Chapter 49: Let’s Be Friends
“Damn it, still thinking of revenge?! You really think I’ve read novels for over a decade for nothing!”
At first, he did hesitate about whether to kill the other party. He really couldn’t bring himself to strike at a woman who was powerless.
But this little devil woman actually dared to have such thoughts, so he killed without any concerns, very smoothly.
He put the two corpses into the space, then rummaged around everywhere scraping things together.
Behind a brick in the corner of the wall, he dug out more than ten gold bars.
“Actually daring to hide them privately! This woman is no good person!”
After scraping together all the things, Cao Weida roughly calculated: six bags of rice, fifty-one jin each, totaling three hundred jin.
Flour one hundred jin, millet one hundred fifty jin, and two boxes of penicillin found in the drawer in the study room.
“You bastards eat so well yourselves, making us eat mixed flour that beasts eat. Killing you all at once was too easy on you!”
The grain that the people worked so hard to grow, they themselves couldn’t eat in the end, but instead ate bran, corn husks, corn cobs, even spoiled grain with mold, bean cakes, soybean dregs, rice bran—these kinds of garbage.
Some utterly mad ones even mixed in large amounts of sawdust, grass seeds, coal slag, and pebbles. Simply worse than beasts!
After erasing all the traces, Cao Weida took a quick look around, confirmed there were no flaws left, then flipped over the wall and ran off under cover of night.
The next day, Cao Weida got up refreshed.
Having completed last night’s target, he was in a good mood, and his sleep quality was top-notch.
Master Duo was already up, really washing up there.
“Master Duo, you’re up early enough.”
“You boy, finally up.” Duomen spat out the toothpaste in his mouth. “The house should be about ready by now, right? Have you set the date yet?”
Cao Weida smiled and said, “It’s set, three days from now. At that time, you’ll have to help arrange things. I’m all alone with no family, so I’m counting on you.”
“That’s easy to say, just leave it to me then. I’ve already found a cook for you, guaranteed to satisfy.”
Cao Weida was marrying a concubine, so the process wasn’t complicated.
A concubine is different from a main wife; usually, there’s no ceremony of worshipping heaven and earth or entering the bridal chamber. At most, pick an auspicious day, have the woman brought home from the south in a sedan chair or horse-drawn carriage.
After entering, she needs to kneel to the woman’s parents and pay respects to the main wife.
However, Cao Weida had no parents and no main wife, so these processes could naturally be omitted. Just bring the bride home, then treat friends to a good meal and drinks.
“Alright then, thanks, Master Duo.”
Right as he was speaking, someone came to the door.
Looking again, hey, isn’t this the plague god Wen San?
“Cao Ye, good fortune to you. Master Duo, good fortune.”
Cao Weida raised an eyebrow. “You know me?”
Ever since bumping into Wen San twice, Cao Weida had been avoiding him like the plague, afraid of getting tangled up with him and then inexplicably getting jinxed.
He hadn’t even told the other his name in those two encounters, yet now he suddenly showed up at his door and greeted him first, which couldn’t help but make him suspicious.
Wen San said with a flattering attitude, “Cao Ye, what are you saying? In our Tianqiao area, who doesn’t know you, Cao Ye?”
“You’re too kind.” Cao Weida responded indifferently, then turned to the sink to wash up, clearly not wanting to deal with him.
Duomen glanced both ways and pretended not to hear.
Wen San was awkward, but who was he? Wen San’er, whose face was thicker than a city wall!
He dry-laughed twice, then clasped his fists again. “Cao Ye, you’re not busy today, right? I’ve booked a table at Quanjude. Would you give me the honor? I’ll treat you to a meal.”
Cao Weida gave him a sidelong glance and smiled without sincerity. “I didn’t hear wrong, did I? You want to treat me to Quanjude?”
“You pull rickshaws every day; your hard-earned money for a day wouldn’t even cover one meal. What’s this, money burning a hole in your pocket?”
“If you have business, say it straight. If you don’t spell it out, I won’t have the courage to eat.”
“Heh heh. Cao Ye, you really love to joke. Everyone in Tianqiao knows your character; whoever you ask, no one doesn’t give a thumbs up. I, Wen San’er, admire righteous people the most. Treating you to a good meal should be fine, right?”
