Chapter 463: The Switch

He Yuzhu walked out of the Street Office, his heart burning with anger, and headed straight home.

Just as he reached the mouth of the alley, he bumped into Xu Damao leading Liu Guangtian and Yan Jiefang as they sauntered out.

He Yuzhu stopped in his tracks, his mouth curling in a sneer: "Xu Damao, you're really going downhill. Don't you even have any decent friends left now? Starting to fool around with half-grown kids?"

Xu Damao glared: "He Yuzhu, watch your mouth! Who I hang out with is none of your business!"

"It's not my business," He Yuzhu said, crossing his arms and sweeping a glance at Liu Guangtian and Yan Jiefang, "but when their parents find out their kids are learning bad habits from you and come knocking, let's see what you do then."

"A dog catching mice! Meddling in other people's business!" Xu Damao spat.

"Who cares about you?" He Yuzhu sneered. "If your mother hadn't come to my house last time and kowtowed until it thudded, would I have bailed you out? If there's a next time, see if I care."

"You bailed me out? Didn't you make money off it?" Xu Damao looked at He Yuzhu.

Liu Guangtian and Yan Jiefang listened to the two bickering, but didn't join in, just keeping their heads down and kicking the pebbles at their feet.

"Your Xu Family is really something, playing the 'use someone when you need them, discard them when you don't' game so smoothly. If your mother hadn't kowtowed until her head bled, I wouldn't have bothered with your damn business! I only agreed because of your mother, but then the Police wouldn't let you go, so I had no choice but to beg my sister to sponsor five vehicles for the police station, and that's how you only got one year. You bastard, and you still think I made money off you? Do you really think that piece of junk stone of yours is worth anything? I'm telling you, if my sister didn't like it, I wouldn't buy it for ten thousand!"

Xu Damao lowered his voice, his tone sinister: "I asked around in the detention center; the crime I committed should only get me one year at most! Explaining to me is useless! You're a ruthless one, having someone shoot Li Yong dead! I'll be staying far away from you from now on!"

He Yuzhu stepped forward and asked: "Perfect, let me ask you—that four million plus on Li Yong, was that money you gave him? To hire a killer to burn down my house?"

"You're talking nonsense!" Xu Damao jumped up immediately.

"Last time you funded spies, and this time you gave Li Yong money. If you connect these two things, you really might be a spy. Tell me, who is your handler? Is it your stepfather Luo Jiangtao? Or that hunchbacked old man? I remember that old geezer was quite protective of you!"

"He Yuzhu, screw your grandfather! You got Li Yong killed, and now you want to frame me? I..." Xu Damao was so angry his face turned pale.

"What, want to call your 'comrades' to kill me, is that it?" He Yuzhu finished for him, his mouth curling in mockery.

Xu Damao turned and ran as if he had encountered something terrifying: "Let's go, you two, don't pay any attention to this grandson! Who knows, one day he might just take your lives!"

Soon, the few of them disappeared at the end of the alley.

He Yuzhu followed them closely, all the way to the front of Kaorouji at Shichahai.

He quickly ducked into the alley next door and swiftly put on a disguise and changed his clothes.

Xu Damao was furious; he lit a cigarette at the entrance of Kaorouji and cursed while smoking: "He Yuzhu, you won't die well. Sooner or later, I'll make you wish you were dead!"

Seeing Xu Damao gnashing his teeth, Liu Guangtian asked timidly: "Brother Damao, is what He Yuzhu said true?"

"What true or false?" Xu Damao threw the cigarette butt on the ground and crushed it fiercely.

"You aren't really a spy, are you?" Liu Guangtian asked.

"You damn blockhead!" Xu Damao slapped him, "Even if I were stupid, I wouldn't hang out with the defeated political party!"

Yan Jiefang chimed in: "Brother Damao, is your stepfather really a spy?"

Xu Damao nodded and said: "If you go telling others, I'll tell everyone about you stealing things."

"I won't tell. He Yuzhu isn't any good either; my mother says he's just a freeloader! Relying entirely on clinging to the rich woman Chen Xueru." Yan Jiefang giggled.

"Shut your trap!" Xu Damao scolded.

"Chen Xueru is actually quite pretty. When I grow up, I'll go cling to one too!" Yan Jiefang said lewdly.

