20 years of the Republic of China

Chapter 501 Korean Stick
The dialect outside the Great Wall has a low tone and a loose ending, so Jiang Lianheng and others would not have heard it wrong.

Although the three men in suits at the next table spoke in a sonorous and short voice with a somewhat strange accent, they did have a strong Northeastern accent.

It is not easy to meet fellow people from Kanto in Shanghai World.

Jiang Lianheng looked sideways for a few times, then turned his head and asked Shi Liancheng, "Brother, do you recognize the three people at the opposite table?"

Shi Liancheng also heard the conversation. He stretched his neck and looked forward to it for a long time. Finally, he shook his head and said, "I don't know him. I haven't seen him before."

"Judging from their accents, they must be our fellow villagers!" Li Zhengxi muttered.

Shi Liancheng nodded: "It is indeed the accent of our outside the Great Wall, but I have been in Shanghai for several years, and I have met fellow villagers who come here to do business more or less. I really have no impression of these three people."

"Maybe he is traveling to Shanghai?" Liu Yansheng took a sip of wine.

Shi Liancheng did not comment, but instead said: "They could also be Koreans, many of them can speak Chinese."

"How is that possible?" Chuang Hu curled his lips immediately. "Three Koreans sitting at the same table, not speaking Korean but speaking Chinese, that's... a bit too pretentious!"

In any case, when they heard the three words "Koreans", Jiang Lianheng and others' interest suddenly dimmed a lot.

As for the reasons behind this, if we were to break it down in detail, it would be even more ridiculous.

You know, although the Far East is poor and weak, from the Qing Dynasty to the present, it is at least still lingering on, always holding on with strength, and has not been completely conquered.

In contrast, the surrounding small states and countries have long since become vassals of the West.

The strange thing is that after these people from a fallen country came to the Far East, they were able to take advantage of the power of others and feel that they were superior to others.

Just like the "Annan Patrol" in the French Concession, the "Red-headed Indians" in the British Concession, and the "Korean Sticks" in the three provinces of Guandong, they are all not easy to deal with.

After the Koreans lost their territory, many of them followed the Little East into the Northeast.

Among them, there are very few kind-hearted and righteous people, but there are many who are accomplices of the evil.

Although the people of Guandong did not hate them, they did have some dislike for them.

However, no one could be sure whether the three men in suits at the next table were Koreans.

Chuang Hu was right. It would be too strange if there were really three Koreans sitting around a table and communicating in Chinese.

There should be at least one Chinese among them, for this to make sense.

Jiang Lianheng thought for a moment, but was unwilling to give up any potential opportunity easily, so he stood up, picked up the wine glass, and called Liu Yansheng to go forward and pay a visit.

When I got closer, I saw that the three men in suits were all around 30 years old, with thin faces and their clothes were a bit old.

The man in the middle seemed to be the backbone, with flat eyebrows, thin eyes, a big frame, and a somewhat unkempt appearance, with messy hair as if he had just woken up.

When they saw someone coming over, they looked a little surprised and nodded blankly.

"Are you guys from outside the Great Wall?" Jiang Lianheng asked with a smile, holding a wine glass.

The three of them looked at each other, gradually came to their senses, and replied calmly: "Yes, come over here and play."

"That's great, we are from the same hometown!"

Jiang Lianheng did not wait for the other party to give way, but sat down on his own, took a sip of wine, and pretended to be calm and sighed: "It's not easy to meet my fellow countrymen from the Northeast in Shanghai!"

"It's really rare." The leader nodded, and suddenly raised his hand to point at the table where Xifeng and others were sitting. "There are so many of you here, are you here to do business?"

"No, no, no, I just came out to play and broaden my horizons." Jiang Lianheng laughed and asked casually, "Hey, I heard your accents are a bit mixed, you must have traveled all over the world, where are you from?"

The three of them immediately became alert.

The two people next to him were silent. The leader thought for a moment and suddenly smiled and said, "Our hometown is in Jilin Province."

"Yanbian?" Jiang Lianheng asked tentatively.

The leader shook his head: "I've never heard of this place. Have you been there before?"

"Oh, I haven't been there either. I just heard about it from some Korean girls."

As he spoke, Jiang Lianheng turned his head to look at the dance floor, tapping the table with his fingers while humming to himself: "Doraji~Doraji~"

Hearing the noise, the other party suddenly changed the subject, stretched out his hand across the table, and said with a smile: "Since we are from the same hometown, let's get to know each other. My last name is Li, may I ask who you are..."

