20 years of the Republic of China

Chapter 517 Turmoil
Three brothers, three different opinions, no consensus.

Zhang Xiaolin was impatient and had already been fed up with the situation. After hearing Du Yong's suggestion, he immediately stood up and put on his coat, and said impatiently: "Right, right, right. We can't figure out the situation after arguing all this time. We might as well go to the warehouse and take a look!"

But when he was about to leave, Du Yong suddenly remembered something and said hurriedly: "Wait a minute -"

Before he finished speaking, Zhang Xiaolin got anxious again, staring at him, and asked impatiently: "Oh, A-Yong, what are you trying to do again! If you don't hurry over, it will be the middle of the night soon!"

"Oh, it's nothing actually." Du Yong consoled him, "Brother Xiaolin, you take the people there first, I'll be there soon."

Zhang Xiaolin was extremely anxious and didn't want to wait any longer, so he immediately passed through the moon gate between the Zhang and Du mansions, went home to call a few of his disciples and good hands, and without wasting a moment, rushed to the warehouse of the Sanjin Company.

Du Yong stayed in the living room without delaying. He just called Ye Chaosan and Rong Qingrui to his side and asked, "Were there any casualties when the cargo was unloaded at the dock just now?"

Ye Chaosan nodded: "One brother died, and several were injured in the Marine Police Battalion and the Anti-smuggling Camp."

"Are any of Commander He's soldiers injured?" Du Yong asked.

"No." Ye Chaosan showed disdain and said coldly, "The Axe Gang didn't dare to fight hard. They just fired a few shots and then turned around and ran away."

"How could we let them get away?" Rong Qingrui said indignantly, "Just chase them!"

Ye Chao rolled his eyes, but said, "In everything, goods come first. Those little bastards have come to cause trouble time and time again. How would I know what they are up to? Of course, we have to ship the company's goods back first before we talk about other things."

Du Yong was quite satisfied with this: "Xiao Ye did the right thing. No matter when, the goods should be put first. This is the reputation of Sanjin Company."

"But the cargo was not under surveillance!" Rong Qingrui said, "I saw with my own eyes that more than a dozen cargo boxes went down the river to Wusongkou!"

Du Yong waved his hands impatiently, not wanting to continue the meaningless argument.

Immediately, he stood up and walked to the study, picked up the phone on the table, expressed his condolences to the Marine Police Battalion and the Anti-smuggling Office, thanked them for their care, and sent them silver dollars.

Compared with Huang Jinyong and Zhang Xiaolin, Du Yong's background is too low and his foundation is too shallow.

Huang Jinyong worked as a Chinese detective in the French Concession for decades. He was well-connected to both the black and white worlds and had extensive and reliable connections. Even if his prestige was damaged, he was able to remain standing in the French Concession.

Zhang Xiaolin was born in Zhejiang Military Academy, where he was classmates with many middle-level military officers. When he was in his hometown, he already had property, fame, and connections, so his foundation was considered solid.

Du Yong was different, as he came from a fruit selling family.

He was a rotten loach rolling in the mud. With the help of the "blessed land" of Shiliyangchang, chance and hard practice, he finally turned into a koi. He only needed to leap over the dragon gate and achieve enlightenment and ascend to heaven. If he fails to "survive the calamity", all his wealth and glory would be in vain.

He can't afford to lose, so he cherishes every relationship with people.

After notifying the water police camp and the anti-smuggling agency and receiving promises to provide medical expenses and compensation, Du Yong felt relieved. He called Ye Chaosan, Rong Qingrui and others, and rushed to the warehouse of Sanjin Company before nightfall.

……

……

To the west of the old city of Huajie is the warehouse of Sanjin Company.

The news spread quickly. Not long after the incident, many Green Gang disciples and members of the "Little Eight-Part Party" had already rushed to the scene after hearing the news.

The warehouse was heavily guarded, with even a number of soldiers in disguise helping to guard it. The company's manager, accountant, warehouse management, and workers all gathered nearby, whispering to each other with serious expressions, asking each other about the current situation.

Everyone was looking forward to it, waiting for the person in charge to come and clarify the current situation.

Zhang Xiaolin arrived first by car, followed by Du Yong's car. Huang Jinyong did not show up, but was busy in the police station.

As soon as they saw Zhang and Du rushing over, everyone felt like they had finally found their backbone and they swarmed over them immediately. Some called them Master, some called them Boss, some called them brothers, and at this moment they all started talking at once, asking what was going on.

Zhang Xiaolin was impatient and yelled, "What are you arguing about? What are you waiting for? Hurry up and open the warehouse!"

The Qing Gang disciples ran over and suddenly heard two loud "clangs" and the warehouse door opened.

Zhang Xiaolin and Du Yong walked in. The light on the ceiling flickered twice and finally came on.

Looking around, the cargo boxes in the warehouse are stacked layer upon layer, as dense as a barrier. Not only are there local products that have just been unloaded tonight, but also stockpiles of goods left here by other local merchants, waiting to be distributed.