Xu Damao kicked him hard in the butt and cursed: "You don't have a chance! The ones you'd cling to would be ugly hags! He Yuzhu, that grandson, has good stamina; that's one thing you can't compare to!"

Liu Guangtian spoke up: "My dad said He Yuzhu has big shots behind him and told our family not to provoke the He Family. Brother Damao, you'd better stay away from him too!"

"Do you think I want to provoke him? He's the one bullying me!" Xu Damao spread his hands.

"But why is he so good to those young girls? Look at Wang Xiaomi, Li Dahua, and Zou Xiaoqi, they eat and drink at his place every day."

"He's a cheap bastard too! Only knows how to suck up to women!" After cursing, Xu Damao felt much better and slowly walked into Kaorouji.

Seeing the three of them go in, He Yuzhu followed them in quietly.

At this moment, He Yuzhu was already a different person; with graying hair and a bloated cotton-padded jacket, he looked like an ordinary old man.

As soon as he entered, he saw two people sitting by the window—they were actually Wang Baosheng and Zheng De, who had stolen from Chen Qingshan's house last time.

Only then did he realize that Liu Guangtian and Yan Jiefang had taken them as masters.

To say that Xu Damao wasn't stirring things up behind this was impossible. This kid was truly rotten to the core.

Xu Damao walked up to the table and cupped his hands: "Sorry for the wait, gentlemen. Ran into a moron, which delayed me for a bit."

Wang Baosheng waved his hand: "Brother Damao, why be so polite? Sit down."

Xu Damao took a pack of Zhonghua cigarettes from his pocket and handed them over.

Liu Guangtian wanted one too, but was slapped by Wang Baosheng: "You little brat, if your dad finds out you're smoking, he'll beat you to death!"

Liu Guangtian giggled foolishly.

"Brother Damao," Zheng De lowered his voice, "you said there's a buyer in Hong Kong who wants to collect items. When can you let us meet them?"

Xu Damao shook his head: "Brother Zheng, this connection belongs to my senior fellow apprentice. If you want to sell, you have to give the items to me first, and I'll pass them to my senior, then he'll hand them up. The rules of the trade cannot be broken."

Wang Baosheng frowned: "Those few paintings last time, my Lao Er said you gave a low price."

Xu Damao sighed: "Brother Bao, it's not that I'm saying anything, but you're too out of touch. Now that all the antique shops have undergone Public-Private Partnership, even good items don't fetch much money..."

"That Xuande Censer I showed you last time, didn't you say it was real? How much is it worth?" Wang Baosheng asked.

"One million at most! That thing, there were many imitations during the Qing Dynasty, and there are many fakes; it's not worth much at all!" Xu Damao said.

"We have a few more paintings by Wen Zhengming and Qiu Ying. How much are those worth?" Wang Baosheng asked again.

"Brother Bao, you're not being honest. Last time I asked you, you said you only got three, so how come a few more appeared?" Xu Damao was impatient.

Wang Baosheng chuckled: "Lao Er said, once there are too many items, they aren't worth much."

"You're really something! I provided the location for all of that, and you still kept it from me!" Xu Damao said with dissatisfaction.

Wang Baosheng and Zheng De looked at each other and pleaded: "Damao, this time, I've brought all five paintings. Please hurry and help us sell them. Lately, we've barely had enough to eat."

"Fine. But you need to be aware, there aren't many of those paintings that can sell for ten million nowadays." Xu Damao said.

Not far away, He Yuzhu heard the conversation between the few of them clearly.

After they finished eating, Wang Baosheng took a cloth bundle from under the table, handed it to Xu Damao, and said earnestly: "Damao, this time we're counting on you. You must help us negotiate a good price so the brothers can have a fat New Year."

Xu Damao took the bundle, a confident smile appearing on his face: "Don't worry, Brother Bao. The connections on my senior's side are reliable; I'll definitely negotiate a good price for you!"

Just as Xu Damao was walking past He Yuzhu carrying his bundle, a thought occurred to him, and he immediately swapped the five authentic works by Wen Zhengming and Qiu Ying inside the bundle for five imitations.

Xu Damao, however, remained completely unaware.

Watching their backs disappear outside the door, a cold smile flickered across the corner of He Yuzhu's mouth.