Jiang Lianheng came back to his senses, shook hands with him, and deliberately revealed some information: "My surname is Jiang, I'm from Fengtian, and my family runs an insurance company."

Upon hearing this, the man surnamed Li did not respond immediately, but frowned, as if he was thinking about something.

"What's the matter? Have you heard of it?" Jiang Lianheng asked in surprise.

The man surnamed Li did not deny it. He smiled calmly and said, "I have heard a little bit about it."

"Really? That's perfect!" Jiang Lianheng suggested, "Since we're all from the same hometown, why don't we share a table and chat together? I'll be the host, how about that?"

However, the three of them exchanged glances, and the man surnamed Li immediately stood up and said apologetically: "Mr. Jiang, I'm sorry, we have other friends tonight, so we can't continue to accompany you. Let's meet another day."

"Ah? Leaving now?" Jiang Lianheng stood up immediately.

After several conversations, he was almost certain that the three men in front of him were most likely Koreans.

Even if they are not Koreans, they are at least related ethnic groups who have lived on the border between the two countries for a long time.

Seeing that the other three were about to leave, Jiang Lianheng did not try to persuade them to stay. Instead, the man surnamed Li took the initiative to ask before leaving:
"Does Mr. Jiang often come to the Great World for entertainment?"

"Probably in the last two days."

The man surnamed Li nodded, shook hands with Jiang Lianheng again, and said, "Okay, if there is a chance, we will see each other again."

After saying that, the three of them left the ballroom one after another.

Jiang Lianheng and Liu Yansheng also returned to their original seats.

As soon as he sat down, Li Zhengxi asked anxiously: "Brother, what's going on? Are those three people Koreans?"

Jiang Lianheng curled his lips and said, "It's too cunning. I haven't told you the truth, but I feel it should be close to the truth."

"In that case, there are quite a lot of Koreans in Shanghai?" Chuanghu asked casually.

"It shouldn't be that many. Anyway, the ones I've seen can be counted on one hand." At this point, Shi Liancheng couldn't help but feel a little curious. "Boss Jiang, what exactly are you guys doing in Shanghai this time? If you need any help, just tell me."

Jiang Lianheng hesitated for a moment, patted his shoulder, and said, "Brother, I appreciate your kindness, but it's better if you don't know."

Hearing this, Shi Liancheng didn't want to ask any more questions, so he just asked everyone to continue drinking. Everyone played the game in the Big World until the early hours of the morning, and then they were about to leave.

Even so, one night alone is far from enough to exhaust all the entertainment options available in the world.

Chuanghu didn't have enough fun. On the way back, he kept asking, "Boss, are we coming tomorrow? There are still many places we haven't visited yet!"

However, Jiang Lianheng immediately rejected the idea and said, "Don't come for the next two days, so that people won't know your travel patterns."

"Who should we ask to find out?" Chuang Hu asked, following behind him, "Those three Koreans? They don't have much power here."

Jiang Lianheng didn't comment. He instinctively felt that the three Koreans were hiding something, so he told Xifeng, "Go back and check your weapons!"

Now, after just one day in Shanghai, everyone has already experienced many strange things.

From being humiliated in front of the mansion of the "Three Tycoons", to witnessing Wang Laojiu and others fighting at the dock, and then to encountering three Koreans of unknown origin in the Great World.

The situation in Shanghai is complicated.

Jiang Lianheng and others are in a place of trouble, so of course they have to put self-protection first.

…………

When I returned to the apartment and just went up to the third floor, I heard the faint sound of mahjong shuffling coming from the corridor.

Mrs. Mei's room seemed to never be quiet, either they were arguing or playing cards.

Jaspersen had been busy all day and had drunk some wine. He had already fallen into a deep sleep and his snoring could be heard through the door.

Since the Beiyang government declared war on Germany, expelled ambassadors and expatriates, took back the concessions, and investigated German assets in China, the status of the Germans in China has plummeted.

Yasipsen was able to stay in the Far East thanks to the Jiang family's secret protection.

However, because the Beiyang authorities protected Deqiao's assets during the war, thus winning Germany's favor, the two countries resumed diplomatic relations now that the war was over.

Yaspson's identity as a foreigner has returned. This trip was to repay the kindness and indeed helped the Jiang family a lot.

When Jiang Lianheng returned to the room, Wen Tingge was waiting inside.

"How is Shen Shili doing?" Jiang Lianheng sat down and lit a cigarette.

"So-so." Wen Tingge's evaluation was not high. "I followed him from behind and saw that he was busy all day but couldn't find any clues about Wang Laojiu."

