20 years of the Republic of China

Chapter 510 Mutual Plans
"He dares!"

Hearing that the Axe Gang might rob Sanjin Company of its opium, Zhang Xiaolin immediately flew into a rage and made a decision on the spot:
"Hey, if that little jerk Wang Laojiu dares to steal our local products, I will throw him into the Huangpu River to plant lotus flowers tonight!"

Destroying someone's wealth is like killing one's parents.

Zhang Xiaolin was really angry this time.

The opium business of Sanjin Company is not just a small business, but a monopoly of related trade in the entire foreign concessions.

Moreover, as long as the local products from Sichuan, Yunnan, Jiangxi, Anhui and other places are shipped to Shanghai, they must go through the "three tycoons" and take commissions before they can safely enter and leave the port.

The profit from a box of opium is at least one thousand dollars.

If I lose it, I'd feel sad just thinking about it.

But no matter how angry he was, Zhang Xiaolin felt that Du Yong was making a big deal out of nothing and was seeing enemies everywhere.

"Ah Yong, you are a suspicious person who thinks too much. The local products of our Sanjin Company are taken care of by Inspector Huang in the French Concession, and there is an armed escort by the officer in the Chinese Concession. From the source of goods to transportation to sales, the barges, docks, warehouses, opium dens, military police and courts, which one is not ours? The wealth of so many people is tied to the Sanjin Company. What can Wang Laojiu rob with and on what basis?"

"Brother Xiaolin, you can't say that." Du Yong said in a serious tone, "Don't forget that just over two years ago, the boss of the local goods business in Shiliyangchang was Shen Xingshan from the British Concession!"

Hearing this, Zhang Xiaolin couldn't help but be stunned.

Shen Xingshan was at the peak of his power at that time, and he could even compete with the "three tycoons" of the French Concession on his own.

This man roamed the world, mixed up in gangs, made his fortune by robbing other gangs, and started to create the "Eight-Legged Gang". In his early years, he often robbed the goods of local merchants from the "Chaozhou Gang". Later, he became a Chinese detective in the British Concession, "changed robbery to protection", and specialized in collecting protection fees from local merchants from all over the country, monopolizing the right to operate opium in the concession.

Shen Xingshan relied on the British Concession Police Station and colluded with the Water Police Battalion and the Anti-Smuggling Bureau to steal from the public. He adopted the route of joint smuggling by the military and police and armed escort for cargo transportation.

At that time, no one thought that anyone could challenge Shen Xingshan's authority - it was not until the emergence of the "Little Eight-Part Party" formed by Du Yong that people realized who the real tycoon was.

It was precisely because Du Yong repeatedly robbed the local products of the "Eight-Legged Essay Party" and destroyed Shen Xingshan's prestige that he became famous and established the underworld structure in Shanghai.

There are no bandits in Shanghai, but there are many pirates.

Due to the water level of the Huangpu River, larger cargo ships could not dock directly and could only stop in the middle of the river to unload the cargo onto sand boats and sampans, which were then transported to the dock one by one.

Many pirates who came to rob local products took advantage of this opportunity to overturn the sampans and kill people and steal the goods.

Du Yong used this method to rob people in the past, so he naturally didn't dare to take it lightly now.

"Brother Xiaolin, opium is different from other goods. The profit margin is too high. As long as someone dares to rob it, there will be someone to help sell it. We were able to defeat Shen Xingshan in the past. Wang Laojiu is not afraid of those wearing shoes. He might really dare to attack us."

"That's different!" Zhang Xiaolin waved his hand. "At least we had power in the French Concession and Shiliupu. Wang Laojiu has no foundation. What can he use to fight us?"

"It's better not to underestimate the enemy." Du Yong muttered a few words in a low voice.

"What are you afraid of? If he dares to steal it, I can take it back!"

"Brother Xiaolin, this is not a question of whether we can get it back." Du Yong shook his head and sighed, "We have to be trustworthy and have a good reputation when doing business. Think about it, why are all the major local merchants willing to cooperate with us? It's all because of the good reputation of Sanjin Company. If Wang Laojiu fights with us, even if we don't lose the goods, our reputation will be affected!"

"Oh, worrying about gains and losses is really troublesome!" Zhang Xiaolin asked impatiently, "Then what are you going to do?"

"We are strong and well-entrenched, so there is no need to lose our composure just because of a little disturbance," Du Yong said. "In my opinion, it is better to stay put and respond accordingly."

"What about the dock in Lou Jingyuan?" asked Zhang Xiaolin.

"It's already late at night. I'll call him tomorrow morning and tell him to be on the lookout. For now, we should focus on ensuring the safety of the local products."

"But if Wang Laojiu hits us, where will our face be?"

"It's useless even if they win. They think they can take away the dock business with just a contract. It's just wishful thinking for Mr. Wang. It's impossible."

