruthless; they used a Rocket meant for a Tank and wiped out a vehicle in one go. There were also snipers. There was only one survivor from the escort team, and he is still lying in the hospital!"

Xu Damao clicked his tongue in secret; it seemed the power behind He Yuzhu was definitely not simple, and it would be better to provoke him less in the future.

"Dad, I'm so happy to hear the news that my Siqiang isn't dead."

"You need to settle down recently. After the New Year, your mother wants you to go to school," Luo Jiangtao said.

"No problem. My Siqiang has two other friends; they have made some money flipping antiques over the years. Now that the currency is devaluing every day, they want me to ask you what is best to exchange it into now?"

"It is best to exchange it for gold or US dollars, but US dollars are not easy to exchange."

"Thank you for your guidance, Dad!" Xu Damao thanked him hurriedly.

He Yuzhu had been guarding Miaofeng Mountain for three consecutive days, preparing to ambush Deputy Mayor He. The target, who had originally agreed to come on the 28th, had yet to appear.

Just as he was feeling a bit tired from walking around today and was looking for a place to rest, he saw a team of soldiers arrive at the Niangniang Temple to chase people away.

He Yuzhu was pushed until he stumbled, and he said with dissatisfaction: "Officer, this is a place anyone can come to, why should we give up our spot to you?"

"You brat, do you not want your life anymore?"

"If I don't give up my spot to you, you're going to take my life? That's too overbearing!" He Yuzhu said.

"If you don't get lost now, I'll shoot you dead!"

"Fine, I'm leaving!" He Yuzhu quickly walked out of the main hall of the Niangniang Temple.

He hid in the woods and nimbly climbed an ancient tree; this was an excellent sniper point.

He held his breath and focused his attention on the mountain path.

About ten minutes later, two burly men carried a sedan chair slowly up the path. The middle-aged man sitting on it with a pale face—who else could it be but Deputy Mayor He? Watching the person who wanted to kill him right before his eyes, the corners of He Yuzhu's mouth lifted slightly as he locked onto the target through the scope.

Just at this moment, a rustling sound rang out behind him. He Yuzhu looked back and saw that it was actually four soldiers coming to search the mountain.