si-mexico Chapter 994 Finally Home
Chapter 994 Finally Home
As Wu Mingqiang drove, he said, "The losses aren't too great. However, Chen De is still nowhere to be found. People have been coming to redeem the missing pawned items in the past few days, and we've lost a sum of money. When Chen De left, he took the money with him. He only knew when I found him."
Gui'er frowned and said, "Chen Chaofeng doesn't seem like the kind of person who would abscond with money. Maybe he's scared of Ouyang Bao, or something. When we find him, we should ask him first."
Dingxiang chimed in, "Yeah, yeah, Qiang-ge, you know what? Professor Xu read the newspaper and was even worried that you were the one who killed Bai Ling. He said you have a background in the underworld and it's very possible you did it."
Wu Mingqiang's face immediately darkened.
Gui'er quickly said, "Brother Wu, don't hold a grudge against someone you don't know well. We all know you're not like that." Then she rolled her eyes at Dingxiang and said, "It's all in the past, why bring it up again?"
Wu Mingqiang laughed and said, "How would Mr. Xu know about my past? Mr. Chen must have told you, right? Miss, don't worry, we are no longer members of the Ji family. I won't embarrass you. Speaking of which, Long Xing values me highly. He wants me to come and work for him."
Gui'er was taken aback for a moment, then said, "What did Long Xing ask you to do for him? It can't be to become a policeman, can it?"
"Haha. Detective Long doesn't lack police officers; what he lacks is people to manage the area. He originally had some gangs under his command, like the Five Righteous Men and the White Tiger Gang. Oh, right, the Five Righteous Men were originally under Ouyang Bao's command, but Ouyang Bao is dead now, isn't he? And all the entertainment venues, opium dens, casinos, and dance halls nearby have all fallen under Detective Long's control. He's now the new detective of Kowloon Walled City. His area of control is even wider, and all of these need Detective Long's protection. He desperately needs someone to do things for him and manage these things. He said he thinks highly of me."
Gui'er frowned and asked, "So, what exactly are the things you're doing for him?"
Wu Mingqiang chuckled and said, "Is that even a question? Those gangs, entertainment venues, opium dens, casinos, and brothels that have to pay him tribute can't just stuff money into his hands. After all, he's a detective, and he still has to save face. So he needs someone to collect the debts for him. And if any problems arise in these places, if he doesn't want things to escalate, someone has to represent him and mediate. In short, it's similar to what the young marshal asked me to do when we were in Jiangcheng."
Gui'er said worriedly, "It's still a bit different. In Jiangcheng, at least our family is in charge. Brother Wu, you can be considered to be maintaining the local balance in secret. This is a colony. Long Xing himself works for foreigners. What he makes you do is all shady stuff, which is no different from the mafia. I'm afraid that if something happens, Long Xing will push you out as a scapegoat."
After listening for a moment, Wu Mingqiang said in silence, "Miss, your analysis makes sense."
At this moment, the car slowly drove up to the gate of their villa. Wu Mingqiang honked the horn twice, and the gate slowly opened.
The car drove into the courtyard. Gui'er got out of the car and was about to walk into the house when she suddenly noticed that some people seemed to be looking curiously into the courtyard from outside the door.
Gui'er turned around and saw that, apart from some passersby looking in curiously, even her neighbors on both sides and the servants in their courtyards were pretending to glance in this direction unintentionally.
She suddenly remembered that Ouyang Bao's wife had come here in a big way to loot things and loudly proclaimed that she wanted to marry Ouyang Bao. These people must have known for a long time that Ouyang Bao had forced her to marry him. Now that she had come back, they were here to watch the show.
At this moment, Wu Mingqiang walked to the back of the car, opened the trunk, took out a heavy suitcase, and said to her, "Miss, I'll put the luggage inside first."
Gui'er was stunned for a moment, then immediately realized that this was a prop prepared by Wu Mingqiang to pretend that he had returned from a long trip.
She went along with it, smiling and nodding, then naturally turned to the old lady on the second floor of the neighboring courtyard and said loudly with a smile, "Madam, it's been a long time! I've been back in my hometown for a while. How have you been?"
The old lady usually stayed indoors, but today she moved a small table to her second-floor balcony to drink tea. Whether it was intentional or not, she could see the entire courtyard of Gui'er from her balcony.
When Gui'er greeted her, she was clearly unprepared and a little embarrassed. She forced a smile and said, "You're back... How's everything back home?"
Gui'er had been reading the newspapers for the past few days and knew about the war in the mainland. She just casually said what she read in the newspapers.
"Oh dear, this is terrible! The city is under air raids every day. Many transportation lines, factories, shops, and houses in the city and surrounding areas have been destroyed. Schools are closed, hospitals are overflowing with people, and people have to run into air-raid shelters all day long. There are large numbers of refugees everywhere, prices are soaring, rice is extremely expensive, and there are groups of beggars begging on the streets."
Workers and shop assistants lost their livelihoods, and people had to queue up to hoard daily necessities. The government implemented supply controls, so my family told me to come back as soon as possible; it's safer in Hong Kong.
The old lady and her servants, who were just there to watch the spectacle, widened their eyes in horror upon hearing Gui'er's vivid description. They exclaimed, "Oh dear, that's truly a tragedy! It's a blessing that you've returned safely this time. Hong Kong is so safe!"
Gui'er smiled and said, "That's right, I'm tired too. Let's go inside and rest for a while. See you later."
Once inside, she breathed a sigh of relief, and Acheng slowly closed the villa's door.
Dingxiang covered her mouth and chuckled, whispering, "Miss, what you're saying sounds so real."
Sister-in-law Aying came over with tea and snacks, bowed to Gui'er and said, "Greetings, Miss. It's so good to see you back safely. Butler Wu said you went back to your hometown, and I was so worried. There's a war going on in the mainland."
Gui'er glanced at Wu Mingqiang. It seemed that he didn't particularly trust Sister-in-law Aying and her husband Liujin and hadn't told them the truth.
She went along with it, saying, "Yes, but I'm back safely now. How are you and Liu Jin? Did you get hurt when Ouyang Bao came to cause trouble that day?"
"Liu Jin was beaten up, but it was all superficial injuries. Later, Ouyang Bao let the two of them watch the house here, and they were provided with food and drink, so they didn't suffer much injustice," Wu Mingqiang interjected.
"Butler Wu, are you blaming us for not resisting? But he's the police chief, what could we do?"