After hearing what Du Yong said, Zhang Xiaolin didn't waste any more words. He just kept thinking in his mind that after the recent batch of goods from Sanjin Company arrived in Hong Kong safely, he should be able to dispatch some people to settle the score with the so-called Axe Gang, right?
He was violent and capricious by nature, and would not tolerate any disrespect from others. The reason why he was able to suppress his anger tonight was ultimately because of his trust in Du Yong.

This sworn brother, who is in his early thirties, has done two impressive things in recent years.

One was to defeat Shen Xingshan of the British Concession and monopolize the opium business in Shanghai; the other was to appease the son of the Lu family and successfully rescue Huang Jinyong from the hands of Governor Lu.

Among the "three big bosses" of the Green Gang, Du Yong is the youngest, but his popularity is gradually surpassing that of Huang Jinyong and Zhang Xiaolin, and he seems to be gradually becoming the leader.

…………

At the same time, bursts of yawning sounds suddenly came from the streets not far to the north of Zhang and Du’s mansions.

A dozen Axe Gang members gathered at the base of the walls on both sides of the alley, some squatting, some standing, some leaning, some leaning, with countless cigarette butts of varying lengths scattered around their feet.

The morning star slowly rises in the east, heralding the approaching dawn.

Li Zhengxi walked to the leader of the team while yawning and raised his chin towards the distance.

"Brother, what time is it now? That Zhang Xiaolin shouldn't send anyone to the dock again, right?"

This group of people gathered here, intending to stage a "siege and attack" plot to intercept the thugs sent by Zhang Xiaolin, but they ended up waiting for a whole night but came to nothing.

The leader of the Axe Gang is named Chen Lixian, who is about 27 or 28 years old, with protruding ears, a short haircut, broad shoulders and a thick body. He is a strong and sturdy man, and can be considered Wang Laojiu's right-hand man.

He kept weighing the axe in his hand, throwing the axe up, turning it in a circle, and then landing it steadily in his palm.

"Hiss, yes, it looks like no one will come out anymore." Chen Lixian looked up at the sky and muttered to himself.

Li Zhengxi frowned, and asked in confusion: "Didn't you say that Zhang Xiaolin has a bad temper and gets angry easily? Could it be that Xu Huaimin didn't tell us?"

"That shouldn't happen. I think it was the guy named Du who stopped Zhang Xiaolin."

"Du Yong?"

Chen Lixian nodded: "He is a shrewd man. Among the 'three tycoons', he has the most tricks. It is easy to provoke Zhang Xiaolin, but it is difficult to deceive Du Yong!"

Li Zhengxi snorted coldly and said, "No matter how cunning he is, my brother has always been a man of open tactics. He has to accept the challenge even if he doesn't want to. He has no choice!"

"Didn't we wait in vain tonight?" Several Axe Gang members nearby had been waiting here for a whole night and were completely exhausted, so they couldn't help but complain.

"How can you say this is a waste of time?" Li Zhengxi turned his head and said in a bad tone, "If you can wait, you will make money. If you can't wait, it's normal. How can you say that everything will go as you wish?"

Several Axe Gang members curled their lips and said, "We haven't slept all night. If we had known this would happen, we might as well just go and rob the dock!" This time, before Li Zhengxi could speak, Chen Lixian turned around and scolded:
"Shut up! Boss Jiang and Master Jiu have already discussed the plan. If it fails, then so be it. We still have to deal with what we have to do in the future. If anyone is dissatisfied, they can quit the Axe Gang now!"

As soon as these words were spoken, no one dared to argue with him anymore.

They admired Wang Laojiu and had no second thoughts about him, but they always had some distrust towards Jiang Lianheng and other strangers, and were unwilling to obey their orders.

Chen Lixian quickly turned around and smiled apologetically.

"Brother Xifeng, please don't mind. Our Axe Gang has just started, and most of the brothers are just empty-handed. They have never been in the underworld and don't know the rules. Please don't be too concerned!"

"Forget it, it's nothing!" Li Zhengxi had no intention of competing for leadership, so he waved his hand nonchalantly and asked, "By the way, did you find the pine boards that my brother asked you to prepare?"

"Well, everything has been done as required. It was just brought to our club tonight and should have started working on it by now." Chen Lixian said with a smile, "I have to say that Boss Jiang has a good idea. He spent the least amount of money to do the biggest thing..."

Before he finished speaking, Li Zhengxi quickly interrupted him with a wave of his hand: "Stop nagging. Didn't my brother and Master Jiu already say that the fewer people who know about this, the better."

Chen Lixian nodded and said no more, "I just don't know if any big boss will come and try to win us over after all this fuss."

"As long as the noise is big enough, someone will come. I don't believe it. In the whole foreign land, apart from our two families, no one else can't stand the 'three tycoons'."

As he spoke, Li Zhengxi couldn't help but look up into the sky.

Although it was not yet dawn, there was no trace of the crescent moon in the sky, and it was the darkest time of the day.

"Okay, since Zhang Xiaolin didn't send anyone over, let's just disperse."

Li Zhengxi's proposal was quickly responded to by everyone.

Chen Lixian and others put their short-handled axes diagonally on their waists, exchanged a few words with each other, and then dispersed through the streets before dawn.