Ye Chaosan walked to the left side of the warehouse, pointed to a row of full cargo boxes, and said, "Look, the goods are all here, so I said they weren't lost!"

Rong Qingrui strode to the right side of the warehouse, with his back to the twenty or thirty wet cargo boxes, and retorted on the spot: "These are the goods that Ala just fished out downstream. I have opened them and checked them. How could they be fake?"

"Stop arguing!" Zhang Xiaolin cursed, "Where are the accountant and the warehouse manager? Come over here and check!"

After that, several gentlemen in long gowns came hurriedly over with account books and manifests in their hands. They immediately started to check the inventory tremblingly. Seeing that Zhang and Du's faces were livid, they checked particularly carefully, counting back and forth three times before they dared to make a conclusion. The result was unexpected.

After repeated checking, a gentleman wearing glasses couldn't help but frown, seeming a little confused.

"Uh... Boss Du, Boss Zhang, there are a total of 320 boxes of goods listed on this list, including 130 boxes of Sichuan soil, 190 boxes of Yun soil, 270 boxes of raw soil, and 50 boxes of cooked soil..."

"Why are you talking so much nonsense!" Zhang Xiaolin raised his hand to interrupt, "Just tell me directly whether our goods are lost or not!"

Hearing this, the gentleman quickly shook his head and said, "Nothing is lost, but there are too many. I don't know how there were thirty extra boxes of goods."

"What are you talking about?" Everyone was puzzled. "After working for so long, how come there are still 30 extra boxes?"

"This..." The gentleman looked embarrassed. Obviously, this matter was not his responsibility.

Ye Chaosan and Rong Qingrui looked at each other and stopped arguing.

Needless to say, there are definitely fakes here.

Without saying a word, Du Yong immediately walked straight to the right side of the warehouse and stood in front of the row of wet cargo boxes. On the pine board boxes, the words "Sanjin Company" were written in white paint, and there were three five-pointed stars painted on them. He picked one, opened it and looked inside, only to see a pile of wet local products carefully wrapped in oil paper.

He unpacked the package and looked at it carefully.

It is indeed a local product, but it is not opium, but fucking earthen bricks!
The earthen bricks were soaked in water, and if you just broke them apart gently, they turned into fucking clods of earth again!

Du Yong's face suddenly changed. He threw the man into the cargo box and couldn't help cursing, "Damn it, I got fooled by him!"

Zhang Xiaolin came over after hearing the noise, looked down, and was also stunned. He opened three or five bags in a row, and they were all fucking dirt and clods! "What the hell are you doing!" He wiped his hands with curses and questioned Rong Qingrui, "You have no eyes? Why did you bring this dirt in?"

Rong Qingrui was dumbfounded. After finding out the situation, he was also incredulous and kept muttering to himself: "What is going on?"

"Is this going to ruin our reputation?" Ye Chaosan said, "If this batch of goods is released, won't people laugh to death?"

"Don't worry!" Du Yong said, "Once the goods arrive in our hands, we will definitely check them. How can we just ship them out casually?"

Zhang Xiaolin was suspicious for once. He pointed at the cargo box opposite and asked suspiciously, "Are there fakes there?"

"How is that possible!" Ye Chaosan refused to accept it. He personally escorted those cargo boxes on the opposite side, so there couldn't be any problems.

But Du Yong was cautious by nature, so he still asked someone to randomly check a few boxes.

Fortunately, this time it was correct, they were all genuine local products, not fucking dirt!

Everyone then breathed a sigh of relief, but instead, their faces were filled with confusion and bewilderment.

At this moment, a Qing Gang disciple ran in from outside the warehouse, panting and reporting: "Master, Brother Xiaolin, the boss of Yunxia Pavilion sent someone over. He said he heard that the Ala Sanjin Company lost some goods, and wanted to come over to inquire about the situation."

"What nonsense are you talking about?" Zhang Xiaolin glared at him and shouted, "Go and tell him that everything is fine at Sanjin Company and there is no problem with the goods they ordered. Tell him to put his mind at ease and just go back and wait for news."

"This……"

"What are you still doing here? Get out of here!"

The Qing Gang disciple shrank back and turned to look at Du Yong, a little hesitantly: "Master, the people from Yunxia Pavilion want to come in and take a look. If possible... they want to take the goods away tonight."

Du Yong frowned, knowing that this gap could not be opened, so he had to order in a deep voice: "Go and talk to them properly. Just say that tomorrow I will personally bring people to deliver the goods ordered by Boss Qin. Talk nicely and don't make trouble."

The Qing Gang disciple nodded and turned to leave.

At this moment, another Du family disciple came in, also with an anxious look on his face, and said quickly: "Master, Boss You from the Chaozhou Gang just sent someone over to ask about the current situation of the local products they insured before."

"Don't worry, Mr. You. I will go and explain it to him in person tomorrow." Du Yong patiently gave the order in a friendly manner.