“So nothing then? See you later, no need to see me out.”
Still talking about eating? He couldn’t avoid him fast enough.
Anyway, deep down, Cao Weida didn’t want any dealings with Wen San at all. This kid had too hard a life!
Seeing Cao Weida say this, Wen San got anxious. “No no no, Cao Ye, wait! Alright, I’ll tell you the truth. A friend of mine asked me to approach you and make friends.”
“Your friend?” Cao Weida furrowed his brow. If Wen San’er had any real friends, they’d be rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns; mostly just drinking buddies.
And one who could make Wen San so insistent on treating him to dinner—could it be…
“Noon, I’ll be there.”
“Great, then I’ll be off since it’s on you.”
Once Wen San left, Duomen came over. “Cao’er, I feel like something’s off about this. Be careful.”
Cao Weida nodded but didn’t say much.
See him? He definitely would. This concerned whether Cao Weida could continue living carefree in the years after the little devils surrendered.
“Want me to go with you then?”
“No need, I’ll go alone. Don’t worry, should be no problem.”
Noon, Quanjude third floor private room.
Cao Weida pushed the door open and walked in, seeing a man of about fifty sitting there.
It wasn’t hard to tell the other had altered his appearance.
“Captain Cao, Cao Weida, villager from Cao Family Village, parents deceased, after coming to Beiping City got to know Duomen, was recommended by Duomen to become a patrolman.”
Cao Weida’s information was public in some people’s eyes, but that didn’t mean just anyone could access it.
Cao Weida, who had already guessed as much, wasn’t startled, but still put on a serious face. “Who are you!”
Browning pistol safety off, coldly pointing at the man.
“Captain Cao, don’t be nervous. I’m Wang Fugui, an ordinary merchant, just wanting to make friends with Captain Cao.”
Yeah right, you bastard. Do you even believe that yourself?
Coming out to make friends and you disguise yourself?
Warding off who?
Cao Weida rolled his eyes and said unpleasantly, “I don’t see Mr. Wang looking like a merchant, but more like someone with plenty of reward money.”
“Captain Cao really loves to joke. I mean no harm, please sit.”
Even with the gun muzzle pointed at him, ‘Wang Fugui’ showed no tension, instead gesturing invitingly with full poise.
Cao Weida paused a moment, then suddenly laughed. “Indeed bold enough. What you’re relying on is the dozen or so gunmen in the two rooms next door?”
‘Wang Fugui”s expression changed; Cao Weida’s words clearly caught him off guard.
“Don’t be nervous. Wen San said you’re here to make friends with me. I love making friends, the more the better.”
He put away the gun, sat down openly. “Speak, what do you want from me?”
Clap clap clap~
‘Wang Fugui’ clapped his palms and laughed. “Captain Cao has impressive courage and insight; Wang admires you. Since Captain Cao is straightforward, I won’t beat around the bush.”
“A friend of mine has some misunderstanding with the Matsui Special Agency. With no other choice, I boldly asked to meet Captain Cao, just to get someone out from the Matsui Special Agency.”
Cao Weida chuckled lightly. “Get someone out from the Matsui Special Agency? Brother, you wouldn’t happen to not know what kind of place that is, would you?”
“If I don’t agree today, you’re not planning to let me walk out this door, right?”
“Captain Cao jokes. Even if Captain Cao doesn’t help, I’d still be very happy to make friends with you.”
“Rest assured, today no matter the outcome, you can come and go freely!”
He took three wine cups and set them down. “Today was truly presumptuous, disturbing Captain Cao. I’ll drink three as penalty.”
Cao Weida leaned back in the chair, didn’t speak until he saw him drink the wine, then smiled faintly. “Mr. Wang, I’m curious. We strangers, how did you find me? You trust me that much to help?”
After downing three cups, ‘Wang Fugui’ got straight to it, took a briefcase from his feet, pulled out five small gold bars, and placed them on the table with a clinking sound.
“You, Captain Cao, this ‘new noble,’ are quite famous now. Any friends on the streets with misunderstandings with the Imperial Army know to come to you without fail.”
“I know this request is big, but I really have no choice. If you can help get my friend out, this is the deposit, and there’ll be five more after.”