Jiang Lianheng pondered for a moment and sighed, "That means the power of the 'three tycoons' is still not small. Wang Laojiu dares to fight them, but he is also afraid of being ambushed."

Wen Tingge shook his head: "I heard that Wang Laojiu has just started to set up shop. If he continues to develop at this rate, he will definitely be as good as the 'three tycoons' in the future."

Jiang Lianheng did not refute, but instead asked: "Where did Shen Shili find out about Wang Laojiu?"

"Dock workers, rickshaw dealers, and a few fellow villagers from Anhui Province." Wen Tingge said, "I feel that the guy and the people from Anhui Province are just casual acquaintances at most. If he really wants to contact Wang Laojiu, he can't get in touch at all."

Dock workers and rickshaw pullers?
Jiang Lianheng muttered to himself as if he was thinking about something.

These two types of people are also well-informed and roam the streets.

If we can place spies among them, it seems that we don't need the manpower of the "three tycoons".

"I didn't expect that guy to get in touch with Wang Laojiu." Jiang Lianheng muttered to himself, "I just wanted to see who Wang Laojiu usually contacts."

Wen Tingge pondered, "If that's the case, then what Shen Shili said is correct. Most of the people from Anhui Province are coolies. It doesn't sound good to say that they are paupers, but it is indeed true."

"It doesn't matter whether he is rich or poor, as long as someone is willing to follow Wang Laojiu, he will definitely be able to open a business."

Jiang Lianheng put out his cigarette in the ashtray.

Liu Yansheng took over the conversation from the side: "Boss, judging from the behavior of Wang Laojiu and his gang, as long as the leader is not dead, they will be able to occupy a piece of territory at the dock sooner or later. If we want to make friends with them, we'd better do it as soon as possible."

Indeed, when it comes to making friends, the sooner you start, the better.

If it is too early, it will be like providing timely help; if it is too late, it will only be like icing on the cake.

"Brother Liu is right. If we can help Wang Laojiu open a shop, we may not need the help of the 'three tycoons'." Wen Tingge quickly agreed, "Those people from Anhui Province are all coolies, but they are from all walks of life. Even if they are from the same hometown, we can get the news as long as we have a good relationship with them."

"Wait!"

Li Zhengxi suddenly interrupted, "You are only thinking about how to complete this mission. What about the 'three tycoons', especially Zhang Xiaolin? If you don't give face to the Jiang family, are you going to let this matter go?"

Wen Tingge glanced at Xifeng and did not respond. Instead, he turned to Jiang Lianheng and said, "Boss, Wang Laojiu wants to open a counter in Shanghai, which will definitely cause conflicts with the 'three tycoons'. If we can unite with Wang Laojiu, we will not be short of manpower in Shanghai."

Needless to say, Jiang Lianheng had the same plan.

The reason why he had not made a decision yet was because he did not know Wang Laojiu well enough and was not sure what kind of person he was.

Do you value profit or righteousness? Of course, you should deal with different people in different ways.

After hesitating for a moment, Jiang Lianheng said to Wen Tingge, "Tomorrow, you will go to the dock to find Shen Shili on my behalf and ask him to continue to look for Wang Laojiu's gang. You will also follow them to ask around. If you meet Wang Laojiu's people, tell them that someone is willing to donate money to support their Anhui Province workers, but don't tell them the number or the specific amount of money."

As he spoke, he swept his eyes over the faces of the other three people and whispered, "When you have time recently, ask around to find out what kind of person Wang Laojiu is like."

"Boss, what about you?" everyone asked.

Jiang Lianheng thought for a moment and said, "I have to send a telegram home. Jasperson will have to continue recruiting people these days. I'll tell Lao Zhang that the engineers going to Fengtian need to be properly settled."

Everyone responded.

Jiang Lianheng knew that he couldn't rush into this matter, so he had to be patient and wait quietly for the news for a few days to avoid rushing around in the dark.

However, what he never expected was that while he was secretly investigating Wang Laojiu, others were also secretly investigating the Jiang family's background.

…………

Three nights later, Jiang Lianheng and others went to the Great World again for entertainment.

As I walked to the gate, I saw a familiar-looking man in a suit looking around nearby.

Noticing Jiang Lianheng and the others approaching, he quickly came over and whispered in a flattering smile, "Mr. Jiang, do you still remember me?"

Jiang Lianheng frowned and said hesitantly: "You are not the one from that night..."

"Yes!" The visitor nodded and said frankly, "Mr. Jiang, Mr. Li wants to talk to you. If you are interested, please follow me to the open-air theater in the back."

(End of this chapter)