But just as he finished speaking, another Zhang family brother rushed into the warehouse in a hurry.

"Brother Xiaolin, Mr. Zhou from the Yue Gang sent someone to ask about the current status of the local products they insured."

Just as he finished speaking, before Zhang Xiaolin could reply, another person rushed in from outside the warehouse and said hurriedly:
"Boss Du, Boss Zhang, Sichuan Province's representative in Shanghai, Liu Dutong, just called and asked what happened to the Ala company and whether there were any problems with the local products they entrusted Ala to help underwrite."

Tonight, the unloading of goods on the west bank of the Huangpu River is not just the business of the Sanjin Company, but is related to the livelihood of the entire foreign concessions, and even the local merchants and warlords in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Sichuan and Yunnan.

Everyone knew that Sanjin Company would unload the goods at the beach tonight, so they did not go to bed early and waited for the goods to be put into the warehouse for safety. However, when they heard the rumors in the market, they sent people to inquire about the matter as soon as possible, regardless of the late night.

After all, local products have huge profits. The net profit of a box of goods is nearly one thousand yuan in cash. Ten boxes would be ten thousand yuan, and a hundred boxes would be one hundred thousand yuan. I simply cannot afford to lose the money. If I don't come to inquire about the situation, I will definitely have sleepless nights.

At one time, the "Eight Chao Gangs", "Two Local Gangs", representatives of the Sichuan-Yunnan warlords in Shanghai, and errand boys of various local merchants all swarmed in, talking at once, making people restless. However, the warehouse was the important place of the Sanjin Company, so how could it be allowed to be explored easily?

Zhang Xiaolin was so angry that he waved his hand and refused to make any compromise.

"What the hell are you arguing about? Let them all go back. The goods aren't lost. Even if they are, we can just compensate them according to the price. Stop nagging me. Aren't you annoying?"

Although Du Yong was also very angry, he was extremely restrained in his words. He immediately showed up in person to explain the situation, appease the customers, and agree to talk again another day.

By the time I finished all this, it was already late at night and the sky was getting light.

Du Yong returned to the warehouse, exhausted and haggard, and still had to patiently calm Zhang Xiaolin's anger.

"Brother Xiaolin, we are doing business. It is normal for customers to come and ask about the big commotion tonight. There is no need to get angry."

Zhang Xiaolin refused to listen and immediately called a few thugs, shouting angrily: "Go back and bring your weapons with you to Wang Laojiu's hometown association and smash his association hall!"

Seeing this, Du Yong hurriedly said, "Brother Xiaolin, the brothers have been busy all night. If you lead people over now, they will be waiting for you at leisure. I'm afraid you will suffer. You should calm down and let me think of a solution first."

"What else are you thinking of!" Zhang Xiaolin shouted, "It's obvious, they are just trying to slap me in the face and mess up the company. Ah Yong, I know you're a good businessman, but don't forget, I'm a wanderer, and in the end it all comes down to who has the harder fist!"

As he was speaking, Huang Jinyong's disciple walked in.

Du Yong used to be a disciple of Inspector Huang. Even though Zhang Xiaolin called Huang Jinyong "Huang Ma Pi" behind his back, he still respected Huang Jinyong as his "big brother" in public. So when Huang's disciple came over, the three of them met and were considered peers with no distinction of seniority.

Huang Jinyong's disciple was not polite either. As soon as he came in, he got straight to the point: "Brother Du, the old man asked me to come over and tell you that there is a problem with the local products in the company. Please go to Huang Mansion tomorrow and tell the old man about the situation."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Xiaolin's expression changed immediately.

At the beginning, Huang Jinyong offended the son of General Lu of Zhejiang Province for the sake of an actor and almost destroyed the Sanjin Company. Since then, Huang Jinyong knew that he was in the wrong and rarely asked about the situation of the Sanjin Company. He just served as a shareholder and waited for dividends.

Now look what has happened. Upon hearing that the local products were robbed, Huang Ma Pi actually had the nerve to come and demand accountability?

Out of consideration for his reputation, Zhang Xiaolin didn't say anything excessive, but he was still cold and sarcastic.

"Go back and tell the old man that there is nothing wrong with our local products, and just tell him to wait for the dividends at the end of the year."

"Nothing happened?" Huang Jinyong's student was a little suspicious. "Brother Xiaolin, are you sure everything is fine? The police have received a report and even found the company's cargo boxes. The stolen goods are all there. They are our local products. How can you say nothing happened?"

"What?" Zhang Xiaolin made a strange sound. "The company's goods are exactly the same weight, not a penny less. Where did they find the stolen goods? It's totally inexplicable!"

Huang Jinyong's students were not willing to be outdone: "How could I possibly say such a big thing? The things are in the police station now. If you don't believe it, just go and take a look!"

The two of them argued back and forth.

At this moment, Du Yong suddenly had an idea and hurriedly called Ye Chaosan and Rong Qingrui.

"You two, before daybreak, go to various newspapers and ask about the situation!"

(End of this chapter)