Chapter 32: Whoever Bites, Hooks Itself
No wonder Lin Xueyi was making such a fuss.
Before the RB people came in, the entire Shanghai was the Three Tycoons’ domain.
Everyone in the entire Green Gang knew that Boss Huang was greedy for money, Boss Zhang was good at fighting, and Boss Du knew how to get along with people.
Boss Du had under him the Four Great Vajras: Ye Zhuoshan, Gu Jiatang, Gao Xinbao, and Rui Qingrong.
But Boss Zhang’s thugs were twice as many as his, known as the Eight Vajras.
Moreover, Boss Zhang was also famous, known as the Three-Color Tycoon in Shanghai.
What is the Three-Color Tycoon? One is yellow, running brothels; two is black, trafficking opium; three is white, the so-called white terror, killing and fighting.
Wanting to defeat the opponent in the field they are best at—how is that possible.
Chen Yang really wasn’t afraid that Boss Zhang would fly into a rage and bring people to wipe out their whole family.
He, Chen Yang, dared to do it, and Lin Xueyi didn’t dare either.
Seeing Lin Xueyi’s hesitant look, Chen Yang knew what was on his mind.
“Second Brother, you still don’t understand. Things have come to this point, you can’t back out.”
Chen Yang said slowly: “Do you think this is child’s play now, that surrendering means you only lose half.”
“Second Brother, you’re trying to be the boss like others. If you step back, they’ll make your home restless.”
“Sigh,” Lin Xueyi let out a long sigh: “Chen Yang, I’ve figured it out. This time, I have to go whether I want to or not.”
“Don’t worry, Second Brother,” Chen Yang patted Lin Xueyi’s shoulder and said: “I’ll watch over you.”
“First tell me, what’s the deal with this Xie Yuankui?”
Lin Xueyi took a breath and said: “This Xie Yuankui is from Anhui Province, came to Shanghai as a refugee more than ten years ago.”
“He used to have a nickname, King Cobra.”
“You know what King Cobra means, right? It eats venomous snakes on purpose, and has a smell on its body. If it wraps around you, you’ll be left with a body full of stink, which shows this guy is a rogue scoundrel, very tricky.”
“When he first came to Shanghai, he brought a group of brothers to the wharf to stir up trouble, specifically robbing local people’s jobs.”
“Later it got big, people from the gang came out and beat them up. Not only did this guy not restrain himself, he saw the importance of the gang from it.”
“So, he found some hooligans to introduce him to Song Zushan, one of the Eight Vajras under Boss Zhang.”
“After getting a backer, this guy rose quickly. In two or three years, under Boss Zhang’s instructions, he took control of Xinkaihe Wharf.”
“The most crucial thing is, his group of men from Anhui Province are very good at fighting. With just the few goods we have, I can guarantee we can’t hold them off.”
Chen Yang sneered: “Good at fighting, how good? Can he be faster than a gun? Times have changed, Second Brother. You think it’s still the era of speaking with axes.”
“You think he’s Wang Yaqiao or something.”
“Don’t worry, I’ve got everything covered. Go back and have people spread the word outside that the night after tomorrow, a batch of materials will be delivered to the warehouse at Sixteen Rows Wharf.”
“This batch of materials is worth at least three hundred thousand silver dollars.”
Lin Xueyi said hesitantly: “Chen Yang, you’re not thinking of luring them to come rob it, are you? I warn you upfront, we really can’t hold them off.”
Chen Yang smiled and patted Lin Xueyi’s shoulder: “Second Brother, don’t worry. This is like Jiang Taigong fishing—those who wish may take the bait.”
“I have my own methods to deal with them…”
Shanghai, Xinkaihe Wharf, water station.
Although many water pipes had been installed in the Republic of China Era, using water was still a luxury.
The Municipal Council of the French Concession laid water stations using groundwater from the Huangpu River.
These water stations were generally privately operated. If you remember Stephen Chow’s purple kung fu, you’d know water was a scarce item back then too.
It wasn’t non-stop supply all day, but divided into morning, noon, and evening, and you had to pay a certain water fee to the water station to get the qualification to fetch water.
So, often when water release time came, you’d see some kids holding water buckets and chips issued by the water station waiting at the water station to catch water.
On the second floor of the water station, Xie Yuankui had his arm around a beautiful woman, his hands roaming constantly, making her giggle.
If any brothers from Sixteen Rows Wharf were here, they’d recognize that this beautiful woman was none other than Sai Jinling, the young dan from Shengping Theater who was hot with Xu Biao just a few days ago.
Thud thud thud, a sound of rapid footsteps came. A man wearing a short jacket ran upstairs, sweating profusely: “Elder Brother,”
As soon as the man shouted, Xie Yuankui raised his hand to signal silence, patted Sai Jinling’s body and said: “Go downstairs to the stall and have some pastries. Later, I’ll take you back to Shengping Theater and cheer for you along the way.”
“You’re so good to me.” Sai Jinling’s eyes lit up. Cheering in this era wasn’t just listening to plays; it was burning money.
Watching Sai Jinling leave, Xie Yuankui turned and said: “How’s the matter going?”
The big man shook his head: “All the means were used, but that Lin guy doesn’t know what’s good for him and won’t budge.”
Xie Yuankui’s face turned cold, and he cursed without politeness: “Useless! If you can’t talk it out with him, just kidnap his family. Do I need to teach you that?”
The big man said aggrievedly: “Elder Brother, it won’t work. That guy’s home is right next to the police station, and it’s all bustling streets around. We have no chance to make a move.”
“If we really get into a fight and slip up, that’s minor. But if it implicates Boss Zhang and makes him lose face, he’ll skin us alive when he finds out.”
Xie Yuankui was stunned for a moment, his expression unconsciously turning a bit more grave.
“Then forget him. Gather the brothers and go hard.”
The big man swallowed and said: “Elder Brother, that stall is Boss Cao’s territory. If we go hard, won’t there be trouble?”
“Trouble, what trouble?” Xie Yuankui laughed sinisterly: “Everyone in Shanghai knows Boss Cao has retired.”
“Now Xu Biao died unclearly, and that Lin guy taking over is neither legitimate nor justified.”
“Such a good opportunity—you guess how many people are eyeing this fat meat at Sixteen Rows Wharf.”
“We have to beat others to it and strike first.”
“Or wait for Jin Dayou’s crew to step in before we go grab it?”
“Just do it, you.”
The big man was scolded into silence, and after a while, he looked up and said: “Elder Brother, how about we wait a bit longer? When I was coming back, I just got a message.”
“That Lin guy seems to have hooked up with someone. The night after tomorrow, there’s a material transaction worth about three hundred thousand silver dollars.”
“Three hundred thousand silver dollars?” Hearing the number, Xie Yuankui immediately perked up.
“Materials are tight on the market now. The French people just shut down sea transportation, and there aren’t many cargo ships at International Wharf.”
“Materials worth three hundred thousand? Where did they get them from?”
The big man said cautiously: “Elder Brother, you forgot—didn’t someone just use Sixteen Rows Wharf’s name a few days ago to trade a batch of sulfanilamide injection with Master Kui under Jin Dayou?”
“I think this time it’s probably medicine too. Three hundred thousand silver dollars—that’s just ten or twenty cases of goods.”
Xie Yuankui was so amused by his subordinate’s words that he laughed in anger.
“Just ten or twenty cases—you’ve got quite the nerve. I don’t even need eight or ten cases. If you have the guts, go get even one case and bring it back for me to see.”
