Chapter Twenty: The Clue

“N-nothing!” Jiang Xiaodao said nervously.

“Ha! Why so tense? I was just asking casually,” Old Cui chuckled. “I thought your father had given you something valuable.”

Jiang Xiaodao tried to change the subject and asked, “Old Cui, who exactly is my father?”

Old Cui raised his eyebrows in surprise. “So you don’t even know who Jiang Chenghai is, yet you call him your father?”

“Uh… at the time, I didn’t have much choice, so I blindly accepted him…” Jiang Xiaodao quickly corrected himself, “I mean, I accepted him as my father.”

Hearing this, Old Cui immediately sat up straight, adopting the demeanor of a storyteller.

“Your father, Jiang Chenghai! He was a soldier in his early years and went to the Northwest with Lord Zuo. You know Lord Zuo, right?”

Jiang Xiaodao shook his head. “No.”

“That’s alright. What matters is that your father was a genuine soldier who fought in battles,” Old Cui continued. “Later, your father returned to the Northeast, led two brothers, claimed a mountain as their territory, and became a gang leader.”

“Wait, weren’t there six of them?”

“Ha! The fourth and fifth brothers joined later, and the sixth and seventh came in just these last two years. Back then, they weren’t around!” Old Cui gestured for Jiang Xiaodao not to interrupt. “It wasn’t like now, with the government cracking down hard on bandits! Your father thought ruling a mountain wasn’t much of a life, so he and his brothers went to Fengtian and pledged allegiance to Zhou Yunfu.”

Jiang Xiaodao tilted his head. “So, does that mean Zhou Yunfu is more powerful than my father?”

Old Cui’s eyes widened. “Hah! Who’s Zhou Yunfu? He’s the big boss of Fengtian’s secret underworld! He’s connected with General Zeng Qi and Officer Zeng of Shengjing! But your father and his brothers were formidable too. After only a few years with Zhou Yunfu, they became the leaders of the Four-Beam Gang—working cleanly and handling business swiftly!”

“Just those few ragged misfits?” Jiang Xiaodao found it hard to believe. Thanks to Old Cui’s introduction, he finally got a rough understanding of his six uncles.

The second, Li Tianwei, nicknamed “Half-Face,” was hot-tempered and fierce.

The third was the bearded, skinny one named Sun Xueru, a scholar originally, neither pretentious nor corrupt. He once aimed for an official career but, seeing the country’s decline, suddenly had an epiphany one night, burned his classics, and joined the bandits, changing his name to Sun Chengmo.

The fourth, Jin Xiaoyi, came from a Hebei escort agency, was skilled in martial arts, trained in Bajiquan and Xingyi, and became sworn brothers with Jiang Chenghai in Fengtian.

The fifth, Shen Guoliang, was originally part of the Liaoxi bandit group led by Du Baozeng. After the Du family’s internal strife and Du Lisan’s rise, he fled to Fengtian and met Jiang Chenghai.

The sixth, Guan Wei, might have been an outsider—no one was sure. He loved spicy cabbage and fled here to escape the Japanese. He joined two years ago and had no reputation in the underworld.

The seventh, Gong Baonan, joined even later, just last year. Two years ago, he joined the Loyal and Righteous Army and fought the Russians. Later, the three main leaders had internal discord, and with the combined assault from the Russian army, Qing government, and local security forces, Gong Baonan grew disheartened and returned to street life.

“I never expected even Seventh Uncle, with his careless attitude, came from such a complicated background!” Jiang Xiaodao murmured.

“Heh heh, that’s why you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover!” Old Cui patted Xiaodao’s shoulder and stood up. “Alright, you’ve slept enough. Time to get out there and work!”

…

Since returning from the Western City, Old Madam Feng had lost half her wits from fright.

She dared not touch the thirty taels of silver but carefully wrapped and hid it in a crevice in the wall, planning to find an excuse to return it later.

After finding a doctor to tend to Gouzi’s injuries, she still couldn’t rest. She worried that Jiang Chenghai might retaliate.

After much thought, Old Madam Feng decided to invest some money to hire a few guards for protection.

The first person she thought of was He Lishan from the Changfeng Escort Agency.

Although the recent theft at the South City Wang residence had damaged Changfeng’s reputation, their strength remained.

As the saying goes, open attacks are easy to guard against, but hidden dangers are hard to prevent. The Wang residence theft couldn’t be entirely blamed on them.

Besides, if even Changfeng couldn’t protect it, Old Madam Feng couldn’t imagine which other escort agency in Liaoyang could.

Meanwhile, since Chief Hu returned to lead, Changfeng had gradually regained stability.

Hu Biao was an experienced veteran escort master.

He Lishan was the head manager who rarely traveled far, so Hu Biao acted as the agency’s “legs.”

Having traveled far and wide over the years, he had a wide network and even escorted military pay in Liaoyang a few years back, showing the trust the He family placed in him.

Head manager He Lishan first soothed the former owner Wang Youcai, then Hu Biao approached Liu, chairman of the local Changchun Guild, to stabilize the temple fair security business.

Normally, during lively temple fairs or markets, government officials would send patrol officers to prevent hooligans from causing trouble.

But since the Russian army’s southward advance two years ago, General Zeng Qi abandoned Fengtian and fled to Xinmin, causing many local governments to nearly collapse, including Liaoyang’s.

Since then, Liu of the Changchun Guild entrusted temple fair security to the Changfeng Escort Agency.

Maintaining this business was crucial for Changfeng.

Now, with Old Madam Feng hiring guards again, He Lishan was even happier and personally received her with Hu Biao.

“Madam Feng, despite the rumors, you still trust us at this time. I, He, am truly grateful!”

Old Madam Feng wore a bitter expression. “Alas! Don’t mention it. I was blind to provoke someone I shouldn’t have. When the flood comes, the Dragon King’s temple is washed away. I dare not be careless!”

Hu Biao wiped his beard and asked, “Madam Feng, who exactly did you offend?”

“Ha! You won’t believe it if I told you. In my line of work, I even managed to offend ‘Sea Old Owl’!”

Hearing the name, He Lishan frowned sharply. “Madam Feng, forgive my bluntness, but how did your business cross paths with ‘Sea Old Owl’?”

“How would I know he recently adopted a son here? Bad luck! Truly bad luck!”

After pressing for details, Old Madam Feng recounted the events of last night in full.

After hearing her story, He Lishan and Hu Biao exchanged glances.

Hu Biao’s eyes went wide as his face twitched.

“Madam Feng, I recall Er Qiang saying on the night of the Wang residence theft, he caught a teenager, around thirteen or fourteen?”

He Lishan nodded. “Looks like Jiang Chenghai and his gang were behind it!”

Old Madam Feng, hearing this, grew anxious she had said too much and hurriedly said, “Ah, He Manager, Hu Escort Master, I don’t know what grudges you have, but please don’t betray me. Just pretend I said nothing! Nothing at all!”