An expected ambush and firefight did not break out due to Du Yong's cautious personality.

…………

On the other side, in front of the Old Town Apartment Building.

Jiang Lianheng, Chuang Hu and Ya Si Pusheng have just returned from a trip to Shanghai New World.

After having eaten and drunk their fill, and having danced with many dancers all night long, the three men were naturally in a very good mood. It was not because they were seeking pleasure, but because the Germans had recently recruited a number of Western engineers for the Fengtian Arsenal, enough to bring back to report to Marshal Zhang.

The reason why the recruitment was completed so smoothly was all thanks to Yasipsen's hard work day and night. In the past few days, he was busy helping the Jiang family with errands and had not had time to play in Shanghai. When he was about to leave, Jiang Lianheng naturally had to treat him well.

"Lao Ya, I'm really grateful for your help this time!" Jiang Lianheng said as he walked up the stairs, "I owe you a favor this time. When we get back to Fengtian, I'll find you two White Russian lovers. What do you think?"

Yasipsen waved his hands quickly: "Mr. Jiang, don't say that. We foreigners also understand the ways of the world. Thanks to your help and care in the past two years, I was not deported back to my country. It's just a small matter. You don't have to be polite. We were business partners before!"

"By the way, speaking of business partners, I wanted to ask you just now, have our two countries re-established diplomatic relations? I see that a German trading company has reopened in Shanghai, what are your plans for the future?"

"I plan to go back to Yingkou and rebuild Demao Foreign Company." Yasipsen smiled, "I have been in the Far East for more than 20 years. That is my career. Moreover, when the Beiyang government broke off diplomatic relations, it protected our German assets very well. I estimate that more Germans will come here in the future. I want to seize the opportunity first... Oh, yes, yes, seize the opportunity first."

After hearing this, Jiang Lianheng's eyes suddenly lit up.

"Lao Ya, is there any chance that our bristle and arms business from a few years ago can continue?"

"Hahaha, of course! Mr. Jiang, with your current strength in Fengtian, any European foreign company would want you to be their comprador. I hope we can continue to cooperate!"

"That's great!" Jiang Lianheng wished for more. "When you get to Yingkou, if you run into any trouble, you can go find Tong Saner first."

"Okay, okay, Mr. Jiang, when will we return to Fengtian?" asked Jaspersen.

Jiang Lianheng shook his head: "Lao Ya, I'm sorry, you may have to go back first."

"You're not leaving?" Yasipsen was a little surprised. "I thought our work was done."

"It's halfway done, but I still have some personal matters to attend to, so I have to finish them before I can go back."

Jiang Lianheng insisted on staying in Shanghai, not just to get angry with the "three tycoons".

He already had spies from the Righteous Group, and Li Jae-soon's oath of severed finger had also gained his trust, but the spies from the Anhui Provincial Association were more widespread and worth relying on.

The problem is that Jiang Lianheng and Wang Laojiu have only met a few times.

Although the Jiang family funded the Axe Gang, there was no long-term interest exchange between the two parties, at least not yet.

The best way is to stay and help Wang Laojiu grab a dock. Only when both parties have had this kind of experience can they be considered friends. If they have not gone through this, they can only be considered casual acquaintances.

After hearing this, Yasipsen did not persuade him any further, but just asked: "Mr. Jiang, if you need me, I can stay with you. Anyway, it will take some time for Demao Foreign Company to resume business."

Jiang Lianheng hesitated for a moment, but said, "I appreciate your kindness, but you still have to bring those engineers back to Fengtian. Lao Zhang's mission cannot be delayed, so the sooner the better."

"Then I'll send Jaspers back!" Chuanghu quickly took over the conversation.

Jiang Lianheng glared and cursed: "You kid, you came here to eat, drink, have fun, and jump high, and you want to run away? No way!"

Chuanghu lowered his head helplessly.

Although Yasipsen was a foreigner, he had been in the Far East for a long time, so he naturally had some understanding of the so-called "jianghu". He knew that Shanghai was a place where all kinds of people gathered and the undercurrents were turbulent, so he said:
"That's fine. I'll be back in Fengtian in a few days. If you run into any trouble in Shanghai, Mr. Jiang, you can go to the Demao Company in the American Concession and ask. The manager there is my friend. I've met him before, and he can take you there."

"Is it?"

Jiang Lianheng turned to look at Chuanghu, and after getting a positive answer, he smiled at Yasipsen and said, "Okay, it's easier to get things done with a foreign friend. Thank you in advance."

As they were talking, the three of them arrived at the top floor of the apartment.

Just as they were about to go back to their rooms, a burst of unusually heavy and slow footsteps suddenly came from the corridor.

Jiang Lianheng frowned and looked down along the handrail curiously, only to see a man in a white suit staggering up.

Mr. Mei?
Jiang Lianheng was a little confused.

He found that Mr. Mei's clothes were very shabby and dirty, as if he had just crawled out of a puddle or had just been in a fight. He was not as handsome as he had been the previous times they met. He didn't know what had happened.

(End of this chapter)